Haiku Horrors: Jenny’s Wood

In the ancient wood,
Jenny and her wolves reside.
Never search her out.

Tom of the village,
Went searching for young Jenny.
He never came back.

Villagers looking,
For Tom in the ancient wood.
All they find is death.

Those who now remain,
Set fire to Jenny’s woods.
Jenny screamed in rage.

Atop a great wolf,
She descended from the woods,
Enraged and vengeful.

Jenny’s vengeance came.
Wolves lay waste to the village,
Feasted on their flesh.

In the ancient wood,
Jenny and her wolves reside.
Never search her out.

Keeping Productive Despite The Radio Silence

So my blog’s been pretty quiet lately and I figured I ought to just post a few updates until I can get round to putting something a little more substantial together for your reading pleasure.

As for a reason why I haven’t posted anything, well I have a few. I posted up the first ten pages of a script I’ve completed which I intend to have illustrated eventually. The only thing really stopping me is finances, any money I have spare is going towards a trip to Germany sometime this October. Before that I’ll hopefully be acquiring a job so that I can make some bigger bucks in order to begin turning “Wild Thorne” into something that can be enjoyed by everyone.

The main reason for my silence on here however, is that I’m just a pretty disorganized guy and haven’t made the time. When I began blogging I wanted to make a post every day. That forced me to write something daily which has certainly helped stimulate the completion of my first chapter/issue script but it can also be unnecessary pressure when you dive into a project and lose yourself to it. I guess what I’m saying is that even when there’s radio silence on here, there’s still writing being done and those projects will always take priority no matter how much I enjoy my own rants. I’m terrible at multi-tasking.

Rather than pledging to post frequently on here, I’m just going to post when I can or when I feel like it. I have plenty of things I  want to write about and I’ll get round to them when I can so keep an eye out, I’m not disappearing for good.

In the meantime, thank you to everyone following me for sticking around! Hope you’re all having a great day and I’ll speak to you real soon!

 

 

Recommending: “The Stripling” by Helen Victoria Murray

I found the Stripling cowering under the van in my dad’s garage. They were like a stray, scared animal – a very young bird or a very old cat. They had bound their eyes up with one of my dad’s oily rags.

After my first glimpse of them, the urge to scream abated.

Hello

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The Creative Mind: Battling The Block

Creativity is a fascinating thing! There are countless possibilities to what can form in the creative mind with no limits to what a single individual can invent. Ideas can be shared universally by others but the devil is always in the details and when it comes down to the details, every idea becomes completely unique. When you consider just how much work that big old brain of yours can really do, it’s actually quite mind-boggling (pardon the pun)!

And yet, finishing a project we can be proud of is always an uphill battle. There’s always room for improvement in our work or a more efficient way to complete it but these often feel like goals that are just out of our reach. This can be due to a lack of confidence in our abilities, a sense of urgency to meet deadlines and a series of other factors. The most common problem however is that old classic; the dreaded creative/writer’s block. 

It’s the most disheartening  and infuriating experience you will ever deal with as a creator and it can strike anytime for any number of reasons. If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve already experienced it on more than one occasion and if you haven’t, I can guarantee that you will.

There’s no definitive explanation as to what causes that creative block but there are many ways for you to work around it. Some of these suggestions may tailor to you, some may not. Regardless, you’ll be much better off attempting them than you will sitting around waiting for the block to just pass of it’s own accord.

Maintain A Positive Work Space

Many people mistake this to mean “clean your room” but that isn’t strictly true. Everybody has a unique process of their own and while some may feel the need to keep everything tidy and organized, there are others (like myself) who have a more chaotic process by nature. Project notes can be neatly stacked on one work desk and scattered across another yet the results can be equally successful.

This is because both desks have one thing in common: They tailor to whoever is sitting behind them. If you prefer your working environment to be clean and organized then keep it clean and organized. If you have an alternate system that works for you then don’t deny that system. Stick to what suits you so you always have the positive mentality that can bring out your best work.

