Find out any cool tidbits? 
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I have noticed that all the cult leaders seem to think they are some sort of God or angel. Like they are above the regular public.
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I can personally confirm this. Most cult leaders have personality traits and beliefs informally known as “messiah cookie cutter syndrome:” narcissism, charisma, etc. they believe they are god or, more often in today’s climate, an explicit exclusive messenger of a god. It helps create the magnetic pull needed to draw so many people to their group.
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Yep, things like this interest me, and I’ve found the same, haha
New thing, me go look into it - I interested xD
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just realized i mistyped it haha. “Messiah cookie cutter school” will probably get you better results.
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thanks haha. Okay I go back to unconsciousness now 
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have fun in the nether realms of slumber
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This helps me for my own cult in my book. Now I know what personality traits to give my cult leader to make sure they are believable.
I was reading up on Heaven’s Gate (in my book my kids are doing assignments on cults) and the dude literally thought he was a 1000 year old angel like tf
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If you ever need help for other common cult behaviors of leaders and cult groups in general, I could def point you to a couple good resources.
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oh yeah, there’s some nutter-butter like stories out there. they’re interesting to read up on when you’re a removed party, but it’s sad to think about how these are some people’s real lives.
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That could be helpful actually! Really this cult is sacrificing the students for their own purposes so it’s more like a witch-cult, but basically the people think they are doing it for the greater good or that they can actually summon this greater deity doing this.
Omg I know. I get so sad thinking about these lives that were taken from these greedy people who just wanted power. It’s sickening, but interesting to read on. I just hate that they actually happened.
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CHeck out the book “Take Back your life” by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias, the earlier parts of the book talk in great depther how thinking inside the cult works, and the relationships between leader and followers, and followers to each other, and followers to the outside world.
ICSA website might also have some good basic references on their page, not absolutely sure on that it’s been w hile since i’ve been there. but those are some good starts.
another basic qualitie to look out for is “us v. them” mentality: “the world is against us because they don’t understand our gods-given task, constantly trying to seduce you out of your higher calling.”
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takes notes
There’s going to be one main baddie within this group, but the others are followers who believe in it too or were brainwashed into believing in it.
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I mean, the moment when you try to explain to your husband “this is for research” when he looks over your shoulder to give you a kiss and he sees you searching deaths from BDSM gone wrong is kinda awkward.
luckily he’s well versed in my weird search tabs on my laptop by now
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I love this XD
I forget what I looked for once, but my boyfriend caught me and ran out the room XD
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thats hilarious. It’s that pure fear and then after a while they realise that actually, it’s part of being a writer 
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followers who are deep in the group will try their damndest to convince outsiders that the leader truly is kind, just, loving etc. Some will focus on that over trying to preach teh value of the mission/group, others will try to hook you from an idealism standpoint. hey will always always try to rationalize, normalize and water down the bizarre shit that happens in the group if the outsider brings it up.
Most followers will defend their leader more fiercely than the ideology itself. Not all the time, but alot of times from what i’ve witnessed.
Also a lot of followers will bait each other into staying by harsh comparison, vying for the leader’s favor, and slurring anyone who questions the cult with terms like “traitor, nonbeliever, reprobate, you’re like them, they’ve brainwashed you, we’re your friends/family.”
This is probably too much info if youre not following the insides of the group too strongly but it does help give a framework for the types of characters your MCs will be dealing with.
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okay now i want to know the context behind that search
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exactly, haha. he now realizes but says it still weirds him out. i’m like “fair” 
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