Tutorial: So You Want To Break People's Brains?
Tutorial - So You Want to Break People's Brains?
by jantalaimon and m31andy
So, yeah, we do get that the brain-breakage tutorial requests both of us received were rather tongue-in-cheek, but it's Janni and Andy here and one thing that should be evident by now is that we both cannot resist a challenge.
To that end, therefore, may we present
"So you want to break people's brains..."
There are, of course, many methods by which one (or several) can achieve brain-breakage. The following are just some that we've utilised to good effect ourselves in the past. Feel free to add any more in the comments! And feel free to combine two or more for even greater and more terrifying effect! ;)
1. Making the Unlovable Lovable (and vice versa)
If our reading list is anything to go by, one of the truly great ways of breaking a reader's mind is to make them care for a character they hate. And to do that you need to keep the character recognisably them but enduce empathy (or sympathy at a pinch) in the reader.
A case in point is Ray Carling. Everyone hates Ray. We were expected to hate Ray and we all do. (Well, apart from strange folk like elfbert and hambelandjemima…) So how about if we put him in a situation where we are not only expected to like him, but we actually do? Well, there goes another piece of grey matter right there.
This particular method does need to be carefully judged; the feel of the story needs to balance out the change in attitude of the reader. Too much and your reader will just dismiss the premise. So "Ray is a complete git because he was brought up in an orphanage, abused as a boy and saw both his parents rent in two by an Elder God" is probably a bit too far. But "Ray is a lazy git, obsessed with drinking and playing darts, but he has endless amounts of patience with children" can work (and did, in one episode of Ashes to Ashes).
Of course, this works the other way round. Gene the heavy muscle employed at Phyllis' brothel? No problem. Sam the serial killer? Definitely no problem. Chris the even more psychopathic boyfriend? Easy as pie.
2. Just A Spoonful of Believability Helps The Crack-Fic Go Down (In The Most Delightful Way)
Another reason the above unbelievable scenario regarding Ray wouldn't work is, quite frankly, that it would take a reader too far out of the story that you're trying to tell in order for it to remain believable. Sam was, unfortunately, right---god IS in the detail, and you've got to spin those details out and throw in as many that are believable and richly layered and textured as you can if you're going to completely pull the rug out from under your reader with something utterly diabolical later on. It's about building false senses of security, more than anything. And the best way to do that is by achieving believable extrapolation from canon.
This does, of course, take place in non-brain-breaking fic as well. We've seen more than a few instances in which writers have extrapolated, quite reasonably, that Sam was probably an angsty, floppy-haired, music-obsessed teenager. Why does this work? Because the cues were there for the taking in canon!
Other actual things can work this way, too. For instance, we know Sam's got a Saint Christopher he wears around his neck habitually, but canon never explicitly states how or why he got it, leaving it up to the viewers' imaginations and powers of deduction instead. Did Ruth give it to him? Did Maya, thus lending credence to the time-travel theory? Is it how Test-Card Girl is controlling him? Was it actually a token of affection from Gene, and Sam's got such terrible amnesia that he doesn't remember how epic their love story actually was? In such cases, it's clear that it's up for you, the writer, to get your reader from point A to point B---which should, theoretically, be much easier since your plot points are already laid! You just have to choose which road to go down.
Which leads me to...
3. Don't Fear Your Brain
Janni here, and I'd like to say that it's entirely possible that Andy and I are completely mad. Just, you know, so that's said, if you've gotten this far in reading. But I am deadly serious in saying that I think a lot of people automatically dismiss so-called "ridiculous" ideas out of hand as soon as they come into their heads. Nip them in the bud, shoot them out of the sky, or whatever euphemism you'd choose to use. While I can't speak for what Andy does inside her thought processes, I can tell you that when I have a "ridiculous" idea, I personally like to follow it around for a bit before dismissing it. I like to see if I can figure out where it came from, and/or where it's going. And then I try to tie it into believable, reasonable things---and if I find I can do all that, and get a really good sense of exactly what it is I want to say, that's when I'll actually write it down. I think this is what Andy means by my writing very linearly; I almost always know exactly where I'm going when I start writing, as well as how I'm going to get there. My writing process involves a very clear map of where I want to go, and I become very uncomfortable when I don't know where I'm going---which is probably why I've never written any epics. I've never had an epic map in my head, is the thing, and I haven't had the patience to sit down and plot one out. I also don't use outlines for myself, because I would end up violating them more than I stuck to them. *g*
4. Writing the Wrong
As a follow on from not fearing your brain, a sure fire way to gain maximum brain-breakage is to write something that, while it may be obvious, is not approached by the more ... sane writers in the fandom. Take Ruth/Sam, for instance. A classic case of Wrong, however the seeds of which are there in canon (or, at least, the commentaries to the episodes). Okay, so Test Card Girl/Sock Puppet and Sam/Oswald aren't so much canon (except in the minds of some of the more inventive fen) as completely off-the-wall, but the principle is the same.