There are naturally a few limits on what’s effective for both sides of the spectrum. Depending on the size of your project, an organized individual may spend more time trying to maintain their work space than they do actually working. Meanwhile, a mountain of dirty plates and an overflowing ashtray does not count as an effective contribution to an organized mess. Whether you’re organizing everything you do or just letting it stack up in a pile, always make sure your work space is a positive environment for you.

Don’t Cram Your Schedule

Setting unrealistic deadlines while maintaining your day job/studies/social life adds to your stress until you inevitably begin glancing towards the clock while your mind wanders to the next task on your busy schedule. That time is meant for creating. Juggling your other activities simply hinders your progress and you will notice the decline in your quality of work.

If you’re taking time to work on your creative project, make that time about your project and nothing else.

If You’re Going To Procrastinate, Do It Properly

If you find yourself hindered by the block for an extended period, get out the old notepad. Write your progress so far and then rewrite it. Put the questions that you’re failing to solve onto paper and write the potential solutions around it. Just seeing those questions sitting in front of you can spur you forward unexpectedly. A whiteboard can be a surprisingly helpful ally as you fight to breach those walls.

If those questions remain unanswered, move on to the next part of your project for a time. There’s a time that comes with any unsolved problem where frustration and stress begins to hinder you further. The best solution is to take a step back for a time. Focusing the mind elsewhere an allow for your subconscious to try and put the pieces together in the background while you make progress elsewhere.

Don’t force yourself through a problem you’re not solving when there are better ways to spend that time. Being aware of your own progression is one of the most encouraging  sensations for a creator and you should hold on to that throughout your entire process. Your momentum can be slowed but it should never be allowed to stop for long.

Change Up Your Own Schedule

There is such a thing as spending too much time on your project. Powering through a creative project when you don’t feel inspired can be much more damaging than taking an extra break or two and if you force yourself to put your nose to the grindstone for too long, the passion for your work can die pretty quickly. Maintaining that creative spark is nowhere near as difficult as reigniting it.

Unfortunately, it does happen quite often. The big problem with creators is that they are usually overly eager to get their project completed and out into the world. That time will come but it won’t happen overnight. Eat, Sleep, Create, Repeat will not do you or your work any favors, you need to take time to yourself and make the rest of your life as varied and interesting as possible.

Don’t just stick to your usual recess routine, change things up as much as you can. No matter where you’re from, there is always something you haven’t done before. It doesn’t need to be anything special, you don’t even need to go anywhere sometimes. Just do something different, even something ridiculous!

Go for a run, sign up to paintball, pull an all-nighter watching bad TV, sit in a park and watch the passers-by, try new food, visit a nightclub, sing in public, go on a day trip, when was the last time you did a cartwheel? Just do something different as often as you can! Even making yourself feel like a fool will provide your mind with new stimulation. 

The creative mind craves new adventures no matter how small or silly they may seem! Be aggressive in seeking out those new adventures so that your creativity expands even further. You’ll come out on top in the end, more confident in your abilities than ever before!

Writing Exercise: “Witnessing Power”

This week I’m sticking with the theme of “Witnesses” to practice writing from alternate perspectives. Not every major event in a story needs to be told from those involved and can sometimes give greater insight when told by an outsider.

I always find it interesting seeing how regular people adjust to superheroes in stories so thought I’d take a crack at writing that kind of short story myself.

Objective: Write from the perspective of someone witnessing the use of powers they don’t understand. This can be via superheroes, supervillains or any other kind of power that is commonly perceived as unnatural.

The Cleanup Crew

I began reading comics when I was a kid and they lasted all the way into my adult life. You’d think that would give me the creative imagination to accept something like superpowers in the real world.

Unfortunately, there’s a lot the comics missed out back then. Things that you never think of, things you wouldn’t want to think of.

When they showed up on the news, it was amazing in a funny kind of way. People flying around, stopping bad guys and saving the day. We all felt like we were in a movie or something. So long as it didn’t mess with our lives, why would we care about it all beyond the entertainment?

Things started getting tense once the governments started giving them official jobs I think. It began with the term ‘civil servants’ and began to spiral downwards. Soon the “Specials” were putting the enforcement in Law Enforcement.

Even then, it wasn’t too bad. We had a few “accidents” at the start but things began to quieten down…until the war began.

