Comicality

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Soooooo pretty! Sighhh....

Now, when I talk about creating a sense of 'dread' in your writing, whether it be drama, thriller, horror, sci-fi, or romance...I'm not always talking about something life threatening or earth shattering every single time. It's not about action. It's not about gore, or heartbreak, or terror. The concept of dread, in my opinion, is much more evident in its subtlety than in its delivery of some major occurrence or surprise twist. The most effective way to use 'dread' in your stories is as a build up to something bigger. And sometimes...it can be used for character development by not having any real payoff at all. It simply gives the illusion of a payoff by tapping into certain triggers that your readers may not even know that they have until you present them to your audience...face to face. Or...errr...screen to eyeballs. Whatever. Hehehe! It's a technique that I really like to use from time to time. It changes the mood and the tone of a scene into something that's extremely uncomfortable for your protagonist, and ultimately ends up increasing your readers' involvement and investment in the story itself. So, the question for this particular article is...what is a true sense of dread, and how do we best use it to entice our readers to the edge of their seats? Let's see if I can pull this one off without being too confusing. Hehehe! For me? I like to think of dread in a way that splits three ways. The typical methods of writing that I'm sure we've all been taught or have experienced somewhere while beginning our own journeys into learning about conflict. What are these three conflicts? Man vs man. Man vs society. Man vs self. We've all heard that before, right? They're three major conflicts of every story that you've ever read in one way or another. Well, the art of creating dread in your writing rests just on the outskirts of those three well known concepts, and lures people in to eventually get wrecked by whatever surprises you may have for them later. Used correctly...they can be a powerful weapon in your toolbox of personal tricks. Let's begin with the first one. This is simple enough, right? It's man vs man. Your protagonist is a person with a goal, your antagonist is someone with an opposite goal, or is standing in the way as an obstacle. Now, you may have this conflict play ut in the form of an explosive argument, or a fist fight, or a shoot out...whatever. But the dread exists in the mere threat of having this antagonist be a part of your story. It doesn't have to be an immediate threat, either. Like I said...the feeling of dread can be introduced with the mere presence of a potential threat...and nothing more. I want to show you guys this scene from "No Country For Old Men" to use as an example. This is one of the most INTENSE scenes in this entire film! And it comes, quite simply, from a feeling of utter dread. To look at it from afar...a man is at a gas station in the middle of nowhere, engaging the clerk in a conversation. He's eating peanuts. He flips a coin. But just listen to the dialogue and study the perfectly delivered performances by both actors. (BRAVO!) Something so simple, so seemingly mundane...can be transformed into something truly terrifying to the point where you may not even notice that you were holding your breath until he takes his hand off of the coin on the counter. Because we, as the audience, know that he is a heartless killer who doesn't give two shits about who he might decide to kill on a whim. We know who he is and we know what he's capable of. This fact puts the store owner in a level of danger that he senses, but isn't fully aware of. We feel for him. Check this out, and see if you can pick up on how scary this really is... That is exactly what I'm talking about. No heated language, no raised voices, no weapons...just a very intense conversation between two individuals who are trying to figure one another out in the short time that they're spending together in the same space. This is dread. It's...the horror movie where you know the monster is lurking in the basement, or the killer is in the woods. It's the love rival that you know is beautiful enough, devious enough, to steal the love interest away from your main character if he really wanted to. Dread lies in the shadows behind every bright light, and can be heard in every shaky voice or hesitation to answer the question of 'where were you last night?' While writing the story, "Savage Moon"...my protagonist falls in with a really menacing group of potentially bad kids from the area surrounding the campsite. However, it isn't all horror and abuse. Quite the opposite. 'Wesley' gets drawn in with a certain level of kindness and understanding that he's never really experienced before. He's enticed into exploring some of the more taboo parts of himself, and whether he wants to admit it or not...he likes it. However, the feeling of dread doesn't come from the friendship. It doesn't come from some of the darker actions of his group. It comes from brief, but definitive, acts of aggression that are so 'under the radar' that Wesley is encouraged to write them off as not being anything big enough to worry about. But the dread is still there. Always present. Always looming over him. And when he finds out what he's really gotten himself into...he realizes that he's already come too far to take it back. This is created through a feeling of dread in the writing. Cyrus can do with an ominous comment or a particularly wicked tilt of a smile what some stories can't do with chapters worth of outbursts and blatant threats to the protagonist. If you practice with this...you'll find that it's a highly effective way of engaging your readers indeed. Number two...man vs society. I can remember working in the heart of downtown Chicago when 9/11 happened. I'll never forget it. Because the morning that it happened and people were forced to basically evacuate the city and go home, the only thought in my mind was..."Are we going to be hit next?" They didn't tell us anything, because nobody knew anything at the time. This had never really happened before. That has an entire context of dread on its own. But, as an example...let me skip forward a few weeks to a month after that fateful day... I still don't really know what happened, but I think some kind of phone line had been cut, or there was some weird glitch in the system, and all of downtown Chicago couldn't use any credit or debit card machines. No ATMs, nothing. There were whispers that it was another terrorist attack, but that was mostly just paranoia from being on edge for so long. However, we couldn't ring people up for the products that they wanted to buy because their cards wouldn't work. We tried to write down the numbers and prices to