In this case it is important to treat the subject matter sensitively. If you go at subjects like incest or sex-trafficking like a bull in a china shop, you're not only not going to cause suffering (or at least suffering of the right kind) in your readers, but you are also going to make your fic pretty much unreadable. So twist the subject, but always be mindful that there's a reason why certain subjects are always going to be subject to heavy warnings, adult ratings and bannings.
Also, don't be surprised when many readers wouldn't touch your fic with a barge pole. We all draw different lines which we will not step over and the whole point of writing to break brains is to skirt as close to that line for your readers as possible without crossing that line. Accept that this is not going to be the case for some readers and try something different with your next magnum opus.
5. Eye-watering Cross-overs
I suppose this is an extension of Number 3, not fearing the brain, but a cheap and easy way to guarantee brain-breakage is to find an implausible crossover and make it work. This, admittedly, it quite difficult in Life on Mars as having a Camberwick Green crossover in canon puts a crimp on anyone's inventiveness. But eye-watering cross-overs can be done, with a little thought. All you need is a single commonality between the two concepts to 'hang the disbelief on' and there you go. Next thing you know, your readers will be nodding along to how Sam Tyler is actually Dylan the Rabbit in disguise and that his secret, secret mission is to erect a new magic roundabout in Piccadilly Gardens before the evil overlord Zebedee (aka as "Chris") stops him permanently. (The secret to this one, of course, is making sure your readers can easily picture a younger, more 'emo', guitar-playing Sam as the permanently stoned Dylan.) Annie as Florence and Ray as Dougal are just bonus parallels, when you come down to it.
Of course crossovers aren't necessarily just between fandoms. Try crossing over two genres or two styles. There's nothing as aneurysm-inducing as realising that lovely romance you were reading has suddenly descended into Texas Chainsaw Massacre territory. Or for that matter, that the rather entertaining panel show you've been watching is hiding a brutal murder in plain sight.
Okay, so the 'making it work' bit is the most difficult bit. But seriously, put in the effort and you'll be rewarded with more comments like "what exactly are you on?" than you can shake a stick at.
6. A Twist in the Tale
Janni above mentions pulling the rug out from under your readers' feet, and this one is a classic. Set your reader up for one thing and then hit them with the reality. If they've not seen the twist coming (and that can be the biggest difficulty) then the brain-breakage can be quite severe. Which, after all, is what you are looking for here. (And if you're not, why are you still reading?)
This has to be skilfully done, as well as making use of such tools as misdirection and concealing language, but the effect can be quite spectacular. You should be aware, however, that it also can be overdone. Keep an eye on the effect you're trying to achieve. Are you lulling them into a sense of false security by keeping the boat rocking so they don't expect the big reveal? Then use lots of little reveals. Nothing too shocking or controversial; just enough to keep the reader from realising what you're up to. Or do you want your reader to know exactly where the story is going, right up until the point where you reveal the spaceship? Then keep the narrative very straight, very staid, and don't forget to pepper the narrative with little clues. These should, of course, be nicely disguised so they don't raise suspicion, but they should very much still be there for your reader to go back later and think "oh, I should've guessed that bottle of whisky wasn't really whisky". We, as the writers, will know better and we will know that the bottle of whisky wasn't a clue to be found, but rather a subconscious clue to ensure that the big twist in the tale is believable.
And finally there's…
7. Reputation
It's a truth universally acknowledged that by the time you've written your fourteenth or fifteenth 'Cortina has sex with the entire cast of Coronation Street before going on a murderous rampage a la Christine' fic, the bit that actually counts will be "Author: jantalaimon" or "Author: fiandyfic.
