Nerdy characters, stereotypes, and appearances

Samsonet

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Looking at the books I really liked last year, I noticed many of them had one thing in common: nerds. Always a white male, always redheaded, freckled and glasses-wearing. Always very smart and interested on the usual nerdy stuff.

But each of the books twisted the stereotype in a different way. One was a prankster, another caused his own unpopularity, one expected to get beat up by a bully but ended up helping him instead...

So I was wondering if there are other descriptions that act as shorthand for a specific kind of character? The nerdy appearance is the most obvious one to me, but there are probably others. Also, when you're describing a character, do you emphasize stereotypical traits if you're going to subvert them?

(I want to make it clear that I love the nerd-twist books, so please don't think I'm bashing them by calling them stereotypical.)
 

Bookmama

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I'm pretty sure that girls with long-blond hair are expected to be superficial. And yes, I think it's great to describe someone a certain way and build reader's expectations than show the reader the character is something else. I think someone also wrote a book with a main character being Asian and struggling in school and saying it was awful because everyone expected him to be a genius.
 

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Nerds at heart have no set shape, color or size. I am not a red-headed boy with glasses, for example.

Yeah, but the ones in books are. :p Or at least the main boy character is. The words used interests me, actually; the character is usually described as a nerd only if they fit the stereotype. Otherwise, they're called geeks, dorks, dweebs, misfits -- but not nerds. It's odd. Or maybe it's just the books that I've been reading.

I seem to remember a book where the brown-haired protag is called a nerd, but I haven't been successful in finding it yet.
 

C.bronco

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You haven't read my autobiography, which is understandable because I haven't written it yet. Nerds can also be popular and attractive, as I have experienced from the many nerds I have known. It is a state of mind, not a physical type. Sometimes, they are the cool kids, but maybe not officially until adulthood.
 

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You haven't read my autobiography, which is understandable because I haven't written it yet. Nerds can also be popular and attractive, as I have experienced from the many nerds I have known. It is a state of mind, not a physical type. Sometimes, they are the cool kids, but maybe not officially until adulthood.

Oh, now I get your point.

(Will your autobiography explain how you got the title of "Official Biscuiteer of NASCAR"? Because I'd really like to read that.)
 

Usher

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You haven't read my autobiography, which is understandable because I haven't written it yet. Nerds can also be popular and attractive, as I have experienced from the many nerds I have known. It is a state of mind, not a physical type. Sometimes, they are the cool kids, but maybe not officially until adulthood.

That's my experience. When I got to university everyone else was trying to be "different" whereas I'd had years of practice and did it effortlessly.

I was a fairly pretty, female brunette (admittedly with glasses but they were never nerdy).

Harry Potter wasn't a redhead - his mate was.
 

mccardey

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Can I just say as the mother of a nerd that I wish I'd birthed my nerd about 10 years later... Apparently, it does get better.

Which is a good thing.

Just - kind of lateish.
 

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Nerds at heart have no set shape, color or size. I am not a red-headed boy with glasses, for example.

So true. I like trying to switch things up and make characters not be who the reader might take them as when they read their appearance...though I did write a red-headed nerdy girl with big glasses in one instance :tongue