Workshop: "Writing Hurt/Comfort" by Paxwolf
"Hurting the Ones We Love
... and Then Making It All Better"
A Brief Ramble on the Genre of Hurt/Comfort in the Realms of Fanfiction
By Paxwolf
"The bruises - Kirk thought even that the tip of a hipbone was shattered. How had the Vulcan lived, or moved?
Kirk did what was needed. He was well down the thighs, starting on shattered kneecaps, with the jeans slipped down around the boots, when Spock said, "That will be enough, Captain.''
Kirk whirled, caught the shoulders, didn't try to still his laugh or stop the tears that threatened to spill. ''Spock!'' He let a long, slow grin develop, thought that a tear or two did spill - his choice, now - finally added, ''You old horse thief.''
''Why should I abduct such an equine, Captain?'' Spock said in the manner of the old jokes, and Kirk knew that he had never been so glad to play straight man to a Vulcan.
''Well, we might even use one to ride out of this horse opera,'' he said, and then put his hand on Spock's face. ''Welcome back, Mr. Spock.''
''Yes - '' The pause was very long and the Vulcan eyes searched his face, seemed to drink it in, reached long fingers to brush dampness from his cheeks. ' '- Jim.''
The voice was utter satisfaction, undisguised and uncovered, the face calm, but not wearing its mask.
Kirk bowed his head in acknowledgement. "Spock,'' he answered in the same voice.
But he thought that neither one of them could hold the moment for much longer, nor did they need to."
- The Price of the Phoenix, by Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath
Ah, that scene takes me back ... way back to the dawning days of my interest in this subject ... *muses for a moment - gets back on track* Greetings, fellow fans and writers! Welcome to another installment of Superhero Muses, where you are invited once again to participate in a rambling but hopefully rousing discussion of the ins and outs of fanfic writing and creating. I am Paxwolf, your humble guest host for this segment. *waves paw* Today, we will be looking briefly at the fascinating (and sometimes controversial) topic of the fanfiction genre most commonly referred to as "Hurt/Comfort". And oh boy, what a topic it is! *grin* Our overall comm visionary, jen_in_japan, had graciously asked me some time ago if I would be interested in leading an exploration of this most interesting and intriguing genre, knowing quite well of my own longtime regard and love for this particular area of fanfic. And it was an offer, quite obviously, that I simply couldn't refuse. (although, true to my usual penchant for procrastination, *blush* it has taken me some time to get around to doing so!)
Originally I was intending to try and compose a very literary, formal essay to share with you, and thereby attempt to lend a flavour of legitimacy to the topic. But then, I thought to myself, "Self, what is the fun of that? Hurt/Comfort is supposed to be an intense, rip-roaring, and fun ride! Why laden it down with a tone of academia and bore everybody to bits"? So thus, this casual romp in the quagmire of h/c was born, and I invite one and all to wade in, or heck, go right ahead and jump head first into the churning pool of pain, suffering, and agony, followed by the tender embraces, assurances, and friendship - or even true love - that inevitably results. :-)
I should give fair warning that it's only all too easy to get stuck in this morass of misery and mitigation, of anguish and consolation, of torment and solace (okay, I'll stop now). Once you even stick a toe into the murky but oh-so lovely, tempting waters of h/c, you tend to get sucked right in, and next thing you know, you're in over your head, and could end up mired for life!
So. Still with me? Great! Let's take the plunge, shall we?
First off, in the case of any visitor (or indeed member) here perhaps not being entirely familiar with the genre, a definition (of sorts) may be in order. What is this 'hurt/comfort' of which we so grandiosely speak? As may be deduced from this explain-all appellation for the genre, 'hurt/comfort' fics are generally stories that involve one of two protagonists (and sometimes both) being hurt in some manner, either by a physical injury or illness, or wounded by an emotional or psychological (or spiritual) affliction. (or both.) This unfortunate soul usually proceeds to suffer intensely throughout the events of the story. However, not all is grim and dark, as the second necessary component for the story, 'Comfort', then comes into play. A second character, who may be a partner, friend, lover, or indeed even an enemy, then 'comforts' the sufferer, either healing him (or her) from physical maladies, or soothing him from ones of a more mental or emotional variety, through various means. The second protagonist usually 'takes care' of his (or her) companion, until healing can occur, and generally, personal feelings, hitherto unacknowledged, come to the fore as a result of the ordeal of the characters. The great pain and the subsequent comforting ofttimes serves as sort of catharsis, and both characters generally reach a new understanding, and often will reach a new plateau in their relationship with each other. And that, if pulled off in proper and skilled fashion, with that touch of delicacy that good h/c needs, can be an extraordinarily satisfying reading experience for the audience.
Please be aware that this genre is often accused of being more than a little addictive! If you should find yourself becoming increasingly hooked on the stuff, and begin craving regular 'fixes', well, I'm afraid I can't help you there. (I'm already a lost cause.) My advice? Seek therapy. Or try writing some of your own h/c! I can personally vouch for it being effectively therapeutic - and without those pesky medical bills showing up in your mail.) It can be extremely gratifying for a reader to be pulled down into the depths of pain, watch their beloved characters be ripped open and exposed, (I mean that metaphorically, of course!) only to be lifted up into the bliss of eventual release from the torment. It's been described as being akin to going through a terrible, dark experience and coming out on the other side into bright light, stronger and freer and happier for it. This kind of reading can even be quite liberating, in many respects. Good hurt/comfort simply resonates with something deep inside us.
If that got rather wordy for you, (something else I have a penchant for, I'm afraid) here's the simple definition from a Web fanfic glossary: "H/C - a common fan fic scenario where one character is injured, ill or otherwise traumatized and as a result recieves the tender care and/or affection of another character."
Perhaps as well as that short description, a general example would serve best. So, let's run down a typical sort of scenario for the average hurt/comfort story. Please feel free to insert the names of your favourite characters from whatever fandom you enjoy, (not that characters are - or should be - interchangeable, but this is a kind of a formula as a base example) but for our purposes here, (and considering the origins and nature of this comm!) I will use Batman and Superman as my protagonists.
Okay, so at the beginning of a story, Batman and Superman enjoy a good working relationship, but personally, are at odds with each other most of the time, even to the point of constant verbal conflict. Although they share a professional respect for each other, Clark gets exasperated at what he sees as Batman's hard-nosed line on nearly every issue under the sun, and thinks Batman is completely uncompromising, and Bruce thinks Superman is too gentle, too forgiving, and not taking a hard enough stance on those issues on which they disagree. They each feel their own view is the more valid one, and they will never understand the other, or be anything other than allies with a rather prickly relationship - at least on the surface. Beneath these shells, unbeknownst to either of their conscious minds, are simmering deeper feelings. Still, nothing really gets resolved in their day-to-day working lives. Then an emergency of major proportions suddenly rears its head, and in the inevitable confrontation with the archenemy/global disaster/galactic crisis, Batman is gravely injured and Superman is made helpless to prevent it. S rushes over to B and is able to provide some immediate medical care, and in the course of this, must hold or touch him for the first time. Through various means they are able, against all odds, to save the day and defeat the bad guy/triumph over whatever antagonist(s) has been placed as obstacles in the story. And, due to the incident, S and B come to a realization. They have been able, for perhaps the first time, to see more to the other than they knew was there before, and discover that they do in fact harbour genuine affection, trust, and camaraderie for the other. Their relationship subsequently changes as a result, and for the better, evolving into a true and trusted friendship.
The ordeal that they both had gone through, no matter which one was actually physically hurt, is what's key. The hurting and necessary follow-up comforting both lead to a dawning realization that in turn leads to greater things between them. It's the h/c that is the catalyst for helping both men to recognize what had previously been deeply buried and inaccessible in themselves.