charge them later, but even that was a monumental task in itself. And what was happening was...people had parked in public parking lots and couldn't get their cars out to go home at the end of the day. Nobody was used to carrying cash anymore, so they were unable to get lunch, or buy their morning coffee. After a few long hours of this, people began to throw tantrums. They were rendered completely helpless by the fact that their daily routine had been uprooted by a simple malfunction in the middle of a major metropolitan city...and there was nothing that they could do about it. When I think about dread in terms of man vs society...that could mean being a woman during the Salem witch trials, or being Jewish during the Holocaust...but it can also be the simple act of realizing that our entire civilization is basically balancing itself on a single pole in a high wind. How hard would it be for everything we know, everything that we depend on as human beings, to suddenly fall apart and leave us stranded and unable to figure out what to do next? Something as simple as being openly gay and moving to a small town in the Bible belt of America where such a thing is not allowed can be a serious lesson in dread itself. What do you do? How would you react to suddenly watch society collapse all around you without a moment's notice, forcing you to fight your way out of it when you have never been faced with that kind of problem before? Even then...how would your friends react, individually? Your family? Your classmates? Your best friends? Can you trust them? We may not stop to think about it for more than a few fleeting moments at a time, but if 2020 and the pandemic has taught us anything at all...it's that the rules and civility that we abide by every day can come crashing down around us at any moment. Whether it's a deadly virus, a plane flying into the Twin Towers, or the simple shut down of being able to use a credit card when you go to work on a random Tuesday. And the questions is...then what? This creates a feeling of dread. I know that I often use action or horror clips as demonstrations, because these ideas are often exaggerated and easy to absorb, but the effect in your writing is the same. Here is a clip from the Zack Snyder remake of the classic "Dawn Of The Dead" movie. Take a look, and think about what you would do, personally, if you were suddenly thrust into this situation without warning. In a society full of maniacs who have abandoned all sense of their own humanity...trying to maintain your sanity makes YOU the 'crazy' one! And that brings us to number three, and what I personally feel is the most frightening concept of the group. And that is man vs self. To me...that is a concept that should chill you to your very bone when you look inward and really put some thought into it. Every single day...all around the world...people hurt other people. They kill people, dismember the bodies, and bury them in a hole...hoping not to get caught. They cheat on their loved ones, they rob and steal from one another. They set entire houses ablaze, abuse their own children, plot to take over someone else's job, or assault random people in the streets. It happens. But...what is going on in their heads? It CAN'T be the natural order of things...all of this hatred and violence. So what are they thinking? What is that voice inside of their heads telling them to do? How is it persuading them to act this way? And are they aware of the conflict within them? Or does it not seem like a conflict at all? I mean...who can you trust if you can't trust yourself, right? To use as an example...this is a clip from the streaming miniseries, "Them". Now, I LOVE horror and thriller and stuff, but I actually found this show to be truly unsettling in some parts. Imagine a very old school racist suburban neighborhood, terrorizing a new family that moves in looking for a better life. BUT...this show feels a lot like Stephen King's, "The Shining"...with Pennywise the clown from "IT" thrown in...but in full minstrel show blackface. And it knows the inner workings of the protagonist's mind as well as his whole family. And it pushes him. It pushes, and pushes, and pushes...trying to get him to reach a breaking point. Excellent series, if you haven't seen it. But in this scene, it is a perfect example of creating dread within the 'man vs self' dynamic. Again...it's the lure that makes it work. The enticement. That voice inside your head that whispers (NOT shouts...but whispers)...'Do it. You know you want to. Do it.' I can't think of anything more frightening than not being able to trust that voice inside of your own mind that has been pretending to have your best interest at heart for your entire life. It's just plain friggin' creepy! This is a technique that I've used a lot in my "Gone From Daylight" vampire series, where my protagonist has been gifted with an immense amount of power...but there are certain parts of it that he can't tap into without being completely corrupted by them. Parts that feel sooooo GOOD to him when he experiences it for the first time...a previously bullied and abused teen, who now has the ability to crush any and all of his enemies with ease if they dare to approach him. But the thrill of using that power comes at a mental and emotional cost. He begins to hurt people. He begins to scare the ones that he cares about, even when he's trying to protect them. And there is still that whisper in his ear telling him to keep going. Get stronger. More power. MORE! And he has to struggle with himself to keep it from swallowing him whole and forcing him to lose his humanity in the process. Again...this creates a level of dread in the story. Because the readers have to wonder how long it will be before some imminent threat will apply enough pressure, or get enough leverage, over the main character...before he's forced to tap into the darkest parts of himself to overcome it? Only time will tell. SO...I hope this article made some sense to you guys. Maybe the examples worked to help demonstrate what I was talking about. And remember that dread exists on the outer rim of the major conflicts of your story. Use it as a form of escalation. Let your readers know that 'danger lurks'...but this isn't the main blitz on your protagonist and his/her journey through the plot. It's an intensely stated 'hint' of what's to come later. It creates menace and an intimidating appeal to your antagonist and the world that they inhabit. These rules can be demonstrated on a much larger scale if you see the need to do so. And they can be demonstrated on a much smaller scale if you see the need to. The goal is to engage your audience and get them all riled up about a major conflict that hasn't even happened yet. That is the power of dread! Learn it well! Best of luck to you all! And happy writing!

