28/2/18 - Random Monthly Post - Why I Am An Advocate For LGBT+ Representation

Hello everyone! Today marks the end of my second month on this blog and in order to honour the passing of such time, last month I decided to create a new monthly segment to discuss other random things I have happened across during the month, or answer a question posed to me.

So what is the topic of February's Random Monthly Post?

LGBT+ Representation!

As today is the final day of LGBT+ History Month, I feel that is appropriate to explore my perspective on an "issue" that many have pointed out in my writing;

Most of my significant characters are LGBT+

Of course, there are many many characters that I can name for you right here and now that are not members of the LGBT+ community. However, many of my most memorable characters have been for many reasons, and most of them do not focus on their sexuality.

A lot of my most memorable characters are coincidentally part of the LGBT community as the readerships of such stories have latched onto as much representation as they can get and are lavishing in it. Because there aren't enough works of fiction with characters that are part of the LGBT community outside of the "LGBT Genre" in itself! I write a lot of science fiction and fantasy and in both genres, I have created LGBT+ characters.

In a work of fantasy, the main conflict derives from the foolish mistake made by two love-stricken princes that did not want that meeting to be their last. They therefore toyed with the favour of Fate itself and instead of getting to reunite, they found themsleves split apart until they would finally meet again and consequently die. Instead of that happening, however, they slip into a coma due to magic meddling at the hand of a warlock. However, that decision is what sets the story in motion!

In one of my space opera science fiction pieces, only one of the three protagonists is actually not a member of the LGBT community. Princess Gyanni is asexual and The 'Alien', Atlas is a non-binary pansexual. However, both of these characters are not as iconic as some of my other LGBT characters in a different work of science fiction; The Neon Series.

If you are an active visitor of this blog, I am sure you would be familiar with The Neon Series, it is currently in its third year of development and currently stands as a five piece series, telling the stories of a different character in each book. Each book therefore has a different protagonist, and only one of said protagonists is NOT part of the LGBT+ community. On top of these protagonists, there are also a variety of different characters representing different aspects of such a diverse community of people.

But none of these characters are JUST their sexualities or gender identities! They are all so much more than that. These characters are people in their own right! Just like real people are more than just their sexualities!

I feel that the characters that get a lot of love from my readers happening to be LGBT is a coincidence. This is because I strive to provide my readers with a variety of different PEOPLE interacting within these stories, that have had DIFFERENT EXPERIENCES in their lives. No two people are the same and therefore, no two characters, LGBT+ or not, should be either!

I inted to produce a much longer and eloquent post to conclude Pride Month, so don't fret, this topic will be discussed again.

Thank you for reading!
And remember:
Per Ardua Ad Astra!
- Imogen L. Smiley

28/2/18 - Writing Advice Wednesday

Today, 28/2/18, is the fourth instalment of a new series of posts; Writing Advice Wednesday, where my advice to new writers will be shared once every two weeks. 

It is important to remember that my opinions are not law in any way, shape, or form! Not everyone has the same experiences as I do in this field but it is valuable to share opinions on topics to try and help others!

Today I will be talking about how I stay motivated!

I am what psychologists would call a Strong Type A Personality, this means that I am a generally well-motivated individual. Personally, I feel that I am motivated because the world wants to challenge my resolves. Ever since I was small, my goal of being a novelist has been under fire. When I was still at school, my creative writing was sub-par. I had ideas but could never seem to articulate the world that I was immersed in. This left me limited in my ventures into the world of writing and my goal tended to be questioned by those who surrounded me due to the fact that I was not amazing at the one thing I aspired to do. But I kept at it! Why did I do that? 

When I was younger, I felt that writing was the one thing that truly made me special and therefore, it would be ridiculous to pass up any opportunity to pursue that path.

When I met my best friend, she told me about a website called Wattpad. After her probing at me and asking why I had not yet made an account for the site, I admitted that I didn't think my work was good enough to go up online. From there, she pushed me to finish a project that I could post so I could start my journey. 

It was on Wattpad that I was properly introduced to the world of fan-fiction. It was there that my writing journey began to take off. I started writing in a fanbase that was slowly but surely gaining more fans, and therefore my work was getting more and more reads. I found myself motivated by the pressure of creating something because someone else was expecting to see more of it. And from there, the only way was up. 

