The GDP Series

The GDP Series is series of Sentinel fiction by Susan Foster, and one of the first popular Sentinels and Guides are Known AUs. "GDP" stands for "Guide Development Program."
It popularized many tropes that are now associated with both the AU as a whole and the related Sentinel AU in other fandoms. The series and its worldbuilding has also generated quite a bit of controversy regarding the fic's depiction of slavery, BDSM, domestic discipline, and the definition of gen.
Fan commentary is one reason why some of the stories are no longer available.
==About the Series==
===Summaries===
From the summary on the first story's page: 
 
The TV Tropes description: 
===Lists and Primers===
* the list of GDP stories at Cascade Library; all fics were originally posted online; a few were collected later into some print zines: see Susan's Sentinel Stories.
Some stories are no longer available as the author removed some due to fan discussion. 
* 
==Influence and Legacy==
The GDP Series was very influential in the conception of Sentinels and Guides are Known AUs, as well as the Sentinel AU in other fandoms. Some tropes, vocabulary, and themes are so common that some readers of Sentinel AUs are often under the mistaken impression that these are concepts inherent to The Sentinel as a show.
===Tropes===
*Genetically determined Dominance Hierarchies
*Bonding, and a period of isolation for the bond to take
**"After the initial bonding, sentinels and guides require a period of isolation together to confirm and strengthen their bond. This isolation should last a minimum of seven to 14 days, during which time the Sentinel will be particularly protective of his or her guide. The Sentinel will confront anyone who seems to threaten his/her "ownership" of the guide... The sentinel and guide generally settle into their bond and work through their differences during this period."
*Sentinel possessiveness and ownership
**"It is recommended that during this time no one attempt to talk to or touch the guide. He or she is considered by the sentinel to be his or her "property" and at this early stage of the relationship detection of another's scent on the guide could cause a violent reaction. Case history ....."
*Bond reestablishment
**"During their lifetime together, Sentinel and Guide will reaffirm their bond on a regular basis. This is especially so when either Sentinel or Guide is sick or injured."
*Specific 'powers' (and side effects) for Guides themselves.
**"When bonding, the empathic guide completely lowers all the natural barriers that shield him or her from the emotions of the people around them. While this enables them to become sensitised to their sentinel and capable of feeling their emotions, it also leaves the guide totally vulnerable to ambient emotion. A touch from a person not the sentinel can cause extreme pain. Because this pain would be transmitted to the sentinel, whose protective instincts are already on the alert, the sentinel is to be considered very dangerous. There have been cases reported when a bonding sentinel has killed someone who touched the guide, causing pain. When the bond has been sealed, the guide will again raise the emotive barriers and can be safely approached."
*Only a bonded Guide can calm down their Sentinel
**"An enraged, bonded sentinel is genetically programmed to respond only to his or her bonded guide."
* Intense emotional bonding that comes with a warning
===Vocabulary===
The series introduced many terms that have been used in other fanworks. 
*Sentinels and Guides are Known
*Senior Sentinel Prime 
*Dark Sentinel 
*Dark Guide 
*Claimed and Marked
*Rogue Guide
*Empathic pathways
*Reaffirming the bond
==Fanworks inspired by GDP Series==
Despite the fact the series is gen (though some say only nominally), most of the fanworks it has inspired are slash. Both of those are represented in this list, along with responsefic: 
* Conforming to Requirements (slash) by Fluterbev ("In a society where Sentinels are prized, and the inferior status of Guides is enshrined in law, Sentinel Jim Ellison doesn't want to Bond. His rental Guide isn't allowed to.") (includes podfic)
* Control Issues (slash) by Litgal ("In a world that knows, loves, respects, but doesn't trust its Sentinels, Jim is determined to hide his abilities. He won't submit to a guardian ad litem having custody of him in a legal system that ranks him on the same level as a child. He will not give up his control, not to anyone.")
* Exile (gen) by Java Head ("A 14-year old Blair is a rogue runaway empath in search of his true Sentinel.")
* Fate's Fallout (slash) by KC ("I've admired Susan Foster's AU GDP series for a long time, and found it refreshingly original, very inspiring. This story is based loosely upon that.")
* stories by Arnie (gen) but just barely
* Sentinel Corps by Rogue
* Planet of the Sentinels by Saul
* Latchstrings by Becky (2003) - according to one review, "This is another in the genre (yes, it's becoming a genre) of fanfic inpired by the GDP series...Kathryn A: Kathryn Andersen: 
*Boot by fingers
*Reflections in the Mirror series
**Grasping at Shadows by Maedoc.
==Reception & Reactions==
===Unknown Date===
===1999===
===2000===
===2001===
===2003===
===2004===
===2006===
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===2010===
===2011===
===2012===
===2014===
===2016===
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==External Links==
*The GDP series on TV Tropes
* Susan Foster's GDP Series
* The Sentinel Primer
* Dark Guide Series
==Notes & References==
===Notes===
===References===
Category:Sentinel FanfictionCategory:2019 Featured Articles