Full disclosure...this one kinda creeped me out a bit! (Shivers)

Hehehe, remember wet dreams? I guess this question is mostly for the men reading, but if you're female, I'd be really curious to know if you had erotic dreams growing up as well! Because I have no idea if it works in the same way or not. But do you guys remember being a teenager, or maybe even younger, and having those incredibly intense dreams that caused you to 'lose it' before you were able to wake up in time to stop it? Hehehe! I certainly do! As alluring as the idea of eternal youth may sound...I don't EVER want to go through puberty again! Omigod...not ever! But, for nostalgia's sake (Or for some of my younger readers, current events), do you remember any particular wet dreams that you've had in the past? Who was it about? And what did you do afterward? Was it someone you knew? How do you approach them the next day? Did you have to clean your sheets up in the middle of the night? What do you think triggered that particular dream? Tell us whatever you feel comfortable telling us! Write me a story! I bet it'll end up being really hot! Hehehe! This time around, we're talking wet dreams! And if any of you ladies have experienced anything similar in your formative years...let us know! I'm SO curious about that! All comments are welcome! Anonymous ones too! Give us some wet dream fantasies when you can! I'm writing a short story about this, and it's almost done. But it would be cool to hear about some of your fantasies too! Answer away! And I'll seezya soon!

https://gayauthors.org/story/comicality/picturemeandyou/ A brand new chapter of the series "Picture Me And You" has just been posted! So check it out, and let me know what you think when you get a chance! K? I'd love ya for it! MWAH!!! Seezya soon!

"Picture You And Me 14" Rory and I made our way out into the middle of the park somewhere so we could find a spot just for ourselves. The lawn was pretty full tonight, but I managed to discover a nice little patch of land in the middle of it all, where we could see the outdoor screen clearly and still feel like we had a little bit of privacy...you know? I noticed Rory giggling quietly to himself as I put my hand out to stop him from just sitting down in the grass and the dirt. I