I developed a schedule of daily updates of between 700 and 1200 words on this piece. My readership increased at a rate of knots and I was drowning in support! I found myself gaining confidence in my craft due to the support faces online were giving me! And through gaining confidence, I began to experiment with ideas I would have otherwise never try; such as writing a character going blind and demonstrating it through the quality of her description. 

From there, I used what I had learned from fanfiction and applied it to original works. I used what I was learning from the online world to construct the building blocks of brand new ideas. 

I managed to get an unconditional offer from my university due to the statistics from a fanfic. I threw everything I had achieved into a personal statement that gave me the platform to share the classroom with other writers! 

So out of this anecdote, what is my actual advice for motivation: 

In essence, I would suggest trying new things! When you go into a new area of writing and people read your work, particularly on a website like wattpad, it can take some time, but once you have people behind you and excited to see what you'll do next, you will probably feel more encouraged to create something incredible 

Thank you for reading!
And remember:
Per Ardua Ad Astra!
- Imogen. L. Smiley 

27/2/18 - Monthly Film Reviews - The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

Hello everyone! Today is the fourth instalment of another segment I am implementing. Once or twice a month I will be writing and posting reviews of films that I watch. Some may be older, having been released years ago and others may be new cinematic releases. Throughout this year, I hope to share my opinions of films with you and hopefully persuade you to give the film a watch if you haven't already!

Great! So what exactly will I be discussing in these reviews?
Plot
Character and their development
Viewer Engagement
My favourite moment
My least favourite moment
Anything else!

So... which film is going to be the subject of my fourth Film Review on my blog?

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower (2012)

These reviews will contain SPOILERS!

Plot

I have always been a intrigued by the concept behind The Perks Of Being A Wallflower, telling the epic coming of age story of an awkward anxious character as they start a new school is one I rarely see at the moment, no matter how much I personally relate to it. The story of Charlie and him managing to befriend the misfits in the senior class left me in a very empathetic state, for at college, me and the majority of my social group ended up leaving some of our friends behind when we headed off to university. Seeing the experience from the eyes of someone in a similar circumstance to friends of mine, made the experience even more emotive. I feel that this was a great aspect to the film. You find yourself empathising with the protagonist and his struggles because you can see someone you know, if not yourself, in his shoes. 

Character

There are many aspects to this film that I find great! I found that the characterisation of Charlie was stellar and is therefore one of the top ones. I ended up feeling very attached to this character, willing him to open up and flourish in the company of those that surrounded him. Charlie is a very likable character, and one that you can root for! I felt that his struggles were authentic to teen life and his trauma being revealed in the manner it was, did not limit the story. However, other than Charlie, the other two main characters, Sam and Patrick seemed to be considerably less well-rounded. But when compared to the rest of their social group, at least there was more to them. 

Sam served the purpose of being the attractive, endearing and oblivious love interest. She had the brunt of Charlie's affections and yet, she seemed to wave it off every time until he kissed her during truth or dare, instead of his girlfriend, Mary-Elizabeth. 

Patrick, although a complex depiction of a gay character, seemed to serve as the hook to bring Charlie into a social group and then only existed when the conflicts of the story required him to. This was sad, as I found his character very interesting and hoped to see more from him. 

That being said, the dynamic between the step-siblings, Sam and Patrick was positive and very free-spirited. Them being the same age provided the audience with a positive depiction of a healthy dynamic between siblings that were not of biological relation. A lot of the time, step-siblings are antagonised in works, it adds stigma to reconstituted families and I am so glad that Wallflower demonstrated that step-siblings could love eachother and be amazing friends. 

Viewer Engagement

I was greatly engaged by the story at hand. Admittedly, part of it was over how daft these characters would have to be to not recognise Heroes by David Bowie. But I felt that the authentic depiction of what life is like when you are anxious and unsure of your social standings was greatly refreshing and captivating to an audience. I hope to watch more movies of this nature. 

My Favourite Moment 

Both of the car scenes, but more importantly, the second one at the end of the film, where Charlie, in Sam's stead, stands up and feels the wind through his hair in a state of euphoria, being with the people he feels the most comfortable around! - And with the line "We are infinate" hit me in the emotions! I was so moved at the idea that yes, we may not be perminant in our existence, but we can last forever, in the memories we leave behind when we leave this world. It was a beautiful sentiment! 

My Least Favouirte Moment 

I really struggled to come up with a least favouirte moment. In the end I found myself choosing the scene in which Sam left as it seemed to be less emotionally charged than I would expect considering the circumstances which surrounded it. 

