Plot Bunny Notes on I Have Dumb and I Cannot Brain
This is me, thinking aloud. Don't go here unless you ate the same mushrooms I did. There will be a clash of interpretations. This is not a defense but a self-examination.
Plot bunny notes on I Have Dumb and I Cannot Brain
1. The title is ridiculous but while I was writing this, I was also working IRL and I accidentally sent out the wrong document. Fic, you have failed me. I really should probably change the title though.
2. Initially, I thought that I would make the reason for Jason's disinheritance to be that because he took Peter's cue after Ever After and made his own phone call to his father. Of course, the elder Mr. McConnell would not take it well and punish Jason in the most effective way he knew how: by withdrawing his love and support. But Jason turned out to be more resourceful and resilient than either McConnell expected him to be. He ends up getting a job of his own, although the transition from rich privileged child to a working class scholarship student will be extremely difficult (and will be explored in future fics). Never mind, he gets to prove himself by saving his friends from zombies. He then spends the rest of the storyline trying to make up with Peter, who still can't bring himself to forgive Jason. Even though, you know, zombies, hello?
However, while this had potential for Jason's character growth, I knew that I wouldn't be able to tackle Jason's open sexuality in future stories. My take on his character was that coming out in the open about his sexual preference was never as urgent as it was for Peter. To a certain extent, I felt that Jason doesn't define himself primarily through his sexuality because he had all these areas of accomplishments where he could express himself. One of his limitations is that he's not very self-aware or very articulate about it, which contributes to Peter's frustration. Throughout the play, it is Peter who is more eloquent about their love.
Of course, what this means for Peter is that he is only one of many, and not the One, in Jason's life. I feel that to a certain extent, Peter wanted Jason to come out because that would elevate their relationship into the most defining activity of Jason's life and by extension, serve as testament to Peter's primary importance to Jason's life. When Jason refused, Peter began excluding him from his life in typical passive-aggressive manner which I am now milking for its drama. Ever After, I'm not done with you.
3. Plot bunny for I Am Dumb and I Cannot Brain is a Godsend. Not only does it address why Jason's father disinherited him and paves the way for his getting the job at St. Cecilia's kitchens and separates him physically from Peter, but it also doesn't retcon the canon in the way Jason coming out to his father would. While Jason coming out would bring its own drama, there is no textual support for it and I had to abandon it. Following the timeline of the play, Jason is in no way ready to come out, and least of all to his father. Plot bunny motivation behind Jason's actions in this story is reasonable and rational, and consistent with Jason's character, as well as Lucas's.
4. These fics are also an exploration of how my writing is influenced and/or limited by what I don't know. I have no knowledge or personal experience with sexual repression or gender identity conflict and yet I am writing about Bare. Part of the discipline is remaining true to the characters so that they speak with their own voice and not be limited by how different I am from them. Otherwise, works like Lord of the Rings would never have been written. To my knowledge, some writers have never met a hobbit and yet they've done fine.
5. I am starting to be bothered by Peter's passivity. For the past few stories, and most especially in Jason, the Giant Killer, he has remained mute or sullen or asleep. He needs to be his own agency. I don't want him ending up like Jason's version of the Holy Grail. Otherwise, everything that happens will just be some sort of pity party in Jason's mind.
6. Jason is already so punished, poor thing. I need to write him in something with lollipops and puppies so he won't be so sad.
Plot bunny notes on I Have Dumb and I Cannot Brain
1. The title is ridiculous but while I was writing this, I was also working IRL and I accidentally sent out the wrong document. Fic, you have failed me. I really should probably change the title though.
2. Initially, I thought that I would make the reason for Jason's disinheritance to be that because he took Peter's cue after Ever After and made his own phone call to his father. Of course, the elder Mr. McConnell would not take it well and punish Jason in the most effective way he knew how: by withdrawing his love and support. But Jason turned out to be more resourceful and resilient than either McConnell expected him to be. He ends up getting a job of his own, although the transition from rich privileged child to a working class scholarship student will be extremely difficult (and will be explored in future fics). Never mind, he gets to prove himself by saving his friends from zombies. He then spends the rest of the storyline trying to make up with Peter, who still can't bring himself to forgive Jason. Even though, you know, zombies, hello?
However, while this had potential for Jason's character growth, I knew that I wouldn't be able to tackle Jason's open sexuality in future stories. My take on his character was that coming out in the open about his sexual preference was never as urgent as it was for Peter. To a certain extent, I felt that Jason doesn't define himself primarily through his sexuality because he had all these areas of accomplishments where he could express himself. One of his limitations is that he's not very self-aware or very articulate about it, which contributes to Peter's frustration. Throughout the play, it is Peter who is more eloquent about their love.
Of course, what this means for Peter is that he is only one of many, and not the One, in Jason's life. I feel that to a certain extent, Peter wanted Jason to come out because that would elevate their relationship into the most defining activity of Jason's life and by extension, serve as testament to Peter's primary importance to Jason's life. When Jason refused, Peter began excluding him from his life in typical passive-aggressive manner which I am now milking for its drama. Ever After, I'm not done with you.
3. Plot bunny for I Am Dumb and I Cannot Brain is a Godsend. Not only does it address why Jason's father disinherited him and paves the way for his getting the job at St. Cecilia's kitchens and separates him physically from Peter, but it also doesn't retcon the canon in the way Jason coming out to his father would. While Jason coming out would bring its own drama, there is no textual support for it and I had to abandon it. Following the timeline of the play, Jason is in no way ready to come out, and least of all to his father. Plot bunny motivation behind Jason's actions in this story is reasonable and rational, and consistent with Jason's character, as well as Lucas's.
4. These fics are also an exploration of how my writing is influenced and/or limited by what I don't know. I have no knowledge or personal experience with sexual repression or gender identity conflict and yet I am writing about Bare. Part of the discipline is remaining true to the characters so that they speak with their own voice and not be limited by how different I am from them. Otherwise, works like Lord of the Rings would never have been written. To my knowledge, some writers have never met a hobbit and yet they've done fine.
5. I am starting to be bothered by Peter's passivity. For the past few stories, and most especially in Jason, the Giant Killer, he has remained mute or sullen or asleep. He needs to be his own agency. I don't want him ending up like Jason's version of the Holy Grail. Otherwise, everything that happens will just be some sort of pity party in Jason's mind.
6. Jason is already so punished, poor thing. I need to write him in something with lollipops and puppies so he won't be so sad.