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Day 10 Assignments
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Assignment 10
“What I learned doing this assignment is…?” It may be possible that I need to have more trust/distrust dynamics for my characters even though, based on how the story is told, heroes and villains are in a chase across vast distances and don’t confront one another until the end. This may be an intrinsic problem with the story and/or I need to augment, regarding trust, this dynamic to further engage the audience in this way.
Create trust / distrust relationships between your characters and add them to your Thriller Map.
1. Make a list of the main characters.
Hero: Mac Grant
Villain: Peter Arteaga <div>Red Herring Character: Mosko
Trusted, but shouldn’t be: Agent Villarreal
Isn’t trusted, but should be: Eloy
2. With each character, ask these questions:
A. What is their basic state — trustable or not trustable? </div><div>
Mac Grant: trustable
Bella Ortiz: trustable
Peter Arteaga: not trustable
Eloy: not trustable
Crowley: trustable
Mosko: trustable
Rosario: not trustable
B. How might they really be trustable, but appear not trustable OR be not trustable, but appear trustable?
Rosario: she’s an 8 year old. Her passions, especially in terms of resurrecting her mother, are paramount for her, so it’s difficult to give her a trust label
Eloy: has seen it all and, while he works for Peter and will kill you without a thought, his experience in the endeavor of tracking down Mosko, makes him trustable
Mosko: only wants to die. He’s been betrayed by those around him. His code is of the wounded animal, so he’s trustableC. What circumstances might cause them to switch from one to the other?
Eloy is the most malleable character in terms of trust, however, if the conditions were right and Bella had the opportunity to find her son, Paolo, she could easily be someone who would betray to achieve this.
3. With each character relationship, brainstorm how trust or distrust might show up between them.
Hero / Villain: Mac is forced to do Peter’s bidding for the greater good of stopping Mosko and stopping the wave of cult killings that could soon find their way into Texas. Mac also doesn’t know that the real villain is Rosario until the final confrontation scene; that she’s been compelling her father to kill in service of resurrecting her mother
Hero / Red Herring Character: Mac doesn’t interact with Mosko until the end but his experience allows him to profile Mosko before they ever meet
Hero / Trusted, but shouldn’t be: Agent Villarreal comes across like a legit agent but unbeknownst to Mac, has been corrupted offscreen by Peter, is just a tool of Peter in the “I have eyes everywhere” kind of approach
Hero / Isn’t trusted, but should be: Eloy can navigate dangerous, unknown situations in Mexico given his resourceful nature. Mac and Bella know that Eloy will likely turn on them at some point and must stay one step ahead of him while keeping a wary on him in case he turns on a dime…which does when he attempts to kill Bella4. Create a sequence for each trust/distrust relationship (like I did with Three Days of The Condor) and then add that to your map.
Mac/Mosko
TRUST: no interaction until the end but Mac immediately trusts Mosko to do anything to save his little girl
DISTRUST: Mac distrusts Mosko who, earlier in the story, provided a map to his whereabouts and what likely was going to be a trap
TRUST: Mosko trusts Mac to kill him, which is what he’s wanted all alongMac/Peter Arteaga
TRUST: Mac is forced to trust that Peter’s ultimate goals of going legit are real. And to do this he must end the growing threat that his former enforcer is causing among the people of Mexico that will soon spread to Texas and “every virgin vein” (drugs)
DISTRUST: Villareal, who works for Peter, and the ambush of Mac and Bella in the safehouse is plenty enough to foment distrust as is the tracker embedded in secret in the phone Peter provides for their use. Also the inclusion of Eloy on this sojourn to find Mosko doesn’t scream trust.
TRUST: Peter shoots Agent Villarreal in the head when he makes a sexual pass at BellaMac/Eloy
TRUST: Eloy knows Mosko, and knows where all the bodies are buried, providing invaluable intel and context.
DISTRUST: Eloy tried to kill Mosko which set all this in motion. Who’s to say he might try again. And he does, with Bella.
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Hero: Blusage
Villain: Sirok
Red herring: Xin Hatos
Trusted but shouldn’t: Dhuzin
Not trusted, but should: Misty
Sirok, not trustable. Comes in the form of an angelic being. Seeks to use a divine weapon and will enslave Blusage to get it.
Xin Hatos, not trustable. Rescues Blusage from purge
Dhuzin, not trustable . Knows secret magic arts. Will do anything
Misty, trustable. Is a witch. Is curious about Blusage’s weapon.
Blusage/Sirok
Trust: Sirok appears to Blusage in the likeness of an angel several days after he utters a prayer
Distrust: Sirok proclaims a dragon king must rule all the realms
Trust: Sirok reveals a map to the throne of Heaven
Trust: Sirok unlocks Blusage’s hidden power
Distrust: Sirok threatens to use Blusage’s power against him should he oppose him.
