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mimzy-writing-online · 3 years

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Hello. I had a question regarding your post about blind characters. I have a character in my WIP that must cover their eyes.. but it’s blind. He may need to tell people he is blind to explain why he covers his eyes though. I was wondering how I might write this character without offending. Thank you :)

I think I want to start by explaining the “covering blind eyes” trope and why it has become a harmful trope. I think understanding why it’s hurtful helps everyone learn how to handle it better.

I would guess that the “blind people wear sunglasses” trope comes from Hollywood for the specific reason of 1. wanting to signal to the audience that the character is obviously blind and 2. avoid breaking the suspension of disbelief by preventing the audience from catching the sighted actor look at visual stimuli (because disabled characters are almost always played by able actors).

But this changed the way the public expects to experience blindness. If watching a sighted actor wear sunglasses and say he’s blind is all the exposure to the blind community a person has had, that’s the only model of blindness they’ll recognize. If they meet a blind person in real life who doesn’t wear sunglasses, it’s going to break this built perception and cause an uncomfortable cognitive dissonance.

And then there is the common “cloudy-white blank gaze” that pops up in media. It stems from the fact that cataracts is the most common cause of blindness and the appearance of severe cataracts is a cloudy film in the eyes obscuring the iris and pupil. It can also alter what color a person’s eyes appears to be, making them appear paler and grey in the beginning and then as the cataract advances it becomes more yellow/brown and alters a person’s vision to appear more yellow tinted.

There are lots of other eye conditions that makes the eyes look visibly different. Albinism for instance affects the color and structure of the iris. Eyes might be congenitally misshapen. The muscles might be weak or not work and one or both eyes point significantly outward. Someone who was born blind and experienced no visual stimuli might also have weak muscles around their eyes because they never had a reason to focus their eyes on anything.

And unfortunately humans have the habit of feeling uncomfortable when they meet someone who looks very obviously different from the norm, whether that’s a personal style choice (hair color and style, tattoos, clothing choices) or something they can’t help (a visible disability, skin color, scars).

To the paragraph above, @gothhabiba replied with: “it's very weird & ahistorical to claim that racism or ableism are some kind of natural "human" trait.. like frankly it's apologia”

You’re right, I wasn’t thinking beyond that generalization or assumption.

Perhaps a better way to put it is: I was raised in a society where I was taught from childhood to think that there was only one kind of human being to be. White, cis, straight, abled, conservative. That’s a very western thing and that’s a thing I’m going to constantly be unlearning.

Racism and ableism and homophobia aren’t innate, that’s a western thing that was forced onto the rest of the world by colonialism. And because western media created this idea that the world is white, abled, cis, straight, and Christian-value leaning, it taught people to think that was the norm so that seeing someone different from that archetype would cause a cognitive dissonance, which causes discomfort.

And instead of working past that cognitive dissonance to learn more and realize there’s so much more to life than media taught you, society encourages you to ignore that cognitive dissonance by sticking your head in the sand-- or TV screen.

So combine these two tropes or common beliefs together and you get something a little dangerous: the idea that blind people cover their eyes because they look obviously different and they’re ashamed (or should be ashamed) of that.

And if you’re someone who’s just gone blind or who was born blind and you have little to no contact with the blind community, then this societal belief that you should be ashamed of how your eyes look becomes detrimental to your self-esteem and further builds internalized ableism.

I’ve lost count of the times I’ve read or watched a blind character cover their eyes with sunglasses because they were ashamed of how their eyes looked. And I distinctly remember a few times where a sighted friend of the character was trying to convince them to stop wearing sunglasses because there’s nothing wrong with looking different--which is true, but it plays into this fantasy of being the perfect abled ally who saves the blind character from being miserable.

In an ideal world, the character has no reason to believe looking different is a bad thing or diminishes their worth or makes people dislike them. And if they develop this belief, it’s more likely that someone more involved in the disabled community, most likely someone disabled themselves, will set them straight. Or that the character will learn to accept themselves on their own, looks included.

But there are some perfectly valid reasons for any blind person to wear sunglasses. They might have an interest in fashion and sunglasses complete the look they’re going for. They could want to protect their eyes from UV rays while they’re outside. They may experience light sensitivity and sunglasses reduces any discomfort or pain. Those are incredibly common reasons to wear sunglasses whether you’re sighted or blind.

But there are some more complicated situations.

In your words, your character must cover his eyes. You never specified why, so my primary guess is that he has some kind of power that is unpleasant or has devastating affects and the only way to prevent it is to keep his eyes covered. My primary guess stems from this post where an anon and I discussed a retelling of Medusa, a hypothetical blinding of oneself to avoid ever killing anyone ever again, and what I think I would do if I was in that scenario.

So how do you write a blind character who must cover their eyes and avoid some of the complications?

1. Your character must always have the ability to say “fuck off, it’s my business, I don’t have to tell you why I’m blind or why I cover my eyes.”

Most blind people really, really don’t want to get into the nitty-gritty of why they’re blind and how they feel about it and what it’s like being blind with a stranger they’ll never see again or a new acquaintance they don’t know well yet. You have exceptions to that rule where sure, educating the public about blindness is a thing you want to do and you’re committed to helping your community, but I still have days where I don’t want to talk about being blind or disclose my medical crap.

And if someone doesn’t respect their right to their privacy or pushes too much, the blind character is allowed to be angry, is allowed to tell them off and complain without anyone else in the situation vilifying them or saying they’re “overreacting” and “should have just disclosed private information because big deal or whatever.” If they are angry, that’s their right, and it’s not unreasonable, it doesn’t make them a bad person.

2. Your character should not be ashamed of being blind or of covering their eyes. It is a part of their life, they’re used to it by now, even if they weren’t in the beginning.

The shame and internalized ableism is something that should be written about, but that’s for an own-voices story with a blind author. I don’t think an abled person will ever be able to understand how much society expects you to hate yourself and your disability because “being disabled is a tragic thing that ruins your life” and how that does affect your mental health, self esteem, your relationships with others, your medical care, and what kind of accommodations you can get.

3. It wouldn’t hurt to have a few sarcastic lines in response to uncomfortable conversations.

Stranger: so what’s with the...

Blind Character: what’s with what?

S: the... you know

BC: you’re gonna have to be a bit more specific

S: Your eyes?

BC: They’re... eyes

S: but you’re...

BC: Blind?

S: uh...

BC: yeah, I’m blind. *walks away*

Or this conversation:

S: *to some other character* so why are his eyes covered?

(author’s note: which, honestly, that’s fucking rude. At least have the guts to ask me yourself)

BC: If I look anyone in the eye they instantly perish.

*awkward silence*

BC: instantly.

Friend: It’s truly tragic

BC: *melancholic* that’s how I lost my sister. *chokes up* She was so young

Or this conversation:

S: Why are you wearing that?

BC: It’s called fashion Karen!

Or this conversation:

S: are you like... blind?

BC: yes?? why wouldn’t I be?? Wait, are you sighted? Are you one of those sighted people? You poor thing! What caused you to gain your sight? Do you have a car? A bike? Were you born sighted? What’s it like to see color? Do you miss not having to see

God, I want a chance to try that last one. I haven’t interacted with a stranger in almost a year. One day...

4. Honestly, it’d also be cool if someone’s reaction to your character covering their eyes was like, “cool sunglasses,” or “cool *insert random character, even one you made up* cosplay,” (which is ten times funnier if this character is a notable figure in modern society like an actor who people might cosplay).

5. You know, if he’s covering his eyes with some kind of blindfold, he should totally have custom blindfolds for his moods. Like, I have a mask that says “suck it up buttercup” and another that says “not today” because sometimes that’s the mood. And sometimes the mood is one of my floral masks, and sometimes the mood is my cat mask.

So, just some thoughts. I hope that helps.

Edit: a commenter said: “op, unless i'm mistaken this kind of reads like anon meant the character ISN'T blind but lies about being blind to explain covering their eyes? it seems like they made a typo on the word "isn't"”

So my original response to the question was based on the assumption that the character is blind. However,

If the character is not blind, then do not under any circumstances have them lie and say they’re blind to escape a mild inconvenience.

It’s better to have the character actually explain the situation or straight up leave the conversation or invent a more ridiculous lie than to perpetuate the very real stereotype and misconception that there are people who fake being blind and therefore it’s okay to discriminate or harass them if you even suspect they’re faking.

Do not under any circumstances perpetuate that stereotype. Do not harass someone because you don’t think they’re blind enough.

#blind character #writeblr #writing community #disabled character #writing tropes #trope talk #blindness tropes #Anonymous

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balioc · 4 years

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A Taxonomy of Magic

This is a purely and relentlessly thematic/Doylist set of categories.

The question is: What is the magic for, in this universe that was created to have magic?

Or, even better: What is nature of the fantasy that’s on display here?

Because it is, literally, fantasy. It’s pretty much always someone’s secret desire.

(NOTE: “Magic” here is being used to mean “usually actual magic that is coded as such, but also, like, psionics and superhero powers and other kinds of Weird Unnatural Stuff that has been embedded in a fictional world.”)

(NOTE: These categories often commingle and intersect. I am definitely not claiming that the boundaries between them are rigid.)

I. Magic as The Gun That Can Be Wielded Only By Nerds

Notable example: Dungeons & Dragons

Of all the magic-fantasies on offer, I think of this one as being the clearest and most distinctive. It’s a power fantasy, in a very direct sense. Specifically, it’s the fantasy that certain mental abilities or personality traits -- especially “raw intelligence” -- can translate directly into concrete power. Being magical gives you the wherewithal to hold your own in base-level interpersonal dominance struggles.

(D&D wizardry is “as a science nerd, I can use my brainpower to blast you in the face with lightning.” Similarly, sorcery is “as a colorful weirdo, I can use my force of personality to blast you in the face with lightning,” and warlockry is “as a goth/emo kid, I can use my raw power of alienation to blast you in the face with lightning.”)

You see this a lot in media centered on fighting, unsurprisingly, and it tends to focus on the combative applications and the pure destructive/coercive force of magic (even if magic is notionally capable of doing lots of different things). It often presents magic specifically as a parallel alternative to brawn-based fighting power. There’s often an unconscious/reflexive trope that the heights of magic look like “blowing things up real good” / “wizarding war.”

II. Magic as The Numinous Hidden Glory of the World

Notable examples: Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia, H.P. Lovecraft’s Dream Cycle

The point of magic, in this formulation, is that it is special. It is intrinsically wondrous and marvelous. Interacting with it puts you in a heightened-state-of-existence. It is -- ultimately -- a metaphor for The Secret Unnameable Yearnings of Your Soul, the glorious jouissance that always seems just out of reach.

It doesn’t so much matter how the magic actually functions, or even what outcomes it produces. The important thing is what magic is, which is...magical.