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"I hadn't even realized how much trouble I had gotten myself into...until I felt that first punch land directly on the side of my left cheek...sending me reeling back against the high school lockers. I really should learn to keep my mouth shut." Now, I'm going to assume what the heck is going on with those past few sentences. Hehehe! Rightfully so. What is going on? Who just got punched in the face? Who hit him? And WHY? Well, as I've said in earlier articles, the answer from me as a writer, to you guys as my readers, is always the same. 'Keep reading and find out!' Looking at those two brief sentences, you might think that this was taken from somewhere in the middle of some story that you've never read before, and therefore have no context for what the hell is going on here. But you'd be wrong. This is an example of what could very well be the beginning of a brand new story. And with just two sentences, all of those questions above instantly come into play, hopefully hooking a new reader and hold them hostage until they're far enough into my story to decide whether they want to keep reading or not. Will everybody suddenly be drawn in and keep reading all the way to the end? No. That's not guaranteed. But, at least for those first few paragraphs...I've got their attention. All I have to do now is let the rest of the story sell itself. That's the beauty of the first paragraph. You can begin your story anywhere that you want to...so why not start things off with a bang. I'd like to talk about creating a first paragraph that will intrigue your readers right off the bat, and get them to invest some time and energy into learning more. Because, more times than not...a strong beginning is just as important, if not more so, than a strong ending. So, let's get started. What we all have to remember as writers is that a lot of readers, especially online, have a very short attention span. How many of you guys have read a few stories, checked your social media multiple times, and consumed a variety of Youtube videos, in the past couple of hours alone. Some of you may even stop reading this article halfway through for a moment to go and check what's going on in the world of Facebook. Hehehe! It's like...you sensed a disturbance in the force or something, and can't stay away. We're all heavily distracted at all times. The only thing that you can do is be a better distraction than the rest of the distractions rattling around in the heads of your readers. And you've only got a short amount of time to do that before they start to wander. This is where 'the game' comes in. Using the example above, I could have easily started with my main character waking up in bed one morning before school. And that would have been a totally acceptable beginning paragraph. Readers get introduced to this new character, learn his name, get an idea of what he looks like and what his life is like at home. He cleans up, gets dressed, has some breakfast, hops on the bus, gets to school...and then gets confronted by some other boy who's been bullying him for the past few weeks. The boy is bigger and stronger than my protagonist, but he refuses to give him the satisfaction of feeding the bully with the fear that's he so desperately searching for. And then...POW! He gets punched in the face and falls back against the school lockers. This can work as an effective beginning to a story, sure. nothing wrong with that. But look at how long it took me just to give you extremely shortened, underdeveloped, version of the story. The people reading my story might have a cell phone sitting next to them, the TV on in the background, and probably some music playing in his or her headphones, all at the same time. Are they going to really focus on my main character brushing his teeth and eating eggs and toast for breakfast? Do they want to hear about his bus ride? Are they going to be locked in long enough to hear about his history with the school bully? ::Shrugs:: Maybe. Some will. It's not outside the realm of possibility. But what happens if I start my story with a direct punch to the face? A shock to the system? A reason for my audience to let the record skip and think, "Wait! What the fuck did I just MISS???" Do I have they're attention now? Good! Now...let's work backwards, and you can find out all of that other stuff in retrospect. Do you sort of get what I'm saying here? Sometimes, you just have to grab a reader by the collar and get them invested with a scene that inspires them to get more information. And how do they do that? Keep reading and find out! I'm actually proud to say that I've gotten a lot better at this since I first started. I think the first question to ask yourself as an author is...'what is my story about?' Like, an overview of what you want to do with your story and where you want it to go. Maybe you're writing a story about forbidden love, or about the first settlement on Mars, or the creepy neighbors that just moved in next door. Whether you're writing about loss, or chasing the dream of being a superstar, or just wanting a romance with someone that you think might be way out of your league...think about that, define it, and drop your readers right into the thick of it. Right away. Not in a major way that's going to spoil anything for later, but in a way that immediately connects to the main theme of your story. Let's say that the example above is a story about a gay boy in high school who's dealing with bullying and intense violence. Ok. Great. Let's start there. In two sentences, it's established that the main character is dealing with an antagonist who has no problem beating him up. We also find out that the protagonist must have said something to instigate this action by his reaction of 'learning to keep his mouth shut' or 'getting himself into trouble'. At least the way that he sees it. What is the story about? It's about the conflict between this boy and his bully. Everything before that takes time to flesh out...and every story doesn't have to go that route. Sometimes, you can just jump in with both feet and get things started. Now, after that...maybe you can have the protagonist being comforted by his best friend, or he might go home and his parents see him with black eye and wand to do something to help...and that's a perfect opportunity to build on those character relationships and motivations. This is the time for the extra prose, and the history of his bullying, why it happened and what he's planning to do about it. Now you've increased your chances of an audience reading through that part of the story and fully absorbing it because you've got them interested already. Every minute that someone spends reading your story...it gets more and more difficult for them to back out of it and go do something else. This is why so many stories can feel so addictive. You're invested now. You want to know what happens next. You HAVE to know what happens next! This, like I said before, is 'the game'. Think of it as lighting a bunch of small candles in a dark room. Lighting just one candle isn't going to illuminate the whole area...but you get to see a little bit more than you did before. So you light a second candle. Then a third. Then a fourth. And with every tiny flame...you begin to discover more and more details about the room that you're standing in. Pictures on the walls. Windows. Doors. Floorboards. Playing the game with your first paragraph is no different. ONE lit candle in a pitch black room is an immediate draw for anyone in the room with you. It's a focal point that blocks out everything else. Now...what will your second candle be? Oh...he has a best friend that really cares about him, but isn't big enough to keep him from being bullied. You get a little more detail. Third candle? His mother worries about him coming home with bruises on his face, but he's ashamed to admit what's going on at school, so he rejects her attempts to soothe him. Fourth candle? Maybe his father comes home from work, and he's embarrassed to see that his son has gotten beaten up again. He wants his son to stand up for himself, and it only adds to the main character's shame for not being able to do so. And so forth and so on. The idea is to snatch your reader's attention with an exciting jump off point, and holding their attention long enough for you to 'light another candle' and draw them in further. Don't give them too much! Just let the story unfold a little bit at a time for right now. Let them learn about your characters and figure out what's going on. And when you're done with whatever new detail that you've decided to feed them with...add a little bit more. By the time you've built an adequate foundation for your story, they'll be too invested to turn away from it. That first paragraph means a LOT to a story, especially if you're drawing in brand new readers who have had no previous experience with you up until that very moment. Catch them first...and then proceed to string them along, allowing their own curiosity to carry them further into the story that you're trying to tell. Let your details 'swell' gradually. While reading your initial intro to this world and your characters, your audience should be learning something new every few paragraphs. They should be thinking, 'Oh. Well, there's something else that I know. Oh, and something else. Ohhhh...that's why he got punched in the face. Wait...ok, I get it. Well his best friend seems cool. At least he's not alone in all this.' Etc etc... One thing you DON'T ever want to happen is for someone to start reading your story and think, 'Where is this going?' You should be giving them hints as to where things are going right from that first paragraph. If your story is about bullying...then start there. If you story is about losing a loved one...start at the funeral, and work backwards through memories or flashbacks. Take what your readers will instantly cling to as something relatable and provocative...and use that to hook them without trying to build up to it with any filler. In my older stories, I would have my main characters practically introduce themselves through some sort of self narration, explain where they are and how old they are, and I'd go through the agony of having to inform my audience that they were gay, and feel different, and struggle to keep it a secret. Nowadays? I try to avoid that as much as possible. If the point of my story is creating a romance...then I start with the main character already being in love. Done. "I can't help but stare at him." Those seven words might be my whole first paragraph. Can't help it? Stare at who? Why or why not? Readers engaged...now let's get on with it. In the story, "My Only Escape", I have Zack rushing home after school to keep from receiving another beating from his abusive father. In "Give It To Me Straight", the protagonist has a huge crush on a straight boy from school. So let's start in the middle of a high school party where he's watching him from across the room. Whether it be a short story or a long series...let's get started with the interesting stuff and build it up as we go along. Let the audience grow with you and your characters. Do that? And they're more likely to stick around for a while and make it to the end. So make sure your story ending is up to par! Hehehe! They won't be expecting anything less! But that's a lesson for another day! Anyway, that's all for today! Just remember to catch your readers with the kind of literary 'bait' that is significant enough to warrant more of their attention as you bring them into your story, and build your world around them. Keep lighting those candles! It'll be worth it, trust me! Take care! Hope this helps! And I'll seezya soon!

