Need input on a story concept problem

[mythtrav16]

I've got an interesting story idea that I'm playing with, but I've hit a logic block and I could use some outside ideas to help me develop this idea.

My question is this: Why would somebody put a secret they don't want uncovered in a public place, but muddle it up so that nobody could understand it? Why wouldn't they simply refrain from putting the secret out at all?

Without giving too much away:
* The secret is NOT something that the person needs to keep as a reminder, such as their PIN number or email password.
* Their motivations needn't restricted to those of a mortal human.

I don't want to give too much about this idea away at the moment, as this is one I'm interested in writing myself.

 

[bashfullyshameless]

It could be that your Leaver-of-Secrets doesn't want it uncovered by the general public, but is happy to find individuals clever enough to decipher it (presuming the Leaver-of-Secrets has some way of knowing when this happens). The secret could be a test of some sort; perhaps it's a way of finding allies who have the same Secret Knowledge of Spooky Things that marks them as being in-the-know, or maybe just that they're smart enough to communicate on the Leaver-of-Secrets's level.

It's also possible that the Leaver-of-Secrets simply didn't have any choice at the time. He was being pursued by TEH BAD GUYZ, and had to ditch the knowledge quickly, and the "hide in plain sight" option was the first practical thing he could do.

I'll admit that the "hide in plain sight" doesn't often make a whole lot of sense in real life, but if it's part of a story function and you're already suspending disbelief via sci-fi or fantasy premises or whatever, it's slightly less dodgy. Just give it some thought and be ready to lampshade the hell out of it.

 

[MemphisMan9]

Without understanding too much, I would think it's something the secret-bearer needs to eventually return to. Sorry to be so crass as to use a pop-culture reference, but the spaceships in Men In Black would be an example.


This post was probably neither helpful, nor sexy; apologies.

 

[mythtrav16]

It could be that your Leaver-of-Secrets doesn't want it uncovered by the general public, but is happy to find individuals clever enough to decipher it (presuming the Leaver-of-Secrets has some way of knowing when this happens). The secret could be a test of some sort; perhaps it's a way of finding allies who have the same Secret Knowledge of Spooky Things that marks them as being in-the-know, or maybe just that they're smart enough to communicate on the Leaver-of-Secrets's level.

It's also possible that the Leaver-of-Secrets simply didn't have any choice at the time. He was being pursued by TEH BAD GUYZ, and had to ditch the knowledge quickly, and the "hide in plain sight" option was the first practical thing he could do.

I'll admit that the "hide in plain sight" doesn't often make a whole lot of sense in real life, but if it's part of a story function and you're already suspending disbelief via sci-fi or fantasy premises or whatever, it's slightly less dodgy. Just give it some thought and be ready to lampshade the hell out of it.

Interesting ideas. Especially the one about the encryption being a "test for the worthy." Reminds me of Dan Brown's works.

Without understanding too much, I would think it's something the secret-bearer needs to eventually return to. Sorry to be so crass as to use a pop-culture reference, but the spaceships in Men In Black would be an example.

This post was probably neither helpful, nor sexy; apologies.

No, not at all. I think it's an interesting idea that warrants further thought. I was thinking of the secret being more in the form of information, rather than a physical object that has a practical use. But I still think that this idea might have potential.

BTW, I loved MIB, myself.


Thanks to both of you.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

If I did what you allude to my purpose is to snare a victim or fool monitors.

 

[litfan10]

I've got an interesting story idea that I'm playing with, but I've hit a logic block and I could use some outside ideas to help me develop this idea.

My question is this: Why would somebody put a secret they don't want uncovered in a public place, but muddle it up so that nobody could understand it? Why wouldn't they simply refrain from putting the secret out at all?

Without giving too much away:
* The secret is NOT something that the person needs to keep as a reminder, such as their PIN number or email password.
* Their motivations needn't restricted to those of a mortal human.

I don't want to give too much about this idea away at the moment, as this is one I'm interested in writing myself.

What comes to mind to me first is that the person is afraid the secret would be found by someone else if close to the secret bearer - a security risk issue. As to the why public, to make sure the secret won't be destroyed or altered in anyway. Society is always building new things and destroying old for progress. Putting anywhere else rather than a national icon leaves it at risk for not bieng there later. Good luck, sounds very intriguing!

 

[podga]

Lots of nice ideas!

What sprung to my mind (because I just finished watching the Time Machine, with Rod Taylor) is that it's a secret object that the "leaver" will need so far into the future, that he/she cannot be sure a normal storage space would continue to exist. So he/she picks a public place, like a memorial or a museum. Perhaps he/she is testing time travel, or is a successful time traveler.

