Hey, Beep Beep, Boop. Here Are My Future Plans
Hey-yo, it's Mike's here again. I’m still living and doing fine. I haven't been abducted by aliens or anything like that. I just like to take long breaks from the Internet for many reasons, but mostly so I can work on my own projects, like my book. I did a lot of self-care, though, like studying, writing, hitting the gym, taking my vitamins, and taking care of my skin and the bags under my eyes. Because I took care of myself, my skin is clearer, my hair is fuller, and I feel comfortable with my body after working out for a few weeks.
Before I talk about my progress in my book, I'd like to talk about my plans for the future as a young adult who will be 22 in a few months. Oh my goodness, I'm getting so old that I'm going to need a walking cane, a retirement plan, a life alert, and all the other things that old people do.
If I ever get married to "the one," I don't want my bridesmaids and groomsmen to wear formal attire like fancy tuxedos or nice dresses to my wedding because I think that's too sappy. Instead, I want all the bridesmaids to wear hot dog suits and the groomsmen to wear fruit suits so I can take very memorable photos with them (definitely not to mess with them at all).
And if I ever have kids, I'll be a super dad. Where I wake up every morning to make them breakfast, pack them lunch, make them dinner, encourage them to learn a skill or sport, give them valuable life lessons and morals, take them on multiple vacations every year, etc. I’d love them for the rest of my days.
Creating My Characters' Biographies
This book taught me a lot: How to Write A Screenplay by Mark Evan Schwartz. It kept me thinking about what the author, Mark, said: "Writers are doomed because they haven't figured out that structure and character must go hand-in-hand." When I read what he stated, I’d say that what I learned is that writing down your characters on paper is key.
Right now, I’m currently writing out each character's biography in its own document. Each document will include their characteristics, personality, backstory, timeframe, etc. This way, it will help me envision the story and keep track of how each character will interact in the story. You must remember that everyone is very different, especially in personality and beliefs. Therefore, a lot of psychology is involved.
Since the story takes place on the south side of Chicago, I want my other characters to look like they grew up there, dealt with people with tough or soft personalities and rough environments, and got used to all kinds of weather. Therefore, I want my characters to resemble or be inspired by South Side Chicagoans.
In the book I'm still working on, the characters will each have their own unique fears. I've experienced healthy fears where I worry about high school failure, irresponsible spending, etc. Because of those positive fears, I did well or didn't fall. So, after reflecting a lot about my own fears and researching other people's fears, I made sure that my characters' fears were unique, important to them, and essential to the story. Here are the fears that each character will have while growing up on the south side of Chicago: Fears of death, confinement, loneliness, homelessness, loss of independence, etc.
So far, I have written two characters’ biographies: The protagonist and a supporting character.
I worked on the main character's biography first. I wrote down his basic information—birthplace, age, school, etc.—in the top paragraph of the page. After that, I wrote another page with my critical questions about him to get to know him and answered them. After that, I moved on to another page with a timeline of his life from birth to the present day.
Then, after the main character, I moved on to a supporting character's biography. What I noticed about this character is that I created a new page named "references." This reference page is very helpful because I’ve attached links to what I researched online, like stories from films or documentaries. I do this because of any stories or even a character from another creator that has strong connections or could relate to my own characters; I study and analyze them to gain more insights to help me build my characters.
The Protagonist’s Character Description: Peter M. Reyna
I looked through old family photos while working on the protagonist's character description (basic questions, background, etc.). I found a cousin's high school photo. It was a picture day photo.
So I included that photo in the protagonist's profile to resemble how the protagonist would look. I'm not going to lie; it sort of gave me goosebumps, or I felt it was weird because I knew this young man I was staring at was my cousin, but I also knew that his appearance would portray the character in the book. I just had to use my imagination as a writer.
While writing the book, I’ve always imagined my cousin in my head to visualize the protagonist's appearance. Since the protagonist is going to be from the south side of Chicago, my cousin is also from the south side, so it makes sense for me to make the decision to make him the protagonist’s replica.
If I had to describe the protagonist's appearance, I would say he has black hair and brown eyes, is 5'6" tall, is thin but slightly built, is Latino/Mexican-American, and is sixteen years old when the story begins.
