Insecure Writer’s Support Group, Television Series Reviews, and October Movie Preview

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. I encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.

The awesome co-hosts for the October 1 posting of the IWSG are Beth Camp, Crystal Collier, and Cathrina Constantine!

October 1 question - What is the most favorite thing you have written, published or not? And why?

Difficult to pick one, isn’t it? All five of my books have a special place in my heart. And the short stories / articles I have written otherwise. I mean, CassaStar was my first. With CassaFire, I got better. Then there’s Dragon of the Stars, a standalone I am very proud of. And finally, CassaDark, the finale I didn’t realize my series needed but I so enjoyed creating it.

That leaves CassaStorm, the middle child of my books. And probably still my best effort ever.

I thought I was wrapping up a trilogy (before CassDark came along) and so I threw the kitchen sink at it. Three points of view. The possible end of all races in the galaxy. Main character Byron stands to lose everything. And I think I pulled it all off and in a way that satisfies fans – and me! Crafting a novel is hard but I really think I managed to score a winner with CassaStorm.

What about you?

Series Reviews

Alien Earth
Enjoying the show despite the fact that occasionally the characters do things that are jaw-droppingly stupid. Come for the alien, stay for the eyeball creature.

Wednesday
This show is delightful. All the great elements of the Adams family and Tim Burton rolled into one. Quirky, fun, and Jenna Ortga nails the roll of Wednesday. Season two did not disappoint!

Mobland
Great cast especially Tom Hardy. While the show is compelling it’s hard to root for anyone when they are all so terrible. If you like gritty and violent with no redeemable characters, then you should enjoy it.

October Movie Preview

Here are the theatrical releases for October. Descriptions courtesy of the IMDB. Snark provided by me.

3 –

The Smashing Machine
Director: Benny Safdie
Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Ryan Bader
The story of mixed-martial arts and UFC champion, Mark Kerr.
A heavy film about drug addiction…welcome to the jungle.

10 –

Tron: Ares
Director: Joachim Rønning
Stars: Jared Leto, Jeff Bridges, Evan Peters
A highly sophisticated Program, Ares, is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission.
Fingers, toes, and anything I can cross - really hoping this is good!

17 –

After the Hunt
Director: Luca Guadagnino
Stars: Julia Roberts, Andrew Garfield, Ayo Edebiri
A college professor finds herself at a personal and professional crossroads when a star pupil levels an accusation against one of her colleagues and a dark secret from her own past threatens to come to light. The movie's tagline: Not everything is to make you comfortable. Mission accomplished!

What’s your favorite that you’ve written? Watched any of the series? What movie catches your interest this month?

#IWSGPit, Bollywood with Damyanti, Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio Review, and the Best Shows of 2022

#IWSGPit is this Wednesday, January 25 from 9:00 am - 8:00 pm Eastern Standard Time!

Create a Twitter-length pitch for your completed and polished manuscript and leave room for genre, age, and the hashtag. On January 25, 2023, Tweet your pitch. If your pitch receives a favorite/heart from a publisher/agent check their submission guidelines and send your requested query. 

Many writers have seen their books published from a Twitter pitch - it’s a quick and easy way to put your manuscript in front of publishers and agents.

Get the full details here.

Bollywood! By Damyanti Biswas

In my literary noir set in Mumbai, THE BLUE BAR, Bollywood plays a significant role.

Bollywood originates from two words, Bombay and Hollywood. As the name of the city has changed from Bombay to Mumbai, so have the movies in a burgeoning Indian economy.

Bollywood influences more than 1.4 billion Indians, and Bollywood songs form a major part of that. Unlike in Hollywood movies, songs play a huge role in the success of a movie in India—in terms of downloads, YouTube hits, as well as selling movie and dance show tickets to the sprawling Indian diaspora.

Songs are not just about glitz, glamor, and humming quotient, they also move the plot along. They can swallow up to half the movie budget. Characters can fall in and out of love, become rich or poor, or travel to several countries all in the space of a five-minute song, in montages that resemble Tiktok sensations.

In THE BLUE BAR, Bollywood songs bring atmosphere and commentary to the story, just as in any Bollywood movie, and in some ways, it is a small homage to a storytelling culture that has been the background to so many of my childhood memories.

Find Damyanti and her books HERE.

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio Review

This won the Golden Globe for best animation, so I had to check it out.
I will preface this by stating I have never cared for the story of Pinocchio. I find it dark and disturbing. This version is also a bit dark and disturbing just in different ways.
The stop-motion animation is just stunning. And at two hours long, a lot of work went into that animation.
The outstanding voice cast includes Ewan McGregor (as Sebastian J. Cricket, the narrator), David Bradley, Gregory Mann, Ron Perlman, Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchette (as the spazzy monkey!), Christoph Waltz, and Tilda Swinton.
This is certainly the best version of Pinocchio I have ever seen and there are several big differences between this and the Disney version. For one, the boys don’t turn into donkeys – they are sent to Nazi Youth Camp! (The story is set in Italy during WWII.) It’s also the only animated film I can think of that features Mussolini. There are also these skeletal death rabbits. Definitely unique to this version.
If you like Pinocchio or just want to see an amazing animated film, definitely check it out. However, I would say it’s not for kids – probably twelve and older.
Recommended

Best 2022 Shows

Two weeks ago, I rounded out the top movies and albums of 2022. Now for the shows. And there were some good ones last year!

Wednesday
My favorite of the year! Most shows have issues with pacing, but this series had perfect pacing. Add to that the perfect young lady playing Wednesday – she had the best lines and I wish I’d said most of them!

1899
Season two was cancelled (hiss!) but that should not stop you from watching this inventive, bizarre, creative show.

House of the Dragon
Second best fantasy soap opera with dragons. I hated almost every character, but it was the most fascinating train wreck to watch.

The Rings of Power
Started out strong, dragged a bit in the middle, but had a solid finish.

The Sandman
I’m partial to the graphic novel, however it seemed to capture the spirit of the book better than most.

What We Do in the Shadows
Season three a bit better than season two and still one of the silliest things on television.

Love Death and Robots
Season three was the strongest season yet, and the Jibaro episode was the most stunning animation I’ve ever seen.

Outer Range
If you like your shows trippy, this is the second trippiest (behind 1899) from last year.

Resident Alien
Continues to be the most consistently hilarious show with characters you wouldn’t mind spending time with. Alan Tudyk and Corey Reynolds (the sheriff) steal the show – they are hilarious!

Raised by Wolves
Sadly there will be no season three. Watch it for the bat-crap craziness but be warned, season two ended on a cliffhanger. (Such a crappy thing to do fans!)

Tokyo Vice
Fascinating show that really delves into the culture of Japan and the influence of the Yakuza.

Mystery Science Theater 3000
With three hosts (and I’m partial to Jonah Ray), it was a little inconsistent but still funny and put a huge smile on my face.

Reacher
They finally did Jack Reacher right and gave him the show and the actor the character deserved.

Book of Boba Fett
Die-hard fans weren't impressed but I enjoyed it. We got to learn about Tusken Raiders!

Peacemaker
Crude, rude, but completely hilarious!

Clarkson’s Farm
I learned so much about farming by watching Clarkson do it oh-so wrong and laughed my ass off.

Are you participating in #IWSGPit? Have you read The Blue Bar? Have you seen Pinocchio? And did you watch any of those shows last year?
I’ll be back on February 1 for Insecure Writer’s Support Group day! But be sure to check out the site today as we are honored to have Janice Hardy visiting.