Trust: Sirok kills Xin Hatos
Blusage/ Xin Hatos
Distrust: Xin destroyed Blusge’s brotherhood of monks
Trust: Xin Hatos begins teaching Blusage the way of the dragon.
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Create trust / distrust relationships between your characters and add them to your Thriller Map.
6. Answer the question “What I learned doing this assignment is…?” and put it at the top of your work.
Trust doesn’t necessarily stay constant throughout the story. By choosing trustworthy characters for my heroes I am missing some opportunities for conflict.
1. Make a list of the main characters.
Hero: MJ, None of the Above, Fernando, Ada
Villain: Dmitri Ivashov, Yu Gong Yi Shan
Red Herring Character: Chinese President Liu Yong(in some plotlines), Alvin Renquist
Trusted, but shouldn’t be: Rick Slater
Isn’t trusted, but should be: Zelda
2. With each character, ask these questions:
A. What is their basic state — trustable or not trustable?
Hero: MJ(trustable), None of the Above(trustable), Fernando(trustable), Ada(depends on context)
Villain: Dmitri Ivashov(not trustable), Yu Gong Yi Shan(not trustable)
Red Herring Character: Chinese President Liu Yong(not trustable), Alvin Renquist(not trustable)
Trusted, but shouldn’t be: Rick Slater(not trustable)
Isn’t trusted, but should be: Zelda(trustable)
B. How might they really be trustable, but appear not trustable OR be not trustable, but appear trustable?
Zelda wants to murder the person who killed her partner. She thought that was MJ, but finds out it’s actually Ivashov.
Rick Slater has worked with None and MJ in the past, but he blames them for losing his company and he also wants to expedite the singularity because he’s dying. Ada is trustworthy in some contexts, but is untrustworthy romantically.
C. What circumstances might cause them to switch from one to the other?
Finding out he’s dying switches Rich Slater to untrustworthy. Finding out the circumstances of her partner’s death makes Zelda trustworthy. Renquist having common interests haves him temporarily trustworthy. None’s plan in the finale depends on Renquist betraying him.
3. With each character relationship, brainstorm how trust or distrust might show up between them.
Hero / Villain: MJ/Dmitri Ivashov He sent assassins after her and now she attacks his base to recover the kill switch.
Hero / Red Herring Character: MJ/Renquist: MJ must work with Renquist to get back the kill switch, even though she almost killed the man she loves and tried to kill her too.
Hero / Trusted, but shouldn’t be:
Hero / Isn’t trusted, but should be: MJ/Zelda wants to avenge her partner and kill MJ, but that changes when she finds out Ivashov actually caused his death.
4. Create a sequence for each trust/distrust relationship (like I did with Three Days of The Condor) and then add that to your map.
5. Give us the new version of your Thriller Map.
Teaser: kill switch that shuts down American military tech discovered.
Mystery: Was the device Renquist used to shoot down a drone a kill switch?
Villain’s Plan: Renquist is the only one who could pull off a kill switch.
MJ/Renquist Distrust: Renquist is guilty of making American unsafe.
Mystery: Where has Renquist escaped to?
Twist
Direction: The destroyed drone wasn’t a malfunction. It was destroyed by a kill switch.
Twist: MJ’s lie about a drone malfunction has been uncovered, but she can’t reveal what she knows about the kill switch since she was doing something illegal.
Life threatening: Dangerous to deploy American military because kill switch could make vulnerable.
Life threatening: Are the attacks on the White House over?
Mystery: Which of the attackers escaped?
Twist
Direction: MJ still doesn’t feel safe after the attacks.
Twist: The attacker that vowed to kill her was the one that escaped.
MJ/Zelda distrust: Zelda tried to kill MJ and she escaped.
Life threatening: Will Renquist try to kill None or MJ again?
Mystery: What will MJ do with the broken pieces of her katana?
Act 1: None of the Above recovery from coma
Mystery: Will None ever be himself again?
Mystery: How will Fernando deal with MJ rejecting him?
Mystery: What happened to the economy after Jubilee?
Mystery: What happened when None and MJ got their company back?
Mystery: How will the world react to China becoming #1 economy?
Twist
Direction: It’s a shock to Americans to be the #2 economy
Twist: They switch to ultra-patriotism and seem to be happy (denial).
Mystery: Will the IMF bank really be moved to China?
Life threatening: border skirmish between India and China adds more danger.
Act 2: White House reopens after attacks, celebration party
Mystery: Will None be OK for the night without MJ and Shen?
