Story Notes
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In other writing, I've been looking at how likely many of us are to stick our own heads in the noose, so to speak. Badgered "properly", into doing something we know is really dumb - and don't try to tell me you're always immune. Not as much as you'd like to think. If a TM was playing on our "interest" in tickling or bondage, is there a chance you might not be thinking clearly enough? Huh?
This was a "thank-you" to a guy who managed to get something... fairly amazing into print. He shall be identified only as "Most Ticklish", which certain TickleFest attendees will recognize quickly enough - as well as the cuffed pair of outlaw hands which "helped" him earn that honor. Oh, yeah, and that mangy dude on the far end sorta rounds out the trio nicely, in a fish-and-bicycle kind of way.
This episode isn't popular, apparently. I figured that's because it doesn't "work" as well as others... but I also wonder if it didn't hit a nerve.
Wouldn't it suck to have a fantasy come true, and find out it wasn't as spectacular as you thought it would be? We can hope the victim in this episode adapted, and grew to enjoy the experience as much as the tickler did.
There was this old sketch I'd been glancing at for awhile. I wanted to consider what the victim might be feeling with his arms tied to a headboard... heavy boots laying right there in sight, never to be moved, certainly not put to any use protecting his tied feet... and (for the benefit of perhaps TMZ's biggest supporter) that frustrating mix of emotions upon seeing one's own meat wrapped and tied for the very first time. Some of these TMs seem to be as much into roleplaying as any of you - er, any of us.
Just stretching my "literary" legs, I guess. It's hard for me to believe that even an officially sanctioned effort to fight TMs would ever (completely) succeed - and imagine the skepticism the other federal law enforcement types would harbor...
I think this is is the earliest TM-idea I ever had.
As so often happens, I saw a better writer (Hooder, of course) nail the description of a feather controlled by the wind.
Add that second-morning image I like so much - tightly spread-eagled, eyeing the new bars on the windows, and here come the unstoppable gloves. That's my mental picture of "helpless". And - the reason for being laid out like that is power-tickling?
I did like seeing the smirk get wiped off the dude's face, the next day, when he's shown a couple weeks' worth of toys. Right there. Nothing between them and his vulnerable hide. Just when he was starting to cope...
Really, I don't lose sleep over these fucking people out here in LA with perfect genes. Nah.
This episode jumped out of an e-mail I was writing to somebody who's gay and doesn't even particularly fantasize about hunky actors getting the TM-treatment - but I found that out only after "Ferral" had already been consigned to his fate. The marriages of us ordinary guys could only be safer if a short list of these impossibly handsome fuckers were stashed away for awhile - and they might as well be laughing it up, while they're on ice...
Sometimes there's gonna be an episode or two which isn't wall-to-wall tickling. That's the price of admission here, especially if you choose not to shoot me the occasional 'atta boy' e-mail. Get to know the story codes if you're that opposed to long, involved capture scenarios - there's one for 'no actual tickling, or next to none'.
As I've said too often before, a TM that liked the results of a plan might well stick with what's workin'. The same goes for its choice in victims, and the archetypes it would impose on 'em. Hell, if some of you tops were nearly omnipotent - is this episode all that different than what you might do with a suitably ticklish dude, yourself?
But sometimes we gotta live the dream vicariously, and it seems I'm getting a mite defensive. Time for a smoke. You pays yer... 'nada', you takes yer chances.
Hey, it's supposed to be funny. Certainly it owes a big nod to a sci-fi story or two, but I can't place the original source of inspiration yet. Shit, just imagine that moment when the huge relief of apparently being set free is immediately replaced with something like horror, as the tickler pauses - and hauls you back inside the cell...
A pretty old idea, so far as my TM stuff goes. The victim trying to get help is (naturally!) recaptured and punished, the innocent bystander is also reeled in, and an intense time is had by all.
I've had the image of this old, forgotten gas station in my head for awhile. Being forced to deliver oneself to the dungeon is another chilling twist.
Maybe you find it too ridiculous, but I don't - an organization that wished to see more guys getting tickled might give popular marketing techniques a try. And hey, if it "helps" even one guy end up laughing who would otherwise have escaped...
