(no subject)
Discussion between me and Kirsten regarding the crack!ficness.
Kirsten: Let's come up with a title for this beast so we can create a community, ja?
Jennie: haha yeah, that would be good
Jennie: I suck at titles, though
Kirsten: Oh yeah, me too. I usually do titles LAST, but since this is an ongoing thing... well. Do we have themes, at least? Because I usually pull titles out of themes.
Jennie: do we have themes?
Jennie: besides crack, anyway?
Kirsten: LOL. Well, eventually we'll have to. Because there is the crack, yes, but let's face- I am incapable of writing cheerful cracky stuff most of the time, I gotta stick with serious, and serious tends to bring forth themes.
Kirsten: Obviously, "family" is a theme.
Jennie: of course
Jennie: um.
Kirsten: lol
Jennie: coming up with themes is like...English-y stuff
Kirsten: I hear you. I'm a soft science person, not an English-y one.
Jennie: argh
Jennie: I suck at titles!
Kirsten: Ok, ok. Here's what I'm going to attempt to do. I am going to do two things. 1) Write a couple of shorter pieces that help establish mood, theme, atmosphere, whatever, and perhaps creates some undercurrent themes and 2) create a playlist of music that I can write to, which also helps inform these sort of things.
Kirsten: Hopefully, that will flesh out some things.
Jennie: ooo, shiny!
Jennie: I wish I could freaking think of something to write...would help me think about this whole title issue too
Kirsten: You should write the "Mooooom" one. A little "slice of life" fic.
Jennie: I could try...would have to think on who's whining about what though XD
Kirsten: You have siblings... draw something from your own life.
Jennie: heh
Jennie: I honestly don't remember a lot of what we fought about though
Kirsten: lol
Jennie: I also think it would be kinda fun to write the whole...Gideon and Hotch get drunk and decide "hey, let's get married and raise kids" scene...but I have NO idea how that would go
Jennie: also also, your comment about Rossi taking the kids hunting make me have thinky thoughts about how we might be able to make Morgan really broken if we so desired
Kirsten: Ooo, tell me.
Jennie: well I was thinking...what if Morgan was actually there when his dad was killed? like, he was really little so probably doesn't remember much of it, but the first time Rossi shoots at something, the sound of the gunshot brings back the memories and gives Morgan a panic attack or something
Jennie: I dunno exactly how that would work, but...thinky thoughts!
Kirsten: Ok, those definitely work. I approve of your thinky-thoughts!
Jennie: I'm honestly surprised that I thought of that...I usually don't like to break my characters
Jennie: oh, and did you see all my commenty-ness that I wrote last night?
Kirsten: I saw that there WAS commenty-ness, but I haven't read it yet.
Jennie: ah
Jennie: you have more self-restraint than I have, then
Kirsten: Ha, no, I just haven't been in my room very long.
Jennie: ah
Jennie: well when I get comments, they go to my e-mail...and since e-mail is the very first thing I check when I get online, comments are one of the first things I read when I get online
Kirsten: I, unfortunately, have to prioritize my e-mail reading. When I wake up, I check my e-mail, but I check it for urgent e-mails, and then I leave it alone until I get back at the end of the day.
Jennie: I don't have that much self-restraint
Jennie: which was also demonstrated when I came home from work with about 15 books tonight...
Jennie: to complement the 15-20 I've already got at home
Kirsten: LOL
Kirsten: Ok, I have now read your comments.
Jennie: huzzah
Kirsten: Should we talk here, or should I post back to the journal?
Jennie: good question...journal means I can look back at it, but if we discuss it here, that's like...instant gratification
Kirsten: And we can always post this convo on the journal
Jennie: lol yeah, I was just gonna say that
Jennie: it just requires me remembering to paste it in before I close the window
Jennie: so. to discuss.
Kirsten: Um, ok. Beginning with the comment I have open, unless you have something you want to start with?
Jennie: go for it
Kirsten: Ok, that would be the "backstory" comment, which has a number of smaller things that don't need to be worked out (horrible fashion sense, no torturing of little!Reid and no pregnant!JJ, and 80s music). About Prentiss- y'know, from the one episode with all the suicides, she was acting really weird during it, and I kept getting the impression that someone in her life had committed suicide.
