My (Guess) at the Top 10 Halloween Comic Book Inspired Costumes

Halloween is tomorrow and everyone is probably going to be dressing up (unless you live in the tundra, then everyone might be winter explorer). I was kind of curious what most people would dress up as this year. Superheroes are always a great option for Halloween, but which ones are most popular?

So, here are my guesses for the most popular comic book inspired Halloween costumes: 

1. Wonder Woman - With the success of the Wonder Woman movie, I believe this will be a vastly more popular costume this year for both women and men. Yes, I can see men dress as Wonder Woman. It might be more for cheap laughs, but a wins a win.
2. Thor - I put Thor on the list because the new movie comes out this Friday, in case you didn't know. Plus, slap on a wig and grab a hammer from your Dad's workbench and boom, you are ready! Pretty easy costume if you ask me.
3. Harley Quinn - I feel like this is the most socially accepted clown in all of comic books and Halloween costume lists. It is also the most searched costume online. For some reason, Harley Quinn looks more like a punk rock renegade Geisha than a clown, but popular none the less.I don't know a better excuse to support the World Series and self-defense than carrying a baseball bat as part of costume.
4. Joker - I feel like Joker is kind of a gimme for years. Two parts terrifying, one part hilariously dark, it brings a new meaning to clown costumes. The only one more terrifying might be Pennywise...or Insane Clown Posse. 
5. Batman - Joker and Harley would be running amok a quaint, suburban neighbor if not for a sprinkling fear from the Dark Knight. Justice League is also coming this November, so I put Batman on this list. Same with Flash and Aquaman...I have no shame.
6. The Flash - I can only imagine the poorly delivered pickup lines with people dressed as The Flash. Short, quick, and uneventful. Still, I think Flash may be a fun costume. Just challenge people to races and if you lose, just say you lapped them 100 times. 
7. Aquaman - If this was any other year, I would say no way. But, again, with Justice League on the way I had to include him. Plus, it has to be the easiest costume in the world. Shirtless dude in board shorts with sharpie tattooed of sharks and jellyfish. And if people don't like it, just say you are Sub Mariner. 
8. Superman - I actually have a non-Justice League reason for Superman. Blue tights, red cape, red boots. It doesn't get too much easier than that! 
9. Hulk - ...green paint and rage issues. Probably for the selective few, but if green is your favorite color, I say go for it! BTW green is not my favorite color.
10. Generic Superhero - You can't go wrong.

So, here is my sort of nonsensical list of comic book inspired Halloween costumes. I got a feeling I will be right on most of these. Halloween really does grab from a variety of places, so if you someone dressed as at least one of these this year, let me know. 

Remember, Halloween is also the perfect time to enjoy some "scary" stories, so if you are in the mood for some monster stories, check out the anthology, "The Monsters Hiding in Your Closet." It's got a story from yours truly in there. Honestly, mine isn't scary, but it is great if you are seeking something positive on a scary Halloween. The other authors also have great stories and for 10 stories at 5 bucks, you can't go wrong. 

Make sure to have a safe and fun Halloween tomorrow!

- J.J.

How I used Pixar's Forumula to Create a Short Story

A few months ago, I announced that I had written a short story for a children's anthology. It is my first short story that I have ever gotten published, so for me, it's quite exciting. However, I never mentioned how I came up with the story.

At the Minnesota Writing Conference, I signed up for a critique session of my first 10 pages with Madeline Smoot at CBAY Books. At the end of the awesome session, she mentioned that she does anthologies every so often. She had a few requirements, mostly based on the idea of monsters in hiding. It sounded like a cool idea, but I didn't have anything at the time. Plus, I was really focused on my work-in-progress novel. It was maybe a week or two after I got back from the Minnesota Writing Conference that I started to think about the anthology. Then, one day I was just surfing around Twitter and I saw a post about Khan Academy's collaboration with Pixar called, "Pixar in a Box."

Pixar in a Box is a class that goes behind-the-scenes to show how Pixar creatives go about creating animated movies. Much of the free course covers animation, since Pixar is an animation studio, but they have one relatively large section on the art of storytelling.

