The Power Doesn't Matter

If you’re creating a new superhero, one of the first things you might think about is the type of power or special ability that they're going to possess.  It's fun to consider. But if you’re trying to come up with something unique in the powers department, you're setting yourself up for failure.

Many creators feel under pressure to try to create a completely original superpower to differentiate their hero from all the others. So, what usually happens is, they dismiss all the amazing powers writers have already come up with.  When they're done, the only powers left are things like the ability to turn into a cactus and shoot prickly needles at their enemies.

Please… I beg you...  Don’t invent Cactus-Man!

From a story perspective, powered-up superheroes have their powers for one reason and one reason alone… To make them stronger than everyone else around them.  It doesn’t matter what the power is, the basic concept behind all of them is to give your hero a unique physical advantage.

That's why all the best powers are simple...  The ability to run fast, strength, invulnerability, flight...  Basically, all the powers Superman has.  They're extensions of things we can do (or see in nature) right here in the real world.  They make sense, because they're augments of our own natural abilities.  Turning into a cactus is not.  It's just weird.  Which is why it doesn't work.

So don’t stress about what your character’s power is going to be. It doesn't really matter. All the good powers were taken by Greek gods and goddesses thousands of years ago, and we've been riffing on them ever since.

What will truly differentiate your character from all the others is how you write them.  It isn't about the powers, it's about the personality!