Twist
Direction: None is taken care of by staff, despite MJ and Shen being too busy with White House party.
Twist: He wakes up and runs out of the White House, delirious.
Mystery: What does MaxPlume want to talk to MJ about?
Mystery: What does Corella know about the plane MJ shot down?
MJ/Corella distrust: Corella is telling her about the plane because she wants something.
Life threatening: Indian leader wants to move up war games, which will put American fleet in danger
Mystery: Can the kill switch be found before the war games?
Twist
Direction: They had a certain amount of time before the American fleet would be in danger.
Twist: Because of Indian leader there is even less time to find the kill switch.
Act 3: Secret White House meeting with Corella.
Mystery: Why is Corella working for Renquist?
MJ/Corella distrust: Corella is working for Renquist.
MJ/Renquist distrust: Renquist can blackmail MJ.
Twist
Direction: Secret meeting with Corella.
Twist: She’s just a front for contact from Renquist.
Villain’s plan: Renquist reveals his real reason for the kill switch.
MJ/Renquist distrust: His reason for the kill switch is valid, but he still almost killed None and tried to kill her.
Twist
Direction: When Renquist created the kill switch, it was an act of treason.
Twist: The kill switch was really made to disable American weapons that fell into enemy hands.
Mystery: Why does the attack on the Kombinat arctic base have to be on the same day as the exercises?
Mystery: Can Renquist be trusted to keep his end of the bargain?
MJ/Renquist trust: While a hated foe, Renquist can be trusted somewhere while their interests are aligned.
Mystery: Will the Russians detect the attack on their soil?
Act 4: MJ attack on arctic Kombinat base in Russia, while Fernando leads U.S. military during competing Russian/Chinese wargames
MJ/Ivashov distrust: MJ is attacking Ivashov’s Kombinat base.
Life threatening: Will MJ survive the attack and evade capture?
Mystery: Will the war games escalate into a real conflict?
Twist
Direction: Zelda vowed to kill MJ because she killed her partner.
MJ/Renquist distrust: Why didn’t he tell her Zelda would be there
MJ/Zelda distrust: Zelda tried to kill MJ.
Twist: It was actually Ivashov that let her partner bleed out to frame MJ.
MJ/Renquist trust: He revealed information that makes Zelda no longer her main target.
MJ/Zelda trust: Zelda now has a common enemy.
Twist 2: Zelda will now spy for MJ against their common foe.
MJ/Zelda trust: Zelda will help MJ.
Twist 3: She might still kill MJ after everything is done.
MJ/Zelda distrust: Zelda might still try to kill MJ, even though they are allies now.
Twist 4: MJ gives Zelda the dagger made from her broken katana despite threats on her life.
MJ/Zelda trust: MJ gives her a dagger made from the katana used to kill her partner, which Zelda wanted to use to kill her partner’s killer.
Act 5: evading Russian patrol leaving base
Life threatening: Russian patrol would kill or capture MJ.
Mystery: How will MJ’s team avoid detection?
Ending Surprise: MJ dives into ice water to hide heat signature and is trapped under ice
Life threatening: MJ is trapped under ice in a heavy powered armor.
Mystery: Can MJ avoid drowning or her armor cracking under pressure?
Twist
Direction: Jumping in the ice water will help MJ evade detection so she’ll be safer.
Twist: The strong currents trap her under ice, so she is less safe.
Book 2/season 1.5, episode 2
Teaser: MJ rescued by SEAL mini-sub
Life threatening: MJ could be killed or captured.
Mystery: Will the Russians detect her sub?
Act 1: MJ submarine chase escaping Russia while war games continue.
Life threatening: MJ being chased.
Mystery: Why are multiple ships running aground in the war games?
Act 2: Ships ran aground in war games because China is building a land bridge to invade Taiwan.
Villian’s plan: China is planning to invade Taiwan using a land bridge.
MJ/Chinese President Liu Yong distrust: China is planning to attack Taiwan.
Twist
Direction: ships running aground seems to multiple cases of incompetence.
Twist: It wasn’t incompetence, but ocean changes, leading to the discovery of the land bridge.
Villian’s plan: Kombinat took over Russian government while Russian military off doing exercises with China.
MJ/Ivashov distrust: Ivashov will now be more powerful, and MJ has no idea what he’ll do with that power.
Twist
Direction: MJ had invaded a Kombinat base while it was lightly defended.
Twist: The base was lightly defended because Kombinat took over Russia. While MJ invaded Kombinat, Kombinat was invading elsewhere.
Act 3: Global panic over Taiwan semiconductor industry
Mystery: What will the world do without the most advanced chips?
Act 4: None of the Above to get brain implant
Life threatening: None could die in surgery.
Mystery: Will None ever be himself again?
Act 5: Organize blockade to stop land bridge
Life threatening: Will the blockade cause a war with China?
Ending Surprise: No Chinese military involved, so how do we stop the land bridge without firing on civilians?
Mystery: Can the land bridge be stopped?
Twist
Direction: The land bridge is backed by the military
Twist: No military personnel are involved, but can’t shoot civilians or become the bad guy.
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This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by P.G. Sundling.
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This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by
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Sue Swenson’s Trust Relationships
What I learned doing this assignment is how to think about relationships in a way that fleshes out the story and provides me with plot options. These questions lead me to answers that can be used to build out my thriller story. This is a great way to grow and deepen and specify the story by requiring me to think through the details.
Create trust / distrust relationships between your characters and add them to your Thriller Map.
1. Make a list of the main characters.
Hero: Carla
Villain: Johnny, the sick kid disguised as a
Sasquatch.
Red
Herring Character: Carla’s husband,
Simon, he’s separated from Carla.
Trusted,
but shouldn’t be: The head of the
whole psychiatric department, Dr. Russell Schneider.
Isn’t
trusted, but should be: Her immediate supervisor, Richard and Simon, her
husband.2. With each character, ask these questions:
A. What is their basic state – trustable or not trustable?
Hero: Carla is trustable.
Villain: Johnny is not trustworthy.
Red Herring Character: Carla’s husband, Simon, is initially not trustable, but turns out at the end to be trustable.
Carla’s immediate supervisor, Richard: Trustable in the end, but looks untrustable when he fires her.
Dr. Russell Schneider, appears trustable initially, but turns out to be untrustable in the end.
B. How might they really be trustable, but appear not trustable OR be not trustable, but appear trustable?
Hero: Carla is trustable, but seems flaky, unstable and unreliable.
Villain: Johnny and his family are unknown to us for a long time. But the other villain, Dr. Russell Schneider, is the more dangerous villain to Carla and her patient. Dr. Russell Schneider, the head honcho of the whole department, acts all solicitous and supportive of Carla, by inviting her back to the department after her leave of absence. He presses her to take on the sick patient who has the nightmares, flattering Carla and telling her he believes in her. Behind the scenes, he’s the one orchestrating Carla’s work with the patient to find out what the patient knows.
Red Herring Character, Carla’s husband, Simon: He appears not trustable because he’s so angry with her. He is spiteful and mean, so we assume he’s evil.
Carla’s immediate supervisor, Richard. He fires her, which she takes as confirmation that he is not trustable. He judges her and is hard on her.
C. What circumstances might cause them to switch from one to the other?
Hero: Carla goes from flaky and unreliable to strong, focused and dependable. This happens after she starts having nightmares that are identical to those that her crazy patient is having. She realizes that things are more complicated and dangerous than she realized and she better get serious.
Villain: Dr. Russell Schneider, he initially likes Carla and is her mentor. At some point in the story, somebody buys him off.
Red Herring Character: Simon, Carla’s husband: When Simon realizes that Carla has foolishly gone off and put herself in danger, he puts aside his personal resentments and goes after her to protect her.
Trusted but shouldn’t be: Dr. Russell Schneider is initially trusted but shouldn’t be when he is approached behind the scenes with a bribe to help silence Carla and her sick patient.
Isn’t trusted, but should be (Richard, her supervisor): Carla’s immediate supervisor, Richard, comes across as a mean, unpleasant man who isn’t supportive and is always finding fault with her. But underneath, he’s a decent man who is ethical.
3. With each character relationship, brainstorm how trust or distrust might show up between them.
A. Hero (Carla) and Villain (Dr. Russell Schneider):
Dr. Schneider demonstrates trust when he is kind and supportive of Carla. He says he believes in her, and he encourages her to come back to the department and resume her job as a clinical hypnotherapist after a low time in her life. He acts like her ally and protector when he confronts Richard for reprimanding her professionally in front of the whole department.
Hero (Carla) and Red Herring Character Simon): Carla and Simon have had a huge falling out. They have fought bitterly and he moves out angrily after saying some really horrible things to her. Every time he talks to her he reinforces that she’s part of a dysfunctional family and she needs therapy. He acts superior and blames everything on her. He’s petty and takes some of her stuff when he moves out.
Hero (Carla) and Trusted but shouldn’t be (Carla’s mother and sister): Her sister and mother talk behind her back. They speak poorly to her nephew about her. They get into her apartment and ransack the apartment because they think Carla took his Glock. But he lied to them about not giving Carla the gun when he actually did. Carla keeps trying to reconcile with her mother and sister. She apologizes, and they act like they’re sorry too, but they stab her in the back again.
Hero (Carla) and Isn’t trusted but should be (Richard): He reprimands Carla in front of a meeting of the whole department and she runs out of the meeting in tears. He’s hard on her and appears to never be satisfied with the quality of her work. He micromanages her and is negative with her most of the time. He demands perfection from her. He ultimately fires her. Ultimately, he comes through for Carla and almost gets killed for it.
4. Create a sequence for each trust/distrust relationship (like Hal did with Three Days of the Condor) and then add that to your map.
Carla/Dr. Russell Schneider
1. Trust: Carla is grateful to have a mentor, Dr. Schneider, who believes in her and encourages her to come back to work after her leave of absence.
2. Distrust: The Sasquatch kid’s family is a big donor to Dr. Schneider’s projects.
3. Trust: Dr. Schneider takes her part after Richard confronts her at the big staff meeting.
4. Distrust: Dr. Schneider encourages Carla to work with the sick patient even though he knows she’s fragile, and over her protests.
5. Trust: Dr. Schneider takes her out for a meal and introduces her to the dangerous Sasquatch killer’s family.
6. Distrust: But what he’s really doing is exposing her to the dangerous family of the Sasquatch killer so they can all find out what she knows and they learn that she’s getting close to finding out who the Sasquatch killer is.
7. Distrust: Dr. Schneider promises her that she’ll be safe, but in the end, he sets a trap for Carla which results in her having to fight for her life against the Sasquatch killer.
8. Trust: Dr. Schneider gives her a pay raise over the objections of her boss.
9. Distrust:
Carla/Richard, her supervisor
1. Trust: Richard welcomes her back to work. Initially he seems positive and enthusiastic to have her back and to share the workload.
2. Distrust: Richard micromanages her, finds fault with her work and is concerned about her anxiety level. He expresses doubts that maybe she came back to work too soon.
3. Trust: Dr. Schneider encourages Richard to be hard on Carla so Dr. Schneider can play good cop with Richard and have Richard play bad cop. Every time Richard is hard on her or judgmental, Dr. Schneider takes her part. But it’s really Dr. Schneider who is the devious one.
4. Trust: Richard expresses concern that Carla could be in danger. He expresses this to Dr. Schneider who adamantly disagrees with him.
5. Distrust: Richard fires Carla. She sees him as her adversary over this.
6. Trust: Richard is actually trying to protect her because he believes her patient is dangerous to her.
Carla/Simon, her husband
1. Trust: Simon expresses sincere, realistic concerns about how her family is raising her nephew and dangers that the nephew and the rest of the family are exposing themselves to with the gift of a Glock to a kid.
2. Distrust: Simon demonstrates anger and irresponsible behavior with her when he breaks a lamp when he’s mad at her.
3. Trust: Simon always takes her calls, regardless of the time of day or night.
4. Distrust: Simon moves out and declares that he can’t take it anymore regarding his toxic relationship with Carla.
5. Distrust: Simon tells her she’s got a lot of problems, and she needs therapy and to go get help.
6. Distrust: Simon’s petty and takes some of her stuff out of their house.
7. Distrust: Simon files for divorce.
8. Distrust: Carla accidentally sees Simon at a restaurant with another woman (his attorney).
9. Trust: Simon calls her and says he’s worried about her and thinks she should get off the case she’s working on because he thinks she’s in danger.
10. Trust: Simon ends up helping to save Carla during the finale.
5. Give us the new version of your Thriller Map.
1A. Opening Image (1): (A)
A Sasquatch-looking beast is viciously attacking a camper and beating him to death. Then he tears off the camper’s jacket and shirt and starts taking bites out of the body.
Mystery 1: What is this creature?
Mystery 2: Who is the camper?
Mystery 3: Are Sasquatch for real?
Mystery 4: Where is the killing of this camper taking place?
Trust: Carla is welcomed back to work after a long leave of absence. Carla is grateful to have a mentor, Dr. Schneider, who believes in her and encourages her to come back to work after her leave of absence.
Trust: Richard, her supervisor, welcomes her back to work. Initially he seems positive and enthusiastic to have her back and to share the workload.
2. Theme (5): Is blood thicker than water?
Carla attends her sister’s son’s birthday party. The sister’s husband gives the kid, 11, a Glock. He points it at Carla who freaks.
Trust: Simon, her husband, expresses sincere, realistic concerns about how her family is raising her nephew and dangers that the nephew and the rest of the family are exposing themselves to with the gift of a Glock to a kid.
Life Threatening 1: Are Carla’s mother, sister, brother in-law and nephew a physical danger to her? (The boy’s father jokes that this Glock is for Sasquatch killings.)
Life Threatening 2: Could Carla get shot by her own nephew?