And then you can write a really, really sweet fic where no-one gets a character make-over, or gets kidnapped, or ends up tortured, or even ends up crossed-over with truly bizarre fandoms. And you'll be able to hear the brains breaking from *space*.
by jantalaimon and m31andy
So, yeah, we do get that the brain-breakage tutorial requests both of us received were rather tongue-in-cheek, but it's Janni and Andy here and one thing that should be evident by now is that we both cannot resist a challenge.
To that end, therefore, may we present
"So you want to break people's brains..."
There are, of course, many methods by which one (or several) can achieve brain-breakage. The following are just some that we've utilised to good effect ourselves in the past. Feel free to add any more in the comments! And feel free to combine two or more for even greater and more terrifying effect! ;)
1. Making the Unlovable Lovable (and vice versa)
If our reading list is anything to go by, one of the truly great ways of breaking a reader's mind is to make them care for a character they hate. And to do that you need to keep the character recognisably them but enduce empathy (or sympathy at a pinch) in the reader.
A case in point is Ray Carling. Everyone hates Ray. We were expected to hate Ray and we all do. (Well, apart from strange folk like elfbert and hambelandjemima…) So how about if we put him in a situation where we are not only expected to like him, but we actually do? Well, there goes another piece of grey matter right there.
This particular method does need to be carefully judged; the feel of the story needs to balance out the change in attitude of the reader. Too much and your reader will just dismiss the premise. So "Ray is a complete git because he was brought up in an orphanage, abused as a boy and saw both his parents rent in two by an Elder God" is probably a bit too far. But "Ray is a lazy git, obsessed with drinking and playing darts, but he has endless amounts of patience with children" can work (and did, in one episode of Ashes to Ashes).
Of course, this works the other way round. Gene the heavy muscle employed at Phyllis' brothel? No problem. Sam the serial killer? Definitely no problem. Chris the even more psychopathic boyfriend? Easy as pie.
2. Just A Spoonful of Believability Helps The Crack-Fic Go Down (In The Most Delightful Way)
Another reason the above unbelievable scenario regarding Ray wouldn't work is, quite frankly, that it would take a reader too far out of the story that you're trying to tell in order for it to remain believable. Sam was, unfortunately, right---god IS in the detail, and you've got to spin those details out and throw in as many that are believable and richly layered and textured as you can if you're going to completely pull the rug out from under your reader with something utterly diabolical later on. It's about building false senses of security, more than anything. And the best way to do that is by achieving believable extrapolation from canon.
This does, of course, take place in non-brain-breaking fic as well. We've seen more than a few instances in which writers have extrapolated, quite reasonably, that Sam was probably an angsty, floppy-haired, music-obsessed teenager. Why does this work? Because the cues were there for the taking in canon!
Other actual things can work this way, too. For instance, we know Sam's got a Saint Christopher he wears around his neck habitually, but canon never explicitly states how or why he got it, leaving it up to the viewers' imaginations and powers of deduction instead. Did Ruth give it to him? Did Maya, thus lending credence to the time-travel theory? Is it how Test-Card Girl is controlling him? Was it actually a token of affection from Gene, and Sam's got such terrible amnesia that he doesn't remember how epic their love story actually was? In such cases, it's clear that it's up for you, the writer, to get your reader from point A to point B---which should, theoretically, be much easier since your plot points are already laid! You just have to choose which road to go down.
Which leads me to...
3. Don't Fear Your Brain
Janni here, and I'd like to say that it's entirely possible that Andy and I are completely mad. Just, you know, so that's said, if you've gotten this far in reading. But I am deadly serious in saying that I think a lot of people automatically dismiss so-called "ridiculous" ideas out of hand as soon as they come into their heads. Nip them in the bud, shoot them out of the sky, or whatever euphemism you'd choose to use. While I can't speak for what Andy does inside her thought processes, I can tell you that when I have a "ridiculous" idea, I personally like to follow it around for a bit before dismissing it. I like to see if I can figure out where it came from, and/or where it's going. And then I try to tie it into believable, reasonable things---and if I find I can do all that, and get a really good sense of exactly what it is I want to say, that's when I'll actually write it down. I think this is what Andy means by my writing very linearly; I almost always know exactly where I'm going when I start writing, as well as how I'm going to get there. My writing process involves a very clear map of where I want to go, and I become very uncomfortable when I don't know where I'm going---which is probably why I've never written any epics. I've never had an epic map in my head, is the thing, and I haven't had the patience to sit down and plot one out. I also don't use outlines for myself, because I would end up violating them more than I stuck to them. *g*
4. Writing the Wrong
As a follow on from not fearing your brain, a sure fire way to gain maximum brain-breakage is to write something that, while it may be obvious, is not approached by the more ... sane writers in the fandom. Take Ruth/Sam, for instance. A classic case of Wrong, however the seeds of which are there in canon (or, at least, the commentaries to the episodes). Okay, so Test Card Girl/Sock Puppet and Sam/Oswald aren't so much canon (except in the minds of some of the more inventive fen) as completely off-the-wall, but the principle is the same.