Jennie: hm, now there's a thought
Kirsten: And not only that episode- when Gideon left the note for Reid, she really fixated on that thing, like she had personal experience with good-bye notes, so maybe her dad killed himself and left her the note.
Jennie: that could be...we never hear anything about her dad anyway
Kirsten: Yeah, and we know she HAD one, at the very least, it wasn't like her mum got pregnant from a random dude and raised her on her own, because her father is mentioned... once, I think.
Jennie: yeah, she said something once about "my parents" when talking about being younger, so at some point she lived with both her parents in the same house
Jennie: I can't remember exactly what it was, but I remember we pointed it out when we were watching
Kirsten: Yeah, exactly. So, maybe Ambassador!Mom gets blown up, and Dad sticks around for a while, but can't deal with it, and kills himself, but leaves a note trying to rationalize himself to Prentiss.
Jennie: sounds logical
Kirsten: Ok, so she's covered. Now, why isn't Morgan with his Mom?
Jennie: that's one thing I really had no idea how to handle
Jennie: because in canon, his mom is awesome
Kirsten: She really, really is.
Jennie: yes
Jennie: and that poses a problem, because I don't want to kill her off, but I don't want to make her the kind of person who would just abandon her child either
Kirsten: Exactly. I'm trying to find reasons that people are put in foster care and see if we can fit one of those circumstances to her.
Jennie: ooh, just had a thinky thought. tragic accident putting mom in a coma?
Jennie: possibly lame, but that's the danger of thinking while tired
Kirsten: lol, no, it would work. And we could wake her up at some point, if we wanted to really create drama.
Jennie: ooh, that would indeed create much drama
Kirsten: Ah, the insecurities that would arise...
Jennie: indeed
Jennie: so...was she in the coma before Morgan's dad died, or did this happen after?
Kirsten: Hmm... well, before would make the tragedy less dramatic and less fresh, and therefore not be so incredibly, um, blaring. Those aren't the words I'm searching for, but they're close.
Jennie: I guess what we have to decide is, which tragedy (mom in coma or dad dying) would be the one that would actually end up sending Morgan into foster care?
Kirsten: Since Dad Dying is the canon event, I feel that should be the foster care one, because it's the ones fans could most relate to.
Jennie: okay
Jennie: so that puts mom in a coma before dad dies...so dad raised Morgan on his own for a while
Kirsten: Yeah, and he was probably a pretty damn good Dad. (Oh, and Morgan has sisters... the foster system split them up... no wonder Morgan would have massive trust issues...)
Jennie: yes. and yes again with the trust issues.
Jennie: speaking of the trust issues, don't remember which comment I put it in, but I was thinking maybe Morgan was bounced around the system for a while before ending up with Hotch and Gideon, furthering the whole trust issues thing
Kirsten: Yeah, that would make sense
Kirsten: I also agree that Morgan should be their second or third foster kid, because he is pretty well adjusted, all things considered, by the time the main storylines take place.
Jennie: yeah
Jennie: and I was playing around with Morgan and Garcia arriving at the same time cuz that would maybe explain some of why they're so close
Kirsten: Maybe Morgan and Garcia were between placements and at whereever it is that foster kids stay when they're between placemets, and they bonded, and Hotch and Gideon were originally just gonna take Morgan, but he refused to leave without Garcia (because dammit, he's left too many sisters behind before) and so they took both of them in.
kiniskichick2238: Ooh! Me likey.
Kirsten: Ok, so JJ first (looks a lot like Jack, most well adjusted) and then Garcia and Morgan at the same time.
Kirsten: That leaves Elle, Prentiss, and Reid.
Jennie: yes it does
Jennie: maybe Reid next, then Elle? Because if Elle doesn't talk to the family anymore, maybe it's because she was fairly old when they took her in, so she wasn't as close to them as the rest are to each other? Maybe?
Kirsten: That works for me. (Also, fairly close to canon timelines.)
Kirsten: How about Elle's backstory?
Kirsten: Obviously, her dad is dead.
Jennie: obviously
Jennie: and I don't think we know anything at all about her mother
Kirsten: Yeah, we don't. So let's profile her and see where that takes us! She's extremely aggressive, very forward, and I feel like the vigilante element has to come in somehow, though not in the actual vigilante sense.