After writing the main character's biography, which took me about two weeks and a half, I went to a printing place to get it printed. I gave the guy money to print out the paper, which was nineteen pages long. When I held the packet with the main character's backstory and the traits that make him who he is in the book, it felt amazing to know that I had brought a fictional character into the real world.
When I told my cousin that the main character would look like him and I showed him the book cover of him standing, he stood up and said, "Cool!" Seeing his reaction was priceless, and it was a great feeling to have someone I cared about be a part of something important to me, even if it was just being on the book cover.
More Case-Studies
Lately, I've been doing a lot of studying with celebrities. The famous people I'm talking about are a YouTuber and an actress. These women were well-liked before losing their reputations for different reasons. I didn't say their names just because I didn't want to.
These two case studies taught me a lot, especially about right and wrong and moral lessons. Both cases didn't just affect one person; they affected a lot of people. This gave me a chance to learn more about the people involved, including how they reacted, what decisions they made, what they were thinking at the time, and other things that are part of getting to know someone or a real-life character.
I do research on various topics in my free time because research is what fuels the imagination. Because of this, I've been doing case studies every month to help me create my characters or plots for my book.
#1 Case Study: The First Woman of a Youtuber
Recently, a YouTube star was all over the news and had social media talking because of her allegedly scandalous actions, which caused a big stir of controversy. She was known for her bright red lipstick, which she used to portray a comedic character on YouTube. On April 28, 2020, a 17-year-old fan, now 20, spoke out against her after others slowly spoke out against her, revealing serious allegations.
Her serious allegations included inappropriate conversations with minors in private group chats, sending her fans screenshots of explicit photos of her friend to make jokes about (they are no longer friends), being accused of being racist for using the N-word by a film crew member who used to work with her, etc. Her previous videos of her racially insulting people of color were resurfacing online.
On June 28, 2023, after getting a lot of criticism for her past and allegations and people starting to show proof of her wrongdoing, she released a video in her defense. In the video, she said that to respect her team's request not to speak about the serious matter, she must sing her response since they never told her she couldn't do that. While singing, she assured her fans that the allegation wasn’t quite true. She also claimed that she took accountability for her actions while playing with a ukulele.
After watching her response video and investigating this YouTuber's past, I don't think she understands what she did or what is going on in the present time. Because this one fan, along with the others, spoke out against her and directly told her how she hurt them emotionally, and she chose to ignore them for years. I think her response was a smack in the face for those she affected. I also find her response to be disingenuous and even dishonest.
She couldn't even own up for what she did after people showed her proof of her wrongdoing, at least. I'd somewhat respect her if she made a video, own up, and said, "Yup, that was ME! I did it—WHAT?! What y’all gonna do about it?! Y’all ain't gonna do none to me!" You know what I mean; something like that might earn her some respect.
Instead of owning up or apologizing for what she did, she broke her silence for weeks, recorded a 10-minute video with a ukulele, sang about it, and addressed the claims against her. She sort of laughed at the situation by making that video.
It’s mind-blowing to think that all of this might have been avoided if she had simply apologized to the first person who came out against her. But at the same time, I'm glad she didn't because people like me wouldn't have seen this side of her, including her behind-the-scenes activities.
This story reminds me to treat others with care. Because if someone does someone wrong, their past may or will catch up with them eventually, and she got away with it for years until now. I hope she understands that ignoring them won't make them forget how you treated them.
#2 Case Study: The Second Woman of an Actress
The second woman was an actress who was involved in Hollywood. During the 1990s, She was famous for her lead role in an American television sitcom that aired on ABC News and lasted from 1988 to 1997 for ten seasons. Millions of Americans loved her for her TV personality. Due to her fame, other television networks reran her show and even had a children's spin-off named Little Rosey (1990–1991).
In 2018, ABC News announced her show's 11th season relaunch. Many of her fans were in favor of the reboot. The first episode was aired on October 16, 2018, and received positive feedback.
However, on May 29, 2018, she tweeted a discriminatory remark towards Valerie Jarrett, a black woman and former Obama aide. ABC Entertainment's president canceled her top-rated show the same day as the tweet. The media and crew ridiculed the celebrity despite her apology. Her show's reruns were removed from television networks, her sponsor left, and her reputation was damaged. She was completely blacklisted from the entertainment industry.