More horror short goodies for Halloween! My next 13 faves will be posted in the next issue of Imagine Magazine on the 15th! So don't miss them! It'll be a spooky good time! ::Giggles::

::Giggles:: Trust me...there is NO better feeling in the world than getting an extremely reluctant nod of approval from the skeptics! It fills my heart with joy, it really does. Now, I understand...totally. You hear the words 'sci-fi', or 'horror', or something like that, and you just figure..."I'm not interested. Like at all." Makes total sense to me, and no hard feelings. BUT... You guys already know the stories I write. You know me. You've seen me stay consistent with whatever it is that I do. What would make you think these 'other' stories would be any different? Not to brag...but people who have written to me and said they were not interested in vampire stories have become the BIGGEST "Gone From Daylight" fans ever! Same with the werewolves in "Savage Moon", or the zombie apocalypse story in "Shelter", or even with the new fantasy story "The Plateau". I don't sit at this keyboard for hours on end writing garbage. I promise you. Hehehe! So...if you're waiting on another teen romance story to be posted...maybe try checking out one of the other stories. They're gay teen romance stories too. Trust me...you'll be able to feel the 'Comsie' within them once you get started. I can do both. And I plan to do so, starting Monday! My Imagine Magazine stuff is almost all done...and then we get to work! In a major way! The Shacker Dark stories will be weaved in with everything else now, so enjoy! And I'll seezya soon! You've got no idea what you're missing right now! Read 'em all! Collect them like Pokemon! You'll be happy that you did! Hahaha!

