Actually, Now That I'm Thinking About The Concept Of Revolutions:

Actually, now that I'm thinking about the concept of revolutions:

Many, many (probably most) revolutions/toppling of governments fail, either because they don't have the ability (military strength, finances, support, etc.) to meet their goal, because their goal is unclear to begin with, or because they can't maintain their success once they've reached it.

January 6, 2021, for example, was a small-scale attempt at overthrowing the U.S. government--but they didn't have the ability to succeed at killing members of the U.S. Congress or stopping the vote to ratify Biden as the new president.

In Egypt, they did manage to depose Hosni Mubarak, and the Muslim Brotherhood then took power, but they was removed from power by the military about a year later, and the current leader, el-Sisi, has shifted the Egyptian government back towards authoritarianism, which is at least in part what the original protests were about.

Many revolutions in stories end with them taking power (just as many romance novels end with them getting together), which is fine, but if you want to write past that, think about what actually makes a post-revolution government succeed or fail. Is it disagreements about who should be in charge or the type of government? Is it other political infighting? Is it the lack of an effective, respected leader? Is it a lack of ability to provide civil services? Is it lack of support by average citizens? Is it a slight towards authoritarianism?

But also think about the impacts of the revolution itself, especially if it was violent. Has infrastructure been destroyed? Who has died? Are services still being provided, and if so, is the provision of those services equitable?

Let's say the revolution in your story ends with a grand battle in the capitol building--can they still use that building to legislate from? Where do people literally go to work the next day? Do necessarily files still exist?

Are civil servants willing to work for the new government? Can they be trusted?

Who from the old regime is still around, and what happens to them? Do they go to jail? Are they banned from working in the government? Are they needed in the government because they make up the vast majority of the institutional knowledge? Are they likely to form an insurgency to try to take back the government (see: the Taliban)?

Is the revolution tied to a specific ethnic or religious group, regional group, caste, etc.? If they were previously marginalized or shut out of power, do they implement oppressive or discriminatory policies against the previous ruling class (e.g., exclusion of many Sunnis from Iraqi politics/government following de-Ba'athification)?

Will the revolution spawn (or continue) an ongoing cycle of violence?

Things you should know about each of your characters

These are what I would consider to be the most basic, bare-bones questions of character creation.

What would completely break your character?

What was the best thing in your character’s life?

What was the worst thing in your character’s life?

What seemingly insignificant memories stuck with your character?

Does your character work so that they can support their hobbies or use their hobbies as a way of filling up the time they aren’t working?

What is your character reluctant to tell people?

How does your character feel about sex?

How many friends does your character have?

How many friends does your character want?

What would your character make a scene in public about?

What would your character give their life for?

What are your character’s major flaws?

What does your character pretend or try to care about?

How does the image your character tries to project differ from the image they actually project?

What is your character afraid of?

What is something most people in your setting do that your character things is dumb?

Where would your character fall on a politeness/rudeness scale?

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goneau2xr

5 years ago

[texting]

Duo: Hey man, you’re out of milk.

Wufei: How do you keep getting into my apartment?!

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goneau2xr

5 years ago

[at Preventers HQ]

Wufei: I prevented a murder today.

Sally: Really? I’m so glad you’re finally taking to this job! How did you do it?

Wufei, glaring at Zechs: Self control.

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goneau2xr

5 years ago

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goneau2xr

4 years ago

Favourite Designs: Marchesa Fall 2018 Ready-to-Wear Collection

Favourite Designs: Marchesa Fall 2018 Ready-to-Wear Collection

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goneau2xr

5 years ago

I Really Really Appreciate That This Person Went Off And I TRULY Do Think This Is A Conversation That

I really really appreciate that this person went off and I TRULY do think this is a conversation that needs to be had more and more.

I am not going to reiterate or repeat anything they said above, but I want to share my personal feeling on a subtler aspect of this issue.

People don’t want to talk about pregnancy as a potentially dangerous and lifethreatening condition because many of them believe it is necessary for a full and meaningful life. Unfortunately, many many of the people who believe this are not also the people who would be carrying the baby.

Our social narratives are all largely amatonormative, and beneath that, bioessential. That is, they operate on a sort of supremacy of the body, as well as the nuclear family narrative. What this means is that most people are raised and pressured into believing that a) having a baby is a MUST for a meaningful life (hidden agenda: have someone to take care of you when you’re old bc amatonormative society isolates family units and ostracizes seniors) and b) it is the birthing of the child that gives this meaning- no other form of childcare is meaningful.

Now before I go on I am NOT JUDGING anyone’s life, desires or dreams, I am critiquing the social narratives that we are raised with.

Anyway that last bolded point is why there;s all the talk in the world about ‘starting a family’ via childbirth and an entire industry geared towards enhancing fertility when pregnancies are not forthcoming (and many many people who stress themselves out trying to have a baby, feeling guilty or broken because the social and relationship pressures to fulfill this ideal) meanwhile adoption continues to be seen as a third- not second option. Present, living children are less important than the ideal of childbirth forced on people.

And I say ‘forced’ because it is an expectation. It is an ever-present social narrative. And it goes hand in hand with the fact that it is seen as taboo or shameful to talk about pregnancy as difficult, dangerous, and not necessarily all sunshine and smiles.

Mothers are shamed for feeling less than joyful about this very dangerous experience, and by that others are also shamed for feeling averse or apprehensive about pregnancy. It is an intentionally created false narrative that plays into the hands of patriarchy- because a grand amount of this pressure and related apathy (”oh it’s not a big deal, it’s just pregnancy!” says someone who isn’t carrying the baby..) continues to allow men to pressure women into having children (”THEIR” children– unlike, say, an adopted child) just so they can feel the pride of having sired a child (even though their contribution is oh so genetically and energetically small).

If we talked more honestly about pregnancy and childbirth, we might have to validate the concerns and lifestyles of uterus-bearing people who were expected to want to become pregnant. Men might have to just back down and shut up about wanting to create ‘kids of their own’ through someone else’s body. We as a people might have to think twice about acting as if pregnancy is inherently positive when this society is not actually capable of offering healthy supportive pregnancies to most pregnant people because a society that treats poor and black people this badly as well as one that isolates families into these tiny units isn’t capable of giving pregnant people the considerable care and support they need at such a precarious time.

Pregnancy is pregnancy– that’s it. Things do not inherently mean anything aside from the meaning we assign to them–therefore pregnancy and childbirth are not inherently positive nor is it necessary for a meaningful life.

When we do not speak openly and honestly about pregnancy, we are not letting people make informed choices about their bodies; this is not informed consent.

Bonus: