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Fic Talk => Writer's Circle => Brainstorms => Topic started by: MaggieW on December 08, 2017, 11:32:32 AM

Title: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 08, 2017, 11:32:32 AM
So, with Christmas coming up, you'd think I'd be coming up with ideas for Backstreet Christmas stories.

But no. For the past several days, I've been thinking of...

Backstreet Boys as werewolf hunters.  ??? :o ??? :o

Not as an AU story. They're still the Backstreet Boys, but Brian and Kevin are werewolf hunters. Brian is fairly new to the business (about four years or so), but Kevin has been a Hunter practically since BSB began.

There are two levels of werewolf hunters: Hunterlings, and full-fledged Hunters. They're trained the same, with the same weapons (guns with silver bullets, and silver blades of varying sizes; the ones made with silver and moondust trap the werewolf in either its wolf or human form for 24 hours, depending on when they were hit by the weapon) but to be a full-fledged Hunter, they must be bitten or scratched by a werewolf at midday of the full moon or new moon, and only on the ankle or the arm. This bite or scratch enhances the Hunter's own physical and mental abilities, while also giving them wolf-like hearing and smell. The Hunters also need to learn to howl like a werewolf in order to communicate across distances with the werewolves. Our favorite Kentucky cousins have mastered the skill.

Now, it's not a Hunter's job to just hunt and kill any werewolf they come across. It's more like a police force. Hunters will also work together with some werewolves to catch the ones that refuse to control their bloodlust, or continue to terrorize the human population.

But this time, the werewolf clans need help. A strange sickness has struck their kind, driving many werewolves mad, attacking and killing everything in sight, including other werewolves. They don't know where this disease comes from, or how it spreads. But it must be stopped before it spreads any farther among the clans, and especially before it infects humans.

Kevin became a Hunter simply because he was invited to, and it gave him a chance to protect his Backstreet Brothers in an even greater way. Brian joined around the time they finished wrapping filming for the documentary. A bloodthirsty werewolf had made its way onto his property in Georgia and had tried to attack his family. If he hadn't had the silver dagger his father had given him the night before he and Leighanne had married, they would probably all be dead. He hadn't understood why his father had given him the dagger, or why he had said to keep it nearby at all times, but a feeling in his gut told Brian to do exactly what he said. And it's only this year, after he's become a full Hunter, that Brian learns that his father was a Hunter himself, and that part of the reason they were never close while Brian grew up was because his father was hunting werewolves. His father had hoped Brian wouldn't actually have to become a Hunter, but by giving Brian that dagger, he had prepared for the possibility.

The other BSB don't know about all this, but it's time to tell them. Because now that there are two Hunters in BSB, as well as Hunters in their security detail, the Boys are in greater danger.

How crazy is this, right?
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: RokofAges75 on December 08, 2017, 10:26:52 PM
Cool idea!  I like that you would keep it BSB, not AU.  I feel like that helps to keep fantasy plots like this one grounded in reality.  I haven't seen many (any?) BSB werewolf fanfics, and if I have, they probably had the Boys becoming werewolves, not hunting them.  Of course, this idea has the potential for one of them to get bitten, which would be fun.  I love the idea of the mysterious disease spreading among werewolves, too.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 09, 2017, 07:00:27 AM
Cool idea!  I like that you would keep it BSB, not AU.  I feel like that helps to keep fantasy plots like this one grounded in reality.  I haven't seen many (any?) BSB werewolf fanfics, and if I have, they probably had the Boys becoming werewolves, not hunting them.  Of course, this idea has the potential for one of them to get bitten, which would be fun.  I love the idea of the mysterious disease spreading among werewolves, too.

Thanks Julie. And you're right, there is the potential for one of them to get bitten. I'm still debating on whether that happens or not. Or even Leighanne (Brian's Leighanne, not Howie's) getting scratched to become a Hunter, whether accidentally or not.

