Blog Assignment #3 - Facebook Likes... Business Dream & Nightmare

So a Facebook buddy of mine sent me a link to a video. I thought it was gonna be more "My cat did some crap" crap. Yeah I get that stuff all the time. But this one was an OMG for me.

As an author, aspiring to be published, we newbies are told that social networking is vital to our success. We are told to build followers and keep them active. And it's not just so that you can sell them your product. No, it's to prove that your product is worthy of being put in front of more viewers than just your followers. So one would ask, "How does someone show that they are successfully networking socially?" The answer is simple; "Likes".

When people show interest in your pages and posts, they click a button that has a "thumbs up" on it. This symbol is the "Like" symbol, and for some reason it has developed a monetary value.

That's right. People actually pay for likes. Facebook made a stand against "fake likes" back in 2012. It's hard to believe that something as simple as a click could cause such a stir. It's sad that we have made Facebook so important that people are spending their hard earned money to get people to click "Like". What's worse, something that should have been advertising Gold has become a Business Nightmare. Why? Because by adding monetary value to the click, we have diminished the value of the advertisement itself.

Blog Assignment #2 - Creating Myth and Lore

As I'm writing my screenplay, I'm researching vampires, angels and succubi. Vampires and angels aren't that hard. There is a lot of tales and legends about both. You'll even find people out there claiming that they are experts on these topics. While their expertise is questionable, their ability to create myth and lore fascinates me.

It is this fascination that has created a stir in my fictional world. Could you imagine creating your own myths and legends, and people viewing them as a possible reality? I would've never thought to do so, until Succubi became part of my world.

When you are dealing with a subject that has so little exposure, you tend to wonder where to start with character development. In all honesty, the majority of exposure to succubi comes from erotica and porn. The idea of a sex demon doesn't generally have a place in literary fiction; or even most genres. But what if there was more to a sex demon than just sex?

So I'm starting to work on my myths. It shouldn't be too hard since there aren't a lot of famous Succubus stories out there. The only thing I've come across that many have heard of is a Canadian series called "The Lost Girl". I think I'm going to watch it so I can make sure I'm not going too outrageous with the Succubi. It just makes sense to understand what the people who know about succubi know. Even with all of the research, I have to come to a place where my myth and lore is unique, and stands apart from what is known.

So even with my research, I must remember rule #1 - Creation... Not Duplication.

Blog Assignment #1 - Research... Or Just Plain Fun

It's time for me to do a little research for my screenplay. I spend as much, if not more, time researching for my screenplay, as I spend writing it. The theme, plot points, settings and characters in this piece require more research than most of my pieces.

Why is that? Because I'm not a sexually driven person (contrary to the believe of my readers), nor am I a serial killer. But to make my stories believable, I have to convince my readers that it's possible I am and that's why my characters and stories are so good.

So for sex and sexiness, I turn to the same place most women do... Cosmopolitan Magazine. Not only do I read the magazine itself, but I follow a few of the blogs. My favorite is the Best Sex Ever blog.

I like this blog because it makes sex less mundane, and gives new ideas to spice up my characters' sex lives. It's not about porn, erotica or smut. Although, at times it feels like the writer is looking very unrealistically at sex, for the sake of shock value. But since I'm not trying to duplicate what they write, it's still a good source for a fresh outlook on sex. It's all about bringing characters closer, pushing stories forward or giving a serial killer her Modus Operandi.

That's right... Sex as the serial killer's M.O. or "method of operation" (English translation of Modus Operandi). I learned the term on my favorite TV show "Criminal Minds". Not only did I become aware of the world of serial killers, but became fascinated.What I discovered was that when creating killers, you have to let go of all pleasantries and realize that you are dealing with the scum of the earth. So to keep the realism, without actually committing murders, it's important to read about them. I do a lot of my research using blogs like "The World Of Serial Killers".

This blog exposes it's readers to  many cases of serial killers. As well as gives information about famous serial killers, like Jeffrey Dahmer (Pictured left). These articles and stories start me on research mode for M.O., victimology and signatures from which I can create psychological details from my characters. Understanding how the minds of killers of all levels work, can create a level of realism that won't just flow naturally without research.

Now I know that you are probably disturbed by the content I have researched thus far. But truth be told, I research pretty much everything, prior to writing anything. And when I'm feeling that my writing muscles just need a bit of exercise, I like blogs with prompts and writing tips that I can practice. One blog that I really like is "The Write Practice". Tips like "When You Don’t Know What to Write, Write About Your Insecurities" you have a great guide to keeping your writing pretty fresh.

So as a whole, blogs are a great source for research information. But remember, you are reading a person's thoughts, and topics that they researched. So it's not always the best source for all topics. All in all though, it can be pretty fun doing your research with blogs... Especially all of Cosmo's blogs.

Oh well... Back to my writing.