From what I've read so far, I do think Sally lacks meaningful flaws. You have spelled out a few flaws she has, such as being naïve. But being naive as a teenage girl superhero runs the risk of not being a real flaw, and serving only to make her more likeable. Does her naivete ever put her or her team in real danger? Does it lose them a fight? Does it make people angry with her? Does it make her feel bad about herself, becoming a source of depression? If the answer is "yes" for any of the above, it might be a real flaw. If it is only a flaw in theory but never actually causes significant failure, it's not really a flaw at all, just a personality quirk. In terms of her forgiving her mother's killer, that does seem a bit far fetched for even the most innocent character. Unless your intent is to write a saintlike character arc, I'd perhaps change it up. The natural consequence for being that naive and trusting is betrayal, of course. However, I think if you went that route it might prove very frustrating for the reader. They might want to throw the book across the room at how stupid she is if she trusts a murderer who then kills again, for example.
"Flaw in Theory" is a good way of putting it. A lot of people think their characters are better developed or aspects of their characters are more meaningful then they turn out to be.
I would toss the book in the trash over a thing like that. It would tell me that she had no love for her mother, which I find reprehensible. Although… maybe her mother was abusive, and she realized that she was better off without such an abusive mother? I’d keep reading if you played that angle.
Does she have a mentor character? So it could turn into something like this. "Yeah. I hated her at first, but that hate. It was like venom. I felt poisoned by it. After a long talk with [mentor], I decided that by forgiving her. I could spit that venom out and I'm glad I did."
It doesn't seem like there's any real depth to this character. It's sort of like in a job interview when someone is asked their weaknesses and they answer that they work too hard or that they are a perfectionist. Are those really weaknesses in the eyes of the hiring boss? I mean, come on. She's so sweet and innocent is more of a joke than a flaw.
It is hard to create a useful character that never had any close to actually existing reality. I can't do that but what I find in people I met, or have seen in some context, would give bases for what I can put into some characters in any of my writing. It is not necessary to very marginal characters, but I need further depth to characters closer to the central development of the stories.
There was always my own self, that I found useful for putting into certain characters in my writing, but it got old fast for me to use first person perspective in the writing with that. First person perspective will be interesting with creating a different character, with elements found in other people, in reality or from characters of other creations. I yet put elements of myself in other characters written in third person.
I would never forgive someone who tried to kill me or my mom. That doesn't mean your character can't be the sort of person who forgives these kinds of dire things. But what else does that say about her as a person? Perhaps part of her arc ends in her learning that she should not be so forgiving?
I recommend reading The Gift of Forgiveness. I dont read christian/religious books, but this one was chosen by the book club I run, and I was the facilitator, so I read it. it was actually really good and is about interviews the author conducted with victims of horrible events (rape, mass shooting, murder, etc), and their journey to forgiving the ones that wronged them. Or, in the case of Dillon Klebolds mom, her journey to accepting what her son did, and understanding the hate she's gotten over the years, and forgiving herself for the roll she played. People can forgive the extreme.... but whats unrealistic is forgiving them in an instant. What would make this character well rounded, is giving her the emotions that go with almost being murdered and having her mother murdered. and then having her find her way to forgiveness.
But its still a journey to get to that point, though. Emotions and feelings that eventually lead to feeling/being detached. Thats all im getting at, really. The journey to get to that point
The way to forgiveness would free characters of burdens they would yet carry. But realistically it defies us to be able to forgive, if it amounting to anything really significant. I think it has to take faith in what is higher than them, in which forgiveness is justified. Otherwise something remains with an effect on behavior or action.
Yeah, for a seventeen year old, being this emotionally aware isn't relatable, and typically murder is something people can't get past. Denial is a real thing, and even if she goes about her life thinking everything is okay, at some point, reality is going to hit. You know? She doesn't have a mother anymore, how is she grieving? What about her other family members, how are they dealing with? How old was Sally when this happened? If she was really young, you might be able to get away with the buried memories, but the older a person gets, the harder it is to forget those memories. Unless they experienced other traumas, like a bash in the head that would cause her to have anmesia, or being put in a coma for an extented period of time. How would you react to a situation like that, especially at seventeen?
