Family and Culture Shock: Two Story Ideas

[Shendude]

So, the other day, I suddenly had two separate story ideas hit me at once, that had a moderate thematic similarity, though one is more realistic (for some value of realism) than the other.

Tell me what you think can be done with them...

1. In the Pacific Ocean lies an island that was only discovered by white men in the 1900s. Like many such islands, the locals had a rather different attitude towards sex than that of Europe. Namely, they believed that women existed solely for the pleasure of men, and that any sexual activity was permitted, provided it was between members of the opposite sex and that the man or men were in charge; polygamy, incest, wife-swapping, group sex, every position you can think of, all were permitted and even encouraged. Upon discovery by Europeans, the locals were quickly Christianized, abandoning most of the unique sexual mores, though the oppressive patriarchy and homophobia remained.

Shortly after the Second World War, a young man from this island went to America to seek his fortune...and found it in spades, becoming wealthy beyond the dreams of avarice. As he grew older, however, he began to long for home. And so he returned to his native land, married a much younger woman, and produced a son who was raised according to the ways of the island, including an early marriage. Then he died, leaving his now adult son a vast fortune, a family to lead, and instructions to got to college in America and take said family with him.

The family consists of the son, who dreams of being dominated by strong women; his widowed mother, a mature beauty and closeted lesbian; his aunt, a nubile virgin his own age who's devotion to God struggles with her ability to wrap men around her little finger; and his new bride, and her sister, who wish to return to the island's old ways. In America, which will at last be able to see their secret desires fulfilled?

2. Professor Pythagoras Patry, though a brilliant scientist, has always been a little eccentric. Since the death of his beloved wife Penelope, his eccentricity has only grown, and he's barely emerged from his basement laboratory since.

His sons (27 year-old Pat, 23 year-old Paul, 21 year-old Peter, and 18 year-old twins Percy and Perry) have become concerned, and decided to invade their father's sanctum and stage an intervention. Unfortunately, they did so at a critical stage, and the interruption causes a mechanism to malfunction and explode, producing a chain reaction that catapults the entire Patry family to another world, a world where, by some strange quirk of evolution, the human race has only one gender; female.

Can the Patrys return home (probably not)? Can they maintain their masculinity ins a completely feminine world (who knows)? Will they get laid a lot (one hopes)?

 

[Sean Renaud]

Those ideas are so radically different they probably should have gotten two posts.

That aside I like both ideas a lot. If I had to change anything I think you've got too many moving parts in your first story idea here. Yeah I know I might be a little too strict on the wham, bam thank you ma'am philosophy but I still think you could easily trim out the WWII bit. Or if you're really in love with that part of the idea just have him be a survivor of ship that sank in the Pacific. Even if you don't agree with my entire philosophy keep it simple stupid (KISS) tends to be a good rule in fiction as a whole. Especially if you for whatever reason really end up liking the story and want to write more there's nothing as frustrating as having been written into a corner.

The second idea is pretty much flawless. I think the dead wife bit is a bit overdone in these stories. Hell it seems in fiction there is nothing rarer than someone with two living parents who's main flaw is perhaps being a bit neglectful and quite often it doesn't seem to provide much for the story. That's just me.

 

[Shendude]

Those ideas are so radically different they probably should have gotten two posts.

Probably. But I couldn't think of a sufficiently clever name for the first one (the second would be "The Patry Boys and the Planet of the Babes").

That aside I like both ideas a lot.

Thank you. As with all my ideas, if someone else wants to use them, I have no objections.

If I had to change anything I think you've got too many moving parts in your first story idea here. Yeah I know I might be a little too strict on the wham, bam thank you ma'am philosophy but I still think you could easily trim out the WWII bit. Or if you're really in love with that part of the idea just have him be a survivor of ship that sank in the Pacific. Even if you don't agree with my entire philosophy keep it simple stupid (KISS) tends to be a good rule in fiction as a whole. Especially if you for whatever reason really end up liking the story and want to write more there's nothing as frustrating as having been written into a corner.

Well, I needed a mechanism by which a young man from an island in the middle of nowhere could afford to care for a family while being a college student.

The second idea is pretty much flawless. I think the dead wife bit is a bit overdone in these stories. Hell it seems in fiction there is nothing rarer than someone with two living parents who's main flaw is perhaps being a bit neglectful and quite often it doesn't seem to provide much for the story. That's just me.

Well, I thought the idea worked better if the family was all-male, and all-hetero, and I couldn't see another way of doing it.

 

[Sean Renaud]

Have you been overseas? You don't exactly need a whole lot of money to live pretty comfortably in most other countries. Exchange rates are awesome. Besides most people would never question it. I do see your point I just think explaining all that would bog down the story without really getting much out of it.

As for the family being all male and all hetero. I mean this with all due respect but I think you outsmarted yourself a bit here. You have a machine that malfunctions and transports people to another dimension and you couldn't think of a way to get rid of any female family members without killing them? Like they simply weren't in the room at the time of this disaster? It wasn't really a criticism of you anyway, it was kinda fiction as a whole. I can hardly name a hero with two parents.

I love Arrow to death but I have to keep making fun of how hard they are trying to make him different from Batman. I mean as different as two billionare, playboys with dead parent(s) who felt the need to put on a mask and go fight crime can possibly be. Which is probably why Arrow gets no love most of the time, they've already got one of those who's well established with the public.

Love the AV by the way.

 

[Shendude]

Have you been overseas? You don't exactly need a whole lot of money to live pretty comfortably in most other countries. Exchange rates are awesome. Besides most people would never question it. I do see your point I just think explaining all that would bog down the story without really getting much out of it.

Yes, an average American can live quite well in a less wealthy country. The opposite is not so true, though.

As for the family being all male and all hetero. I mean this with all due respect but I think you outsmarted yourself a bit here. You have a machine that malfunctions and transports people to another dimension and you couldn't think of a way to get rid of any female family members without killing them? Like they simply weren't in the room at the time of this disaster? It wasn't really a criticism of you anyway, it was kinda fiction as a whole. I can hardly name a hero with two parents.

Cogent point. Sure why not.

Love the AV by the way.

It is pretty nice, isn't it? I think I'll keep it for an extra month.