This is how you get works that are all about magic but seem entirely disinterested in questions like “what can you achieve with magic?,” “how does the presence of magic change the world?,” etc. One of the major ways, anyway.

The Numinous Hidden Glory fantasy often revolves around an idea of the magic world, the other-place where everything is drenched in jouissance. [Sometimes the magic world is another plane of existence, sometimes it’s a hidden society within the “real world,” doesn’t matter.] The real point of magic, as it’s often presented, is being in that magic world; once you’re there, everything is awesome, even if the actual things you’re seeing and doing are ordinary-seeming or silly. A magic school is worlds better than a regular school, because it’s magic, even if it’s got exactly the same tedium of classes and social drama that you know from the real world.

Fantasies of this kind often feature a lot of lush memorable detail that doesn’t particularly cohere in any way. It all just adds to the magic-ness.

III. Magic as the Atavistic Anti-Civilizational Power

Notable examples: A Song of Ice and Fire, Godzilla

According to the terms of this fantasy, the point of magic is that it doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t make sense within the logic of civilized human thought, anyway. It is nature and chaos given concrete form; it is the thing that tears away at the systems that we, in our [Promethean nobility / overweening hubris], try to build.

There’s not a baked-in value judgment here. This kind of magic can be presented as good, bad, or some of both. Same with civilization, for that matter.

It’s often presented as Old Myths and Folkways that have More Truth and Power Than Seems Reasonable. Narratively, it often serves as a dramatized version of the failure of episteme, and of the kind of entropic decay that in real life can take centuries to devour empires and ideologies.

This kind of magic is almost always the province of savages, actual inhuman monsters, or (occasionally) the very downtrodden.

(I think it is enormously telling that in A Song of Ice and Fire -- a series that is jammed full of exotic cults and ancient half-forgotten peoples, all of whom have magic that seems to work and beliefs that at least touch on mysterious truths -- only the Westerosi version of High Medieval Catholicism, the religion to which most of the people we see notionally adhere, is actually just a pack of empty lies.)

IV. Magic as an Overstuffed Toybox

Notable examples: Naruto, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure

Or, sometimes, we care about what magic actually does. More than that -- sometimes we want to see magic doing really interesting things, and then other magic intersecting with it in ways that are even more interesting.

The fantasy here, in simplest terms, is “magic can achieve any arbitrary cool effect.” There doesn’t tend to be an overarching system that explains how it’s all supposed to come together, or if there is, it tends to be kind of lame and hand-wavey -- a rigorous system of Magic Physics, delineating the limits of the possible, would get in the way of all the cool effects we want to show!

Once again, this shows up a lot in combat-heavy narratives. Less with the genericized D&D-style “magic is a fist that can punch harder than your regular meat fist,” and more with people throwing weird and wacky powers at each other in order to show how those powers can be used creatively to overcome opposition. Sometimes, instead of combat, you get magicians using their cool-effects magic to MacGuyver their way out of problems or even trying to resolve large-scale social problems. Issues of magic usage within the narrative being “fair” or “unfair” or “cheesy” are important here in ways that they generally aren’t elsewhere, since the fantasy on offer comes close to being a game.

(Ratfic often falls into this category.)

V. Magic as Alternate-Universe Science

Notable examples: the Cosmere books

This covers most of what gets called “hard fantasy.” The fantasy on offer is a pretty straightforward one -- “magic has actual rules, you can learn them, and once you’ve learned them you can make predictions and achieve outcomes.” It’s puzzle-y in the way that the previous fantasy was game-y. It’s often a superstimulus for the feeling of learning a system in the way that video game grinding is a superstimulus for the feeling of rewarding labor.

The magic effects on offer tend to be less ridiculous and “broken” than toybox magic, because any logic you can use to achieve a ridiculous effect is going to influence the rest of the magic system, and special cases that aren’t grounded in sufficiently-compelling logic will ruin the fantasy.

Not super common.

VI. Magic as Psychology-Made-Real

Notable examples: Revolutionary Girl Utena, Persona

This kind of magic makes explicit, and diagetic, what is implicit and metatextual in most fantasy settings. The magic is an outgrowth of thought, emotion, and belief. Things have power in the world because they have power in your head. The things that seem real in the deepest darkest parts of your mind are actually real.

This is where you get inner demons manifested as actual demons (servile or hostile or anything in between), swords forged from literal hope, dungeons and labyrinths custom-tailored to reflect someone’s trauma, etc.

The fantasy, of course, is that your inner drama matters.

My personal favorite.

VII. Magic as Pure Window Dressing

Notable examples: later Final Fantasy games, Warhammer 40K

This one is weird; it doesn’t really make sense on its own, only metatextually. I think of its prevalence as an indicator of the extent to which fantasy has become a cultural staple.

The fantasy on offer in these works is that you are in a fantasy world that is filled with fantasy tropes. And that’s it.

Because the important thing here is that the magic doesn’t really do anything at all, or at least, it doesn’t do anything that non-magic can’t do equally well. It doesn’t even serve as an indication that Things are Special, because as presented in-setting, magic isn’t Special. Being a wizard is just a job, like being a baker or a tailor or something -- or, usually, like being a soldier, because the magic on offer is usually a very-simple kind of combat magic. And unlike in D&D, it’s not like magic is used only or chiefly by a particularly noteworthy kind of person. It’s just...there.

The great stories of the world, in these works, don’t tend to feature magic as anything more than a minor element. The point is to reassure the audience that this is the kind of world, the kind of story, that has magic.

-------------------------------------------------

Thoughts? Critiques? Other categories to suggest?

#media analysis

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heymacy · 3 years

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alright i wanna talk about fandom discourse + mental spirals for a moment. i’m the absolute worst when it comes to allowing my brain to latch on to one tiny thing, a line or a photo or a gif or something completely inconsequential, and letting it bounce around in my head until it’s bled in to all my other thoughts. i’m terrible about assuming the worst and being fearful of things i have zero control over. i’ve never been as involved in a fandom as i am with this one, with the exception being twilight back in 2007/2008 until about 2012/2013 (if y’all say a fuckin’ word i’ll knock you out). however, i’ve been casually involved in fandoms for a long ass time and let me share a few things i’ve learned:

1. a piece of media will never, ever satisfy you completely. it can try, and sometimes it comes really fucking close (see: schitt’s creek, parks and recreation, the finale of that 70s show, bones, and other shows that had great final seasons/finale episodes) BUT since everyone has different minds, experiences, perceptions, and beliefs, the same body of content will be interpreted differently by different individuals. even within a writer’s room, even in an objectively GOOD writer’s room, where things are approached collaboratively and with tact/sensitivity, there will still be differing interpretations of storylines based on people’s personal perceptions. someone with a personal history with mental illness will interpret the storyline of a character with a mental illness differently than someone who has never personally dealt with MI, either within themselves or by proxy with the people they love. we CANNOT underestimate the power and importance of personal perception when it comes to media.

2. the link between fictional characters and audiences is intense, and rightfully so. studies have shown that the connection the human brain can forge between itself and a character is as significant, important, and effectual as real-life relationships. therefore, the feelings you have as a viewer have the ability to surpass casual viewership and border on emotional codependency (see: comfort characters). now i’m not saying that this is a bad thing, because my hyperfixations on fictional characters and storylines have quite literally saved my life in the past (more on that another day), but just like most things in life, there IS truth behind the phrase “too much of a good thing”. the part of our brain that consumes and analyzes media is the same part of the brain that processes our real-life interactions/conversations/relationships. creating a disconnect between the two is difficult, sometimes impossible, which can leave those of us who already struggle with neurodivergency/mental illness/trauma spiraling over things that are, in the grand scheme of things, inconsequential, but in our realties feel very, very heavy.

3. i joke all the time about “don’t mind me, just spiraling” and “here we go on a _______ spiral” and for the most part yes, it IS a joke, but my primary coping mechanism is humor, so there’s always a little grain of truth behind these jokes. mental spirals are one of the most debilitating aspects of mental illness because it literally feels like your brain is in complete control and you have no say in what you’re thinking about, talking about, or focusing on. and technically, your brain is always in control because you ARE your brain, and your brain is you, even the broken and flawed parts, and that can be difficult to reconcile. however, i’ve learned over the years that recognizing when you’re starting to spiral, noticing the little thoughts and feelings that signal that something is becoming too much, too quickly, can help to quell those feelings of helpless unease as your mind wanders and leaves you in the dust.

in my experience, we have very little control over those spiraling, worst-case-scenario, terrified-beyond-belief feelings that come with the territory of fandom interaction and discourse. we have very little control over how media is created and presented, and only mild control over how we, as individuals with unique experiences and circumstances, interpret said media, and how it makes us feel.

your fear, your concern, your utterly paralyzing terror is valid. your worry over the outcome of a series, a film, a piece of media of any sort is VALID.

BUT

you cannot allow the interpretations, opinions, and verbalized thoughts of others impede your ability to enjoy things.

nobody joins a fandom out of hate. nobody consumes a piece of media and enjoys it and thinks “hey, i’m going to make it my mission to present the worst possible takes and remind everyone of how we all have literally zero influence on the trajectory of this show/film/web series/comic, etc.”

if someone is bitter and upset about something, even tiny, inconsequential things, that’s THEIR issue. that’s THEIR interpretation based on THEIR experiences, not yours.

the beauty of fandom is not in conflict, in discourse, in meta-ing things to death. it’s not in the stress of managing our connections to fictional characters and storylines. it’s not even in the intense feelings of happiness, sadness, disappointment, regret, etc.

the beauty of fandom is in the joyful moments, the moments that first sparked that fire inside of you and made you go “i want to engage with this piece of media on more than just the surface level of viewership; i want to engage in a meaningful way because of how this show/film/etc impacted me.”

it’s easy to lose sight of WHY we engage, WHY we create, WHY we love the things we love and why we love them so, so deeply.

if we focus on why we love the things we love, and actively engage with those things, it makes it easier to process the things we don’t. it makes it easier to take these spirals, these unending cyclical thought patterns that consume us, with a grain of salt. it makes it easier to compartmentalize, to cope, to not allow the moments that we dislike, even hate, consume us in debilitating ways.

i guess the point that i’m trying to make here is this:

fandom is beautiful. it’s beautiful, it’s messy, and in some moments, it’s painful. there will be discourse, there will be meta posts you don’t agree with, there will be glorious and beautiful takes interspersed with takes that make you want to rip out your hair and shove it down the OP’s throat. this is a wholly indisputable fact.

