Harnessing the Healing Power of Therapeutic Fanfiction

[Music]

once upon a time

there was a hero who didn’t know that

they were a hero

they didn’t realize that they had been

called to adventure

and that they held in their hands an

invitation to question

and if they choose shift their life’s

narrative

that hero is you and that time is now

the call to adventure is always

unsettling which is why heroes

initially refuse the call that is until

they receive help from a guide

with this support they are able to take

that step from the ordinary world

into the extraordinary today allow me

to be the avatar or placeholder for your

preferred guide

i invite you to pause for a moment and

imagine who you would most like to guide

you on this

journey do you have someone in mind

invite them to join you

if you’re having difficulty thinking of

a guide consider some

archetypal sages galadriel

morpheus or yoda and if you’re having

difficulty allowing yourself to be

playful

you’ve just been given your journey’s

first gift

the gift of information are you ready

let’s cross the threshold to learn new

skills and overcome challenges along the

way

what you’re experiencing right now is

therapeutic fan fiction

in action we are combining the ancient

power of story

inherent in the monomyth also known as

the one myth or hero’s journey

with pop culture stories which i prefer

to call

modern mythologies to empower you to

rewrite the story of your life

drawing on the power of narrative

therapy social constructionism and play

therapy

and with the wisdom of carl jung and

joseph campbell

therapeutic fan fiction offers a source

of healing

and a language with which to understand

the worlds both around us

and within us bringing our modern

mythological heroes out into the real

world to help us fulfill our destiny

unlocks the power of play that all

humans need

regardless of their chronological age

this playful engagement with story is

very similar to the way in which

modern fan fiction writers rewrite

stories that aren’t serving them

we can learn a lot from fan fiction

writers

these are folks who see a story and

think i can make this better

or more relevant or more inclusive

fan fiction writers may make slight

adjustments to a familiar story

or change the story drastically in order

to create a new narrative that feels

more authentic to

them some fan fiction is produced by

huge corporations with multi-million

dollar budgets

and some is created by teens in their

bedrooms late at night

and while one of those tends to get a

claim and the other derision

they are using the exact same skills

skills that we can all harness to

improve the story of our lives

the first and most transformative skill

that we can take from fan fiction

writers

is questioning social constructs

most people look at the world around

them and assume that it is

immovable unchangeable fixed

but the reality is that it was

individual people

person to person to person who lived and

worked together

who began to create the story of their

reality

these started as agreements for conduct

that served them as a social group

at the time all of our beliefs and norms

are socially constructed

created by human beings over time and

accepted to the point that they are no

longer questioned

and are instead believed to be

irrefutable fact

but these aren’t facts at all just

stories

and stories can change in fact

stories need to change and it’s best if

we

are in control of our own narrative

one of the greatest powers that

therapeutic fan fiction gives us

is the power to ask what if

over time unchecked stories can morph

from agreed upon rules to immutable fact

this takes away our ability to choose

when we believe that there is no other

way no alternate story we are stuck

and some stories are more persistent

than others

while favored clothing styles and music

genres are fairly malleable

gender and body norms are more

entrenched

these stories become systems that have a

power greater than the sum of their

component parts

the science fiction television series

westworld is a useful story for

conceptualizing this idea

so useful in fact that when discussing

social constructionism

my collaborative partner and i call it

the westworld construct

westworld the series centers on a

western style

amusement park created by human beings

for other human beings

which sounds ordinary enough but the

park is an

artificial world inhabited by humanistic

robots called hosts

the park is completely fabricated from

the hosts themselves to the repetitive

stories or loops that the hosts inhabit

initially the idea of two men the park

becomes a complex system with

writers and directors and investors a

story much

bigger than its creators can control

the westworld park is monitored and

changed as needed

when the powers that be deem it

necessary or when the guests of the park

demand it

and the loops are based on one very

important construct

that all of the humans agreed to

the hosts lack a consciousness or sense

of self

this construct is not only incorrect but

dangerously so

in the westworld series both of the

original creators have to reckon with

the world they had made

and so do we the creatures of earth

it can be very difficult to look at the

world around us and start to ask

how is this serving me and others

how is this harming me and others but

it’s so

important we don’t know what we don’t

know

but once we do it is vital that we

re-evaluate our own story

and the greater societal story in which

we inhabit

when we begin to question westworld

constructs such as

how bodies are seen and portrayed in our

culture and how much this hurts

us individually and collectively we may

find ourselves

flooded with emotion when we pause to

notice these emotions

we may find that these intense feelings

match the stages of grief

denial bargaining anger

depression and acceptance

eventually we will also find meaning but

that comes later

losing a story even a story that no

longer serves us

is a loss and with loss

comes the darkness at this point of the

hero’s journey we find ourselves in the

abyss

this is a metaphorical death if you are

experiencing some emotional distress in

