The New York times has an interesting story on the upcoming Starz Television Show, Spartacus. They seem to imply that it’s going to be all sex and gore. Maybe that’s not a bad thing.

I’m sure there are other lessons that the writers could have taken from HBO’s Rome, but this is what they zeroed in on:

The show’s creators were also fans of “Rome,” and they say they learned two important lessons from that series. One was not to spend a fortune on building sets. (“Spartacus” relies instead on green-screen technology and C.G.I.) And the other was that their story line needed, like that of “Rome” to be character driven.

HBO’s Rome was some fantastic television, and Showtime is doing great with the Tudors, so why not. As long as it doesn’t try to remake Kubrick’s film–because seriously, the original Spartacus does not need to be remade–it could be pretty great. Here’s the trailer for it. As an author of myth-inspired and historical fiction, I cheer and say bring on more of the Sword & Sandal epics!

At first, the CW’s hit television show, Supernatural, didn’t sound like something I’d like. I’m not big on episodic monster-killing dungeon crawls and a story about two brothers running from the law in a muscle car sounded like a throwback to the Dukes of Hazard. But upon the wildly enthusiastic recommendations of my friends and family, I rented the first season I’d missed and popped in the disk.

Now, one thing Supernatural knows how to do is grab viewers with a stunning premise. A mother walking into her baby’s room to find a dark stranger standing over the crib…it’s iconic. The very first few minutes of that very first episode were so gripping that I was hooked. Sure, that first season was a little rocky. It was hard to swallow the idea that our heroes lived off of stolen credit cards and fake IDs, but the whole thing went down a lot smoother when I realized how brilliantly the writers used unusual and creative interpretations of ancient lore.

Smart writing and sassy dialog carry the show, but it’s the celebrated bro-mance between Dean and Sam that make it something special. As a romance writer, I suppose I should be wishing for the Winchester boys to find true love with the girls of their dreams, but this show is really a love story about family. The unfolding family drama intensifies and matures each season. The writers are just as clever with their supernatural elements. They have an unfailing instinct for what will horrify–they know that evil in the guise of an innocent child is more upsetting than an ugly monster. They know how to twist the things that bring us joy and show us the ugly sides. So I’m a total squealing fan girl.

And while I’m not going to give away any spoilers, let me just say that the Season 4 Finale had me sitting there with my jaw dropped open. Not many shows do that.

Given that I write Greek Myth-inspired paranormal romances, one of my favorite episodes was about the siren. (Feel free to add that as an entry to my autumn contest in which you could win a gift certificate and a book just for brainstorming with me!)

So how many Supernatural fans do we have out there and are you more partial to Dean or Sam?

Okay, look. I’m not proud. When my sister and I were kids, we spent a summer with my grandmother, who got us hooked on ABC’s General Hospital. As an author, I freely admit that soap operas are often smutty, trite, poorly written, and mind-boggling in their stupidity. However, I’ve been watching this show longer than I’ve been married and probably know some of the characters better than I know my husband. The residents of the fictional city of Port Charles are like those high school friends on Facebook that I never see in person anymore, but still manage to keep up-to-date with.

What’s more, I’ve learned a lot about writing and story arcs from watching soap operas–and not just in terms of What Not To Do. Soap operas are braver than prime time television when it comes to tackling social issues, and probably more influential. General Hospital has taught me alot about the concept of legacy, and it has also helped me avoid “the sagging middle” problem in storytelling.

More as a fangirl than a writer, though, I have seen stars born on General Hospital. One of those stars was Jonathan Jackson, the young kid who created Lucky Spencer and went on to win a billion well-deserved Emmy’s before he was out of puberty. When he left the show, over a decade ago, I actually stopped watching for several years. That’s how invested I was in that kid’s portrayal of my very favorite soap opera character ever.

I only started watching again in the past few years because my grandmother begged me to do so, so that we could chat about the show like we used to. And armed with a Tivo and a fastforward button, who was I to say no to an old woman?

Anyway, when I heard that the incredibly talented Jonathan Jackson (most recently of the Terminator franchise) was reprising his role on General Hospital, I should have kicked up my heels and squealed like a giddy girl. But instead, my first thought was, “Oh no.”

This is not just because I’d grown accustomed to Greg Vaughan’s portrayal of Lucky, but also because the character has been so warped beyond recognition that I can only think Jonathan Jackson is going to run, screaming in horror, within six months. And then we’re going to lose this legacy character altogether. My greatest fear is that the writers are going to destroy not just my favorite character, but also destroy the career of an actor who was otherwise destined for great things. In short, I don’t trust the writers over at General Hospital and haven’t for a long time. And as an author, that teaches me a great lesson.

I have to earn the trust of my readers with every new character, and every new book, or they’ll cringe against something new even if they’re a fan.