I need to learn how to do workplace sexual harassment---it's for a story, I swear

[LexxRuthless]

I wrote a throwaway line into another story:

"She got stuck in Ulaanbataar once. Snowed in. No flights out for three days. She ended up sharing a room with one of the partners. Somehow. He wasn't the kind that kept his hands to himself."

And now I really want to read that story, even if that means I have to write it myself.

There's a certain simplicity of motivation that really appeals to me. She's a junior associate, trying not to get raped but also trying not to piss off the guy who can make or break her career with a word. He's a powerful man used to getting what he wants, and at the moment what he wants is a way to pass the time while they're stuck in this little room. The stakes are high. The scene is set. Action!

The only problem ("problem") is I have zero knowledge of how such a situation would realistically unfold. Is there any way to get even a passable understanding in a few hours? Or should I just accept that I'm not the right person to tell this story?

Just looking at your quote in isolation, "she" doesn't sound like she was upset that "He wasn't the kind that kept his hands to himself." So, to make the story appealing, I'd dump the idea of sexual harassment entirely. Despite the stories that make the news, consensual workplace affairs still happen. Sure, the guy had enormous power over her career. That doesn't mean he was the type to hold that power over her, or that he made her do anything she didn't want to.

He was a busy man, but still found time to give her advice. Just the fact he even noticed her was something of a compliment. He never looked her over lecherously or suggested anything inappropriate. Most of the partners wouldn't have given her a second glance and had no idea who she was, but he'd invited her along on this important trip to Ulaanbaatar. On the flight, he'd talked to her about their strategy for the meetings, and he never once treated her like an idiot. Then he joked with the flight attendant and some of the passengers around them and had them practically rolling in the aisles. The guy was funny, clever as hell, and he was undeniably attractive.

When they got to their hotel and one of their room reservations had been given away, he was visibly upset. Their landing had been delayed due to the weather, and when they didn't show up at the hotel on time, the second room was made available to another waiting guest. He looked like he was ready to start a fight, and some of the unsavory characters in that chilly hotel lobby looked like they would welcome the opportunity to pummel "the mouthy American." She was the one who grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the counter.

Perhaps not the story you had in mind. I'd use the imagery of bitter, biting cold and people shivering miserably in that weather. Every time the lobby doors open, another blast of arctic wind sweeps in. By the time they reach their room, she just wants to burrow beneath the covers for warmth. And of course there was just one bed...

 

[Bramblethorn]

Just looking at your quote in isolation, "she" doesn't sound like she was upset that "He wasn't the kind that kept his hands to himself." So, to make the story appealing, I'd dump the idea of sexual harassment entirely.

Looking at the quote in context, though, makes it clear that what you're proposing is entirely a different story.

Despite the stories that make the news, consensual workplace affairs still happen.

They do. But there's a world of difference between an affair between two people who are not in one another's lines of management, and an affair between a junior and "the guy who can make or break her career with a word".

Sure, the guy had enormous power over her career. That doesn't mean he was the type to hold that power over her, or that he made her do anything she didn't want to.

It doesn't work that way. He might be willing to respect her "no" with no retribution, but that's not something she can be sure of without risking it. Even if they're both attracted to one another, acting on that has a lot of potential to jeopardise her career; if it ever comes out, everything she's achieved in that company gets tainted by the perception that she earned it on her back.

He was a busy man, but still found time to give her advice. Just the fact he even noticed her was something of a compliment. He never looked her over lecherously or suggested anything inappropriate. Most of the partners wouldn't have given her a second glance and had no idea who she was, but he'd invited her along on this important trip to Ulaanbaatar. On the flight, he'd talked to her about their strategy for the meetings, and he never once treated her like an idiot. Then he joked with the flight attendant and some of the passengers around them and had them practically rolling in the aisles. The guy was funny, clever as hell, and he was undeniably attractive.

When they got to their hotel and one of their room reservations had been given away, he was visibly upset. Their landing had been delayed due to the weather, and when they didn't show up at the hotel on time, the second room was made available to another waiting guest. He looked like he was ready to start a fight, and some of the unsavory characters in that chilly hotel lobby looked like they would welcome the opportunity to pummel "the mouthy American." She was the one who grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the counter.

Perhaps not the story you had in mind.

Pretty obviously not.

