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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Trashy Reality Shows: A Media Menace or Guilty Pleasure Time Wasters?

by Chautona Havig · 4 Comments

Regaining Mercy releases today, so the Independence Islands authors are all chatting about reality TV of course. Find out why! via @chautonahavig

I never saw the first season of Survivor. It didn’t appeal to me, but something someone said about it made me curious after the season ended. So, when Season 2 came along, I watched it.  That was the one with church elder Rodger and sweet Elizabeth. It was fun, interesting, and I actually enjoyed most of what I watched.

Unfortunately, each season afterward got less and less interesting. Some in my family still watch it.  I don’t.  I’ve lost interest.

We watched The Amazing Race for several years, but like the Survivor, I just lost interest over time.

There was that first reality show we watched… Fire Me, Please. I don’t remember most of the episodes, but I do remember what I think was a mattress store and a girl finally lying down on the mattress intoning, “Boring, boring, everything is boring, boring, boring…”

Her employer just wouldn’t fire her. He was so sure she’d “get used to it” or whatever.

However, there was one show our entire family loved, and we’d all love to see return to airwaves near us!.

The Mole.

In that show, there were… oh, maybe thirteen contestants?  Twelve were legitimate contestants. One was a… shocker, I know… mole!  The game was played through tasks.  They started with a pot of ZERO and if everyone did their tasks, they could add money to the pot for the grand prize. The mole’s job was to sabotage the efforts.  So, if everyone had to bungee jump off a bridge, all the mole had to do was pretend to be afraid of heights, and no one would suspect him or her of sabotage. Or would they?

It was a HUGE bit of fun–so much that we actually bought the SEASONS (all 2 of ’em) on DVD to watch again down the road. We know who it is. And yes, we know who won.  We know everything.  But we still wanted them.  It was that fun!

Alas, Celebrity Mole was not nearly as fun.  Sigh.  But watching shows like that really does make people think. Or maybe it’s just me.  But I wonder…

Trashy Reality Shows: A Media Menace or Guilty Pleasure Time Wasters?

My opinion is yes.  To all of it.  Depending on the show.  Some are definitely media menaces (housewives of anything?  Seriously, the few clips I’ve seen don’t remind me of any housewife I’ve ever known). The Bachelor?  We saw a few at the beginning (research for Thirty Days Hath… and so forth).  It got old. Fast.  Trying again later… WOW! They went from sleazy to down-right trashy (in my opinion of what I saw, anyway!)

But reality TV goes beyond sensationalism of the scandalous type.  It fits all sorts of genres. The Great British Baking Show (I hope that’s the name), Extreme Home Makeover, Restaurant Impossible, or even X-Factor.  Some of these are fascinating shows.  There’s even one in England that was a one-off (because it HAD to be due to the kind of show.

Churchill’s Secret Agents is a show that uses actual spy training methods to put contestants through the paces to see which one might have the skills to make it back then.  Here’s a short clip:

So, no. I don’t think all reality TV is a time-waster or “media menace.” Like everything, how its used makes a huge difference.  Or, for Mindy Murray of Carolyn Miller’s Regaining Mercy, it might be a long shot at a better life.

Regaining Mercy Released yesterday!

And the authors of the Independence Islands are having so much fun sharing Mindy’s story with you. Seriously, her little boy… oh my word. It’s such a good book.  That’s one advantage to being the content editor for the series. I get to read it all!  YAY! Seriously, I have the BEST job in this whole thing.  Regaining Mercy

A mom ready to do anything for her son. A man determined to win the woman he loves.

Going on Love at First Glance had seemed like such a good idea. She didn’t care about finding Mr. Right. No, Mindy Murray chose the reality TV show for more mercenary reasons.  A mom’s gotta do what a mom’s gotta do when it comes to feeding her son.

When Mindy returns to Elnora, the girl from the “wrong side of the island” just wants a chance to rebuild her reputation. Too bad the folks at church don’t practice what the preacher preaches.

Enter Dermott Reilly. The interim boss at Greener Gardens has always had a soft spot for Mindy and her son, but with his new responsibilities, an important garden competition, and a few other concerns, he finds it difficult to prove himself to her.

A tropical storm and a missing child prove that sometimes grace appears in the most unusual ways.

Regaining Mercy concludes the Elnora Island romances of the Independence Islands Series, featuring five islands, six authors, and a boatload of happily-ever-afters.

The Independence Islands Series: beach reads aren’t just for summer anymore.

Time to Celebrate!

We have lots of release day fun for Regaining Mercy (like the giveaway below) so check out what reality TV the other authors in the series enjoy and get your entries in on their giveaways! EEEP!

Carolyn Miller (June 29)
Chautona Havig (June 30)
Melissa Wardwell (July 1)
Kari Trumbo (July 2)
Rachel Skatvold (July 3)
Tabitha Bouldin (July 4)
Sandy Barela- publisher (July 5)
Enter here:

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Comments

  1. Rebecca Pittman says

    June 30, 2021 at 8:38 am

    Chautona, Yahoo didn’t like your email title. Tried to convince me it was spam, although since you are on my contact list it graciously put it in my inbox–with a caution! Definitely an eye catcher! Regaining Mercy is already in my kindle waiting for me to read, right next to Penelope’s Pursuit. They both look interesting…Now I just need the time! Have a great day.

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      July 1, 2021 at 5:00 pm

      That’s a hoot!!!

      Reply
  2. Flo says

    June 30, 2021 at 8:26 am

    Have you watched Alone on History Channel? THAT’S a really interesting one. Gets a little slow in the middle but it’s not a boring slow … just slow.

