LIKE A VAMPIRE

A writer friend of mine just told me that “I should stop talking about writing and just write…”. Well I am just like a new vampire born into the world with a different set of eyes and I’m excited with my new found senses, though I love my writer friend and respect all her unsolicited advice, I will still talk about writing. I just read Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird and a paragraph  just really made me realize how to rearrange my daily routines as a photographer to a photographer/writer, quoting Lamott “If you’re a writer, or want to be a writer, this is how you spend your days–listening, observing, storing things away, making your isolation pay off. You take home all you’ve taken in, all that you’ve overheard, and you turn it into GOLD. (or atleast you try.)” I always have stored images through my camera for the past 10 years travelling all over the world, but now I have to develop more senses and listen more, look more, observe more, like a vampire.

NAIVE YOUNG MEN

My favorite movies and books has always been filled with dark characters, they fascinate me -vampires, psycho killers, assassins, gangsters, and junkies, because they live most of the time with no rules, Interview with the Vampire, Bourne Identity, Silence of the Lambs, Fight Club, The Godfather are possibly  my most favorite films ever.  In every walks of life there are characters that are out there waiting for writers to tell their stories –a brain surgeon, an architect, a hacker, an australian surfer backpacking, a cowboy from Ohio, a politician, a serial killer, a mother and his son, their neighbor, the prostitutes across the street, the homeless man on the other alley, the pianist living in the loft above the building and the dancers listening to his music and it goes on, their stories have been written hundreds of times in so many different versions and vantage points. If you list the names of movies about prostitutes, gangsters, doctors and serial killers, you will think maybe they are societies favorite characters, we pay to hear their stories.

The story of a naive young man or woman comes to the big city with big hopes of becoming a top model as shown in mainstream films “Zoolander” (2001), “Gia” (1998), “Stardom” (2000), the documentary “Picture Me: A Model’s Diary” (2009), the novel’s “Sex, Love, and Fashion: A Memoir of a Male Model” by Bruce Hulse, “A Model Summer” by Paulina Porizkova, “Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women” by  Michael Gross, TV shows like the recently cancelled CW series “The Beautiful Life” (2009), “America’s Next Top Model” (2003), and “Make me a Supermodel” (2008).

The story of a  naive young man or woman comes to the big city with hopes of becoming a top fashion designer, editor or photographer as shown on the films like “The Devil Wears Prada” (2006), “Bruno” (2009), “How to Lose Friends & Alienate People” (2008), books like “The Devil Wears Prada: A Novel by Lauren Weisberger”, TV shows like “Ugly Betty” (2006), and “Project Runway” (2005).

The story of that naive young man or woman who had arrived and now showcasing what validates them, like any other stories have some happy endings some don’t, like the films “Coco avant Chanel” (2009), “Rage” (2009), “The Versace Murder” (1998), “Eyes of Laura Mars” (1978), “Prêt-à-Porter” (1994), documentaries like “September Issue” (2009), “Fashion Victim: The Killing of Gianni Versace” (2001), “Valentino: The Last Emperor” (2009), “Unzipped” (1995), and books like “Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in U.S. History” by Maureen Orth.

NO OSCAR, PULITZER, OR NOBEL FOR FASHION

All the titles featured here are basically most of the information available out there as a general opinion that an outsider of the fashion world could access, collectively the public wants to see the bright and bubbly side of this industry, TV’s “Project Runway”, the hit comedy “Zoolander”, Lauren Weisberger’s “The Devil Wears Prada: A Novel”, tops for TV, Film and Books talking about the characters in a fashion house. Why haven’t any of the title’s mention here were critically honored and respected like the great movies about gangsters and lunatics? Why there are only few respectable books, films and tv shows out there that has more valid and real point of view about the fashion Industry, not merely caricatures. Something that will win the Oscars like Silence of the Lambs (film about serial killers) and the Godfather (film about criminals) or even a Nobel Prize.

