Exploring and eroticizing clone existentialism without breaking site guidelines

[HHHawkeye]

I had this idea for my superhero story that there's a superheroine (tentative name Dividiva) with a duplication power, with the erotic twist being she really gets off on the implications of her power. Her clones have all of her memories up to the point that the original created the clone, and are really turned on by the fact that they're suddenly no longer a real person with human rights, but an expendable clone that has to do whatever the original says. And every time Dividiva uses her powers, a part of her is hoping that this time it'll be her waking up as one of the clones.

The problem is sticking the dismount. Non-grossly addressing what happens to the clones inevitably, since clones usually have some kind of shelf life in stories like this. I'm worried I can't tackle a fun idea like this without risking bordering on snuff if the clones know their days are numbered and are still turned on by being clones.

So I'm guessing this idea needs a little massaging to get the spirit of what's fun about it without being in danger of breaking the site's rules about acceptable content. Any suggestions?

 

[SimonDoom]

It doesn't sound like snuff to me, and it sounds like it wouldn't be difficult to navigate away from snuffish material.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

If the demise of the clones is not presented in a brutal or abusive manner intending to arouse or titillate the reader, then I can't see it being equated to "snuff". The context in which they cease to exist will be the determining factor.

 

[HHHawkeye]

If the demise of the clones is not presented in a brutal or abusive manner intending to arouse or titillate the reader, then I can't see it being equated to "snuff". The context in which they cease to exist will be the determining factor.

Yeah, the idea would be that no one would ever get sexual pleasure from killing them or anything. It would just be the fact that the clones are fully aware that they only have a shelf life of a few hours. If we ever see the clones "expire", they'd just instantly collapse into a puddle of water or something.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

Yeah, the idea would be that no one would ever get sexual pleasure from killing them or anything. It would just be the fact that the clones are fully aware that they only have a shelf life of a few hours. If we ever see the clones "expire", they'd just instantly collapse into a puddle of water or something.

There should be no issue with that approach

 

[CalBishForNow]

Interesting question.

You might be able to do anything you want with this premise and it would be fine, although a little too weird and experimental to do well in any one category. There are tons of stories here with a premise of eroticism from slavery and degradation (your example doesn't include any overt degradation, but it does have something dehumanizing about it), and they do fine. But it's a bit more complicated because your version of slavery and degradation is tied to a form of death.

I'd wonder the following, in no particular order.

1. Is the clones' expiration an inevitable consequence of how Dividiva's power works, or a choice she makes?
2. Is Dividiva's kink dominance and submission (with the sci-fi twist that it's of and to herself), death (with the sci-fi twist that she doesn't die herself, but clones of her get to enjoy it), murder (with the sci-fi twist that it's a copy of herself she's killing), or something else?
3. Do the clones have free will? Could they disobey Dividiva, if they chose, or are they effectively just robots? (Does Dividiva know the truth about that?)
4. Are the clones being put to uses that are inherently dangerous, demeaning, or erotic, or is the danger, dehumanization, and eroticism just part of the clone expiration process?

Thinking about it more, I'm sure you can do a version of this that's fine with Lit's rules, if you try. I can also imagine a version of it that would be against Lit's rules in spirit, although it might get published anyway because it's so weird.

 

[ChuckWolf]

Why even bring up clone-mortality into the story?

Also, maybe instead of clones, she's creating temporal duplicates of herself from the timestream? Maybe that'd work better for the story?

 

[HHHawkeye]

1. Is the clones' expiration an inevitable consequence of how Dividiva's power works, or a choice she makes?

Inevitable consequence, is how I imagine it. Because otherwise her clones would get out of control.

2. Is Dividiva's kink dominance and submission (with the sci-fi twist that it's of and to herself), death (with the sci-fi twist that she doesn't die herself, but clones of her get to enjoy it), murder (with the sci-fi twist that it's a copy of herself she's killing), or something else?

Dominance and submission, and also the humiliation and degradation of being a clone and not a "real person" anymore. She doesn't exactly get off on her own death, but it doesn't bother her, and it adds to dehumanization aspect. She gets off on a lot of things that extend from being a clone, like the fact that she's technically lost her entire fortune, that her wife isn't really her wife anymore and the "real" her might be having sex with her without her at that very moment, etc.

3. Do the clones have free will? Could they disobey Dividiva, if they chose, or are they effectively just robots? (Does Dividiva know the truth about that?)

I could go either way on this, but I think my answer is that her clones obey her because they want to, because it's fun. And that she theorizes either her sexuality is the way it is so she can handle having her power, or the other way around, that she developed this power as a byproduct of being this down bad.

4. Are the clones being put to uses that are inherently dangerous, demeaning, or erotic, or is the danger, dehumanization, and eroticism just part of the clone expiration process?

Demeaning and erotic? Yes. Dangerous? Also yes but probably not on-screen and definitely not at the same time as the demeaning eroticism. She's a superheroine who takes her job seriously, and her clones are willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good in a genuinely dangerous situation. The demeaning and erotic stuff is recreational, done on her own time off duty.

 

[CalBishForNow]

Dominance and submission, and also the humiliation and degradation of being a clone and not a "real person" anymore. She doesn't exactly get off on her own death, but it doesn't bother her, and it adds to dehumanization aspect. She gets off on a lot of things that extend from being a clone, like the fact that she's technically lost her entire fortune, that her wife isn't really her wife anymore and the "real" her might be having sex with her without her at that very moment, etc.

Demeaning and erotic? Yes. Dangerous? Also yes but probably not on-screen and definitely not at the same time as the demeaning eroticism. She's a superheroine who takes her job seriously, and her clones are willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good in a genuinely dangerous situation. The demeaning and erotic stuff is recreational, done on her own time off duty.

In that case, yeah, you're fine. It's weird, but it's not darker than plenty of stuff here that's also fine.

If I were writing a story with this premise, I'd probably put it in the Sci-fi/Fantasy category with BDSM tags and content warnings. I'd start with a relatively low-key outline, a "slice of life" story from two perspectives, first from the original Dividiva's perspective on a more-or-less normal mission or day, and then from the clone's. Maybe also an epilogue back to the original's POV so the reader can see how she's right and wrong about the clone's perspective. Probably also with at least some sexual activity that's erotic in a more vanilla sense so it's not all about the D/S head games.

But that's just me. You do you.

 

[shelleycat1]

If they are clones, when they wake up, how do they know they are a clone. A number tattoed on the back of the neck?

One of my stories was about a cloned wife, but I decided not to kill the clone or the original.

 

[TheWritingGroup]

Does Dividiva remember being the clones?

 

[ElectricBlue]

So I'm guessing this idea needs a little massaging to get the spirit of what's fun about it without being in danger of breaking the site's rules about acceptable content. Any suggestions?

No content or policy breach that I can see. Get on and write the story, you're worrying about needless stuff.