Youtube decided to start censoring all gay teen short films, and wiping out all favorite lists that include anything that MIGHT make the gay youth feel okay and normal about who they are. Just out of nowhere, for no reason. Saying that it violated their 'child safety' rules and regulations. But that's bullshit! So I'll be posting ALL of the stuff that I had suddenly 'removed' from my youtube account without warning. You guys please feel free to stop me when you find a short film that you think is 'dangerous' (Their words, not mine) for gay teens. K? What's so offensive about liking and sharing the stuff that I find on Youtube? Why am *I* getting a strike on my account??? Wednesday is now "Gay Like Me" short film day. Since 'shame' is the agenda for those who don't have to live with it these days. Every week! Every Wednesday! I'll be right here with another one! FUCK those people! Seriously! These are all gay short films that I had on my account that, for some reason, they found so dangerous and offensive. Like I said...you tell me what YOU think about them, and why they needed to be erased from my account. Is *THIS* what they were so afraid of??? Maybe I'm missing something here. Enjoy! This week's Short Gay Film - "Two Little Boys"

It took FOREVER since dumb ass people would rather STAB or SHOOT somebody (literally MURDER someone!!!) than wear a mask or take a free vaccine shot...sighhhh... I weep for humanity... Anyway, hospitals are full of people sick with Covid, so it took me almost two months to see a doctor and figure out what's going on with me. So far it was just a bunch of tests and conversations, but I hope to find out why I keep getting sick, and hopefully can find some medicine or something to help me get better. If I have to go back a second time, who knows WHEN that will be...but from what she said, it doesn't sound super serious. I mean, it's serious...but not, like...'quality of life' hospice, serious. Which is a LOT of weight off of my mind!!! Because I was really worried for a while. I'm not invincible. And I'd like to think that I still have many more years ahead of me. So that's good news. Anyway, I'm feeling good now! And that means...Bob Sinclair and my fave party boy get a play on Comsie's Jukebox! ::Giggles:: Seezya soon! I'll keep you updated when I get any word! Love you lots! ((Hugz)) It would be awesome to feel better again!

Good points made!