I gotta stop eating nachos right before going to bed.
Some people would rather feel pain than tickling. I think that's fascinating - as a spectator, and as someone trying to imagine what kind of sadistic glee a TM would have with such a captive.
Kids adapt to repeated physical abuse in different ways. Sometimes they even "make it pay," though maybe we can hope a few months of devoted tickling will uncork the old anger that's still bottled up inside.
My ignorance of the "professional" S&M scene is showing, no doubt. No disrespect was intended (and I'd like to fix any errors).
A famous writer of science fiction - poignant, infuriating, shrewd as fuck - was influential here, but I didn't notice it until this episode was well underway. Google for "Callahan's Lady" sometime, if you haven't already discovered how high this author's raised the bar (along with Ellison) for us speculative-writing wannabes.
(And no, I didn't have a "stepmonster", either.)
The original goal here (believe it or not) was to get a little behind-the-scenes peek of a TM "prison" facility. I mean, shit, even they have their limits. A guy who gets treated badly - whatever the fuck that means, to TMs - deserves a little respect.
But then, lying to 'em is not a move that works out real well, in the long run.
Well, dammit, I liked it.
Machines - perhaps the ultimate in merciless ticklers - which will not tolerate any nonsense...
When nanobots run amok and start waylaying our sons and nephews, remember you read it here first. Unless I'm seriously underestimating you "tops", I think "intelligent" tools like the ones in this episode are coming - it's only a matter of time.
'Storytella3000' dropped this idea in my head, so this early TM "clan" is located not far from where he lives (and it's helped create enough new clans to ride herd on the whole state). You're welcome.
Just a little study in contrasts. Intense tickling when it's light out, far more intense tickling after the sun goes down.
What can I say... I had fun with it.
The suspension of disbelief required here is perhaps more than usual. At the start of the episode, Clyde is not alarmed about being in a place "for his own good" where the authority figure is invisible. Uh-huh.
I thought initially he was there to be treated for his morbid fear of being touched, which is his legacy from too much time spent in the clutches of those wild-eyed tickling relatives of his. But not even I could justify a "therapist" locking him in the stocks (for any reasonable pretense) and leaving him alone with all those confident gloves.
That would just be, uh, ridiculous.
How could places like Cal-Boss' fortress (which Cal, Rude and Bodie could tell you about) be staffed? Who'd do all the work... monitoring the perimeter, cleaning, going out for more food? This is an attempt to imagine an "internship" for postgraduate ticklers or MATI associates.
One for the goths. A quickie, in appreciation of somebody else's story which featured an enchanted book. I don't usually wander down those avenues, but I do like the idea of a victim realizing he was this close to getting free! - and suspecting there won't be another opportunity, as the restraints materialize around the usual places - again...
Another cautionary tale for potential runaways. More fear of the magical things that could be lurking in that dark alley - that one, there.
As one of you pointed out, the rookie ticklers were fortunate - the guy they grabbed just happened to be nice and reactive. I hadn't noticed that when I was writing, but "beginner's luck" and TMs sure go together. They get all the breaks...
And it would be my luck to get off the bus in my new hometown and not make it fifty steps before... well, you know.
Attempted comedy. Maybe not enough nachos before bedtime...
Hey, I can dream. This episode probably reveals more than I realize...
I was pretty happy with the way Havik'a turned out, and it was my first attempt to write from a female viewpoint (for TMZ). If one is good, two must be better - very different ticklers, absolutely intent on ruling the roost. I hope the humor works as well for you as it does for me.
When I started this one, the definitive moment was the installation of all the hardware and shit - a man's castle being turned into his prison, after he walks inside - and it dawned on me that some people like privacy so much they pay good money for it.
I like the surprise the TMs get, when they realize the party doesn't have to end as soon as they originally thought...
A deeper look into the life of a career "sounder", a pet, a "kept" guy. Anticipation is a whole 'nuther mindfuck. It sure sucks when those paranoid fears turn out to be true.
Another attempt at humor. The idea of a TM going in on a "run-of-the-mill" kidnapping - for money - and then stalling and delaying the victim's release struck me as ironic and scary, in that psychotically playful way of theirs.
