"You're in a unique position, as the first TeeVee producer/writer/show
creator to interact on Usenet with the fans of your series. I'm writing
up a Usenet dossier for Bryce Zabel, executive producer of _Dark Skies_,
who is thinking of coming online in an interactive capacity when his show
starts airing this fall. Do you have any advice that he, or others who
come online in the future, would find useful?"

Hi, Bryce. Don't know if we've met, but I've seen your work, and seen you
about; was lurking in the back of your Fangoria talk a bit ago. Also saw
the pilot (ve haff vays); I think it has great potential. How you're
going to work the structure of the story once they're out, without
support, we'll see. (said vaguely to avoid spoilers) That aside....

He should be sure what he's here for. If it's just promotion...it almost
ain't worth the time involved. Lots of folks have used the nets to
promote stuff, but for one thing it pisses people off that once the
promotion part is over, boom, they're gone (a la "Sneakers" a year or so
ago). And the cold reality is that if you added up everyone who reads the
nets...it ain't even a blip on the ratings.

The best way to maintain a presence on the nets is to get a sense of the
room, to see if what you're doing is working *in general*. You'll get
tons of conflicting opinions, so you can't let that sway the story...but
you'll know, in general, if the story you're telling is getting through,
and succeeding.

I'd strongly suggest you adopt the same "no story ideas" policy I've used,
particularly with a show like "Dark Skies," where it would be easy for
somebody to say, "Okay, aliens get involved in X real-life historical
situation," even though it's the obvious thing, which you'd already
planned to handle, and then sue you for plagiarism. Best to avoid it all
up-front.

How you deal with criticism is up to you. We all react differently.
Online fans are bracingly blunt in their opinions; this is generally a
good thing, except where sometimes some of them forget they're talking to
a real person, not a computer screen. But it's a good thing overall. If
someone's being unfair, say so, but other than that...you're in for quite
a ride.

The good thing about the nets is that it's the great social equalizer.
The bad thing about the nets is that it's the great social equalizer.
Anyone with a modem has equal access, equal say. Which is terrific. We
can be tall, short, fat, skinny, old, young...what matters is the quality
of the thoughts and the clarity of their expression.

The flip side of this...if someone came toward you with a bright orange
fright wig, dead cats strapped to his chest and a live parrot up his ass,
you'd have sufficient warning that this may be a Loony, and thus avoid the
person. On the nets, you don't get that kind of advance warning. There
are some loonies here. They get the same access as everyone else, they
can get on because they bought a modem, but they live for the singular
purpose of making your life a living hell, because you have created
something, they have created nothing, and they can only live with that
contradiction if they tear you down. Some of them are literally
psychologically disturbed, and potentially dangerous. And you won't have
any notion who they are until one day, after exchanging private or public
mail, the dog satellite goes by overhead and they turn on you viciously,
start spreading rumors, attacking you in public...and you realize that
yep, this person has a parrot up his ass.

Happily, those folks remain the exception rather than the rule. The
remaining 99% are fun, and intelligent, and can teach you things about
your own show you didn't know were there.

Jump on in...the water's fine.


jms