Life Threatening 3: What kind of family gives an 11 year old kid a gun for his birthday, and it’s not a hunting rifle?
Mystery 5: Is Carla’s family a safe family to associate with?
Mystery 6: What’s wrong with this family?
Twist: A trust is violated when Carla’s nephew is allowed to point a Glock at her in front of his parents and grandmother, even though it’s unloaded.
3. Set-up (1-10):
Scene: Carla is chastising her sister, Jenny, about the Glock. Jenny tells her to mind her own business. Tense conversation on the phone with Carla’s separated husband who tells her this is just one more example of why he doesn’t want anything to do with her family. She hangs up on him.
Mystery 7: Why is Carla codependent with an obviously dangerous family of origin?
Mystery 8: What power does Carla’s family have over her?
Life Threatening 4: If Carla’s husband abandons her, who is she going to turn to for protection?
Carla is sleeping alone and has a violent nightmare. She wakes up terrified and calls her husband who is impatient with her.
Trust: Simon always takes her calls, regardless of the time of day or night.
Twist: A trust is violated when Carla’s husband gets impatient with her regarding her terror about her nightmare and isn’t supportive of her.
Distrust: Simon demonstrates anger and irresponsible behavior with her when he breaks a lamp when he’s mad at her
Mystery 7: What is this nightmare about?
Mystery 8: Does this nightmare harbor something that’s precognitive that could happen to Carla?
Twist: A new problem occurs when Carla starts having nightmares.
Scene where Carla is providing a hypnotherapy session to a patient who’s having nightmares.
Trust: Dr. Schneider encourages Richard to be hard on Carla so Dr. Schneider can play good cop with Richard and have Richard play bad cop. Every time Richard is hard on her or judgmental, Dr. Schneider takes her part. But it’s really Dr. Schneider who is the devious one.
Mystery 9: Do the patient’s nightmares have anything to do with her nightmares?
Mystery 10: What’s going on in her life that she’s having nightmares?
Life Threatening 5: Are any of her nightmares or the patient’s nightmares a threat to Carla or her patient?
Twist: Not only is Carla having nightmares, but so is her patient.
Distrust: Richard micromanages her, finds fault with her work and is concerned about her anxiety level. He expresses doubts that maybe she came back to work too soon.
Trust: Dr. Schneider takes her part after Richard confronts her at the big staff meeting.
TV NEWS ANNOUNCEMENTS. This is the fourth killing of people in remote areas of AZ involving a Big Foot type creature.
Mystery 9: Are these creatures for real?
Life Threatening 6: Who will get killed next?
Life Threatening 7: What are the authorities doing about it?
Mystery 10: Is Carla going to get pulled into these killings?
Twist: It just got more dangerous.
4. Catalyst (12):
Carla’s supervisor in the hypnotherapy department assigns a troubled patient to her from the psych ward of the hospital because they can’t afford to keep Carla on light duty given staff shortages.
Twist: A new problem occurs when Carla is assigned a troubled patient who also has nightmares. This ups the stress and danger for Carla.
Carla has returned from a leave of absence as a result of the trauma she’s been through. She unfortunately witnessed a former patient kill himself in front of her.
Twist: It turns out both Carla and the patient are having the same nightmares.
She’s opposed to working with this guy because she’s just come back from a LOA due to her own trauma regarding PTSD.
Trust: Richard expresses concern that Carla could be in danger. He expresses this to Dr. Schneider who adamantly disagrees with him.
But Dr. Schneider talks her into doing it because she’s the most skilled at hypnotherapy. This sick patient keeps complaining of these nightmares.
Distrust: Dr. Schneider encourages Carla to work with the sick patient even though he knows she’s fragile, and over her protests.
Trust: Dr. Schneider gives her a pay raise over the objections of her boss.
Mystery 11: What’s the danger to Carla from working with this sick patient?
Twist: This patient has a history of violence which makes things more dangerous for Carla.
Mystery 12: Will Carla’s own mental health be threatened by working with a sick patient who’s been traumatized?
Twist: Things get even more dangerous for Carla when the patient is released from the hospital.
Mystery 13: What will Carla learn from working with this patient?
Life Threatening 8: What kind of danger could Carla be facing from working with this new patient?
Life Threatening 9: Is Carla prepared to protect herself in the event that things go south with this patient?
5. Debate (12-25):
A hiker is found along the side of a dirt road. This is in a remote area of northern Arizona or NM. He’s delirious, probably from heat exhaustion and lack of water. He claims to have witnessed a murder but has been wandering for hours. He escapes, but he witnesses the camper getting killed.
Twist: A new problem occurs when a hiker is found along the side of a dirt road and claims that he witnessed a Sasquatch type creature murder a camper.