Now this brings to mind the fact that h/c is actually more a 'sub-genre' than an actual genre in and of itself. My example above showed only a 'friendship' sequence, reminiscent of the old classic Star Trek novels of the '70's and '80's, of which the above quote at the top of this essay is an example. (more information on that in the EndNotes - but yes, believe it or not, that quote comes from a professionally-published novel, not a fanfic!!) H/C can certainly be used with great effect in burgeoning friendship stories, or in stories that show two antagonists reaching a truce and actual partnership/friendship after the initial ordeal is through and the obstacles overcome. (the science fiction film Enemy Mine, starring Dennis Quaid and Louis Gosset Jr., would be a classic example of this.) But h/c works often even more vividly and effectively if it is written within the genre of romance. There is a common misconception in fanfiction circles that h/c is either adult 'gen' or slash only, but it can also work very well in a straight (het) romance story. We see this in stories that pair the typically powerful male hero with a strong female protagonist, such as Wonder Woman, Lois Lane, Catwoman, Hawkgirl, and so forth.
You can even have Group hurt/comfort stories as well. For example, teamfics that feature, say, the Teen Titans or the Justice League, can often include terrific h/c. We've even seen this to an extent in canon, both in the comics and the animated series. (although not generally to the extreme degree that fanfic often carries it.) It can be a bit more complicated and challenging to carry off well with a larger cast, and these types of stories still tend to focus on a select core group or couple of characters, rather than the team entire. But it can work very well in that arena. Examples in the fanfic world abound, but some of last year's Justice League Virtual Season, (helmed by sasha_anu) would be one, as well as, if I may be so bold, my own Epic, JLA: "Necessary Force", which is really, at its heart, one long 'n plotty h/c fest!
But let's not talk het or gen here for the duration. Instead, let's talk slash. ;-)
For various reasons, (some of which have been previously explored on this comm) h/c works particularly well in slash (yaoi, m/m, same-sex, what-have-you) stories. Perhaps that is because the genre of h/c, I believe, originates from what I'll call 'Buddy Movies', (or Buddy Books) where two strong, heroic, male characters end up bonding through shared danger and adventure, and develop a mutual respect for one another. We see this time and again in films like Lethal Weapon, Die Hard 3, Rush Hour, and even more consistently, in TV series, of which Starsky and Hutch, arguably the most famous of classic series in the buddy genre, is a prime example. (other examples include series like The Professionals, Miami Vice, Quantum Leap, and especially the Robert Culp/Bill Cosby '60's show, I Spy.) This genre has been around for as long as adventure stories have been written, and in movies from the time of the first black and white westerns. The classic John Ford film, The Searchers, or Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and many other westerns, along with a plethora of action and war movies, contain some wonderful moments of hurt/comfort with the confines of safe, platonic, male friendships. And though I probably need not go into detail here, certainly we've all seen some spectacular hurt/comfort scenes within the pages of that four-colour friend of the crack addict, the comic book. :-)
And there's a very good reason for this appeal. Several, in fact. People, at their core, are social creatures. Inherently, we like to know that we're not all alone in the big bad universe. We like the idea that we have someone we trust to watch our backs. We like the idea of true partnership, and true friendship. We like the idea of soulmates. Both men and women have these desires. Men tend to gravitate towards the rough 'n tumble action, whereas women tend to prefer to focus on the emotional aspects. Thus, while h/c was born from buddy stories, it goes deeper than that into the psyche and the emotional motivations of the characters, and becomes primarily (although certainly not exclusively!) a female's genre.
Slash, like male-bonding, serves to highlight the relationship between two men. And hurt/comfort is often the perfect impetus for slash to happen in a story.
Now, I won't go into the whys and wherefores of slash itself, as that would be a whole other essay and has been done both here and elsewhere far better than I could ever hope to do. But in terms of our sub-genre, hurt/comfort, slash tends to be a particularly good breeding ground for stories of this ilk.
In the above example, after the crisis is over, the deeper feelings I alluded to in both Clark and Bruce become heated, and develop into romantic feelings, and eventually grow into ones of deep passion. It is the intense moment of shared danger and compassion over the pain suffered, and surprise/gratitude at the subsequent comforting, that provided the springboard for these deeper, underlying feelings to surface.
So that brings us to our next section: Why H/C?
Well, I'm no psychoanalyst, but even I could go on ad infinitum about the psychological reasons for the appeal of both slash and h/c. I'll refrain (breathe!) and just briefly touch on what I see as the main reasons for why this sub-genre is so appealing.
Primarily, what we're talking about here is emotion.
Hurt/Comfort, by its very nature, contains a good deal of emotional resonance, putting the characters (and the reader) through the paces of angst, pathos, fear, pity, terror, hatred, relief, gratitude, and love. The sheer emotion that h/c is able to trigger in both main characters (and the reader!) pulls them apart at the seams, lets you get a look at what makes them tick, and puts them back together again, often at a stronger or deeper level than before. And this tactic used in getting under the surface of a character works especially well when one of the protagonists is traditionally a stoic, taciturn, or sublimating type of character, where the tremendous agony that he and/or his companion endures pushes him into revealing/realizing the truer, deeper, 'realer' emotions usually kept hidden beneath a facade. Watching these types being forced into being emotional by the dire circumstances in which they find themselves, along with the intense suffering of their loved one, (think Batman, Spock, or a slew of 'tough guy' types, who generally keep their emotional expression to a minimum, or who tend to deny any feelings at all) can be terrifically rewarding. (It's fun to peel the layers of an onion, and the same principle applies here.) This can be also true for characters who are more exhibitive of their emotions, and it's an excellent way to get them to reveal their darker or more serious or deeper sides.
The revelation of these hidden emotions simply grabs us at a certain level. It's one reason why anime has proven so popular with girls and women - anime doesn't generally pull punches where emotional confict and drama is concerned. (have you seen series such as Fullmetal Alchemist? Or Kyou Kara Maou? Or Gatchaman - or any one of dozens of excellent anime, old and new, both shonen (aimed at boys) and especially shojo (primarily for girls) series.) Fortunately, I think American/western entertainment is beginning to clue into the powerful appeal emotional/relationship-based storytelling has, and animated series, science fiction, and (yay!) comics are at the forefront of that. Hurt/Comfort is the ultimate fare and expression for that kind of storytelling.
With a good hurt/comfort story, we as readers find it particularly easy to place ourselves in the characters' situations, either the hurtee or the comforter. And we therefore experience an intense empathy with them, often brought upon by their suffering, that leads us to closely associate our own selves with the characters. And when we can identitfy with either of the two characters (or even better, with both), then that is the greatest success that a story can have, and the most satisfying reading experience we can enjoy.
So, why is h/c particularly effective within the genre of slash stories? Well, one of the popular theories - and mine - is that seeing big, strong, in-control masculine manly men in positions of great vulnerability does something at a primal level for us - especially for female readers. Watching a strong and usually controlled and level-headed male character be forced into being out of control, and enslaved to the needs of the body, mind, - or heart - is enormously engaging and even fascinating. We also enjoy watching two disparate characters finding the means and reason to bond more closely with each other, whether as a friendship or as something more. And in the regard that (most) h/c stories inevitably have a happy ending, (or at least a resolution) by their very nature, many find that most satisfying as well.
However, there are plenty of reasons for why one might enjoy h/c, and every fan takes a different and highly individual view on just why they gravitate (or don't) to stories of this type. (I look forward to hearing some of yours here!) Yes, it is possible that it's a genre that doesn't catch everyone's fancy. (*gasp* Say it ain't so!) But most readers of the genre enjoy allowing themselves to get caught up in the building emotional tangle, the sharing of the pain, and then the eventual restorative release of it at the end. (and if I may be metaphoric, it's been said that h/c's appeal is partially stemming from its similarity to the sexual act itself, but on an emotional par, with the way these stories tend to build emotions and tensions in the course of the plot, and arouse physical and/or emotional pain until it all inevitably reaches a climax with revelations and heartfelt confessions, before resolving into a deep-level bonding and intimacy. Heh.) It's the sheer intensity of such stories that grab attention and interest, and simply put, it's fun, even thrilling, to be so completely caught up in the story.
It's really hard to say what all the appeals of H/C are - it's an extemely individual thing, and some readers (and writers) can't even explain it. And everyone looks for different things in these fics. There's the interest in reading about true danger to a character, for example. (especially a character who doesn't often get hurt in the canon he's from - or who bounces back too easily - and often unrealistically.) Jeopardy, just like in an action movie, full of danger and risk and uncertainty and fear, simply causes the heart to race and the blood to pump. The surge of adrenaline, as any andrenaline junkie knows, is a real rush. And good h/c by its very nature contains a lot of jeopardy.