OP was pretty clear about their intentions and what they wanted help with. If you want them to write a completely different story that's more to your taste, perhaps offer a commission?

 

[LexxRuthless]

Looking at the quote in context, though, makes it clear that what you're proposing is entirely a different story.

They do. But there's a world of difference between an affair between two people who are not in one another's lines of management, and an affair between a junior and "the guy who can make or break her career with a word".

It doesn't work that way. He might be willing to respect her "no" with no retribution, but that's not something she can be sure of without risking it. Even if they're both attracted to one another, acting on that has a lot of potential to jeopardise her career; if it ever comes out, everything she's achieved in that company gets tainted by the perception that she earned it on her back.

Pretty obviously not.

OP was pretty clear about their intentions and what they wanted help with. If you want them to write a completely different story that's more to your taste, perhaps offer a commission?

Nah. I just figured the title was tongue-in-cheek, while the OP had a specific story in mind -- which a lot of posters ignored to jump on their soapbox about workplace sexual harassment.

 

[onehitwanda]

She's a junior associate, trying not to get raped but also trying not to piss off the guy who can make or break her career with a word. He's a powerful man used to getting what he wants, and at the moment what he wants is a way to pass the time while they're stuck in this little room.

I have to do anti-harassment training about once a year as part of my role. This is a textbook case of power imbalance and frankly, to borrow a phrase, has more red flags than my online dating profile.

 

[LexxRuthless]

I have to do anti-harassment training about once a year as part of my role. This is a textbook case of power imbalance and frankly, to borrow a phrase, has more red flags than my online dating profile.

Absolutely. And that's why I focused on the "throwaway line" and suggested the story I did. Sure, you could focus on the power dynamic inherent in their roles, but that's tricky at best, and rapey at worst.

 

[djrip]

Nah. I just figured the title was tongue-in-cheek, while the OP had a specific story in mind -- which a lot of posters ignored to jump on their soapbox about workplace sexual harassment.

A workplace romance is perfectly fine, I wouldn't suggest it couldn't happen due to inherent power imbalances. But power imbalance could, perhaps should, still be a factor in the story, managing perceptions should be on the characters' minds.

But it's clear that OP had a more adversarial story in mind. Which is also a good story to explore, potentially more interesting and with more conflict and cat and mouse maneuvering. Whether the final bit is treated as finally succumbing to high pressure seduction or she finally sees something she likes about him and decides she's into it (more genuine seduction).

 

[joy_of_cooking]

I'm definitely imagining something non-con for this one. I do believe in ethical workplace romances (I think I've seen three of them already) but the may-december + the junior-partner + the stuck-in-a-hotel-room combined make this particular setup a little too squicky for me to spin that way. YMMV.

I want to find a way to make the FMC not wholly a victim. Still thinking about how to do that one.

I think I've got it. What do people think?

She spends the first two days dodging his advances but slowly resigning herself to having sex with him. She's from an immigrant family. The sacrifices her parents have made to get her to this point weigh heavily on her mind. This job could be a big break for all of them. And yet she knows they would never ask this of her, which paradoxically makes her more determined to go through with it and not tell them, as she suspect they have hidden the worst of their trials from her.

But! She packed a pair of impractical heels, in case she got a chance to explore the night life. And she notices he gets kind of uncomfortable around those. She figures out he has quite a shoe fetish, and is worried about people finding out. Harassing women is manly and powerful; kneeling at a woman's feet is not.

She gets him into a compromising position and photographs him, then uses the material to blackmail him into backing off. They have a creepy conversation where he tells her she is like him, a predator. She denies it. But when she gets home she masturbates to the memory of him on his knees before her. (This is a prequel to another story where the same FMC gets into a consensual femdom relationship and plays with these power dynamics in a more ethical way.)

 

[ChloeTzang]

Or turn it around. With sexual harassments being what it is these days, they're sharing a room, he comes on to her, she feigns reluctance but really, she wants to use it to get ahead, and maybe she whispers sweet nothings in his ear about her fantasies about forced sex or something like that, leads him into it and records it, amd then uses that to get herself promoted or something like that. Make HER the predator and him the poor sucker. Alternatively, it could be win-win. He uses her, she uses him and everyone is happy. There's any number of ways you can play it

 

[oneagainst]

I think I've got it. What do people think?

