Author: Adrienne

The Rise and Fall of Science Fiction on Television

Enjoy this fabulous guest post. I’m one of those nerds who enjoy good science fiction. 🙂

 

When considering what the future might hold, many people think of science fiction, those fantastical visions that we’ve created of the far-flung future where technology has advanced to a point that seems magical to use. Science Fiction gives people hope in a future. So why exactly has the popularity of Science Fiction based television shows decreased so dramatically in recent years? And what exactly, if anything could be done to stem the tide of science fiction shows, one after another being canned after only a season (or less)?

The Ascent of Science Fiction

To find why science fiction died on television, we need to go back and discover why it initially came into being. During the 1950s and 1960s, the world was enjoying a time of exponential technological development, on a very noticeable level. While this development was prevalent throughout culture, nowhere was it more noticeable than in the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union. This extremely fast expansion outside existing boundaries instilled this massive and overarching belief in the possibility that mankind represented, and spawned television shows like Star Trek, which ended up pushing outside societal boundaries in and of itself.

The Fall

And then, after making it to the moon, our dreams of space as a society collapsed. As funding for space travel further space development shifted to military programs, society as a whole realized that we were not going to be able to sustain this exponential rate of technological development, and people became somewhat cynical about science fiction, forcing a bit of a “recession” in science fiction TV.

Short-lived Resurgence

After a while though, the United States finally went back to space in a big way during the 80s with the Space Shuttle, and sci-fi television exploded back onto the market, with a new Star Trek series, The Next Generation, leading the charge. Science Fiction came back in a huge way to the television market during this period, and at one point they even considered building a full sized starship Enterprise in Las Vegas to act as a tourist attraction.

The death of this wave is actually not directly attributable to real life scientific developments though, and we’re still sitting at the tail end of it. What more or less happened was the genre was just milked dry. So many science fiction television shows were being produced and aired at the same time that the market became saturated to the point at which no one could make an advertising profit.

So how exactly do you bring Science Fiction television back into the forefront? Honestly, I don’t know if it is possible. The few science fiction television shows left that are considered good by critics and the general public, like Fringe, get very mediocre ratings, which, while enough to keep the TV show alive, are not making a huge profit. To realistically bring back Science Fiction TV to television you need to be able to market to people that aren’t your traditional science fiction fans, but by doing that you risk alienating your main market. It’s a very tricky thing to try and do, but to bring back sci-fi television, it needs to be done.

Matthew Warren is a science fiction fan who runs Sci-Fi Stuff a website that offers gifts and collectibles from some of TV’s best science fiction series.

A Tale of Two (Mythical!) Cities

Shamballa

‘Sambhala’ or ‘Shamballa’ as it is sometimes referred to in the West today is a spiritual place, a place mentioned in Buddhist Kalachaklra Tantra texts and claimed to exist in the physical world. Many ideas about where Shamballa and its capital city ‘Kalapa’ were actually located exist but all are focussed around the central Asian area. From near Tibet to South Siberia, the accounts vary widely.

Shamballa is or was ruled over by a King or ‘Kalki’ and its population is said to be made up of only enlightened individuals. Only people who have amassed the right amount of Karma can reach the place. It’s a pure land, a pure Buddhist land, but appears to have its roots in an earlier Hindu myth. It is said that it can be found in outer, inner and alternative states, outer being a physical place, inner being in the mind and one’s self and alternative being reached through meditation.

There have been many attempts in the 20th century to find the physical place of Shamballa but none have been successful. A soviet expedition went to Tibet in 1924 and an expedition was sent on three occasions to Tibet during the 1930’s by the Nazi party to find Aryan links and in turn Shamballa.

The myths of Shamballa have had an influence on the modern world too. Some brands have adopted the word ‘Shamballa’ to describe their products such as the Rocks Shamballa Crystal watches. Shamballa in this sense describes bracelets that contain semi-precious stones which are thought to contain therapeutic attributes. This ties in well with the idea of the place of Shamballa as the practice of Shamballa bracelets like those that make up the Rocks Shamballa Crystal watches have their routes in ancient traditions of meditation and spirituality.

Atlantis

I think it’s okay to say that Atlantis is the most famous mythical city / continent in the world. It is said that throughout history, the story of Atlantis has been considered a myth and that it is only in more modern times that anyone has taken the claims seriously. In recent years Atlantis had received a lot of press. There was the Disney film ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’ in 2001 and the possible sighting of the city on Google Ocean in 2009 which featured prominently in many tabloid newspapers. The latter claimed to show a grid structure the size of Wales off of the coast of West Africa.

