Writing Writing A Stupid MC

DalangTala

ℳᴇʀᴇ ℋᴜᴍᴀɴ
Joined
Jun 13, 2019
Messages
93
Points
73
My novel has a stupid MC. It's supposed to be a novel where no characters give a fuck about anything. I just don't know how to write a character that's stupid yet not annoying.

What are your thoughts? What is the right type of stupid for you?

Personally, I prefer the smarter MCs but I wanted to challenge myself with Coco. Through writing, she's having a little more depth but I still prefer if she's a little bit stupid.
 
Last edited:

Owl

Nervous writer
Joined
Apr 10, 2019
Messages
143
Points
103
Is it a stupid or an ignorant character? If it's true stupid, then it's easier if they're quite adorable and endearing despite being a bit dumb. Ignorant characters are more interesting for me, especially when it comes to how they deal with their ignorance (do they want to keep it and purposefully ignore the world around them, or do they want to learn)
 

AliceShiki

Magical Girl of Love and Justice
Joined
Dec 23, 2018
Messages
3,530
Points
183
Well, that's tough... I don't have many thoughts aside from... Make them look stupid through their actions?

Like, if everyone around them calls them stupid, but they still act smart, then that will juat look silly... You'll have to make them actually do stupid stuff if you want them to look stupid.

Perhaps try imagining how a child would act in that situation and then make the MC do something similar?
 

Assurbanipal_II

Empress of the Four Corners of the World
Joined
Jul 27, 2019
Messages
1,921
Points
153
Rarely seen any smart MCs, or at least MCs I would consider smart. Any recommendations in that regard? Novels with smart protagonists?

As for stupid MCs, we authors generally write well what we know and in order to write a stupid MC ... well, I think the answer is obvious what you have to be.
 

DalangTala

ℳᴇʀᴇ ℋᴜᴍᴀɴ
Joined
Jun 13, 2019
Messages
93
Points
73
Is it a stupid or an ignorant character? If it's true stupid, then it's easier if they're quite adorable and endearing despite being a bit dumb. Ignorant characters are more interesting for me, especially when it comes to how they deal with their ignorance (do they want to keep it and purposefully ignore the world around them, or do they want to learn)
She's a flower of evil. I guess I'll have to try making her a bit more likeable.
 

Nerodith

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 26, 2020
Messages
37
Points
58
How stupid, though ? Stupid-stupid ? Lack of common sense ? Dense ?
And why are they stupid ? A character that is stupid just for the sake of the story will most likely get more hate than a character who has reasons to be stupid. Like, a monster character that turns into a human won't have the same values and common sense than most humans and will inevitably make mistakes. That's understandable.
You also have to take in account the undertone of the story. Stupid characters will get a lot more hate in a serious story than in a comical one. Take Katarina for example. She's dense af, but because the story is a comedy, people love her. The misanderstandings are actually funny instead of being frustrating.
And, lastly, what are the stakes for your MC ? You said no one gives a damn about anything in your story, so stupid actions will be more acceptable, whereas in a serious situation, stupid actions lead to serious consequences that could have been easily avoided, so it will naturally trigger your readers more.
 

Owl

Nervous writer
Joined
Apr 10, 2019
Messages
143
Points
103
She's a flower of evil. I guess I'll have to try making her a bit more likeable.
So is she literally stupid, as in, not very intelligent, super slow on the uptake etc?
 

CupcakeNinja

Pervert Supreme
Joined
Jan 1, 2019
Messages
3,066
Points
183
My novel has a stupid MC. It's supposed to be a novel where no characters give a fuck about anything. I just don't know how to write a character that's stupid yet not annoying.

What are your thoughts? What is the right type of stupid for you?

Personally, I prefer the smarter MCs but I wanted to challenge myself with Coco. Through writing, she's having a little more depth but I still prefer if she's a little bit stupid.
This is how i would write a stupid character. Just gonna jump right in. Ahem:

Let me tell you a few stories about how stupid my sister is.

