The webcast is coming together, but the rubber nose still gets in the way...

Hello Kiddies and welcome Wee Willie Wicked’s humble, rather gruesome abode.

Well, another week has passed and it’s almost time for the third Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked webcast.

For the past two shows, yours truly has flown by the seat of his colorful pants and simply let what happen….happen. Oh, the general gist of the concept was there. I had flubs and technical difficulties. I had to learn (which I still am) how to be programmer, director, controller and star all at once. Not only did I have to wear all those hats, But, I also have to add a prosthetic and make-up too. This was probably the toughest part, seeing with one eye, and over the last two webcasts, I learned a lot. Of course, it’s not exactly perfected just yet either and every subsequent week involves a little more tweaking.

For this week’s show, the plan is to begin developing a standard week after week show format. While nothing is set in stone just yet, I do have a rough idea of what this show is all about and of what is yet to come. Coincidently, I'm also seeking a standard intro and exit song too. 

General examples include:

·    The reading of a short 500 word horror tale and when the time comes, (probably within the next couple of weeks), putting a requesting call out to all my writer friends and allowing them to add their voice to the show. However, just as a test run, this week I’ll be reading one of my own. Here's a few links of the writer folks I had in mind:

Joann Hamann - Buchanan (Host of Shark Radio's The Eclectic Artist Cave)

Blaze McRob

CK Webb

Carole Gill

Tyr Kieran

and so many more...

 ·    Reviewing the latest horror book, film or television show. Note: On Staying Scared: The Official Blog of Thomas Scopel (find it here), I’ve reviewed the new horror movie Apollo 18 and it is a good example of the types of reviews I intend. It is also a great place to find out about some of the tales I've written and am writing, 

 

·     A giveaway is always fun and this week I’m giving away the soundtrack (both vinyl and CD) of the Drive-In Horrorshow soundtrack signed by Greg Ansin.

·    Broadcasting a public domain (free of copyright infringing) horror of sci-fi movie. Usually these are rather cheesy, but grand classic fun. George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead is an example and was the very first movie shown on Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked. However, this week’s movie is Horror Express starring Christopher Lee & Peter Cushing.

·    And, oh yes, there will commercials. But, these are not your typical commercials, no no! The only ones to be shown on Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked will have at least some sort of horror and typically will be horror movie trailers (both new and old), in between segments.

·  And, as always, yours truly will be nearby for a live chat session.

This is what I suspect will become the standard format of the Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked webcast. Of course, there will be bugs and glitches along the way and the first month (as expected) is a testing phase. This week I will be implementing timing, pace and format organization, as well as verifying how well the show translates over to radio.

So, creep on over here at midnight on Saturday night, (or watch it right here on Wic's blog below). I’ll be live on chat and feel free to voice your opinion. I’m always open for constructive criticism or potential show ideas and I value all suggestions.

Stay Scared,

Wic

The Future of Horror Radio?

Hello fellow horror fiends,

Well, last week’s Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked webcast was quite dreadful fun and I’m looking forward to this week's show. Yours truly will be discussing things like upcoming horror movies, watching trailers, talking about AMC’s The Walking Dead, having a giveaway, and viewing The Last Man on Earth starring Vincent Price. It should be tremendously ghoulish fun. Feel free to creep in. Stay for a while and maybe chat a bit.

This week I had the opportunity to speak with a friend of mine, Joann Hamann-Buchanan, the host of The Eclectic Artist Cave, a show on the Shark Radio Network (formally FATE Radio). She mentioned maybe putting Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked into their weekly schedule line-up and told me who to talk to if I was interested in jumping onboard.

So, for the next hour or so, this person and I chatted about the prospect and I am considering joining and taking a Saturday night at 1:00 am EST slot. Of course, nothing is confirmed yet, but the person, the head honcho, the big cheese, did make the offer to contact him when I was ready to go. This time is perfect, but I’ll need to develop a few things first.

I just started this webcast concept, primarily on a whim, thinking it would be fun to discuss horror dressed as my alter ego, a wicked clown…Chilly Billy Bill Cardille of Pittsburgh’s channel 11 Chiller Theater fame has always been sort of a hero to me and I suppose this is my small way of keeping the legacy going. However, if I’m going to do this as a regular weekly thing, I’ll need to refine a few things.

First off, I wouldn’t want to provide a show that doesn’t offer quality. There are already too many webcasts where you can simply watch someone’s cat or dog frolic about or view the last drunken party. This type of webcast I will never provide or even be associated with. Don’t get me wrong, there all fine and good…just not my cup of poisoned tea.