this moment

simply notice it without judgment this

is a part of you

trying to share important information

perhaps take a moment to write down a

thought you wish to return to later

the abyss is meant to change us

and change comes with discomfort

whatever is happening in your mind and

body

is here to inform you it’s simply

information

while the abyss is incredibly

uncomfortable it’s important to remember

that it is the halfway point of the

hero’s journey

not the end the suffering is temporary

to help us

transform this is a good reminder

in this moment and in the future when

the story feels at its darkest

the light is just around the corner

so even though it might feel scary right

now i

invite you to take a breath and remember

that you aren’t alone

bring to mind your sage companion

perhaps now is a good time to begin to

add more characters to your fellowship

much like frodo baggins had a fellowship

of eight others to help him carry his

burden of the one ring in the lord of

the rings

we aren’t limited to only one helper and

who you choose depends on the perils

that you face

aragorn son of aerothorn is an excellent

companion for fighting orcs

but might be less suitable to aiding you

in confronting your boss

about your subpar performance review

consider for a moment which characters

from stories have resonated with you

over the years it might help at first to

consider

which stories you turn to when you are

feeling a big feeling

to which worlds do you wish to return

the characters and stories with which

you resonate

the ones that feel like home and family

these are your fandom attachments

my first fandom attachment was to the

david lynch television series twin peaks

i was admittedly too young to be

watching this surrealist crime drama in

1990

and while many of the themes were lost

on me

one was not the character of fbi agent

dale cooper

known as coop to his friends resonated

profoundly with me

to my young mind he was a study and

duality that i didn’t know could exist

he was quirky and compassionate driven

and kind dapper and unpretentious

when he spoke in awe of going to a place

both wonderful and strange

i realized that there was a place for me

in

this world throughout my life i’ve

returned to twin peaks when i needed a

safe place to be strange

and it was wonderful coop was there for

me

and still is offering wisdom about the

importance of daily gifts coop advises

every day once a day give yourself a

present

don’t plan it don’t wait for it just let

it happen

coop is definitely in my fellowship and

to keep him

and twin peaks close to me i keep an

assortment of twin peaks iconography in

my office

every time i turn around i’m reminded of

coop’s wise words

and the serene yet spooky world that

welcomes me back

exactly as i am every single

time these images and toys keep me

grounded and attuned to my fellowship

once you’ve found your own fellowship

consider having some of your own totems

nearby

in this context i’m using the word totem

for its ancient meaning

as an object of power you can find or

create your totems to keep yourself

connected to the extraordinary world

just like galadriel the lady of light in

the lord of the rings offered frodo the

light of arendelle

to be a light to you in dark places when

all

other lights go out you can turn to your

own totem in your time of need

to light the way with our fellowship’s

help

we begin to make our way out of the

abyss and a number of revelations begin

to arise leading to questions

of course i can make changes in my life

but what about the larger systems that i

can’t change

and how can i possibly be different in a

world that is

constantly applying pressure to me to

conform to the rules

and you want me to play i’m a grown-up

it seems that the darkness of the abyss

did indeed shine a light on some

questions brewing in our minds

in the same way that society is

constructed person to person over time

this is how society is changed

it took more than one host to bring down

the westworld park after all

but one had to start the chain to take

down

constructs like diet culture or systemic

racism

individuals must work together as a

cooperative writers room

each choosing to change their individual

narratives

in order to change the greater story

as you begin to question the westworld

constructs that you see around you

it’s important to verbalize to normalize

for

others yes it’s uncomfortable to be the

first

to step outside of the westworld

construct of your family or social group

when they see you fortified by your

fellowship

challenging the powers that be they will

begin to feel empowered to do so as well

it’s a slow process and it takes every

one of us

doing our part it takes time for the

greater systemic story to be changed

and we can make meaning from this

struggle

to paraphrase nietzsche and victor

frankl

a person can survive any how for

a why facing the greater systems can be

frustrating

but it can also be empowering especially

when we see others who are fighting

our fight by our sides

calling upon the sage gandalf i am

reminded all we have to decide

is what to do with the time that is

given to us

and yes one of the things we must decide

to do

is give ourselves permission to be

playful

the idea that only children need play is

an outdated westworld construct

if you allow yourself to play you are

inviting the world to be more playful

with you

and in that moment you are the spark

that begets a

dragon’s fire what game of thrones

daenerys might call

the dracarus of change

and with this knowledge you’re just

about ready to start the journey home

as we make our way back towards the

ordinary world

i give you this talk as a gift

i hope that you will return to the

ordinary world changed

or at least with some new ideas to

consider

the final task is yours alone hero

take this gift out into your community

and share what you have learned

offer this gift freely verbalize to

normalize

play change while this chapter of your

story is ending

the next one is yet to come you

have the power to save the world

i think i hear the call to adventure

will you accept the call

to be continued