Alright guys so there I am right. Laying in bed all comfy and warm with my adorable sister, Dolly, at my side. Now, some people would find this cute, yeah? And so would I, really, if not for the fact that at the time she was pounding the back of her head against my forearm.

"What the hell are you doing?" I'd asked.

"I'm trying to soften it up." She'd explained, complete with a frustrated grunt as she continued her attempts at tenderizing.

"That's my arm, Dolly."

"I know, it's hard as a rock." The girl complained.

And that's not even the half of it. Allow me to recount what happened the very next morning. I was sitting at the table chewing on a piece of bacon with Mother and Father when Dolly walks in with a stretch. Notices me, slides into a chair and lightly elbows my side.

"So what'd you think of them dreams last night, huh big guy?"

"...What?"

And my parents and I were all looking at each other thinking, "She thinks we all have the same dreams?

She's 12. For twelve years she thought we, me and her, had the same dreams. Like they were just programmed in, like a whole goddamn set.

"What dreams?" Mother inquired.

And the girl only passed me a knowing smile, "Let's talk after breakfast."


These stories MAY have been mostly plagiarised from Bert Kreischer and changed up a bit to suit my needs, but thats totally how i'd do it anyway. All it would take is one good blunt.

You dont have to make the characters stupid intellectually, but you can make them stupid in way of their common sense or what they think is a "good idea" Like, say, making a safe word "motherfucker" or wanting to get a wolf sleeve tattoo with the tail ending at her finger so that you know she's happy whenever she wags her finger.

Or in my case, making her think she can take over the world by using baked goods for the ultimate goal of incestifying the globe so she can legally marry her brother.
 

DalangTala

ℳᴇʀᴇ ℋᴜᴍᴀɴ
Joined
Jun 13, 2019
Messages
93
Points
73
You dont have to make the characters stupid intellectually, but you can make them stupid in way of their common sense
My MC is actually like this. She's not too stupid to function but her social skills are lacking. Also, her antics are mainly where her stupidity shows. Also, her intelligence is not really high.

How stupid, though ? Stupid-stupid ? Lack of common sense ? Dense ?
And why are they stupid ? A character that is stupid just for the sake of the story will most likely get more hate than a character who has reasons to be stupid. Like, a monster character that turns into a human won't have the same values and common sense than most humans and will inevitably make mistakes. That's understandable.
You also have to take in account the undertone of the story. Stupid characters will get a lot more hate in a serious story than in a comical one. Take Katarina for example. She's dense af, but because the story is a comedy, people love her. The misanderstandings are actually funny instead of being frustrating.
And, lastly, what are the stakes for your MC ? You said no one gives a damn about anything in your story, so stupid actions will be more acceptable, whereas in a serious situation, stupid actions lead to serious consequences that could have been easily avoided, so it will naturally trigger your readers more.
This is really helpful.

This is how i would write a stupid character. Just gonna jump right in. Ahem:

Let me tell you a few stories about how stupid my sister is.

Alright guys so there I am right. Laying in bed all comfy and warm with my adorable sister, Dolly, at my side. Now, some people would find this cute, yeah? And so would I, really, if not for the fact that at the time she was pounding the back of her head against my forearm.

"What the hell are you doing?" I'd asked.

"I'm trying to soften it up." She'd explained, complete with a frustrated grunt as she continued her attempts at tenderizing.

"That's my arm, Dolly."

"I know, it's hard as a rock." The girl complained.

And that's not even the half of it. Allow me to recount what happened the very next morning. I was sitting at the table chewing on a piece of bacon with Mother and Father when Dolly walks in with a stretch. Notices me, slides into a chair and lightly elbows my side.

"So what'd you think of them dreams last night, huh big guy?"

"...What?"

And my parents and I were all looking at each other thinking, "She thinks we all have the same dreams?

She's 12. For twelve years she thought we, me and her, had the same dreams. Like they were just programmed in, like a whole goddamn set.

"What dreams?" Mother inquired.