I'm thinking that at the end, they and their families need to gather together in one place for safety, except for Brian and Kevin who have to go help stop werewolves. Depending on when I want to have this story take place, it could be in Vegas, or maybe they all gather at Brian's mansion, or somewhere else altogether.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: RokofAges75 on December 09, 2017, 11:44:59 AM
Vegas would make sense!
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 09, 2017, 01:38:55 PM
 Okay! Looks like I need to research the layout of Vegas.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 09, 2017, 09:22:30 PM
Anybody happen to know where BSB and families were staying during the residency? I've heard that Nick actually moved his whole family to Vegas, at least for the residency. I'd like to have this as realistic as I can.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: RokofAges75 on December 10, 2017, 10:53:06 AM
Rose lives there, so she knows Vegas well and may have an idea.  I'm not sure if she's been in this thread yet.  I know Nick and Lauren do have a house there and seem to be living there full time.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: Rose on December 11, 2017, 04:31:34 PM
Anybody happen to know where BSB and families were staying during the residency? I've heard that Nick actually moved his whole family to Vegas, at least for the residency. I'd like to have this as realistic as I can.

Everyone but Nick rents houses out here. (AJ's mom Denise and her husband did move to Vegas, but not AJ) Nick actually bought a house and moved Lauren and Odin here. They live (this is half guessing, based on his videos cause the area looks very familiar to me) out by Summerlin which is say...20 mins away from the Strip. They live here full time, Nick got a Vegas driver's license this past year LOL. He said in a recent interview that he loves that there's no state tax here.

Also, I LOVE this werewolf hunting idea :).
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 12, 2017, 04:09:38 PM
Everyone but Nick rents houses out here. (AJ's mom Denise and her husband did move to Vegas, but not AJ) Nick actually bought a house and moved Lauren and Odin here. They live (this is half guessing, based on his videos cause the area looks very familiar to me) out by Summerlin which is say...20 mins away from the Strip. They live here full time, Nick got a Vegas driver's license this past year LOL. He said in a recent interview that he loves that there's no state tax here.

Also, I LOVE this werewolf hunting idea :).

Thanks Rose!

I'm not totally sure where I want to go with it. I know a cure needs to be found somehow for the werewolves. I need a good place for the families to gather for protection on what will probably be the final night of the problem, because safety in numbers. I want to show some training the Hunters might actually go through - maybe have one of the other Boys join up, or just take the training to be prepared. I know I'll need to nail down a timeline; I don't know how much time I want this novel to cover. I want some big tension between some of the werewolves and the Hunters/Brian & Kevin. I read recently about a myth of people becoming werewolves simply by wearing belts or skins made from wolves, so maybe I could throw that in there as a Hunter necessity, but the one that wears it is so traumatized by the experience that he refuses to do it again.

Wow. I actually want to do this. What else could I do with this?
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 28, 2017, 08:05:55 PM
The more I think about this story, the more I think it's probably going to get intense. Yet, the more I watch YouTube videos of the Boys, they are total hams. Especially Brian. They take any opportunity they can to be funny. My trouble is, I can't write comedy. I just don't know how; it's not in me. Yet, I'm sure this story would need the occasional comic relief.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: RokofAges75 on December 28, 2017, 08:42:14 PM
Comic relief is always welcome in an intense story like this one, but I don't think that requires whole comedic scenes, just funny lines here and there.  I don't consider myself a comedy writer either, but I usually manage to work in some comic relief through dialogue just by thinking about what the guys would say... or what I would say/think.  I don't usually plan it out in advance; it just comes to me in the moment. Brian and AJ are especially good for lightening the mood by making jokes.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 28, 2017, 09:42:14 PM
Comic relief is always welcome in an intense story like this one, but I don't think that requires whole comedic scenes, just funny lines here and there.  I don't consider myself a comedy writer either, but I usually manage to work in some comic relief through dialogue just by thinking about what the guys would say... or what I would say/think.  I don't usually plan it out in advance; it just comes to me in the moment. Brian and AJ are especially good for lightening the mood by making jokes.

