One i just wanna say it's nice to see another thread from you and I definitely felt that discomfort from the replies of the last thread on this subject. I also wholeheartedly agree with a lot of what you've said here and the timing is kinda crazy since it's something I've been quietly mulling over while I look at my own "social life" and how I handle interpersonal connections.

I've definitely had a similar frustration with this idea of "if you just wait someone will come save you from your solitude" or however media, and even other people, tend to frame that. It truly gets tiring to hear over and over especially when you struggle to click with the folks you meet or it ends up where there's some areas where you and another person can hit it off but it totally falls apart when it comes to other aspects of each individual (something I feel like I've been dealing with a lot as I've tried going back to old spaces where I've tried to interact with others)

I would LOVE to see a story where there's a character who exists in solitude but is able to make peace with being okay on their own, still having those short periods of interaction with work or small outings but still being cozy going back to their own quiet space.

Like I always assume it's a consequence of this weird extrovert majority or that being portrayed as the ideal, so anything that strays from this perceived norm is somehow weird and wrong when that's totally not the case. It took time for sure but I've made peace with the fact that I may not have or make long term connections or have deep friendships but the social interactions I do get are still satisfying enough that I don't feel like I need more than what I've got and if by chance it does come I'll still be grateful but it's not the primary end goal, just something that could happen along the way on the path of life.

I wish I could phrase my thoughts better but I definitely agree with what you're expressing here and it'd definitely be a breath of fresh air to get an introvert character who doesn't have to go through being "fixed" to fit some societal standard of acceptable levels of social behavior

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Coming at this as a reader, is this for you or for the audience. If it's self therapy, have at it. Write that story. But there is a reason people don't write that story, people for the most part don't want to read it. Certain stories don't bring in an audience. Depressive stories, which being alone is usually seen as depressive, don't sell. There is a reason romance, where the main characters get together at the end, do sell. Because that is part of the writer/reader genre contract. That reader came to get that ending and the writer by putting it in that genre, should deliver. All I'm saying go into this with eyes open to what you want as an outcome.

I struggled with this same thing in my own life. Stories made it seem like in high school, you were supposed to have one best, best friend who was basically like your sibling whom you're co-dependant upon and a rag-tag group of weirdos who were your ride or dies. That didn't happen with me, my BFF broke my trust and I haven't spoken to her since. My group of friends in college changed semester to semester, and making friends as an adult is like being back in school again. No magic BFF has come to save me from my loneliness.

As I've learned more about myself, I learned that I am okay being alone. I need solitude to recharge, but that doesn't stop me from making social connections. If I want friends, I have to make them.

In terms of storytelling, I think people use it as an easy way to "other" their characters to make them more sympathetic, while glazing over major plot holes. For example, the MC could be clearly abused by group A, but group B is clearly better because they're more accepting. I wish there was a clean-cut way to fix it.

The only story that comes to mind that touches on this is Watamote. The main character Kuroki wants to be cute and popular, but doesn't get it in the end (in the anime; not sure how the manga goes).

I remember an episode when Kuroki relates to an anime character who was lonely like her until a classmate came by which caused a relationship to blossom. In reality, that never happens since someone sitting alone minding their business usually means "Don't bother me" which is why she doesn't get that same experience as that character.

In my case(and Kuroki's), no one will be my friend, I have to be their friend, but since I'm introverted, social interactions are mentally draining which makes it hard to bother. Those kinds of stories make socializing seem easier than it really is since someone else is doing the work.

Pretty sure you want to argue to just argue about this. When I say sell, I meant in the overall term to "buy" it. It has nothing to do with money. There is nothing wrong to just make a comic for yourself or the possibility of a small group of people to read it. And to say people flock to tragedies for thousands of years doesn't hold water as just look at tapas or webtoons or even hollywood as see what is making money. Money shows what people like as they willingly paid to go see it. It's a way of voting for what you like. I never said the subject is off limits, I say go into with your eyes open to the outcome.

Finally, all your artistic expression talk smacks of elitism. I never said you shouldn't have it but somehow you think I need to become aware that some people still have it. That is not only rude but you imply I don't "get it". No one is censoring you. If you post in a forum, expect people to respond to you with their outlook. Just because its not the outlook you want shouldn't make you defensive. It's a public forum. It's not your forum.

That story sounds like it would be an interesting read.

Personally I don't like reading a story that is depressing all the way through, depending on how you write it I might like. Back when I was still in high school, I read a lot of really depressing stories, especially ones that ended really sad but they almost always end in a way that never felt right for me. Some try too hard to make the reader happy when clearly they never resolved the issue and others don't even try to make a happy ending and just straight up kill anything good in the main character's path.

Though this is just my opinion, so I might look forward to your story if you do ever write it.

A lot of these "lonely/outcast finds friends" tend to just be fantasy. They are superficial the same way romance can be superficial. But I think people just like the escapism of them. I think of something like Naruto or My Little Pony where the friendship ends up giving them superpowers and such.

I do agree that media needs to be more open about how mental health can effect groups of people differently. How you help a lonely able bodied 12 year old girl is going to be very different than how you help a 50 year old man who is a disabled veteran. What happens when there are cultural barriers, language barriers, low income, or they live somewhere that has no community resources?

