Ideas Dump

[Shinoki]

A story about government and chaotic junk in a country that is run by teenagers for some reason. Main character is the head of the system, and based on choices throughout the common route, the not yet really formed system of government is molded into something... some form of government, I suppose. Maybe complete chaos, country falls apart for a bad ending.

[Akitsuki]

Since sometimes I feel shy when choosing a rather direct and straightforward option when playing a VN, I'm thinking to make an otome where the MC tries to become the type of girl the guy likes. So the player has to guess the bachelors' type of girls first before 'chasing' after them. But I could add more story to it instead of just a simple and ordinary school life-themed VN.

[Mad Harlequin]

Since sometimes I feel shy when choosing a rather direct and straightforward option when playing a VN, I'm thinking to make an otome where the MC tries to become the type of girl the guy likes. So the player has to guess the bachelors' type of girls first before 'chasing' after them. But I could add more story to it instead of just a simple and ordinary school life-themed VN.

If you do this, would you make it so that the MC realizes she's not obligated to become what she's not, and that anybody who doesn't like her for who she is isn't worth her time?

[RotGtIE]

If you do this, would you make it so that the MC realizes she's not obligated to become what she's not, and that anybody who doesn't like her for who she is isn't worth her time?

These days, it would probably be less cliche to not do it that way.

[papillon]

There's a number of games, often ero-games, in which a male protagonist becomes The One Guy At An All-Girls School.

This may be just an excuse for why he's surrounded by cuties with no competition, but it sometimes fetishizes the concept of Secret Maidenland, the world where no men have been invited, filled with frills and tea parties and delicacy. (This is not what real all-girls schools are like.) And sometimes the girls object to having a guy intrude on their secret wonderland, but of course they protest in a cute way. This isn't a grimdark trope.

So - imagine a genderflip of that, with the same level of sparkle and riduculousness.

A single-sex male school has, for whatever reason, admitted you, the lone girl. And you are incredibly excited to attend, because it is... BISHONEN ACADEMY. The wonderland of beautiful men! Beautiful men with long flowing hair who embrace each other in manly devotion! Beautiful men who strut around dressed glamorously! Beautiful men playing baseball shirtless! All the things they can do without fear or shame because it is the Male Wonderland and there is no watchful society to suggest that this is at all homoerotic!

... They keep forgetting you're a girl and then being embarrassed when they remember.

(as usual, I have no intention of writing this, if you want it, have fun)

[kisa]

There's a number of games, often ero-games, in which a male protagonist becomes The One Guy At An All-Girls School.

This may be just an excuse for why he's surrounded by cuties with no competition, but it sometimes fetishizes the concept of Secret Maidenland, the world where no men have been invited, filled with frills and tea parties and delicacy. (This is not what real all-girls schools are like.) And sometimes the girls object to having a guy intrude on their secret wonderland, but of course they protest in a cute way. This isn't a grimdark trope.

So - imagine a genderflip of that, with the same level of sparkle and riduculousness.

A single-sex male school has, for whatever reason, admitted you, the lone girl. And you are incredibly excited to attend, because it is... BISHONEN ACADEMY. The wonderland of beautiful men! Beautiful men with long flowing hair who embrace each other in manly devotion! Beautiful men who strut around dressed glamorously! Beautiful men playing baseball shirtless! All the things they can do without fear or shame because it is the Male Wonderland and there is no watchful society to suggest that this is at all homoerotic!

... They keep forgetting you're a girl and then being embarrassed when they remember.

(as usual, I have no intention of writing this, if you want it, have fun)

Claimed. So claimed.
I will write this story!

[Mad Harlequin]

These days, it would probably be less cliche to not do it that way.

Triteness isn't my complaint here. I'm just not a fan of the ending of Grease, which is basically what this is.

[Akitsuki]

Since sometimes I feel shy when choosing a rather direct and straightforward option when playing a VN, I'm thinking to make an otome where the MC tries to become the type of girl the guy likes. So the player has to guess the bachelors' type of girls first before 'chasing' after them. But I could add more story to it instead of just a simple and ordinary school life-themed VN.

If you do this, would you make it so that the MC realizes she's not obligated to become what she's not, and that anybody who doesn't like her for who she is isn't worth her time?

Oh, I don't mean it to be like that. It's just that you can make the MC whomever you want. Let's just say I'll make the MC like an empty glass and you can fill it with whatever you want; water, juice, soda, etc. That's all! You can try to be shy, brave, even act as a delinquent. That means you can also try to behave like yourself and see what happens. I hope that makes sense?

[RotGtIE]

Triteness isn't my complaint here. I'm just not a fan of the ending of Grease, which is basically what this is.

It can fly both ways. As much as the thought of someone trying to change who they are to attract their love interest annoys you, imagine what happens if we slide that concept all the way to the opposite end of the same spectrum: if you knew a guy who likes to sit on his rump eating pizza and playing video games who thought that any woman worth his time would just accept him for who he was, don't you think it might be a worthy lesson for him to learn that, no, actually, it isn't asking too much for someone to put in some kind of effort in attracting someone they are interested in for romance - especially if they have someone specific already in mind?

