Something happened at Bronycon which changed my opinion on Mary Sues. One of the first MLP fanfics I read was about a classic first-person Mary Sue—bulging muscles, godlike powers, and everypony from Twilight to Celestia wanted to sleep with him.

I had read many comments by its author on other stories. He was smart, diligent, and generous. And he took his Mary Sue story seriously and was proud of it. He loved that story. It was well-written and had many positive reviews, as well as hateful ones telling him he had written a Mary Sue and should feel ashamed. I could never tell how much of it was serious and how much of it was tongue-in-cheek. I didn’t know what to make of it all.

I met him at BronyCon and learned a little bit more about him. He had a rough childhood. He could have used a powerful magical alicorn to come and make everything right, but he didn’t have one.

I may be totally off base in drawing a connection between that, and his fanfic. But if he gets something that he needs out of a story in which he is powerful and loved, who the fuck are you to tell him that’s bad art?