So, I've been mulling over ideas for a Slenderman series...

Okay, so back in December I got an idea for what I thought at the time was going to turn into a Slenderman blog. However, as I mulled the idea over, I realized it might actually make a better series instead, and thus set to musing on how I could make it a reality.

At this point, I only have an idea and a little bit of synopsis and concept to go on. I am still in the planning stages and, well, I think I could use a little help.

My basic idea is this - I want to do a series where the protagonist is caught in some sort of time loop, where events keep repeating themselves. Why would Slendy want to keep the protagonist in a loop? Well, I don't know, I can't exactly read his mind because I think that might be very bad for my sanity. XD But all I know is that I want the protagonist to be caught in a sort of Slendy-induced ouroborous of events, a bit like a Groundhog Day plot, but stretched out over the course of months rather than one day. I would like for the protagonist (in this case a female), as the series progresses, to slowly realize much later that she's in the loop, but to be living different parts of it at different times. For example, she might get attacked on a bike path one month, and then a few months later be walking on that same path and end up seeing herself get attacked again, although there's not a lot she can do about it - or she may even directly end up causing certain events to happen, thus keeping her in the loop, and thus keeping her under Slenderman's influence. Of course Slendy's going to influence events too, since keeping her living the same events over and over makes it easier for him to fulfill whatever... purpose he has for her. The protagonist's goal then, once she realizes she's stuck in the loop, is to try and find a way out of it.

Do you guys think this is a good idea for a series? Do you think I should make some changes to it? Has it been done before, and if so could you link me to those series so I can learn a few things?

I know a few things at this point:

1. I want a Proxy-like character involved in order to help further the plot a bit. Without giving too much away, I do have a good reason for one to be there and yes, Slendy IS the big bad here, not the Proxy character, and said character will be downplayed and/or played with significantly - less a stalker and more someone else who is about and mucking things up for the protagonist. I will try to keep the common Proxy cliches to a minimum and s/he may or may not actually even be an actual Proxy at this point, although s/he will have some sort of mask and the role of this character will be mostly ambiguous. What are your thoughts on this and what are some ways I can work with the character type to make it less overdone?

2.The ending of the series will be Pyrrhic. I do have another ending that is a bit more bleak. Which would you guys prefer? A more Pyrrhic ending, or a more tragic ending? Do you like pure Downer endings in your Mythos tales, or do you want something that breaks the traditional mold?

3. People are going to die in this story. People are going to go nucking futs. People are going to suffer and be turned against each other. I'm kind of writing this like a drama, and that's a genre I haven't worked much in before. There will be some nasty twists in this story; my aim is to make it pretty damn full of feels. I want this to grab people by the emotional balls and squeeze, or at least that's my intent.

4. I am torn on whether or not I should give Slendy tendrils in this series. I really want to because I think it would be cool to seem him use them in combat or trip a character up, but I just don't have the means to make them look like actual tendrils/tentacles. I don't really want to do them if they're gonna look too cheesy, but if I can do them with physical props in some way that looks decent, I'll totally do it. What are your thoughts on this, tendrils or no?

5. This series is gonna be a straight-up series. NOT an ARG. I just don't have the time to make all these sites and cryptic things, and I don't want the series to be too complex for newer fans. If I have my Proxy character talk to the protagonists through videos added to their Youtube channel, it will all be self-contained on that channel. There won't be a Twitter, there won't be a blog, nothing like that. Do you guys think this is a good approach, or should I try to involve the fans more in the story?

6. The channel will start as a series of videos about two horror fanatic friends who review horror films and games on their vlog channel. After they review some Slenderman series (they would be considered fake in universe), one friend claims she wasn't scared, and the other dares her to go into the woods at night with her to prove it. This would be the point where the weird Slenderman shit starts going down, although it'd be really subtle at first and the protagonists wouldn't even know what had hit them just yet until one of them makes the connection. I will try to keep the start-up videos minimal, because I don't like series that spend forever getting to the good bits. Do you think starting off as a different series, then shifting to a Slenderman story in this manner is a good way to go? How much like a vlog should I make it?

7. I have no idea what I'm titling it yet. What is a general good way to title a Slenderman series? How much should a title of a channel relate to what's going on? Is an abstract title a good way to go? Does it really matter so long as it sounds good?

