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Plot Bunny Thread V2

Discussion in 'Fanfic Discussion' started by Antivash, Apr 20, 2011.

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  1. Portus

    Portus Heir

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    Why wouldn't Summer and/or Winter offer them sanctuary, since they're both Outsider-banes. Of course, I don't remember that being stated explicitly in TDF canon, but it's been brought up so much here that I have to think it has some truth to it.
     
  2. nairit

    nairit Second Year

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    @ Mordecai: But the idea itself has merit? Or should this be relegated to being an element of a story instead of the draw?
     
    Last edited: Jan 24, 2012
  3. Jormungandr

    Jormungandr Prisoner

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    I...think that it's only been implied, so far?
     
  4. T3t

    T3t Purple Beast of DLP ~ Prestige ~ DLP Supporter

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    Pretty explicitly stated in Dresden's case, but I have no idea why people think the same is true of Elaine.
     
  5. Jormungandr

    Jormungandr Prisoner

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    Well, Justin did adopt Elaine, too; maybe that's the reason why?
     
  6. Aekiel

    Aekiel Angle of Mispeling ~ Prestige ~ DLP Supporter

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    Another case of Word of Jim explaining things.

     
  7. T3t

    T3t Purple Beast of DLP ~ Prestige ~ DLP Supporter

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    Well... that's a pretty clear indication that Dresden's mother was somehow involved with the Black Council. Because Dresden's birth (and thus presumably conception) was timed specifically for that reason, and how else would Justin know about it?
     
  8. Riley

    Riley Alchemist DLP Supporter

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    Ok, so this isn't a brand new plot bunny, but I figured since there's only one other story I can find with it, this is fairly unique. Harry Potter crossed with The Boondock Saints. The reason I'm putting this here is because the only one I found (here) is poorly written and somewhat of a let down what with the awesomeness of the Saints, it has an original idea but I feel that the people here could probably do better.
     
  9. T3t

    T3t Purple Beast of DLP ~ Prestige ~ DLP Supporter

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    The Boondock Saints was awesome, but what's the actual plot bunny? Subbing in characters doesn't really work well.
     
  10. Andro

    Andro Master of Death DLP Supporter

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    The Boondock Saints wasn't awesome, and neither will a crossover with it be awesome.
     
  11. Riley

    Riley Alchemist DLP Supporter

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    That's why I was dropping this here. I have no clue what to do, but it happens in the same time period and I feel that the forces of Magic would be a great contrast to their "holy mission". Maybe the Saints are gunning for Voldemort's followers and get caught in the middle of the Second War. They'd find out that their muggle tech doesn't work right in magical areas and thus have to revert to older means of fight, like enchanted swords/shields/other weapons.

    OR.

    Harry has a twin, both are left in the care of an Irish woman who marries a hitman and they're raised in America, (Harry could be either Connor or Murphy, but for the sake of this idea, he's Connor the one with riskier ideas) and it starts right after Saints two where the Order figures out who he is and breaks him, his brother and his friend out of Jail. That's who Smecker could mean by a bigger angle.

    I just want to see a better crossover than the crappy one I did manage to find.

    Edit: Andromalius, opinions differ.
     
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2012
  12. Portus

    Portus Heir

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    This. I'd hear on DLP that it was "great" and "awesome" so I pulled it up on Netflix. Fuck me, was I ever disappointed and pining for the two hours I flushed down the toilet by watching the whole crappy thing.

    Was I trolled by DLP??
     
  13. T3t

    T3t Purple Beast of DLP ~ Prestige ~ DLP Supporter

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    No, I genuinely liked it when I watched it. True, it was a crappy Tarantino rip-off, but it was still fun to watch. Meh.
     
  14. CrackedMind

    CrackedMind Minister of Magic

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    I recently saw it. Fun to watch in an insane, self-parody sort of way.
     