Some might prefer to make the stoic character more vulnerable, for example, while others adore taking the more open character and just trashing him until he is a devastated, whimpering wreck. (and which character a writer chooses to hurts most often depends on which one is their favourite. We often really do tend to hurt the ones we love the most, odd as that may sound to the newbie!) Often the writer will trash both types, but one of them is generally more the focus of the destruction (and deconstruction) than the other.
And then there's the angst. (Hooray, angst!) I think whole separate essays have been written on the subject of angst. H/C fic invariably contain massive doses of angst. First there's the angst of the usually precarious situation the character(s) have been placed in, and then there's the angst of the choices the character(s) are forced to make to save each other, (and simply being 'forced' to do anything is a cause of yet more angst), and then there's the angst of the relationship/desire aspects that rise up from the earlier angst. ("Should he/shouldn't he" or "what if he doesn't want me/what if he does?" kinds of scenarios.) It's difficult to know just where to draw the line. But it's terribly hard for good angst to go wrong. :-)
Mostly, however, I would venture to guess that it's, as said above, the simple, sheer emotional intensity inherent in H/C that grabs us by the horns and keeps us reading to the bitter (or rather, beautiful) end. We've watched our heroes being torn apart and put back together again. It's tough to deny the attraction of that.
There doesn't have to a point either, for this kind of fic to be a success. (I know, it's sounds like blasphemy, doesn't it?) There doesn't have to be character growth either. It's fine and great if there is, but it's not completely necessary for a story of this genre. However, if a character is run through the mill and everything that happens to him really should make him grow, and he doesn't, then that would be a big no-no. :-) (and we really wouldn't want that!) It's great if there IS a point and growth, of course, but it's not the main reason why hurt/comfort is popular or why it works.
To sum it up, the tender caretaking that goes on between characters (especially characters who might not normally indulge in such touchy-feely moments) brought on by a situation of extreme duress, (it has to have an element of extremeness to make it plausible) brings out all sorts of emotional response in the reader - and ultimately, isn't that what the the entertainment of reading is all about? Seeing this, being thrust down into the depths of despair and then yanked upwards again into the heights of hope, somehow fulfills some deep-seated need in us as readers, (or writers) a need that is greater if it has been unsatisfied by the conventions of the typical canon fare.
Of course, there could be a lot more that could be said about just WHY hurt/comfort is successful at touching us inside, and enjoys a singular popularity. (and part of me feels I've done a woefully inadequate job here of attempting to explain it.) I've not really delved too deeply into some of the philosophy behind the genre, for example. But I hope that it serves as a kind of introduction to the uninitiated, and a fond re-visit to those already addicted. ;-) But before we conclude, at the behest of Jen, I'm just going to run over a shortlist of general Writing H/C Do's and Don'ts, in the case you've never attempted to create an H/C, and would like to try your hand at writing a solid hurt/comfort story. (I hope it helps somewhat if you are in this position.)
Do:
- include real emotion between the two main characters, no matter their previous relationship, no matter their gender. (yes, writing realistic emotional expression with men can be a little tricky, and with an emotion-based story, it's a fine line to walk, but it's still a must in any h/c story or it won't work.) Or include it between the members of the group, in the case of a teamfic.
- keep them in character. In fanfic, this is especially true of h/c stories, since you as the writer are placing the characters so far outside their 'comfort zone' and often stretching them to the max (fun!) and pushing them to (and often beyond) their limits, so it's crucial that they are still recognizable as, say, Clark and Bruce, no matter their extreme peril/malady/terror/despair/realizations that you put them through in the story. This isn't easy, because we've perhaps never seen the characters go through quite this level of ordeal in canon, or seen them respond in the way that the story demands (especially in a slash story, I'd warrant) that they do. So you have try and keep them in-character as much as possible, and infer how they would react and think and speak if they really were pushed to these extremes.
- allow the catharsis. Let the two have their moment of recognition and emotional release. The reader usually longs for this by the end (nay, needs it) this to be able to survive your fic, especially if there's a particularly large amount of pain or torture in your story, whether it's physical or emotional. (or both)
- get into your characters's heads - and hearts. You don't have to show the POV of both characters, but you must tap into both the thoughts and feelings of at least one of them. And remember, like with any piece of writing, it's better to show than just tell.
Don't:
- hurt your protagonist and then forget to have him or her comforted or healed (in some manner) before the end! This may seem like a pretty obvious necessity, but I've seen one or two so-called hurt/comfort stories that had the pain part just going on and on - and just ending that way, with no hope in sight for the suffering to ever end. (That would be a torture fic, not an h/c one.)
- hold yourself back. Explore your own feelings and write what you would want to read! Let yourself go, and be in the flow of what works for you personally with both the hurt and the comforting. You might be surprised at how many other readers feel the same way, and can relate to what you're putting the characters through. Be in tune with what your characters are feeling, and don't run from it. (even when it hurts - and believe me, if you're doing it right, it will hurt. But, don't worry - it gets better.)
- be afraid to have a resolution to previously unresolved feelings or conflicts that have been festering throughout the fic. Nothing's so unsatisfactory as to have been pushed into all that angst and fear and pain and then have it all lead to basically nothing in the end, with no changes in the relationship's previous status quo. (and believe me, I've seen more mis-named h/c stories that somehow left off the 'comfort' part of it, and it was a quite maddening experience. Arrgghhh!) Generally, hurt/comfort does lend itself - if you follow the conventions of the genre - to 'happy endings', but they can also work very well with more 'open-ended' conclusions, provided you do find a way to heal the bulk of the pain that you inflicted on your characters. It's hard on readers if they're left completely guessing what happens next, with no clues to go by. Resolve it! Or at least leave evidence in place that readers may infer that the ending they desire will eventually happen.)
- get too bogged down with technicalities when describing physical injury or illness. It's important to remember that it's the emotion that is key, not the precise accuracy of the human (or alien) body's response to physical trauma. (or the ins and outs of the medical care necessary for survival and recovery.) It's good, however, if you are going to go into specific detail, to ensure that you don't have the characters doing something completely unviable to save the victim of the hurt. Having a character take some sort of action that is entirely implausible or even impossible will jar the reader right out of what was otherwise an engaging story. A certain level of suspension of disbelief is, of course, going to be there on the side of the audience, but that disbelief will be UNsuspended if the description is too unreal. The closest I ever got to this kind of detail was in my Superman/Batman story, "Before the Dawn", where I had Superman stabbed with a knife edged with Kryptonite. (and a little less so with "The World in Solemn Stillness..." that involved a magic-borne fever) Naturally I took certain liberties, (as you'd have to in a situation so abnormal as one dealing with super-powered aliens and radioactive substances and strandings on remote glaciers) but I also took pains to research carefully (with the aid of a professional EMT) to ensure that Batman was responding to the wound and its results in a realistic fashion. Yes, it's also a fine line to walk to know when you're not going too far with that kind of accuracy, but if you do include technical medical jargon, I would advise keeping it to a minimum and not forgetting to include the characters' reactions and thoughts along with it - and especially showing feelings!
One reader once asked me, "How much hurt is too much hurt? Can you go too far with it?" And the answer to that is - it depends. My first response was, "You sure can!" Who hasn't seen a fic that is chock full of humongous pain and blood and suffering or betrayal and grief and loss? If it's too over the top, h/c can possibly lose its effectiveness and power. A reader just ends up drained and exhausted by the end. Then I realized I was allowing personal bias to influence my reaction.
