Post by Dallas on Sept 23, 2018 9:07:47 GMT -5
**This Blog post contains spoilers over the last few episodes of ODaaT; if you are not caught up, I suggest you stop reading the Blog now**
Every so often a storyline, or arch, comes along that really requires an in-depth look into my thought process about the storyline and characters. I do believe this summer bible camp storyline is one of them.
After Dawn pushed Natasha down the stairs and blackmailed her, I was wondering where to take the character next. I didn’t want Dawn to be a villain, so to speak, but I did feel like she needed to have some kind of new path. One of the types of characters that I did not have on the series yet was a lesbian, so I thought that I could make Dawn be gay.
As soon as I got this idea, I immediately thought about Barbara’s reaction. The entire time Barbara has been on the canvas, she has been very religious. I’ve always had her clutch her cross necklace when times are difficult for her and when she’s not at home, I have Helen mention she’s with her church group. The idea that her granddaughter would be gay was compelling to me.
Last year, I also had Frederick not been pleased with Lukas coming out, so I knew that the reaction would have to be different. Barbara researching camps to send Dawn too seemed realistic, as we still hear of these “conversion” camps existing today. I also thought that this camp idea would be a great way to introduce a new character that will become a regular in Cheresa. So, I came up with the idea that Dawn would realize she’s gay and Barbara would freak out and not be happy about it.
I really liked the idea of the summer camp but I also knew that something else would have to happen at the camp that would change the course these characters were on. If Dawn simply went to the camp and came home still gay, the camp arch would have seemed pointless. That’s where the, potentially, controversial idea came into my mind of Dawn getting raped by the “life coach”.
I say controversial because a few years ago when Andy had a rape plot on The Blackthornes, it didn’t go over very well with some of the readers/members of the web series community. Since that time, the community has really become much smaller, but the very last thing I would ever want to do is to make someone feel uneasy reading my series. I do take the topic of rape and sexual assault very seriously, and I do believe it happens more than we realize in today’s society (the #MeToo Movement is very much proof of this). So, when I decided to go ahead with this story, I really wanted to ensure I was doing it right by the story, characters and the topic at hand. In upcoming episodes, you will see Dawn go to the hospital to get checked out and follow up with her doctors. I thought this was very key as a message for readers and for Dawn, herself.
I’m not writing this blog as any way to justify the storyline. I am very proud of the storyline, however, I realize that the topic can be sensitive. I do hope that anyone that reads the series will allow the storyline to play out. There are some tough scenes/moments but there are some very dramatic scenes to be played out in the next 6 to 7 months. It’s a journey and I hope you will come along for it. This is just a moment in ODaaT’s history, and considering the society we are currently in, a timely moment at that.
Until next time,
Dzkw
Every so often a storyline, or arch, comes along that really requires an in-depth look into my thought process about the storyline and characters. I do believe this summer bible camp storyline is one of them.
After Dawn pushed Natasha down the stairs and blackmailed her, I was wondering where to take the character next. I didn’t want Dawn to be a villain, so to speak, but I did feel like she needed to have some kind of new path. One of the types of characters that I did not have on the series yet was a lesbian, so I thought that I could make Dawn be gay.
As soon as I got this idea, I immediately thought about Barbara’s reaction. The entire time Barbara has been on the canvas, she has been very religious. I’ve always had her clutch her cross necklace when times are difficult for her and when she’s not at home, I have Helen mention she’s with her church group. The idea that her granddaughter would be gay was compelling to me.
Last year, I also had Frederick not been pleased with Lukas coming out, so I knew that the reaction would have to be different. Barbara researching camps to send Dawn too seemed realistic, as we still hear of these “conversion” camps existing today. I also thought that this camp idea would be a great way to introduce a new character that will become a regular in Cheresa. So, I came up with the idea that Dawn would realize she’s gay and Barbara would freak out and not be happy about it.
I really liked the idea of the summer camp but I also knew that something else would have to happen at the camp that would change the course these characters were on. If Dawn simply went to the camp and came home still gay, the camp arch would have seemed pointless. That’s where the, potentially, controversial idea came into my mind of Dawn getting raped by the “life coach”.
I say controversial because a few years ago when Andy had a rape plot on The Blackthornes, it didn’t go over very well with some of the readers/members of the web series community. Since that time, the community has really become much smaller, but the very last thing I would ever want to do is to make someone feel uneasy reading my series. I do take the topic of rape and sexual assault very seriously, and I do believe it happens more than we realize in today’s society (the #MeToo Movement is very much proof of this). So, when I decided to go ahead with this story, I really wanted to ensure I was doing it right by the story, characters and the topic at hand. In upcoming episodes, you will see Dawn go to the hospital to get checked out and follow up with her doctors. I thought this was very key as a message for readers and for Dawn, herself.
I’m not writing this blog as any way to justify the storyline. I am very proud of the storyline, however, I realize that the topic can be sensitive. I do hope that anyone that reads the series will allow the storyline to play out. There are some tough scenes/moments but there are some very dramatic scenes to be played out in the next 6 to 7 months. It’s a journey and I hope you will come along for it. This is just a moment in ODaaT’s history, and considering the society we are currently in, a timely moment at that.
Until next time,
Dzkw