And, in order to put on my envisioned webcast, I’ll need to add specific technical equipment to personal setup as well as create a standard and consistent.

So, this upcoming week I am exploring this deeply and brainstorming ideas and who knows, maybe I’ll have everything in place for a special Halloween show debut…at least that’s the current plan. We’ll see.

On the writing side, I’ve put more down on a new novel called Future Past. I am 99% finished with both The Christmas Help (a tale describing how the workshop at the North Pole was affected by a zombie plague and how they solved the dilemma), aimed at Open Casket Press (A Living Dead Press imprint) and The Sidewalk Ends (a tale exploring the next literal step beyond a physical sign). A Lawnly Existence is coming along nicely and Willard, the gentleman in the tale may very well win that coveted best-lawn award, but at what cost.

Besides these, I’ve started tales aimed for the Evil Jester Press anthology Toys in the Attic and a 500 word piece for The Eclectic Artist Cave readings where the subject has to be and include the word masks. 

Also, Twitch, my e-novella is available at Amazon, Smashwords, and Barnes & Noble for only 99 cents.

And, the NorGus Press anthology Look What I Found will be out soon. It includes my story The Pumpkin Patch.

Until next week kiddies…

Stay Scared,

Wic

Webcasting was easy..just made me a little hungry...Mwhahahahahahah...

Well, last night’s Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked webcast (Saturday) http://www.livestream.com/stayingscaredwithweewilliewicked certainly didn’t go off without glitches. The most concerning one was my cue timing. It was off. Of course, that was my novice fault. I had tested everything except that beforehand and was under the general impression that the speed transition would be quicker. And, it will be after I test and master it.

I was a little nervous at putting on the webcast, more so hoping that the technical aspects would run smoothly and for the biggest part, they did. For the better part of a week, I had placed writing my tales on the back burner and solely concentrated on this webcast effort. I explored and tried out various free broadcasting services, learned what to do and not what to do and fine-tuned exactly what I wanted.

Selecting Livestream (http://www.livestream.com) was most easy. Their “Livestream Studio” software (free) offers a vast amount of features, including transitional cueing, multiple cameras, onscreen graphics and more.  

So, overall I was rather happy with how the webcast worked. I tried to follow a vague resemblance of a script and it work well. The flow was there. Now if I can just learn to work the controls while I’m broadcasting. I suspect that will come with both time and experience.

In all honesty, the part I found to be the hardest was the rushing home after work and hurrying to put on the costume. This clown face takes a little time (at least an hour) to get it right. Although I was content with the final product, I’ll have to somehow streamline the process. And, I do have some ideas for that too.

Regardless, the venture has begun and all the technical aspects are place. The hard part is done and it is now a matter of simply putting on and maintaining the weekly webcast.

Now to get back to writing…

One final note: I had broadcasted the George Romero classic Night of the Living Dead (public domain) and watching the film did make me hungry and I had a snack...heh heh. 

Stay Scared,

Wic



The first Wee Wille Wicked webcast plan...

Tomorrow night (Saturday) at midnight is the first ever Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked webcast. I am planning a number of things and considering it is the first, there may be glitches along the way. However, I will do everything I can to make this come off without a hitch.

Technically, the webcam and software is quite impressive and although the stream will originate at Livestream, it will also be simultaneously streamed through a new venture with Facebook too. Here are both the links…make your choice…heh heh I had to say that (SAW):

LiveStream - http://www.livestream.com/stayingscaredwithweewilliewicked

FACEBOOK - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Staying-Scared-with-Wee-Willie-Wicked/222846727763599?sk=app_142371818162

There is one thing about Ustream that I can’t say I like, but it is typical if you are an avid viewer of television….the commercials. Occasionally, during the broadcast, Livestream will break in with one. It is inevitable when using a free version. If this grows larger and becomes popular, I may upgrade to the pro version to eliminate these. However, right now I’m simply test running this idea and concept and therefore, am going to take the good with the bad. I’m sorry for this.

So, what do I have planned for the show?

First of all, I’m going to wing it. I don’t have a script nor do I have any set order. I will discuss various horror based items such as movies and books, giving my personal opinions. I may show a couple of trailers of new horror movies and even discuss classic horror movie actors and horror collectibles. The realm is large and I suspect over the weeks, this webcast will refine. As for now, like I said, I’ll be winging it. So far, all I’m sure of is that this discussion will last anywhere from 15 or 20 minutes.