Jennie: Hm... maybe something with school?
Kirsten: That would make sense. She's from Brooklyn originally, and has a very strong survivalist mentality.
Jennie: maybe if she sees bullies messing with people, she gets back at them on her own instead of letting the teacher people take care of it? possibly?
Kirsten: Makes sense to me.
Jennie: it's like mini-vigilante-ism
Kirsten: Maybe her mom just... wasn't around. Foisted her off on the dad and left. And she was left to take care of herself a lot of the time, because while her Dad rocked, he had a busy life. So she's very self-sufficient, and given that she probably was in a rough neighborhood when with her Dad, she grew to be aggressive in order to protect herself.
Jennie: That sounds reasonable to me
Jennie: so that takes care of Elle then
Kirsten: Ok. And we have Prentiss handled- although, I do feel like there should be some overlap with her and Prentiss, that they were in the same house for a little while, before Elle went off to college.
Jennie: yeah, I was thinking that too
Jennie: otherwise she'd be like...16 before they take her in. and that would be silly
Kirsten: Yeah.
Kirsten: Ok, we have backstory, and we have order of appearance. Good good.
Jennie: do we have backstory for JJ yet?
Kirsten: Oh, I liked the teen parent give up thing.
Jennie: ah, okay. cool cool.
Kirsten: (Here's a note- I'm reading up on the foster care system, and it says that most stays are only in the "months" range, so what if some of the kids were eventually adopted, the ones without parents?)
Kirsten: brb
Jennie: That could possibly happen. something to think about anyway
Kirsten: back- i mean, it does say that 17% stay in a home for 5+ years, but it would seem to be a statistical anomaly that Hotch gets five for 5+ years.
Jennie: yeah, that would be anomalous. Though possibly a testament to how awesome a mom Hotch is? XD
Kirsten: lol, true.
Kirsten: (Ha, doing this reading on the foster care system now makes me want to write a little fic about how Hotch and Gideon got through all the benchmarks- you gotta take CLASSES...)
Jennie: oh man
Jennie: that would be some interesting fic right there, lol
Kirsten: Oh god... Hotch trying to get through this truly agonizing class while Gideon hisses things about the instructor into his ear thanks to the wonderful profilers mind.
Jennie: Hahahaha...I'm literally chuckling out loud right now, that's entertaining
Kirsten: And there's a home examination... ("Um, sir, what is this?" "Oh, those are just crime scene photos, nothing to worry about.")
Jennie: awkward much?
Kirsten: Awkward, but so hilarious.
Jennie: well yeah
Jennie: hilarious indeed
Jennie: and I like hilarious. because...comedy is good. we don't want all of this to be doom and gloom stuff. though of course there'll be some of that because everyone's so broken
Kirsten: Oh, comedy would be a necessity, definitely. My prose leans strongly towards serious, but comedy is the selling point on this series.
Jennie: yay comedy.
Kirsten: Ok, new focus point: I'm cool with no Frank, 'cause I don't really like him all that much, but I do feel that there needs to be a major catalyst for Gideon leaving the family. Case gone horribly wrong, good for leaving the job. But to leave the family? There has to be a really good reason for it. I think, anyway, what's your opinion?
Jennie: Yeah, something really bad has to happen to make him leave. Um...not sure what though.
Kirsten: Ok, Gideon- he's a father figure, but he's also a manipulative bastard who is willing to endanger other people in order to achieve the end goal. he's very much a "the ends justify the means" sort of guy.
Jennie: true
Kirsten: So knowing that, what sort of circumstances would occur to make him feel that leaving his family is the thing to do, the "right" thing, because Gideon has this fixation over what the "right" thing is (Fisher King II, Revelations, etc.), and he would think that leaving really is the right thing for him, and for the family.
Jennie: the only thing I can think is that something happens that makes him feel like leaving is the only way to protect them
Kirsten: Yeah, I agree. But protect them from WHAT?
Jennie: I have absolutely no idea
Kirsten: lol
Jennie: yeah, it's pretty bad, I really don't know what they'd need protection from
Kirsten: I mean, he'd NEVER abuse the kids, so it's not that. And he's not an alcoholic or a drug abuser, so it's not that.