In this case it is important to treat the subject matter sensitively. If you go at subjects like incest or sex-trafficking like a bull in a china shop, you're not only not going to cause suffering (or at least suffering of the right kind) in your readers, but you are also going to make your fic pretty much unreadable. So twist the subject, but always be mindful that there's a reason why certain subjects are always going to be subject to heavy warnings, adult ratings and bannings.
Also, don't be surprised when many readers wouldn't touch your fic with a barge pole. We all draw different lines which we will not step over and the whole point of writing to break brains is to skirt as close to that line for your readers as possible without crossing that line. Accept that this is not going to be the case for some readers and try something different with your next magnum opus.
5. Eye-watering Cross-overs
I suppose this is an extension of Number 3, not fearing the brain, but a cheap and easy way to guarantee brain-breakage is to find an implausible crossover and make it work. This, admittedly, it quite difficult in Life on Mars as having a Camberwick Green crossover in canon puts a crimp on anyone's inventiveness. But eye-watering cross-overs can be done, with a little thought. All you need is a single commonality between the two concepts to 'hang the disbelief on' and there you go. Next thing you know, your readers will be nodding along to how Sam Tyler is actually Dylan the Rabbit in disguise and that his secret, secret mission is to erect a new magic roundabout in Piccadilly Gardens before the evil overlord Zebedee (aka as "Chris") stops him permanently. (The secret to this one, of course, is making sure your readers can easily picture a younger, more 'emo', guitar-playing Sam as the permanently stoned Dylan.) Annie as Florence and Ray as Dougal are just bonus parallels, when you come down to it.
Of course crossovers aren't necessarily just between fandoms. Try crossing over two genres or two styles. There's nothing as aneurysm-inducing as realising that lovely romance you were reading has suddenly descended into Texas Chainsaw Massacre territory. Or for that matter, that the rather entertaining panel show you've been watching is hiding a brutal murder in plain sight.
Okay, so the 'making it work' bit is the most difficult bit. But seriously, put in the effort and you'll be rewarded with more comments like "what exactly are you on?" than you can shake a stick at.
6. A Twist in the Tale
Janni above mentions pulling the rug out from under your readers' feet, and this one is a classic. Set your reader up for one thing and then hit them with the reality. If they've not seen the twist coming (and that can be the biggest difficulty) then the brain-breakage can be quite severe. Which, after all, is what you are looking for here. (And if you're not, why are you still reading?)
This has to be skilfully done, as well as making use of such tools as misdirection and concealing language, but the effect can be quite spectacular. You should be aware, however, that it also can be overdone. Keep an eye on the effect you're trying to achieve. Are you lulling them into a sense of false security by keeping the boat rocking so they don't expect the big reveal? Then use lots of little reveals. Nothing too shocking or controversial; just enough to keep the reader from realising what you're up to. Or do you want your reader to know exactly where the story is going, right up until the point where you reveal the spaceship? Then keep the narrative very straight, very staid, and don't forget to pepper the narrative with little clues. These should, of course, be nicely disguised so they don't raise suspicion, but they should very much still be there for your reader to go back later and think "oh, I should've guessed that bottle of whisky wasn't really whisky". We, as the writers, will know better and we will know that the bottle of whisky wasn't a clue to be found, but rather a subconscious clue to ensure that the big twist in the tale is believable.
And finally there's…
7. Reputation
It's a truth universally acknowledged that by the time you've written your fourteenth or fifteenth 'Cortina has sex with the entire cast of Coronation Street before going on a murderous rampage a la Christine' fic, the bit that actually counts will be "Author: jantalaimon" or "Author: fiandyfic.
And then you can write a really, really sweet fic where no-one gets a character make-over, or gets kidnapped, or ends up tortured, or even ends up crossed-over with truly bizarre fandoms. And you'll be able to hear the brains breaking from *space*.