First of all, everyone has a threshold for how much suffering they can read or watch happen to a character. Every reader has a different level of tolerance for what they can witness their hero endure. (especially if they are identifying personally with the sufferer.) Some readers have a very high threshold, and reading elaborate descriptions of major levels of pain doesn't faze them, or indeed, there are some who can't be satisfied unless the hurt is to a large degree. While there are others who can barely withstand hearing of a character suffering emotional loss, or the description of, say, a bit of blood. Secondly, a lot of how much pain is given a character is dependent on the level of comfort afterwards. It has to be somewhat on par. If the brutality that a character is inflicted with doesn't match the degree of 'comfort' or healing after it's over, then that leads to a fairly undesirable annoyance or frustration on the part of the reader. A good example of this would be in 'rapefic', where a character is made to suffer both physically and emotionally by the overpowering act. The way that he or she is healed afterwards by the comforter has to be at a standard that's high enough to be plausible and acceptable to both the victim and the reader. If it's not, the story can be more of an aggravating experience, and not only unsatisfying, but disappointing. That is how a hurt/comfort story can fail the most spectacularly - if the Hurt is proportionately greater than the Comfort. (not that there's any condemnation of that kind of story here - 'Char Torture' fics do have their place, and for some it could be their greatest kink. But then it's not preciscely a 'true' H/C story.) The reverse, however, is not necessarily as drastic a problem, but it is still best if the twain shall meet. *g*
There is nothing to say, after all this, that writing hurt/comfort is an easy thing. (At least it's not to me!) Never do I feel so drained and worn out as I do after writing an intense h/c fic. I even experience a period of 'burn out' for a time after writing one. If you, as most writers do, pour your own emotions into your work, then simply trying to deal with all the emotion and then resolve it realistically can be terribly exhausting. And sometimes it really is difficult to determine whether or not you've crossed over into the domain of melodrama. (not that melodrama is necessarily a bad thing - as long as it's what you intended and the reader is expecting. After all, it's been argued that most comics - and cartoons - are, at their heart, melodramatic storytelling at its best.)
With most hurt/comfort, we will find that by hurting the ones we love, we are in some primal way hurting ourselves. Fortunately, then we also get to find a way to deal with it, and receive comfort from another one that we love, and by granting the beloved characters the chance to heal and grow together at the end, it reaffirms our trust and belief in our own survival, and serves to give us hope for our own uncertain and fearful futures.
You may find that there are plenty of readers who steer completely clear of hurt/comfort fic, primarily because they have difficulty dealing with (or swallowing) all of that intense emotion, or in seeing these characters - and the deplorable situations they end up in - somehow in themselves, or in any way relating to their own lives. It takes a lot out of one to read powerful Hurt/Comfort, and not everyone can deal with that kind of intensity. (there's a reason why 'fluff fic' is popular, after all!) It's not exactly a genre for the faint of heart.
But first and foremost, h/c is a work of the heart, and though it can take a lot out of you, it also adds a heckuva lot back in. And to me, that makes all the hurt worthwhile. And that can be a very great comfort indeed. ;-)
"And then Kirk's hands reached to ease the shoulders and to draw him surprisingly close. "We are alone, Mr. Spock," he said. "Quite alone. Do you understand?"
"Indeed, Captain. Quite alone." And he made it true.
The mind-touch was a lowering of personal barriers. If it did not require privacy, it nonetheless cried for it.
Spock slipped in easily at the level of warmth. He had been here before. It knew how to accept him.
Spock fought to keep the touch narrow, to move quickly up to the cooler level of consciousness. "Jim?"
"My God, yes! It is yes?" Spock heard the soft mind-laughter. "Hell, yes! Spock?"
"Yes. Indeed, yes!" "
End Notes:
Some of you may be wondering why I chose to include that quote at the beginning - and end - of this piece - I mean, it's not even got superheroes in it! Well, I have to admit that although I've been a comic book reader since I was quite young, it was reading and watching classic Star Trek that first begat my interest in hurt/comfort type stories, and so it felt only natural to tip my furry head to that. In the early days of ST fandom, (and where the entire phenonemon of fanfiction really got its start, so it's appropos that any discussion of h/c begin there) there wasn't a lot of meta awareness of what viewers were reading between the lines of the on-screen relationship between Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. Today, Pocket Books and Paramount actually have a rather daunting set of rules for their writers when producing a Star Trek novel, including ones that order the writer not to have any mind-melds occur in the plot, and not to even let Spock touch Kirk. (and this in spite of the fact that both were regular occurrences in the series itself.) The owners and editors are that afraid that slashy thoughts might enter readers' minds, if you can imagine. *grin* I think it must have entered their actual creator's mind on more than one occasion, as is evident in an interview I once read (in a biography) with Gene Roddenberry, and by reference to the Vulcan term 't'hyla' that he concocted. (first introduced in his novelization of ST: The Motion Picture) But back then, before the rules were applied, (which to my mind makes modern day publications a whole heckuva lot less interesting) novelists had nearly free rein, leading to some very creative - and tantalizingly slashy - results. (the scene quoted above, sounding so much like a work of lurid fanfiction, is, believe it or not, from an actual professionally published ST novel. (The Price of the Phoenix, Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath, Bantam Books, 1977. There's a sequel too, titled The Fate of the Phoenix.) Although the book is highly adventurous and contains an interesting and involved, even science fictiony, plot and a wickedly powerful antagonist, some of the situations and dialogue verge on the edge of adult melodrama at times, and certainly wouldn't have seen the light of day in a present-day novel. And my gosh, the implied hints of slash in those novels! (and in the other two by the same authors, too, and a few other authors, mostly female, had similar leanings.) These writers HAD to have been closest fanfic authors. The amount of hurt/comfort in their books is astounding. (but oh so good, if you like that sort of thing.) I also have to admit I chose to include a small discussion of Kirk and Spock because I'd always felt that their relationship and dynamic paralled Superman and Batman's quite powerfully. I saw a lot of similarities between them, and ST slash was one of the things that first opened my eyes to the possibilities of there being more than mere partnership and friendship to the World's Finest Duo. (so, thank you, Star Trek!)
An excellent source for discussing this topic is the treatise, Textual Poachers, by Dr. Henry Jenkins. It's an academic work that studies the phenomenon of fandom, and one chapter deals exclusively with fanfiction, and touches upon the themes of slash and hurt/comfort. I would have quoted from it, but sadly, my copy is buried deep in my storage box up north, but I highly recommend this very interesting read to those hankering for more meta thinking on the whys and wherefores of why we write what we write.
Finally, I was asked to provide some links to some of my own hurt/comfort fanfic works. So, erm, here they are. *shy smile*
"Before the Dawn" - a story written for 2006's World's Finest Gift Exchange. (request for some h/c from rai_daydreamer) (Superman/Batman)
"Song for a Season" - a story written for this year's WFGE. (also, completely coincidentally, from a prompt by rai_daydreamer) (S/B)
"The World in Solemn Stillness ... " a story written for The Greatest Gift, a Superman/Batman e-zine, from this past Christmas season. (S/B)
JLA: "Necessary Force" - an ongoing epic-length novella, featuring Superman and Batman and the Justice League of the Morrison/Waid era. (pre-slash)
And I'll include links to a couple of hurt/comfort stories from other fandoms that I've written on the offchance that there are those curious to see the conventions (cliches) of the genre with some different characters:
"A Taste of Sunshine" - This one is from the wonderful (and highly recommended) anime Kyou Kara Maou (KKM). Short, Complete. (Yuri/Conrad)
"Stained Glass Window" - this one is from the classic anime, Gatchaman, and is also an ongoing, (Work in Progress) longer, plotty work. (Ken/Joe)
And of course, there are many writers in the community who have written some terrific h/c, or who have drawn it. Check out the art by rai_daydreamer, and fics by jen_in_japan, arch_schatten, and bradygirl_12, to mention just a few, who have focussed on this genre with terrific results. :-) And I'm uncertain if this is allowed, but if you're participating in the following discussion (and I hope you do) and you've written or read some good h/c you want to rec, I'd say feel free to post a link to it in your comment! The more fics the merrier, I always say. :-)
Okay, then! This wasn't as brief as I'd thought it was going to be, apparently, *rueful grin* but I seemed to have warmed to the topic! If you're not completely drowned by now in the aforementioned quagmire of h/c, I invite you to share your own views and thoughts on the topic. I'd love to hear some opinions on what you think of hurt/comfort and why we love it. Let the discussion commence!
