I know what you’re thinking… Did you write yourself AGAIN, Christina? In this mini vlog, I talk about NOT writing myself as a character in Followers.
Followers is available now on Amazon.
Archive for September, 2021
Horror References in Followers
Posted: September 28, 2021 in followers, horror, horror moviesTags: easter eggs, followers, horror, horror author, horror book, horror movies, horror novel, horror writer, quotes
My book Followers is a horror novel, but it is also about the horror genre itself. I have loved horror most of my life and have constantly been asked, “WHY HORROR?… HOW CAN YOU LOVE HORROR?” (insert my eye roll in black eyeliner). That question grew legs for me and became, could you love the horror genre if horror was real in your life? I explore that in the pages of Followers.
To do that, I needed a horror lover. Enter Sidney (familiar namesake, anyone?)
Of course! She was my first final girl. My Sidney uses horror as therapy, as medication, as distraction from the pain and disappointments in her real life (as much as she uses the online followers she is collecting). But to go on her horror journey, real and in the genre, I wallowed in my own love of horror. From name dropping on characters like Sidney, Wes, Pamela, Tony, Seth, and more to attending a horror film festival, Followers is about loving the horror genre.
Allow me to provide some excerpts of the nods to horror within Followers.
She tabbed away from her browser and into her active document. The bloodbath in her movie began to overshadow the chocolate-flavored recreation she had posted all over social media. She skimmed the last paragraph in the document, running her finger through the air over the words and mouthing the sentences silently as she read.
Even considering new classics like Final Destination and Saw, to crown the best bathroom scene in horror, we have to circle back to the beginning. Psycho is where it started, where the slasher genre itself started, and where this article has to end as well, she typed.
@Romero4eva: #FinalDestination is based on a woman changing planes based on her mom’s intuition! #truestory #FDlivetweet #horrorisreal
“Holy shit,” she mumbled between popcorn bites. “Did you know Final Destination was actually loosely inspired by real events?”
“I had heard that,” Wes replied, typing. “But did you know it was originally supposed to be an X-Files episode?”
“No! How do I not know all this?”
“This is why we live tweet, Sidney.”
@ChuckysBabysitter: The Bus! Gets me every time! #finaldestination #FDlivetweet #finalgirlscreams
@HorrorL0ser: BOOM! #youcantcheatdeath #finaldestination #FDlivetweet
Allison: That scene is so infamous. I remember my jaw dropped when I saw it in the theater.
“When was the first time you saw this movie?” Adam said as they sat.
The thick seats folded down and creaked under their weight. Dim lights peeked out from the thick curtains lining the wall. The wide, gray screen loomed anticipant in front of them.
The actors ran madly up and down the aisles, shrieking as their steps ground popcorn into the flattened carpet. They paused to mock and interact with the patrons. Magenta swung her wide hips as her frizzy hair bounced on her shoulders, dragging her feather duster over any face within reach. Riffraff loomed in a corner, leaning out menacingly as new people entered the theater.
“Sleepover in junior high,” Sidney answered between bites of popcorn.
“Ha! What were your first impressions?”
“I was confused but very intrigued. You?”
“My mom showed it to me, of all people.” Adam smirked.
“How old were you?”
“Early high school, I guess.”
“That seems weird,” Sidney giggled.
“It was. But my mom was weird. The best kind of weird—a horror lover. I have some strange stories. I’m surprised you never live tweeted this one.”
“Everyone live tweets Rocky Horror.”
“Hey, man,” Adam said as they approached Wes. “Look, I didn’t attack Sidney last night.”
Wes spun towards him, arms still pinned around his chest.
“Is that an actual line from Scream?” Wes replied. “It sounds very Billy Loomis.”
As the familiar festive plot unfolded, she reminded herself to swipe over the trackpad and tweet. If she did not post, was she even really watching?
@FinalGirlScreams: #SilentNightDeadlyNight was ahead of its time with killer psychology. Even if it portrays #PTSD horribly. #12SlaysofChristmas #horror #finalgirlscreams
@L1v1ngDead1te: Wouldn’t be the holidays without #12SlaysofChristmas with @FinalGirlScreams!
@Romero4eva: @FinalGirlScreams I watch this one every year. For the antlers!
@ZombieonElmSt: @FinalGirlScreams great choice! Xmas classic #christmashorror #12SlaysofChristmas
The first taste is free… if you want more, you’ll have to read Followers for yourself. You can find it now on Amazon! See how many more horror nods you can find.
Christina Bergling
Meet the Cast
Posted: September 21, 2021 in followersTags: author, book, book release, cast, characters, horror, horror author, horror movies, horror novel, horror writer, novel, read, reading, writer
My fifth book, Followers, comes out from Crystal Lake Publishing on Friday. It seems like an appropriate time to introduce some of the cast of characters contained within its pages.
Sidney lives part of her life with the people around her but also has a secondary life online. As such, the characters in Followers appear in Sidney’s real and/or virtual life.
Real Life
Sidney
Sidney is the protagonist of Followers. A single mother with a dull day job, Sidney has big dreams of becoming a full-time horror reviewer and risqué gore model. She’s determined to make her website a success, and if her growing pool of online followers is any indication, things are looking good.
Sidney loves horror, perhaps too much to see horror blossoming in her own life. Despite all the grief she gets from her mother and ex-husband, she continues to pour fake blood on herself in pursuit of her goal. She uses all the online followers she accrues online to soothe the insecurity she feels from wrecking her marriage. The more she amasses, the more addicted she becomes to the adoration.
Kendra
Kendra is Sidney’s roommate and cofounder of their Divorced Wives’ Club. Kendra may loathe horror, but she supports Sidney’s ambition within it. She only wishes Sidney would be more cautious and calculating with all those strangers online.
Cameron
Cameron is Sidney’s young son, muddling his way through his parents’ messy divorce. Cameron presses his mother’s guilt to persuade her to let him watch horror with her.
Brady
Brady is Sidney’s extravagant photographer accomplice. As Jagged Rainbow Photography, Brady creates all of the fake blood photographs Sidney uses for clickbait on her horror articles. Brady and his husband, Jordan, also step in to help Sidney when she needs emotional support.
Aiden
Aiden is Sidney’s ex-husband. Still bitter from Sidney’s infidelity and the resulting split, Aiden makes interactions very unpleasant. He cites her love of horror as evidence of inferior parenting.
Wes
Wes is Sidney’s horror buddy. He conducts live tweets and also attends horror film festivals with her. His online persona also crosses over with hers.
Virtual Life
Adam
Adam is Sidney’s longest follower. They speak online all day, every day. Though flirtatious, he asks her about her day, and they talk about nearly all aspects of their real lives. Sidney considers him an actual friend.
Oliver
Oliver is a long-standing follower who flirts shamelessly and aggressively with Sidney. He messages daily with compliments and demanding pictures.
Max
Max is a new follower who emerges after Sidney’s blood bath pictures. He begins with the normal follower pattern but quickly escalates with alarming horror references.
Allison
Allison joins Sidney’s live tweet then begins messaging her more regularly. Sidney feels a strange safety messaging with her. They quickly become friends. Sidney finds herself confessing things to Allison she is not telling anyone else.
When Horror Crosses Over
Sidney thinks horror and her followers exist on the other side her screen. Yet the more she plays, the more she pushes on that boundary, the closer both come to her real life. Until they cross over. Find out what happens when Sidney’s online followers bring horror into her real life in Followers… on Friday!
Christina Bergling
“Why did you write this book?” The classic question about every book. In this mini vlog, I give a little backstory on the inspiration for Followers.
Followers will be released September 24th by Crystal Lake Publishing.
Fiery Pen 