Carla addresses whether to take this assignment because she’s already working with one highly troubled patient and still feels vulnerable from the trauma regarding the suicide of a previous patient.
Distrust: Simon moves out and declares that he can’t take it anymore regarding his toxic relationship with Carla.
Also, she’s having marital problems and her husband has just moved out. She’s feeling vulnerable and traumatized.
Twist: A new problem occurs when Carla’s husband moves out after a fight.
She then discusses whether to take on a second highly disturbed patient with her boss who tells her that they need her to step up and take this assignment because she’s the only hypnotherapist on staff at this point. She grudgingly agrees to step up to the plate.
Mystery 14: What could possibly go wrong?
Mystery 15: Who is this guy and is he trustworthy?
Villain’s Plan 1: Will the Sasquatch killer continue to kill?
Villain’s Plan 2: If so, could she be a target?
Life Threatening 10: How is Carla going to be able to cope with this life threatening situation given her emotional vulnerability?
6. Break into Two (25): Revised.
Twist: A new problem occurs when a traumatized child is found who claims her mother disappeared in a remote area of Arizona. The little girl claims to have heard her mother scream, then the little girl ran away.
Carla is called into her boss’s office and informed about the missing mother and traumatized child. He gives her an ultimatum, either take these assignments or he’s going to replace her. She agrees to take yet another assignment.
Trust: To assuage her protests, Dr. Schneider takes her out for a meal and introduces her to the dangerous Sasquatch killer’s family.
Distrust: But what he’s really doing is exposing her to the dangerous family of the Sasquatch killer so they can all find out what she knows and they learn that she’s getting close to finding out who the Sasquatch killer is.
Mystery 15: Are these patients’ situations connected? If so, how?
Life Threatening 11: Will working on all of these assignments increase Carla’s danger?
Villain’s Plan 3: Was the mother murdered, and if so, was it by the same killer?
Mystery 16: Will Carla get to the bottom of these mysteries before somebody else gets killed?
Life Threatening 11: Will anybody else be killed?
7. B Story (30):
Dream Group attendance – the dream group is Carla’s B story. She’s known these people for years. They are her real family. She goes to them for love, support, acceptance, belonging and peace.
Twist: New options emerge when Carla meets with her dream group. They take an interest in her nightmares and are supportive when they work to help her interpret them.
Mystery 17: Will the members of the dream group help Carla to successfully solve these crimes and dangers?
Life Threatening 12: Will Carla continue to be safe in this dream group.
Life Threatening 13: Could there be a villain’s co-conspirator connected to the group in some way that would endanger Carla?
8. Fun and Games (30-55):
The remote viewing process in practice.
Tracking the dead body.
Finding clues and evidence through dream interpretation and remote viewing.
The dream group interpreting the clues to find the body.
The kid and Carla become a risk because Carla is starting to access information on the killing.
The kid witnessed the killing.
The kid knows something that the Villains are aware she knows and they want to silence her.
The kid and Carla are in danger.
They’re on the run.
Distrust: Simon tells her she’s got a lot of problems, and she needs therapy and to go get help.
Distrust: Simon’s petty and takes some of her stuff out of their house.
Mystery 18: Will Carla find out who the Villains are before they can hurt her and the girl?
Life Threatening 14: How can Carla and the girl stay safe?
Life Threatening 15: Will Carla and the dream group identify the Villain or villains before anybody else gets killed?
Villains’ Plan 4: What will the bad guys do to get to Carla and the girl?
Life Threatening 16: Who can Carla trust to protect her and the girl?
Twist: New options emerge when a clue is unearthed through the dream group.
Twist: A secret location is uncovered through the efforts of the remote viewing group.
Twist: A secret identity is revealed when the hiker’s identify is discovered through hypnotherapy with him.
9. Midpoint (55):
Carla starts conducting hypnotherapy on the little girl to help her recall memories of the trauma in the woods.
Twist: A trust is violated when the missing woman’s husband demands that Carla be taken off their daughter’s case. He feels that Carla is unstable, unreliable and ineffective and is dangerous as a consequence. He threatens a lawsuit if Carla isn’t removed from this case.
Twist: The child refuses to go with Daddy because she said he beats Mommy. He backs off pushing Carla to get off the case.
Mystery 19: Who’s going to solve this case if Carla is removed from working with the hiker and girl?
Life Threatening 17: What’s going to happen to Carla if she’s removed from the case?
10. Bad Guys Close In (55-75):
Twist: A lie is uncovered when Carla discovers that fake FBI agents acquired information from her that they use against her.
Twist: It just got more dangerous when other bodies are discovered or other people disappear and Carla finds herself in more danger.