Pax :-)
... and Then Making It All Better"
A Brief Ramble on the Genre of Hurt/Comfort in the Realms of Fanfiction
By Paxwolf
"The bruises - Kirk thought even that the tip of a hipbone was shattered. How had the Vulcan lived, or moved?
Kirk did what was needed. He was well down the thighs, starting on shattered kneecaps, with the jeans slipped down around the boots, when Spock said, "That will be enough, Captain.''
Kirk whirled, caught the shoulders, didn't try to still his laugh or stop the tears that threatened to spill. ''Spock!'' He let a long, slow grin develop, thought that a tear or two did spill - his choice, now - finally added, ''You old horse thief.''
''Why should I abduct such an equine, Captain?'' Spock said in the manner of the old jokes, and Kirk knew that he had never been so glad to play straight man to a Vulcan.
''Well, we might even use one to ride out of this horse opera,'' he said, and then put his hand on Spock's face. ''Welcome back, Mr. Spock.''
''Yes - '' The pause was very long and the Vulcan eyes searched his face, seemed to drink it in, reached long fingers to brush dampness from his cheeks. ' '- Jim.''
The voice was utter satisfaction, undisguised and uncovered, the face calm, but not wearing its mask.
Kirk bowed his head in acknowledgement. "Spock,'' he answered in the same voice.
But he thought that neither one of them could hold the moment for much longer, nor did they need to."
- The Price of the Phoenix, by Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath
Ah, that scene takes me back ... way back to the dawning days of my interest in this subject ... *muses for a moment - gets back on track* Greetings, fellow fans and writers! Welcome to another installment of Superhero Muses, where you are invited once again to participate in a rambling but hopefully rousing discussion of the ins and outs of fanfic writing and creating. I am Paxwolf, your humble guest host for this segment. *waves paw* Today, we will be looking briefly at the fascinating (and sometimes controversial) topic of the fanfiction genre most commonly referred to as "Hurt/Comfort". And oh boy, what a topic it is! *grin* Our overall comm visionary, jen_in_japan, had graciously asked me some time ago if I would be interested in leading an exploration of this most interesting and intriguing genre, knowing quite well of my own longtime regard and love for this particular area of fanfic. And it was an offer, quite obviously, that I simply couldn't refuse. (although, true to my usual penchant for procrastination, *blush* it has taken me some time to get around to doing so!)
Originally I was intending to try and compose a very literary, formal essay to share with you, and thereby attempt to lend a flavour of legitimacy to the topic. But then, I thought to myself, "Self, what is the fun of that? Hurt/Comfort is supposed to be an intense, rip-roaring, and fun ride! Why laden it down with a tone of academia and bore everybody to bits"? So thus, this casual romp in the quagmire of h/c was born, and I invite one and all to wade in, or heck, go right ahead and jump head first into the churning pool of pain, suffering, and agony, followed by the tender embraces, assurances, and friendship - or even true love - that inevitably results. :-)
I should give fair warning that it's only all too easy to get stuck in this morass of misery and mitigation, of anguish and consolation, of torment and solace (okay, I'll stop now). Once you even stick a toe into the murky but oh-so lovely, tempting waters of h/c, you tend to get sucked right in, and next thing you know, you're in over your head, and could end up mired for life!
So. Still with me? Great! Let's take the plunge, shall we?
First off, in the case of any visitor (or indeed member) here perhaps not being entirely familiar with the genre, a definition (of sorts) may be in order. What is this 'hurt/comfort' of which we so grandiosely speak? As may be deduced from this explain-all appellation for the genre, 'hurt/comfort' fics are generally stories that involve one of two protagonists (and sometimes both) being hurt in some manner, either by a physical injury or illness, or wounded by an emotional or psychological (or spiritual) affliction. (or both.) This unfortunate soul usually proceeds to suffer intensely throughout the events of the story. However, not all is grim and dark, as the second necessary component for the story, 'Comfort', then comes into play. A second character, who may be a partner, friend, lover, or indeed even an enemy, then 'comforts' the sufferer, either healing him (or her) from physical maladies, or soothing him from ones of a more mental or emotional variety, through various means. The second protagonist usually 'takes care' of his (or her) companion, until healing can occur, and generally, personal feelings, hitherto unacknowledged, come to the fore as a result of the ordeal of the characters. The great pain and the subsequent comforting ofttimes serves as sort of catharsis, and both characters generally reach a new understanding, and often will reach a new plateau in their relationship with each other. And that, if pulled off in proper and skilled fashion, with that touch of delicacy that good h/c needs, can be an extraordinarily satisfying reading experience for the audience.
Please be aware that this genre is often accused of being more than a little addictive! If you should find yourself becoming increasingly hooked on the stuff, and begin craving regular 'fixes', well, I'm afraid I can't help you there. (I'm already a lost cause.) My advice? Seek therapy. Or try writing some of your own h/c! I can personally vouch for it being effectively therapeutic - and without those pesky medical bills showing up in your mail.) It can be extremely gratifying for a reader to be pulled down into the depths of pain, watch their beloved characters be ripped open and exposed, (I mean that metaphorically, of course!) only to be lifted up into the bliss of eventual release from the torment. It's been described as being akin to going through a terrible, dark experience and coming out on the other side into bright light, stronger and freer and happier for it. This kind of reading can even be quite liberating, in many respects. Good hurt/comfort simply resonates with something deep inside us.
If that got rather wordy for you, (something else I have a penchant for, I'm afraid) here's the simple definition from a Web fanfic glossary: "H/C - a common fan fic scenario where one character is injured, ill or otherwise traumatized and as a result recieves the tender care and/or affection of another character."
Perhaps as well as that short description, a general example would serve best. So, let's run down a typical sort of scenario for the average hurt/comfort story. Please feel free to insert the names of your favourite characters from whatever fandom you enjoy, (not that characters are - or should be - interchangeable, but this is a kind of a formula as a base example) but for our purposes here, (and considering the origins and nature of this comm!) I will use Batman and Superman as my protagonists.
Okay, so at the beginning of a story, Batman and Superman enjoy a good working relationship, but personally, are at odds with each other most of the time, even to the point of constant verbal conflict. Although they share a professional respect for each other, Clark gets exasperated at what he sees as Batman's hard-nosed line on nearly every issue under the sun, and thinks Batman is completely uncompromising, and Bruce thinks Superman is too gentle, too forgiving, and not taking a hard enough stance on those issues on which they disagree. They each feel their own view is the more valid one, and they will never understand the other, or be anything other than allies with a rather prickly relationship - at least on the surface. Beneath these shells, unbeknownst to either of their conscious minds, are simmering deeper feelings. Still, nothing really gets resolved in their day-to-day working lives. Then an emergency of major proportions suddenly rears its head, and in the inevitable confrontation with the archenemy/global disaster/galactic crisis, Batman is gravely injured and Superman is made helpless to prevent it. S rushes over to B and is able to provide some immediate medical care, and in the course of this, must hold or touch him for the first time. Through various means they are able, against all odds, to save the day and defeat the bad guy/triumph over whatever antagonist(s) has been placed as obstacles in the story. And, due to the incident, S and B come to a realization. They have been able, for perhaps the first time, to see more to the other than they knew was there before, and discover that they do in fact harbour genuine affection, trust, and camaraderie for the other. Their relationship subsequently changes as a result, and for the better, evolving into a true and trusted friendship.
The ordeal that they both had gone through, no matter which one was actually physically hurt, is what's key. The hurting and necessary follow-up comforting both lead to a dawning realization that in turn leads to greater things between them. It's the h/c that is the catalyst for helping both men to recognize what had previously been deeply buried and inaccessible in themselves.