You do. Write that... it sounds a lot more interesting that a lot of the possibilities that two people, a hotel room, and snow would otherwise offer. Ship it.

 

[joy_of_cooking]

she feigns reluctance but really, she wants to use it to get ahead, and maybe she whispers sweet nothings in his ear about her fantasies about forced sex or something like that, leads him into it and records it, amd then uses that to get herself promoted or something like that.

That does sound like an interesting story and a fun twist. Very "I'm not locked in here with you. You're locked in here with me!" It's unfortunately not consistent with the arc I want for this character, though.

I'm also a little concerned about writing a story that plays so well into the fantasies of, well, people I probably don't want to count among my fans. I don't really want a bunch of misogynists following me for more false-accusation fan service.

Write that

But that's the worst part of being an author!

 

[oneagainst]

But that's the worst part of being an author!

You mean getting off AH and actually knuckling down to putting some words out? How may we motivate you?

 

[joy_of_cooking]

I'm going, I'm going... :-D

 

[Whanmore]

She's a junior associate, trying not to get raped but also trying not to piss off the guy who can make or break her career with a word. He's a powerful man used to getting what he wants, and at the moment what he wants is a way to pass the time while they're stuck in this little room. The stakes are high. The scene is set. Action!

I'd take a look at TeamEquuipes series. Particularly the Debbie and Tina stories Rob and Klaus and for inspiration there.

 

[AchtungNight]

Though if we're indulging the fantastic I've written a story where a guy gets away with it because he's a harder employee to replace than the person he's harassing. When they threaten to go to HR he basically asks, "Who do you think they're going to fired over this? The engineer running the project, or the security gaurd?"

Yeah, that pretty much covers why someone got away with workplace harassment the one time I’ve used it in a story. And that was in a realistic comedy that already included a lot of worse sex jokes. The harasser & target were both actresses, movie was full of sex humor, harasser was an award winning actress who was asked to joke seriously about faking orgasms in the script, her brother was also in the film in an important role. Target was an up and coming actress, and she mistook the flirting for a different kind of harassment at first. Director either didn’t realize he had a serial swinger with hyper sexual tension on the cast or he rewrote the script to deter her further bad behavior after the target quit, it’s not clear. Fortunately the replacement actress for the target was also a serial swinger with similar issues and made a Rendezvous with the harasser and two other welcoming actresses. This story is available on Lit, title already given.

 

[Whanmore]

The only problem ("problem") is I have zero knowledge of how such a situation would realistically unfold. Is there any way to get even a passable understanding in a few hours? Or should I just accept that I'm not the right person to tell this story?

Lots of real-life examples in American news stories.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

In the modern world, I don't think that situation would realistically unfold. But why worry about realism? Just make it kind of truthy (er... give it verisimilitude).

Just don't set it in the modern world.
Get stranded somewhere in 1963.
Makes the stakes for her even higher, was harder for a woman to get ahead back then, no HR to back you up...

 

[AchtungNight]

My advice is to put it in situations where it is a real concern. My “Rendezvous” series has it happen offscreen and it’s not really harassment, just a mistake by the people involved. A dedicated polyamorous actress, and another actress who was shocked at first, then just quietly exited the film with the misguided offender rather than create a problem. The movie has a lot of sex humor anyway. Maybe she misjudged it. A future story will feature it as a sign of a villain- but it happens at a strip club, so… watch out, people.

 

[EroticCupcake]

But even in the US: Blizzard hits, skip the airport and go from work directly to nearest hotel, you were slow to get there, sorry, only one room, next hotel is 3 miles away with a blizzard going on.

Quoting for important life lesson. If your flight is canceled due to bad weather on site, book a hotel immediately on your phone. Learned this rule the hard way. Every time I follow it I feel like a damn genius.

 

[vanmyers86]

I'm with ChloeTzang on this one, maybe with some Stephen King-type Misery thrown in. I would have little interest in a typical "her boss comes on to her, she doesn't wanna but eventually gives in, and surprise! she loves it!" because that just doesn't ring true to me as a woman who's been sexually harassed by a boss. Me, I went home that night and cried in the shower. I needed the job, and who was HR going to protect - the company owner who signed their checks, or me?
But this is a fantasy site, and obviously a lot of folks would go for the plot you outlined. With the sheer amount of thought you've given it, your story should be very well written. Best wishes to you.