An older episode, which may help explain why I've never been big on higher education. I probably got the idea of robots from another story, but in my nightmares the tools at the end of the robotic arms pop off and continue moving, "magically", as if the whole 'bot thing was just an elaborate mindfuck.
What would be heard on a recording... of a long day of tickling?
This episode was all but commissioned. I was trading e-mails with the author of "Cast Party" (which was found on ropejock.com, and might be mirrored here) and he must share the blame, here. I like that story...
TMs, now - some of them will go to incredible lengths to get what they want. This one finds some ticklish feet and has a great time - but you know it's wantin' to get inside that body cast. And it has to deal with more than a few obstacles to get all the time it wants with the shady dude it likes to visit.
The first thing I wrote about here was the foot "massaging" device - first used by a well-meaning nurse's aide (she was only following orders) and savagely misused by the TM.
And hell yeah, I get a kick out of the ending. Though he's all healed up, Lane isn't getting discharged and sent home. Not a chance.
See what happens when people e-mail me? Huh?
This is another one of about eight stories that resulted from a dialogue with the same rabid TMZ fan. You never know which offhand (you should excuse the pun) question will fire some delusional brain cell in ol' Cor's head. End of public service denouncement.
A few people have wondered why I'm overly fond of the unimaginative spread-eagle position. (For you foreign fans who have never actually read one of my episodes here, that's flat on one's back, with the limbs fully extended toward the corners of the mattress - and held there. But of course.) The answer that came to me - which can be inferred from the taunts in "Icon" - is that being laid flat makes the victim more of a two-dimensional animal, and the TM can tower as high above him as it wants.
To understand why TMs are fond of mattresses, you have to consider how a two-hour tickling session allows for the use of all kinds of crazy positions. A power-hungry tickler who plans ten- hour sessions (or longer, or a hundred such days) will not want to tolerate the competition of sore joints and muscles. Hanging someone by their wrists will allow access to almost their entire body - but a TM would have to compete with the constant pain or numbness. Additional support means there is less skin exposed to tickle...
It's not fun to be held down like that for an entire day - certainly there are other muscle aches and strains, there's the prospect of laying in one's own waste products or a constant need for cleaning and fresh linens, not to mention how boring it is - so delirium is the sure-fire preoccupation the TMs prefer.
Episodes like this one are a complete waste, in the minds of some. The story codes will save them some time.
For me, if a TM goes to a fair amount of trouble to telegraph that it's gonna grab me, but I don't know when - that only kindles the suspense.
If you're close to a writer, you gotta know you're unintentionally giving them plot ideas, events and dialogue, Right? Your vacation stories might drive 'em to an atlas, or the 'net, years later. A buddy told me about heading out to work one morning, stepping outside his house - and seeing his roommate's truck parked diagonally across the lawn. Said roommate was still passed out, lying on the seat, wearing pants he had never seen before (and didn't remember pulling on).
I started writing this episode about three years before I finished it. The twist at the end was obvious... but finally I got the "middle" piece when I imagined myself being in the place of the narrator, not the victim.
Ah, that special thrill of despair when the door closes and locks... and you notice there's no knob or handle on your side.
An old dream of mine.
There is something perversely comfortable and casual about a guy, gagged, limbs hogtied in front of him, lying on a dusty hardwood floor, sunlight filtering softly through window roller shades... tiredly chuckling. All afternoon.
I remember a story I saw on the 'net years ago. It opened with a man in a hotel room (?) taking his shirt off, which mysteriously hopped away from him as he tried to catch it. In the TM playbook, that would be known as a "lure". (Havik'a knows.)
Someday I might get around to writing the conclusion. He appears to be stuck there for about a month.
I was staring at the ceiling in yet another motel room, smoking too much as I tried to stop imagining what could zip out from under the bed and grab me. Face your fears, right? No matter how irrational...
That's the only excuse I have for this narrative.
I really like the idea of TMs saying "We're very grateful." - being both sincere and gleefully promising tickle-carnage, both at the same time.
Drugs?
Who, me?