Now this brings to mind the fact that h/c is actually more a 'sub-genre' than an actual genre in and of itself. My example above showed only a 'friendship' sequence, reminiscent of the old classic Star Trek novels of the '70's and '80's, of which the above quote at the top of this essay is an example. (more information on that in the EndNotes - but yes, believe it or not, that quote comes from a professionally-published novel, not a fanfic!!) H/C can certainly be used with great effect in burgeoning friendship stories, or in stories that show two antagonists reaching a truce and actual partnership/friendship after the initial ordeal is through and the obstacles overcome. (the science fiction film Enemy Mine, starring Dennis Quaid and Louis Gosset Jr., would be a classic example of this.) But h/c works often even more vividly and effectively if it is written within the genre of romance. There is a common misconception in fanfiction circles that h/c is either adult 'gen' or slash only, but it can also work very well in a straight (het) romance story. We see this in stories that pair the typically powerful male hero with a strong female protagonist, such as Wonder Woman, Lois Lane, Catwoman, Hawkgirl, and so forth.
You can even have Group hurt/comfort stories as well. For example, teamfics that feature, say, the Teen Titans or the Justice League, can often include terrific h/c. We've even seen this to an extent in canon, both in the comics and the animated series. (although not generally to the extreme degree that fanfic often carries it.) It can be a bit more complicated and challenging to carry off well with a larger cast, and these types of stories still tend to focus on a select core group or couple of characters, rather than the team entire. But it can work very well in that arena. Examples in the fanfic world abound, but some of last year's Justice League Virtual Season, (helmed by sasha_anu) would be one, as well as, if I may be so bold, my own Epic, JLA: "Necessary Force", which is really, at its heart, one long 'n plotty h/c fest!
But let's not talk het or gen here for the duration. Instead, let's talk slash. ;-)
For various reasons, (some of which have been previously explored on this comm) h/c works particularly well in slash (yaoi, m/m, same-sex, what-have-you) stories. Perhaps that is because the genre of h/c, I believe, originates from what I'll call 'Buddy Movies', (or Buddy Books) where two strong, heroic, male characters end up bonding through shared danger and adventure, and develop a mutual respect for one another. We see this time and again in films like Lethal Weapon, Die Hard 3, Rush Hour, and even more consistently, in TV series, of which Starsky and Hutch, arguably the most famous of classic series in the buddy genre, is a prime example. (other examples include series like The Professionals, Miami Vice, Quantum Leap, and especially the Robert Culp/Bill Cosby '60's show, I Spy.) This genre has been around for as long as adventure stories have been written, and in movies from the time of the first black and white westerns. The classic John Ford film, The Searchers, or Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and many other westerns, along with a plethora of action and war movies, contain some wonderful moments of hurt/comfort with the confines of safe, platonic, male friendships. And though I probably need not go into detail here, certainly we've all seen some spectacular hurt/comfort scenes within the pages of that four-colour friend of the crack addict, the comic book. :-)
And there's a very good reason for this appeal. Several, in fact. People, at their core, are social creatures. Inherently, we like to know that we're not all alone in the big bad universe. We like the idea that we have someone we trust to watch our backs. We like the idea of true partnership, and true friendship. We like the idea of soulmates. Both men and women have these desires. Men tend to gravitate towards the rough 'n tumble action, whereas women tend to prefer to focus on the emotional aspects. Thus, while h/c was born from buddy stories, it goes deeper than that into the psyche and the emotional motivations of the characters, and becomes primarily (although certainly not exclusively!) a female's genre.
Slash, like male-bonding, serves to highlight the relationship between two men. And hurt/comfort is often the perfect impetus for slash to happen in a story.
Now, I won't go into the whys and wherefores of slash itself, as that would be a whole other essay and has been done both here and elsewhere far better than I could ever hope to do. But in terms of our sub-genre, hurt/comfort, slash tends to be a particularly good breeding ground for stories of this ilk.
In the above example, after the crisis is over, the deeper feelings I alluded to in both Clark and Bruce become heated, and develop into romantic feelings, and eventually grow into ones of deep passion. It is the intense moment of shared danger and compassion over the pain suffered, and surprise/gratitude at the subsequent comforting, that provided the springboard for these deeper, underlying feelings to surface.
So that brings us to our next section: Why H/C?
Well, I'm no psychoanalyst, but even I could go on ad infinitum about the psychological reasons for the appeal of both slash and h/c. I'll refrain (breathe!) and just briefly touch on what I see as the main reasons for why this sub-genre is so appealing.
Primarily, what we're talking about here is emotion.
Hurt/Comfort, by its very nature, contains a good deal of emotional resonance, putting the characters (and the reader) through the paces of angst, pathos, fear, pity, terror, hatred, relief, gratitude, and love. The sheer emotion that h/c is able to trigger in both main characters (and the reader!) pulls them apart at the seams, lets you get a look at what makes them tick, and puts them back together again, often at a stronger or deeper level than before. And this tactic used in getting under the surface of a character works especially well when one of the protagonists is traditionally a stoic, taciturn, or sublimating type of character, where the tremendous agony that he and/or his companion endures pushes him into revealing/realizing the truer, deeper, 'realer' emotions usually kept hidden beneath a facade. Watching these types being forced into being emotional by the dire circumstances in which they find themselves, along with the intense suffering of their loved one, (think Batman, Spock, or a slew of 'tough guy' types, who generally keep their emotional expression to a minimum, or who tend to deny any feelings at all) can be terrifically rewarding. (It's fun to peel the layers of an onion, and the same principle applies here.) This can be also true for characters who are more exhibitive of their emotions, and it's an excellent way to get them to reveal their darker or more serious or deeper sides.
The revelation of these hidden emotions simply grabs us at a certain level. It's one reason why anime has proven so popular with girls and women - anime doesn't generally pull punches where emotional confict and drama is concerned. (have you seen series such as Fullmetal Alchemist? Or Kyou Kara Maou? Or Gatchaman - or any one of dozens of excellent anime, old and new, both shonen (aimed at boys) and especially shojo (primarily for girls) series.) Fortunately, I think American/western entertainment is beginning to clue into the powerful appeal emotional/relationship-based storytelling has, and animated series, science fiction, and (yay!) comics are at the forefront of that. Hurt/Comfort is the ultimate fare and expression for that kind of storytelling.
With a good hurt/comfort story, we as readers find it particularly easy to place ourselves in the characters' situations, either the hurtee or the comforter. And we therefore experience an intense empathy with them, often brought upon by their suffering, that leads us to closely associate our own selves with the characters. And when we can identitfy with either of the two characters (or even better, with both), then that is the greatest success that a story can have, and the most satisfying reading experience we can enjoy.
So, why is h/c particularly effective within the genre of slash stories? Well, one of the popular theories - and mine - is that seeing big, strong, in-control masculine manly men in positions of great vulnerability does something at a primal level for us - especially for female readers. Watching a strong and usually controlled and level-headed male character be forced into being out of control, and enslaved to the needs of the body, mind, - or heart - is enormously engaging and even fascinating. We also enjoy watching two disparate characters finding the means and reason to bond more closely with each other, whether as a friendship or as something more. And in the regard that (most) h/c stories inevitably have a happy ending, (or at least a resolution) by their very nature, many find that most satisfying as well.
However, there are plenty of reasons for why one might enjoy h/c, and every fan takes a different and highly individual view on just why they gravitate (or don't) to stories of this type. (I look forward to hearing some of yours here!) Yes, it is possible that it's a genre that doesn't catch everyone's fancy. (*gasp* Say it ain't so!) But most readers of the genre enjoy allowing themselves to get caught up in the building emotional tangle, the sharing of the pain, and then the eventual restorative release of it at the end. (and if I may be metaphoric, it's been said that h/c's appeal is partially stemming from its similarity to the sexual act itself, but on an emotional par, with the way these stories tend to build emotions and tensions in the course of the plot, and arouse physical and/or emotional pain until it all inevitably reaches a climax with revelations and heartfelt confessions, before resolving into a deep-level bonding and intimacy. Heh.) It's the sheer intensity of such stories that grab attention and interest, and simply put, it's fun, even thrilling, to be so completely caught up in the story.
It's really hard to say what all the appeals of H/C are - it's an extemely individual thing, and some readers (and writers) can't even explain it. And everyone looks for different things in these fics. There's the interest in reading about true danger to a character, for example. (especially a character who doesn't often get hurt in the canon he's from - or who bounces back too easily - and often unrealistically.) Jeopardy, just like in an action movie, full of danger and risk and uncertainty and fear, simply causes the heart to race and the blood to pump. The surge of adrenaline, as any andrenaline junkie knows, is a real rush. And good h/c by its very nature contains a lot of jeopardy.