BUT

existing within the confines of fandom does not mean that you are in any way obligated to experience things in the exact same way as everyone else. EVERYONE will have different takes. EVERYONE will have different interpretations based on personal experience and circumstance. there will ALWAYS be disagreements, big and small, consequential and inconsequential. we can argue about things until the cows come home, but do we really have the ability to influence the outcome of a piece of media and/or the fandom’s reaction and interpretation? no. we don’t. we may be powerful, wonderful, creative people, but none of us are god, and to delude ourselves in to thinking that we have the ability to change the perceptions of those with interpretations that differ from our own will drive you absolutely mad.

engage with the things you love. create things that bring you hope, happiness, and healing. seek out the joy that made you engage in the first place and cultivate that joy by whatever means necessary.

fandom is not a lifelong sentence for unhappiness and pain. fandom does not come with a hidden clause that states that you’re required to engage with content that does not align with your interpretations. being kind to yourself is one of the most important things in the world, especially in our current society that is hell-bent on profiting off of disdain and misery. fandom and happiness can co-exist. they DO co-exist. experiencing fandom firsthand, with a piece of media you adore, can be one of the most enlightening experiences if you let it. fandom transcends the surface level, transcends canon, transcends every bad take and poor interpretation, as well as the good ones. it’s about more than just content. it’s about how this piece of media makes you FEEL, the impact it has on you as an individual.

that’s what’s important. that’s what we should focus on. it’s easier said than done, but keeping that concept in the forefront of our minds will keep us from losing them altogether.

#i hope this makes even a fraction of sense to even one person #because i think about this all the time #literally ALL THE TIME #and how if we were to shift our focus away from the things we hate and on to the things we love #we would all be so so SO much happier #anyway enjoy my little rant if it can be called a rant #really it's just more 'time for macy to thought dump on main'#inconsequential ramblings #macy's thoughts that nobody asked for

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merkissescanhealyou · 3 years

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Popstar AU

(I’m 1000% aware that these AUs stray so far from his own AU, but that’s why they’re AUs, no?)

The music industry is booming with new up-and-coming artists, and the seasoned artists helped pave the way. So many genres and styles have been created and thrown into mainstream media that it’d be near impossible to find something that hasn’t been made. It is so deeply rooted that life without it is inconceivable. Without music, there is nothing. At least, that’s what Marius believes.

Marius was born to a family of merfolk in the hidden city of Atlantis. His parents had a firm grip on his life since the day he was born, and as he grew up, he became more unsatisfied and unhappy. He would often wander off to play with the fish, or find something more interesting than doing what they wanted him to do. One day, young Marius stumbled upon a concert rehearsal, for an upcoming holiday. The water warped their voices so distinctly that it worked well, and the singers produced such a beautiful sound that he’d never forget. And since that day, he couldn’t stop thinking about the rush he felt when he heard the music. While he was alone, he’d hum and sing to himself. It should be noted that Marius was no ordinary mer. No, he had been gifted twice: a rare ability to heal with his kisses, and the ability to sing. His culture taught him that the gods bestow gifts on them because they will serve a purpose to them. His parents firmly believed that, and so did he, but for a different reason.

His mother pushed him to learn the practices of medicine, so that he can be the healer she wants him to be. But he had no interest in that. He didn’t want to become a slave his own kind, the wildlife was much nicer anyhow. He wanted to perform and sing, because he put his heart and soul into it. Neither of his parents approved of his choice of career, and when it came time to choose, he rejected them and followed his own path. If he couldn’t be happy there, then the best plan of action was to leave. So he did.

Since his birth, he was told to fear humans and what they’ve done to the merfolk in the past. It had been several thousands of years since the last encounter between a human and a mer, so he hoped that they would’ve changed by now. Little by little, he’d visit shorelines and even use his legs to walk among them. But even then, when he sang, he was by himself. He was happy living on his own, he knew how to hunt, and he used his healing powers to help any injured or sick animal that he came across. One fateful soon changed his way of life.

A music producer was having lunch with his business partners when they heard the melodic sound of someone singing. Marius was interrupted when they approached him, asking if he had any training or experience in the music industry. He answered them with a “no,” and their rebuttal was an offer of a lifetime. They asked him if he’d be interested in auditioning for a record company (which he had to do some research on at the library). The excuses he gave as to why he was homeless and why he had very little wardrobe was that he “lost his job, which was a grocer at a supermarket.” He did not hesitate in taking their offer, and that started his journey to stardom.

Nowadays, he has established a persona for himself, which is very true to his personality and beliefs, and a name. He has millions of fans all over the world, and knows quite a few famous celebrities. But with fortune and success comes downfalls. He attracted both positive and negative audiences. Harsh critics often comment on his portrayal of himself, including his clothes, looks, voice, gender identity, sexuality, and ability to perform. The worst of them all is a not-so-secret admirer that has a history of scandals. Marius tries to balance his career and personal life, but finds that he sometimes falls short. He hopes to bring joy and representation to the world of music. Ironically, the nickname he earned is The Siren of Pop, otherwise known as The Siren. No one knows about his secret, and he guards that closely.

#popstar au

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kylerenpenning · 4 years

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Audience Studies (3P18) Blog #1

Week 2

Our first-week material involved a lot of a general analysis of audiences for us to gain a better understanding of just how much control social media platforms and other online social networking sites have on the way our brains process different things. We developed a definition for what exactly an audience is which we described as a group of people who are hearing or are paying attention to someone proving verbal information. What I found interesting about this content was that it made me realize the large extent to which many people’s happiness, beliefs, morals, and friends are formed from a digital platform. We discussed how things were not always this way and that audiences before were commonly found at live events because social networking had yet to exist. As time has gone on people have developed ways to build an opportunity for an audience to participate in places that may have never seemed possible before until we were met with the introduction of social networking and media. When considering my own experiences as being part of an audience throughout my life, I agree that the number of opportunities to take part in an audience has increased over the years. For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, I found myself using many new social networking platforms that were established before the pandemic but were not used nearly as much.

With the pandemic forcing everyone into their homes for almost a full two months the benefits of having digital audiences are obvious. Multiple times a week I use platforms like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Lifesize to join lectures and seminars which is a prime example of a way that I take part in the audience every day now. Compared to life before the pandemic when most of my audience experiences happened in person such as going out to moose on Wednesday every week and having a couple of drinks with my peers and enjoy a night out. I notice switching to a digital technique to host lectures increases the sizes of the audiences substantially because when the lectures took place in person, people are much more likely to be lazy and not show up to class. With lectures now being online, it makes participating in the audience much easier because there is no need for travel. You can see the total number of viewers in each class and there are consistently over 100 people from all over the world joining the cyberspace environment which I would estimate to be a huge increase in participation levels.

To compare my personal experiences with digital audiences during the COVID-19 pandemic to the material we discussed in class, I think of how in chapter 1, Sullivan spoke about how audiences are for the most part working-class people who have no title or place in society yet and are working to do so. (Sullivan, P. 13) I interpret this as students attending digital lectures are working towards their degrees to get the job they have a passion for because they do not have a label yet in society and once we get a career we get a sense of purpose in life because we mean something to a greater society. The benefits I gained from having to get up out of bed to go to class was that I would gain a sense of routine in my life and I got to meet many new people who I now consider my friends. So, although audience sizes have increased in quantity because it is easier for people to attend lectures when they do not have to go anywhere, however, the quality of the audience experience deteriorates. There are certain components you need to achieve satisfaction with your experience as an audience member and doing strictly digital audiences like we have been doing this year has not provided the physical interaction needed to get the full experience.

One of the final main points from the first week is the power of media and ability it must oppose destructive information into people's minds and shape their views on the world in a particular way. The mass, agent, and outcome are key terms that are an extremely important part of the process that is essentially capable of inducing detrimental norms in society that place some to advantage and others at a disadvantage. Using the same example as before about online lectures taking place at Brock this year, I will indicate which parties would be considered the mass, agent, and outcome. The agent is the audience member who is considered free to choose whatever content they want to consume online which is the students at Brock who are selecting the courses they want to study because it suits their interests. The mass is where we see the content being provided by professors at lectures and seminars and since students have no pre-existing knowledge of most of the topics we discuss in school it is their first time consuming such information, students must trust in the information hoping that it will benefit them in their future life. I think about this all the time when I go to class and why I am happy to be considered as an audience member of the Media Communications program. The outcome is the overall effect that the mass provided on media platforms have on its audience members. When I reflect on my audience experience, I firmly believe the outcome of me being a member of the media communications audience has been beneficial for me and has given me the skills to navigate through social media platforms with an awareness to the issues it contains which I would have never gotten if I didn’t trust the process and the information they were providing me to be correct.

Having the skill to be aware of the power of social media and the conflicts that can arise if you participate in audiences on their platforms I think will be extremely beneficial in the future because it is inevitable that new technologies and ways to interact on digital platforms rather than in person will begin to accelerate rapidly.

Week 3

This week’s content focuses on stories, primarily we were concerned with who the storyteller is because it influences the audience who is listening. If the storyteller or leader is well respected by the audience it is more likely that the information he is providing will stick with the audience and it will be carried on throughout the audience as they spread the information to their peers. There is a danger behind this however because if there is falsified information being provided and the audience receiving has trust in the storyteller that they are being given valid information it may cause false information to be spread. An example from my life when I trusted the information I was being given from a speaker is when I participate in sports betting, on sports that I am unfamiliar with. As an audience member with little knowledge of the sport of football, I ask my friends who are big fans to give me some advice on who they think is the better team in hopes that I will obtain new knowledge that will give me an edge in my bets. However, sometimes I mistake the person I ask for information as someone who has good knowledge of the game of football and I take their advice without hesitation because I discredit my ability to make an intelligent decision on my own. This causes me to place money on a team that I may not have picked had I not been told information from a third party and I end up losing the bet and my money.

We can see this process happen on a much larger scale of audiences like in politics where people who are labeled “leaders” have a job to lead an entire country, one of the biggest and challenging audiences to handle. Governments have access to media platforms that hold substantial amounts of power because they can simply send out messages that will circulate through various media platforms. Government parties utilize this chain reaction to create social norms in society and try and push people to think a certain way because they know the information they put on social media spreads like wildfire! Week 3’s reading by William Brown supports the claim we examined in class as the study conducted concluded that “the rise of celebrity culture in the late 20th century has given media personae a privileged position of social influence that can shape, reinforce, and inculcate values and beliefs and promote specific social practices within diverse audiences across socioeconomic, geographic, and national boundaries” (J. B, Williams. P, 259).

