Kidnapping/Stockholm Syndrome

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Sorry I skipped out on you guys last week. But I'm back with a requested rant: Kidnapping/Stockholm Syndrome

Before I give you my thoughts on making a more believable (and most likely different by Wattpad standards) kidnapping story line, I just want to say a few things about the topic:

I did a quick little refresher course on Stockholm Syndrome before I sat down to write this rant (and you wouldn't believe how hard it is when there are songs/movies/books named after the term you're searching for) and I've come to the conclusion (although I couldn't find a definitive yes or no support), that Stockholm Syndrome isn't exactly about falling in love with your captor. It's about empathizing and even sympathizing.

You don't have to fall in love with someone to feel sorry for them or to understand them. That being said, I hate when kidnapping/r*pe/abuse is justified because someone had a rough childhood/mental disorder/etc. I hate that. Don't ask me to read a sob story. Y'all know how I feel about those. Maybe they work for everyone else and all the paid professionals will tell you that's the only way to pull of Stockholm, but I'm telling you don't ask me to read your work if it's a sob story for being bad. Don't.

But, anyway, I have some things to share that I think might make for more interesting kidnapping stories.

I think the biggest problem with writing these stories is that the kidnapping is the entire plot. So it's understandable that writers need to drag out the experience so that it can sustain an entire novel, but I think we go about it wrong.

We automatically assume that love is the only way to make a captive person stay (short of tying them up), but honestly, there are so many reasons not to run. Let's talk about some different things you can focus on that might make for better character development and hopefully a more diverse, interesting plot.

1. Fear is a very powerful motivator

I'm willing to even state that fear is a better motivator than love or anything else for that matter. Fear will make you lose your mind. Imagine being held captive by someone you don't know, for reasons you may not understand, for an uncertain amount of time, with no contact to anything familiar, in a place you've never been, doing things you don't want to do. Not exactly the most romantic situation.

Fear is a motivator. Fear will make you stay put even when your captor has been gone for two hours, because what the fuck is going to happen if he catches you. Fear makes you do what you're told, because knowing what is expected of you is better than never knowing what's going to happen if you don't obey.

I can feel people rolling their eyes and wanting to jump down my throat about how they don't want to read about a weak, scared MC, but you know what, you guys can go fuck yourselves, because calling people weak that experience so much trauma (like in a kidnapping) that they literally start running only on survival mode (which you guessed it, is dominated by fear) is a shitty thing to do. I'm glad you don't understand, but don't be a dick about it.

Everyone always says "I would run" or "I would fight" and when you meet people who have been through these horrible things they always say "I should have ran" or "I should have fought back", but it's like my best friend always says: "You always think you're going to do the right thing, but it's really easy to talk".

Talk is cheap. Bad things happen. You think you're going to be tough and a hero, but I'm telling you, fear can make a person do just about anything.

2. Uncertainty is a bitch

I think this is pretty tight with the last point, but a lot of people don't run when they have the chance, because they're so unsure of everything. Where are they? What happens if they get caught? What if no one believes them? What if it happens again?

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