Some might prefer to make the stoic character more vulnerable, for example, while others adore taking the more open character and just trashing him until he is a devastated, whimpering wreck. (and which character a writer chooses to hurts most often depends on which one is their favourite. We often really do tend to hurt the ones we love the most, odd as that may sound to the newbie!) Often the writer will trash both types, but one of them is generally more the focus of the destruction (and deconstruction) than the other.
And then there's the angst. (Hooray, angst!) I think whole separate essays have been written on the subject of angst. H/C fic invariably contain massive doses of angst. First there's the angst of the usually precarious situation the character(s) have been placed in, and then there's the angst of the choices the character(s) are forced to make to save each other, (and simply being 'forced' to do anything is a cause of yet more angst), and then there's the angst of the relationship/desire aspects that rise up from the earlier angst. ("Should he/shouldn't he" or "what if he doesn't want me/what if he does?" kinds of scenarios.) It's difficult to know just where to draw the line. But it's terribly hard for good angst to go wrong. :-)
Mostly, however, I would venture to guess that it's, as said above, the simple, sheer emotional intensity inherent in H/C that grabs us by the horns and keeps us reading to the bitter (or rather, beautiful) end. We've watched our heroes being torn apart and put back together again. It's tough to deny the attraction of that.
There doesn't have to a point either, for this kind of fic to be a success. (I know, it's sounds like blasphemy, doesn't it?) There doesn't have to be character growth either. It's fine and great if there is, but it's not completely necessary for a story of this genre. However, if a character is run through the mill and everything that happens to him really should make him grow, and he doesn't, then that would be a big no-no. :-) (and we really wouldn't want that!) It's great if there IS a point and growth, of course, but it's not the main reason why hurt/comfort is popular or why it works.
To sum it up, the tender caretaking that goes on between characters (especially characters who might not normally indulge in such touchy-feely moments) brought on by a situation of extreme duress, (it has to have an element of extremeness to make it plausible) brings out all sorts of emotional response in the reader - and ultimately, isn't that what the the entertainment of reading is all about? Seeing this, being thrust down into the depths of despair and then yanked upwards again into the heights of hope, somehow fulfills some deep-seated need in us as readers, (or writers) a need that is greater if it has been unsatisfied by the conventions of the typical canon fare.
Of course, there could be a lot more that could be said about just WHY hurt/comfort is successful at touching us inside, and enjoys a singular popularity. (and part of me feels I've done a woefully inadequate job here of attempting to explain it.) I've not really delved too deeply into some of the philosophy behind the genre, for example. But I hope that it serves as a kind of introduction to the uninitiated, and a fond re-visit to those already addicted. ;-) But before we conclude, at the behest of Jen, I'm just going to run over a shortlist of general Writing H/C Do's and Don'ts, in the case you've never attempted to create an H/C, and would like to try your hand at writing a solid hurt/comfort story. (I hope it helps somewhat if you are in this position.)
Do:
- include real emotion between the two main characters, no matter their previous relationship, no matter their gender. (yes, writing realistic emotional expression with men can be a little tricky, and with an emotion-based story, it's a fine line to walk, but it's still a must in any h/c story or it won't work.) Or include it between the members of the group, in the case of a teamfic.
- keep them in character. In fanfic, this is especially true of h/c stories, since you as the writer are placing the characters so far outside their 'comfort zone' and often stretching them to the max (fun!) and pushing them to (and often beyond) their limits, so it's crucial that they are still recognizable as, say, Clark and Bruce, no matter their extreme peril/malady/terror/despair/realizations that you put them through in the story. This isn't easy, because we've perhaps never seen the characters go through quite this level of ordeal in canon, or seen them respond in the way that the story demands (especially in a slash story, I'd warrant) that they do. So you have try and keep them in-character as much as possible, and infer how they would react and think and speak if they really were pushed to these extremes.
- allow the catharsis. Let the two have their moment of recognition and emotional release. The reader usually longs for this by the end (nay, needs it) this to be able to survive your fic, especially if there's a particularly large amount of pain or torture in your story, whether it's physical or emotional. (or both)
- get into your characters's heads - and hearts. You don't have to show the POV of both characters, but you must tap into both the thoughts and feelings of at least one of them. And remember, like with any piece of writing, it's better to show than just tell.
Don't:
- hurt your protagonist and then forget to have him or her comforted or healed (in some manner) before the end! This may seem like a pretty obvious necessity, but I've seen one or two so-called hurt/comfort stories that had the pain part just going on and on - and just ending that way, with no hope in sight for the suffering to ever end. (That would be a torture fic, not an h/c one.)
- hold yourself back. Explore your own feelings and write what you would want to read! Let yourself go, and be in the flow of what works for you personally with both the hurt and the comforting. You might be surprised at how many other readers feel the same way, and can relate to what you're putting the characters through. Be in tune with what your characters are feeling, and don't run from it. (even when it hurts - and believe me, if you're doing it right, it will hurt. But, don't worry - it gets better.)
- be afraid to have a resolution to previously unresolved feelings or conflicts that have been festering throughout the fic. Nothing's so unsatisfactory as to have been pushed into all that angst and fear and pain and then have it all lead to basically nothing in the end, with no changes in the relationship's previous status quo. (and believe me, I've seen more mis-named h/c stories that somehow left off the 'comfort' part of it, and it was a quite maddening experience. Arrgghhh!) Generally, hurt/comfort does lend itself - if you follow the conventions of the genre - to 'happy endings', but they can also work very well with more 'open-ended' conclusions, provided you do find a way to heal the bulk of the pain that you inflicted on your characters. It's hard on readers if they're left completely guessing what happens next, with no clues to go by. Resolve it! Or at least leave evidence in place that readers may infer that the ending they desire will eventually happen.)
- get too bogged down with technicalities when describing physical injury or illness. It's important to remember that it's the emotion that is key, not the precise accuracy of the human (or alien) body's response to physical trauma. (or the ins and outs of the medical care necessary for survival and recovery.) It's good, however, if you are going to go into specific detail, to ensure that you don't have the characters doing something completely unviable to save the victim of the hurt. Having a character take some sort of action that is entirely implausible or even impossible will jar the reader right out of what was otherwise an engaging story. A certain level of suspension of disbelief is, of course, going to be there on the side of the audience, but that disbelief will be UNsuspended if the description is too unreal. The closest I ever got to this kind of detail was in my Superman/Batman story, "Before the Dawn", where I had Superman stabbed with a knife edged with Kryptonite. (and a little less so with "The World in Solemn Stillness..." that involved a magic-borne fever) Naturally I took certain liberties, (as you'd have to in a situation so abnormal as one dealing with super-powered aliens and radioactive substances and strandings on remote glaciers) but I also took pains to research carefully (with the aid of a professional EMT) to ensure that Batman was responding to the wound and its results in a realistic fashion. Yes, it's also a fine line to walk to know when you're not going too far with that kind of accuracy, but if you do include technical medical jargon, I would advise keeping it to a minimum and not forgetting to include the characters' reactions and thoughts along with it - and especially showing feelings!
One reader once asked me, "How much hurt is too much hurt? Can you go too far with it?" And the answer to that is - it depends. My first response was, "You sure can!" Who hasn't seen a fic that is chock full of humongous pain and blood and suffering or betrayal and grief and loss? If it's too over the top, h/c can possibly lose its effectiveness and power. A reader just ends up drained and exhausted by the end. Then I realized I was allowing personal bias to influence my reaction.