Added with this discussion will be live chat, both on Livestream, as well as on Facebook. So, this should add the audience participation aspect. Feel free to join in. I’ll do my best to share and elaborate. This should also be a great way to get feedback in order to make the webcast better. Tell me what you want to see…

I’ll also be giving away a brand new copy of the “8 Films To Die For”…Dark Ride to one lucky viewer. Of course, you will have to watch to find out how to enter though. This will be a weekly staple and is not limited to dvd movies. It could be a signed photo or a figure or a book or just about anything. The only guarantee is that the item will be horror or sci fi based. We’ll have to wait and see…

And, after all the talk and miscellaneous, there will be a broadcast of a Public Domain horror or sci fi film. This week it is George Romero’s black and white classic Night of the Living Dead.

Afterward, I will close the show.

Like I mentioned, this week I will be testing many aspects from speed to software, from camera angles to talking points and from following 2 live chats to keeping focused on the matters at hand. It may become somewhat difficult since I’m the only one doing all this and I’m hoping to not get too sidetracked and keep the flow even. But, as mentioned too, things happen and “Oh Yes…there will be blood” heh heh…that Saw thing again.

The webcast will be recorded (another testing feature) and if all goes well (and I suspect it will) the show will be viewable, at leisure, throughout the week. This eliminates the having to stay up late to watch. Of course, I will not be live at those times and entering the contest will not be allowed, but the program will still be watchable.

One final note, if you chose to do so, you can watch it on this blog too.

So….until tomorrow night's witching hour kiddies…..Stay Scared

W. W. Wicked

Being an evil clown is hard work...



Starting this Saturday night, Wee Willie Wicked will be having a weekly webcast on http://www.ustream.tv/channel/staying-scared-with-wee-willie-wicked. This webcast is much like the typical horror movie host shows of yesteryear, and includes a feature film and some general horror based talking points. i.e. new horror releases, shows, and books.  

As I’m sure you can assume this Wee Willie Wicked costume requires a certain amount of make-up and even a prosthetic. And, the prosthetic requires glue to stick it on. But, you can’t just use Elmer’s or super glue…heh heh (don’t think I wasn’t pondering it). The type of glue made for this application is called Spirit Glue and normally, around Halloween, most stores have an ample supply on hand. However, on August 25^th this can be a rather cumbersome item to find (and that’s when the Elmer’s and Super Glue pondering began..lol). Coincidently, I usually stock up quite well every year and rarely have this dilemma. Regardless, I did and set out searching for it at various stores.

As luck would have it, I was heading to a craft store (my last option) and much to my surprise, there just happened to be a Halloween store in the same plaza. Imagine that?

As I made my way toward the doors, I worried whether the store was even open yet. Then, I saw the interior lights on and people bustling about inside and grew hopeful.

At the entrance doors I opened them and walked in. There were boxes, both opened and closed, scattered about and many stockers hanging this and placing that. Quickly it became obvious that the store wasn’t open for business just yet. My black heart sank.

But then a funny thing happened. The manager (at least he gave me that impression) looked up from his chore and I started mentioning my dilemma. A nearby stocker said he just happened to have that product in an open box and he proceeded to reach in and pull the package out. The manager took hold of it and walked toward me. My black heart turned grey as I told him that I was writer Thomas Scopel and Wee Willie Wicked was my evil alter ego clown that I was planning on creating a webcast show with, and that he should expect to see me rather often (since I adore Halloween stores and will probably pick up another clown outfit this year).

Of course, with one problem solved and another problem reared its ugly head…no cash register yet and I only had a limited amount of cash with me. Without the cash register, debit or a credit card wasn’t possible and the cash I had wasn’t quite enough to cover the total cost. Well wouldn’t you know it, he handed me the glue and winked. I pulled the money from my wallet and handed him what I had and insured him that I would cover the little remaining bit on a return visit when they were open. He said no problem and I profusely thanked him.

Although I didn’t get his name, the store is located on International Boulevard in Daytona Beach in the corner of the Home Depot, Toys Are Us and Hobby Lobby plaza. As I previously mentioned, they are not open for business just yet, but they will be soon and from what I saw, they will offer everything and thus, I highly recommend going there for all your Halloween needs.

And so, I now have everything I need in order to put on the Staying Scared with Wee Willie Wicked webcast show. I’ll see you Saturday night at midnight…Moohahahahah!