I'll keep that in mind. Thanks.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 29, 2017, 08:23:05 PM
What days of the week did they perform? I read somewhere that it was three days a week, so I want to be sure that I have them helping the Hunters at the right times, and even show skme training... that I have to create.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: Rose on December 30, 2017, 12:49:43 AM
Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays :)
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on December 30, 2017, 08:51:11 AM
Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays :)

Thanks again!
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: RokofAges75 on January 01, 2018, 10:03:58 PM
Hey Maggie, I came across an article that might be helpful to you.  It's Nick's insider guide to LA and Vegas: http://hauteliving.com/2017/06/backstreet-boys-nick-carter-shares-his-insider-guide-to-la-and-las-vegas/638643/  It tells what part of Vegas he lives in (Southern Highlands) and his favorite places to go.  Might give you some ideas for settings for your story.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 02, 2018, 03:56:58 PM
Hey Maggie, I came across an article that might be helpful to you.  It's Nick's insider guide to LA and Vegas: http://hauteliving.com/2017/06/backstreet-boys-nick-carter-shares-his-insider-guide-to-la-and-las-vegas/638643/  It tells what part of Vegas he lives in (Southern Highlands) and his favorite places to go.  Might give you some ideas for settings for your story.

Oh that's cool! Thanks! I bet this will be useful.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 02, 2018, 10:36:20 PM
Was there a BSB cruise last year, or were they just too busy with Vegas and everything else they were doing? If there was, i just need dates. I won't set anything there, but i might mention it in passing as part of the timeline.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: Rose on January 03, 2018, 04:33:27 AM
Southern Highlands? Figures. Opposite end of the city from me. No wonder I never get lucky and accidentally spot him LOL. (It's happened before with Jeff Timmons from 98 Degrees, so you can't blame me for hoping) I live out towards the mountains and he's closer to Silverton. Explains why parts of it look familiar though from his videos, I helped my dad do tile work in that neighborhood as a kid. That place is GUARDED lol.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: Rose on January 03, 2018, 04:33:44 AM
Was there a BSB cruise last year, or were they just too busy with Vegas and everything else they were doing? If there was, i just need dates. I won't set anything there, but i might mention it in passing as part of the timeline.

The last cruise was in 2016.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 03, 2018, 08:31:20 AM
The last cruise was in 2016.

Yeah, that's the latest I saw on YouTube. I just wanted to be sure. Our Boys are busy, aren't they? ;)
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 04, 2018, 10:46:24 PM
I've started writing the scene (which won't actually be in the novel, but backstory) leading up to where Brian actually decides to become a full-fledged Hunter all the way through to the day after. And now that I'm actually there, I realize that I need to decide what the "symptoms" are that Brian will feel after he's bitten. What should it feel like to be bitten by a werewolf but not actually become one? Part of the "change" will be sleeping for almost a full day.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 07, 2018, 10:25:43 PM
Just for the fun of it, thought I'd post what I have so far of that scene:

Summer 2016

It took six silver bullets to finally bring the werewolf down. Even as it lay in its death throes, Brian kept his gun trained on the beast, knowing the Hunters around him were doing the same. He’d learned by painful experience not to assume about a werewolf’s death. He still bore the scars on his back and side from that mistake three years ago, and he’d had no ready answer when Howie had asked about them the next day.

When the werewolf was finally still, Marcus and two other Hunters approached the body while Brian kept his position and studied the night around them. It was early summer in northern Georgia, and the scent of geraniums and honeysuckle warmed by the sun still tickled the air. How sad that the beauty of his adopted home state should be shattered by the ugliness of werewolf attacks. Normally the night would be filled with the sounds of crickets singing and dogs howling, but tonight it was frightfully silent. Pet owners were keeping their animals inside. Tonight’s had been the third attack that Brian’s group of Hunters and Hunterlings had been assigned to track in the last two weeks alone. Human and animal deaths were on the rise, thanks to these beasts.