Where do I even start?! The number of experiences I have had where the stars and celebrities I see on the digital networking sites I use like verified Instagram and Twitter accounts, popular Netflix actors. The most influential social media influencers in my life are on Twitch and YouTube because these two platforms allow me and the millions of others who watch to build a relationship with the star. This creates a feeling for the audience member that can seem like there is an actual relationship between the audience member and the celebrity. Twitch is a prime example of how a celebrity can have a direct influence on their audience because the influencer is live streaming and directly interacting with their fans. This creates a connection that a video was taken days/weeks in the past and edited cannot do for an audience like on YouTube which often the biggest stars are people who make ‘vlogs’ covering the activities they do in their daily lives but there is no live interaction with the individual the audience is viewing. This still has a large impact on the audience members because it gives them an idea of what the perfect life ‘should’ look like based on what they are watching a privileged celebrity vlog. The large influence that vloggers and streamers have validates Williams claims that the rise of celebrity culture in the late 20th century has given social media influencers a privileged position of social influence that can shape, reinforce, and skew values and beliefs on diverse audiences in any given society.

We also covered the Dependency Theory which explained some other factors which would affect peoples’ need for social media to hear about the stories they see every day, provide them with entertainment, and connecting them with their friends without location/distance being a factor. Dependency theory explains that all societies vary in structural stability so poor and underdeveloped countries will be less dependant on technology because there is less available to it and they have to learn to live and entertain themselves in other ways. Developed countries with plenty of wealth will have more ways to access technology that provides us with the entertainment and feeling of comfort that our phones give us every day of our lives. As a person who grew up extremely lucky growing up in Oakville, Ontario I always had the privilege to get my hands on the newest technology. When I graduated elementary school is when I got my first phone which looking back on it seems absurd but within the very first week of having the new phone I had signed up for Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat. The cognitive effects that the exposure to these apps at such a young age must have had on me is scary to think about. Dependency theory explains that there are several behavioral and cognitive effects social media has on a person including an increased likelihood of depression and anxiety. I can see in some people I have been around where they always seem worried about something that someone is saying or doing online. Eventually, it makes them get so anxious just not knowing certain things and a lot of the time can create the feeling that things are being said or done behind your back online where what’s being said can easily be deleted.

Week 3 also looked at Mass media and further breaks down how persuasion through the media occurs which creates subgroups of people in society who share common beliefs, lifestyles, humor, etc. In the lecture, we learned that there are two components to mass media which are the opinion leader who consumes large quantities of mass media, and then there are people who do not consume as much media. However, since they do not consume enough media in their own time, they come into contact with the opinion leaders they get persuaded by them.

Week 4

The evolution of public opinion was a major topic of discussion during this week as we learned that it was not always easy like it currently is to freely express yourself because there are so many platforms you can do so on. With the introduction, people are constantly allowed to express their opinion, verbally reject opposing opinions, and interact with one another to share opinions until we form what is known as social norms. Over time, audiences start to catch on to certain ideologies that are widely accepted by society, and people’s opinions can switch because of the pressure they face going against what society has deemed the dominant ideology. Multiple situations come to mind when I think about my audience's experiences and how the dominant ideology changed the way either myself or someone else was acting.

Going out to the bars on the weekend last year at school is an audience experience where I have seen this process happen multiple times. The vast majority (over 90%) of people who are at the bars are from Brock University and I like to think of me as being a member of an audience because everyone there usually had the same goal in mind, to have a fun night out with friends and have a few drinks. Referring to the idea of public opinion, there was a public opinion in terms of how people should act and what ‘normal behavior’ looked like at the bar. Drinking, dancing, singing along to the songs being played were all things that the majority of people were doing as someone who doesn’t enjoy dancing too much I can say you feel like an outsider when your not performing the activities that you see in most of the people who go to your school are doing. This proves that a public opinion is formed when there is an ideology that is more preferred by the public. My small-scale example at the bar can be amplified to see the same pattern happening in any given society as when people see on social media platforms that certain opinions are respected in society while others are silenced. This creates a barrier and can make it very difficult for people who do not follow the norms to express their opinions and be active members of society. At the same time, it benefits the majority of people because they agree with what society has chosen to be the dominant ideologies.

Another topic of focus this week was how did we get to how things are the way they are in terms of creating a public opinion. The evolution of popular opinion is the key factor that formed ‘public opinion’ because logically the popular opinion is what is preferred by the majority of the public and is likely to have some sort of role in society. Plato the Athenian philosopher believed the power should be placed in the people to make their own decision, but he was skeptical that the ordinary person would not be able to make a rational decision. By mapping out the contrast between the two types of thinking, we were able to grasp the idea of why Plato believed that ordinary people’s opinions are sometimes disregarded by society. The contrast between Doxa and episteme helps us grasp the concept of how the public has the power to express their knowledge. Doxa is explained to be the popular belief in a society that does not have the warrants needed to validate their claims being made so that they could be mediated and turned into laws or social norms in society. Episteme is the knowledge that is validated by scientific principles and is cemented in society due to the unchanging nature of the world. In the real world, we see these two concepts surface all the time. For example, people who show up to protest in large groups would be considered Doxa knowledge because it is an opinion being expressed by the general public and for the most part comes from a suppressed group looking to create change that will benefit their lives. We often see protestors gathering outside government institutions because government officials are the ones with episteme knowledge who can take the ideologies they hear from the general public and create an official change in society.

Week 5

Week 5’s material analyzes audiences as active users of media and examines people’s use of media to give them the gratification they need to be satisfied with oneself, as well as what motivates the users to pay attention to live blogs/vlogs. It was addressed that people follow live blogs to fill their need for entertainment, to learn new information, hear other opinions, and express freely express their own opinion. The factors I just listed are considered the agents that motivate users to actively participate in these sorts of activities like streaming platforms that provide entertainment. With the restrictions in place currently to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic most people have been stuck in their homes and unable to do the things they would normally do to keep entertained like hanging out with friends, going out on weekends and socializing with new people, or attending concerts and other festivals that occur annually. The streaming industry has come out and said their platforms have benefitted greatly from this pandemic because the more people are stuck in their homes bored, the more people end up using streaming platforms to occupy their time. In my life, I have used streaming websites like Twitch and Mixer for years before the pandemic was happening and I have noticed a big difference in viewership numbers since the pandemic began. The games I watch mostly are Fortnite and Call of Duty and before the pandemic, there were roughly 50-70 thousand people watching streamers who are playing these games. Since quarantine started viewership numbers have increased to well over 100 thousand people concurrently watching Fortnite and Call of Duty streamers which validates the claim that the streaming industry has benefitted tremendously from the global pandemic.

Operationalizing audiences was also a major focus during the lecture which essentially explains why society has to invade people's privacy to figure out what their interests are so that they can keep producing commodities that they know will be successful in the market for the future. Quantifying an audience and analyzing the data is super necessary for theories to be created because there needs to be hard evidence to make a theory about people’s online interests and to find patterns about what people engage with. In the lecture we talked about how “quantitative data from the systems that track people’s online activities can help streamline audience diversity, can be exchanged for money, and have an air of objectivity.” (Good, Jennifer. 19 Oct 2020). Right now, there is an ongoing controversy in the United States involving the social media site TikTok because it is a Chinese owned website. America's government wants to ban TikTok in the United States, removing it from the millions of users in the country who use the app every day which would also mean the entire community that had been developed on a virtual platform would be removed in an instant. Why would they do this you may ask? Well, it is warranted in my opinion, the reason being that China has supposedly been able to freely access confidential information on all the American users who have an account on the app. This means financial information, personal information like date of birth, even access to a location in some cases are invaded by Chinese ownership of TikTok. America’s government is scared of what China is using the data for and so they want it banned completely in the States.

Quantitative data also allows producers to see data so that they can have more control over what is being produced as well as how much needs to be produced which helps prevent a case of overproduction. Small companies often fail because they overproduce and spend too much money on production to the point where they cannot end up making a profit. If producers can see how many people are engaging in a product or business, they will produce the correct product needed to support customers.

Have you ever walked into a fast-food place and seen the screens that prompt a survey on their service while you were ordering at the restaurant? Or seen a survey on Twitter from Wendy’s or McDonald’s about what people would like to see on their menu? This is the kind of data that digital technology has allowed companies to collect to change their style of business to attract the greatest number of customers. Thus, quantitative data is important for companies to be aware of because it allows them to be one step ahead of their audience members and provide them with the commodities that will make them the most profit. Sometimes problems can arise from this because they may start to lose sight of what is in the best interest of their loyal audience. I’ve seen many companies or brands that started beloved by their audiences change because of their obsession over making maximum profit and they start producing commodities that are cheaper in quality for the customers but benefits the company because their profits will increase.

Nike is a good example of this when the information came out that they use slave workers to mass-produce their products because it means saving a lot more money on good quality work that meets basic human rights and needs. Because of Nike’s incredible ability to brand itself, it had the whole world thinking that if you buy their products it makes you superior to someone without Nike. The reality is it is extremely disappointing what media platforms have been able to do for Nike by covering up the sickening backstory of their products with commercials of people’s favorite athletes and celebrities wearing their brand which makes ordinary people fall in love with the company.

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imissvstuff-blog · 4 years

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The Social and Mental Self

The Social Self is a multifaceted self-concept study which is based on the self's social existence. The emphasis is on self-esteem along with self-centeredness, self-complexity, social interest, identity, control, marginality, transparency, and association with a majority.

THE SOCIO-DIGITAL SELF

With technology growing, ways of socializing have changed significantly. In the past interpersonal relationships can only be formed within physical communities by face-to-face interactions. People can communicate with each other nowadays even though they are not physically present at the same place. One of the inventions that improved the processes of social media interaction and socialization among people.

Social media is characterized as the websites and applications that make knowledge, ideas, and interests easier to create and share. It also enables people to use virtual societies and networks to create other ways of self-expression. Social networking has features that allow people to connect to different groups who share mutual interests (through chat, video calling, or status and photo posting) and become members of virtual communities, whether locally or globally. These characteristics make room for other people as well as enable these groups to affect thoughts and behavior.

Through social media people will behave differently because there is no face-to-face contact in social media and no physical appearance is needed. It is called disembodiment online. With this, people, particularly strangers, are less likely to show their true "self" to others. Individuals are vulnerable to developing digital identities based on various research, which vary from their "true selves."

In an online world, it is vitally important for him or her to project his or her position identity in the said world. One's online identity helps him or her to participate in a virtual community among the technological resources and networks that surround individuals and online behaviors that people engage. Online activities such as chatting, blogging, and even online shopping will require the person to create a "digital identity" that is identified as the identity that a individual claims in cyberspace. A digital identity enables a person to be part of a virtual community that goes beyond the boundaries of physical and geography. One can leave footprints in cyberspace digitally by creating a digital identity. The posts you make on social media sites, the online identities you build, the internet friends you develop, and things you "like, comment on, and share" become part of an individual's digital identity. Some people find their digital identities to be an extension of who they are. Personalities, interests, beliefs, and activities are often expressed in online activities of individuals, particularly on social media sites, where they relate to others in online environments.