Twist: A trust is violated when an acquaintance of Carla’s is hired by the Villain to befriend Carla to stay informed of her progress.
Twist: It just got more dangerous when someone infiltrates the remote viewing group to create chaos, divide the members and find out what they’ve learned.
The plant infiltrates the group and quietly sabotages the team. The plant encourages fear and distrust in the remote viewing group and they temporarily lose their solidarity and unity and become ineffective. Maybe they have a fight. The group’s cohesiveness is attacked.
Mystery 20: Who’s behind the divisiveness of the remote viewing group?
Mystery 21: Why did the group scapegoat Carla?
Life Threatening 18: Who can Carla trust anymore?
Villains’ Plan 5: Why is the Villain trying to get Carla kicked off this case?
Villains’ Plan 6: How did the Villain or villains find out about the remote viewing group?
11. All is Lost (75):
Twist: A new problem occurs when the little girl runs away and Carla gets blamed for it.
Carla feels personally responsible for finding the little girl and keeping her safe.
Twist: It just got more dangerous when Carla’s house is ransacked.
Distrust: Simon files for divorce.
Twist: New information comes to light when Carla learns that the child didn’t run away. Instead, she was kidnapped. Now they really need remote viewing to solve this crisis.
Twist: We see an unexpected side of someone when Carla learns that the girl’s father actually kidnapped the child.
Mystery 20: How is Carla going to use the remote viewing group to find not only the hiker, but also the child?
Villain’s Plan 5: To kidnap the child from her father.
Life Threatening 18: How is Carla going to save the child from being kidnapped from her father?
12. Dark Night of the Soul (75-85):
Twist: Carla has lost her resources when she gets fired from her hypnotherapy job.
Because of the drama and threats to the town’s clinic, she’s fired and walked to the door with her shoebox.
Distrust: Richard fires Carla. She sees him as her adversary over this.
Trust: Richard is actually trying to protect her because he believes her patient is dangerous to her.
Distrust: Carla accidentally sees Simon at a restaurant with another woman (his attorney).
Carla, really discouraged, meets with the dream group to get help. They encourage her to try something else.
Carla convinces the father of the little girl that she has his best interests and that of his family at heart and persuades him to let her work one more time with the girl privately.
Twist: Someone changes sides when the father finally realizes that he needs to ally himself with Carla to protect his daughter.
Twist: We see an unexpected side of someone when Carla and the father team up to push forward.
Mystery 21: How are Carla and the father going to be able to solve this mystery together?
Life Threatening 19: How can Carla and the father stay safe long enough to see the Villain or villains behind bars?
Villain’s Plan 6: To isolate Carla, get her to a remote location and kill her.
13. Break into Three (85):
Twist: New options emerge when Carla uses a technique on the little girl that results in an idea to solve the mystery. The world of synthesis is at hand.
Mystery 22: Will the technique work?
Life Threatening 20: How can Carla, the little girl and her father stay safe?
Trust: Simon calls her and says he’s worried about her and thinks she should get off the case she’s working on because he thinks she’s in danger.
14. Finale (85-110):
It’s the battle.
Twist: New options emerge when Carla is finally able to piece together some clues that give her enough information to know how to trap this kid.
Distrust: Dr. Schneider promises her that she’ll be safe, but in the end, he sets a trap for Carla which results in her having to fight for her life against the Sasquatch killer.
Carla teams up with the girl’s father find the location identified by the remote viewing group.
Trust: Simon ends up helping to save Carla during the finale.
Twist: It just got more dangerous when Carla and the girl’s father arrive at a remote location where they find the remains of the camper’s body.
Twist: New options emerge when they also find the child’s mother who is being imprisoned in a makeshift cage.
Twist: It just got even more dangerous when they face the Sasquatch killer directly.
Twist: Secret identify uncovered when a battle ensues. Carla pulls out the Glock that she borrowed from her nephew, and kills a man dressed as a Sasquatch.
Mystery 23: How is Carla going to out-battle the Villain or villains and survive?
Mystery 24: Will the father be willing and able to help Carla?
Mystery 25: If so, how?
Mystery 26: Who else will step forward and team up with Carla to defeat the Villain or villains?
Mystery 27: Why did the killer dress up as a Sasquatch and kill people who were in the wilderness?
Mystery 28: Did the killer’s family know all along that this was happening?
Mystery 29: If so, why didn’t they intervene and stop the kid from killing?
Mystery 30: Do they find the missing mother?
15. Final Image (110):
Carla and Simon have reunited. They turn on a scifi horror movie that’s about a Sasquatch terrorizing a community. They laugh at the coincidence and immediately change the station because enough is enough.
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