And a caption called, "Weekend at Bernie's 3: Alive and Well .. Sort of!"
I looked over at the amount of posts I've done this year, and I'm 12 away from last year's total. That is very doable at the current posting rate. I'm also 17 away from 1500 posts!
First Discussion: Creation of Thursday's TG Caption
Was asked by Tiffany in the comments: What was the process like for writing this one, since you said you didn't have much to go on when you started. Did you find the picture first?
It was pretty much how I described it in the 2nd paragraph.
I went picture hunting and it only took about 5 minutes to find something that triggered an idea in my brain that I thought would fit, so I placed it into a caption setting and went to work. Right away I had the idea that the stuffed animal was going to be the method of transformation, but how to work it into the story? Hmm, how about "Dee the evil toymaker" ??? Does that get anyone interested .. and scared .. to see what sort of damage and chaos THAT might create in the world?
It's just that usually I have a bit more of an endpoint when I see a picture, like a punch line / zinger or a moment of time I have to arrive at. For this, I only had "Teddy Bear is going to change him into a girl!" and there are many ways to go about that route.
I would say 90-95 percent of the time I find a picture first that gives me something to work with; which is why I tend not to use standard porno pictures as they all use the same angles and focus on the same content. Well, maybe I'll use the first shot or two when they are wearing clothing or costumes, or have an interesting prop.
The reason I liked this one is that the model is cute with great legs, which lead to a teddy bear, all framed well in the picture. the arm is blocking the groin, so it could be either the subject after the gender change, or still a cross-dressing boy. It's a good construct for a TG caption no matter which way you would like to go with it, but there is a few things you can anchor the story onto .. the selfie pose, the teddy bear, her little black dress and hosed legs. Right now I could think of another story for the picture .. She's all upset because she had a date and was blown off by a guy, so she's having a 'date night' with her favorite stuffie, Mr. Simon, which now that she's older, is where she hides her vibrator from her parents.
Side Note to First Discussion:
When replying to a comment from Sally Bend, I said, "This caption came out so much better than I thought it would. If I decide to start writing TG fiction for sale, this just might be near the top of my list for captions I've made that could be expanded into a story." So what do you, blog readers of mine, think about me expanding this into an actual short story or something of that nature. Perhaps it will be this story expanded, or another tale from Dee Mentia, the evil toymaker?
Second Discussion: TG Blogs (Caption, Fiction, Lifestyle, etc ..)
Last year was when I had my first sabbatical, where even though I did post, it was at a much reduced publication schedule. I am not sure if readers then knew how close I was to blowing up this place, or at least making it inactive. Life was getting hectic, and I wasn't getting the interest or feedback from others that I wanted, and quite a few cherished members of the community had also vanished around the same time. Looking at it now from this vantage point, it was a great idea to step back and take stock then. Not having a deadline to produce X amount of captions / posts a week was refreshing, and I don't feel that pressure nearly as much now. I will still miss a day or two here and there, and it isn't as much of a big deal as I felt it was then. Plus, the TG community seems to have picked up some over the last year, with people more likely to leave comments now than in the past.
Which leads to me something I notice that others with TG blogs don't necessarily do. If you want feedback, then replying to commenters is a must. Thank them for taking the time to say something about your work. Acknowledge what they've said and engage them. Maybe they'll never go back to that post again, but you never know. Have you ever asked WHY they started visiting your blog, or WHAT compels them to keep coming back? The answers may surprise you! Hmmm, that isn't a click bait line, is it?
Ir's probably even more important if you are a TG writer. So they love a piece of fiction you wrote. Is it because it touches on a personal fantasy, did they love the villain and find them dastardly yet relatable, or were the plot twists hard to see, which made the ending even more uplifting? Or were they the literary version of jump-scares, which left the reader feeling empty. It's marketing research on a personal level if you can figure it out and have them communicate with you.
For instance, on the Haven, there are MANY people that love pregnancy captions. I could almost guarantee that I'd get 4-5 comments there (not as many now as a few people have left, but that is another story for another time!) but here on the blog .. I'd be lucky to get one. Should I stop making them? Keep doing them but not post them here? Well, if I am doing a trade, of course I will make them, and yes, I will post them here as it is my caption blog, but I'll already have an idea of how much eyeballs will look at it and who will say something about it. However, I think people know me well enough that they'll still click the link and check out what I have to say inside. I've built up that trust with the reader, or at least I think I have.
Some people use this blog format to only catalog their captions or stories and have them all on one site. That is fine, but most, however, want feedback. The way to do that is, as Bonnie Raitt would say, is give them something to talk about. Ask, and they might give you things you want to hear, or maybe even things you DON'T want to hear! We ALL want feedback, and complain when we aren't getting it, but if you don't show any reception for it, you likely won't get what you want in the long run. When I see a blog that has comments, and then replies from the creator, I know there is something definitely special going on there, and it makes me want to become a part of it too.
Third Discussion: The Caption at the Top!
Well, I wasn't sure exactly what caption I was going to post here, so I went with this one that was good in theory, didn't mesh together as well as I hoped, and wasn't helped by a busy background that sort of ate my text. For those needing subtext, many beach towns will have dwellings that can be rented out for a weekend, or usually for an entire week. Usually a bunch of friends will go in together on the rental, as they often are 4-5+ bedrooms, right on the beach.
I might have been better off just leaving the change be more random. It also would have fit in better if I actually wanted to tie the story into the actual movies from the late 80's. "The criminals are still looking for the money, but they can't find Bernie, because he's now a she! What happens when she falls in love with a police detective, who is also the mafia boss' son? Hilarity, that's what!"
Maybe I just need some more sleep! Comment below in any and all of this LONG blog post!