  15. Countess Whitewing

    Countess Whitewing First Year

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    Alright so I have this plot bunny that won't leave me alone. Granted it's probably cliche and has been hugely over done. But hopefully not in this way. It would have to be an alternate universe for it to work.

    On the eve of Lord Voldemort's victory over a seventeen year war with the magical British Empire, the senior surviving Unspeakable and the ranking Auror within England, send four people back in time to make sure this particular future doesn't happen. But, something went haywire because spellcasting interfered and instead of just sending the four back in time, it sends them to a parallel universe as well.

    Now, instead of it the ones being sent back being the usual mix of Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Ginny, Luna or Draco. It would be minor or background characters. Each one would be a member of a different House. Of course, I already have an idea of who I would use for the four. Katie Bell, Anthony Goldstein, Susan Bones and Daphne Greengrass.

    I'm just more or less wondering if it's even worth it to attempt writing it since time travel is so over done...
     
  16. FreakLord

    FreakLord Professor DLP Supporter

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    Don't. Just Don't.
     
  17. Averis

    Averis Don of Delivery ~ Prestige ~

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    Well, I wouldn't be opposed to reading that fic, Countess, but the majority of DLP (and truly, the majority of the fandom) prefer when Harry is utilized in the story in some way. Therefore, replace Katie with Harry and you're golden. If it seems contrived, just explain that they have all received Auror training, have fought in the war (bonus points if the other three don't truly trust Daphne) and are the most qualified. Harry doesn't have a family, nor does Susan or Daphne (assuming she's turned her back on her parents and sister) and Anthony is an open book.

    Personally, I'd even be up for helping you as a Beta if you're a half-decent writer. Private message me if you need anything.

    Ignore sunkarapk.

    EDIT: Oh, and post more frequently. Welcome to DLP.
     
  18. Portus

    Portus Heir

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    Looks like you've made a friend, whitey. Congrats, because Averis has some chops, I think. I suspect though, that your mention of Katie Bell put you over the top in his book, or at the very least didn't hurt.

    Anyway, almost (and I do mean 'almost') anything *could* be made interesting in the right hands. The sticking point is whether or not you are the person who's able to make it happen for this story.

    For example, *why* are you choosing four *very* minor characters for your idea? I mean, as little as we know of the four characters you mentioned, they're effectively OCs, and as hard as you try they'll never be anything more than OCs with canon names. In that case, why do you prefer to use four unknowns as opposed to four semi-known characters or a mix of main characters and true OCs?

    Look at what we know about Katie Bell from canon: She's a Quidditch fan who was nearly killed by a cursed necklace. That's about it, really, and that's loads more than we know about any of the other three you mentioned. While I agree that taking a story involving Katie in the direction of, say, revenge for her near-death experience could be interesting, the other three are gonna fall far short in comparison.

    I would suggest that you drop the "one from each House" angle, because a person's House at Hogwarts means exactly nothing outside of that school, at least to anyone not in school with the person. Why not then try to mix it up with something like one of these:

    (1) Two Ravenclaw characters, a Hufflepuff and a Slytherin. The RCs can be timid brainiacs who distrust the Slytherin, while the Hufflepuff is caught in the middle.

    (2) A Gryffindor and three Slytherins. The Gryffindor is shoot-first, fuck-it-I'll-just-wing-it type whose cavalier ways scare the shit our of those calculating Slytherins, and no one trusts anyone else because of politics and old baggage.

    (3) Three Hufflepuffs and a Slytherin. The Hufflepuffs are trying to do everything as nobly and fairly as possible while the Slytherin is arguing that sacrifices have to be made and why can't they see things pragmatically, goddammit?

    Oh look, I've gone and used tired cliches for all those examples, which is exactly what you'd end up doing if you insist on having one from each House, as if that has any bearing on anything at all. It's not as if the Founders were representative of the Humors or the Elements and only a group of persons who exemplify the traits of four witches and wizards from 1000+ years ago at a new school in one part of what was then a backwater continent can harness the powers of time and space to rewrite history and save the world. :/

    I mean, there's using symbolism and then there's placing needless emphasis on the decisions of a ratty old talking hat.