They had been lucky tonight, though. Marcus had picked up the werewolf’s trail much quicker than the last two times and had led his team on a swift chase through Atlanta and the surrounding suburbs before finally cornering the beast just ten miles east of the mansion Brian shared with his wife and son. That realization had spurred Brian to put aside his reluctance to kill-—the creature was part human, after all--and add his own silver bullets to the beast’s hide.

Marcus rose from where he’d crouched beside the body that was twice as large as a normal wolf. “All clear, everybody. The beast is dead. Count off your shots.”

Brian lowered his gun and took stock as he waited for his turn. Not being a full-fledged Hunter, just a Hunterling, his report would come last. As he listened, the knot of worry in his stomach began to ease when his companions reported anywhere from one to six shots fired at the rampaging animal. He’d fired off four rounds himself, better than he’d done in the past. His skill and aim were improving.

When all the reports were in, Marcus called for a van to take the werewolf’s body away. As Brian holstered his gun, he wondered, as he had the last time he’d helped take down a werewolf, where the beast would be taken. But fear of the answer kept him silent. Marcus approached him as the group waited.

“Thanks for your help again tonight, Brian,” he said. “I’m sorry we had to pull you away from your family again so soon. I understand we ruined some plans you’d had.”

Brian nodded. “Movie and game night with friends. I don’t know what excuse Leighanne has for them tonight, but she said she’d come up with something unless I get permission to tell them about my side job.”

“Which you can only do if you ever decide to become a full-fledged Hunter,” Marcus reminded him. “Why don’t you? You have the talent, Brian. I see it every time we go out. Imagine how that would be amplified with the abilities you’d get from a werewolf. You’d be able to track the dangerous ones, lead teams—you could protect your family even better than you already do.”

This wasn’t the first time Marcus had suggested it, but Brian had always refused. He knew all that was required was to be bitten by one of the werewolves they were at peace with at midday of the full or new moon, but something always held him back. Maybe it really was fear that he’d become a werewolf instead of just taking on some of their strength, hearing and sense of smell, despite seeing proof otherwise all around him.

But tonight was different. They’d taken this werewolf down far too close to home. He glanced over his shoulder at the beast’s carcass. “Would we have been able to take this one down sooner if I’d had those abilities?”

“We’ll never know that for sure,” Marcus answered honestly, following Brian’s gaze. “But you’ll be that much more of a help next time.”

When Brian didn’t reply, he continued, “Talk it over with your wife. The full moon is in just a couple of days. You could do it then. But keep in mind that you’ll need at least three days to fully recover. You’ll spend most of it sleeping.”
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: RokofAges75 on January 08, 2018, 06:56:38 PM
Very well-written and descriptive!  The mythology behind the Hunter/Hunterling stuff is interesting.  Maybe after sleeping for almost a full day, Brian will find it difficult to sleep at night, preferring to sleep during the day instead, since wolves are nocturnal.  Maybe his taste in food will change; he'll have a stronger preference for rare meat (borrowing that from Bill Weasley).
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 08, 2018, 07:14:08 PM
Very well-written and descriptive!  The mythology behind the Hunter/Hunterling stuff is interesting.  Maybe after sleeping for almost a full day, Brian will find it difficult to sleep at night, preferring to sleep during the day instead, since wolves are nocturnal.  Maybe his taste in food will change; he'll have a stronger preference for rare meat (borrowing that from Bill Weasley).

Oh, those are good ideas! Thanks.

ETA: hmm... and maybe the need for a completely soundproofed room for the times when the super hearing gets to be too much and they just need silence.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 10, 2018, 03:16:37 PM
Southern Highlands? Figures. Opposite end of the city from me. No wonder I never get lucky and accidentally spot him LOL. (It's happened before with Jeff Timmons from 98 Degrees, so you can't blame me for hoping) I live out towards the mountains and he's closer to Silverton. Explains why parts of it look familiar though from his videos, I helped my dad do tile work in that neighborhood as a kid. That place is GUARDED lol.