First of all, everyone has a threshold for how much suffering they can read or watch happen to a character. Every reader has a different level of tolerance for what they can witness their hero endure. (especially if they are identifying personally with the sufferer.) Some readers have a very high threshold, and reading elaborate descriptions of major levels of pain doesn't faze them, or indeed, there are some who can't be satisfied unless the hurt is to a large degree. While there are others who can barely withstand hearing of a character suffering emotional loss, or the description of, say, a bit of blood. Secondly, a lot of how much pain is given a character is dependent on the level of comfort afterwards. It has to be somewhat on par. If the brutality that a character is inflicted with doesn't match the degree of 'comfort' or healing after it's over, then that leads to a fairly undesirable annoyance or frustration on the part of the reader. A good example of this would be in 'rapefic', where a character is made to suffer both physically and emotionally by the overpowering act. The way that he or she is healed afterwards by the comforter has to be at a standard that's high enough to be plausible and acceptable to both the victim and the reader. If it's not, the story can be more of an aggravating experience, and not only unsatisfying, but disappointing. That is how a hurt/comfort story can fail the most spectacularly - if the Hurt is proportionately greater than the Comfort. (not that there's any condemnation of that kind of story here - 'Char Torture' fics do have their place, and for some it could be their greatest kink. But then it's not preciscely a 'true' H/C story.) The reverse, however, is not necessarily as drastic a problem, but it is still best if the twain shall meet. *g*
There is nothing to say, after all this, that writing hurt/comfort is an easy thing. (At least it's not to me!) Never do I feel so drained and worn out as I do after writing an intense h/c fic. I even experience a period of 'burn out' for a time after writing one. If you, as most writers do, pour your own emotions into your work, then simply trying to deal with all the emotion and then resolve it realistically can be terribly exhausting. And sometimes it really is difficult to determine whether or not you've crossed over into the domain of melodrama. (not that melodrama is necessarily a bad thing - as long as it's what you intended and the reader is expecting. After all, it's been argued that most comics - and cartoons - are, at their heart, melodramatic storytelling at its best.)
With most hurt/comfort, we will find that by hurting the ones we love, we are in some primal way hurting ourselves. Fortunately, then we also get to find a way to deal with it, and receive comfort from another one that we love, and by granting the beloved characters the chance to heal and grow together at the end, it reaffirms our trust and belief in our own survival, and serves to give us hope for our own uncertain and fearful futures.
You may find that there are plenty of readers who steer completely clear of hurt/comfort fic, primarily because they have difficulty dealing with (or swallowing) all of that intense emotion, or in seeing these characters - and the deplorable situations they end up in - somehow in themselves, or in any way relating to their own lives. It takes a lot out of one to read powerful Hurt/Comfort, and not everyone can deal with that kind of intensity. (there's a reason why 'fluff fic' is popular, after all!) It's not exactly a genre for the faint of heart.
But first and foremost, h/c is a work of the heart, and though it can take a lot out of you, it also adds a heckuva lot back in. And to me, that makes all the hurt worthwhile. And that can be a very great comfort indeed. ;-)
"And then Kirk's hands reached to ease the shoulders and to draw him surprisingly close. "We are alone, Mr. Spock," he said. "Quite alone. Do you understand?"
"Indeed, Captain. Quite alone." And he made it true.
The mind-touch was a lowering of personal barriers. If it did not require privacy, it nonetheless cried for it.
Spock slipped in easily at the level of warmth. He had been here before. It knew how to accept him.
Spock fought to keep the touch narrow, to move quickly up to the cooler level of consciousness. "Jim?"
"My God, yes! It is yes?" Spock heard the soft mind-laughter. "Hell, yes! Spock?"
"Yes. Indeed, yes!" "
End Notes:
Some of you may be wondering why I chose to include that quote at the beginning - and end - of this piece - I mean, it's not even got superheroes in it! Well, I have to admit that although I've been a comic book reader since I was quite young, it was reading and watching classic Star Trek that first begat my interest in hurt/comfort type stories, and so it felt only natural to tip my furry head to that. In the early days of ST fandom, (and where the entire phenonemon of fanfiction really got its start, so it's appropos that any discussion of h/c begin there) there wasn't a lot of meta awareness of what viewers were reading between the lines of the on-screen relationship between Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. Today, Pocket Books and Paramount actually have a rather daunting set of rules for their writers when producing a Star Trek novel, including ones that order the writer not to have any mind-melds occur in the plot, and not to even let Spock touch Kirk. (and this in spite of the fact that both were regular occurrences in the series itself.) The owners and editors are that afraid that slashy thoughts might enter readers' minds, if you can imagine. *grin* I think it must have entered their actual creator's mind on more than one occasion, as is evident in an interview I once read (in a biography) with Gene Roddenberry, and by reference to the Vulcan term 't'hyla' that he concocted. (first introduced in his novelization of ST: The Motion Picture) But back then, before the rules were applied, (which to my mind makes modern day publications a whole heckuva lot less interesting) novelists had nearly free rein, leading to some very creative - and tantalizingly slashy - results. (the scene quoted above, sounding so much like a work of lurid fanfiction, is, believe it or not, from an actual professionally published ST novel. (The Price of the Phoenix, Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath, Bantam Books, 1977. There's a sequel too, titled The Fate of the Phoenix.) Although the book is highly adventurous and contains an interesting and involved, even science fictiony, plot and a wickedly powerful antagonist, some of the situations and dialogue verge on the edge of adult melodrama at times, and certainly wouldn't have seen the light of day in a present-day novel. And my gosh, the implied hints of slash in those novels! (and in the other two by the same authors, too, and a few other authors, mostly female, had similar leanings.) These writers HAD to have been closest fanfic authors. The amount of hurt/comfort in their books is astounding. (but oh so good, if you like that sort of thing.) I also have to admit I chose to include a small discussion of Kirk and Spock because I'd always felt that their relationship and dynamic paralled Superman and Batman's quite powerfully. I saw a lot of similarities between them, and ST slash was one of the things that first opened my eyes to the possibilities of there being more than mere partnership and friendship to the World's Finest Duo. (so, thank you, Star Trek!)
An excellent source for discussing this topic is the treatise, Textual Poachers, by Dr. Henry Jenkins. It's an academic work that studies the phenomenon of fandom, and one chapter deals exclusively with fanfiction, and touches upon the themes of slash and hurt/comfort. I would have quoted from it, but sadly, my copy is buried deep in my storage box up north, but I highly recommend this very interesting read to those hankering for more meta thinking on the whys and wherefores of why we write what we write.
Finally, I was asked to provide some links to some of my own hurt/comfort fanfic works. So, erm, here they are. *shy smile*
"Before the Dawn" - a story written for 2006's World's Finest Gift Exchange. (request for some h/c from rai_daydreamer) (Superman/Batman)
"Song for a Season" - a story written for this year's WFGE. (also, completely coincidentally, from a prompt by rai_daydreamer) (S/B)
"The World in Solemn Stillness ... " a story written for The Greatest Gift, a Superman/Batman e-zine, from this past Christmas season. (S/B)
JLA: "Necessary Force" - an ongoing epic-length novella, featuring Superman and Batman and the Justice League of the Morrison/Waid era. (pre-slash)
And I'll include links to a couple of hurt/comfort stories from other fandoms that I've written on the offchance that there are those curious to see the conventions (cliches) of the genre with some different characters:
"A Taste of Sunshine" - This one is from the wonderful (and highly recommended) anime Kyou Kara Maou (KKM). Short, Complete. (Yuri/Conrad)
"Stained Glass Window" - this one is from the classic anime, Gatchaman, and is also an ongoing, (Work in Progress) longer, plotty work. (Ken/Joe)
And of course, there are many writers in the community who have written some terrific h/c, or who have drawn it. Check out the art by rai_daydreamer, and fics by jen_in_japan, arch_schatten, and bradygirl_12, to mention just a few, who have focussed on this genre with terrific results. :-) And I'm uncertain if this is allowed, but if you're participating in the following discussion (and I hope you do) and you've written or read some good h/c you want to rec, I'd say feel free to post a link to it in your comment! The more fics the merrier, I always say. :-)
Okay, then! This wasn't as brief as I'd thought it was going to be, apparently, *rueful grin* but I seemed to have warmed to the topic! If you're not completely drowned by now in the aforementioned quagmire of h/c, I invite you to share your own views and thoughts on the topic. I'd love to hear some opinions on what you think of hurt/comfort and why we love it. Let the discussion commence!
Pax :-)