Hot On The Press...

Another six months has passed and so it's time to survey the 'hot topics' on HeroPress again. To be honest, very little has changed in this last half-year as my scattergun approach is settling down as I'm finally finding the core topics I'm most confident about writing on.

(1) TELEVISION (non-mover): Still a mainstay of my (too) sedentary lifestyle. It, of course, embraces several other main areas of interest - as you will see below- that continue to dominate this Top Ten so it's unsurprising that TV reigns supreme on HeroPress.

(2) DOCTOR WHO (up one place): Almost as all-encompassing as the medium that spawned it - television - Doctor Who now includes books and comics and is beginning to make serious inroads into my roleplaying write-ups as the publication of Doctor Who: Adventures In Time And Space draws ever closer.

(3) DVD (down one place): Given the rise of Doctor Who in all mediums, it was inevitable that something would have to drop, but this doesn't mean watching - and passing comment on - DVDs is any less important to me these days. It's unfortunate that with the current state of the economy (both mine and national) that I can't afford as many new DVDs as I used to, but I'm pretty sure, with my birthday looming, I'll soon have some more to review.

(4) COMICS (non-mover): I'm primarily a DC Comics reader these days, but my pull list still isn't as lean as I'd like. I'm looking to make some more cuts early next year, but both major companies continue to pump out more and more alluring titles that, at times, I feel like throwing my hands up and admitting defeat. I don't think I could ever stop reading comics though - even if I am going through a bit of slow patch at present - because they are such an important part of who I am.

(5) FILM (non-mover): I'm still seeing a mere fraction of the films on the big screen that I used to (because of the ridiculous price increases at our local multiplex), but that doesn't stop me watching plenty of films in other formats (e.g. DVDs, straight off TV or via Sky+).

(6) RPG (non-mover): I wonder if the new Doctor Who RPG will lead to an upsurge in roleplaying entries on HeroPress? I sincerely hope so, as I have a lot of ideas for the game (and for support material), but past experience has demonstrated that I don't always follow through on my initial high levels of enthusiasm because I am very easily distracted by the next "big thing". Nevertheless, our current campaign wrapped this week and next month Pete takes over 'behind the screen' as he plans to run some Top Secret for us.

(7) REAL LIFE (non-mover): It's inevitable that this continues to have a large impact on HeroPress, as we are still decorating the house and tinkering with the garden (oddly people seem surprisingly interested in developments with my shed... but they could simply be taking the piss!)

(8) RACHEL (non-mover): What more can be said about this incredibly tolerant and patient woman, who supports my strange and bizarre hobbies, cooks pizzas for The Tuesday Knights every month and even sometimes manages to stay awake during my films?

(9) HORROR (up one place): This rise is primarily down to three things - Supernaturnal, zombies and vampires.

(10) STAR WARS (down one place): I'm very pleased to see this hanging on in the Top Ten as, although I'm not so active in my passion for George Lucas' work these days, I still have a deep-seated love for all things Star Wars and would hate to see it slip out of my life entirely.

We're averaging between 300 and 400 visitors a day at present on HeroPress, which is incredible as it's still so random and unfocused.

A recent (unscientific) survery I conducted indicated that 71 per cent of my daily visitors were regulars (huzzahs!), 14 per cent came via other other blogs (but with no clues left as to which, which was a shame) and 14 per cent arrived after Googling for pictures of Stargate's Amanda Tapping (beyond a shadow of a doubt the hottest property currently gracing HeroPress).

Of course, this was more a survey of "people willing to take surveys", hence the prevalence of my regulars, but it still made interesting reading - as much for what it didn't say as what it did.

The survey results revealed that no one came here from other social networking sites (e.g. Facebook or Twitter), although I actually know people do read my posts via Facebook, because I get feedback there, but don't necessarily click through to the 'real' HeroPress.

I have similar, but less, anecdotal evidence that people read my entries via Twitter (again because of feedback via that site), but I remain unconvinced by that particular application - except as a news gathering tool and finding out what minor celebrities, major geeks and Playboy models are getting up to.