Participation in simulated worlds, however, can require changes that can influence a person's sense of self. People can construct several digital identities within cyberspace. People are likely to behave differently when involved in social media interactions because they don't need physical presence. Social media encourages individuals to embrace personalities whatever their physical image. According to Turkle (1995), on the internet people will redefine themselves. Hypotheses created regarding the virtual world vary from those in real life.

Managing Responsible Online Behavior

Regulating online behavior, is significant. Cyberbullying occurs because of people showing reckless and offensive behavior online. How does one act online responsibly? Here are some suggestions:

Do not post or send anything that will embarrass you.

People can act differently online than they do in person-the vast audience is invisible, and many consider their screens safe. That can be a good thing, like someone who feels more comfortable about opening and being themselves. Yet people also abuse social networks to threaten and intimidate others.

Internet publishing is free, accessible and sometimes permanent. When you publish, you lose track of what's happening to it - it just takes one person to share it on their own profiles to get it out of your hands fully.

Avoid posting statements when experiencing strong emotions.

Negative emotions like anxiety, depression and rage are a normal part of life and we often struggle with how to cope effectively with them. It may be tempting to respond instinctively on what you hear, but it sometimes doesn't resolve the problem it triggered the emotions. In fact, handling down the road can lead to more problems.

Do not hang out with the ��wrong crowd” offline

You might be wise enough not to post the pic of you holding this red solo cup (full of lemonade). Yet, along with the comment, your friend does — and tags you—"Gettin 'blitzed!!! "You may not want anyone at last weekend's party to capture your iconic dance moves, but there are cameras and phones everywhere. If you're associating with people who don't really care about you or your reputation, they can take the opportunity to watch (and laugh at) the video and post it to others. It could go viral, worse of all, and next thing you know you're being interviewed by Daniel Tosh about a humiliating video of you that's gone national and seen by millions.

Do not hang out with the “wrong crowd” online

Stop accepting any request from friends and followers that comes your way. Getting a lot of followers isn't the status symbol that some people make it to be and may increase the risk of victimization. Giving access to your personal information to strangers opens you up to all kinds of possible issues. It's also true, though, that those that are most likely to take advantage of you aren't going to be total strangers, but would be the ones you've allowed into your life just a little bit (like encouraging them to make friends or follow you)-and who's using knowledge they can now access against you.

Be careful with oversharing, especially confidential information that may be used irresponsibility.

When you're just writing about your meals, bathroom trips, social life, and the new YouTube viral video, others will think: 1) you've got too much time on your hands, 2) you've got no concentration or goals, or 3) you're unproductive and you can't make a real contribution to something. Remember that people don't care about all the many crazy things happening in your life as much as you want them to know. The entire thing is not about you!

Respect other people in the online community.

Respect for yourself and others is crucial in all relationships and when you are online, it is no different.

You should motivate your child to treat friends online with the same respect as the ones he meets face to face. This is not part of making or sending out negative or degrading emails, images or text messages about someone else

Also, if she sees someone being bullied or harassed online, you should encourage your child to tell you or another trusted adult. Young people sometimes want to figure things out for themselves, so it's important that your child gets into the habit of asking you if she's concerned about something that's happening online. This can help your child understand that when other people help, things are easier to work out.

If your child receives some negative or abusive comments on its profile pages, online blocking or unfriendly people who don't treat him with respect. That sends the message that mistreating or harassing others online is not OK.

Despite these recommendations, a balanced digital identity can be fostered and projected that positively impacts one's social self. In an online forum, people can learn new things, make more friends, broaden their viewpoints through safe online networking and develop better social values. Unlike in face-to-face encounters where conversations leave digital traces that can linger for others to see forever. People will also exercise decorum online; in the same way they practice decorum in real life.

The Mental Self focuses on the self's intellectual aspects. As the intelligent beings, human strives over time and effectively copes with the demands of the environment. The mental capacities of people indicate human dominance over other species on the planet. A detailed comprehension of this gift to mankind therefore requires careful consideration. This also includes discussions about how people learn, and how learning skills build one's being.

Human Learning

Learning as a result of experience is described as a relative permanent change in a person's knowledge or actions. This description connotes three things; first, the change is long-term; second, the root of change comes from within the individual's external memory or information structures; and third, the change is due to the learner's personal experiences in his or her environment. Then learning occurs when knowledge or information is passed to long-term memory that is further expanded, rehearsed, and exercised.

Process takes place also outside of school. This does happen in daily circumstances. Learning occurs when there is an apparent change in one's beliefs and behavior. But learning is not limited to positive results; one may also benefit from undesirable circumstances. There is interaction of financial, environmental, and behavioral change according to the social cognitive theory.

Surface learning results in pure fact-absorption and rote memorization. This does not require learning announcements to happen, and rather pays attention to teacher success, student learning is useful in certain cases, but does not generally contribute to deep understanding. Deep learning approaches, on the other hand, include making concrete comparisons, using higher cognitive abilities, improving intrinsic motivation and building stronger metacognitive abilities.

To adopt deep learning strategies, students can engage on the following habits.

Taking down notes

Students improve the retention and interpretation of concepts by writing down notes, and may connect them to previous knowledge they have already processed.

Asking questions during classroom sessions

Asking questions during class promotes the exploration of individuals and classes through an active dialogue between teacher and student. It also allows for an immediate input about the learning process.

Creating cognitive maps

The essence of deep learning is the mechanism by which students and teachers create concrete associations between types of knowledge the student knows. Creating cognitive maps involves linking concepts together in order to arrive at valuable meanings and facilitate valuable transfer to long-term memory.

Engaging in collaborative learning activities with mentors and peers

"Two heads are better than one" is a saying. Students can converse, share thoughts, and debate in joining study groups to sharpen their communication skills.

Going beyond the mandatory course requirements

The learning process can be significantly improved by reading supplementary reference materials watching films that highlight topics explored in class, going on trips for an immersive learning experience, and engaging in other learning opportunities.

#thinkbeforeyouclick

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kenetijamesupdates · 4 years

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I Still Believe Reviews and KJ Praise in Quotes

Franciscan Media

Movie Mom

“But Robertson and Apa make a sweet couple and their commitment to God and each other gives their story a tenderness that even those with different beliefs will find touching.”

World Magazine

Common Sense Media

“Apa and Robertson are marvelous together.”

Hollywood In Toto

Rogers Movie Nation

“Kapa does his own singing in “I Still Believe,” a big plus as he covers both Camp’s songs and others from the Christian pop canon, such as a beach campfire rendition of “Find Me in the River.”

The Film Yap

“Apa brings a lovable decency to the role. With his dark, lanky good looks and breezy charisma, his Jeremy sort of reminds me of Jim Halpert from “The Office,” minus the snark.”

Eskimo TV

“ KJ Appa gives an emotional, charismatic, and realistic portrayal of a man who has found the love of his life and is going to stand by her side, trusting in God, no matter what challenges that they face.“

The Hollywood Reporter

Variety

“ Thanks to the immensely appealing performances by Apa and Robertson, it’s easy for the audience to take a rooting interest in the sometimes awkward, sometimes amusing development of the budding romance between Jeremy and Melissa.”

Datebook

“Apa and Robertson appeared together in “A Dog’s Purpose,” and they share an obvious chemistry that makes their characters’ instant connection here believable. They also create the film’s only real musical spark when their characters harmonize during a gathering on a beach.”

“The script mostly requires Apa to look pained, which he does effectively. And he can’t help that at certain angles, he looks like Shane West, triggering memories of “A Walk to Remember,” an actually good movie about illness intervening in young love.”

AV Club

“ Robertson has the harder job, tasked with ailing beautifully to inspire others. She manages to make the most out of her few minutes of anger and frustration. Apa’s duty is less onerous, but he fares well, too—and for what it’s worth, sings beautifully.“

Backseat Directors

“The key to making a film like this effective is getting the right casting and portraying enough moments of earned emotion. I Still Believe passes both of these tests. It is not one of the best faith-based films of recent memory, but it is solid and inspiring enough to be worth a watch. While Robertson is getting too old for these types of teen roles, Apa and her have nice chemistry together that goes a long way.“

The Globe and Mail

“Most of this is due to the committed, if ultimately insubstantial and disposable, performances by real-deal actors K.J. Apa (better known as Archie on CW’s Riverdale) as aspiring singer-songwriter Jeremy and Britt Robertson (Tomorrowland) as the cancer-ridden object of his affection, Melissa.”

Paul’s Trip To The Movies

“ KJ Apa shies away from his Archie tendencies and makes Jeremy a little awkward, a little goofy, but full of heart. He and Britt Robertson have good chemistry together. They previously started in A Dog’s Purpose, and you can buy into them as a couple fairly easily.“

Irish Film Critic

“ K.J. Apa completely wraps himself in the persona of Camp and performs the music himself.”

The Christian Film Review

“The casting is perfect with KJ Apa portraying Jeremy Camp, he plays guitar and sings throughout the film, while bringing humour, struggle, sadness and hope. He helps us to feel the emotions he is going through and brings us on the journey with him. He and Britt Robertson who plays Melissa Camp are just perfect together, bringing this love story to life.”

Box Office Revolution

“ Once again, in I Still Believe, the Erwin collective proves that they take great care in their casting and acting coaching work. Even though some of the cast members don’t entirely represent the real people they are portraying (which is the movie’s only flaw), every performance is still on point. Line delivery and emotional delivery are basically flawless as the audience is able to easily experience the characters’ feelings. Though this is a relatively small cast compared to previous Erwin projects, it still shines nonetheless and rounds out another blockbuster hit for the brothers.”

Wherever I Look

“Leading men with charm aren’t hard to find. A white boy with hair, a good face, abs, and knows how to make a girl swoon is pretty much the minimum if you wish to work in anything beyond indie dramas. Apa, on the other hand, doesn’t rest on the basics. In a movie about faith, you can see this drive behind his eyes and in every action as if, beyond knowing the story and having the script, he and Melissa will be together in the end, and you get sucked in so deep.”

Zach Pope

“And I’ll also mention that I think that Britt Robertson and KJ Apa were actually pretty good, besides having a middling kind of script inside here.”

Dallas Culture Map

“It helps tremendously to have two charismatic, photogenic, and recognizable actors as the leads. Both Apa and Robertson have proven themselves in other successful projects, and their experience and chemistry keeps the story moving when it threatens to get bogged down.”

LA Times

Watch or Pass

“ First and foremost, K.J. Apa is fantastic as Jeremy Camp. He is talented (doing about 85% of the vocals in the film and playing guitar) and funny, really highlighting what is special about the famous singer. And, most importantly, he has fantastic charisma with Britt Robertson. The relationship that these two share really drives the story and the underlying message of the film, and the clear connection the two have really shines through on the screen.”

