Whatever You Do, Hemophobics, Don't Faint! It's Only Blood!

 

How's it going lurkers? In case you have not already guessed, today's blog is NOT  about hemophilia. It is about hemophobia. 

 

Hemophobia is the fear or phobia of blood.

The more I thought about hemophobia, I chose to conduct online research about it, hoping to find informative articles about the phobia. Low and behold, there are at least several.

Stumbling upon the website, FearOf.Net, I discovered that it is a website specifically dedicated to a plethora of phobias. 

When visiting FearOf.Net's main page, there is an Anxiety Test, as well as lists of the Top 10 and Top 100 Phobias. Of course, 4 of mine made the Top 10 List.

Don't be fooled. Just because I am a Horror fan and author, doesn't mean I don't have any phobias of my own. My biggest phobia made Number 1 and must be slayed every time I walk inside and outside the house, throughout spring, summer, and early fall.

To solve any confusions some might already have, being hemophobic is NOT  the same as being terrified of needles (trypanophobic).  

Trypanophobia is more common than hemophobia.

How many people do you know personally enjoy having blood work done and/or shots taken at hospitals/clinics?

Both shots and blood work can be extremely painful. This is especially if you have a ruthless nurse holding a needle in his/her hands just to brutally stab you with it.

Hemophobics typically experience symptoms such as anxiety (duh), nausea, increased heart rate, sweating, and trembling at the sight of blood.

Sudden drops in blood pressure and heart rate leading to pallor or weakness and fainting at the sight of blood are soon to follow.

Some have been caused to have a fear of blood due to traumatic and tragic experiences. Bloody images shown on TV and movies can also contribute to hemophobia.

It goes without saying that genres, sub-genres, and themes that are "near and dear to my heart," so to say (Horror, Thriller, Crime, serial killers, etc.) are mostly to blame for hemophobia. 

Well, the objective IS to frighten audiences after all. Otherwise, we wouldn't be doing our jobs.

Anyway, if you would like to participate in the poll taking, statistical data, and are more curious about hemophobia specifically, don't be too horrified to LEARN MORE.

So, did I happen to traumatize anyone with the display of blood?

NOOO! There Are Too Many Horror Authors! Should I Switch Genres?

How's it going my lurkers? Happy Belated New Year! Before I became preoccupied offline, I originally planned to publish a blog wishing everyone a happy new year.

In case you missed my posts around social media and the e-mail notifications I sent to subscribers, I was sick during Christmas. 

To make matters worse, my mother had a medical emergency literally 1 day AFTER Christmas. We had to call the ambulance.

While battling a cold, winter allergies, sinuses, etc. ~2 weeks ago, I hope you enjoyed those creepy yet festive blogs regarding Yule and Christmas as throwbacks. Honestly, I did not have a chance to enjoy Christmas, in case you are wondering.

Aside from those issues, I cannot help noticing how extremely saturated the Horror Industry has become over the last 10-15 years. It is amazing how an entertainment genre such as Horror has surged in popularity over this last decade.

Within my immediate family, my mother and I are the only Horror fans. Being born and raised during the early 1980's and '90s, when Slasher Horror was at its pinnacle yet constantly being condemned and demonized by media watchdog groups, critics, and Christian zealots, I grew up watching Horror.

As much as I enjoy watching TV shows and movies about the paranormal, vampires, witches, etc. the Slasher Horror sub-genre has always been my favorite.

The villains are more realistic and believable. Most people will tell you that vampires, zombies, ghouls, werewolves, and other types of monsters are not real. There are even those skeptics, who refuse to believe in the paranormal. 

Serial killers, sociopaths, stalkers, psychopaths, and those with other mental/behavioral disorders on the other hand, DO exist in everyday life. I am not saying, that I don't believe in ghosts because I do.

However, there are still those skeptics regardless if they believe in a higher power or not, who deny that ghosts exist. This especially applies to certain skeptics, who need to prove everything based on SCIENCE.

Out of all the Horror sub-genres, the Slasher sub-genre is the most believable and realistic. I believe the Slasher sub-genre is hands down the most frightening because serial killers ARE real.

When it comes to Slashers, the serial killer is labeled as "The Moral Villain." If you have ever watched Wes Craven's Slasher Horror film, SCREAM within these last 22 years, you should remember Jamie Kennedy's character, Randy Meeks.

In SCREAM, Randy explained what people should NOT  do, in order to survive a Slasher Horror Movie.

SCREAM: Randy’s Rules For Successfully Surviving A Horror Movie (1996)

The Moral Villain will typically serial kill obnoxious teenagers, who are abusing drugs, having pre-marital sex, and saying "I'll be right back." Slashers can also segue into the Thriller genre.

Characters with killer instincts and life-threatening mental disorders can be important traits in Thrillers. Some of these traits in villains help assemble Horror/Thrillers.

As an author, my stories would fall into both the Horror and Thriller genres. 

On Thursday, I spoke with someone on the phone, who helps writers find publishers and literary agents. I informed her, that I built my own website, blog, and share blogs regularly.

In addition, I explained about the type of short stories I write. Even though NONE of my stories are about the stereotypical vampires, zombies, werewolves, etc. I mostly consider myself to be a Horror writer.

Stories about stalkers, misogynists, the abused, scorned women seeking revenge, etc. can be disturbing as well as frightening. 

I would love to see my work published in a Horror anthology and under the category, Horror. At the same time, there will be those closed-minded critics saying, "You're not a Horror author. Horror has vampires, zombies, creatures, etc."