Anything Else?

This film gave me a revitalised adoration for Heores by David Bowie! I love it even more than I did before. 

Thank you for reading my review and I hope you give this film a watch!

And remember:

Per Ardua Ad Asta

- Imogen. L. Smiley

27/2/18 - Happy Tuesday! University Inspired Writing Prompt!

Happy Tuesday! University Inspired Writing Prompt!

Today, 27/2/18, is the next instalment of University Inspired Writing Prompts. Since my first year at university, I have been compiling a collection of writing prompts inspired by my time studying in Derby. I hope that these prompts help you create your own works!

All of these prompts are dialogue based, and are inspired by real conversations I have been part of whilst at university.

Prompt Nine: 

"You guys are looking at me like you've never seen a travel mug filled with pasta before..."
"Wait... you've put pasta in a travel mug? Oh my GOD you are a GENIUS!"
"You do realise, letting it wallow in it's sauce will make it mush, right?"
"GOD stop being so pasta-aggressive and let me eat my travel mug pasta!"

This is based on a real conversation which took place during my screenwriting class. My classmate was running late and was therefore unable to eat her lunch, so her housemate dumped the pasta she had made into a travel mug and hey presto! The ingenious idea of taking pasta to university in travel mugs was established! Apparently it kept the pasta warm and it wasn't completely disgusting by the time my classmate had the chance to eat it!

Hopefully this prompt inspires something - even if it is just a smile
Thank you for reading
And remember:
Per Ardua Ad Astra!
- Imogen. L. Smiley

26/2/18 - Monthly Film Review - The Greatest Showman

Hello everyone! Today is the third instalment of another segment I am implementing. Once or twice a month I will be writing and posting reviews of films that I watch. Some may be older, having been released years ago and others may be new cinematic releases. Throughout this year, I hope to share my opinions of films with you and hopefully persuade you to give the film a watch if you haven't already!

Great! So what exactly will I be discussing in these reviews?
Plot
Character and their development
Viewer Engagement
My favourite moment
My least favourite moment
Anything else!

So... which film is going to be the subject of my third Film Review on my blog?

The Greatest Showman (2017)

These reviews will contain SPOILERS! 

Plot:

The plot of The Greatest Showman is like the basic rags to riches story. P.J Barnum has a dream of having living a life and giving his children one that he didn't have when growing up. In order to do this, he actively commits fraud by providing the bank with false deeds for cargo that he didn't own, upon ships that had sunk in the South China Seas. These deeds were collatoral so he could inact his money making dream. He opened a museum to showacase the unusal and originally, it is filled with waxworks. His children insist that it would be better to include living exhibits in the museum. This leads to Barnum creating what the modern audience would refer to as a "freakshow" containing archetypal figures such as conjoined twins, a bearded lady, a person with dwarfism etc. And from there, showcasing these unique people, he begins to make money.

But the growing acclaim and the rising fame is not enough for Barnum, and he then begins to pursue new talents to give him greater prospects and a better-rounded review from critics and high society in order for his wife's family to approve of him. In doing so, he ends up in a scandal with Jenny Lind, an opera singer that he took along with him to America to perform. Her emotive performance lead to Barnum making her a priority and later lead to a scandal between himself and Jenny.

I found this story and its arc, looking at Barnum and the Circus as an entity and then as individuals was very interesting! I really enjoyed the story of this film!

Character:
I feel like, with most films, the conflict of the central character is the most prevalent and the actions of the characters around them can often be overlooked and swept under the rug. I found myself rooting for Barnum at different points throughout the story, wanting him to achieve his dream and wanting him to redeem himself after making mistakes and forgetting the reason he even began to create this circus in the first place.

Barnum's character is ambitious and this is one of his most endearing characteristics, however it is also his greatest flaw. This makes him a very relatable and compelling character!

Viewer Engagement:

I was greatly engaged in the story of The Greatest Showman, the film was greatly enhanced by the muscal numbers interwoven within the story. I feel that not having the music would have limited the potential of this film and reckon it would not have sold as well. Most of the more memorable moments in the film revolved around the musical numbers. They were ever so captivating to watch and will stick in your head for days!


