Holy cat fights and uber spending!
I have an excuse, though. It’s research. Sometimes, as writers, we’re so intent on making our story points, we skip over basic human behavior. For example, when someone everyone’s angry at enters a room, the offended people do not go after that person ASAP. No, they’re polite and quiet and wary. Sometimes they won’t say a word, which is maddening to watch, but true to life, for sure.
Often I want to have my hero and heroine to jump into their big fight right NOW, though once I settle in and live in their personalities for a bit, I quickly opt for the real life likelihood of tap-dancing, subtexting and avoidance altogether until, of course, the crucial, right moment.
Reality TV keeps me honest! Yes, that’s right. I watch reality show to track the nuances of a face in shock or sadness or embarrassment, the agony of defeat and the thrill of victory. Reality shows make me cringe and look away a lot, but they remind me about the not-always-pretty aspects of people and, to be fair, some of the lovely ones, too.
Remember the noble roots of reality TV—the PBS documentary The American Family, a groundbreaking study of the workings of the basic American social unit, to get all sociological on you.
That sounds pretty respectable, right? Okay, so it’s lurid and voyeuristic, too. But that, also, is human.
That’s my story. Reality TV makes me a better writer. Besides, eavesdropping at the airport, the gym, or the Starbucks to nab real dialogue and human interaction can get you arrested for stalking and that can seriously mess with your deadline.
Oh, and, by the way, stop over at dawnatkins.com, where I’m giving away backlist Blazes to readers in the lull between releases!
Best,
Dawn Atkins
www.dawnatkins.com
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ok, I’ve never wanted to watch any reality TV before. I guess all the sniping and cattiness –like you said–makes me cringe and want to look away. But if it will help make me a better writer, then I’ll go set my DVR right now.
Thanks for helping me see something in a different light, Dawn.
Jillian
LOL, Jillian, I’m with you on the cringing. There are some I can’t bear–the dating ones, for example, and I can’t take American Idol because of the heartbreak. If you’re selective, you can find some that you enjoy that don’t make you feel dirty afterward for watching…heh, heh.
Dawn
I’m all for it if it helps you write great books! I like watching Dancing with the Stars and The Next Food Network Star.
Bless your heart, Nicole! I like Food Network Challenge, but only the cake decorating ones…amazing. Somehow I missed Dancing with the Stars when it first came out. Maybe I should hunt it down!
Dawn
I love watch the cake challenges too. It’s amazing what they can do. I’m always in awe.
I like watching Project Runway and Top Chef. I have to be careful because I’m easily hooked on shows.
I know what you mean. Our DVR is so loaded with shows we record I have to be very selective before adding a new one. I’m trying out OBSESSED, a new show on A&A about people with OCD going through behavioral desensitization therapy. Fascinating, but horrifying, too. Ah, well, this is making me want to go watch something when my “reality” is another hour of writing to do.
Dawn
I was hooked with the first Survivor, a great study in the humans behave which not only helps in writing but helps me in business also to be able to recognize certain personality types.
I just don’t get shows like the Bachelor or horrors of horror Rock of Love – do these women realize how much they are degrading themselves – though I still watch the train wreck
Liz: I know what you mean. I can’t figure out what goes on in someone’s head who volunteers for one of these shows. Could they be clueless about their own reactions, the possibility of humiliating themselves, the fact that the producers do everything they can to ENTICE them to humiliating acts–dousing them with frou-frou drinks, forcing them into hot tubs and private confessions…yeesh. No one can be oblivious to what they’re getting into…
And, yeah, depending on the show, I can’t resist the train wreck. That says something about MY psychology, too!
Dawn
Patsy and Nicole:
Somehow I can’t get your posts to show for me, so I’ll be answering you together and, who knows, where this will show up.
Patsy: I forget who talked me into watching the Osbournes, because it sounded utterly stupid and boring to me at the time. I, too, ADORED the show. I Netflixed two or three seasons, I think. The family dynamic was intriguing, for sure.
Nicole: The cake challenges amaze me, too, the way there’s so much architecture and delicacy. I wish they’d show it slower, with more demonstrations of techniques, since they do so many remarkable things with sugar. Who knew?
Dawn
Daphne, you’re so right about reality TV! I’ve never watched more than one season of any show, for fear of getting hooked, but fell in love with Project Runway, Survivor II, Hell’s Kitchen, Amazing Race and America’s Next Top Model each in turn.
I’ll be curious what you think of Obsessed!
Dawn, you’re so right about reality TV! I’ve never watched more than one season of any show, for fear of getting hooked, but fell in love with Project Runway, Survivor II, Hell’s Kitchen, Amazing Race and America’s Next Top Model each in turn.
I’ll be curious what you think of Obsessed!
We dutifully watched TOP MODEL for several seasons, then faded off. I know the problem of getting hooked on a show! Meanwhile, PREP SCHOOL will soon start up on Bravo and I HAVE to watch that. OBSESSED is heartbreaking, really, to see the horrible things some people go through. Fiction is much, much kinder and more reasonable!
Dawn