So, I've been struck with a rather massive case of writer's block with my current work in progress. Instead of thinking up material relative to that fic, my mind has been spewing out some rather worthless plot bunnies, with a few exceptions.

At the moment, though I have a rather large plot bunny parading through my brain, and demanding to be written.

The problem is, it's too big. Here's the (abbreviated) idea:

It would be a series of Neville centric one-shots based in an AU where Neville was raised by a Professor Sprout and her Husband. (I have figured out how to make this happen. Pretty much.)

Due to Sprout's Squib/Muggleborn husband (haven't decided.) Neville will spend a decent portion of his time in the Muggle world, and the rest at Hogwarts in the greenhouses and visiting Hagrid.

Neville will eventually meet up with some Muggle environmental activists who chain themselves to trees and whatnot. He will befriend them and this will later lead to Hippie!Neville, followed shortly by EcoTerrorist!Neville.

What I need help with:
-I see a few possible ways to turn this into a Harry!centric story, but they all feel contrived and a lot like I would be forcing Harry into a shape he shouldn't be. Should I work on making this Harry centric? Would people even read read a fic where Neville is the main character?

-I want to write this as a series of one shots so that I don't have to devote massive amounts of time to it. Therefore, each installment needs to stand alone, but add to the others. What I want to know is should I try and write it in a linear fashion (I.E first installment is Neville's arrival at the Sprout's) or not (I.E. Start out with Neville doing a more advanced piece of EcoTerrorism and then fill in later how he got that way)?

-Should this idea even be attempted at all, or am I just being an idiot?

If it would be helpful I can expand this idea, as have several pages of bullet points typed up on this. I abbreviated it to make it easier on you guys.

Suggestions/things you'd like to see happen are welcome and helpful.
Thanks!

 

Is this going to be a comedy?

 

I hadn't planned on it, but I suppose I could make it one.

 

Eco-Warrior!Neville will never be taken seriously.

 

But would Ecowarrior!Harry be taken seriously (If written well)?

 

Not really. Comedy would make it worth the read; serious characters aren't suited for gallivanting around in the name of foliage everywhere.

 

Yeah I don't think I could take a Hippie!Neville seriously while wearing a tie dye shirt and hemp seriously, it could be funny though.

 

This made laugh.

Seriously, this is one of your better plot bunnies? I shudder to think of the others.

Still, all we have is some light view on your ideas. Is this post Voldemort?) 'cause who would give a fuck to a bunch of trees with The dark lord casting AKs on their garden?

Why would Harry get involved? Did Neville outgrow his major uselessness and found an ancient relic that is able to make inferi from dead trees? atacking the homes of helpless wizards who can't cast a incendio and watch them burn?

If it follows DH epilogue you could Make that dude Luna married to as a villain, turning poor Neville against all his friends in a plot to kill the boy who lived and bring forth a new age. Of course, in the end he must fail, His plan to marry Luna to get closer to Harry revealed at the moment he brutally kills Ginny. Thus, bringing Harry and Luna together towards years of smutness.

 

Your idea doesn't suck. Well, maybe it does a little, but then, speaking as one whose written a Harry/Molly Soul Bond tale, I can hardly throw stones. The key will be execution and making the comedy suitably bizarre. As others have commented, I don't think you write this as straight drama because it'd come off boring and preachy. (Even Neal Stephenson had trouble with depicting compelling ecoterrorists--see Zodiac, not his best book). Besides, Neville is a comedic character in HP, so it's a natural role for him to fill.

A few thoughts:

Writing it as an AU that repeats canon but with that minor change would be a ginormous task. And it's not right for the material--even doing a breezy pass-through (think BajaB's Almost A Squib) wouldn't really rock. Why not instead write a canon-compliant, post-Hogwarts story where Neville falls in with Sprout and her hippie husband and starts on his eco-terrorism ways after he leaves Hogwarts. At the end, after he's wreaked all sorts of terror on the world, hide him from the muggles by having him take Sprout's Herbology job. This cuts lots from your workload.

You can cameo people from the HP universe as needed, but make it Neville's tale, a giant among vegans. No need for Harry to take the stage, except as a cameo.

For comedy, don't make loggers the only villains. And for the love of Moe, don't call them that to their face--the hard core guys, the ones that fell the trees before others come in and clean them up for transport, call themselves "Cutters." My little cousin (who's now 6'4", 280# of muscle) was a cutter until he spiral-fractured his femur on the job. Many a broken bottle has been shoved into the face of those who miss the subtle point of what to call them. Incidentally, the fastest way to get curb-stomped by a Cutter is to smugly state, "I spike trees."

Add some corporate mega-conglomerates (Wal*Mart, e.g.) that have realized that "Organic" is the new cash cow. Have him go after them for their mega-scale farming practices, a perversion of what it means to steward plants. Maybe have this arc climax with Neville and his eco-forces storming the Walton family bomb shelter in Bentonville, Arkansas. (It wouldn't be out of place for there to be an exchange of tactical nukes).

Have Neville go head to head with the corporate (big Pharma/big alcohol)-governmental anti-drug efforts, who send in paramilitary forces to seize and destroy his Acapulco Gold fields. Partnership for a Drug Free America is the face of evil, an organization run by an undead Nancy Reagan (who's actually still alive, if I recall). A big showdown between Neville and a morphing super-undead Nancy is a must-run. I think you should give the crone Veela powers.

Then there's the more mundane: Have Neville learn that Gryffindor's sword (which for some reason he can summon from the ether whenever he needs a hit) has a hollow chamber in the hilt, which can be used as a pipe. The magic of the sword makes it so that it refills, thus ensuring him a continuous stock of high quality weed. Maybe give Neville a magical animagus form--a steer with extra-pungent, extra-fertile crap. Let a running joke be speculation of why he's gelded in his animagus form. Has he testicles in his human form?

It's not a story I'd take on, but I'd read if someone else did it. I doubt I'd pick up a highbrow ecoterrorist!Neville drama.

 

You want to know how to make this a winsome story?

Turn it into a Batman crossover and somehow involve Poison Ivy!

Harry/Poison Ivy. And this would hopefully be adult!Harry.

 

No pervy pedo!Poison Ivy?

Man, you take all the fun out of it.

@Neopyro: If you're writing a Harry centric story, you could use Hippy!Neville on an eco-terrorism!quest as comedic value. Just to break things up a little. Otherwise...

No. Just no. Nice idea, but nobody from this forum would read it. DLP is pretty anal about Harry centric stories only.

 

Harry is almost a must in plot driven fics. As this is not the case, this could possibly work. If this will make me giggle, it has done it's job.

 

Eco Warrior anything will never be taken seriously. Though if your dead set on the whole eco thing may I suggest a captain planet crossover.

 

LOL! I'd read it.

 

Lulz, I started an ecoterrorist Harry story ages back and posted the beginning here just to show everyone the lulz of the temporary madness that took hold of me. Should be around somewhere if you want to take a look.

Here it is: http://forums.darklordpotter.net/showthread.php?t=10806

 

Captain Planet!Harry Potter? I...

Id read it.

 

Throughout this whole thing I've been thinking Ra's al Ghul, but I didn't want to be the one to suggest a Batman crossover, anyways, Harry/Talia anyone?