I think with a lot of these stories, I don't think we need to see the "makes 200 friends" approach. I think normalizing someone just making one friend. People socializing with their family. That someone can be lonely but still have acquaintances who are kind to them (instead of lonely people being hated by everyone). Maybe someone's best friend is their pet. Etc.

It's different from replying and the passive/aggressive attacks you put forth. You are putting the lowest based reasons for me to comment. You put out an idea. I responded. You then attack saying I don't "get it" and want to censor ideas. Then I explain I'm not and then you comment giving me motives that were not there in the first place. I think you just want to talk, so I'm going to bow out and let you go.

I'm seeing a lot of "this sounds interesting, but I don't like depressing stories" and like, there's nothing inherently depressing about being alone. Going on a walk through nature, seeing all that beauty at your own pace on your own terms? Listening to music while dancing and singing terribly because no-ones around to see your cringe? Making sloppy sketches of your favorite obscure characters or writing weird headcanons that no-one will ever read? Eating good food and watching your favorite shows?

There is something to be said about it being sad that you're missing out on human connection, dancing and singing with your friends is more fun than dancing alone. But there is still joy there, you can still find beauty and joy while alone. And if you aren't in a position to create and uphold your connections it's good to see that.

It's been a minute since the last incident, so forgive me if I repeat myself.

I feel like I can see a story like this being made. Like a story about someone finding a hobby that brings them joy, not necessarily meeting people through it (or if they do, it's in passing) and the act of pursuing that hobby brings the main character joy in itself.

It reminds me of something I heard about one guy on Reddit who iirc got out of being an incel once he took up raising shrimp. Of course, the MC doesn't have to start off that extreme.

The only story I can think of that's kind of close to "Main character being on their own and staying that way" is one I found on Wattpad years ago (Adventures of the Travelling Fisherman by CaptinKera), but that does focus on relationships the MC has with other people, even if they're short and fleeting. Also the MC isn't really a social outcast, he's pretty socially adept but just chooses to travel alone.

Relationships can heal, but learning how to thrive while alone can heal in its own way.

Personally, I like stories centered on characters making their peace with a particular aspect of themselves. It's interesting to see them come to the realization of who they are and accept themselves, and that's a totally valid form of character development. Especially when you show everyone around them pressuring them to conform. And that's really at the core for me, the idea that people need to conform vs the acceptance of oneself after gaining a better understanding.

For what it's worth, depressing stories totally sell. It's why we have an entire genre dedicated to drama. I wrote a story on Wattpad about depression, loss, and moving on and it's a Paid Story with a decent readership and plenty of really lovely comments from readers. I didn't really expect it to do so well when I wrote it, because I knew it wasn't what most people on the site are looking for, but I enjoyed writing it and putting forth my take on the topic as it came from a personal point of view. If you're really interested in writing it, you definitely should. There's an audience out there for pretty much anything online.

Good idea, people can relate to a character like that and I´m pretty sure that a lot of
people would be interested in reading a story like that

To be fair, I don't mind stories with social outcasts finding friends as much. Then again I always the type that liked friendship stories because it helped me in some ways when I was younger.

I do believe we could use more stories on learning how to deal with loneliness without needing or waiting for another person. Let's be real, it's harder to make friends the older you get and people in life do leave or come back at times. It help younger people to learn how to be alone without waiting for others to validate them time to time.

Like @VibrantFox said, that's a problem when living in a extrovert-driven society. I think there is a market for stories and you can learn some life lessons from that. Then again, that's my opinion.

To me the "lonely protagonist being 'rescued' by a magical BFF" plot seems like the introvert's fantasy; not the fantasy of condescending extroverts trying to make everyone "normal" or w/e. Many people in your previous thread saying "humans are social animals; a character who doesn't desire interpersonal connections is not realistically human" were introverts themselves.

The "being adopted by an extrovert" meme is also mostly being cycled by introverts; they're the ones jokingly "infantilizing" themselves, not neurotypical extroverts infantilizing them by making fun of how helpless they are. It's basically the platonic version of the "manic pixie dream girl" trope.

If we're talking about a trope that actually seems to be about extroverts "fixing" introverts, it's the "comedic duo" of the quiet, serious one and the loud, silly one, where the latter continuously annoys and harasses the former and the former is treated as "a meanie stick in the mud who takes things too seriously" when they rightfully get annoyed at the latter ... until the quiet, serious one undergoes "character development" and learns to "loosen up" (i.e. accepting the loud, silly one's actions bc they're a nice person who just wants to help you break out of your shell).

But I do like your approach to subverting the "lonely protagonist being 'rescued' by a magical BFF" trope. I myself was lonely and wanted someone to "adopt" me as their friend when I was younger, but a Watamote-style message of "you gotta take initiative and be the one to make the effort to improve yourself and make friends" would have seemed very "prescriptive"; like we're still operating under the assumption that friendship is a need and this it's my "job" to put in effort to acquire that friendship, with no thought given to my cost-benefit analysis on tradeoffs and whether my desire for friendship is actually worth the risk and resources it costs me.

It's valid to want friendship but also choose to not spend the costs to pursue it if it's too much of a tradeoff. It is an option. As long as you're not blaming other people for the costs being too high, it doesn't make you a friendship-incel.

If I had to guess, it's probably because the title mention social outcasts (which implies a character is not alone by choice, but because they're being actively rejected by the people around them) and loneliness (which as @Nugtown mentioned is different from solitude). The OP itself does explain in more detail, but titles tend to stick in people's heads XD