Brothers
Again, a suggestion was made at the right time. I had been wondering what to do with the idea of twins getting caught. And I guess the old warning about magic wishes is still true - be very careful how you word your request.
Sounderator
There's a pretty well-known sketch that planted the seed, years ago... and then a TV commercial came out, with a space ship in it that seemed ideal to me. Nice, big viewport. Imagine floating there, the only light coming from the stars in front of you, crippled by slowly moving fingers and tools.
A lost spaceship is the ultimate cell, I think.
Oh - and early TMZ readers will recognize "sound" as a verb. I needed a one-syllable word to describe deep, intense tickling. A unusually responsive victim who gets such treatment is known as a "sounder" (and yeah, it should be "soundee" but it's another one of those stupid exceptions in the Engilsh language, okay?). It didn't seem like that much of a risk to predict a future cult which "sounderates" their victims... or to imagine a day when the word "tickle" has become archaic.
Taker
The great story that inspired this episode had nothing to do with tickling. I'm so warped that I saw a terrific opportunity right away. The road-trip goes on and on, in a nondescript van that's uniquely customized - inside.
And then there's the car thief who ends up with a whole shitload of time to laugh and regret his felonious ways.
Chief
"Informed" by another story that I can't recommend, because I think it's sick. (Savor the irony.) But the idea has been in several episodes, whether they were finished or not - a TM planting something on the victim, which it uses it as the justification to lock him up and punish him.
Resort
A quick riff based on another photo from the 'net- a good "reaction shot" of the first second or two of tickling... as the victim stares at the tool being used, snickering despite himself, just before his thrashing begins.
Noir
Just a little something I cranked out after a reader said they liked the slight "noir" feel of another episode.
Last century, American males were less likely than females to talk about their ordeal at the "hands" of a TM. That's the theory, anyway.
The next two episodes are "informed" by the writings of a very imaginative writer. Like almost every other author whose work was such a direct influence (the only exception I can think of being Pete Roc, who was very gracious about Dag) he chooses not to communicate, but of course I still admire his creativity.
CrazyYou know I can't tear myself away from a snug padded-room setup. Literally. It's like an itch I can't reach... thanks to the straitjacket. Not without some help. Real helpful, those gloves. Fuckers. And those abandoned hospitals, they make me real nervous...
Moving Day
Nothing like the comfort of your own bed after a long day. Unless a TM gets there first. Thick leather, for when you fall asleep. Ready to lend a hand when it's time to move into your new digs, too. So go ahead... pull your boots off and get horizontal.
Easy money. Right? Uh... How many nights, again?! And what the hell do you mean, I can't change my mind?...
Honor Camp
It's bad enough, being stalked... and worse if the correctional officers not only don't believe you, but gladly sign your "transfer".
Finger Hollow
Did Terry find the old reformatory - or was it the other way around? And what year is it, anyway? (My take on a time-bending tickle story with which you may already be familiar.)
The other side of the story. It appears that this spooky, stern TM started out with good intentions...
Handler
This one starts with the classic rhetorical question. Whatever answer Pete gives - he's the securely restrained fucker, lookin' at the glove that's just curled around his ribs - ya just know what the outcome's gonna be.
Hands Up
A photo brought this one about. I hadn't done an episode in a while with the classic opening gambit of pulling the victim's hands straight up, and keeping them there. Seeing the right image - the arms have to be powerful, and you know that calls for thick chain - spurred me to write another turning-the-tables narrative - one with two different "victors" learning about life from the bottom.
Wanted Man
A story from my favorite writer of tickling stuff has a key scene combining a thoroughly sunny, playful "mood" with a full day of grueling torment - and the unqualified combination of them is like looking over the shoulder of a tickling psychopath. It's not that far removed from the merciless fanaticism of a TM...
This tickler goes to ridiculous lengths to manipulate its victim. But over the course of a rainy winter, while he just has to sleep and recharge - there's all that time for executing outrageous plans. A being that doesn't require sleep can outfox me, even if it's not smarter than me. Unhindered contingency planning is its edge.
