Writer’s Life: Being a Shayna Baszler fan

All writers have influential figures they follow, sometimes it’s other writers. For me, it’s Shayna Baszler and people may not understand why a wrestler influences a writer.

The past few weeks have been interesting, to say the least, and unfortunately, my mind has not been focused on writing due to personal reasons. I haven’t even started on other projects that I have planned for the rest of 2019. I need to get a little personal for a moment and focus on an influential person known as Shayna Baszler and how she has helped me personally and as a writer.

I love everything about wrestling and mixed martial arts. Some people have influential people who are singers, actors, or just general public figures. The main influences can be your parents or any friends who are basically family.

Being a Shayna Baszler fan is a part of my identity openly and if someday I became a millionaire, you will still catch me in a Shayna Baszler shirt in public. I am sure people have seen the tweets and seen the memes on Instagram and I wouldn’t be surprised if I have driven some people crazy. They probably wish I would just shut up.

If you have felt that way, no hard feelings and I have been there many times. Hopefully, this will all help people understand why and understand the great feeling of having an influential figure.

Shayna Baszler is a special case and someone who has influenced me greatly over the years. She has had multiple passions and she did it all. She didn’t ask for approval by anyone and she went out there and did what she had to do.

Shayna Baszler recently hit a new milestone in her career and has continued to inspire people who have been a loyal fan all these years. Whatever is next in her journey, we are all here for it as she continues to set a blaze of glory wherever she goes.

The biggest thing with Shayna is that she has taught me as a writer and as a person that there will be people in life who jump on a bandwagon while you are winning, but some may drop off once you lose even a little. This was true from the first time seeing her during her mixed martial art days.

There were some fights where she won and other fights she lost and the people I was around were not consistent. Why would they turn their back while she lost one match but turn around with open arms after she wins? That’s the very definition of fickle.

That’s true as a writer from the days as an undergraduate student to branching out on my own. People wanted to be there when things were going well but turned their backs when things went bad even a little. That’s not just a professional guide but also a life guide.

As a writer, there are ups and downs and sometimes it helps to have someone so successful who understands on such a deep level. Loyalty is everything when it comes to writing and sometimes the loyalty is only there when they want to, but the moment they feel like you aren’t at a certain level, they will likely turn their backs.

That’s where the influence of Shayna Baszler has truly changed everything for me. Being able to distinguish different types of people and know who will be there consistently.

Maybe there is a public figure whether it’s a wrestler, an actor, a fellow writer, or just a general public figure that influences you and has a general message that fits into your professional and personal life to guide you.

Hopefully, now people will understand if they follow me on Twitter and wonder why a writer tweets so much about Shayna Baszler will understand. If that doesn’t drive you crazy, then that’s good. It’s who I am and I am not changing and I would hope other writers who have their own public figures who influence them will not change either.

A Writer’s Journey: Why blogging about Wrestling means everything

This week will be a new wave of Wrestler’s Spotlight segments, but this is why blogging Wrestler’s Spotlight means everything to me as a writer.

The wrestling world has changed in so many ways, and it’s only going to keep changing as time goes by. The wrestling world has so much talent that it is almost impossible to keep up. Even if a person was to watch wrestling every day of the week, they will still likely miss some talent that has performed.

That’s why I have started doing segments called the Wrestler’s Spotlight. It is a segment that I take great pride in writing 2-3 times a week. Before I was ever a writer, I wanted to be a wrestler, had it all planned and did my homework to train right after I graduated high school.

Life had other plans after I hurt my knee. Even though my dreams changed, I turned to my other passion of writing. My love for wrestling continued to grow. That love turned into wishing that I was more involved with wrestling in some way.

After seeing negative posts by fellow writers and major outlets that were focused on news for the sake of clicks and in some cases, tried to tear down a wrestler with nasty rumors. The positive was a few and far in between.

That’s the thing about wrestling that I have observed, writing can build someone up, and it can tear someone down. It even hit home with a few that I even interact with daily. The number of journalists who take it upon themselves to spread something just for a wrestler to retweet and shoot down a rumor should be enough to show a lack of credibility.

It has been years since I went to school for journalism and to be honest, I don’t have credentials as a degree-holding journalist, but I became a writer. Working on scripts, blogs, and anything creative while gaining my bachelor’s degree in creative writing. I decided to use that to my advantage with blogs.