I don’t remember why Europe and America came to blows but it certainly had something to do with the Specials. Their existence was more terrifying in war than a stockpile of nukes, now all we needed for that were radioactive people.
I don’t think any of the Governments were happy with that but somehow they all fell in line, at least until their armies were jam-packed  with militarized Specials.

Now I’m walking through London City. The fighting here has stopped, for a time. In another war I’d be the kind who gets drafted automatically. I should feel lucky that the Specials are around to fight my battles for me… but looking over London City I feel a weight in my stomach like I’m gonna hurl. Amongst the destruction there are men and women, casualties on both sides. They’re mainly Specials, London City was evacuated before the showdown began but that makes it worse.

You don’t know what you’re going to get when you pull up a body. They’re all burned but some don’t burn the way they’re meant to. Buckingham Palace got blown up yesterday by the glowing purple man they were carrying out. He was confirmed dead but his skin just kept glowing. They threw him onto the back of the body truck and suddenly they were blinded by complete darkness. That’s what they saw anyway but what we saw was something crazier.

One minute it’s a typical cloudy day in London, the next a dark shroud forms around the palace. The wind starts to pick up, drawing towards it and we all brace, gripping whatever we can find. My fingers felt like they were tearing off around the time I realized that it wasn’t wind.

That dead man had left us with a black hole, slap bang in the middle of Buckingham Palace.

It was gone again in seconds but when the darkness lifted, the palace was a shambles. All the men working down there weren’t just dead, they had disappeared. All but the one who told us what happened.

When they found him, he was already close to bleeding out. There was no way we were saving him, with his legs gone the only thing stemming the blood was the huge chunk of rubble that had crushed him from the waist down.

They never told us about that in the comics and it wasn’t even the worst part. The worst part was dealing with the ones who were still alive, especially if they weren’t one of ours.

An American Special called Solus had been one of the guys to lead the charge on London. A few days into the cleaning up we found him. He had a bum knee but he was alive and his temper was fierce. We followed orders to keep back and call in the Specials to take care of him.

They were good and proud about catching someone from their most wanted list, too proud to remember how dangerous he was. Not that I can blame them, we all thought his bum knee would be the end of the fight for him. Idiots.

Two of them start dragging him off explaining he’s a classic prisoner of war while four more follow close behind. Just as they’re giving the signal for us to carry on the cleanup, they get engulfed in flames. Solus goes full power, clearly he’d rather die than become a prisoner of war.

The flames miss my crew by inches but it’s getting bigger. We’re about to turn tail and run when suddenly it all goes out at once. All that’s left is Solus, passed out on the ground and six of our own writhing Specials, screaming as the flames eat through them.

This time, I really did hurl. They sure as hell never showed us anything like that in the comics…

Writing Exercise: “Change Of The Times”

 

“Change Of The Times”

Objective: Write from the perspective of someone witnessing the unveiling or testing of something new and life-changing! This can be a technological advancement, the enforcement of a new unexpected law, anything that would change how people live their lives whether it’s a big or small change.

We never seem content with the technology that we have. There was a time when the single shot muskets were considered revolutionary but these days it isn’t worth s**t if it requires both hands and doesn’t fire at least sixty rounds a minute.

Surely there’s someone out there who would prefer the traditional musket but they sure as hell aren’t going to parade around with it when they go to war.

It’s the same for me with transport. I preferred the good old days of the classic ‘car.’ Sure, it was a huge chunk of metal that we sat inside but they were simple and effective.
We had roads that navigated where we should travel and in what direction.  It wasn’t always as efficient as you’d hope – after all, almost everyone was using one at the same time – but even in it’s failings it had comforts.

You could travel yet still sit out of the rain, there were heating and air conditioning facilities, you could play music or just socialize with your family and friends who were travelling with you. It doesn’t sound like much but the way things have changed, that social outlet has been all but forgotten.

The day they showed off the hoverboard didn’t seem all that important. It was a fun, quirky little thing, sure, but nobody would actually buy one seriously! At least, that’s what I thought.

Then they started making them faster but safer, more efficient, cleaner for the environment. The second they got cheaper, everyone was buying one.