Atlantis is said to be an island or a group of islands, home to an advanced civilisation that was wiped off of the face of the Earth by an earthquake and subsequent floods nearly 12,000 years ago. Many people have theorised as to the exact location of the mythical city since Plato mentioned it in 360 BC. He said “the pillars of Heracles”, a term referring to the strait between modern day Spain and Morocco with the northern pillar being generally accepted as the Rock of Gibraltar. There is still some dispute as to the identity of the southern pillar however. This would tie in with the theory that the continent was located off of the coast of Africa. A quick Google search of “Atlantis location theories” will throw up a long list of sites that have been theorised and make for a good read.

One of the sites mentioned is Santorini. Santorini an island in the Mediterranean and was hit by a large eruption which devastated the Minoan island and the city of Akrotiri. Much has been learnt of the devastation through archaeological excavations at Akrotiri. It is thought by some that this was in fact Atlantis, whilst others believe that it was served as the inspiration for a myth, started by Plato in his writings.

Citations:

iclikd.com have a great selection of Rocks Shamballa Crystal watches available in a multitude of colours.

Hope you enjoyed this guest post! I think this kind of stuff is fascinating and can always spark an idea for a novel. 🙂

Raymond Briggs: Timeless Stories For Kids And Grown Ups

Hi everyone! Please enjoy this guest post about Raymond Briggs. If you haven’t read his classic stories, they are a must read! I grew up with his books and always feel a bit nostalgic when I think of them. So, without further introductory ramble, enjoy… 

 

Known for his touching story of The Snowman, and an insightful tale of what Santa Clause does between Christmases, Raymond Briggs is an author and graphic artist who is at the heart of British children’s literature. Back in the 60s and 70s, before illustrated storybooks were called graphic novels, Raymond Briggs began to make a name for himself thanks to a host of extraordinary characters and stories.

Born in 1934, Raymond Briggs had shown a talent for art, particularly cartooning. His father, Ernest, believed art to be a fruitless pursuit. This led young Raymond to make his own way through art school. He did, studying at the Wimbledon School of Art, Central School of Art and Slade School of Fine Art, spending a spell in the military as a draghtsman. With this experience and natural gifts, Briggs began to illustrate children’s books, but his own ability to tell stories soon took over.

Adopting a comic strip style, his first original book was ‘Father Christmas’ about a grumpy Santa Claus, who hated snow and grumbled through the work of delivering presents. This curmudgeonly Father Christmas was a big hit when the book was published in 1973, and a follow up, ‘Father Christmas Goes On Holiday’ was published in 1975.

From Father Christmas to international success

After ‘Father Christmas’, Raymond Briggs unleashed ‘Fungus the Bogeyman’ to instant appeal to young children. With a finger in the nose, clothing held together by dirt and terrible smells, Fungus the Bogeyman was a gross hero for kids. Despite the popularity of Fungus, the artist was just about to experience his biggest success.

Without any words, and a million miles away from the filth and grim of ‘Fungus the Bogeyman’, Raymond Briggs released ‘The Snowman’ in 1982. The reaction was remarkable, as this touching story followed the adventure of a young boy and his snowman for one night. It became an Oscar winning, animated film that is still shown on British TV each year, now a British tradition.

Briggs not only released stories for children, but also tales with serious political messages too. ‘When The Wind Blows’ is such a piece, following the lives of Jim Bloggs and his wife Hilda in the aftermath of a Nuclear bombing and the effects of radiation poisoning. The story is terrible affecting, as these warm and adorable characters face the effects of nuclear fallout.

The artist still works to this day, and his characterful crayon pieces will always be remembered as being part of the backbone of British children’s fiction.

Citations:

I Dream Elephants brings you the best in kids outfits and accessories from brands such as Finger in the Nose clothing.

Creating a Baby Name, Is it Possible?

Hey, enjoy this guest post! I think it applies to coming up with character names as well.

 

When coming up with the difficult decision of choosing your babies name, it can often lead to big disagreements with your partner and the quest to find that individual name will often to lead to looking at celebrity trends which can often end in children being called Apple or Blue. Wouldn’t it be great however, if you could come up with something totally unique, a name that no other person has ever though about naming their child?

The Twilight Saga

We could take inspiration here from the Twilight saga with Bella joining both her mother and Edward’s mother’s names together to create something truly spectacular. She chose on the name Renesmee, a mix of the names Renee and Esme, but would this be so simple in the non-fiction world? If your mother was called Harriet and your partner’s mother Anne you could make Harrianne, but other examples may be less fortunate. What if you wanted to cross Francesca with Laura, what would you create? Maybe Lauesca? This technique might not be to every ones taste, but it is a simple way of being quite creative and can come up with some humorous results when brainstorming with your partner. On the other hand, maybe you should refrain from telling your partner that this is one option inspired by the teenage novels of Twilight.