I would LOVE to have my work branded as Horror because there is a lot more to the genre than only monsters. Stories and films about vampires and zombies over this last decade have become so cliche.

Anything can be horrifying WITHOUT vampires, zombies, werewolves, monsters, etc. being involved.

Over these last few years, I was very surprised to learn, that more women are Horror authors. Much like music, the overall Horror genre was always male-dominated. The times really have changed.

I was always that "weird girl" growing up in school, who wrote Horror Stories dating back to 3rd grade. As I became a young woman, I wrote more of them.

Seeing how saturated and cliche the Horror genre has become today, I have contemplated whether or not to target the Thriller genre.

While speaking to that lady, who helps writers on Thursday, she suggested that I try submitting my stories to literary journals for the Thriller genre.

Both of us believe my short stories would be better suited for the Thriller genre than Horror. In some ways, the Thriller genre seems more versatile than Horror. Also, my work could appeal to other types of readers.

So, this is where YOU, my subscribers come in:

Those of you, who have read some of my short stories and excerpts, what are your thoughts? Do you think my stories belong in the Thriller genre or can they be categorized as Horror/Thriller?

Cartoon Sunday: Black Lagoon Pilot Episode

How's it going lurkers? Yesterday, I mentioned sharing a link to 1 of the ending theme songs to Black Lagoon in a Metal thread on Adult Swim's forum. 

"Preach Headz Addiction" by Breath Frequency was used as the ending theme song for Black Lagoon's series finale. Today I want to explain more about this Seinen Action Anime.

Last week, I talked to an Adult Swim Helper about Black Lagoon. He posted a thread in the Black Lagoon sub-forum asking:

"If you were kidnapped and your boss didn't pay to get you back would you join with your kidnappers rather than go home? I think the fact that Revy was there had something to do with it. I think if it were just Benny and Dutch, Rock would have been long gone."

I repiled to the Adult Swim Helper:

"I would've rather gone home. Rock claims to suffer from 'Stockholm Syndrome,' but he really wanted belong to a group. I personally can't stand Revy. I'm Team Roberta. Watching Roberta kick her ass was fantastic because Revy met her match."

As a Black Lagoon fan, I can't stand Revy. I have always found Revy to be sickening. She is that eternal victim, who had such a HARD life and overcompensates for it by acting like a sociopathic misanthrope and begrudges everyone. Revy also loves denying her feelings for Rock.

Meanwhile, Roberta actually resonates with me a lot better than Revy. I may not have lied, backstabbed, and killed people but I can definitely identify with people underestimating me because of my physical appearance, living a double life, and having physical strength. 

Roberta tries to be polite. However, she is NOT opposed to using brute force. 

As I maintained a conversation with the Adult Swim Helper, I automatically noticed his justifications for Revy acting like a misanthropic, bipolar bitch to the protagonist, Rock. 

Supposedly, he has friends EXACTLY like her and being a rape survivor is an excuse to act like a bitch to everyone. I explained to the Adult Swim Helper:

"Being raped most definitely will harden anyone and make it difficult to maintain relationships with people whether it's a friendship, or a romantic relationship. Revy has streets smarts but at the same time, she spends more time trying to act tough and being a bitch to everyone. Dutch and Benny don't treat everyone the way Revy treats people. Every rape victim doesn't treat everyone horribly because of it. She may be physically strong, but she's emotionally weak and commitment phobic. Revy begrudges anyone, who lives and has lived a much better life than she did. She falls under the category of what would be considered the stereotypical 'low class lowlife' because she doesn't come from living a wealthy lifestyle and acts classless."

I am NOT  in the slightest trying to minimize sexual abuse. It is a horrible experience to endure. 

Sexual abuse is something extremely difficult to recover from physically, emotionally, psychologically, and sexually. 

Not knowing who to trust, after a traumatic experience such as sexual abuse is much harder. 

Although, NOT  every rape victim becomes a paid criminal and believes, that he/she can abuse others. Therefore, I believe that Adult Swim Helper's statements are mostly B.S.

Reading his justifications constantly made me roll my eyes behind the screen. Even though he has a right to like whichever character(s) he wants, I refuse to validate his bullshit logic.

Since we are on the topic of Black Lagoon, it is best to give a recap summary. Black Lagoon was actually based on piracy cases in the East China Sea, during the mid to late 1990's. 

The Mangaka, Rei Hiroe was inspired by the works of James Ellroy, John Woo, Quentin Tarantino, and Stephen King.

Black Lagoon opens with the protagonist, Rokuro Okajima (a.k.a. "Rock"). The protagonist is a businessman (who would also be considered a "salary man" in Japan) for Asahi Industries in Tokyo. Rock is sent by his company to deliver a disk in the East China Sea. 

In the process, his boat gets hijacked by pirates/mercenaries known as the Lagoon Company, who were hired to steal it. Revy (the only Chinese American female mercenary in Lagoon Company) chooses to hold Rock hostage, hoping he will be ransom worthy. 

Eventually, the disk becomes useless to them. In order to hide the smuggling operation, Rock's department chief, Kageyama, declares Rock as "dead" and abandons him.

Because Rock no longer works for Asahi Industries, he chooses to work for the Lagoon Company as their negotiator/translator, while supposedly suffering from "Stockholm Syndrome." Gotta love the smell of bullshit in the morning.

If you have never watched Black Lagoon, you can try watching it in the following link:

Black Lagoon Season 1: Episode 1 [English Dub] (2006)