On the surface, the idea of doing things you wouldn't normally do in order to appeal more to someone you want to date might seem distasteful, but give it a chance. It's certainly enough to establish a story worth reading, provided the execution is pulled off well enough. I see the foundation for a lot of cute, lighthearted comedy in the idea. Imagine some dorky girl steeling herself and hopping into batting cages because she wants to impress some guy on her school's baseball team, shaking like a leaf at the thought of having a series of projectiles launched in her direction from a cold, unfeeling machine at the speed of ouchie - now tell me that wouldn't make for an adorable scene to read through. What about a country boy who is accustomed to hunting and farm work who falls for a tea-sipping intellectual lady who could build a fortress from her collection of political books? Don't you think it'd at least be a little bit charming to see him struggle to appeal to her by picking up something smart-lookin' from the library, rent a goofy suit, and head on over to the coffee shop she frequents in the hopes of sparking her interest by tryin' ta be all fancy-like?

Athletes grow stronger by pushing the boundaries of their physical limitations. Artists grow more creative by pushing the boundaries of their imaginative limitations. Never let a premise with potential slip by when you could challenge yourself to make something enjoyable out of it.

[Squid]

Post World War 2....
In the ocean.

A charismatic dolphin stumbles upon a trove of books cast overboard into the sea, and takes to reading them...
In no time at all, he gains a following of dolphin supporters to his ideas.
Changes to the dolphin government, society and business... And also war.

The dolphins begin a rapid and aggressive war with the whales, who had humiliated them prior.
The sharks, long time allies of the whales, eventually join in to assist.

What they see when they take back whale territory, however, are sights too horrid to imagine, as the ocean hides from dolphin might.

Hitler the Dolphin.

[I REALLY wish I had enough lives to actually make this... But I'd need a few more lives, and the idea would be stale by then. If anyone else wants to do a strongly anti-dolphin VN with american sharks and european whales fighting the perversions of unknown books accepted willingly, let me know~! I have the basic story thought up, but am willing to give it away.]

[Mad Harlequin]

Oh, I don't mean it to be like that. It's just that you can make the MC whomever you want. Let's just say I'll make the MC like an empty glass and you can fill it with whatever you want; water, juice, soda, etc. That's all! You can try to be shy, brave, even act as a delinquent. That means you can also try to behave like yourself and see what happens. I hope that makes sense?

Yes, that makes more sense. We see video game protagonists like this all the time, and that's fine. Sorry! I misunderstood what you were getting at.

If you knew a guy who likes to sit on his rump eating pizza and playing video games who thought that any woman worth his time would just accept him for who he was, don't you think it might be a worthy lesson for him to learn that, no, actually, it isn't asking too much for someone to put in some kind of effort in attracting someone they are interested in for romance - especially if they have someone specific already in mind?

That's different from "trying to become the type of person somebody likes."

Athletes grow stronger by pushing the boundaries of their physical limitations. Artists grow more creative by pushing the boundaries of their imaginative limitations. Never let a premise with potential slip by when you could challenge yourself to make something enjoyable out of it.

You're preaching to the choir, sir, madam, or other. I wouldn't be able to walk today if I didn't push against my physical limits (I don't need to be an athlete to know what it takes to become stronger) and I wouldn't be the writer I am today if I didn't experiment.

TL;DR---I was mistaken about the premise in question, and I don't want to steer the thread further off topic.

[k0nak0na]

Excuse me, I have a question here.
Can I use some of the ideas here without asking for the owner's permission? I feel a bit guilty to not ask, but I see the first post said 'ideas can not be copyrighted', so is it okay even not to credit the person?

Thank you ^^

[Kailoto]

Excuse me, I have a question here.
Can I use some of the ideas here without asking for the owner's permission? I feel a bit guilty to not ask, but I see the first post said 'ideas can not be copyrighted', so is it okay even not to credit the person?

Thank you ^^

Technically speaking? Yes. There's very little someone can do, legally or morally, if someone else creates something that uses their "idea." If they create a product that uses that idea before you, then you might have some problems, but if you come up with a tangible result first, it's hard to really claim foul play.

But I would still ask, or at least inform, anyways. I mean, why not? Most people would be thrilled if someone thought their idea was good enough to actually create something out of, and you might gain confidence in your idea if the person who originally came up with it supports it as well.

I'm speaking from experience here - I once worked on a collaborative writing project that never got off the ground, but I liked the idea a lot and eventually wanted to write it myself. I went to the person who organized it, pitched my idea, and he loved it. That story is now my third novel, and probably my best-written one to date. And not once did I feel like I was "stealing" ideas, since I got his blessing and made it my own.

[k0nak0na]

@Kailoto: thx for answering ^^. Of course I would let the person know, but what if the idea is so old, and I don't know how to contact him/her? Did you credit the person for their idea?

[Kailoto]

@Kailoto: thx for answering ^^. Of course I would let the person know, but what if the idea is so old, and I don't know how to contact him/her? Did you credit the person for their idea?

Hmm... well go ahead and try to contact them by any means you can, and if they don't respond, go ahead with it anyways. At least you made a documented effort to get in touch.

As for the credit... I don't know if you have to full-out credit them with the story, but you can credit them for inspiration or the original idea. After all, when push comes to shove you would be the one making it happen. I didn't personally credit it to him, but I did dedicate it to the online community that he was a part of, since it was all of them that started it. Plus, it fit with the theme of the book.