The only problem is finding the inspiration to come up with your new name, and to find something that would actually be readable on a class register at your little ones first day at school. Of course we would say that there are far too many Thomas’ and Matthew’s in the world, but there is a reason that these names are so popular, and its because we can picture our babies having those names, and can imagine what type of person we might expect them to be. When picking something entirely new, it can be a shocking and risky situation to put any parent in, due to the problems a child might have at school if they were to be bullied because of their individual name. However, picking something that sounds right and does not look too weird on paper could be gold dust. A little inspiration could also go a long way, you could look towards emotions or senses to pick a name that is personal and special to you.

Making Them Up!

A friend of mine recently named her baby girl Alexandra, a name which has been around for decades and was passed down to her from her mother, who got the name from her grandmother and so on. When mentioning to my friend about the possibility of making up her own baby name she was horrified by the thought of creating something new that would not suit old family traditions. She did however play around with Alexandra’s middle name, and considered the prospect of making her own name up. We played around with names such as Rhilana, Lisnee and Ilsaray, therefore if you are not feeling brave enough to name your child something a bit unusual stick to a middle name, after all if they are not fond of it later in life, they can always leave it out if they so choose. On the other hand, if you come up with something that you love, do not be afraid, after all sticking out of the crowd could be a wonderful blessing to your beautiful new baby.

This article has been written by Rhian who loves finding out about new baby names and the trends that create them.

Convoluted (part 3)

Here’s the conclusion. If you haven’t read from the beginning, I highly recommend you go back and read parts 1 & 2 before reading this. Enjoy!

 

* * *
Alexa pulled at her snug dress. It was itchy in the heat, and she knew she wouldn’t be able to keep wearing it much longer. She hated to ask Tessa, but what choice did she have? She had decided a few months ago that she wasn’t going to even try going back to her own time. She was too happy here, living on Isaac’s plantation and bantering with James, Nolan and Kraven.
Isaac had tried to keep her from moving into his home. He said that they could wait until a preacher came to the island to marry them, but Alexa didn’t want to wait. She told him as much and moved in with him the next day. The other men didn’t seem to judge them for the arrangement, so Isaac went with it.
She hadn’t gotten pregnant yet, but she was gaining weight from Tessa’s cooking and not working out as much. To her surprise, she was beginning to enjoy her ever increasingly plump figure. At first, she had complained to the men that she needed to start exercising again and begin a strict diet. Her idea had quickly been thwarted by all four of them. It had taken a while to convince her they meant it when they said that her rounding curves were far more attractive than the stringy girl she had been.
But they really were telling the truth. James had Kraven had never really looked at her with attraction, but she’d noticed that the more she grew, the more heated glances they sent her way. In fact each of the men were looking at her more and more as if she were the cream and they the cats.
She had also realized that Isaac became even more intense in the bedroom the more she increased in size. It was so nice to feel confident in herself and her beauty when she would stand before him, stark naked, and he would worship every inch of her.
Alexa sighed with satisfaction as she remembered the multiple orgasms Isaac had given her last night. She was positive the others had heard her. The three men had sent amused glances her way all through breakfast that morning.
She pushed her thoughts aside as she approached James’ home and Tessa opened the door for her. Before Alexa could open her mouth, Tessa held up a hand. “Jus’ a minute, girl. I gots something that’s abouts to burn.” Then Tessa turned and scurried down the hall and into the kitchen.
Alexa had never been beyond the dining table since Tessa claimed that the kitchen was her sanctuary and that no one was allowed in it. She walked through the dining room and to the door where Tessa had disappeared. She figured she could just open the door and tell her what she needed. She wouldn’t be in Tessa’s kitchen, but would remain in the doorway.
Alexa placed her hand on the handle and was about to pull the door open, when Tessa burst through. Alexa only got a peak at an industrial-sized porcelain sink before Tessa slammed the door closed.
“I’ve told you that nobody enters my kitchen!” Before Alexa could respond, Tessa raised a big wooden spoon and whipped it across her left cheek.
There was a moment of shocked disbelief before things set into motion again. The explosive pain was blinding. Alexa screamed as another strike hit her on her shoulder. A third blow smacked near her spine. Alexa finally got a hold of her stupor and stopped crouching like some dumb dog. She stood and punched Tessa in the gut and quickly took advantage of the surprise by yanking the spoon from her grasp.
Both women stood, panting hard and staring at each other with murder in their eyes.
Nolan was the first to arrive and he pulled Tessa away and seated her at the table. The others got there in time to hear Tessa’s version of the events. They all looked at Alexa with accusation.
“I was just going to shout at her through the door! I had no intention of entering her so-called sanctuary, for hell’s sake!”
Isaac walked over and put his arms around her shoulders. “Tessa only has one place on this whole island to call her own. It may seem silly to you, but her kitchen is hers. None of us would ever so much as open that door, understood?”
His reprimand stung far more than she would have thought, and Alexa blinked back tears of embarrassment. She gritted out an apology to Tessa, then fled the house before anymore humiliation could ensue. For a slave, Tessa sure had the men’s absolute respect.
She was able to calm herself down after sitting in the shade of a palm tree for a few hours. Then she went back home. Isaac was waiting for her on the porch. When he saw her, he stood and ran to her, engulfing her in a suffocating hug. “I thought you’d decided to go back.”
She shook her head against his chest. It hadn’t even occurred to her. “There’s nothing for me there.” She looked up into his blue eyes. “I belong here now. With you. Nothing else matters to me anymore.”
Isaac smiled and kissed her. It was hard and urgent, and before long they were in their bedroom frantically stripping each other. After they finished the intensely erotic love play, they cuddled together in bed. Alexa rubbed her nose back and forth in the hollow of his shoulder.
“I wish this would never end.” Isaac’s voice sounded sad and… resigned.
Alexa’s head popped up. “I meant it, Isaac,” she stated firmly. “I’ll never go back to my time. I’ve committed myself to you.”
Isaac blinked away the forlorn look in his eyes and gave her his usual warm smile. “I believe you, my love.” He kissed her tenderly, and then turned on his side to sleep.
Alexa was deeply sleeping when she was jolted into wakefulness. She wasn’t sure what had alerted her, but sat upright and looked over to see that Isaac was no longer in bed. The room was dark and it was obviously still the dead of the night.
Suddenly, the room brightened and Alexa looked over to see James, Isaac, Nolan and Kraven approaching the bed.
“What’s wrong?”
They didn’t answer. She could see lust and smugness swimming in their eyes. Isaac looked at her with a combination of regret and lust. She glanced down and saw that James and Nolan were holding ropes. At this dreaded realization, Alexa gasped and scrambled to the other side of the bed. As she was standing up, Kraven grabbed her arm and pulled her into a tight circle of his arms.
Isaac walked up and with a few yanks, pulled her nightgown off her struggling form. He held the candle close so the men could inspect her body from head to toe. They obviously liked what they saw.
“What are you doing? Stop!”
James was next to Nolan and binding her wrists behind her back with the rope. Kraven got more rope from Nolan and squatted to tie her ankles together. The sense of anticipation emanating from them sent her into a panic.
Alexa writhed and wriggled every which way to avoid their hands, but it was no use. Before she knew it, they had jointly carried her to James’ house. They moved at an even pace through the hall, then the dining room, and into the forbidden kitchen.
At first, her mind couldn’t comprehend that she was lying on a high, cold table. Once the fact penetrated, she twisted her head to see that it was stainless steel. She also saw that the men were pushing fat needles towards her vulnerable flesh. Alexa screamed when at least ten needles punctured her at the same time. They had pricked all over her body and it was easy to see that her blood was quickly exiting. She squirmed and bucked, but it did no good. In just a few minutes, she lay quietly, too weak to protest her impending doom any longer. Her blood was falling through a drain by her feet.
A hot spray of water brought her to look up. James had a hose and was cleaning her body of the red that was still oozing out. She saw a large, clear container with what looked like a mix of spices on the counter to her left. On her right was a large, brick oven. She could feel the heat steaming from where she was and the final realization of what they were doing caused her to mercifully pass out.