Jennie: definitely not
Jennie: maybe someone he sent to jail when he worked as a profiler gets out and threatens to come after his family?
Kirsten: Yeah... maybe he gets notification of a prisoner escape (because Gideon isn't a profiler who sends away small offenders, he gets the big ones, so they wouldn't just be released), and then gets some letters in the mail from the perp, who threatens to take away his family?
Jennie: Ooh, yes
Kirsten: So he decides to leave, thinking that would be the best thing for the family- oh, but then we could heighten the drama. Gideon leaves, we have some respite, yay for slice-of-life moments, blah blah blah- but the perp never really went away. What if Gideon's leaving didn't change a damn thing, the family is still slightly in danger, and Hotch gets them out of it by being super Prosecutor man, which just heightens his level of fury at Gideon, because he LEFT, and his leaving didn't help anything, and the problem still remained? (Brainstorming out loud, sorry.)
Jennie: hey, don't apologize...I like it
Kirsten: I am not, however, proposing that anything majorly bad happens to the family (at this point, anyway, my mind may change when I feel up to writing novel-length things and I need a full plot), but- ok, this is just brainstorming, and I want you to shoot down anything you don't like, and it's totally cool, so bear with me- what if one of the kids did get hurt? Thinking of canon parallels here, what if it was Garcia who got hurt? (Maybe not SHOT, because damn...) But what if a kid got hurt, and Gideon came rushing back- and at this point, I'm thinking Rossi is in the picture, and this can be where he proves his worth as a Good Dad- and Gideon came back, and Hotch wouldn't let him near the kids, because he hurt them enough, and he won't let them watch him leave again.
Jennie: (and your description of Hotch as super prosecutor man inspired entertaining mental images of Hotch in a cape...)
Kirsten: LOL
Jennie: but ooh, I like your brainstormyness
Jennie: no shooting of Garcia, because it's rude to shoot children. but I can see one of the kids getting hurt
Jennie: and Rossi being NotCrap!Stepdad
Kirsten: Ok. So now we have a plot for one of the novel-length stories! (But it would have to be, at minimum, the second.) (What the hell is the first, then? Gideon leaving?)
Mmm, crack!fic.
Kirsten: Let's come up with a title for this beast so we can create a community, ja?
Jennie: haha yeah, that would be good
Jennie: I suck at titles, though
Kirsten: Oh yeah, me too. I usually do titles LAST, but since this is an ongoing thing... well. Do we have themes, at least? Because I usually pull titles out of themes.
Jennie: do we have themes?
Jennie: besides crack, anyway?
Kirsten: LOL. Well, eventually we'll have to. Because there is the crack, yes, but let's face- I am incapable of writing cheerful cracky stuff most of the time, I gotta stick with serious, and serious tends to bring forth themes.
Kirsten: Obviously, "family" is a theme.
Jennie: of course
Jennie: um.
Kirsten: lol
Jennie: coming up with themes is like...English-y stuff
Kirsten: I hear you. I'm a soft science person, not an English-y one.
Jennie: argh
Jennie: I suck at titles!
Kirsten: Ok, ok. Here's what I'm going to attempt to do. I am going to do two things. 1) Write a couple of shorter pieces that help establish mood, theme, atmosphere, whatever, and perhaps creates some undercurrent themes and 2) create a playlist of music that I can write to, which also helps inform these sort of things.
Kirsten: Hopefully, that will flesh out some things.
Jennie: ooo, shiny!
Jennie: I wish I could freaking think of something to write...would help me think about this whole title issue too
Kirsten: You should write the "Mooooom" one. A little "slice of life" fic.
Jennie: I could try...would have to think on who's whining about what though XD
Kirsten: You have siblings... draw something from your own life.
Jennie: heh
Jennie: I honestly don't remember a lot of what we fought about though
Kirsten: lol
Jennie: I also think it would be kinda fun to write the whole...Gideon and Hotch get drunk and decide "hey, let's get married and raise kids" scene...but I have NO idea how that would go
Jennie: also also, your comment about Rossi taking the kids hunting make me have thinky thoughts about how we might be able to make Morgan really broken if we so desired
Kirsten: Ooo, tell me.
