Hellooo, everybody! You guys have been asking for  this video forever! So I'm finally doin’ it, okay?  

You better appreciate it. A while back I made a  video listing my ten best tips for writing women,  

and today I'm listing my ten best tips for writing  men. We're flipping the script, and talking about  

hunky-funky dudes in fiction, and how to write  ‘em right. Let me start things off with what I  

hope is the obvious. In case you didn't notice,  I am not a man. That means I am not speaking from  

personal experience. Instead, in order to write  male characters and to prepare for this video,  

I talked to a lot of men: black men,  white men, tall men, short men, gay men,  

straight men, trans men, cis men—all the  men! The point is unlike most of my videos,  

this advice is not coming from a lived experience.  However, I did lots of thorough research to make  

sure I was giving you as reliable of information  as possible. Combining all my manly research with  

the many shitty male characters I've read, I am  breaking down my ten best tips for writing male  

characters, specifically if you yourself are not  a man. Please take this advice and ruminate on it,  

implement it, and for God's sake, stop  writing crappy men. And for anyone who's  

offended by this video, I'm not sorry and also  seek help. None of this should be controversial,  

but I know that people are a special breed  of stupid, so what can you do? Enjoy.   

(The sound of a pen scratching. LOGO)

Today's topic was  requested by so many people, but in particular,  

it was requested by my patrons over on  Patreon: Cindy, Tina, Angela and Rachel.  

Like so many people who aren't of the male  persuasion, they wanted to make sure they  

wrote their male characters accurately. And hey,  that's what I'm here for, you're welcome. Also,  

in case you missed it, The Savior Series fan  art contest is going down right now. Three lucky

winners will be walking away with massive TSC  prize packs, including signed copies of my books,  

merchandise, as well as exclusive merch that no  one else has access to. If you wanna participate,  

the contest is open internationally, and you can  enter as many times as you want. I have it linked  

in the description below. You will find all the  details ready and available for you. Don't forget  

to subscribe to my channel. I post new videos  on Wednesdays. And if you wanna be alerted as  

SOON as I upload, ring that bell. I give tons of  writing advice. Some of it's a little bit saucy,  

some of it is a little bit cussy, some of  it is a little bit salacious, but I'm just  

being me. I also host contests all the time,  so you should totally ring the bell and get  

involved. The Savior's Champion and The Savior’s  Sister are available in ebook, paperback, hardback  

and audiobooks. So if you like yourself some dark  fantasy, and you like yourself some romance, and  

you wanna mash ‘em together, I got the puff—the  puffect! The puffect. I’ve got the perfect  

book series for you. So definitely check out my  books, they are linked below. And now I am diving  

into my ten best tips for writing male characters  in fiction. These tips are based on loads of  

research, loads of interviews with men, and loads  of reading. Trigger warning: I will be discussing  

sexual assault at this point of the video. So  if that sort of thing is triggering for you,  

no worries, just skip this time and you'll be good  to go. Number One (1): You know how society has  

loads of expectations for women? Yeah, it's also  got expectations for men. I'm mentioning this  

first because people regularly confuse societal  expectation with biology. Men are expected to be  

strong, tough, powerful and emotionless. And thus  we assume it's biology. That isn't necessarily  

the case. Yes, men are often larger than women,  and typically being larger means producing more  

muscle, but that doesn't necessarily equate to  being both physically and emotionally stronger. It  

doesn't equate to being naturally protective. And  it certainly doesn't equate to being emotionless.  

There are a lot of preconceived notions forced  onto men that push them to “man up.” They're  

expected to not cry and to take charge, they  are pushed into leadership roles whether or not  

they're prepared. This again is societal. These  are roles that are forced onto a person whether  

or not they are naturally suited for it. This is  not my way of saying that men aren't strong or  

protective, and that they're actually super crazy  emotional. It's my way of saying as a writer,  

you absolutely cannot confuse society with  biology. If you're writing a story that takes  

place in this world, the world we live in, you  need to understand who your male character is,  

and how he fits into this world’s expectations,  or maybe even adjust his personality to fit  

into these expectations. If you're writing about a  completely fictional universe that you've created,  

then you get to make up any societal expectations  you want. You don't have to make your male  

characters fit into the expectations of our  world. Bottom line, learn to differentiate  

between society and biology. It'll make a supreme  difference in your writing of any character  

regardless of gender. Which brings us to, Number  Two (2): Men have emotions, I promise. Again,  

just because society tells men to be stoic,  doesn't mean they're not feeling a whole bunch  

of shit on the inside. And no, I'm not talking  about anger, which apparently is the only emotion  

men are allowed to have. Just because men may not  be as inclined to freely express their emotions,  

doesn't mean they're unfeeling. Which is an  important thing to consider if you're writing  

from a male point of view. Maybe the character  isn't crying, that doesn't mean he's not feeling  

incredible pain, guilt or remorse. As a writer you  need to convey that internal struggle, otherwise  

readers won't be able to believe or connect to the  character. Sadness, joy, excitement, nervousness,  

self doubt—all of these are normal emotions that  are experienced by most people within this world.  