I'd appreciate as much feedback and help as possible getting this sting off the ground. I have a good Slenderfan friend of mine I know would love to work on this with me, and I know a few other people who might enjoy helping out, too. Any suggestions or comments?

It sounds like an ambitious project. Time travel stories, especially stable time loops, usually are. And the way you described it made me think of a mobius strip made out of a slinky, so... yeah.

Now, for your numbered list.

1. I've already stated I'm fine with proxies as long as they don't overshadow Tall and Lanky, but you already said you'd shy away from doing that, so super duper here.

As for making a proxy less typical, honestly, just having an agenda that's even quasi-clear would be a big step towards that.

You could also make them stand out physically. Instead of a bleak mask, why not a masquerade-style mask? Those can be creepy as all get out despite their vibrant colours. Or forego the mask entirely. As long as a super clear shot of the face is never given, a wig and different style of clothing can work wonders. Add to that a pair of glasses and alter your body language some and you could walk right past your own mother without her looking at you twice.

2. Who says a pyrrhic victory can't be tragic? I mean, the whole time-loop thing makes it seem like, for whatever reason, this person is needed alive. If Slendy's machinations require her to be alive, then this woman dying -- or even taking her own life -- would be a victory, but also tragic because, duh, she dead.

But really, either one. Or both. It matters not to me.

3. Squeeze away.

4. Done good, tentacles are grand. I'd say if you're confident you can make them great, do it. Don't just spray paint some pool noodles black and call it a day.

5. I often think ARGs are aptly named, because that's the sound I make when I get into them late. I'm perfectly alright with a twitter account, though. They tell me when a series has updated, and they can serve as wee little mini updates should the need arise.

6. I am... not a big fan of series that are too Slender Man-aware before shit goes down, or ones that reference other series too much. A big reason I quit watching Stan Frederick BTS was because the resident proxything basically told the main character "hey, go watch marble hornets and everyman hybrid and blah blah blah". Probably a personal preference thing. I'm sure it doesn't bother most people.

7. Titles. My old nemesis.

I do like the Artifact Title thing the Slenderverse has going on. It gives a reason for the series to even have a title. Marble Hornets was Alex's movie project, EverymanHYBRID was that ridiculous fitness blog thing, etc, etc. Meanwhile, series that don't have this background for the title sometimes leave me wondering "why would the character decide to name his channel that?" If the series is good I can overlook the strange naming, but if it's bad it just gives me one more thing to hate *coughweepingthornscough*.

But since your premise is the whole spooky thing reviewing, you're basically free to name it whatever. It could be dark and spooky, or ironically cheery like "Happytime Adventures with [character 1] and [character 2], the Baronesses of Sunshine and Confetti, respectively". Or, y'know, something less ridiculous.


However things go down, good luck!

BravoBismuth wrote:

It sounds like an ambitious project. Time travel stories, especially stable time loops, usually are. And the way you described it made me think of a mobius strip made out of a slinky, so... yeah.

I'm still not quite sure HOW I'm doing the time-loop effects, or how much of it I'm doing. Obviously it's not going to be, "Oh one day ago I was walking here and Slendy attacked me, now it's a month later and I'm walking the same path so I know Slendy's going to attack me." I was thinking more like she's living the same loop, but through different perspectives. I'm still not sure how wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey this is gonna get yet, so...

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As for making a proxy less typical, honestly, just having an agenda that's even quasi-clear would be a big step towards that.

I actually like that idea. I was thinking of somehow making the Proxy character almost a reflection of the main character, maybe a parallel to her. Been thinking a lot on the theme of reflection and opposites for this series, actually. Maybe I could use mirror symbolism somehow, or base the Proxy's quirks around mirrors or reflected images.

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Instead of a bleak mask, why not a masquerade-style mask? Those can be creepy as all get out despite their vibrant colours.

I like that idea. I'll have to look around my local costume store and see what I can find for masquerade or Carnivale-style masks. Although I do like the dehumanizing aspect of a bleak and blank mask as well, just not TOO bleak or blank. I also already have a white mask with black markings on it resembling clown or jester makeup, complete with smile. Although thinking on the theme of color and opposites... Hm. I'll have to think a bit more on the design for my Proxy.

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Or forego the mask entirely. As long as a super clear shot of the face is never given, a wig and different style of clothing can work wonders. Add to that a pair of glasses and alter your body language some and you could walk right past your own mother without her looking at you twice.