Stuff

“ The pair sell their nascent romance and growing deep affection with aplomb, no easy task when saddled with a script that can't decide if it's a teen weepie (a la Five Feet Apart) or a sub-par (Nicholas) Sparks-eque romantic-drama. Given the chance to showcase his musical and leading man abilities Apa grabs it with both hands, while Robertson's performance makes you wonder why she isn't a more regular Hollywood fixture.”

One Guy’s Opinion

The Wrap

“ Nearly indistinguishable spiritual ballads — sung on screen by the musically talented Apa himself — plague the timeline of this fateful relationship, with a duet between them at the beach early on being the most memorable.”

Beautiful Ballad

“Apa steps into the role of Camp and is captivating as the Christian singer. Apa uses his own musical talents to draw the audience with every musical scene. His romantic scenes with Robertson will also have audience members swooning. Apa’s take on this character is much different from his role as Riverdale’s Archie Andrews, but just as enjoyable. Robertson’s take on Melissa is heartbreaking and inspiring. The character goes through many different emotions throughout the movie and Robertson navigates through them with ease.“

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onceuponamirror · 5 years

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hi! A while ago you mentioned how you subscribe to the belief that your personal experience should be priorized above than objective "truth". I just find that super interesting (esp. when it comes to shipping and our engagement with the media we consume) and I wonder if you could expand on that, bc I'm currently taking a class that touches very heavily on the subject =)

i’d be happy to! but i should clarify that it’s incredibly subjective and really, really depends on circumstance. feel like it would go without saying, but i was referring to storytelling and narrative. just want to emphasize that, because objective truth vs experience is more complicated in the real world, especially vis-a-vis racial/gender prejudice/bias. and that’s a whole other conversation.

(occasionally it also can work in terms of actual interpersonal relationships and communication, but, i digress)

anyway. in high school i read a book called “the things we carried” by tim o’brien, which is a war/anti-war collection of short stories. in the chapters, he would take you through a war experience, presented as a memory, and at the end of the chapter, he would sometimes reveal if it was actually a “true” recollection. at first i was annoyed, but then i realized what he was saying was:

fiction can be relative. the experience you personally had interpreting something isn’t. because you felt it, you made it real, for yourself. that’s the skinny. it’s what i feel the entire point of storytelling is—what matters is whether you’re moved by the content, whether you experience things alongside the characters, and sometimes no matter the cost, even if it’s a lie to your reader.

it’s sort of a parallel of death of the author, which is the theory that the creator’s intentions and motivations are moot once they’re received by an audience; that each person’s personal history informs the way they absorb/react to text. this happens in either circumstance.

the difference is that sometimes a content creator is upset by different interpretations by the audience, whereas someone like o’brien did it deliberately to best tell his story; sometimes something was better explained by a dream-like metaphor that didn’t actually happen smack dab in the middle of a “nonfiction” book. so in the case of it being deliberate, it’s in the service of the story; it’s the unreliable narrator.

(ironically, i guess the main difference is the definition of death of the author itself lmao—does it matter what was intentional? philosof etc)

as it applies to fandom—and here’s where the two theories kind of blend up a lot—i feel like it shows up most in arguments of “canon” and shipping wars. does it matter if x ship never comes to fruition, was never planned, never even in the writing, but two actors had some chemistry or there was a moment in the direction, etc? the whole notion of fandom is that the content has a hand off to the fans, which somehow leads to a lot of elitism and false hierarchies over who then “gets” the most content.

but those who are unrepresented or uninspired by the canon often seek to create their own out those tiny moments, and that’s what makes their experience outweigh the “truth” of the story. it changes shape and form by those who want to relate to something else, and what those people experience/feel is absolutely no less than what is felt by those getting “canon” content.

it’s funny tho because—and this is just like, my personal brand of nerdy, i’m going off topic slightly—historically, stories have been changing hands and taking new forms and branching off one another for…forever, basically. i mentioned this in a recent post, but cinderella, for example, has roots in both ancient greece and 9th century china. things like the silk road and the roman empire traded a lot of stories around, and in many ways, the content gets owned by whoever is told it. each person brings their own personal experiences and culture to the story they share, which informs the next, and the next, etc.

the concept of death of the author has existed for centuries (PLEASE read this historian explain how there were legit king arthur fanfics in the 1500s—the traveling bard was a thing because each storyteller had their own version, and came to town with a new but familiar fan fave. that’s why shakespeare as an “original” bard is hilarious)—but it’s only in modern times that the stigma appeared.

(i would guess partially because the ability to directly engage back with the author/actor/etc has changed and blurred the lines. we all have role models who have had impacts on our lives through the work they put out but what a person means to someone doesn’t entitle them to “content,” because a real person’s life isn’t…..content. it’s their life. i think you prob know what i’m referring to.)

(i’m also NOT talking about plagiarism, which is something totally different and is straight up theft of direct text, etc. “you know it when you see it”)

tl;dr,

so in terms of storytelling, “objective truth” loses to “personal experience” because truth is a narrative relative. in a story, regardless of what, say, i-the-author am expressing for myself, what you-the-reader feel makes it real for you.

then an audience inherits whatever story they’ve been told. how the individual interprets it and retell it is the birth of another.

fandom/fanfic are new phenomena only in the sense of their accessibility of scale, but that they’re basically, basically iterations of the oral tradition that have existed as long as language has. the nature of storytelling is that it changes hands and becomes someone else’s story that they expand upon and modify. and again, and on, and forever.

anyway. that was rambly and possibly not very clear. hope it answered your question! i’d love to hear what you’re discussing in your class!

#fanfiction #writing #storytelling #Anonymous

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scripttorture · 6 years

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This is a question related to brainwash. I have character that gets tortured psyhologically and physically just for the sake of it. Can a torturer make a person lose hope that they will be saved and make the victim dissapointed at those who should come and save him? Its a policeman my character.

Brainwashingisn’t real and there is no such thing as ‘psychological torture’.

Thereis such thing as emotional abuse, but the term ‘psychologicaltorture’ is something torture apologists use to discredit torturevictims and dismiss the harm torture causes.

SoI’m already pretty dubious about this idea.

Theanswer to your question is no.That isn’t possible.

Torturerscan not control the emotional responses, thoughts, beliefs orsymptoms of their victims.

Agreat many torturers claimthat they can and their supporters also claim they can. But this hasbeen thoroughly and repeatedly disproved by scientists, from medicsand psychologists putting volunteers through extreme experiences tostatisticians combing through historical records and applying modernanalysis to historical accounts of torture.

Torturedoes not work.It has no practical purpose. It can not be used to control people.

Infact the evidence we have suggests that the oppositeismore likely. Torture seems to produce entrenched and extremeresistance to torturers and sometimes the wider social group theybelong to, such as ‘police’, ‘men’, ‘torturer’s race’‘torturer’s nationality’ etc.

Theidea you have at the moment is based on a lie, one that is used tojustify, excuse and encourage torture across the globe today.

That’snot your fault. It is difficultto find accurate information on torture. Most of the research I referto isn’t easily accessible and it’s not well known. Mostof it costs a significant amount of money to access. I’m having toget one of these books translated privately because the people whopublished it don’t see any worth in an English (or indeed anyother) translation.

Andwhile accurate information is difficult to come by we are showntorture apologia in fiction allthe time. It’s astaple of crime dramas, action movies, children’s cartoons and adozen other genres. It is repeated as fact by politicians andnewspaper opinion pieces.

Withthat kind of background noise and no dissenting opinions or evidenceavailable coming up withplot lines like this and imaging they’re realistic is inevitable.Like I said it’sunderstandable and it’s not your fault.

Nowyou have a choice.

Youcan carry on writing this, knowing that it’s based on propagandathat supports torturers.

Oryou can change your story to something that reflects the reality oftorture and supports the survivors of torture instead.

Youcan start here. This Masterpost talks about the most commontropes in media that support torture. None of them are true and theyturn up in fiction on a regular basis. Question whether you have any(apart from this incident) in your story and if you do remove them.

Nextyou can take a look at the symptoms torture victims and torturersgenerally develop as a result of being exposed to torture.

Ifyou are not prepared to write a character with severe mental healthproblems for the rest of the narrative then a torture plot is not agood choice. Because these symptoms do not go away. There is no cure.Survivors can and do get better,they go on to live fulland happy lives. But they do so withmental illness, by receiving treatment, by getting support and bylearning how to cope with their symptoms.

Youshould also probably read this short post on why accurate portrayalsof torture in fiction are important.

Ifthere’s even a slight chance elements of starvation or solitaryconfinement showing up in your story then you should also read theposts on their effects which canbe found here andhere.

Ithink you’d also benefit from reading or listening to what torturesurvivors say about themselves, their outlook and their experiencesrather than what other people say about them.

Ihave a post on Fela Kuti here. Ihave one on Ronald Searle here. Alleg’sTheQuestion can be found,translated into English, here.Anda short BBC interview with Bobi Wine is available for free here.

Theseare far from the only accounts available. And my choice of theseaccounts probably says more about my taste in music and art thenanything else.

Thenyou should take a look at the Sources page over here. I’dparticularly recommend O’Mara’s WhyTorture Doesn’t Work,Monroe’s A DarklingPlain and AmnestyInternational Reports, especially those that focus on individuals intheir own words.

FinallyI think you need to questionwhether youneedto include torture in this story.

Isit actually adding anything to your narrative? What role is itplaying in the story? Does it have a lasting impact on the narrative?Does it have a lasting impact on all the characters, including thetorturer and people who know the victim but aren’t particularlyclose?

Realisticand well written torture is not a narrative short cut. If all youultimately want in the story is to have a character incapacitated fora short time and for the character to lose trust in some of hisfriends then torture is nota good fit for your story.

Ifon the other hand you want the character to suddenly develop somevery serious mental illnesses and spend the rest of the narrativelearning to cope with them,then torture isa good fit. If you’re willing to have this one scene distort,re-shape and colour the rest of the narrative, the rest of the seriesif you’re planningmultiple stories, then torture is a good fit.

Doyou want to spend the rest of the story writing about torture andit’s consequences? Because that is what introducing torture to anarrative often does.

FundamentallyI think you need to question what you want to use torture forin this story.

Torturecan be used well in fiction. It can be used to talk about abuse,injustice and real human experiences in deep, moving ways. It can beused to talk about social systems, their strengths and flaws. It canbe used to show audiences meaningful things about characters.

Itcan create incredibly empowering stories about our ability toovercome adversity and injustice. It can also be used to show howinjustice can galvanise us to resist.

Buttorture is not amagic wand that can be waved to explain a character changing theirmind about things they previously held dear in a short space of time.It is not a realisticexplanation for a character abandoning their beliefs. Itcanchange a character’s personality, but not in ways anyone canpredict or control.