 

[PennLady]

I admit I kind of have issues with secrets like this. I'd say, if it's possible, put the secret in a safe-deposit box at a bank. That way no one has access to it except the secret-holder (and the bank, I guess). For more a of "thriller" aspect, maybe it could be a Swiss bank account (as in The Bourne Identity).

To directly answer your question about why someone with a secret would put it hidden in a public place -- I can only imagine they'd be trying to imitate a Dan Brown novel.

 

[R. Richard]

An answer to your question is CalTech's Senior Ditch Day. A tradition where seniors head off campus while leaving behind elaborate "stacks" - mazes, challenges and fiendish puzzles - to prevent underclassmen from breaking into their dorm rooms. If the underclass people can't solve the challenge, they are honor bound not to break into the senior's dorm room.
One year, a senior's challenge was solved and the underclass people reassembled a Volkswagen Beetle in the senior's room. (They play hardball at CalTech.)

 

[EdwardMidweston]

I've got an interesting story idea that I'm playing with, but I've hit a logic block and I could use some outside ideas to help me develop this idea.

My question is this: Why would somebody put a secret they don't want uncovered in a public place, but muddle it up so that nobody could understand it? Why wouldn't they simply refrain from putting the secret out at all?

Without giving too much away:
* The secret is NOT something that the person needs to keep as a reminder, such as their PIN number or email password.
* Their motivations needn't restricted to those of a mortal human.

I don't want to give too much about this idea away at the moment, as this is one I'm interested in writing myself.

A few random thoughts off the top of my head:

Perhaps the data would somehow incriminate the individual if he were caught with it in his possession, so he muddles it and leaves it somewhere he can retrieve it later?

He is in danger and not certain he'll survive long enough to pass it on, so he leaves it for pickup by someone who has advance knowledge of how to decode it.

The whole thing is a test--either serious or a prank--to see if anyone can decipher the real meaning.

There are probably many other "good reasons" as well.

 

[mynameisben]

An answer to your question is CalTech's Senior Ditch Day. A tradition where seniors head off campus while leaving behind elaborate "stacks" - mazes, challenges and fiendish puzzles - to prevent underclassmen from breaking into their dorm rooms. If the underclass people can't solve the challenge, they are honor bound not to break into the senior's dorm room.
One year, a senior's challenge was solved and the underclass people reassembled a Volkswagen Beetle in the senior's room. (They play hardball at CalTech.)

Caltech is properly spelled with a capital C followed by the lowercase of each of its six remaining letters, including the 't', and with no space between "Cal" and "tech."

 

[lance gt]

A few random thoughts off the top of my head:

Perhaps the data would somehow incriminate the individual if he were caught with it in his possession, so he muddles it and leaves it somewhere he can retrieve it later?

He is in danger and not certain he'll survive long enough to pass it on, so he leaves it for pickup by someone who has advance knowledge of how to decode it.

The whole thing is a test--either serious or a prank--to see if anyone can decipher the real meaning.

There are probably many other "good reasons" as well.

Reminds me a bit of the National Treasure movies and how the Mason's hid things in plain sight as clues, but the mystery needed decoding to solve the sequence of clues.

 

[EdwardMidweston]

I apologize for duplicating some other writers' answers. They posted during the time I was responding, so I didn't know my thoughts had been "scooped."

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Arthur Clarke already did it in 2001 A SPACE ODYSSEY with the Moon monolith.

 

[mythtrav16]

An answer to your question is CalTech's Senior Ditch Day. A tradition where seniors head off campus while leaving behind elaborate "stacks" - mazes, challenges and fiendish puzzles - to prevent underclassmen from breaking into their dorm rooms. If the underclass people can't solve the challenge, they are honor bound not to break into the senior's dorm room.
One year, a senior's challenge was solved and the underclass people reassembled a Volkswagen Beetle in the senior's room. (They play hardball at CalTech.)

And who says innovation has disappeared from US auto construction?

A few random thoughts off the top of my head:

Perhaps the data would somehow incriminate the individual if he were caught with it in his possession, so he muddles it and leaves it somewhere he can retrieve it later?

My mind went there, too. But the question remains, if they were so worried about being found out, why not just destroy the information? Why keep it in a form that is easilly found, but difficult to decypher?

 

[EdwardMidweston]

My mind went there, too. But the question remains, if they were so worried about being found out, why not just destroy the information? Why keep it in a form that is easilly found, but difficult to decypher?

Perhaps it's some sort of data that is vitally important to the individual but is too complex to commit to memory--anything from a list of spies to a manufacturing process to the text of a manuscript or ???