Yes, even me. I was astounded by the technology. We were practically flying! Sure, it was only a few inches of the ground but they added a design that stopped it from ever crashing. They’d implemented some kind of forcefield that encompassed not only the board, but the rider. You could see it there like some kind of blue transparent bubble that acted like a magnet against another magnet. Suddenly, transport accidents were non-existent.

Some people still drive cars but it’s not feasible anymore. There’s no jobs left for car mechanics so if you can’t fix it yourself, you’re screwed. On the bright side, there’s a pretty big surplus of leftover parts so maintenance is cheaper than ever. They don’t even consider the old parts worth melting down.

Part of me wishes I’d kept my car. Thinking on it like this makes me yearn for the chance to drive my wife and two daughters out for a camping trip. Nowadays if we want to go camping we all have our own board. The journey’s quicker but it’s silent. Then again, the girls are a older now so I doubt they’d be up for a camping trip with boring old mum and dad anyway.

Sitting with my wife now in front of the TV, – that timeless creation that never goes away – I feel a little anxious. We’re watching a live presentation by Stephen Employ, the CEO of the company responsible for the hoverboard. If he has something to show off then chances are I’ll have something brand new that I need to buy the girls.

“Ladies and gentlemen…” He begins. “The future is here!”
“He always says that.” I mutter.
“Shh.” My wife hushes me. As much as I love her, she’s that one older woman who’s constantly chasing the new generation of technology. Never mind the girls, the wife is the one who’ll want whatever this is first.
“Since the dawn of the hoverboard, gas emissions have decreased almost ninety seven percent from the age of land transportation.” Mister Employ says. “The invention of the wheel is no longer regarded as highly as it once was, for we have taken to the skies!”

The crowd there roar up in applause and my wife is sitting there, nodding to herself excitedly. As for me, I hate the build up to these things. I’m a no-nonsense guy, I’d prefer to just know what his point is. Employ raises his hands up and the crowd starts to die down.  

“But…We can still do better.” he says once everyone has fallen silent. “It has been my personal goal for years to continue creating environment friendly methods of transportation so that the damage done to this planet by our predecessors can finally begin to heal! A ninety seven percent decrease is phenomenal progress in pursuit of that goal but I did not begin this company seeking ninety seven percent…” He’s sounding emotional now but I know manipulation tactics when I see them. He’s just aiming to get the crowd riled. “…I began this company seeking the full one hundred percent, I’m seeking to rid this planet of gas emissions in it’s entirety!”

His tactics are working, he’s got the crowd cheering even louder now. He lets that one sit with them, lets them chant away, scream and shout like he’s some kind of rock God. The man’s ego doesn’t sit right with me but I can’t say much when half my life is spent using the stuff he makes.

“Well today ladies and gentlemen I have news…We’ve done it.”

A smoke machine goes off behind him and something raises out of the floor. Once the smoke settles I see it looks like some kind of shower cubicle. Without another word Mister Employ walks over to the thing. He slides open the front and steps inside it before closing it over again. A low humming sound emanates from it and suddenly there’s a flash of light.
People in the audience scream and turn away but me and my wife are leaning closer to the TV now. Did we really just see that?

Stephen Employ is now standing up close to the camera on the opposite end of the room, looking right at it like he can see the viewers at home. People in the audience around him are standing up, looking at him in awe.

“You’ve got to be f*****g kidding me!” I whisper. For once, my wife doesn’t chastise me for my profanity.

“I present to you…” Mister Employ says. “…The first working teleporter in history!”

The crowds cheer and my wife begins babbling away about it but I don’t hear her. I’m thinking back to that old car of mine. I’m thinking back to the days that transportation forced us to interact with our fellow man.

I’m also thinking that the next generation of cities probably won’t even have roads anymore.

Writing Exercise: “Eavesdropper”

Occasionally I find it refreshing to put my creativity to the test with some improv story writing. I set a theme and some basic rules then aim to write a minimum of 1000 words. This can also be an interesting group exercise to carry out with fellow writers as it’s intriguing to see how differently everybody writes based on the rules set out for the exercise.  These exercises are performed with no intention to develop the story you write but sometimes, you can unwittingly produce something that exceeds your expectations. It was through one these exercises that I came up with the idea for ” The Dream Lab.”