Jennie: well I was thinking...what if Morgan was actually there when his dad was killed? like, he was really little so probably doesn't remember much of it, but the first time Rossi shoots at something, the sound of the gunshot brings back the memories and gives Morgan a panic attack or something
Jennie: I dunno exactly how that would work, but...thinky thoughts!
Kirsten: Ok, those definitely work. I approve of your thinky-thoughts!
Jennie: I'm honestly surprised that I thought of that...I usually don't like to break my characters
Jennie: oh, and did you see all my commenty-ness that I wrote last night?
Kirsten: I saw that there WAS commenty-ness, but I haven't read it yet.
Jennie: ah
Jennie: you have more self-restraint than I have, then
Kirsten: Ha, no, I just haven't been in my room very long.
Jennie: ah
Jennie: well when I get comments, they go to my e-mail...and since e-mail is the very first thing I check when I get online, comments are one of the first things I read when I get online
Kirsten: I, unfortunately, have to prioritize my e-mail reading. When I wake up, I check my e-mail, but I check it for urgent e-mails, and then I leave it alone until I get back at the end of the day.
Jennie: I don't have that much self-restraint
Jennie: which was also demonstrated when I came home from work with about 15 books tonight...
Jennie: to complement the 15-20 I've already got at home
Kirsten: LOL
Kirsten: Ok, I have now read your comments.
Jennie: huzzah
Kirsten: Should we talk here, or should I post back to the journal?
Jennie: good question...journal means I can look back at it, but if we discuss it here, that's like...instant gratification
Kirsten: And we can always post this convo on the journal
Jennie: lol yeah, I was just gonna say that
Jennie: it just requires me remembering to paste it in before I close the window
Jennie: so. to discuss.
Kirsten: Um, ok. Beginning with the comment I have open, unless you have something you want to start with?
Jennie: go for it
Kirsten: Ok, that would be the "backstory" comment, which has a number of smaller things that don't need to be worked out (horrible fashion sense, no torturing of little!Reid and no pregnant!JJ, and 80s music). About Prentiss- y'know, from the one episode with all the suicides, she was acting really weird during it, and I kept getting the impression that someone in her life had committed suicide.
Jennie: hm, now there's a thought
Kirsten: And not only that episode- when Gideon left the note for Reid, she really fixated on that thing, like she had personal experience with good-bye notes, so maybe her dad killed himself and left her the note.
Jennie: that could be...we never hear anything about her dad anyway
Kirsten: Yeah, and we know she HAD one, at the very least, it wasn't like her mum got pregnant from a random dude and raised her on her own, because her father is mentioned... once, I think.
Jennie: yeah, she said something once about "my parents" when talking about being younger, so at some point she lived with both her parents in the same house
Jennie: I can't remember exactly what it was, but I remember we pointed it out when we were watching
Kirsten: Yeah, exactly. So, maybe Ambassador!Mom gets blown up, and Dad sticks around for a while, but can't deal with it, and kills himself, but leaves a note trying to rationalize himself to Prentiss.
Jennie: sounds logical
Kirsten: Ok, so she's covered. Now, why isn't Morgan with his Mom?
Jennie: that's one thing I really had no idea how to handle
Jennie: because in canon, his mom is awesome
Kirsten: She really, really is.
Jennie: yes
Jennie: and that poses a problem, because I don't want to kill her off, but I don't want to make her the kind of person who would just abandon her child either
Kirsten: Exactly. I'm trying to find reasons that people are put in foster care and see if we can fit one of those circumstances to her.
Jennie: ooh, just had a thinky thought. tragic accident putting mom in a coma?
Jennie: possibly lame, but that's the danger of thinking while tired
Kirsten: lol, no, it would work. And we could wake her up at some point, if we wanted to really create drama.
Jennie: ooh, that would indeed create much drama
Kirsten: Ah, the insecurities that would arise...
Jennie: indeed
Jennie: so...was she in the coma before Morgan's dad died, or did this happen after?
Kirsten: Hmm... well, before would make the tragedy less dramatic and less fresh, and therefore not be so incredibly, um, blaring. Those aren't the words I'm searching for, but they're close.
Jennie: I guess what we have to decide is, which tragedy (mom in coma or dad dying) would be the one that would actually end up sending Morgan into foster care?