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::Old Timey Radio Voice:: "Lois is trapped underground and tied up next to the bomb! Jimmy Olsen is being held captive by the gangsters from the underground syndicate! And Clark Kent can't leave the Daily Bugle in time to rescue them without giving away his secret identity!!! Can Superman possibly HOPE to save the day??? Hehehe...umm, of course he can! He's freakin' Superman! Duh! I remember being in the college dorms with my roommates and some of our friends, discussing which characters in fictional folklore it would be near IMPOSSIBLE to write a compelling and interesting story about if we had to...no matter how much money was being tossed our way for it. And my very first thought, and ultimate answer, was Superman. To this day, I think I would have a difficult time trying to write a Superman story with any kind of 'stakes' involved, because...well...he's Superman. You wont find a more impenetrable version of plot armor in any character than you will with the son of Krypton. He's invincible, he's insanely fast, he has eye lasers, he has frost breath, you can run from him, you can hide from him, he's got X-Ray eyes...WTF? And the thing is...people who love Superman WANT that from him! They won't stand for anything less. No weakness, no conflict, no corruption...none of that. Unh unh! Superman is Superman, and that's all there is to it. I, personally, have problems with that idea when it comes to writing a story. Not just for the main characters, but for the characters surrounding them. I feel like super overpowered characters make it extremely difficult to create feelings of tension or provide any real sense of danger or conflict when it comes to bringing an audience into my world and getting them invested in the idea that my main characters might actually lose in the end. I mean, seriously...who cringes when Superman gets punched in the face? However, when you see Jackie Chan make a near impossible jump from one rooftop to another, throw himself down a flight of steps, and nearly get IMPALED on a bed of spikes??? It's like, "JESUS!!!" That's what I want in my stories! Those gasps and cringes and true worry when it comes to the main characters that has an impact that almost makes you forget that the 'story' is supposed to make them invincible. Hehehe! I have been a movie buff my entire life. I was sooooo little when I was introduced to film, and I can seriously remember being totally vulnerable to the idea that the heroes in my favorite movies could actually die or come to serious harm. I hadn't become movie savvy yet, and that gave these stories an entirely different level of breathless excitement when I watched them! The whole house could have caught fire in the middle of one of these movies, and I would have kicked and screamed and thrown a full blown tantrum if I didn't get to see what happened next. Why? Because I had no real vision of 'plot armor' at that age. The concept was beyond me. And, for a long long time...I kind of missed it. Watch this video below. I wasn't much older than the boy watching "Return Of the Jedi" for the very first time in his life...and I can remember feeling the EXACT same way when he was facing off against the Emperor! I mean...how do you even battle something like that??? An emotional time, indeed. And this was at a time when I was under the assumption that no one was safe, no matter how cool or important they may be to the story or franchise itself. This is an extremely difficult trick to pull off in stories these days. As always, people are more savvy to all of the smoke and mirror tactics that writers and filmmakers have used in the past...and that means that we, as writers, are all facing new challenges when it comes to creating a sense of urgency and loss in the stories that we tell. Especially when it comes to characters who may come off as overpowered to the readers who dive in to check your story out. Now...when I say 'overpowered'...that doesn't just mean some hunky super hero or magical fantasy wizard. This works in general, down-to-earth, fiction as well. Overpowered can mean a guy who is obscenely famous, extremely wealthy, outrageously gorgeous, or insanely popular. A character who seems to be lacking any visible flaws at all. How do you beat that? What do you do? Having your protagonist struggle with that and slowly begin to figure out ways to get around what seems so unbelievably unavoidable in terms of being a challenge to the 'un-challengeable'...will make for an EXCELLENT story! Readers always love to root for the underdog, after all! Going back to the whole Superman idea...I distinctly remember seeing the final trailer for the "Man Of Steel" movie just before it was released, and I was soooooo impressed! It was, like...they solved the biggest problem of all! How do you hurt someone who can't be physically damaged in any possible way? And watching this trailer gave me an explosion of hope that they might actually be able tackle this problem the way it needed to be tackled. You're not going to be able to hit, stab, shoot, burn, blow up, Superman. It just won't work. BUT...if you can really hit him where it hurts the most? Then you'll win every time. Superman cares about humanity. His heart is his greatest weakness, and always has been. And by attacking the people that he loves...his plot armor doesn't really mean much. And that is where you, as a writer, can find opportunities to inject feelings of dread and danger into your story. Something tense that will keep your readers on the edge of their seats, even though their main hero is invulnerable to being taken out of the game prematurely. So this trailer really caught my attention. This is what Superman fears most. Being exposed. Having people hurt because he wasn't able to save them. Knowing that his very presence is a threat in itself. Brilliant! 0 0 0 If you want to write a compelling story and keep people locked in (And maybe piss off a few people along the way...it happens...), take the plot armor off. If you can't do it for your main character, then do it for the characters that he or she cares about most. This is where building up the personalities and interactions with your side characters will come in handy. Make people love them. Care about them. Want them to make it through towards the whole 'happily ever after' in the long run. And then threaten the stability of that dream by putting them in danger and stressing your readers out with situations that your main, overpowered, protagonist could easily solve on their own...but aren't there to do so. I hope that makes sense. For me? In the vampire story, "Gone From Daylight", the main character, Justin, is definitely powerful enough to do a LOT of damage if he really wanted to. There aren't many problems that he couldn't solve within a matter of seconds if it really came down to a life or death conflict. But, one thing that I always tried to keep in mind was the fact that I really can't tell a decent story when my protagonist can simply vaporize everybody he comes across without any effort at all. I mean, where's the excitement in that? So I had to 'anchor' him somehow. Justin is 14 years old...powers and all. He's never known how to fight before. If anything, he's spent a majority of his life being a victim. He struggles with the idea of crossing over the line into a much darker side of his personality that he may not be able to come back from. He's making up all of these things as he's going along. He's no trained warrior, nor does he even fully understand what abilities he holds within him yet. There are limits on what he can do, and how he can manipulate his extras to help him out in a serious situation, but I can't just having him destroying entire Chicago neighborhoods in the blink of an eye. Hehehe, I' surprised that he gets away with as much as he has so far. However...his biggest weakness...much like with the Superman trailer above, is that he has a heart. He's suffering through trauma and heartbreak, and he's doing all that he can to be a part of a brand new family in darkness for the very first time. If anyone really wants to hit Justin where it hurts the most? They can start with the people he cares about. Which has been a running theme in this series from the very first chapter. He's overpowered, but far from invincible. And I like keeping him that way...for now. I think that 'plot armor' can create a certain flatness in a storyline. No...Harry Potter isn't going to get stabbed in the heart while he's sleeping. Captain America isn't going to get shot in the head while giving a speech to the public (Hehehe, at least not in the movies! :P), and Indiana Jones isn't going to fall off of a jeep and get run over by a TANK! I mean...we're past the age of thinking that such a thing is a possibility anymore. BUT...I have to admit that there were a few shows that completely ripped the entire concept of 'plot armor' all the way off and tossed it to the four winds! And gripped me in a way that I never thought I'd ever see again! Omigod! That feeling...that anybody could go at any time...wow! It's priceless. It creates such an intense experience when you're watching it. And while I would definitely put "Game Of Thrones" in that category...my favorite (all time FAVORITE) series that display how white knuckled tension can be created by letting the audience know that 'plot armor doesn't always exist here'? They would have to be "24" (If you've never seen "24"....WTF? You need to make that your homework! Season 6 was fucking CRAZY!!!) and "The Walking Dead"! (Again...Seasons 6 and 7? PHENOMINAL!!!) Watch those shows, and you'll see the impact of not knowing whether your favorite character was going to make it through the next 40 minutes or so. You won't regret it! 00 The whole point of this article is very simple... If you want tension, worry, paranoia, and high stakes, in your story...putting your readers through bouts of stress and discomfort (You SADISTS, hehehe!)...then remove the plot armor. If you can't do it for your main character then let the dangerous consequences of that character's actions spread to the people that he or she loves most or keeps closest to their hearts. It creates a sense of vulnerability. A chink in the armor. And that makes people uneasy. Pick at it. Tweak it. Have some fun. Hehehe, writing a really good story can be a gleefully manipulative effort some times. Enjoy it! I hope this gives you guys something to think about in the future! Happy writing! And I'll seezya soon with more!