So I decided I’d start sharing the results of these exercises with you all. If you like the results, let me know and feel free to join in or share your own work.

The theme is “Eavesdropper.” The rules are simple: Write from the perspective of a character that does NOT play a major role in the events you are writing about. They can be involved or in close proximity but nothing they do should be able to change the events taking place. 

The Servant

The kitchen has prepared a fine meal this evening. Master will be pleased.

I take the large metal tray and balance it upon my forearm graciously before proceeding to the dining room. I open the door and am met with the sight of a long dining table seating thirteen individuals. At the head of the table is my Master.

“…how the hell do you expect us to do that? The place is a fortress!” bellows a gray-haired man on the centre right. The oaf is shouting at Master, his host! Has he no manners?

Rather than answering, Master raises his hands when he sees me, gesturing in delight.

“Aha! Dinner is served ladies and gentlemen!” he exclaims, clapping with enthusiasm.

I know that it is an act. He is simply being a splendid host. Nonetheless, we must all play our part. I enter with my small retinue of staff. They have been personally trained by myself and move with the silent grace I have instilled into them. Some would feel pride for their staff carrying their job out so well, but I recognize that this is simply what they are paid for. To achieve less is to disgrace not only themselves but their Chief of Staff and most importantly, our Master.

We place the trays upon the table almost in perfect unison and step back, awaiting our orders silently. At this stage, my staff will take care of everything. As the Chief, I will either stand to oversee things or we shall all be dismissed.

Master does not dismiss us and we are forbidden to speak so we stand attentively, ready to heed any call that beckons us from the table. We are but lowly servants but in my heart I am a faithful sentinel watching over my Master as he converses with this nest of vipers.

These are all men and women of immense power and influence. My Master is equal in that power but in cunning and intellect he is the greatest of them all. He is Barakas, The Merchant King of Qual and his Empire influences the country far more than our foolish royalty. Many know this but none dare speak it aloud. Both my Master and The Emperor would race to strike down whoever dared, albeit for different reasons.

“It is possible,” my Master finally responds. The confidence in his voice is both terrifying and inspiring. “that we will not need to do it ourselves.”

Heads turn from their plates to look at him.

“If that is the case then why in the Three Fires have you bothered to invite us all here!” retorts the gray haired buffoon, spitting food as he barks. Blasphemy and rudeness! A wave of anger washes over me and in that moment I wish for nothing more than to strike him down.

“Be at peace, Orr.” says a younger man. His voice is quieter yet still enforces the authority deserved of him. “Tell us please. What do you mean, Barakas?”

He is Tio, Lord of the Merchant Navy. While the navy remains a force separate of my Master’s Empire they remain a respectful and loyal ally. My Master grins. He has great respect for this man, as do I.

“The walls of the Unaga Stronghold in which His Majesty’s children reside is indeed a mighty obstacle to overcome…from the outside. However, were there a means to bypass the walls then a small force would be all that we need.”

Looking around, I see many confused expressions but Lord Tio and a select few others are already putting the pieces together.

“You already have a way inside the walls?” Asks Tio. “How many can feasibly access it without detection?”

“No more than a couple dozen.” My Master says before taking a bite of a large breast of chicken. He ignores the rising voices around the table. “Impossible!” “Ridiculous!” All their voices shout ridicule but my Master remains unfazed.

Lord Tio raises a hand to silence those around him. He stares at my Master, his eyes glittering with interest.

“Dear friend,” he begins. “Unaga Stronghold houses over three thousand troops. Once the alarm sounds, they will rain death down upon your men from the walls. Not to mention a further five thousand elite guards that will begin marching from all over the city to ensure the safety of the royal children!”

Master Barakas dabs his mouth with a napkin and raises his hand to dismiss over half of my retinue. Only the veterans such as myself now remain, men who have earned Master’s trust implicitly.

“They will not rain death, for they will be out dealing with the rebellion throughout the city.”

All voices at the table fall silent. Master stands and straightens up to his full height. His overwhelming presence seems to consume the air around him.