    /rant about the complete unimportance of Houses in the wider scheme of things...

    So then, what? How about picking, say, Seamus Finnigan or Dean Thomas - two characters we know far more about - and adding one or both of them to a group which includes, say, some combination of Luna Lovegood, Viktor Krum, Fred OR George Weasley (but not both), Lee Jordan, Mad-Eye Moody (he always gets my vote), even Draco or Pansy or Blaise Zabini, or even Justin Finch-Fletchley.

    Sure, several of those are also little known characters, but we know about as much about Blaise as we do Goldstein, yet you have some big-time players (Luna/Fred/Krum, etc.) so that not everyone is essentially an OC.

    And I think that having one traditionally distrusted character (Malfoy, Zabini, Pansy) while the other three are trusted by each other would make for some very good internal tension on the "team." Say you have Dean and Seamus and Krum having to work with Pansy. Of course at least half of the team is exceedingly wary of Pansy since their half-bloods at best and she's been a blood-purist, and that dynamic - with Krum in the middle - could make for a really interesting story.

    And bonus points if you're good enough to make Pansy a potential love interest for Krum or perhaps Dean. i have a soft spot for stories that have a hint of romance mixed in with the intrigue, or just include an understated longing/desire from one or more characters, particularly if it's doomed or unrequited.

    Here's a thought: Have the team I mentioned - Seamus, Dean, Krum and Pansy - and have the whole thing go to shit two-thirds of the way through. The "team" is either compromised or [insert plot device here] and all signs point to Pansy as the traitor. Dean is killed and the others escape but not unscathed. Pansy is trying to save Krum's life while Seamus accuses her of betraying them. Pansy and Seamus are both emotional and she screams that she could never have betrayed them because she was in love with Dean. Cue the rest of the story and she either ends up dead, alone, or with Krum/Seamus in the end.

    See? I threw out characters that are minor at best but aren't complete OCs either. Of course you could do all that with Katie and/or Susan and/or whoever, but my point is that your reader needs *something* familiar to latch onto, or else you might as well be writing an original novel.
     
  19. Jormungandr

    Jormungandr Prisoner

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    I'll be honest: I'd read it, regardless of quality, simply because it has Katie Bell in it.
     
  20. Countess Whitewing

    Countess Whitewing First Year

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    Averis: Harry would still be a major part of the plot, I just didn't want him or the fandom dubbed 'Ministry Six' or Draco being the time travelers. I was going to do the Auror training or Unspeakable training or a specific talent useful to the 'team' like a Mastery in Ancient Runes or Potions, etc. The distrust towards Daphne would be interesting but I see it more with Katie than Susan. Goldstein I'm unsure on. It would be interesting to have Astoria following Draco while Daphne fights for the 'Light'. And a Beta would be useful if I decide to write it and if I'm decent enough of a write for you lol.

    ---------- Post automerged at 04:28 ---------- Previous post was at 04:06 ----------

    Portus: The reasoning behind using four very minor little known characters was more me just not wanting to use the aforementioned seven and that this idea started with it just being Susan & Daphne. Then went on to be a four girl 'team', but the Claw fell through so I used Goldstein instead. The one from each House came about because I was contemplating de-aging them when they time travel and have them go through Hogwarts again. Which now seems silly, who's gonna listen to four adolescents when they might say that darkness is coming or another war? Reading through your suggestions makes me wonder why my muse stuck to a four member team instead of using the 'magically powerful' seven. If I took your suggestions and blended it with my thoughts after some input I come to a seven member team that looks like: Katie Bell, Dean Thomas, Viktor Krum, Fleur Delacour/Weasley, Justin Finch-Fletchley or Ernie Macmillan, Susan Bones & Daphne Greengrass lol.

    And that sub-plot is an interesting twist a traitor amongst them...
     
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