Bot-enemy
Somebody's story or remark about tickle-robots must've made an impression. I go overboard trying to avoid the easy clichés. Part of the reason is that others have already written the definitive UFO, alien planet, wizard, voodoo, demon, spy, captured burglar, haunted house, health club ambush, BDSM-top-becomes-trapped, frat initiation, school rivalry, captured cop, wayward husband, VR and returning-disciplinarian-from-childhood tickling ordeals.
Ian
"Here I am again."
I still don't see why a TM would arbitrarily end the "fun" after three hours, or a night. And I'm open to suggestions. If they're getting the kind of results they want, they will persist. Long ordeals... and perhaps more of them, for victims that are known and proven.
Extract
My first idea for an episode is usually a visual image, most often from a dream. This narrative was the aftermath of my appreciation for a terrific drawing someone made.
The taunting events are perhaps my favorite thing about it.
The episode with the most words, written in response to a reader request. I hope this one doesn't offend anybody - that wasn't my intention. It took off on its own, and I was pretty amazed.
"Nonconsentual" was the word I was contemplating. Secret desires which we reflexively decline to indulge. (If any. Hah.) Or experiences that change someone's 'No' to a hesitant 'Yes'. It took a strong example or two to compare anything-goes fantasy and the practical light of day. Giving or getting.
Power, in the absence of "scruples", leads to some fuckin' creepy places.
(1999)
Coming soon, to a courtroom near you: Legal protection for TMs, compliments of the bureaucracy... and "better justice through technology".
A buddy who's fairly creeped out by tickling planted the seed for this one. I ended up looking at current California law - why, I didn't know - but I noticed an odd fact. Men's breasts aren't considered to be an "intimate" body area in my home state. Trivia, right? Until TMs come out of the shadows. I mean, if they won a crucial victory in the wrong court case... maybe it could turn out to be illegal to discriminate against 'em.
Here's an old theme, exploited by TMs (and their, uh, biographers) everywhere. In the western world, you might regain consciousness in a hospital, and "learn" about recent events which you don't remember. At all. So imagine you're told you have a condition which only "stimulation" can cure. Not that it matters, if you find that hard to swallow - and here's the TM twist - since the restraints aren't coming off anyway.
They say no good deed goes unpunished. The poor kid meant well, but he had plenty of time to regret coming to the rescue...
Also - just because you see someone "escape", don't be too sure they actually did get away. I mean, we're talking about TMs, here.
It's easy for me to overwrite (duh). With some things it's especially bad. One of those is a TM's anticipation, whether it taunts a guy audibly or not. You know - I've got you now, and damn are you gonna get it, and here's a thousand words about what, precisely, I'm gonna do to you. It messes up the sequence when ya "flashforward" through the first week and then return - snap! - to the restraints being set, or the very first stroke of a feather.
I dig the limit, here. Yes-or-no responses. They seem to amplify the intimidation of (yet another) padded room... deliberately free of anything that could be a distraction... and eerily customized, with understatement, with skill, for one lusty, hysterical agenda.
Got no idea what spurred this one. Woke up one morning with "Tickling the fuck out of ya - that's all you're good for" in my head. Just another leftover from last dream of the night. Or maybe she was just havin' a little fun with the power of suggestion...
I lit a cigarette, and this "story"-line started getting less and less fuzzy. Well huh, thought I. Blew off some yardwork, sat down at the 'puter, and the result popped out fairly easily.
A few grains of the right substance, and even the biggest mutherfucker goes down. Sawin' logs. Time for a little road-trip. To the Kennel. There's a house-sitter on the way, though. Doing some remodeling - for noise reduction, so the neighbors aren't disturbed. New locks so it's nice and tight. And some dudes are gonna show up. And party. Real long party. So into it, they don't get out much...
If I were to post a "part 2" to this episode, try to guess the epilogue. Sure you can.
When the original dude finally gets sprung from the Kennel - coming to, dumped on his own couch... Safe at home? You know. He's smart enough to not go anywhere near the new black wall that's now splitting his living room in half. But this is his home after all, dammit. He's really gotta pee.
