Mind Control

[StillStunned]

Does anyone have any experience with the Mind Control category? Thoughts, advice? Things to avoid? Do readers prefer the controller's POV or the subject's?

I was struck by inspiration last night. Provisional title: "The Office Fuck-Up". Opening line: "Like so many office fuck-ups, it all began with a coffee emergency."

 

[SamBomb]

I am doing on and it's a well received series, "Chores Build Character."

The main character is being mind controlled. My only mistake was the first few parts were too subtle and the readers didn't realize.

 

[tristianc]

I wrote one, from the controller’s POV. I like being in control so it was easy for me to write for a controlling figure, I can see why writing for the powerless one’s POV would be hot, but might be difficult to convey.

 

[StillStunned]

The main character is being mind controlled. My only mistake was the first few parts were too subtle and the readers didn't realize.

I can see why writing for the powerless one’s POV would be hot, but might be difficult to convey.

It's probably another case where first person, present tense would work best. I did that recently in NC/R, so I think I'll avoid going down that route again for now.

 

[Bamagan]

While there's a fairly diverse audience, you'll probably get the most reads and most favorable response with a male mind controller, especially one on a revenge power trip and/or harem building exercise. There seems to be a mild preference for more overt forms of control as opposed to subtlety or mystery regarding the mechanism.
There's plenty of overlap with NC/R, so the more sadistic readers may particularly enjoy tales from the victim's POV, especially if they're aware of their plight. But there's also an audience that likes more light-hearted fare such as accidental hypnosis or other situations where control is lost but the 'victim' isn't being deliberately humiliated or punished or whatnot. As long as you don't try to mix those together very much you'll probably be fine.

 

[Bazzle]

I only have one...it's done ok... not really sure if it is pure Mind Control... but the house controls the protagonist
https://literotica.com/s/just-like-the-one-before

 

[alohadave]

What's the premise of the control? Magic, tech, inherent ability?

Is it from the controller's perspective? Or from the controlled?

Is the controller reluctant, willing, do they know they are controlling other people?

Does the controllee know that they are doing things against their will? If they do, does the method change their personality, does it blank their memories during/after?

Are the effects permanent, do they take time to become permanent? If the effects are permanent, does the controller make mistakes and change anyone that that didn't mean to, and how do they deal with that complication?

For suggestions, give the method limitations and workarounds. A total control method is boring because the controller can do whatever they want to anyone. But if there is like, say a range to the effect, or it requires some kind of special conditions, then you can create situations where caution and or planning are required.

 

[lovecraft68]

I did one hypnosis story in I/T but in the end the mother was only faking being hypnotized. I was asked to do one for commission maybe three or four years ago, but I was never really comfortable with it, because in the end Mind Control is 100% non consent in its purist form, and that's not my thing.

The category has 11.7k stories according to the story page, which is a third of NC and makes it one of the lowest 'erotic' categories(meaning I'm not counting EH or Sci fi or NH, NN) with I think only first time and anal with less. I don't know if its lack of appeal is the fact people see it as NC or maybe there's just not that much interest.

I think if you have no issue with NC then its a pretty easy type of story to write.

 

[lovecraft68]

While there's a fairly diverse audience, you'll probably get the most reads and most favorable response with a male mind controller, especially one on a revenge power trip and/or harem building exercise. \.

TBH, this is most categories here.

There's plenty of female readers here, but I think there's more men and erotic material tends to appeal more to male fantasy, especially controlling fantasies by men who simply enjoy a male dom story, but also to the low-but growing-faction of "Bitch has to get hers"

FWIW the MC story I wrote was an example of female control, and even though I tend to write strong female characters...I still found it not for me because pure NC squicks me no matter what the dynamic.

 

[AlinaX]

As someone who reads and writes in Mind Control, I have almost zero interest in hypnosis stories, but most of the stories there seem to be hypnosis of one sort or another.

The problem with Mind Control is that it reduces people quickly to shallow slaves. If you like a god-like power to reduce people into playthings, then that can be fun for a while but gets tired quickly.

Far more fun if it's a power that's mischievous and not entirely controlled, and if the story is a slower corruption rather than a blunt hammer.

