Lois & Clark Forums Forums General Discussion Off Topic Need a reason/incident for a story idea

Okay, I am doing NaNo this year and have to write a novel (at least 50,000 words between now and the end of November).

I went into it without an outline or even an idea of what to write about. Now that I have started and am getting more organized, I need a reason for a woman in her mid to late 20s to

- feel used and violated
- lose all trust in men, thinking she will or would rather remain single for the rest of her life
- be an emotional wreck but trying hard not to show it
- quit her job, store her stuff and leave the country with no specific destination in mind, just to forget


I don't really want her to be raped but is there anything other than abuse that would be strong enough to trigger that kind of response? This girl really things she will never (again?) be in a relationship and is traveling the world to keep herself occupied so she won't feel the loneliness.

First I thought it could have been something her boss or coworker could have done, like Claude stealing Lois' story etc but that doesn't seem right either.

If her boyfriend/husband/fiance had died, she might feel some of the things mentioned above or do some of it but for different reasons, like she doesn't want to love again because it hurts too much to lose that person.

I also don't want anyone to kill her child (so far she never had one <g>), accidentally or on purpose.

So what's left? A bad enough thing that is not too bad...

I appreciate any ideas, discussions etc. But I do need them soon. Don't know how long I can write around it without giving the specifics.

Thanks,

Natascha

Several things at once?

Boyfriend/fiance/husband/whoever dies. And something bad at work. And maybe a family issue of some kind.

???

The most important thing is that the character feels she can never open up to a man again. So from that moment she keeps them at a distance.

And she keeps her family at a distance too because they might want to talk about it but she doesn't. They know what had happened and are supportive.

It is even possible that she kept it together for maybe a year and then all of a sudden left, no clue yet if anything triggered it. (like all her friends getting married?)

Maybe I have to keep it simpler...

Natascha

What if it didn't happen to her, but someone close to her?

Say she has always had a good relationship with her sister's husband - they get on well, have a few laughs together, but she knows it can never go further because he's her sister's husband.

She sees him as the perfect husband - she wants one like him (but has never has ANY designs on him).

Then one night, he comes on to her.

Nothing happens, although maybe he is a little drunk and doesn't take no for an answer without some unpleasantness.

Then, a day later, her sister announces she is pregnant.

The woman leaves because she cannot face her brother-in-law, has no idea what to say to her sister and has lost all faith she ever had in men.

Because of the coming baby, she doesn't want to tell her sister as that could break up what she had thought was a happy marriage.

You said her family know - but in this scenario, I'm not sure how that could work. Unless she lied to them about her reasons for leaving and they are supportive of her in that.

If you wanted a further complication, make the relationship between the woman and her sister a little strained - maybe a should-be-forgotten teenage incident when they both liked the same guy.

Maybe she could feel violated if she discovers her BIL has told her sister a version of what happened that isn't true and further increases the tension between the sisters.

Corrina.

Here's one for you (that, sadly, I have personal experience with).

She dated a sociopath--a man that was charming and fun and seemingly wonderful who, in reality, lied about everything except his name. Furthermore, though he played the part of the perfect boyfriend with her and never once stepped out of line in her presence, he was hurting others through theft and manipulation (among other misdeeds).

Such an experience would definitely make her lose trust in herself, fitting all the requirements you listed above.

Good luck with your story.

What if she discovered that her fiance was cheating on her--or even worse, that he was sexually abusing one of her friends or relatives? And she had taken his side when he said he was innocent, only to come across indisputable evidence that he was a liar?

The girl could be really shy and the first man she ever falls in love with breaks up with her totally unexpected and in a very offending way. Being shy, the girl might have made some more bad experiences with people in general and thinks that moving is the only way to solve her problems.

I vote cheating. Especially if it was a long term/serious relationship (like if they were married, engaged, or even just living together), and if he cheated with someone close to her like her best friend or her sister.

Her "boyfriend" cheated on her and stole all of her money. Her boss, despite all of her hard work, has promoted a male over her. She has dysfunctional relationships with the males in her family, possibly emotionally abusive. It doesn't have to be full emotional beat-downs, but just the little things. Add all of those together, and you get a woman who distrusts men.

She worked for a political group which was fighting for morality in City Hall. And she believed in her cause.

Her boss was an older man, married with children. She finds out there is a promotion available, and when she goes to see her boss about it, he suggests that they should discuss it after hours. She agrees. However, when they are finally alone, he propositions her. When she rejects his advances, he gives the promotion to someone else.

She has been dating this very wonderful man for a long time. She has fallen head over heals in love with him. Perhaps they are even living together.

He goes away for the weekend to visit with some old collage chums. When he returns, he takes her out to a very fancy restaurant and she just knows he's going to propose.

At that point, he tells her that when he went away for the weekend, he met up with a girl he'd dated in collage and he'd realized that he'd never stopped loving this girl. Oh, and by the way, they'd gotten married.

When she confronts him about it (as much as she can given the public place in which he's imparting this news) with a 'what about us?' he tells her that she's not the type he'd ever consider marrying. Oh, and since the apartment they are living in is his, does she think she could be moved out by tomorrow night because his wife will be arriving in town then.

(hey, this is sort of fun )

Oh, here's one that is very timely. She's been dating this wonderful man and was head over heals in love. Then he says that he has to go out of the country on business, but he'll be back in a few weeks.

A couple months later, he returns and they pick up the relationship from where they left off.

Then one day, she's at home with some friends about to watch their favorite reality dating television show when who should appear on the screen as one of the contestants but her boyfriend.

Suddenly, the paparatzi are following her everywhere and she discovers that not only did her boyfriend appear on this show without telling her, but he actually got engaged.

Her parents died when she was very young and she grew up in a foster home where the man was abusive to his wife. When she grew up, she determined that she wanted no part of that. But then, life has a way of sneaking up on you, and she suddenly found herself falling for a guy - only to discover, well after the time she should have (as in, after they were intimate), that he was actually married.

Thank you all for your replies! You are great!

I realized however that I am really not comfortable with writing about cheating etc and I do need her family and friends to be close to her and supportive, so I will be changing the tone of the story. It is no longer about feeling violated and 'all men are pig' <g>. I am favoring the "fiance died suddenly" scenario now and that the character feels she will never find another love, remain single forever. She leaves because she doesn't want to be pitied anymore, which makes going on so much harder.

I think this will work too. Of course I can only imagine what it is like to lose a loved one so writing that will be just as difficult. I almost made myself cry earlier.

Thanks again for all your contributions! If I don't use them maybe somebody else will, and who knows, I still 46,000 words to go, I might change my mind again. <g>

Natascha