After making water, he pauses in the dim hallway - and studies the two closed doors. He left the bathroom door open, so four smaller rooms are hidden from his view. Solid little rooms. But he doesn't know that, 'cause he's afraid to try the doorknobs - and rightly so, wouldn't ya say? Gotta turn back, or keep going... to the one open door, there, last one on the right. Master bedroom. His bedroom. But it's real dark in there, like the window's been walled over.
The smells reach him first. Way, way too familiar. He sniffs a couple times, and freezes right there, a good yard away. Afraid to breathe. He can barely make out the dull little reflections from chrome, here and there. Buckles. Rings. And the dark shapes - well, they're just like the shit he's been staring at, up close, all that time in the Kennel. The straps. The restraints. Paired holes, slightly darker, against the back wall - those can only be stocks. And now they're in his room. He starts to back up -
And, of course, here comes the huge shove between his shoulder blades. Propelling him forward, well through the doorway. Behind him, the door moves. Swinging past. Out. Away, quickly. Slamming shut. A bolt closing, and another.
Home.
Safe. Too safe.
One for the ultranerds. A friend helped out with the fake terminal display shit. Lent me some old books. I hope it's not too dumb. I know it's way too dull for you horndogs out there, but I had it laying around and figured what the hell.
You might try borrowing the locale and equipment, and "reprogram" it to your liking. Or ponder the match of old software with the higher-tech tickling-tools... just how long has this set of programs been running, anyway? How many dudes - hell, how many clandestine installations are there...?
The last thing I need is a helpful TM. Doin' me a solid. Sure.
How can you be sure it's just a really vivid dream... and not actually happening? By the duration? The familiar reassurance of a smoke between your teeth? And what if it goes on and on, and you still can't manage to wake up?
Back-to-back
A nod to a story from someone else. You never know about those unseen eavesdroppers...
One of TMZ's most loyal readers had a different take on this one. At first, it seemed as though the TM had just released this prisoner - and then kidnapped him again, not remembering he was the same victim it had just released! Now that's chilling.
Ice Man
Oh, I don't know. Maybe I was just trying another style...
The first scene that came to mind was the idea of a guy fighting with a loop of rope that has "somehow" lassoed his wrist, and is slowly pulling him - across the roof - trying to get him inside. And you know why.
Sensitivity Training
The most faithful TM-correspondent said that this episode could suggest a unique approach to treating compulsive gamblers. (Any excuse will do, right?) The victim in this episode didn't even have that problem, apparently. He was easily led into the trap, but I guess we can blame that on the alcohol.
This (and 'Ice Man') are my generic nightmares for any of those large buildings with long concrete hallways or tunnels, no signs, no windows, and lots of unmarked steel doors...
Taos
If I'm going to be weird enough to suggest these TMs are obsessed with what they do, it only makes sense that they might learn from their own experts.
And it wasn't until I'd been writing for awhile that I realized who the narrator is... This is a completely different view of (what I think is) one of the scarier TMs mentioned on the website.
What could be worse than, oh, eight hours of brutal tickling? Maybe... an hour from each of eight different TMs - smug, overenthusiastic rookies, out to prove who's "best"!?
Tyroderm
Another weird dream, after reading a tickle story. The key sentence, I think, was particularly psychotic when it was applied to someone who was tied down - "His feet just love to be tickled." What if that was literally true...?
Touchup
Another episode resulting from my concerns about technology, and the snares that are waiting for ticklish guys in the coming decades. It doesn't seem... well, that much more farfetched to imagine it happening now, if the right audio input could make guys like me defenseless against certain suggestions.
There was another story I'd found - very gleeful - about capturing a guy who was asleep. Waking him up with feathers...
MATI
Where this one came from, I have no idea. I was traveling, and the idea just hit me with no warning.
I don't find it easy to see TMs willing to do biochemical research or scut-work when they could be spending that time in somebody's armpits, but hey. Some people enjoy the challenge of improving the big picture, though, and maybe it's not that different from obsessing over the perfect dungeon or rack. They might well have an "internship" program... or some concept of public service, in order to produce more effective techniques.
Zamazz
Do you want a software agent "helping out"? I don't.
Artifical intelligence is a likely ally for TMs. I think the hunt will become much easier.
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08mar03