I've been writing about transformation and mental changes for a while now, but I still have a few questions about what the community prefers about those topics. Modest transformation vs extreme transformation: What I mean by modest transformation is body modification that is still believable in real life (breast enhancement within reality size) vs fantasy transformation (extreme size, animal property, futa, and more.) Embracing the changes vs resisting them: Does the character wanted the changes even in an extreme situation or the character fight the changes. Aware vs unaware: Quite obvious with this one is the character aware of the changes in their body What is the best transformation scene? https://chyoa.com/story/The-old-Manor-in-Swamp-Point-Revisited.32402
Well, if you're willing to do a bit of reading/research, there are several authors that have covered this topic quite extensively. The first one to come to mind is Jack L. Chalker, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_L._Chalker who extensively covered the concept of soul/body migration and reactions to such things. He also covered unwilling mental transformations extremely well, and has covered EXTREME transformations, including transformation of humans into other species and all of the strange mental calculations that had to go along with it. Another one who handled it well was Philip Jose Farmer, who dealt with human reactions to cultural shifts, as well as dealing with the concept of love/emotional reaction between species in his novel "The Lovers". What's interesting is that both of these authors seem to take the "Middle path" between embracing and resisting. Often the characters will resist various aspects of the transformations (Usually those involving outsider control of their actions) and embrace those that allow more flexibility/freedom. (The second book in the "Four Lords of the Diamond" series involved body swapping and characters changing bodies for social advantage. ) Now, an unaware character in a transformation is a bit of a "Body Horror" trope, at least to me, since it implies no control, and as a result feels like manipulation and mind control, just through a means that is more fantasy than direct. Aware characters at least have agency, which allows for an active protagonist as opposed to a protagonist that things HAPPEN to. I mean, the classic trope of the transformed human who doesn't want to be, but carries on all the same and begins to embrace it is very common, and is usually the origin point of a "Superhero". At least in the old days. Nowadays it's kinda old hat, literally, if you're going to count Harry Potter. Nothing wrong with it, but if you're going to set up a whole society based off transformations, it's not exactly SPECIAL anymore. IMHO, the old joke 0f "When everybody's special... nobody is" comes to mind. There's only so many times you can DO the chosen one before it becomes a joke, after all.
