Editing Self-insertion (section)

{{Short description|Literary device where the author writes themself into their fictional story}}
{{Globalize|article|Western culture|date=February 2017}}

[[Image:Botticelli - Adoration of the Magi (Zanobi Altar) - Uffizi.jpg|thumb|[[Sandro Botticelli]]'s painting of the ''[[Adoration of the Magi of 1475 (Botticelli)|Adoration of the Magi]]'' has an inserted self-portrait at the far right: the position in the corner and the gaze out to the viewer are very typical of such self-portraits.]]
'''Self-insertion''' is a [[List of narrative techniques|literary device]] in which the author writes themselves into the story under the guise of, or from the perspective of, a fictional [[character (arts)|character]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.yourdictionary.com/self-insertion|title=Self-insertion meaning|access-date=20 February 2022}}</ref> The character, overtly or otherwise, behaves like, has the personality of, and may even be described as physically resembling the author or reader of the work.

In [[visual art]], the equivalent of self-insertion is the '''inserted self-portrait''', where the artist includes a [[self-portrait]] in a painting of a narrative subject. This has been a common artistic device since at least the [[European Renaissance]].

Among [[Professional writing|professional writers]], the intentional, deliberate use of first-person and third-person self-insertion techniques are commonly considered to be an unoriginal action on the author's part, and represents a paucity of creative thought in their writing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://jezebel.com/tv-writers-self-insert-brunson-fey-waller-bridge-kaling-1850077191|title=I Love When Women TV Writers Write Themselves Hot Love Interests|date=17 February 2023|website=[[Jezebel (website)|Jezebel]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://confluence.gallatin.nyu.edu/context/interdisciplinary-seminar/triggering-manhattan-the-ethics-of-self-insertion|title="Triggering" Manhattan: The Ethics of Self-Insertion – Confluence|date=28 October 2021}}</ref>