Her situation does make me wonder. Before her show was rebooted in 2018, she appeared in old news footage criticizing Hollywood. Here's a link to that: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYIPtTd2tM8. It was a news clip that was published on YouTube in 2017 before her show was rebooted. During that clip, it seemed to me that she was about to expose a secret. Also, keep in mind her show's network was ABC News.
**A Conspiracy Theory I Found Online** link to that source: https://youtu.be/yk9eukSF6q0
This is the conspiracy theory I found online, and they say someone saw her as a threat to reveal a Hollywood secret. Before she got her show rebooted, she was always known to say anything that would push people's buttons or even upset people, but she hasn't yet said anything that would be controversial.
In my opinion, someone behind the scenes knew she would eventually make a big mistake that would ruin her reputation. And sure enough, she made that mistake, which cost her show, advisers, and industry humiliation from the media, all in 24 hours.
Just to clarify, her behavior was not excusable. Her conduct was plain wrong, but I do think it's possible that her humiliation and being blacklisted from Hollywood were a set-up to stop her from almost exposing something. Her humiliation was like a message to any worker in the entertainment industry. It was almost as if they wanted to send a message to anybody who dared to speak out against them, and she was used as an example of what would happen to them, and they would get them one way or another.
The moral lesson here is simple: think twice before posting anything on the internet, as it might cost you your job. Also, keep an eye on your back, as there is always someone watching you to make a mistake and use it against you, which can cost your reputation.
Networking
I am a strong believer that every business or project needs a team and a lot of management or guidance. As I get older and work with people from my job and mostly from my school, I keep in mind certain people who are skilled and talented or who know something that I may not know.
For example, I went to high school with this guy. I'd say he's the most creative person I know. He enjoys working on his own projects like making a stop-motion animation short film, writing stories and scripts, and doing his own voiceovers work. I will definitely remember him, and I will definitely invite him to work on a project with me in the future. Not only is he a great friend, but he's also a big inspiration to me because he's accomplished something that I want to do.
Here's another example: During the winter term at my college, I met a girl who was really into fashion. She talked about how she could dress anyone in the way of their choice, which got me thinking. I can get in touch with her if I ever need someone to dress, oh geez, I don't know, maybe a crew of people for one of my future projects.
Building a network is important, and I'm trying to build one while I work on my book. Also, keeping track of people who can bring something to the table that can help me while I do the same for them.
By consistently attending after-school activities like the theater club or having group discussions on films, storytelling, or anything else that piques my interest, I've been able to maintain contact with talented, skilled people. But also there are many other ways to do this, like attending skill-based events or internships, but I haven't done them yet because I'm still improving my writing, research, and other useful skills.
Coming to an End of The Article
People who know me know that I like to write, and I know that I like to write. Friends and family probably already know that I like to write in my free time, which is true. But I want to continually remind myself and others that I'm more than just writing and learning. And in the morning, when I wake up, I don't automatically start my day by looking in the mirror, running my fingers through my hair, and saying, "WHOA! I'm Michael Melero! I am one hot tiger!"
Because I like to remind myself that I have helped or can help others without expecting anything in return, which is fulfilling. I also like that I can decide, not try, decide when and how I want to get something done. I also prefer dogs over cats. I've even been a Resident Evil fan since childhood and still am, and I even owned the whole video game series throughout these years. Last but not least, I like that I'm healthy and that I know my family and friends care about me and was there for me in hard times.
Let's circle back to writing. When I write, I feel safer than I did before I started writing about my feelings and thoughts. Before I started writing and as I was becoming an adult, let's say during my emo years, aka my teen years, I felt like all my feelings were bottled up inside me; it almost felt like suffocating me. Before, I used to write a lot in my room, which was my safe place. I even read some of my old writing from high school, where I said I wanted to do something with writing and make a living from it someday. Writing has always been a way to escape the harsh reality. So, when I write out my feelings, it's like a weight has been lifted off my chest; in other words, writing my feelings down helps me breathe. It's helped me not lose my grip on life.
"Thank you for reading! Your time is very much appreciated! Beep Beep, Boop,"
— Michael D. Melero
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