 

[Euphony]

My only mistake was the first few parts were too subtle and the readers didn't realize.

There's an interesting offshoot of this if you write with intentionality.

Protag could have the mind control/influence event but not immediately recognize/misrecognize it as just his personal charm. Reading audience beating him to it. ( unsure if 100% true but I imagine a feeling of "having knowledge/informational control themselves the protag doesn't" would very much lean into base aspects of the fetish that drive its appeal.

Reader having a "power" over the protag who is to be the power driver of the story adds an interesting layer.

 

[AchtungNight]

Do it with a Female Main Character building a bisexual polyamorous harem. Might be fun for a while. Right?

 

[StillStunned]

Do it with a Female Main Character building a bisexual polyamorous harem. Might be fun for a while. Right?

I have a suspicion that the ratings would look like Dresden after the RAF paid a visit.

 

[lovecraft68]

if the story is a slower corruption rather than a blunt hammer.

But to me, a slow corruption is just the wearing down of a person's will, or causing a shift in behavior, more like influencing than controlling, so that seems off kilter of the category

Hypnosis is one of those done to death, but people will read it every day, tropes.

Possession is an interesting form of it that I've employed in a taboo story, but since its supernatural it defaults more to EH than MC, but it can be seen as an MC device.

 

[Bamagan]

I have a suspicion that the ratings would look like Dresden after the RAF paid a visit.

Before I turned off voting I was actually getting pretty good scores (some H, most at least close) with a female main character semi-accidentally creating an incestuous lesbian polycule, so don't discount the possibilities out of hand.

 

[AlinaX]

I have a suspicion that the ratings would look like Dresden after the RAF paid a visit.

Actually, they do quite well, although not as well.

 

[StillStunned]

So far, I'm intrigued! Thanks for the advice and suggestions, everyone.

 

[AchtungNight]

I’d consider shacking up with the FMC I proposed… but she better be a [insert favorite male fantasy here]. Or at least willing to make me think she’s that. And wipe my mind of the reality once she’s done with me.

Seriously, though, think about why your main character needs Mind Control. Are they unattractive for some reason? Willing to push boundaries because they don’t care about Free Will? And if the latter, how did they get that way? Would they be willing to wake up one day and find the power gone? And what if all their faithful harem members are still alive?

This could become an Erotic Horror story pretty quickly. From the mind of the divorced man…

 

[MillieDynamite]

When and if She-Wolf gets published, the main character (you know, Amy the She-Wolf) has the ability to get inside a person's head and make them forget or do things. This ability is based on certain legends, games, and theories out in the shapeshifter-verse.

 

[djrip]

I'm on and off working on one where a loser uses a dreamcatcher to snare his crush's dreams, and infiltrate and influence her through them. But I'm leaning toward a scenario where he ends up trapped in the dream, as one of her dream characters. The old switcheroo.

 

[BelleCanzuto]

I've written one in the category, and while the comments were ok, the score was well below my average.
It's from the perspective of the person being controlled. And it relied on hypnosis and shady prescriptions to achieve that effect.

I've read a lot more in the category, and my observations from that are that the readership likes instant, magical mind control and they like either the controller's perspective, or an omniscient narrator.

My interest in the genre doesn't align with those preferences, so I may not be the best judge. But that's what I've seen most frequently in high rated stories.

 

[BelleCanzuto]

Possession is an interesting form of it that I've employed in a taboo story, but since its supernatural it defaults more to EH than MC, but it can be seen as an MC device.

My Halloween story was a possession story with increasing levels of control exerted by the spirit possessing the main character. Also told first person by the person being possessed. I put it in Erotic Horror because of the supernatural aspect, and what happens to the main character by the end. It didn't win, didn't even get enough votes to be considered, but the eventual score was pretty good.

Seriously, though, think about why your main character needs Mind Control.

Yeah, I think that was the other main problem with why my MC story tanked. Because I was writing from the perspective/ experience of the person being controlled, I never explained why the controller did it to her. The whole idea of why her controller would want or need to take that tack was a big mystery. And, honestly, I never worked it out for myself and I think that showed.