Ifyou need your character to abruptly abandon everything you’vepreviously established about them- then the problem is not thepresence or absence of torture and abuse. The problem is that you’vecreated a plot hole and a narrative that’s divorced from well pacedcharacter development.

Ifyou want you character to lose faith in the people around him then myadvice is this: do not use torture, instead go back and establishthat the character’s trust in other people is already shaky. Showthe readers repeated hints that this character’s faith in others isshallow and easily knocked. Then you can use a much more everyday‘betrayal’ to produce a realistic break between this characterand his allies.

Abuseof any kind is not cement to fill in plot holes or smooth overcharacter inconsistencies.

Whenwe choose to write about these things then whatever our setting weare writing about real occurrences, effecting real people.

Theydeserve respect.

Disclaimer

#tw torture #torture apologia #writing victims #resistance #brainwashing is not real #Anonymous

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bottlewriter58 · 2 years

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Definitive Guide To Influencer Marketing For 2021

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According to a broadcast infographic, roughly 71% of customers usually have a tendency to advocate a brand to different customers if their social media interplay with that brand is constructive.

#seo

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laughriotgrrrl · 6 years

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My Thoughts On Where Comedy Is Going By Bobbie Oliver

Recently someone asked me where I saw stand-up comedy going in the future. I think they wanted a short answer. I wrote an essay. So, I’m sharing it with you.

Technology has opened up comedy to a vast slew of marginalized voices that were previously unheard in the homogeneous pool of comedians of the past. Social media and easy access to recording and publishing devices have given more people the ability to produce their own podcast, web series, video shorts, record their own comedy album, publish their own book, build their own web sites and blogs, etc. In other words, by allowing people to bypass industry gatekeepers, these tools are changing the game. Comics can create their own comedy shows, festivals, organizations, venues. Many of these groups/voices were (and still are) considered fodder for comedy. Now, they are making their own comedy. This shift has led to a national conversation about what and who is and is not considered comedy material. This split is not unlike the main stream comedy club vs alternative comedy venue debate that has been going on for years.

When I started doing comedy in 1988, the mainstay adage was: PUNCH UP, not down, meaning don't use your comedy powers to go after the underdogs of society, but rather the people, institutions and beliefs that created those underdogs. Or, as Chris Rock says, only go after people who “have it coming.” While many comics maintain this philosophy, a number of comics have used their comedy powers to, some say, bully marginalized voices. Those voices are now talking back. (What do I mean by marginalized voices? For example, the LBGT+ community; people of color; women, especially women of color; sexual assault and domestic violence victims; people with disabilities; people over a certain age; poor communities, etc.). Splinter groups have formed and the arguments and think- pieces run rampant. There are people who would like you to believe that this discourse is being thrust upon comics against their will. In reality, the calls for change are coming from inside the house.

A prominent argument in this conversation is that comedy is about FREE SPEECH and that audiences have become too sensitive, too easily offended. I totally get that thought process. But, on the other hand... free speech is defined as the government being prohibited from arresting or detaining someone based on something they said (short of shouting "fire" in a crowded movie theatre). Last time I checked, no one is arresting comics for anything they say. No one is even telling comics they can’t say anything (except Louis CK, who needs to shut the fuck up). Also, support for comics accused (and many admitted) of sexual assault/ harassment (sometimes in the workplace) has somehow hitched its wagon to the "people are too easily offended" argument. I didn’t realize jerking off in front of your co-workers was a First Amendment right. Free speech does not allow one to be free from backlash, consequences or hearing other people's opinions. Free speech goes both ways. And, no, I am not referring to heckling. We all agree that heckling should not be allowed in a comedy show. Or at least, I think we all agree on that. Comics taking this hard-line free speech position sometimes go out of their way just to say the most offensive shitty thing they can to appear edgy. Comedy is not a contest to see who can say the shittiest thing. I am not talking about comics like Anthony Jeselnik, who clearly have a method to their madness.

As a comic, I was surprised by this argument that audiences don't get to tell you what they do like and don't like, what they think is funny and what they don’t. When I hear people like Jerry Seinfeld complain that audiences are too easily offended, first I think, what the fuck has Seinfeld ever said that was offensive (I mean, besides his off stage remarks about women in comedy not having any more barriers than men)? Then, I saw it as just a comic complaining that they can't keep up with changing demographics and preferences of audiences. Comedy is changing, waaahh!! Besides, lots of audiences do still want to go see comedy that some people consider offensive, or rather some people consider not funny. Comedy has always been subjective. One man's joke attacking homeless people for annoying him is another man's treasure. Especially with the access that people have to comedians today, audiences will find the comics for them and comedians will find their audiences. There is no reason to squash anyone's voice.

That being said, there is also absolutely no reason why we can't have this national conversation about the state of comedy. Every industry has “best practices.” Every industry does, or should, take a step back every now and then and look at where they have been and where they are headed. The change in audiences’ attitudes is more about the changing demographics of audiences. Used to be, you had to be able to pay to go see live comedy. You had to live in a place that had comedy shows, be able to afford a baby sitter and the cost of the ticket, and have the free time and ability to get to a comedy show. So, comedy audiences tended to be more people of privilege (or at least resources) and the jokes were only heard by the people in that room (fewer people and limited demographic to feel like they are the butt of a joke) or by people who bought a particular comedy album because they were a fan of that comic or watched a TV show they could easily turn off (but was also censored). Gatekeepers in the entertainment industry tended to be straight white males (and still are) who let performers through the gate that they found funny and fit their views of life. Also, our experiences as comics were limited to the people we knew or had been around in our lives or read about.

With the invention of the Internet, audiences widened to include the whole world. You may have never met a trans person or known a person with disabilities; you may have not spent much time around people of color; you think you don’t know any rape victims (you do). But, no one with social media can claim that those human beings and experiences are unknown to them now. Previously upheld stereotypes and the ability to distance oneself from the experiences of others are dissolving. Not to mention, things like making fun of people for having an accent when the speak English or how “foreigners” look different from you, or how hearing-impaired people may talk, etc is just considered hack lazy comedy now.

So, where do I think comedy is going? Everywhere. Now everyone has a comic who looks like them and sounds like them and they can relate to or just find funny as hell even if they are completely different because they find their perspective interesting. Audiences have choices. If they don’t like something, instead of abandoning comedy altogether, they can find someone and something they like or they can start doing comedy themselves. I once guest-tweeted for a feminist organization that brought in women from different careers to discuss their fields with the group’s followers. I got an overwhelming number of tweets from women saying they stopped going to comedy clubs because of rape jokes. I was shocked at how many women just abandoned their love of live comedy because of this. Cue the “well if you don’t like what comedians are saying, don’t go to comedy clubs” argument. They don’t anymore. You can say whatever you want. But, audiences don’t have to sit there and take it. You may agree or disagree, but the fact remains that comedy clubs lost revenue and comedians lost fans. I can and have written long diatribes about the difference between a pro-rape victim blaming joke and a rape culture joke, but that is for another day. Suffice it to say that no one is taking your right to free speech from you. If you don’t want a reaction to what you are saying, go do comedy alone in a dark room. But, as long as you do comedy for and in the presence of people, they are going to have a reaction. Welcome to the future.

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thesaltminers · 6 years

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The Curious Case of Megan Derr

Megan Derr is the co-owner of Less Than Three Press, an indie LGBTQ publishing house--and she’s also their most prolific author. Before LT3’s founding, Megan posted her slash fiction on LiveJournal and Fictionpress, epicenters of older wank that unfortunately went unrecorded.

Over the years, Megan has been embroiled in several dramas, none of which impeded LT3’s growth. When juxtaposed with similar controversies, this lack of fallout becomes curious.

Was she just Not That Bad, comparatively? Did people not care? Or had Megan's navigation of the drama de-escalate any chance at a larger blow up? We investigate.

Why does Megan matter?

As visible co-owner of a successful and award-winning LGBTQ press, Megan is officially a gatekeeper. Her personal opinions matter and her voice reflects on her business… theoretically. Of course, in the past Megan has implied she was a martyr for the community, working so hard for them, whilst neatly minimising that her profit also comes from that same community

Nonetheless, she has a direct hand in what gets published, which is her right as co-owner. LT3 proactively publishes trans, bi, ace, and other less-exposed areas of the queer spectrum.

While this is obviously wonderful in a lot of ways, LT3's prominence in this particular publishing sphere becomes concerning when you realize that Megan Derr's personal beliefs and ethics drive the majority of the publishing decisions, and thus, what representation is produced. Given her avowed dislike of #OwnVoices (which will be expanded upon further in this report) and her insistence that the subject of a genre is not the audience for that genre, the implications are troubling.

We posit that Megan skirts the line of actionable offences, but works to "poison the well" or create a toxic environment. This is more ephemeral than other infamous instances of wank, but it is a long-running pattern of behavior with real consequences for both individuals and the community as a whole.

Social Media Climate

Recently, we compiled reports on Santino Hassell and Riptide Press, the latter of whom is still attracting attention for bad decisions.

Social media is primed for another explosion. The match was lit when the Bi Book Award finalists were announced and several Twitter users took umbrage with the two competing publishers of the year: Riptide Publishing and Less Than Three Press.

The current call out

Twitter user BrookieRayWrite reacted to the Bi Award announcement with a threaded post, which included screenshots of Megan's past behaviour. They referenced two incidents: Megan’s dislike of #OwnVoices—a movement in publishing to uplift authentic minority experiences so that people could find content they felt connected to—and her blog post declaring M/M is for women.

However, this was not the first time someone tried to call out Megan. Heidi Belleau, an author LGBTQ romance, posted a comprehensive thread in 2016.

The rest of which, can be found here.

Nothing came from this Twitter call out. But now Heidi has resurfaced with her complaints about Megan, and with her comes an old wank standby to defend Megan--Aleksandr Voinov.

Yep. He called her crazy. In case you missed it, Heidi Belleau takes on this moniker to analyze its silencing and delegitimizing function. In short, Voinov is not only being ableist, he is actively working to create a hostile landscape to voices critical of Megan Derr.

Moments of Note

“No Gay Aces”

In an incident that went unrecorded, but that we witnessed at the time, an author published a book with a character who identified as “gay ace.” Incensed, Megan declared that there was no such thing. This conflict is worthy of note because its exemplifies Megan’s confidence in her own rightness and her refusal to ever back down from a position, a character trait that shines through in following events.

However, perhaps it also showcases Megan’s reaction when she knows she’s incorrect—as of now, the conflict seems to have been scrubbed from GoodReads. We hesitate to include unsupported facts, but feel it is important in Megan Derr's case to establish her pattern of behavior, in order to examine her tactics and strategy.