“The time is now. The people are against this false Emperor. Rise up and the people will follow, giving us the perfect opportunity to infiltrate the Stronghold.”

Tio is the first to respond.

“Even if the people rise, the military will not. They are the Emperor’s men, through and through. We will not defeat them, especially if they seek vengeance for the death of the Emperor’s children.”

Voices of agreement begin to murmur but are quickly dispelled by a bellowing laugh. Even I open my mouth in shock as I realize it is not my Master, but Orr the oaf.

“It’s about time I got ahead of you all on something.” He grins wildly, his fists clenched and shaking in excitement. “You’re not talking about killing them are you Barakas!”

The guests lean back as understanding flickers on their faces.

“The Emperor loves his children more than anything…even his Empire. If you rise up now and prevent the enemy from returning to Unaga Stronghold then my twenty men will most certainly secure them as hostages and secure this Kingdom for us all.”

The faces around the table stare in awe. There is no arguing this plan and they know it, it is their only chance to destroy the monarchy… No…It is their best chance! The disbelief they had previously exhibited slowly turns to delight on their faces.

I stand stoically, my expression neutral, as does Lord Tio. We share a quick glance and I understand that he knows as I do. There is only one lie in what my Great Master has said; When all is said and done, only one man will truly secure the Kingdom of Qual for themselves.

I trace a finger over the blade hidden in my tunic but now is not the time. Worthy rivals such as Tio are most worthy of my Master’s respect…

Empathizing With Villains

This Is NOT Antagonism We’re Talking About Here

There are few stories that don’t involve some form of conflict. It isn’t always necessarily a case of good versus evil but the key to a captivating story is ensuring that the journey has obstacles for the protagonist to overcome, particularly an antagonist.

They’re often the ultimate obstacle between the protagonist and whatever goal he/she is working to achieve… Or they can just be a hilariously bad obstacle and provide a small hindrance to the protagonist with a big comic relief to the readers.

The antagonist is often considered as “the bad guy” or “the villain” but that isn’t necessarily true. A protagonist is the main character and the antagonist is the character that antagonizes them. They’re characters that are in direct conflict with each other but that doesn’t define which one is in the right. There are many stories that cover protagonists with questionable morals who are opposed by characters that we typically consider as “the good guys.”

So rather than trying to get inside the mind of an antagonist – a character group that could involve just about anyone – I’d like to focus on someone we sometimes have trouble relating to in stories: The villains.

Why Would Anyone Find This Difficult?

Everybody loves a good villain and the best of them come in many shapes and forms. However, sometimes it can be tough to understand them. After all, the hero in a story usually possesses positive traits that we aspire to display ourselves such as bravery, kindness, a strong sense of justice and so on. We don’t just love our heroes because we admire them, we love them because we empathize with them.

Villains, on the other hand, aren’t just in conflict with the heroes, they’re in conflict with the very traits that we find appealing in our fellow human beings. They can be brutal, merciless, deceptive or just generally chaotic. How do we even begin to understand a person like that?

Unless you yourself are a writer by day, villain by night then chances are you won’t have a perfect insight into the way your favorite villains tick while still taking the time to read this article. For everyone else, all I can offer a list of some of the things I consider when developing a villain and trying to understand their motivations.

They Weren’t Always A Villain

You may never write about your villain’s childhood but you shouldn’t forget that they once had one.

We all know of the evil acts that Adolf Hitler committed during World War II but did you know that he used to work as a casual laborer and painter? Hitler’s life wasn’t a particularly happy one before he became the ruler of Nazi Germany. His mother died of breast cancer when he was 18 and he was forced to live in homeless shelters for a time. This was during a time when his hometown was a hotbed of racial prejudice and anti-semitism. He was temporarily blinded by mustard gas and was caught in a shell explosion during World War I.

Being brought up in a society of racism would make it pretty easy to blame your misfortunes on a race of people. Being granted the power to do something with that blame can make it far too easy to become the villain.

There are no excuses for evil acts to be performed but there is always reasoning, even if it’s wrong. If the world’s most hated national leader was once a painter, who knows what your villain could have been? It’s up to you to work out what drove them down this path.

