The most Mary Sue main character of the books I've read was in the Mary Russell series by Laurie King.

The whole series feels like self-insert fanfiction. I rolled my eyes so much.

wait perfectionist and perfect are very different! Being perfectionist is a kind of character flaw isn't it? The characters mentioned by PPs are radically different along these lines: "perfect" characters are unrealistic and not relatable to our sensibilities whereas "perfectionist" characters come across as anxious, vulnerable, and flawed in a way that can be very interesting and very relatable .

I admit that when I saw your subject I thought you were going to talk about "perfect" in a totally different way: characters that were flawed and positive in such a way that makes them very likeable.

Anyway, I think your question is very interesting and wish I understood the nuances of your character better.

Anonymous wrote:I think a lot of males in rom-com novels are too close to perfect. They are always serious/broody/on the surface grumpy. But get to know them and they are loyal, heart of good and ALWAYS have a six pack 🤣

Not everyone who reads your books will like it, you don’t have to take all their feedback. You do you.

Heart of gold is what I meant to say.

And back to what I said before about your friend’s feedback—she might not like the character because she feels uncomfortable, or called out in some way, not because you need to change it to make the novel good.

I think a lot of males in rom-com novels are too close to perfect. They are always serious/broody/on the surface grumpy. But get to know them and they are loyal, heart of good and ALWAYS have a six pack 🤣

Not everyone who reads your books will like it, you don’t have to take all their feedback. You do you.

My two favorite perfectionist characters are Eleanor in Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and Auri from a novella called The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss. They are very different characters though!

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/y9wdg7/the_slow_regard_of_silent_things_what_a_gem/

^^Actually, it was really Beth who was the perfect one... Though Meg was also not all that interesting.

Anonymous wrote:I guess I don’t understand what you mean by “too perfect.” It makes me think of a book meant more as a morality play than anything else? Which honestly sounds boring. A character who is a perfectionist (with all the intensity/issues that brings) is a different story. The first makes me think of some older novels- Meg in “Little Women” or Mary in “Little House on the Prairie” but the characters do face their own trials and issues, and life does not go perfectly for them.

To work off this PP, I agree that there is a difference between a perfectionist* main character and a "perfect" character--perhaps your story leans too much towards the latter (i.e. a perfectionist that actually becomes pretty perfect?). And I think the examples of Meg and Mary are good ones--especially because they served more as foils for the imperfect protagonist, rather than the center of the story. (And the stories would have been pretty darn dull if they were the protagonists... at least if remained as "perfect" as they appeared).

*That said, I also think a perfectionist, while more interesting, is also a bit of a hard sell. Generally folks prefer unconventional, quirky, messy, anti-authority, "ahead of their time" characters--basically Jo (or even Laura).

Homer Wells in The Ciderhouse Rules

I don't understand your fundamental question. Are you looking to read books with imperfect characters?

Or are you trying to improve your own writing?

One doesn't necessarily result in the other.

Anne Tyler books have some of the best characters.

I guess I don’t understand what you mean by “too perfect.” It makes me think of a book meant more as a morality play than anything else? Which honestly sounds boring. A character who is a perfectionist (with all the intensity/issues that brings) is a different story. The first makes me think of some older novels- Meg in “Little Women” or Mary in “Little House on the Prairie” but the characters do face their own trials and issues, and life does not go perfectly for them.

I can’t think of any MC who I found “too perfect”— I probably would not read the book.

I like interesting, sometimes quirky characters and reading about how they have faced challenges. Their imperfection adds depth, IMO.

One MC who is extremely accomplished and who I found likable is Perveen Mistry in The Widows of Malabar Hill (by Sujata Massey)

I liked her because she was using her talents to help others, was not smug or preachy.

“The main character of The Widows of Malabar Hill is Perveen Mistry, one of India's first female lawyers in the 1920s. The daughter of a respected Parsi family and a law graduate of Oxford, Perveen takes on the unusual case of three Muslim widows living in purdah who have signed over their entire inheritance to a charity, leading her to uncover a murder.”

AI overview above

Not sure if this is what you are looking for— hope it is helpful.

PP...I can't even think of "too perfect" characters in a modern novel.

I found the older Bennett sister in Pride&Prejudice pretty annoying as an example of good behavior, always behaving girl.

Now that I'm thinking about this it's reminding me that I liked the bad girl in the children's book "Good little girl, bad little girl". That was a Golden Book.

Maybe your character is too sanctimonious?

Hmm. I like imperfect characters. I was amused by "How Does She Do It?". My late elementary school son snuck reading this book (definitely not age-appropriate) and I discovered later we both enjoyed the image where the mom buys a pre-baked or part-baked pie to take to a school bake sale but further pinches the crust to make it look more handmade.

Looking for novel recs with relatable/complex perfectionist characters and/or novels that you thought the character was "too perfect," i.e. poorly drawn.

I'm a writer and a friend just skewered my draft novel about a perfectionist in the 60s, who feels trapped by society's rules for women. Among other things, friend thought she was "too perfect" to be in situation she's in. I'm confused by her comments because the MC expresses doubt in the third sentence, has a rich inner life, expresses vulnerability.

I'm wondering if it's really a likability issue. My first novel had a perfectionist character, but the setting was night and day, and different era, so expressed differently (and this friend said she really liked it and her edits were fine).

Do you feel as a reader that you have to like a MC to rate a book highly? Do you relate to perfectionist characters? (Think eldest daughter syndrome.) I like my MC, but I also don't mind unlikable women characters. I tried to have a bit of fun with this, and my editor didn't have the same concerns, but would love anything to chew on right now. Recs from any genre welcome. Thanks!