Category Archives: Matthew Becket

The Twilight Zone

A Guest Post by Matthew Becket

Warning: This post is not a safe alternative to nicotine.

Guilty pleasures. I have two of them while watching TV, the unrelated duo are scifi/horror anthologies and infomercials. This time we’ll focus on the first thing. I’ll share my thoughts on the Ninja Blender and that wacky garden hose you can fold up in your pocket for another entry.

Give me the grit, give me those low budget masterpieces from the eighties, then sit my happy little bum in front of the TV and I won’t make any noise but laughter for a good ten hours. I see through the camp and I imagine the script, but more importantly the script writer. I visualize the poor bastard pounding out his manuscript on a tight deadline and an even tighter budget just to give me and my comrades (assuming I’m not alone in this) an irremovable smile. But here’s a question—Is this good writing?

I want to say “no” right off the bat. I should, but I can’t, not completely. All these anthologies (by the way, I’m mostly referring to Tales From the Darkside and Monsters, two gems from the eighties that I cannot part with) have a Grandaddy, a Master, an I’m-way-better-than-you prototype. I only need to say three words – if I’m lucky it may even make you tingle when you read them. You may even hear a certain song.

The Twilight Zone.

SerlingRod Serling. Rod Serling. Rod Serling. The man almost wants me to take up smoking. He held that lit thing in his hand and bravely gave the intro to each and every original episode. And did you know he wrote ninety-two? Yep that’s right, ninety-two of the one hundred fifty-six episodes were written by Mr. Serling. I’ve read a few in script form, but also as short stories—they’re beautiful. I have a tiny area of bookshelf space dedicated to things relating to The Twilight Zone. The stories and TV show age quite well. Not bad story writing. NOT guilty pleasure.

I do have a tinge of jealousy. Jealous of Serling? Sure, I can only aspire, but no, I’m talking about that generation of Baby Boomers who saw the images glow on their black and white screens for the first time. No VCRs, no DVRs, no DVDs (I officially despise acronyms after writing this) only magic! A special Serling sort of magic served with nicotine and sometimes Shatner. A journey into a dimension that made your senses feel puny. Four dimensions were not enough for Serling. If you hopped into his small black TV-shaped vehicle for a ride you signed a contract to breach this plane—an invitation to Heaven, Hell, and all the junk in between. These were bold messages that often were only found in the quirky comic books of the day. Some episodes still scare the hell out of me. Some give me a near Bradbury-ish nostalgic hug. They all make me smile.

Why does it work so well? I think (I may be wrong) it’s utter expectation. Serling gives us a promise every episode. He promises to take us to a weird place. He makes good on his promises.

It sounds simple, but that is a common problem with new writers. In fact, I’m struggling with it right now. I first have to ask myself, “Shit! Does this story even make a promise?” But the paranoid state is good for a writer, or so I hear. Master storytellers like Serling have laid certain foundations and have shown us that these seeds of expectation work. They make the reader feel crafty as if they’re in on the joke.

We don’t need to stand in front of our reader, take a healthy drag off our cig, and give a two paragraph soliloquy just before they start on the first line. (Although let’s face it, that would be cool as hell). However, we can present it in the prose just as we’ve been taught. Promises, expectations, whatever you want to call them they need to be there for the reader. When the promise has been met then we are one step closer to resonance. This is what we want, fellow writers!! We can hear “that was clever”, “you’re so funny”, “beautiful writing” and those are great compliments, but if someone looks you in the eye and says, “that thing in your book resonated with me” in so many words or less – you wrote something Serling might like. I, as you do, very much want to be “might liked” by Serling.

Picture if you will, finding a promise and making good on it. It’s somewhere out there in the ether we call—The Twilight Zone.

MattBioPicMatthew started lying as soon as he could talk. Thrilled with the reaction he received, he started making the lies bigger. Some of the lies he had kicked around for years became commodiously appropriate for the written word. Matthew has fun lying in the Middle Grade genre, but lately has been taking on the Adult Dark Humor Crime Thriller genre. He is currently working on his novel – The Sommelier.

When not lying, he is usually traveling, or hanging out with his wife and three cats in Celebration, Florida while looking up words like “commodious” on thesaurus.com .

Where do I find this guy?

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matthewdavidbecketauthor/?ref=hl

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MatthewBecket

Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/MatthewBecket

Lex Talk About Lex, Baby

A guest post by Matt Becket.