 

[PennLady]

My mind went there, too. But the question remains, if they were so worried about being found out, why not just destroy the information? Why keep it in a form that is easilly found, but difficult to decypher?

I can see a scavenger hunt or the aforementioned prank as a reason to leave clues around. Otherwise, I have yet to find a rational, logical reason for such things. If there is information that is damaging to the possessor, it makes sense for him to dispose of it. If he cannot, then it makes sense for him to hide it somewhere secure, such as a bank safe-deposit box.

It seems to me that leaving something so important in a public place is simply asking for trouble. What if there's a fire? What if someone finds it? What if there is a flood from pipes bursting? There are too many things that can go wrong.

 

[TxRad]

What if they subconsciously or otherwise want it found?

Maybe it is time for some secrets to get out, changes to be made...

 

[3113]

Stop being so secretive!

Without giving too much away:
* The secret is NOT something that the person needs to keep as a reminder, such as their PIN number or email password.
* Their motivations needn't restricted to those of a mortal human.

I don't want to give too much about this idea away at the moment, as this is one I'm interested in writing myself.

You do understand that we're all writers here, yes? Which means we're all able to come up with our own ideas, and don't need yours? Thing is, we can help you a whole lot better if you'd just come out and tell us what you're doing, or at least, give MORE of it away, for heaven's sake! This is so general as to be ridiculous. Is the secret written down? Is it on something big or small? Why does it need to be in a public place instead of buried underground in the backyard? And what do you mean by public place? Are we talking a city center or a park or the front of someone's home?

And if their motivations doesn't need to be restricted to mortals, why can't you think up anything? If you're inventing a creature you can give it any motivation you want for putting the thing where it needs to be put. "I am commanded by my alien religion to expose my biggest secret in the most public place. Luckily, human's walking past this stone fountain can't hear the high-pitched whisper of the secret that's being whistled out, only dogs..." or "As a vampire, the best place to hide my secret from other vampires is in a church, right there on the cross where other vampires can't possibly look at it or know it!" Ha-ha!

You've given us way too little to work with. A few more specifics, please.

 

[oggbashan]

The only reason I can think of is that the secret is too complex to memorise unless you are like the Memory Man in Hitchcock's film of The Thirty Nine Steps.

It would have to be written down so that it can be preserved until it can be used.

Your plot sounds like the standard McMuffin - something everyone is seeking and the action is about the search, the failures and the eventual success. No one cares what the McMuffin is. The contest to find it, recover it, save it, destroy it, IS the plot. The thing itself doesn't matter.

Examples of McMuffin plots in films - The Third Man; The Maltese Falcon; the Jewel of the Nile.

 

[lance gt]

Here's a real twist. Have an idiot savant hold the secret, that is far too complex for normal man to comprehend, but the non-human element, has the ability to unlock his/her mind. Hidden in plain sight and no idea what his/her mind actually holds in it.

 

[3113]

Here's a real twist. Have an idiot savant hold the secret, that is far too complex for normal man to comprehend, but the non-human element, has the ability to unlock his/her mind. Hidden in plain sight and no idea what his/her mind actually holds in it.

I don't consider a secret in anyone's mind, idiot savant or otherwise, to be in plain sight, let along in a public place. Idiot savants, especially, usually like to hide themselves away. They're pretty shy people and hardly in plain sight.

 

[lance gt]

I don't consider a secret in anyone's mind, idiot savant or otherwise, to be in plain sight, let along in a public place. Idiot savants, especially, usually like to hide themselves away. They're pretty shy people and hardly in plain sight.

Not big on imagination, I guess. A person in an institution, looked at day after day, taken as an idiot with no communication skills. That's pretty much in plain sight. Think Rainman as an example. Judge Wapner at two, every day at two. Non-human has the key to unlock it. Pretty straight forward, I'd say.

 

[PennLady]

Examples of McMuffin plots in films - The Third Man; The Maltese Falcon; the Jewel of the Nile.

Hahaha. Ogg -- I think you mean "McGuffin." A McMuffin is a breakfast sandwich at McDonald's. Although the idea of James Mason chasing Cary Grant for a McMuffin in North by Northwest is hilarious. Or Bogart, et al, searching for one in TMF. Hehehe.

 

[MemphisMan9]

I laughed about this as well. DESTROY THE MCMUFFIN BEFORE IT DESTOYS US ALL! AND I'D KIND OF LIKE ONE OF THOSE HASHBROWN PATTY THINGYS. YES, I'LL PULL UP TO THE FIRST WINDOW.