Kirsten: Since Dad Dying is the canon event, I feel that should be the foster care one, because it's the ones fans could most relate to.
Jennie: okay
Jennie: so that puts mom in a coma before dad dies...so dad raised Morgan on his own for a while
Kirsten: Yeah, and he was probably a pretty damn good Dad. (Oh, and Morgan has sisters... the foster system split them up... no wonder Morgan would have massive trust issues...)
Jennie: yes. and yes again with the trust issues.
Jennie: speaking of the trust issues, don't remember which comment I put it in, but I was thinking maybe Morgan was bounced around the system for a while before ending up with Hotch and Gideon, furthering the whole trust issues thing
Kirsten: Yeah, that would make sense
Kirsten: I also agree that Morgan should be their second or third foster kid, because he is pretty well adjusted, all things considered, by the time the main storylines take place.
Jennie: yeah
Jennie: and I was playing around with Morgan and Garcia arriving at the same time cuz that would maybe explain some of why they're so close
Kirsten: Maybe Morgan and Garcia were between placements and at whereever it is that foster kids stay when they're between placemets, and they bonded, and Hotch and Gideon were originally just gonna take Morgan, but he refused to leave without Garcia (because dammit, he's left too many sisters behind before) and so they took both of them in.
kiniskichick2238: Ooh! Me likey.
Kirsten: Ok, so JJ first (looks a lot like Jack, most well adjusted) and then Garcia and Morgan at the same time.
Kirsten: That leaves Elle, Prentiss, and Reid.
Jennie: yes it does
Jennie: maybe Reid next, then Elle? Because if Elle doesn't talk to the family anymore, maybe it's because she was fairly old when they took her in, so she wasn't as close to them as the rest are to each other? Maybe?
Kirsten: That works for me. (Also, fairly close to canon timelines.)
Kirsten: How about Elle's backstory?
Kirsten: Obviously, her dad is dead.
Jennie: obviously
Jennie: and I don't think we know anything at all about her mother
Kirsten: Yeah, we don't. So let's profile her and see where that takes us! She's extremely aggressive, very forward, and I feel like the vigilante element has to come in somehow, though not in the actual vigilante sense.
Jennie: Hm... maybe something with school?
Kirsten: That would make sense. She's from Brooklyn originally, and has a very strong survivalist mentality.
Jennie: maybe if she sees bullies messing with people, she gets back at them on her own instead of letting the teacher people take care of it? possibly?
Kirsten: Makes sense to me.
Jennie: it's like mini-vigilante-ism
Kirsten: Maybe her mom just... wasn't around. Foisted her off on the dad and left. And she was left to take care of herself a lot of the time, because while her Dad rocked, he had a busy life. So she's very self-sufficient, and given that she probably was in a rough neighborhood when with her Dad, she grew to be aggressive in order to protect herself.
Jennie: That sounds reasonable to me
Jennie: so that takes care of Elle then
Kirsten: Ok. And we have Prentiss handled- although, I do feel like there should be some overlap with her and Prentiss, that they were in the same house for a little while, before Elle went off to college.
Jennie: yeah, I was thinking that too
Jennie: otherwise she'd be like...16 before they take her in. and that would be silly
Kirsten: Yeah.
Kirsten: Ok, we have backstory, and we have order of appearance. Good good.
Jennie: do we have backstory for JJ yet?
Kirsten: Oh, I liked the teen parent give up thing.
Jennie: ah, okay. cool cool.
Kirsten: (Here's a note- I'm reading up on the foster care system, and it says that most stays are only in the "months" range, so what if some of the kids were eventually adopted, the ones without parents?)
Kirsten: brb
Jennie: That could possibly happen. something to think about anyway
Kirsten: back- i mean, it does say that 17% stay in a home for 5+ years, but it would seem to be a statistical anomaly that Hotch gets five for 5+ years.
Jennie: yeah, that would be anomalous. Though possibly a testament to how awesome a mom Hotch is? XD
Kirsten: lol, true.
Kirsten: (Ha, doing this reading on the foster care system now makes me want to write a little fic about how Hotch and Gideon got through all the benchmarks- you gotta take CLASSES...)
Jennie: oh man
Jennie: that would be some interesting fic right there, lol
Kirsten: Oh god... Hotch trying to get through this truly agonizing class while Gideon hisses things about the instructor into his ear thanks to the wonderful profilers mind.
