Booking Glory-Chapter 19: Dacey’s Promo - Part 1

<September 4, Longham Wrestling Arena, Longham City>

Rob watched with a critical eye as the preparations for the show began. The frenzy was a bit more than usual, but that was to be expected. After all, last Saturday LWC really shook the wrestling world with its booking.

Coming off from the explosive weekend featuring <Break Out>, there was only one talk amongst most of the residents of Longham City. Dacey’s behavior at the end of the first ever Triple Threat Match has aroused much discussion amongst the fans.

Rob was currently backstage overseeing the preparations and helping out Mr. Wolfe with the backstage arrangements. Mr. Gibson and Robin were over at the Control Pit making sure that everything was right for the broadcast.

Breeze TV executives were really pleased with the impact of <Break Out> as a whole. While they were a little displeased with the fact that LWC went with such a shocking event on a PPV instead of their regular TV show, they understood the necessity of the action.

According to them, it was a waste to not include such a sensational subject during a live TV broadcast. They were confident that LWC’s ratings would have seen a tremendous increase if they did it at one of their weekly shows instead of wasting it on PPV.

Rob and Mr. Gibson had to assure them that the follow-up will surely boost the ratings and the broadcast of <Break Out> will garner more viewers after this show.

Breeze TV had scheduled the first broadcast of <Break Out> for this week’s Friday. Rob had assured them that after this week’s episode on Wednesday, they would have more viewers tuning in to see Dacey’s heinous act. And the ratings would receive a boost due to it.

Apparently, the Breeze TV executives also thought the same. So, they didn’t create much of an issue. The executives of Breeze TV only cared about the ratings of the show and the corresponding advertising revenue.

They didn’t care about which wrestler won or what happened during the show. They spoke in cold, hard numbers that Mr. Gibson felt a headache every time they discussed the show.

Robin, on the other hand, was like a fish in water during such discussions. He usually painted a pretty picture with his speech and promised them a lot more than LWC was capable of in their current situation.

That was one of the reasons the Breeze TV executives were a little dissatisfied with LWC’s performance to date. They were expecting a big leap in ratings, however, LWC’s show merely maintained their previous ratings causing them to feel a bit let down.

However, recent weeks have seen a bit more of a boost to their ratings. It had appeased them a bit. And the events at <Break Out> had reignited their confidence in LWC a bit.

Yesterday, on their insistent demand, Rob was also called in for their meeting, much to Robin’s displeasure. Being the one who is currently booking the women’s division, they wanted his take on things after the events at <Break Out>.

Mr. Gibson was more than happy to throw Rob to the sharks. As he always felt that he and the executives from the TV station were discussing two different things even if they were on the same topic, Mr. Gibson was glad to spend less time in their presence at the sacrifice of Rob.

Rob, for his part, had to make countless assurances and explain his thoughts a bit more in marketing terms to settle down Breeze TV executives. After their discussion, they decided to see Rob’s work for the following weeks and make an analysis later on whether to extend LWC’s deal.

So, Rob was feeling a little bit more pressure than usual as the time for the show to begin approached. He paced nervously in the hallways, checking and double-checking if things were proper as it would be his segment that opened the show.

The entire women’s division was gathered together as they knew that the next segment would change the direction of the division for the foreseeable future. They knew that Rob had several plans for the wrestlers present based on the response to this segment.

This, in turn, made Dacey, who was already close to hyperventilating, feel more pressure on her shoulders. Despite the encouragement of her fellow wrestlers, Dacey felt as if she was lacking a bit in what needed to be done. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

She didn’t know what it was and she also had no one else she could ask for help. As this was literally the first time a wrestler would be portraying a bad character inside the ring, Dacey felt as if she was stumbling along a dark tunnel.

While Diana, the veteran amongst the young roster, was supportive of Dacey, even she was flabbergasted as to how things needed to be done. Left with no other choice, Dacey could only approach Rob for a piece of last-minute advice.