I went through a few sections to see how they went about creating stories. Throughout the videos and activities, I often saw references to the movie, Monster's Inc. I remember as a kid watching it in the theaters and how scared Mike and Sulley were of little Boo. It got me thinking about monsters and children in stories, and how they interact with one another.

Once I hit the video, "What if...," the story immediately hit me.

I wanted to see monsters in a different light. I wanted to focus more on children's acceptance of monsters, communication differences, and development of a relationship.

While writing, I kept reminding myself of some major elements of Disney's formula.

At first glance, a majority would think Pixar stories followed the tried and true method of the Hero's Journey. In some cases, this is true. However, Pixar's approach is unique. The major elements that I find are quintessential to a great Pixar film are focused on three main areas:

1. Emotion
2. Dreams
3. Real Life

Emotion - Connecting to the Characters

Emotion, in any story, is necessary to gain the audience's attention and investment. Emotion is in every story, but Pixar makes it unique. A few years ago, Emma Coats, a Pixar story artist, posted some Pixar story basics to Twitter. The one that kept hitting me was:

"If you were your character, in this situation, how would you feel? Honesty lends credibility to unbelievable situations."

This was the approach I took to not only developing the main character, but the monster as well. My hope is people draw on their own experiences when reading the story and connect with the characters in their own way.

Dreams - Asking the "What If... "questions

When looking at a story, especially in realms of science fiction and fantasy, dreaming is required. A great way to get started is asking a "What If..." question. Sanjay Patel, Animator/Storyboard Artist, explains what a "What If..." question does:

"It shuts down the logic part of your brain and lets you engage in the dream part of your brain and somehow it opens up the doors to imagination."
- Sanjay Patel, Animator/Storyboard Artist

Making stories based off this type of question is powerful to not only get started, but to keep the momentum once you get stuck. It helps to create a bounce board of ideas to developing a story.

For my story, the "What If..." question I asked was, "What if monsters couldn't speak?"

I encourage others to use this technique when writing stories.

Real Life - Write what you know

What connects the previous two areas together, and creates a great story, is the real world. Peter Doctor, director of Monster's Inc, Up, and Inside Out, said it best when talking about the old saying, "Write what you know":

"Well, what that actually means is, yeah, go ahead and write about monsters and explosions and car chases, but put something into it that talks about your own life."

In fantasy, it's easy to replicate similar tropes and ideas that have come before, even on accident. Putting some real life into a story, I feel, not only makes it easier to avoid, but make the story feel genuine. It helps an audience connect with the characters and make the dream like circumstances of the story seem honest.

It also makes the story uniquely your own.

That is how my short story came to be and how I used Pixar's formula. I took elements that relied on adding emotion and honesty as the drivers for a fantasy story, basing it in the real world.

There is no right or wrong way to do it. You might be doing it right now with a story you are writing. The way I did it may be different for you, or it may be the same. Either way, the best part of Pixar's formula is there really isn't one. They are just being honest, writing about life, in a way we can all relate to.

That's how storytelling is meant to be.

-J.J.

I am back...and I'm PUBLISHED!!!

Remember a few blogs ago I mentioned I had a big surprise? Well, this is the surprise. I will have my first short story published in the anthology, "The Monsters Hiding in Your Closet."

The anthology is about monsters that can be found in your closet. Well, maybe not your closet, but somebodies. There are 10 stories in total, all geared to children 9-12 years old, but I think teens and parents could enjoy them as well!

I have been waiting a few months to officially announce this and I am beyond excited to finally see the anthology come together. Right now, it is in the process of heading off to print.

The anthology drops October 1st, but you can pre-order the anthology here on Amazon.

Now that I am back after a month of near silence, I hope to bring some more comic book reviews your way. I am going to push my original timelines back a bit, focusing on a blog per month.

Why?

Because I want to bring quality content together and I feel like a full month gives me the time to actually deliver. Longer, more focused content around comics, movies, and writing. Hopefully more content you want to see. For example, do you want to learn about how to network with other writers or how I got involved in publishing a short story to an anthology? I can answer questions like that.

So, please leave a response in the comments what you would like to see more of. More comic book reviews? Writing Prompts? Challenges?

Let me know and I can start getting you the content you would like to see. You can email me, but the best ways to get in touch are through the comment section below and my Twitter: @JjLahr.

-J.J.