And yes, anger is absolutely on the table. But  keep in mind, most men don't punch walls when  

they're mad. Might as well have him fling his poo  while you're at it. Number Three (3): It's not  

all about sex all the time. Jesus Christ people, I  know men have a stereotype of being super sexual.  

And yes, some men are very horny, but I promise  you, if they were as horny as you're writing  

they would go extinct. They would be spending  all their time putting their dick into shit,  

not working towards basic life skills. The caveman  would be too busy fucking to protect themselves  

from the dinosaurs charging their way. This is  scientifically accurate, I looked it up. Look,  

I live with a man, and get this, he's able to cook  his own dinner without humping anything. Magic.  

And I'm not saying you should write your male  characters as chaste, but writing “My cock agees”  

over and over again is too damn much. Calm down.  Again, this stereotype mostly comes from societal  

expectation. Yes, sex drive is innate  in many people but across the globe,  

men are encouraged to be sexual, whereas women are  expected to be pure. These expectations are not  

necessarily indicative of reality. Some women are  raging sex fiends, and some men are romantics who  

would rather wait for the right person. Some men  are too focused on their goals to care about sex,  

and some men don't care about sex at  all because asexuality and greysexuality  

are things that exist. Number Four (4): Underdogs  and losers are not synonymous. Everyone loves an  

underdog. They're very popular in hero stories,  especially if the hero is male. But an underdog  

is someone people underestimate, someone who maybe  doesn't have the best reputation. That's not the  

same as being a completely unlikable pile of shit.  It's unfortunately common to write an underdog  

as the latter. He's not smart, he's not kind, he  has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Remember,  

an underdog has to eventually win, which means  there needs to be something going for him. It's  

just that these positive traits are overlooked  by a majority of people, so think of it this way,  

if the character is an underdog and athletic  sense, then maybe it's because they're small  

or not particularly muscular. If he's an underdog  in terms of politics maybe it's because he's poor,  

or from a lower class. These are appropriate  underdog traits, but you need to offset them  

with positive traits that not only endear them  to the reader, but help them achieve their goals.  

He may be small, but he's quick, live, and  nimble. He may be poor, but he's charming,  

intelligent and loved by the people. This  is how you craft an effective underdog that  

people root for. Number Five (5): Fuck is a gender  neutral word. This may seem like a weird point,  

but I see this a lot, especially in female written  romances. Ladies, stop it. When someone writes a  

dual perspective story, especially with one male  voice and one female voice, you typically need  

to differentiate between the points of view. And  it's painfully common for writers to differentiate  

these voices using the word fuck. You can tell  we’re in the female point of view, because she  

speaks like a nun. And you can tell we're in the  male point of view, because he uses the word fuck  

like a comma. Look, I have no problem with the  F-word, but that's my point, I'm a woman! It's not  

inherently masculine to swear. And even people  who swear prolifically, do so with intention. No  

one talks like “I (beep noise) went to the (beep  noise) store and I (beep noise) (beep noise) with  

the (beep noise)” If this is the only way you  can define masculinity, maybe get out into the  

world. Meet an actual human male, you may discover  that they have a wider vocabulary than a single  

four letter word. Number Six (6): Did you know  the average height for men in the United States is  

5’9? So if all of your male characters are in the  height range of 6’ to 6’7, me thinks you're being  

a bit unrealistic. “But Jennaaa, heights vary  by region, obviously!” That's true. And a recent  

poll of fifteen different countries rated the  average male height as being between 5’11 and 5’4.  

See what happened? They got shorter, your argument  fucked you. A lot of people are attracted to tall  

men, just like they're attracted to chiseled  jaw lines, and six packs. But unless you're  

writing about a beauty contest, a strip joint,  or another setting where physical appearance  

dictates relevance, an entire cast of 6’5  bodybuilders with eight packs and butt-chins  

just isn't realistic. It's about as believable  as a cast of bleached blonde grammar models with  

natural BBLs and circus tits. Even if the man's  super athletic, not everyone can get a six pack,  

there is a genetic predisposition there. And if  their love interest is the same old tired cliched,  

five foot diminutive, do they really need to be  bumping uglies with someone who's 6’7? I've said  

it a million times, I'm all for writing attractive  characters, but it's possible to couple beauty  

with realism. Number Seven (7): Dominance doesn't  have to be predatory. Ladies, I know you wanna  

write about a strong, confident, powerful man.  And I get it you want a guy who makes you feel  

protected. But predatory behavior is the opposite  of protection. Ever consider that? Dominance comes  

from a Type A personality, it means you have power  and influence over people. You're comfortable and  

natural in a leadership position. There's nothing  wrong with this. These are great desirable traits.  