Everybody starts off with a blank slate in life, what dirtied it?

Some Things Can Be Out Of A Villain’s Control

That being said, not every slate starts out quite right and not every human brain functions the way it’s supposed to. To understand this part, you may want to research a little on psychology. I have a big book on my bookshelf but I’ve cleared thirty pages of it at best so I’ll try to keep this part brief.

Among what we consider our normal society, there are a LOT of anomalies. We have psychopaths, we have sociopaths, we have people with multiple personalities, mass paranoia and schizophrenia. There are mental impairments, serious hormone imbalances and post-traumatic stress disorders.

I imagine that the worst thing about suffering from one of these is the lack of understanding normal society has for them. Psychopaths aren’t always criminals, sociopaths lack empathy but still feel a need for stimulation. A disorder or illness doesn’t stop that person being a human being.

If you decide to write about a villain that suffers from one of these issues, do your homework and try to understand what that means. These kinds of people still have compulsions, desires, things they want in life. Did they seek those out by regular means before? Did they have the choice to, or was the compulsion there from the start?

If so, work out how they discovered that compulsion and what it meant to them to feed it.

A Villain Always Has A Goal

No matter what kind of background a villain has, they always have one thing in common: An ambition.

It doesn’t need to be grand, it doesn’t need to be planned but there is always something motivating them to make the choices they do. Those intentions can even be inherently good-natured.

Look at Magneto as he’s portrayed in the X-Men movies. He is a mutant who is always at odds with his fellow mutants the X-Men and regularly at war with humanity. Why? Does he feel a need to kill? Is he out for total rule of the world? Actually, he just wants to protect his people and have them live in peace. He doesn’t believe that humanity will ever allow for that and when you look at our track record (see Hitler above), is that really such a surprising judgement?

There can be good intentions behind evil actions. A villain can lose sight of their goal and take things too far in their quest to achieve it. Their reasoning can be misguided by their limited experiences, their mental state or perhaps they tried to achieve it in a better way before but failed.

There are too many examples to list but my point is that nothing a villain does seems pointless to them. A murderer never kills for no reason; They may have a bad reason (They wanted to know what it was like, they feel pleasure when killing, an act of passion, etc) but that doesn’t seem like a bad reason to them. Anything can inspire their motive; revenge, love, religion, health, a lust for power, lust in general, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that there is always a thing and you need to work out what it is.

I guess the entire point really is that a villain is still a human. If your villain isn’t human then you’ve read this far because their mind still works like a human’s. If it doesn’t, then I have no idea how you got this far.

Oh God! Are you a hero who discovered my night job?

Beginning My Hunt For A Comic Artist

In the last four weeks since I began blogging, I’ve felt more inclined to write than ever before. I only post every two days on here but the spewing of words doesn’t stop there. Behind the scenes, I’ve still managed to keep my own projects running, albeit not always to a regular schedule.

With that in mind, I’ve finally managed to start looking towards the future and what I actually want to do as a writer. Even better, I’ve started planning how to do it.

From the very beginning, I’ve always wanted to be the writer of a comic, manga or graphic novel. I always had a particular project in mind and made quite some progress on it about three years ago until my computer broke down and everything got wiped. I lost all motivation to rewrite everything I had done but I never stopped thinking about it.

Over the last month or so, I’ve been attempting to resurrect it in what appears to be a manga style. It’s a fantasy story with no questionably named Japanese characters or references to “Japan according to a westerner,” I’m not that kind of manga fan. I just love the style and don’t believe success in the manga industry is impossible for anyone. I believe that if you have a story you love then you should get it written and get it out there in whatever way pleases you most. So that’s what I’m going to do.

While there’s still plenty of kinks to sort out for my final draft, I’ve started communicating with some illustrators in order to seek out prices and discuss the style of the final product. It’ll take a fair amount of time and money to complete but with a little luck, you may be seeing some news in the near future. Perhaps even a shameless plug of my work if things go to plan.

Thanks to the 20 followers keeping tabs on me, I’ll get back to my usual word spew now so keep tuned and wish me luck!

P.S. If you’re an illustrator yourself then feel free to get in touch for some potential work.