I kinda read that as, "Hello Observer clone, how are you today?" XD But only because of the glasses. Maybe I could do something with face paint and a hooded sweatshirt instead of a mask... something subtly different.

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Done good, tentacles are grand. I'd say if you're confident you can make them great, do it. Don't just spray paint some pool noodles black and call it a day.

The only idea for making physical tendrils I could come up with was having a few people stand behind our Slendy with black pantyhose over their arms and wave them around. But that sounds incredibly lame. I suppose it could work if I showed a quick shot of our Slendy with them out and didn't show him clearly, but it still just seems so damn cheesy... I might just forgo them entirely.

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I am... not a big fan of series that are too Slender Man-aware before shit goes down, or ones that reference other series too much.

It would really be only one reference. I was thinking maybe, since the characters review horror, they decide "Hey this thing called Marble Hornets exists, let's talk about it in an episode of our vlog." It's just supposed to kind of be a catalyst to go out in the woods and run into Slendy. I could change it to a discussion about some other horror series that takes place in the woods though, such as the Friday the 13th series or Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which at least takes place somewhere rural. Then maybe follow up with the girls daring each other to go in the woods and try to find Jason Voorhees or something. Point is I kind of need a reason for these random vloggers to go out in the woods and film themselves doing so in order to run into Slendy. XD So yeah, a bit of an excuse plot, but friends mess with each other like that sometimes, so...

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I do like the Artifact Title thing the Slenderverse has going on. But since your premise is the whole spooky thing reviewing, you're basically free to name it whatever.

I did kind of like the idea of naming it something like "Nightmare Dreams" or "The Scream Queens" as an artifact title that still holds a bit of meaning in the series, but I also love the idea of an ironic name. Maybe mix the two, something like "Sunlit Slashers" (since a lot of the reviews will be about slasher films) or "Chasing Creeps" or even something silly and lighthearted like "Creeptastic Voyage", or "DeviousDivas" or something. I'll definitely think about it and figure out what sounds the best.

Thanks for the help and suggestions, Bismuth.

I like this idea, the concept is good and has a decent plot. It's definitely a step up from most of the other Slenderman blogs I've seen.

I say give it a go and see what happens.

... Hex. You're gonna be in the series. You don't have to pretend you don't know what's going on. XD

With the way you're setting things up with a time loop, I like the idea of having a majot twist be that the main character becomes the proxy - although she doesn't know it, and she also doesn't know that she's causing these things to happen.

I like the name "SistersOfFate"

It would tie into the hole horror movie vlog thing while giving an extremely deep artifact meaning with my first idea. But that's just personal input. As for the whole "looking for Jason Voorhees in the woods," I really like that. It seems legitimate enough a dare to be out in the forest, while not being too perfect. It's not "We went looking for Slenderman and found him" its "We went on a dare because we knew monsters didn't exist. We were wrong."

Mashuga31 wrote:

With the way you're setting things up with a time loop, I like the idea of having a majot twist be that the main character becomes the proxy - although she doesn't know it, and she also doesn't know that she's causing these things to happen.

I had been considering a plot twist along those same lines actually...

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I like the name "SistersOfFate"

That name, or something like it, actually rings really well for me too... I think I might go with something like that, "*blank* Of Fate/Doom/Dread/Etc."

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"We went on a dare because we knew monsters didn't exist. We were wrong."

Basically, yeah. Considering my original idea was something along the lines of, "Oh we reviewed MarbleHornets or something, not that we believe it's real or anything. Guess what, it is." But that's been done to death, so...

Mashuga31 wrote:

With the way you're setting things up with a time loop, I like the idea of having a majot twist be that the main character becomes the proxy - although she doesn't know it, and she also doesn't know that she's causing these things to happen.

I had been considering a plot twist along those same lines actually...

Quote :

I like the name "SistersOfFate"

That name, or something like it, actually rings really well for me too... I think I might go with something like that, "*blank* Of Fate/Doom/Dread/Etc."

Quote :

"We went on a dare because we knew monsters didn't exist. We were wrong."

Basically, yeah. Considering my original idea was something along the lines of, "Oh we reviewed MarbleHornets or something, not that we believe it's real or anything. Guess what, it is." But that's been done to death, so...