There are many routes to take creatively and it all started with an actress by the name of Stephanie Andujar who caught my eye with her entertaining YouTube channel StephA: One Woman Show. After the interview with Stephanie, I moved on to interviewing wrestlers.

A wrestler by the name of Shayla Hyde also known to some as Joan King has a way of presenting ideas without even realizing it. As a friend and top support during the earliest days freelancing, she showed support and her support continued when I wanted to branch out on my own.

As time went by, things only got worse with so-called journalists and rumor mills by larger websites. It was time for something to change and it broke my heart seeing it. People read a headlined and determined they had enough of the websites and journalists.

There are so many talented wrestlers who are out in the industry who may not be given the spotlight, because websites opt for juicy gossip, as opposed to focusing on the best part of wrestling that people may or may not know.

That’s where the idea of Wrestler’s Spotlight was taken. It’s a small platform made by me with the hope of showing people five simple questions from the perspective of a fan. These five simple questions and sections are all it takes to get to know them as a competitor in the ring and what makes this individual special as a wrestler.

All the answers will always vary from wrestler to wrestler and it will capture their individual in-ring personalities and how they perform in the ring.

My hope is to spread the messages and display their work so fans may be able to keep up with the best competitors that the independent circuit has to offer. if one fan who may not know them suddenly finds something else positive to watch out for, then it is a success in my eyes.

The goal is to have at least 100 Wrestler Spotlight segments to share wrestlers and display their talent in full glory. Stay tuned only on SocialMediaUncut.com for the next Wrestler’s Spotlight segments to see who is next to have the spotlight shine bright on them.

Writer’s Life: Trust within the writing community

Trust is everything within the writer’s community and hopefully all of us can continue to grow together.

Being a writer has many functions and special elements. It includes having faith in your own abilities, staying true to your story, and trust within the writer’s community. Without trust, there isn’t anything to build on within all our special networks.

The special thing with writers is that no writer should have to endure any storm alone. There are groups all over social media whether it is Facebook or the large writer’s community on Twitter. It’s not a competition (or shouldn’t be) and most of all there’s room for all of us.

The whole writer’s community should be the envy of the entire world. It’s a supportive place where everyone gets along and just wants to see everyone succeed. That is rare and something that keeps the writer’s community together.

The issue with any group or family is that sometimes there are people who may not be honest. They may try to take advantage of the generosity and support of other writers. Every group has it and hopefully, there aren’t many within the writer’s community.

The worse part about it is that when there is a reason to not have trust, things fall apart. My hope is that the writer’s community never falls apart because of those who may not have others best interests in mind. If there are those who only have themselves in mind with a lack of transparency, my hope is that other members of the writing community will watch out for each other.

It will continue to grow every single day and I hope it continues to grow with a mutual interest of completing work and supporting each other as the work pours in with new content of all genres and styles.

This network is something special on Twitter and something that has helped us grow as writers, entrepreneurs, and in some cases, it has helped us excel in other respective professions. There are no limits to what could possibly happen with us next on our journeys.

Some of us have very little support and others of us have no support at all. The writer’s community is the cream of the crop in terms of a support system. That’s why preserving it and not losing faith in it is critical.

If you need someone, the community is always only just a tweet away #WritersCommunity or #Writingcommunity.  I am always just a tweet or direct message away @Wrlter4LifeJC for any writers or artists. Let’s all be there to support and be good to each other with our individual circumstances and watch each other thrive.

A Writer’s Life: Joining a team

A writer that has generally been on his own joining a team is an adjustment and a new adventure that forced much needed changes when it comes to being on a team.

This week has been eventful filled with a lot of self-discovery when it comes to writing. Those who have been following my journey via Twitter know that I do script writing, blogging, and contribute to a team called Undead Walking. The transition was the hardest thing I have ever went through. I believe the self-discovery has prepared me for the future and helped me grow as a writer.

Since it isn’t a script or a blog on this website, I had to learn that it is a whole different ballgame and I had to learn the rules fast, or my time would have been more difficult. Learning that took me a few months because as a writer, I didn’t trust anyone else’s instincts but my own.

We have heard it repeatedly, there is no “I” in the word team. I know some of you probably rolled your eyes just now or said a sarcastic remark. Well here is a new one for you, there is an “I” in time, so if you want to save time, you must adhere to the rules of being on a team.