Jennie: Hahahaha...I'm literally chuckling out loud right now, that's entertaining
Kirsten: And there's a home examination... ("Um, sir, what is this?" "Oh, those are just crime scene photos, nothing to worry about.")
Jennie: awkward much?
Kirsten: Awkward, but so hilarious.
Jennie: well yeah
Jennie: hilarious indeed
Jennie: and I like hilarious. because...comedy is good. we don't want all of this to be doom and gloom stuff. though of course there'll be some of that because everyone's so broken
Kirsten: Oh, comedy would be a necessity, definitely. My prose leans strongly towards serious, but comedy is the selling point on this series.
Jennie: yay comedy.
Kirsten: Ok, new focus point: I'm cool with no Frank, 'cause I don't really like him all that much, but I do feel that there needs to be a major catalyst for Gideon leaving the family. Case gone horribly wrong, good for leaving the job. But to leave the family? There has to be a really good reason for it. I think, anyway, what's your opinion?
Jennie: Yeah, something really bad has to happen to make him leave. Um...not sure what though.
Kirsten: Ok, Gideon- he's a father figure, but he's also a manipulative bastard who is willing to endanger other people in order to achieve the end goal. he's very much a "the ends justify the means" sort of guy.
Jennie: true
Kirsten: So knowing that, what sort of circumstances would occur to make him feel that leaving his family is the thing to do, the "right" thing, because Gideon has this fixation over what the "right" thing is (Fisher King II, Revelations, etc.), and he would think that leaving really is the right thing for him, and for the family.
Jennie: the only thing I can think is that something happens that makes him feel like leaving is the only way to protect them
Kirsten: Yeah, I agree. But protect them from WHAT?
Jennie: I have absolutely no idea
Kirsten: lol
Jennie: yeah, it's pretty bad, I really don't know what they'd need protection from
Kirsten: I mean, he'd NEVER abuse the kids, so it's not that. And he's not an alcoholic or a drug abuser, so it's not that.
Jennie: definitely not
Jennie: maybe someone he sent to jail when he worked as a profiler gets out and threatens to come after his family?
Kirsten: Yeah... maybe he gets notification of a prisoner escape (because Gideon isn't a profiler who sends away small offenders, he gets the big ones, so they wouldn't just be released), and then gets some letters in the mail from the perp, who threatens to take away his family?
Jennie: Ooh, yes
Kirsten: So he decides to leave, thinking that would be the best thing for the family- oh, but then we could heighten the drama. Gideon leaves, we have some respite, yay for slice-of-life moments, blah blah blah- but the perp never really went away. What if Gideon's leaving didn't change a damn thing, the family is still slightly in danger, and Hotch gets them out of it by being super Prosecutor man, which just heightens his level of fury at Gideon, because he LEFT, and his leaving didn't help anything, and the problem still remained? (Brainstorming out loud, sorry.)
Jennie: hey, don't apologize...I like it
Kirsten: I am not, however, proposing that anything majorly bad happens to the family (at this point, anyway, my mind may change when I feel up to writing novel-length things and I need a full plot), but- ok, this is just brainstorming, and I want you to shoot down anything you don't like, and it's totally cool, so bear with me- what if one of the kids did get hurt? Thinking of canon parallels here, what if it was Garcia who got hurt? (Maybe not SHOT, because damn...) But what if a kid got hurt, and Gideon came rushing back- and at this point, I'm thinking Rossi is in the picture, and this can be where he proves his worth as a Good Dad- and Gideon came back, and Hotch wouldn't let him near the kids, because he hurt them enough, and he won't let them watch him leave again.
Jennie: (and your description of Hotch as super prosecutor man inspired entertaining mental images of Hotch in a cape...)
Kirsten: LOL
Jennie: but ooh, I like your brainstormyness
Jennie: no shooting of Garcia, because it's rude to shoot children. but I can see one of the kids getting hurt
Jennie: and Rossi being NotCrap!Stepdad
Kirsten: Ok. So now we have a plot for one of the novel-length stories! (But it would have to be, at minimum, the second.) (What the hell is the first, then? Gideon leaving?)
Mmm, crack!fic.