But you can write a man with these traits, without  making him a predator. Having influence over  

people is not the same as forcing your power. In  fact, if you have to force your influence, that's  

the opposite of having influence. I'm just begging  you to understand that you can write a strong  

confident man without making him a sex offender.  It's about how they carry themselves, it's about  

courage, it's about charisma and how they garner  attention. If anyone of any gender has to force  

you to follow their lead, that's the opposite of  what you've intended. It's not dominance, it's  

just gross. Get therapy. On a related note, Number  Eight (8): Men can also be victims by the way.  

A lot of people seem to be under this ridiculous  misconception, and I'm here to correct it. Boys  

and men can be victims of sexual assault. And  they are victims of sexual assault, frequently.  

And yet I have lost track of the number of times  that I have read a scene where a character is  

forcing themselves onto a man, and we are supposed  to read it as some hot and heavy sexual awakening.  

Look, I don't care about the genders involved,  if you are forcing your genitals someone's way,  

that's disgusting! Just because men are supposedly  crazy about sex, doesn't mean that consent is  

irrelevant. Men are allowed to resist. And, big  shocker, they're allowed to not be attracted to  

you. It's not some proclamation of power for a  character of any gender to assert their sexual  

dominance over a man. And claiming otherwise is a  huge slap in the face to male readers around the  

world. Number Nine (9): Alphas and betas don't  exist. This whole alpha-beta thing is so dumb,  

I feel like I actually brain cells every time  I read about it. First of all, the hierarchy is  

based on pseudoscience, it doesn't actually exist  in the wild. And second, you mean to tell me that  

all men can be easily divided up into one of two  categories? Every single man, just like that? Wow.  

What's worse is these categories essentially  represent extremes. Beta males are doormats,  

and alphas are basically sexual predators. And  apparently there's nothing in between, yikes. This  

yet again comes down to terrible characterization.  If you can't write a man without shoving him into  

one of these terrible man-made boxes, you need to  hone your craft a little bit. A lot a bit. Flesh  

your characters out, create character profiles,  see men as human beings capable of layers and  

depth. While predators and doormats absolutely do  exist, they are not an accurate representation of  

all men in the entire world. Thus, they should  not make up the entire cast of your novel.  

Which brings us to Number Ten (10): Men are  not a monolith. When people write their male  

characters in a stereotypical way, usually  as womanizing, sex crazed, stupid douchebags,  

they often provide the same reasoning. “Well,  he's a guy.” Okay, and? Do douchebags exist?  

Absolutely. But “He's a guy” is a pretty shit  explanation for regurgitating the same character  

type over and over again. This may shock you, but  there are literally billions of men on the planet,  

and some of them are different from one another.  I know, I can hardly believe it myself. Yes,  

it's fine to write the occasional douchebag. Just  like it's fine to write the occasional airhead.  

But if this is the only male character that  you can create, because you think it's the  

only kind of man that exists, all I've got to  ask is, what rock have you been living under?  

It's a weak attempt at excusing poor writing. You  live in this world. You know that men are diverse  

and varied. You've seen it with your own eyes.  Not every male character needs a perpetual boner,  

cuz he's a guy. Not every male character needs to  be a cheater because he's a guy. Not every male  

character needs to punch drywall, or play sports,  or talk endlessly about tits because he's a guy. A  

better idea would be to actually practice the art  of characterization, and create three dimensional  

characters. You know, just a thought. I'll let you  percolate on that, but please, consider it deeply.  

Deeply! So that's all I got for you today.  Thanks again to the zillions of patrons who  

requested today's topic. If you'd like the chance  to have a video dedicated to you, or if you want  

access to tons of other rewards, check me out on  Patreon. You get early access to all of my videos.  

So when you see those comments down below that  are coming in early, those are from my patrons.  

I’m just sayin’. We also have an exclusive writing  group. We have monthly live streams, and you get  

access to sign books! I have my Patreon linked  below. Don't forget to subscribe to my channel.  

I post new videos on Wednesdays. And if you wanna  be alerted as SOON as I upload, ring that bell.  

The Savior's Champion and The Savior’s Sister  are available in ebook, paperback hardback and  

audiobooks. So if you like dark fantasy, and you  like romance, and you'd like ‘em mash together,  

definitely check ‘em out. I have them linked  below. And be sure to follow me on social media,  

I'm on Instagram, Tumblr, Facebook and BookBub.  And of course you can tweet me @JennaMoreci! Bye!

(Female Voice) Hey everyone! I'm Emma Tigan,  narrator for The Savior’s Sister written by Jenna  

Moreci. If you enjoy her channel and want to hear  more writing advice and updates about her books,  

be sure to subscribe and ring the bell! That way,  you'll know as soon as her content goes live!