Is incest a good plot line?

other then Flowers in the Attic and some other V.C. Andrews books, which there was a good excuse for it, has any other book or story did an incest plot? I was thinking of doing one that was based in the present time about a brother and a sister who fall for each other. Is it a good story line or will people be too grossed out by it?

Is incest a good plot line?
Anything CAN be a good plotline. It depends on how you approach it. Something edgy, like incest, can actually make a better story than "safer" topics, if it's handled correctly.





In the series "A Song of Fire and Ice," Cersei and Jaime Lannister are incestuous twins; the (paraphrased) explanation Cersei gives was along the lines of: "From my earliest memories, he was the only person I ever loved, ever trusted, ever cared about and knew for sure cared about me. He knows me better than myself; we are closer than anyone else can imagine being." Of course, Cersei is the villain, and her brother's not much better, but still - the relationship was presented in a way that was both plausible and sympathetic.





Any situation where the brother and sister are forced to turn to and rely on each other - orphaned, distant or abusive parents, thrust into confusing or dangerous situations before they're ready for them... the bond of affection and protectiveness can easily shift into sexual attraction and romantic interest.





Elements I've seen in incest stories that work:


1) Forced to grow up too fast


2) Lack of respected authority figures, or else authority figures that do not enforce societal norms


3) "Us against the world" mentality, causing them to spend a lot of time together and distrust anyone else


4) Sense of superiority - the belief that they are somehow a cut above the rest of the world, perhaps by virtue of intelligence, money, good breeding, what have you, thus prompting a "your rules don't apply to us" mentality


5) An awareness that the rest of the world would not accept them, and that by making their relationship public, they would be hurting the one they love - gotta have that edge of angsty tragedy.





Make the reader love the characters. Make them real people, not caricatures. If the reader properly identifies with a character, he's more likely to be sympathetic when the character does something shocking.
Reply:Eh...it grosses me out except for the way VC Andrews did it, you could understand it in Cathy and Chris's case, but 'a brother and sister who falls for each other' just doesn't sound right to me. If I were to read it, it would be out of mildly disgusted curiosity.
Reply:can you say Oedipus ?
Reply:yuck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Reply:It's been overdone. The others here have named several in addition to the ones you named. There is also "Princess Daisy" which was a big best seller and blockbuster movie in it's day and time. Almost the same plot that you mention. You will always get some shock value if you choose to use it as a plot line.





Edit: I wanted to add that the key element is to make the reader LIKE your characters, so that they don't think of their OWN siblings. For instance, Princess Daisy was a somewhat sexy book, but if it had made me think of sex with my own sister, I would have been sticking my finger down my throat.
Reply:I can only speak for myself but...EW!
Reply:"The Hotel New Hampshire" by John Irving deals with the taboo of incest very effectively in my opinion.





Several 18th century novels suggest incestuous relationships (accidental) only to find out later that they were not really incestuous. See Tom Jones, for example. Finally, there is "Candy." by Terry Sothern and Mason Hoffenberg. "Good grief, it's Daddy."
Reply:'Slapstick' by Kurt Vonnegut had a brother and sister in love with each other and when they were together they were off-the-scale geniuses. When they were found out, they were separated and lost their tremendous mental powers. Its a good read, but like all of Vonneguts work its about as off the wall as you can get.





I think that controversial subject matter such as incest is alright but it has to go somewhere or else you're just trying to get a reaction. Just my opinion.
Reply:There are a few films about incest too, and I have one up my sleeve myself, but I think with controversial subjects like that you have to be careful to make it believable and realistic. It is an unusual situation for a brother and sister to fall in love and you have to consider the reasons behind it. As you craft your story, think about the message it's giving.





A lot of people will be squeamish about certain subjects, but taboo things do happen in the real world - why shouldn't we write about them? Stories should be able to shock and challenge - that's half the point.





I'm struggling myself at the moment with a controversial subject that's popped into my story all by itself. (Even more controversial than incest!) In the story it's logical and meaningful - even symbolic - but it's difficult to know whether people will be alienated by it.





I suppose whatever you write, not everyone's gonna like it anyway!





I think if you don't overdo it and you make it meaningful and challenging (not just a soppy romance that happens to be between siblings) you'll be ok.





Good luck!
Reply:I think you just have to be careful. In some kinds of books/stories, it's seems like it's just sensationalism. Unless the context makes it clear that the incest isn't just there for shock value, it would probably disgust many/most people.





A. S. Byatt covers incest in a way that's not exploitative. In her novella Morpho Eugenia (also a movie), incest between siblings is not a major plot point, and is used as a parallel between humanity and the lower orders of nature.
Reply:Mourning Becomes Electra
Reply:Incest is a big taboo in our society, unless its a very minor area in your story that explains why a character behaves a certain way or acts a certain way I dont recommend it. I would stick to a more main stream idea that most audiences can relate to.


If its a case where they didn't know they were related or something of that nature.... maybe....


Good luck