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notsocheezy · 1 month ago

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Brain Curd #300

Brain Curds - Behind the Series

Brain Curds are lightly edited daily writing - usually flash fiction and sometimes terrible on purpose.

It’s a challenge to come up with something to befit a milestone like this. Some would say it’s silly to do a special post to commemorate one of hundreds of little nuggets of creation - these aren’t meant to be great efforts, they’re just to keep the cheese grating. But I’ve already set a precedent at this point: Brain Curd #100 let me look back at the first hundred days I spent writing these. Brain Curd #200 allowed me to offer a concise visual history of my creative output over the course of my entire life (though not too many of you took me up on it).

For Brain Curd #300, well… to tell the truth, I’ve been racking my you-know-what to come up with a satisfying answer. What could I possibly write that recognizes this accomplishment for what it is, satisfies myself and my audience, and doesn’t rehash my musings on the new year? I think I’ve found the perfect thing.

Today, I’m looking back at some of the most prominent recurring series of this 300-post run to share with you juicy behind-the-scenes information the likes of which you’ve probably seen before (like on DVDs and stuff) but never about Brain Curds - until now! Where did they come from? Where did they go? Are they coming back? All this and more today - that’s the Brain Curd #300 promise.

Government Man

Government Man was the first big break-out hit from this project. Though when I say ‘hit’ I’m mostly referring to my own feelings on the matter, this is still one of the more popular series of mine… based on how many notes each episode gets, anyway.

Initially, the concept was borne of my dry humor and general disillusionment with the USA (then again, what isn't?). More importantly, though, I allowed myself to explore the absurdity of it all without polishing my prose. There's a charming staccato quality to Government Man #1 that I've somewhat abandoned as the rust flaked off of my writing gears and the characters became better defined.

I wasn't always planning on having series as part of Brain Curds, but challenging myself to a time limit of ten minutes (I found this to be too restrictive and switched to Twenty-Minute Tuesdays the following week) got me immediately thinking of how I could avoid making a new concept entirely from scratch. Government Man #2 was a fun little bit of character building which by complete happenstance made Government Woman a keeper of exotic animals, a trait which became more and more important later on.

Episode 3 introduced the big bad, Counter Spy. This one started as an off-the-cuff bedtime story for my ex - and honestly, the breakup might have ruined the series for me if I weren't so attached. But this unlikely source set in motion the main plot of Season 1, which was completed by Episode 21, though not totally wrapped up.

My favorite entry? It’s hard to say for sure, but I’m proud of the foreshadowing and big reveal that I pulled off at the two-thirds point of the season - which never would have happened if I didn’t desperately need a break from Counter Spy.

Government Man will return as soon as I have some ideas for Season 2. The holiday special is only second-class canon, part of neither Season 1 nor Season 2… So don’t worry about it.

The Prom Consort

It all started with queerbaiting. I saw the new Ghostbusters and was immensely frustrated. If you've seen it, you know what I mean. If the ghost was a boy, they would have kissed. Fucking Hollywood. Anyway…

After I let out my annoyance with Clearly Bait (BC#7), a couple weeks later I started writing a diatribe about the concept of love triangles and realized halfway through that this was the same character from that, back for revenge. A triad was the logical next step, and the plot thickened.

As of right now, I'm not entirely sure where to go with this story. In the aftermath of a harsh breakup, it was kind of tough for me to access those romantic sensibilities that were with me when I started. But I do want to come back to this one. It's still got life left in it. I want to see where these characters end up. Do they succeed in their goal, or does the drama push them all apart?

The Frank Program

The Frank Program started its life long before the concept of Brain Curds ever existed, first as a vague creation of two men named Mike. Frank was initially a sort of wimpy, pathetic character used for prank calls to the local radio station. Which might have been less notable if the two Mikes didn't have a show themselves.

I myself was a former host of the same show, which came to be known as Audiophiles. So naturally, on the occasions that I'd appear as a guest, I was involved with their hijinks. I even made a prank call as Frank - take a listen if you like:

The two Mikes thought it was hilarious. The hosts of the other show didn't. I doubt anyone cares much about it by now, but it was part of the reason the show got canceled. The other reason was that one of the Mikes was sleeping under the desk.

Later on, I considered trying drag, and naturally I needed to come up with a character to play. Frank, for whatever reason, came to mind. I envisioned him as something of a southerner conspiracy theorist comedian, but I never got as far as his appearance. I did, however, record a proto-Frank Program episode. This one’s short, so check it out (maybe don’t listen to it in public, though):

One day last year, I needed to write a Brain Curd and he came to mind again, so I put him in a room with a guest to interview and his meek producer. Modern Frank - the loveable, loathsome idiot with more connections than sense, was born to great success. After that, well… It's 90% fiction, but there’s a true story if you know where to look.

Frank’s in rehab now, but I think Daryl is doing a fine job as host by himself. Better than I ever did, at least.

Veronica

Sometimes you just need to let those intrusive gory images out of your mind. It’s bloodletting.

The first three Veronica entries started with first lines I thought were clever and built off from there. Then they just got really, really violent. Honestly, I’m pretty squicked out by that sort of thing in real life. Drops of blood on the floor are enough to make me a touch light-headed. Not my blood, mind you, only other people’s blood. I’m very much used to seeing my own.