https://gayauthors.org/story/comicality/leftwithoutwords/ Good morning, everybody! Hehehe! The sun isn't up yet, but I'm willing to bet that it's gonna be a fun sunshine day, regardless! I don't know, I'm in a good mood! Feel like sharing some of that light with the rest of you for a while! So a brand new chapter of "Left Without Words" is up today! Enjoy! Have fun! And let me know what you think when you get a chance! Cool? Seezya soon! We've got more coming your way soon! MWAH!!!

"Left Without Words 24" "Did you have breakfast this morning, Dimitry?" My mom asked. "I could easily whip something up for you if you want." "No thank you, Mama number two..." He smiled. If only you could see the way my mom turned to jelly when she heard him call her that. "Papa made sure that I ate before I left. I'm ok and full. I thank you for the offer, though." "Ok. Good to know." She said, and she, like...giggled afterward. Not like a Mom giggle either. It was weird.

Youtube decided to start censoring all gay teen short films, and wiping out all favorite lists that include anything that MIGHT make the gay youth feel okay and normal about who they are. Just out of nowhere, for no reason. Saying that it violated their 'child safety' rules and regulations. But that's bullshit! So I'll be posting ALL of the stuff that I had suddenly 'removed' from my youtube account without warning. You guys please feel free to stop me when you find a short film that you think is 'dangerous' (Their words, not mine) for gay teens. K? What's so offensive about liking and sharing the stuff that I find on Youtube? Why am *I* getting a strike on my account??? Wednesday is now "Gay Like Me" short film day. Since 'shame' is the agenda for those who don't have to live with it these days. Every week! Every Wednesday! I'll be right here with another one! FUCK those people! Seriously! These are all gay short films that I had on my account that, for some reason, they found so dangerous and offensive. Like I said...you tell me what YOU think about them, and why they needed to be erased from my account. Is *THIS* what they were so afraid of??? Maybe I'm missing something here. Enjoy! This week's Short Gay Film - "Love Unexpected"

https://gayauthors.org/story/comicality/tarynssong/ Yes, it has been a long time coming! Hehehe, so save your digital 'breath'! I already know that it's been a long time! But I'm weaving a BUNCH of these stories together, so it takes time to get them right! But thanks for being somewhat patient with me! Anyway, this is a prequel to the "Gone From Daylight" series! BUT...you can read it as a stand alone story as well! Being a "GFD" fan first is just an added bonus! Hehehe! So, have fun! And look for more from this series soon! Let me know what you think when you get a chance!