She hoped that being the originator of the idea, Rob had some tips and tricks to help her with the segment.

"Rob, can I talk to you for a minute?" Dacey asked with hesitation.

Rob looked up from his work and saw Dacey nervously looking at him. He cursed himself for forgetting the most important part about the upcoming segment. He should have made sure that Dacey was ready to go before doing anything else. Once more, his inexperience almost bit him in the ass.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Rob nodded at Dacey to follow him. They walked a little distance away from others and stopped. Rob put on an easy-going smile and looked at Dacey expectantly waiting for her to talk.

"Rob, I am really not sure how to present myself out there. While you have told me a lot about what kind of character I am portraying out there, I still can’t get myself into that. Do you have any tips or tricks that I could use out there?" Dacey asked hesitantly.

Rob looked at her up and down and frowned a little.

"First things first, you need a little more touch-up. Your make-up is too little," Rob said causing Dacey to look abashed. "Look Dacey, you need not confuse yourself a lot. Let’s break down this stuff so that you understand what you need to do, shall we?"

"Sure," Dacey nodded eagerly.

Rob motioned for a makeup artist to come and began speaking, "First, what is your character?"

"Hmmm, Dacey Surestone..." Dacey asked in confusion.

"Yes, it is Dacey Surestone. It is you. So, you don’t need to do some outrageous stuff out there. You need to be yourself. However, the Dacey you will be out there and you are both different."

Dacey nodded as the makeup artist arrived. Diana, Evelyn, and Selena followed the artist and arrived beside Dacey. They were hoping to give her some moral support by staying beside her.

"When you step out of that curtain, forget how you will normally act. You need to be a little over-the-top and a bit more expressive out there. Now, tell me, what is the mindset of your character currently?"

"She is angry," Dacey said thinking about the storyline that she was going to portray.

"Superficial!" Rob cut her off before she could proceed. "You need to think deeper. This Dacey is not just a character. She is a person like you. Is she angry? Of course, she is. But, is that all?"

"Dacey Surestone has been working in LWC ever since it was established. She considers herself to be the torchbearer of LWC. That means, she sees herself as the face of the women’s division. You with me until now?"

Dacey nodded her head.

"Then, can you tell me what is wrong with your makeup?" Rob asked gesturing at her.

Dacey and the other wrestlers looked taken aback. They scrutinized Dacey’s makeup a bit and tried to see what was wrong. However, they weren’t able to spot anything like that. Dacey had her usual make-up and ring gear on. She hadn’t done anything unusual. So, it was really hard for them to find any fault.

Unable to understand what Rob was hinting at, the wrestlers looked at him in askance.

"Dacey has been waiting for this moment all her life. While the way she got it was despicable, she had got what she wanted. The Spotlight. Dacey will be under the spotlight for the first time in her time with LWC. Now tell me, for someone like Dacey who has been thinking that she is the torchbearer, being under the spotlight like this was what she had dreamed of for a long time," Rob explained patiently.

"Oh, I get it," Diana said from the side. "You need to add more highlights. Be a bit glitzy, I think," Diana said looking at Rob questioningly.

"Bingo! You see, this is Dacey’s long-awaited moment. Of course, she is going to strut it. She is going to go out there in her best make-up, all glitzy and glamour, trying to wow the crowd," Rob said in explanation.

"Oh!" Dacey said in understanding. The other wrestlers nodded as it made sense to them.

"Remember," Rob said motioning to the make-up artist to touch up Dacey, "this only matters because she is going to talk and not wrestle. If she was going to wrestle, this makeup would be a waste. But, she is going to talk to the crowd. So, she is preparing to wow them."

The other wrestlers nodded in understanding.

"I think she should make her walk a little sexier," Diana said hesitantly from the side.

"You mean like the strut-strut?" Evelyn asked in response.

"Yeah, she is going for wowing the crowd. I feel that she should be doing something like that," Diana said a little sheepishly.

"Looks like you did the same?" Selena asked mischievously.