Batman V. Superman: Dawn Of JusticeLex Luthor goes up against quite a lot more than just virtual demigods in Batman v Superman. He goes up against us. We, in fact, are his greatest challenge.

I imagine that DC’s goal in presenting an archvillain is to create a feeling of disgust, hatred, or sympathy for the character. Without it, they are unsuccessful. Lex needs to hook us. We need to want to be hooked.

I love movies. I even enjoy bad films if only because my butt is planted in the seat of a movie theater. It’s all magic to me. With a PG-13 superhero movie I become a ten year old boy. My youthful eyes don’t go to judge – but if they get side-tracked, they age into the critical eyes of a college freshman (some of the world’s harshest judges). When this happens the popcorn isn’t as savory and the soda loses its bubbles. It’s still magic, but flat magic propelled by other factors my eyes latch onto such as special effects or cinematography.

I personally appreciate the Warner Brothers’ attempt in making a new Lex, but something did not work. People have blamed casting. Casting is usually the first thing to be blamed. The second thing to be blamed is direction. These two are contributors, but I think the writing and pacing in this movie hurt the new incarnations of these characters the most.

Good characters usually have clear motives with stakes involved. Reintroduced characters shouldn’t rely too much on a savvy audience already familiar with the brand. Lex Luthor wasn’t given a good platform this round. I wanted to know how this particular Lex got to this point. I do admit you can fit the pieces together, kinda, but his motive didn’t hit home and wobbled. Was there a movie between this one and the last that I missed?

Let’s break Lex down. What do we know about Lex Luthor? He’s rich. He’s smarter than Superman. His inventiveness is up there with Batman. He’s power-mad, but he’s able to hold himself together. These are fantastic qualities in a Super-villain (it’s what gives him that “super” bit.) What can mess this up? I think the answer is overincarnation. Yes, I made up this word just now. I think I made it up. No idea, I’ll Google it later.

Where were we? Right! Overincarnation. We have the comics, the old black and white TV serial, more comics, video games, Smallville, Lois and Clark, bald Kevin Spacey, bald Gene Hackman, the Super Friends cartoon. That’s a stable of Lex Luthor! Having been exposed to this, we have Lex Luthor expectations and have all formed some sort of Lex Luthor in our head. Can Hollywood find that least common denominator Lex Luthor that our moms, brothers, and Grandpa will appreciate? Sadly, I feel that this time they did not.

The world knows who Lex Luthor is. He’s been fighting Superman since 1940. He’s very recognizable.

It would have been really cool if he had made an appearance in Batman v Superman. We kept waiting, but he never showed.

 

About the Author:
111814LargeSquareCrop (1)Matthew started lying as soon as he could talk. Thrilled with the reaction he received, he started making the lies bigger. Some of the lies he had kicked around for years became commodiously appropriate for the written word. Matthew has fun lying in the Middle Grade genre, but lately has been taking on the Adult Dark Humor Crime Thriller genre. He is currently working on his novel – The Sommelier.

When not lying, he is usually traveling, or hanging out with his wife and three cats in Celebration, Florida while looking up words like “commodious” on thesaurus.com .

Where do I find this guy?
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matthewdavidbecketauthor/?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MatthewBecket
Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/MatthewBecket

Great Expectations: A Guest Post by Matthew Becket

A guest post by Matthew Becket.

 

Two incredible visuals pop into my head when I think of the writers’ life—George McFly opening a box of books at the end of Back to the Future and Jack Torrance scolding his wife during an unproductive writing session in the movie The Shining. Both scenarios are powerful and affected me as a young movie obsessed kid in the Eighties. I didn’t know any writers personally then and Hollywood hadn’t shown me much in the way of how they should present themselves at home. These guys seemed real to me and I took them seriously.

I remember the warm feeling I got when George showed Marty Mcfly those books. Keep in mind, this was Marty’s perfect nineteen-eighty-five where all his previous problems were fixed. His Dad glowed as he presented Marty with a copy and gave a brief, but optimistic, speech on achievement. The sun was shining, everyone was glowing, and the audience was happy because they wanted George to win. He did it! He had been published! As a twelve year old boy watching this I thought that meant that George had made millions of dollars and would never have to work again. This is what writers do!

