WRITING CULTS - Terrible Writing Advice

All praise JP and his holy word of Terrible Writing Advice as he instructs new initiates on how to write cults! Praised be to the divine Love Triangle!

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Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

[mixkid]

The best way to write a cult is to take a group of people whos opinions you're not fond of, and distort them into cartoonish crazies.

[nicholasdanner]

“Mystery is an excellent substitute for substance” unironically sounds like something JJ Abrams would say

[Just_Some_Guy_with_a_Mustache]

"We're not a cult. We just like robes."

This topic reminds me of the time I almost got recruited into a cult. Words to the wise, kids: Don't say "yes" to every person who walks up to you in college just because your parents and teachers tell you that joining clubs will "look good on your resume". Because tasting the suspicious-tasting tea isn't worth it, sometimes.

[thegodofalldragons]

Most of these videos boil down to "just research the blasted thing instead of copying what you saw in other stories" draped in heavy layers of sarcasm.

[hannahfanning]

As an irl cult survivor I really appreciate this video. Pop culture ideas of cults can really influence people and make it more difficult for survivors to get help because real cults don't usually sound like the layman's idea of what a cult is. It's good to be aware of how these kinds of things work. Thanks JP

[dracomurdock]

I actually really like the idea of a cult whose paradise is exclusive to those who die in righteous combat but- because of the way the world is set up- there isn't a way for them to do that without being evil and having someone else righteously come for them.

[teal_m_]

There are two types of writing cults.
Fictional cults and fanatical fandoms.

[LifeWithMatthew]

Without saying what is a cult, some general tactics of cults are:
1) Love bombing - Everyone in this group loves you, you're amazing and welcomed
2) Contact Separation - Create barriers between you and anyone who might think differently from the cult. After all they don't love you and we do
3) Offering a Prize when you join - You can be wealthy/healthy/truly who you were meant to be if you join us
4) Getting you to agree you want the prize - Now that they know what you want, they can focus on that desire
5) Withholding the prize - You're always promised to get what you want if you were just a little more involved
6) Shaming you - If ever you decide the prize isn't worth it or try to express a mindset contrary to the cult the "unconditional love" turns into unending judgment until you return to the right way of thinking
7) Control of autonomy, environment, and information - You can only go to approved locations, be with approved people, watch approved news. Anything that would challenge the group's way of thinking is strictly restricted so only easily debunked attacks are allowed in to reinforce the belief that the cult is right

There's a lot of cults out there that aren't religious and don't have compounds, just sayin'

[Jimmy]

You neglected to mention that strategically killing the cult leader would run the risk of turning him into a matyr

This was a wise omission- nobody wants to think about moral dilemmas or consequences in the middle of a perfectly good power fantasy

[Zetact_]

"'Scuse me, are y'all with the cult?"
"We're not a cult. We're an organization that promotes love and-"
"Yeah, this is it."

[ItsKaypora]

The love triangle has a perfect symbol for their cult attached to their name already :)

[energeticcreeper]

"remember that people are either evil or victims, never both"
honestly this is such a good message that you could probably write an entire story with this as the central theme
edit: yes i know the point of TWA and i know how this applies to this quote, my point is the exploration of how people can be *evil* and victims at the same time. as in people who do irredeemable things, but they are still victims of other tragedies

[danielskrivan]

I think part of the reason why the abusive nature of a cult is not included in a lot of fiction is because what the cult is praying to and sacrificing for actually exists within the work of fiction. If there really was a pagan god of wealth and the sacrifices I offered were bringing me that wealth, I wouldn't need to convince people to give me their money. If my cult members were also reaping the rewards of those sacrifices, then they would not need to be gaslit and isolated to stay with the cult.

[Galimeer]

Cults will often have new members form relationships (romantic or otherwise) with an existing member to secure their loyalty. After the new member is sufficiently indoctrinated, the relationship will often be severed and the leader will fill that role, acting as a loving caregiver for the emotionally distraught recruit.
It's all psychological manipulation and taking advantage of people in emotionally vulnerable situations.

[a.p]

As someone who likes researching cults, I appreciate the digs at Scientology.

[nasinnarcotics]

This is making me realize that Starlight's cult in My Little Pony is legitimately better written than a lot of cults from media aimed at an older audience with more freedom over the content of their stories

[mistercrumbling]

Perfect my generic evil cult now will be even more evil and generic. But I do need another red herring cult on the side.

[oneinathousand]

*Every horror writer in the 2010’s*: WRITE THAT DOWN, WRITE THAT DOWN!

[jasonbrose]

West of loathing parodied all of this, with one of my favorite quest items being an "order for 140 black hooded cowls" that actually helps you track them down. It's hilarious.

[jinxtheunluckypony]

I met a cult recruiter once. He invited me to dinner and I said yes out of curiosity. He canceled our plans after I asked if the cult had a dress code.