“Rose Lemberg”

At the height of #OwnVoices, Megan was becoming increasingly irritated over what she interpreted as a movement to outlaw people writing outside of their identity. She replied to a Tweet by Rose Lemberg—

Apparently Megan needed a reaction, because she Tweeted at Rose twice.

Megan's interpretation of “you are not doing us a favor,” as “don’t do this,” has the unfortunate implication that she believes writing outside of her identity is doing someone a favor.

When Rose removed themself from the conversation, Megan reacted thusly:

She steamrolls over Rose's "no spoons" comment, a clear signal in the disabled community that further engagement would be literally damaging to the respondent. The fact that she ignores that signal is incredibly ableist—and if she's ignorant about that, it just shows how unprepared she is to write disabled characters, thus proving Rose's point.

After confronting Rose, and not getting the response she wanted, Megan unfollowed.

Megan apologized for misgendering Rose, and we do not believe she would intentionally misgender someone. However, it does illustrate her "shoot first" nature.

“M/M Is for Women”

Turnabout is fair play, in a sense, because Megan had her own opportunity to open a discussion and then immediately block responses to it.

Megan lobbed quite the cannonball across the community’s bow with this fascinating retort against white cis gay men, prompted by a gay man who had called out the M/M genre for its fetishism of its subjects. Out of all her altercations, this one may be the most ill-advised (in a PR sense). It is also one where she found her audience not only unreceptive, but actively accusatory.

Whatever her point may have been, Megan said M/M wasn’t for gay men. Yes, Yaoi, BL, and slash fic was, on the surface level, fueled initially by a female audience. Yes, they fall under different genre conventions than the works of EM Forster and other literary authors. But there’s something undeniably and offensively entitled about declaring ownership of a genre over the actual subject of that genre.

When Megan felt that people were ignoring her reasoning unfairly, she shut down comments.

Friend/Colleague Exodus

If one were to casually take note of the comings and goings of Megan’s friends and colleagues, they may notice a gradual change in the cast of characters. The common denominator of this situation, of course, is Megan. There is a track record of Megan and her sister, Sam, saying oddly misguided and downright offensive comments to their authors, usually trans authors, at which point the relationship is ended and the author quietly moves on.

Water off a duck’s back

People in Megan’s sphere have probably noted that, controversy after controversy, nothing sticks. Even after years of wanky drama all throughout M/M’s history, with the inevitable apologies and flounces from the authors and readers at the center of each crisis, Megan keeps on trucking. The question is, what makes her different?

Leaving the realm of screenshots and facts, there’s only theory to go on. For instance, maybe the conflicts Megan faces are small enough, and far enough apart, that no one can exactly put into words why they think she should be called out. Or perhaps the people who dislike her realize some hypocrisy would come with accusing her of something. (Those in glass houses, etc.)

From a more practical angle, she almost never apologizes. Typically, the subjects of wank quibble, apologize several times, and release statements. Megan usually just posts a few accusatory tweets and then moves on after blocking anyone who could possibly question her worldview.

As evidenced by the more recent wanks, there is generally tangible evidence of harm with multiple victims stepping forward to detail their abuse. However, this takes years and momentum for this to occur. We know that Megan has her share of victims as well, and we know that they have experienced mental and emotional harm that has had real impact on their ability to work. Yet if people were to inspect why they don’t like her, would they only find several blog posts and Tweets that are abrasive and tone-deaf?

Her Modus Operandi has always been to aggressively confront someone she disagrees with (ex. Rose Lemberg) and then flounce/block when she’s challenged. Mirroring that, when someone confronts or disagrees with her, she immediately shuts down discussion (ex. M/M is for Women blog post).

As the co-owner of LT3, she also partly controls the narrative of indie LGBTQ publishing. Her choices and attitude influence the community tone and acceptable in-group culture, and, arguably, add toxicity. However, to pin down specific instances (and therefore confront and address them), is incredibly difficult—which is possibly why every call out thus far has dwindled without fanfare.

In Summation

The overarching, and fascinating, truth about Megan is sometimes she makes sense. Unfortunately, she also says a lot of bullshit. This may come from a lack of ability to grasp nuance.

Does #OwnVoices put pressure on people to out their life circumstances for the sake of credibility? Probably, yes. But others feel confident in self-reporting, wanting their voices out there for others to hear them. Do people mispronounce white people’s names? Yes. But that doesn’t negate the racist undertones and microaggressions minorities face when people mock their names. These, among other situations, are odd hills Megan chooses to die on seemingly because she doesn’t want to understand them.

The current call out is in reaction to the Bi Awards. Certain authors have stepped forward to Tweet their protest of LT3's nomination. They argue that Megan, as the owner of LT3, has promoted an environment that does harm to bi voices, and they feel it is inappropriate for her to be celebrated in this specific context.

The situation is still developing. From here, we can see only two branching paths. Either those running the Bi Awards rescind LT3's nomination, or they do not.

But this event is dredging up old salt. As with any wank, one is left wondering what the conclusion should be; Exile? Apology? Loss of sales? What does a successful call out look like? Megan is a real person with a wife and a business that she has worked hard to develop. She publishes minority representation because she believes in that effort.

But her belief does not exculpate her.

She has managed to repeatedly dodge accountability. Whether this is through calculated tactics or a magical formula she managed to stumble upon doesn't change the fact that she has actively contributed to making the community hostile to marginalized people. It doesn't change the fact that her status as a major publisher among LGBTQIA online presses shields her, especially as those who would ordinarily call her out for bad behavior must hesitate and consider the economic ramifications of doing so.

Now, to guess what Megan might pull from this to deflect responding to the salient points? Probably that we mentioned her mom voted for Trump.

Interesting links:

Heidi

http://archive.is/Aio1f

http://archive.li/1IknD

http://archive.li/SsQ41

Maria_Reads

http://archive.li/zPqGa

http://archive.li/kCInK

#fandom wank #megan derr #lt3 #less than three press #mm romance #publishing

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CONNECTIVITY AND THE CULTURE AND SOCIETY

How does communication create, maintain, or modify culture and society? To answer this question we must first start off with defining what communication, culture, and society is.

Communication is the process of conveying information or meanings through words or symbols in order for one to connect between one entity or a group. Mass communication on the other hand is communication within a wider range of audience. Meanwhile, culture and society, though totally different with each other are two things which are coexistent. Culture won’t exist without society and so as society in the absence of culture. Culture, though interpreted in many different definitions is defined by most scholars as something that is shared among groups of people with shared history, values, knowledge and tradition. Society then would be the outer structure, a group of people living collectively on a wider social group with a systematic form of relationship.

With the occurrence of new technologies, our means of communication had gradually changed and the effects this new media to culture, society, and communication itself are creating debates whether it would make or destroy us.

MEDIA COMMUNICATION TRANSFORMS CULTURE AND SOCIETY

Some scholars say that communication itself is responsible for the emergence of culture. With the increasing rampant use of the internet and use of social media as the main medium of communication comes the wider and larger scale of information transmission and communication. Through the internet people nowadays can create connections with other people even from great distances which enable them to communicate and form groups with other people of the same beliefs and interests across the globe online. This is deviant from the kind of society before in which people of the same culture can only communicate through limited types of medium and are only concentrated within a specific area or a community. The world right now is connected through a vast online network and created a new cultural environment called a “Global Village”, a term coined by Marshall McLuhan explaining how the entire world shrunk into one village with the emergence of electronic media, linking everyone in all parts of the world into a complex network of communication. The communication we have with other people from across the world enables us to obtain and learn culture from different places and people in which we can subject to personal interpretations, thus, allowing us to change our own perception of the culture and society each of us were ascribed to and gives us the power to choose whether to keep conforming or to deviate from the norms.

CREATING SOCIAL NORMS

Social norms are integral in forming and reshaping the culture within a society. The more the people communicate about something increases the chances of it becoming culturally and socially normative. Communicating what we perceive to be relevant traits repeatedly increases the chances of it remaining as a normative characteristic. Some things are more likely to be talked about above other things, and as long as it is talked about would give rise to popular opinions and stereotypes within the society. For example, the emergence of social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter instantly became a need for 21st century people and most specially the teens because most information, news, and socialization are obtained from these platforms. Not having an account on any of this social media platform means that you’re being left out from the rest of the world, which made the idea of having an account as a norm. That’s why some people directly ask another person of their account name on Facebook or Instagram when they want to get to know them rather than asking whether they have an account in the first place. With the idea of having an account on these platforms a norm, popular stereotypes in fashion, beauty, and even ideology or of many other sorts are increasingly widespread through Pop Cultures. People with power such as the capitalists, the church, and even the government could use this platform to persuade, create and even impose norms to the society.

POWER AND DEVIANCE

The concept of Power existed through the process of communication. Different institutions that organize our society are largely constructed in our minds through the communication process. They have the power to manipulate how ordinary people think, feel, and behave. The media technology created a new medium for power strategies to take place. Most power figures are persuasive in communicating their preferences and would sometimes demand for conformity. Many influential authorities could modify or maintain cultures just by simply communicating their beliefs and expectations. Culture and society could be maintained when the people choose to conform, but sometimes, persistent imposition of a cultural norm could be coercive and sometimes backfire. People might feel restricted from their freedom and start to question a cultural norm in its validity and even inspire deviance from this norm and seek ways to express their decisional freedom instead. Though social media could be a platform for the powerful to be in control, it also gives the opportunity for the ordinary people to voice out their opinions regarding imposed norms. This gives them the potential to have power instead and change culture as the society knows it.

IS MEDIA CREATING OR DESTROYNG?

The fast development in technology had created the condition of communication at lot easier for us and through the past decade became an essential part of our daily lives by stimulating our own thoughts with providing various information which were made easily accessible. Though media communication had presented us with constructive roles in the society such us providing us a wide platform of gathering information and bringing everyone in all parts of the world closer, I believe that in most ways it has a greater potential to destroy our own culture and society. Media platforms give too much freedom to its users and sometimes people tend to abuse this newly obtained freedom. Conflicts can arise online due to the differing opinions between different people and sometimes social taboos such are even being defended or and depictions of sex and violence are increasing in different media contents. This could be bad to the young readers who might see these sensitive contents and be mistaken on interpreting what’s right or what’s wrong and inspire people to do crime or be disobedient to the law, something that keeps our society organized. It’s true that the world gets closer because of media, but with the use of it and its benefits comes our own privacy. The world gets smaller and our personal information are being leaked without us even knowing it. As long as our personal information is contained in the internet the problems of leakage would always be in question.

Whether media technologies would be constructive or destructive to society would now depend on how each of us use media as a form of communication. But for now, I think that its negative effects on our behavior and communication are outweighing its potential to give a positive effect on our society. Its ability to provide people with either their own subjective or objective opinions could potentially cause chaos.

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