Oh that's cool! (Jeff Timmons and the tile work)
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 18, 2018, 05:40:14 PM
Now I gotta think of a title for this thing. What are some words or phrases you think of when you see werewolves, werewolf hunters, and Backstreet Boys?
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: RokofAges75 on January 19, 2018, 09:58:10 PM
I think of Brian in the Everybody video LOL.  "I had hair all over my body..."

Words and phrases I associate with werewolves:  full moon, silver bullet, bite, fur, transformation, howl...  This is probably not helpful; I'm very stereotypical LOL.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 20, 2018, 12:26:13 AM
I think of Brian in the Everybody video LOL.  "I had hair all over my body..."

Words and phrases I associate with werewolves:  full moon, silver bullet, bite, fur, transformation, howl...  This is probably not helpful; I'm very stereotypical LOL.

Hey, it's a start. Thanks.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 29, 2018, 10:11:40 AM
Interesting. I just printed out a 2017 year-at-a-glance calendar so I could circle the dates of their Vegas residency and see what time I had to work with. I didn't realize just how spread out the dates were. Wow. Some of this story may have to be when they're outside Vegas. I know at some point, August I believe, they were filming CMT Crossroads with FGL and that they performed at the ACM Awards in April with them too. Wow - what else were they doing this year? Besides working on their next album, I mean?  :D :D
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 29, 2018, 11:46:45 AM
Never mind. Found the concert history on the website. Busy boys! ;D
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on January 29, 2018, 09:15:42 PM
Ooh, wait!

Howie gets accidentally infected by a sick werewolf when he gets scratched on a Hunter mission and starts to show a rash, itchiness, and a short temper - the beginnings of the werewolf sickness. Brian takes him to a nearby Hunter HQ for observation and hopefully a cure. But then a hunter accidentally hits Brian with a tranquilizer dart on another mission and when he wakes up, he starts exhibiting some of the same symptoms but intensified because of his Hunter abilities, and he loses control of his use of the Alpha ability. When a cure is finally found for the two of them, Brian realizes the possibility that the sickness was artificially created by humans and administered through the tranquilizers. So why would some humans want to do this to the werewolves?

Zow!

Thoughts?
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on February 13, 2018, 07:08:07 PM
Wow, I'm on a roll on these first few scenes! I guess these are the ones I really wanted to write. I realized too that writing scene notes down on Post-It notes and sticking those on a plot board is a HUGE help for writing. Anybody else do something like that when planning your stories, BSB or not?
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on February 14, 2018, 10:08:42 PM
Oh, I had to share this section I wrote just now. It's part of a scene where Brian is accidentally hit with a tranquilizer dart meant for the werewolf he and his team are chasing through Vegas. What do you think of it? How can I make it better?

Brian raced around the corner just ahead of the rest of his team, already looking ahead for the werewolf. A sharp pain suddenly dug into the back of his shoulder. He stopped with a cry and reached back to figure out what it was. To his shock, when he drew his hand back he held a tranquilizer dart. He looked behind him and found the newest Hunterling already at his side trying to apologize. Who had given her the tranquilizer gun in the first place? Not him.

Stupid kid, he thought as he tossed the dart to the ground. “Never mind,” he said. “Just be more carefu… carf… fuh…”

Brian’s tongue felt swollen in his mouth. He shook his head, blinking against the suddenly blurred vision and the strange disconnect between his head and the rest of his body. He did have a body, right? From somewhere came the dim realization that the dosage in the dart he’d been hit with had been meant for an animal much larger than a human. His heartbeat began to slow, thudded against his ribcage. How did that work? A clatter of metal against concrete. He’d dropped his gun. Or his knife? Something. Brian tried to move forward, stumbled, hit the ground as his knees gave out.

“Whoa,” he slurred, “tha’ stuff wor's f-”

Oblivion descended even faster and led him through strange and psychedelic dreams.
Title: Re: BSB Werewolf Hunters
Post by: MaggieW on February 18, 2018, 09:20:04 PM
And why in the world am I suddenly thinking of writing a mermaid BSB story??? Wha????