* * *
Isaac could smell the tantalizing scent of fire-roasted meat from the parlor and his mouth watered. It was almost done.
Clint, Alexa’s supposed boyfriend that brought her to the islands, was getting the cash from Kraven.
Putting the money in a briefcase, Clint stood to leave. “Thanks guys. As usual, it’s a pleasure doing business with you.” He turned toward the door, then stopped and twisted back around. “By the way, I think I’ve already found our next mark. I’ve taken her on a few dates already and things are looking good.”
“Fabulous,” Kraven said. “Just send me a text when you are on your way with her.”
When Clint left, Kraven walked in with a lit pipe protruding from his mouth. “How are you?” He asked with genuine concern. Kraven was the only one that Isaac had confided in.
Isaac pursed his lips pensively before answering. “You know that I genuinely cared for her.” He shrugged. “We’d made our life’s decision long before she came, and she turned out to be just as gullible as the other girls.”
James caught the last sentence as he came in and sat next to Isaac. “She was even easier to convince than some of the others.” He chuckled. “God bless those cheesy romance novels. Who would have thought that this con would have been so successful?”
Isaac forced a smirk. He remembered when James had come up with a plan to make it possible for them to enjoy their unique cuisine. He’d been so skeptical, but it had worked time and again. They had even begun to make a fantastic profit from it. Selling “exotic meats” was incredibly lucrative. And people all over the world were willing to pay a lot of money for food that they had no clue was human meat.

 

 

Not what you were expecting? What can I say? That’s where the story took me. Or maybe you could say that’s how dark and twisted I am. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it!