I considered parting ways with Undead Walking after season 9 of The Walking Dead was over. It was a hard road, and I wanted to invest my time into my own projects. When the final episode was over, I felt that the three-month journey was coming to an end.

I figured that I would be back as a lone wolf working on projects as I graduate from college and things would go back to the way it was before. Deep down I didn’t want it to end since I enjoyed writing the pieces as a contributor. While talking with both editors, it was an all-in effort to make it work with Undead Walking.

The problems I have had the whole time were finally being addressed. I didn’t let my guard down and didn’t trust anyone but myself. A big part of that was the few times I have been on a team and got burned in the process, so I kept my guard up with this team and didn’t trust anyone.

After the release of the article, it was a success and I decided to continue to be part of the team on a part-time basis. Why is that important you may ask? Writers like myself been on our own for years and we have grown used to doing it our way. Our way may work for some things, but it won’t work for all things.

If you have a chance to contribute to a team, Undead Walking, Bleacher Report, or any website that calls for it, I highly suggest it. It will not only change your thinking but add more to an individual as a writer with personal growth. Any writer is one of us, and that trust can help us build even more bridges with fellow writers in the future.

A writer’s journey: Zombie spin-off

October 2018 was when “Do You Believe in Zombies ?” became a finalist and recently I saw potential for it to become more, but of course no decision is ever easy.

Last year was the beginning of a new journey as I became a finalist for the Hollywood screenplay contest for my script Do You Believe in Zombies? Since then I saw a potential for more with the storyline and weighed in on the options to turn it into something more. The first option was to turn it into a television series, and the other option is to turn it into a movie series. Either way, coming up with the route I want to take for the spinoff has not been easy, and it’s a dilemma every writer faces in the building phase.

The script is currently a short movie and it’s a long hard decision figuring it out what route to take with it. The spin-off aspect and getting it right is vital, and something that any writer should take seriously. I never wanted my script to be in competition with any other current zombie shows like The Walking Dead or Z-Nation but wanted to bring a new story to make it unique that everyone can enjoy without comparing it to anything else.

The research and keeping up with zombie shows has been exhausting since The Walking Dead franchise, Z-Nation, and many other shows have many long-term projects. While looking at my outline, I asked myself “how can I pull this off to make it my own in the midst of a zombie boom?”. With many movies and television shows combined, weighing in the options made it harder with all that in mind.

There is always room for more no matter what genre and theme, but the worry of getting lost in the shuffle will always be there when creating the original content. The idea is to stand out and embrace the culture rather than compete and overthink. The last script I made was stiff and didn’t have all the necessary parts, because of overthinking and trying too hard to not be like another movie that had the same theme as the other script.

It will all flow organically with no worries or anxiety. In this case, the horror culture for zombies have been rising to a new high, and as a fan, I want to see it all go down with The Walking Dead and other shows coming soon, but as a writer, I am saying that “it’s time to get moving on it”.

The dilemma is trying to figure out which fits better, a television series or a movie spin-off, because both are great options, but which route is a little better than the other? A similar dilemma occurred while I was writing my original short script. I had to decide if I wanted it to be a book or a short movie script. I went with turning it into a short movie script and became a finalist for it.

The timing is always right, because what’s better than the present right? It is a matter of what to do now with it. The work is ours and there is no right or wrong answer, but just something that feels right to each individual writer. Some writers may say “Yeah make another television show!” while others may say “Do a movie series out of it!”, which is why I haven’t asked for anyone personally with help for this (no offense to anyone who has helped me in the past!).

The unique thing about this whole situation is that there are so many ways to craft an apocalyptic world full of zombies. There are so many unique stories that grab an audience or reader with those kinds of stories. If you always wanted to write about the apocalypse whether it is a book, movie, or show, go for it. There are so many scenarios and each world whether it is The Walking Dead or Z-Nation tells different stories for how it all happened and how they could survive.

The biggest and most important part is to have fun with the process, not just the writing, but while watching what’s happening around you with other writers and shows that are part of the same genre as yourself. That’s what makes the journey so special while writing the spin-off to Do You Believe in Zombies? It’s all about having fun while making even the hardest decisions in the long process to make it unique to your own personal journey and enjoyment while making the piece come to life.

As I continue to plan the outline, I will soon make an announcement for what route I will be taking, but no matter what decision is made, it will surely be something I can guarantee people will enjoy just like I have enjoyed writing it. Stay tuned for more details.