My Favourite Moment:

I am sure, many of you would think that my favourite moment within the film would be that of the Rewrite The Stars sequence, and as high of a contender as that was, considering how strenuous that performance was bound to be for Zac Efron and Zendaya, my favourite moment was not that at all. My favourite aspect of this film would have to be the moment in which Barnum approaches Philip Carlyle and proposes that he joins him in running the circus. The Other Side, and the sequence that went along with it was greatly choreographed and executed. When I discussed favourite moments with my friends, this particular moment appeared to be somewhat overlooked. I, therefore, feel more inclined to declare my adoration of it, as not as many people seem to be doing so. So yes, The Other Side, the song and sequence, was my favourite part!



Least Favourite Moment:

Despite the fact that Barnum's fraud and his wife, Charity's family's dislike of him was made clear from very early on within the story, the reprocussions appear to be waved off rather quickly. Barnum goes to Charity's parents home and reconcilles the relationship within approximately ten minutes if that. It seemed to be underplayed in the overall scheme of things and I feel that it had the potential  to have been fleshed out even more.



Anything Else?

I loved all of the music in this film. This soundtrack will be one I actively revisit. Never Enough had me tearing up in my seat at the cinema! It is such a powerful song!

Thank you for reading my review and I hope you give this film a watch!

And remember:

Per Ardua Ad Asta

- Imogen. L. Smiley

26/2/18 - Monday Book Review - Poetry Edition - Killing The Black Dog

Today is a very special day! As it has been eight Mondays since the first post on this blog, it means, it's finally time for the second Poetry Version of Monday Book Reviews!

Today, I will be looking at Les Murray's Killing The Black Dog! I was introduced to this collection on the recommendation of one of my lecturers last semester. A classmate of mine lent it to me during the latter end of the previous semester and I figured it was worth reviewing! 

Killing The Black Dog is a collection of poetry which discusses depression and how it impacts the sufferer. In this book, the pieces which refer to "the black dog" are discussing depression directly. I found the idea of establishing a prominent metaphor interesting and helpful when conducting analysis of individual pieces which I could use for my portfolio at the end of the previous semester.

As someone who does not suffer from depression, I was hesitant when reading this collection, afraid that I would not be able to completely grasp the motifs behind each piece in the book. But I did in fact manage to comprehend the imagery and the depth of the pieces produced, despite not having experienced depression first-hand.

I felt that the voice of this collection was heavy and upfront and I really enjoyed reading the collection itself! It was very interesting! I would totally recommend giving this a shot!

Thank you for reading! See you in two weeks for another instalment of Monday Book Reviews! - Next time, we will be going back to prose! 

And remember:

Per Ardua Ad Astra

-Imogen. L. Smiley

26/2/18 - Monday Book Review - The Great Gatsby

Today, 26/2/18 is the fourth instalment a series of Monday Book Reviews, expressing my personal opinions on works of fiction. Today, I will be looking upon a piece called The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby was a text that I originally read during my A-Level Qualifications. I returned to it after re-watching the film and having my distaste toward specific characters reignited, and decided to take advantage of rereading to address and validate an opinion expressed by my former teacher; that this book was one of the best novels ever written. 

I found that there were many aspects to The Great Gatsby which make it a classic piece of literature and a great read - the conflict in Nick Carraway's interests demonstrates how despite intending not to pass judgement on the people who have not had the same opportunities as he has had is ironic as that is what Nick says he is setting out to do on the first page of the book. Throughout, he notes that the characters that surround him are awful and corrupt people being influenced by the grandeur of money. 

I found that one of the most compelling aspects of The Great Gatsby had to be the air of mystery that surrounded Gatsby himself; the idea that people that were classified as New Money could just appear out of nowhere at all and create a name for themselves, just as Gatsby had done, yet his method of managing it had aroused suspicion and he therefore had an impressive reputation surrounding him. Not that the people from West Egg cared enough to steer clear of his parties. 

I found that the way that Fitzgerald wrote the book was incredibly clever, for his work seemed to demonstrate how Nick found himself being corrupted through associating with those he met in New York and the more he dabbled in Gatsby's affair, the more clouded his resolve became. It wasn't until Myrtle Wilson was killed that he seemed to have a somewhat clear perspective on events, and even then he was passing his own judgement on how the situation was handled. 

I feel that this book is very interesting and definitely worth the read! 

Thank you for reading! See you in two weeks for another instalment of Monday Book Reviews! - And because the weeks have overlapped! You're about to get a double wammy! The next post will be a review of poetry collection! I'm so excited! 

And remember:

Per Ardua Ad Astra

-Imogen. L. Smiley