I am a solo creator working on my next big project--and hopefully, my first successful one. This is a project for mature audiences, but I'd like to get this out to as many people as possible; I'm thinking this project appeals to the "nerd" demographic so far, as it is diverse in background and will be more easily accommodating for such a risky, more adult-oriented venture.
While tinkering with ideas one day, I called back to symbolism, and thought a lot about a theme I wish modern media would touch upon more often--toxic masculinity, and how it justifies its own existence despite the harm it causes to men, women, the LGBTQ+ community, families, societies, politics and even whole countries. It made me realize that, even though men seem like we have it all, we all, to some degree, have demons that we need to work out.
And there it was: what if toxic masculinity was represented by demons?
And that is the overarching theme of the story of Zel: humanity if it was subjugated by demons. A true look at society as it is because we don't accept that we, too, have "demons".
If this project is successful, I hope to spread this message and help people understand. Understanding the struggles of others, how actions have consequences, how to look inward and accept one's own faults and work to reduce them, and how to normalize admitting you're wrong.