ARMED WITH SALIVA

The film “Zoolander”,  the novel “The Devil Wears Prada”, and “Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women” by  Michael Gross are the closest honest stories about this industry that I have read and seen, they are respectable in their own rights though they can only be achieved through comedy. Actor/ Producer Ashton Kutcher was almost close with his cancelled CW drama “The Beautiful Life”, with a better writer (his writers need to research more since most model booker/agents are overweight and balding) and actors this could’ve been a more watchable show. The major characters that has been told in relatively few stories about the fashion house are models armed with their good genetics, editors, fashion designers, photographers armed with their education, artistry and talents, the model agent as we see in “The Beautiful Life” episodes is armed with his “saliva”, a side of this industry that we haven’t seen, and what my new novel is all about. The “model booker/agent” is a word you wont find in a webster dictionary, but their “specific skill set” have been around since Cleopatra’s first trick. The two oldest profession in the history of man is prostitution and  politics, welcome to a world where everyone just want to sell something -a novel about the 9 to 5 business of selling people titled “NAIVE”. Read an excerpt of the novel below…

“NAIVE” (Excerpt) 1st draft CHAPTER IV – “MASTERS and PUPPIES”

I love my pet chihuahua, Queen Alexander, he’s a well-trained dog. I always bring him at work…

…People can’t help but wonder how I can be so successful in a career that you don’t learn in Harvard or even a small town summer school. One of those days while browsing a magazine and waiting for my meat-head personal trainer at the gym, After reading the article “Get Fit Slowly » Yep, I’m Obese” I bumped into an article called “How to discipline a pet, Training a puppy may seem easy. In reality, it requires focus, consistency, and patience” After reading the damn article it dawned on me, If you replace the words “puppies/doggies/pets” with models, “masters/owners” with bookers, “punishment” with sending them to less castings or ignoring them for a period of time, “maximum punishment” kicking them out of the agency or blacklisting their ass, “rewards” with good castings and more “quality time“. Thats one of the secrets to my success. But will I tell that to anybody, of course not! Because the moment my pet becomes a bankable “supermodel”, somehow we switch roles.

HOW TO DISCIPLINE A PET.
(Training a puppy may seem easy. In reality, it requires focus, consistency, and patience. Here are a few tips for disciplining a pet that may prove useful.)

If you’ve never trained a puppy
before, you’re in for a treat. With those bright dark eyes on you and a tail wagging like mad, your new little pet will be a lot of fun to work with. And how gratifying when it learns to obey your commands and respect authority. Disciplining your puppy becomes a matter of course with results that both animal and human can expect.

But the other side of the discipline coin is the hard work that will be needed to achieve these results. Puppies, like children, require consistency. You can’t train them one day and ignore them the next. You have to do it on a regular basis. Here are some guidelines to get you started down the road to an obedient pet with a satisfied master:

1. Set up a training schedule. Start while your puppy is still young, perhaps six to eight weeks old. Aim for fifteen minutes twice a day, about the same time each day, like after the morning and evening feedings.

2. Choose a disciplinary method and stay with it. Using a newspaper to tap your puppy’s nose when he makes a mistake is effective; so is using a water bottle to spray him. Some owners opt for a simple verbal response:
“No!” “Stop!” “Heel!” These are followed by pushing the puppy out of the offensive posture, such as squatting to urinate or chewing on a sock. Be consistent with whatever you choose.

3. Teach the puppy one thing at a time. Be sure that trick or habit is completely mastered before starting another one. It may take several weeks before the puppy knows what is expected and delivers the desired behavior faithfully.

4. Discipline through rewards, too. Discipline does not mean only punishment. Discipline means training that leads to a desired outcome. When your puppy performs as expected, reward him with words of praise:

“Good boy!”

“Good puppy!”

You may want to toss him a doggy snack as well. Be sure to do this the first several times your puppy does what you tell him, and intermittently thereafter. Positive reinforcement is an effective way to discipline a pet.

5. Have one family member be responsible for training and discipline. If more than one person gets involved, your puppy may become confused. Still young yet, a puppy may not be able to discern differing voice intonations or even some word pronunciations if children are giving commands. Stick with one person, preferably an adult, who can get the animal conditioned and serve as the primary disciplinarian until your pet is well trained.

Getting a puppy can be fun for everyone. But training him requires serious effort.
Ongoing discipline means a concerted commitment by at least one adult member of the family. Keep these guidelines in mind before getting a puppy, because if you can’t follow through, you may end up with a sad puppy and unhappy owners.