"Of course," Diana replied shamelessly. "When I won my first championship, the next night I walked out of the curtain with the championship I tried to act a little sexier."

"Exactly, people often do something extra when the spotlight is on them," Rob cut in before their conversation could take some other turn. "So, adding a little strut works well. And Dacey is in the prime of her life. She is confident about her body, so of course, she would use it to draw more eyes."

The women nodded in agreement.

"Next comes the mindset. Dacey wanted this spotlight so bad that she did something heinous to obtain it. In her mind, she was taking what was rightfully hers. However, people are not going to think like that. So, what do you think Dacey is going to do at this moment," Rob asked Dacey.

"I think she would feel angry and betrayed. She doesn’t understand why the crowd is against her. So, she will in turn lash out at them," Dacey said slowly trying to picture herself in that mindset.

"Damn right, she would lash out at the crowd. But, there are different ways to do it. Saying it openly to their face; just flat out ignoring them; insulting them back; and many more. So, what kind of reaction she has is all dependent on the need of the story."

"Here, Dacey is announcing to the world that she is not waiting. She is going to blame anyone and everyone for not being in the spotlight until now. She is going to act as if she did nothing wrong," Rob said slowly causing Dacey to nod along.

"So, think about how you are going to deliver it. There is no right way in doing things. You need to try out and see which action fits you best," Rob said trying to instill the thought in everyone’s mind.

"Do you have any quick tips to get the crowd going?" Dacey asked after a while.

"Well, let’s see. You need to make the crowd hate you. So, be rude and mock them. You might try to look as if you are going to apologize and then backtrack. Or you might go after their favorite stars. There are countless ways, just make sure you are not intimidated by them," Rob said nonchalantly.

But, Rob’s offhand words made the eyes of the wrestlers present there sparkle. It was as if a brand new gate had been opened to them. Until now, promos usually meant boasting about their achievements and their qualifications. This new way sounded a bit more interesting.

"What about if you want them to love you?" Diana asked eagerly.

"Praise them! Compare their heroes to yourself and try to get closer. Express a positive sentiment or motivational sentiment over and over again. Be very cordial with them. Hug them while going out. There are countless ways to do it," Rob once more replied offhandedly, but Diana looked as if someone had smacked her on the head.

"This is unbelievable!" Diana whispered. "You have a whole ton of things like this, don’t you? These things could have cut short my time to become famous a lot," Diana mumbled to herself.

The others nodded absentmindedly to that statement.

Seeing them like this, Rob realized that he might have to tone down his offhand comments a little. It wouldn’t do to break the minds of the talents like this. And he didn’t fault them either.

These were tricks he had seen countless babyfaces used to get over in his previous world. They had proper storylines and systematic booking them. Even then, they had to use these tricks to get over with the fans.

Compared to the competition in his previous world, this world didn’t have that much competition. As they say, necessity is the mother of success. Those wrestlers there needed to innovate themselves over and over just to stay relevant.

Deciding to throw the women a little bone, Rob spoke to them again in a serious tone, "You see, getting someone to love you will be harder than getting someone to hate you. You are all lucky. You don’t have any predecessors to be wary of. If you are going to do the same thing someone else did, then your chances of success will be minimal."

"You need to be unique and stand apart from others to grab a crowd’s attention. You are lucky that you will be the first one to try this out. So, you don’t need to worry about being labeled a copycat."

The women smiled brightly when they heard Rob’s statement. They understood what Rob was saying. Being pioneers, they would have an easy time using these tricks compared to those who come behind them.

"Anyways, time is near, Dacey just stick to the script. You know what you need to tell. How you are going to say is up to you. If what you do this time doesn’t work, you can try something else next time."

"So, don’t put too much pressure on yourself. After this segment, I will sit down with you and analyze what you did right and what could be improved. So, cheer up and get ready. This is your time to shine," Rob patted Dacey’s shoulders and walked away to give the women some time to cool down.