Copyright by Warner Bros. and other respective production studios and distributors. Intended for editorial use only.
Copyright by Warner Bros. and other respective production studios and distributors. Intended for editorial use only.

The flip-side, displayed in the movie The Shining, gave me a different impression of writers. Jack Torrance drank heavily, said bizarre things to his wife, talked to ghosts, and ignored his gifted son. Violent outbursts and drinking eventually led him down a literal path to self destruction. There was no sunny day or box of books to share with his son. Nope. Jack Torrance turned into a hunk of frozen meat. Is this what writers do?

As young writers, we hope for the George McFly scenario. But what did that scene not show? Did it show the hours it took to write the first draft of George’s book? It didn’t have to. The George in that reality was a perfect George and an object of Hollywood fantasy. Things came easy to him.

I’m not twelve anymore and I’ve met real writers. I’ve met ones that have put in the hours and sacrifice. I’ve met successful authors and when they talk I listen really closely. These people have found a balance between real life and the writers’ life. They have devised a situation at home where they can create. I’ve picked up some of what they said and, although the following may not wholly pertain to you, I’m sure you’ll get something out of it.

You’re a writer! Tada!

First off, realize that the other members of your household cannot take your writing seriously if you don’t. Anyone can suddenly say: “I’m a writer!”, but there has to be something there. You cannot expect anyone to be supportive unless you’re actively writing. Unfortunately, they may never take it seriously, but they cannot possibly do so unless you take those first steps. You have to write.

If you aren’t taken seriously, others may think it’s a phase. They may just consider it a cute little hobby, and you’ll have to come to terms with that. Do not expect them to be your number one supporter especially if you have nothing to show for it. This will be part of your growth as a writer. You can use this as a catapult hurtling yourself closer to a career. Prove them wrong.

If you do have a supportive spouse or significant other it can be really fantastic. If they’re in the business it can be a no-brainer. Although, supportive family members deserve payback for those years of support. As young authors we have little or no money to show for all our efforts. It is important to meet that support with utter gratitude (and someday, hopefully, money). Again, it goes back to the same idea — you have to write.

Don’t forget to do the laundry and feed the cat.

Next, and this is tricky, you need to nurture your writing career without neglecting family. Writers will always find the time to write, but they need to do this without damaging relationships. This is usually a situation of give and take. Explain to your loved ones how important it is for you to get time to write. Create a schedule in which all the important things you normally do are highlighted and fit your writing time around those things. (Recently I’ve been using a calendar in conjunction with wipe-off boards and just planning ahead has taken a tremendous amount of stress off my shoulders.) When the others in your home notice the lengths you’re taking to make sure you haven’t forgotten you live there too, they will most likely respect your writing time. Don’t give them a reason to resent it. Eventually they’ll see it as a part of your routine. Hopefully, they’ll see it as your job.

The grain of salt.

Another sensitive aspect of having your family or spouse involved in your writing is their critique. These people know you, they will have biases. Just as sometimes we’re too close to our writing, our family members can be too close to it as well. They may say they love everything you do, or quite the opposite – they may shut it down straight away. It isn’t fair to them to think that they should view your writing in the same way a larger fanbase would. Find the largest grain of salt you can and take it when family members read your writing. Of course there are exceptions. Perhaps your spouse is a fantastic line editor and even does this as a profession. I certainly have talented individuals in my family that I run things past. Even as their intentions may be good, realize that the buck certainly doesn’t stop with them.

When it comes to your home life give the writer in yourself gravity and identify with it. Be bold, passionate, and don’t be afraid to say “Yeah, I’m a writer.” The more you vocalize it and let others know, you’ll be less likely to fail and begin to have more expectations – great expectations – for yourself.

You can do this. You’re a writer.

 

About Matthew Becket:

Matthew started lying as soon as he could talk. Thrilled with the reaction he received, he started making the lies bigger. Some of the lies he had kicked around for years became commodiously appropriate for the written word. Matthew has fun lying in the Middle Grade genre, but lately has been taking on the Adult Dark Humor Crime Thriller genre. He is currently working on his novel – The Sommelier.

When not lying, he is usually traveling, or hanging out with his wife and three cats in Celebration, Florida while looking up words like “commodious” on thesaurus.com .

Where do I find this guy?

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matthewdavidbecketauthor/?ref=hl

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MatthewBecket

Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/MatthewBecket