And the girl only passed me a knowing smile, "Let's talk after breakfast."


These stories MAY have been mostly plagiarised from Bert Kreischer and changed up a bit to suit my needs, but thats totally how i'd do it anyway. All it would take is one good blunt.

You dont have to make the characters stupid intellectually, but you can make them stupid in way of their common sense or what they think is a "good idea" Like, say, making a safe word "motherfucker" or wanting to get a wolf sleeve tattoo with the tail ending at her finger so that you know she's happy whenever she wags her finger.

Or in my case, making her think she can take over the world by using baked goods for the ultimate goal of incestifying the globe so she can legally marry her brother.
To give a clearer idea on her antics, here's an excerpt from a chapter.


She thought about her mother's advices and decided to make a bucket listthings she should accomplish by the end of high school.

"Let me see. What do transmigrators usually do?"

Eradicate my family.

The thought only passed for a moment and she crossed it out.

I shall quietly create soaps and sell it.

"I don't know how to make soaps. Perhaps, I'm not a real transmigrator in an otome game."

Have a reverse harem and love everybody equally.

"The imperial harem is a war zone, the life of the emperor is not easy."

She crossed out a few more before finalizing the list.

....

Since it's about a girl who transmigrated as a villainess to an otome game. Yep, that trope.
 

CupcakeNinja

Pervert Supreme
Joined
Jan 1, 2019
Messages
3,066
Points
183
This is really helpful.
I agree. Sometimes the reason things dont work out for authors is because they make characters that dont fit the story. Not to say that cant work, but it normally doesnt. Also that excerpt was great. It did a good job of showing how nuts her thought process can be
 

TLCsDestiny

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 2, 2019
Messages
249
Points
83
Ideas only:
On the rare occasion, I like to do the opposite of what I may actually write: If I'm thinking logically, I think, 'hang on, this toon isn't logical...' and do the opposite. (Example: Instead of getting some guard to get something out of the tree, the toon attempts and fails to go up the tree and get whatever down on their own.)
Actually, it shouldn't be all that hard to write a stupid character because being stupid doesn't take a lot of effort. Get into a lazy thinking type of way for a while and then write the toon...Just another idea.
If those ideas don't work, perhaps have a character in mind of what you want them to act like, for instance 'forrest gump'. ('Yeah, I can't see Forrest saying that').
If all ideas fail, and it becomes hard to figure out, ask someone fitting your image of what they would do if you give them the play by play details.
lol good luck
 

Ral

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 15, 2019
Messages
604
Points
133
Well, I like stupid characters that have logic behind their stupidity. I always find it irritating when stupid characters just do random stupid things because ... Well, they are stupid. The stupidity is just meaningless. Their stupidity isn't a character trait or personality but white noise.
 
Joined
Jan 15, 2019
Messages
1,936
Points
153
if no one gives a damn about anything, it can be a surreal novel or a dream?

maybe you can write it like someone having a dream. like the main character would suck ferraris into their nostrils and vomit spaghetti out of it, because you just felt like writing so.

not exactly stupid, just illogical. stupid is kinda subjective to me--everything can be stupid if you want to.
 

CL

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 30, 2020
Messages
507
Points
133
Just imagine a scenario that would have somebody saying, "You can't be serious." Honestly, at work, I have a lot of those experiences. The best line I ever heard from work was ketchup being sent back to be reprocessed because "It isn't fluffy enough." Seriously?

Stuff like hat would be a way to make the stupid in a character stand out. Just think of people who thought they had a bright idea, but when analyzed, it turned out to be a potato in a light-bulb socket... Potatoes generate electricity right? I think I've seen that somewhere in a science experiment. :blob_hmm_two:
 

BenJepheneT

Light Up Gold - Parquet Courts
Joined
Jul 14, 2019
Messages
5,344
Points
233
Is the character stupid intentionally? That's what matters.
 
D

Deleted member 22388

Guest
I recommend watching baka to test if you want to learn in the field "stupid"
Oh remember to make your ear big k.
 
Top