➳ The Marauder Manual

Canon Characters #1 - Sirius Black

So as we've seen from my little OC series, getting your OC realistic in your story is extremely important. But as well as your own characters, the canon characters are just as vital to get right. Having the most amazing OC will make your story pretty great, however getting the canon characters wrong could ruin the great base you've made. So in this separate series, I'm going to be going through some of the main characters, and also just giving general advice to help you guys portray the characters right. Thank you to neon_lights147 for giving me this great idea! Go and check out their profile as they seem really cool!

Without further ado, we're going to start the series with Sirius Black! Like I've said earlier in this book, there is no right or wrong in fanfiction. However when you're writing about canon characters, it's important to be realistic. Many people read fanfiction because they would like to keep getting the exciting magical feel from the Harry Potter world. Though if characters aren't portrayed properly, it's simply not the same.

Sirius Black is often presented in marauder era fanfictions quite unrealistically. Here are some of the Sirius Black clichés I've noticed:

•Sirius Black is the most popular boy in the entire school.

•Sirius Black is a 'bad-boy'.

•He's made out with almost every girl in the school.

•He's strong, handsome and romantic.

There's many more, but that's just a few of the most common. Now below, I'm going to explain why the following I've just listed are most likely incorrect, or emphasised too much.

•There is no evidence provided to confirm that he was the most popular boy in school. Sirius was most likely popular, yes, however many would've found him annoying. He was disruptive in lessons, played pranks, and got good grades without trying.

•Sirius may have been uncommitted to relationships, and defiant in class, but I definitely wouldn't go as far as to say that he was a bad boy. Like I said, we still have no real proof, however this plot line/character trait is very overused in Sirius anyway, true or not, so not using it may even make your story stand out more.

•If Sirius DID use girls, it would most likely be to distract himself from his past, or to disappoint his parents even more, and not to gain him 'street-cred' or popularity.

•Sirius being strong and romantic is yet another common cliché. Sirius has been described by many as handsome by many in the real books (or suggested), but this is emphasised far too much in fanfiction. Looking at his troubled childhood, it is likely that he wouldn't have wanted a romantic, long lasting relationship, as he wanted to disappoint his pure-blooded line obsessed parents.

So there you have it: the most prominent Sirius Black mistakes and clichés! I hope this helped some of you, and that it will end up making your Sirius Black fanfictions more original and interesting in the future. If you guys have any questions, ideas for future chapters, or characters/advice you'd like for the future of the canon and OC series, please comment below. I love updating this book, and I really want to give the most helpful advice possible, so tell me what you guys would find helpful.

Happy writing!

~Rolayde~