After that ‘trilogy’, I had a unique opportunity. Due to the format of Brain Curds, I was able to start a whole new ongoing story that was secretly (or obviously, depending on how close you pay attention) Veronica's unraveling - that being Apart at the Seams.

I finally put Veronica through what she deserved, including the pain she was never before able to feel, which was quite cathartic in the aftermath of a painful and gory surgery (See my #V-Day posts if you want to know).

Now that the detective seems to have figured her out, where is there to go? A court trial? Prison? Foster home? It's hard to come up with anything worth exploring. So for now, this series is over. But it was a cool cross of whodunnit and how-find-out while it lasted.

Passable.

I’ve wanted to make a trans sitcom for years and years. In 2019 or so, I decided I was going to write a pilot, and the four characters were loosely based on some people I knew at the time. The initial concept for this pilot, known as ‘Transpotting’, was what ended up as the A-plot for Episode 2. Here's an excerpt from the first first draft:

Yeah, that’s not an excerpt, I lied; that’s all I wrote. But it's for the best, honestly. I didn't have the greatest understanding of how sitcom plots were constructed back then… or how to write good comedy dialogue. It's fortuitous, then, that I finally took the plunge in Brain Curd #30 and jumped into a completely different, off-the-top-of-my-head and absolutely bonkers plot that could probably never be aired on television. At this point, I think I’ve poached most of what is worthwhile from this exchange for the show proper.

At this point, I may not be perfect at writing for Passable,, but I've gotten in a groove with these characters and the episodes will only continue to improve. It’s one of my favorites to write, and I think it’s worth noting that I conceived of and wrote the entire holiday special within the month of December. That says something. Not sure what, but it’s something.

The next step is to revise what I’ve got. After that, I’ll begin work on a pilot script I can actually get past the FCC. In the meantime, we’ll continue checking in on Lily, Alice, Sarah, and Brayden to see what they’re up to.

Clint & Reggie

These goofballs came about entirely by accident. Normally, I wouldn’t come back to characters without good reason - continuity, for example. But after Goldfish (BC#102), I realized how much I enjoyed their dynamic and (more importantly) how much I don’t enjoy coming up with new names. Since Reggie killed Clint (spoiler alert) I had no choice but to keep these episodic and disconnected, to the point that I don’t even link to their previous appearances like I do with other series.

Clint & Reggie may remain roommates until the end of time, no matter how many times (successfully or otherwise) Reggie murders Clint. They're good friends.

As far as the best entry goes, I'm pretty sure the original can't be topped: the line, “I realized I was smiling, and the snacks smiled back” is just too good. But hey, maybe something of that caliber could show up again. My brain does the wildest things.

Cole Nicole

I had this idea of a sunset and nothing else, so I started with just that sentence. All of a sudden, there was a living, breathing twink in a cute bikini laying on the beach. I can’t explain it other than maybe I was a little horny. Hence, Cole Nicole. As I stated in the tags for Episode 1, he's my new “imaginary boyfriend.”

Rikki Numbers, Cole's nemesis, existed in my mind as a vague concept long before Cole ever did. He was something of a femboy alter-ego for myself - a dominant nymphomaniac with a deeper voice than I use day-to-day, but otherwise not altogether a different personality from myself. The version of him in this series is way different - he's high femme, flamboyant, vaguely european, and a total bitch.

At least, you'd think he is. But maybe he's not so bad. Don't worry, you'll see more of Cole, Rikki, and the rest. I just have to come up with their outfits… Not my greatest talent. Hell or high water, though, you’ll see more femboy friday.

Quantum Fates

The freshest face of these ongoing series came to me in a dream. I dreamt of being back in high school, with vague knowledge of a future I worked to change for the better. What startled me was the unintended consequences - I saw a face I wasn’t expecting.

This isn’t exactly what Quantum Fates is or will be, but it brought me back to a concept I’ve wanted desperately to explore: what would I do if I could go back? Ultimately, despite my attempts to make something of it (see Memories Retained, both the original poem and the fizzled novella) I just couldn’t figure out how to make it interesting to anyone but myself. It’s reflexive fanfic, and I’m the only fan.

That’s why this realization was so integral. The fact of the memories being retained took all the life out of the story, took what little suspense there might be and made it, “oh, yeah, I remember that happening.” Maybe there’s something to be found within that setup, but the slow drip-feed of information is much more engaging, and the underrepresented status quo only adds to that.Reading Quantum Fates, you don’t just wonder why Trevor’s got that voice in his head, and bizarre premonitions, but you also ask why he lives with his grandparents, why his relationship with his father is strained, when he’s going to figure out… Oh, I shouldn’t tell you that. You know neither what happened nor what will happen - that is, you don’t know for sure. That’s my goal, at least. I hope by making it interesting to write, it’s interesting to read, too.

Anyway, folks, thank you for joining me on this journey over the past three-hundred days. Here’s to more one-offs, poems, comics, series, and anything else I can justify uploading to my blog. Long live Brain Curds! See you tomorrow.

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