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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/6568
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

This question really comes down to a personal issue I've had present in my fiction. I'm still very new as far as being a writer is concerned. So a few (if not all) of my main characters seem to be based in part (or completely) on myself and my personal experiences. (With some obvious changes, such as a different background or a different personality, but I'll give them the same job or make them have similar thoughts to my own, or put them in a very similar situation to my own that turns fantastical in some way.)

My problem is that I have been criticized that being autobiographical in some (or any) way is almost as bad as writing a [Mary Sue](https://writers.stackexchange.com/questions/3786/is-there-a-quick-way-to-know-i-have-created-a-mary-sue) and I'm not sure if I agree with that assessment. So my question boils down to this: Is it bad form (generally accepted as "lazy writing") to consciously imbue your characters with bits and pieces of your own personality, experiences or thoughts? And if so, should I just be working harder with my [Character Development](https://writers.stackexchange.com/questions/1832/finding-the-voice-of-a-character)?

Original score: 6