Culture Talk: Is Superhero Cinema Here To Stay?

First and foremost, there’s something I should admit: I bought my first comic ever yesterday. I’ve had a love for on-screen superheroes since the original X-Men cartoon series but when it came to comic books, I felt intimidated.

I mean X-Men alone has been around since the early 1960’s! That’s over 50 years worth of issues to get through for just one of the hundreds of beloved superhuman series out there. Some of the greats like Captain America span back as far as the 1940’s, catching up now seems like an investment of time and money that I don’t have, no matter how much I want to. Luckily, I’ve never been short on alternatives.

X-Men Apocalypse keeps the film series going strong, despite mixed general opinion. 

My superhero knowledge stemmed from typical children’s cartoons but as the years have gone by, more new superheroes have broken onto the big screen. As the times have changed, these films have catered to a larger audience and have even captured the hearts of an older generation than my own.

Comedic stars like Jack Nicholson, Danny DeVito and Jim Carrey once took up the roles of some of Batman’s most well known villains (not to mention the chillingly terrible puns of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Mr Freeze) but today, those same roles are played with a much darker tone. A sense of grittiness and realism has come to superhero cinema that leaves audiences on the edge of their seats and has steadily dominated Hollywood. This is no longer a market just for children and in many cases, can be rated strictly for mature audiences.

Jim Carrey played the part of The Riddler incredibly…for it’s time at least.

It does beg the question though; is there an end in sight for this superhuman success? The old favorites are crossing over into a single cinematic universe for both Marvel and DC, the two big greats of the comic industry. Over 25 new superhero films are scheduled for release between now and the year 2020, not to mention the countless TV shows that we can expect to see more of. Even Netflix has an exclusive superhero schedule for the foreseeable future. When will we be done with superheroes?

In truth, some of us already are. There’s more than one article out there that believes that the market has been flooded with a trend of sub-standard, predictable films that are poorly written and leave an audience wondering “How many times does the world really need saved?”

The long-time fans who have spent their youth reading about these heroes are happy to see them get the publicity they deserve and will defend them against those critics to the death. They declare that the critics just don’t understand comic books and that they have no right to criticize something they’ve never tried to follow. All the while, they themselves criticize the films for not staying completely loyal to the comics.

As for me…I say “Oh, please shut up! You’re both wrong anyway!”

What I admire more than anything about the comic book industry is it’s flexibility and durability. We’re talking about an industry that has maintained itself and evolved longer than a lot of us may even live! For it to grow into what it is today isn’t just a trend, it’s been inevitable for quite some time!

Even then, the cinematic world of superheroes manages to clearly set itself apart from the comics. I’ve flipped through the pages of what spawned Captain America: Civil War and seen superheroes that haven’t yet been introduced to the cinematic universe. With that in mind, how can an audience be expected to follow groups of superheroes they’ve never met for the sake of pleasing the long-time fans?

Instead, the scriptwriters have proven their worth by giving fresh introductions to these heroes for those like myself who were previously unfamiliar with them. They’ve managed to turn these strange, superhuman individuals into characters that I genuinely care about.

Naturally, there are unfortunate exceptions. Batman vs Superman received a lot of negative criticism and I’ve yet to watch a Fantastic Four or Hulk film I enjoy but there isn’t a genre out there that gets it right all the time.

For the most part though, I’ve been blown away by the superheroes that hit the TV or big screen. I’m excited for new character debuts such as The Justice League, Luke Cage, Black Panther, Doctor Strange and Iron Fist and I remain eager for the next installments of the heroes I love such as The Avengers, Deadpool, Arrow, The Flash and The X-Men which have maintained a good track record of dramatic action epics that I’ll happily watch time and time again (except for X-Men: Origins…we don’t talk about that one).

Black Panther’s debut in Captain America: Civil War has spurned excitement for his upcoming film.

There’s more stories written for these heroes than Hollywood may ever manage to provide us so you can be sure that superheroes aren’t going away anytime soon. I’m sure they won’t always dominate the market the way they do today but you may as well get used to their existence.

They’ve earned their place and I couldn’t be happier for them.