    Reply
  3. Cheryl Arcemont says

    June 30, 2021 at 5:56 am

    Such a fun giveaway! I must admit, I never was much into reality shows. I only watched Dancing With the Stars because my sister and her MIL were really into it. After I moved 4 hours away, I stopped watching except the finale to discuss with sister and her MIL. Since she has moved and MIL is in nursing home, I no longer am interested. Again, like you said of some of other reality shows, it got old. Not into celebrity drama. I would much rather watch a good mystery! Thank you for the chances of these awesome giveaways!

    Reply

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The Because Fiction Podcast

The Because Fiction Podcast
The Because Fiction Podcast

Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Episode 579: A Chat with Lauren Smyth
byChautona Havig

Dystopian in the desert? Sign me up! Seriously, listen in while Lauren Smyth and I chat all things “glowy” in the desert!

note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

Not a lot of people write books about the boring Mojave Desert. When they do, I take note. Especially when it’s a super-cool dystopian delight! EEEP!

All That Glows by Lauren Smyth

The apocalypse didn’t take everyone. It just took us. Ever since the rain turned green, Kyrie’s world has been bathed in glowing dust. She packs it into old mascara tubes and sells it as makeup alongside dried cacti, threadbare blankets, and long-expired canned food. There’s not much else to do when everyone outside Kyrie’s small town in the Mojave Desert died from the plague-bearing rain ten years ago. Everyone—except the man in the rubber mask. He’s on the dangerous side of the fence, huffing infected air like it’s nothing, babbling to Kyrie about college and umbrellas and yogurt and everything else that disappeared the day it rained. He doesn’t seem to know that the world ended, and he has no explanation for how he survived the apocalypse. But Kyrie doesn’t believe in ghosts. She can’t trust him, but he’s right about one thing: Towns without secrets aren’t surrounded by chain-link fences. And chain-link fences won’t keep out the plague forever.

Learn more on Lauren’s WEBSITE and follow on GoodReads and BookBub.

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Episode 579: A Chat with Lauren Smyth
Episode 579: A Chat with Lauren Smyth
September 9, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 578: A Chat with Carolyn Bourke
September 7, 2026
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Episode 577: A Chat with Denise M. Colby
September 5, 2026
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Episode 576: A Chat with Ann Swindell
August 31, 2026
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A Chat with Dante Lupinetti
August 29, 2026
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Episode 574: A Chat with Laura DeNooyer
August 24, 2026
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Episode 573: A Chat with Cheryl Weber
August 22, 2026
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Episode 572: A Chat with Kari Trumbo
August 19, 2026
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Episode 571: A Chat with Lucas and Shauna Fischhaber
August 17, 2026
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Episode 570: A Chat with Niki Florica
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One foolish night sparks an accusation that threat One foolish night sparks an accusation that threatens to ruin multiple lives. Savannah never meant to let things go so far, and she certainly never meant to say anything so heinous. When she disappears the whole town knows it has to be HIS fault, that Mac.
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Set in 1926 Hollywood, this Cinderella-esque mystery is available in print, on Kindle (and Kindle Unlimited), and audiobook (available on all platforms), or listen FREE on YouTube @ChristaDelSorbo.
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One foolish night sparks an accusation that threat One foolish night sparks an accusation that threatens to ruin multiple lives. Savannah never meant to let things go so far, and she certainly never meant to say anything so heinous. When she disappears the whole town knows it has to be HIS fault, that Mac.
Quite possibly my favorite book of all I've written.
Available in print and on Kindle Unlimited. https://amzn.to/4gONyQa #affiliatelink
#ChristFic
#ChristianRomance
When Hollywood's prince abdicates his cinematic th When Hollywood's prince abdicates his cinematic throne for Bible college and a cigarillo girl, Gary Prinz assumes all threats against him are hyperbole rather than serious. But when shots ring out and people start dropping at his final movie premiere, things look dire--especially when that cigarillo girl is arrested for the murders.
Set in 1926 Hollywood, this Cinderella-esque mystery is available in print, on Kindle (and Kindle Unlimited), and audiobook (available on all platforms), or listen FREE on YouTube @ChristaDelSorbo.
https://amzn.to/4xvQRCQ #affiliatelink
#ChristFic
#ChristianMystery
#HistoricalChristianMystery
One foolish night sparks an accusation that threat One foolish night sparks an accusation that threatens to ruin multiple lives. Savannah never meant to let things go so far, and she certainly never meant to say anything so heinous. When she disappears the whole town knows it has to be HIS fault, that Mac.
Quite possibly my favorite book of all I've written.
Available in print and on Kindle Unlimited. https://amzn.to/4gONyQa #affiliatelink
#ChristFic
#ChristianRomance
When Hollywood's prince abdicates his cinematic th When Hollywood's prince abdicates his cinematic throne for Bible college and a cigarillo girl, Gary Prinz assumes all threats against him are hyperbole rather than serious. But when shots ring out and people start dropping at his final movie premiere, things look dire--especially when that cigarillo girl is arrested for the murders.
Set in 1926 Hollywood, this Cinderella-esque mystery is available in print, on Kindle (and Kindle Unlimited), and audiobook (available on all platforms), or listen FREE on YouTube @ChristaDelSorbo.
https://amzn.to/4xvQRCQ #affiliatelink
#ChristFic
#ChristianMystery
#HistoricalChristianMystery
One foolish night sparks an accusation that threat One foolish night sparks an accusation that threatens to ruin multiple lives. Savannah never meant to let things go so far, and she certainly never meant to say anything so heinous. When she disappears the whole town knows it has to be HIS fault, that Mac.
Quite possibly my favorite book of all I've written.
Available in print and on Kindle Unlimited. https://amzn.to/4gONyQa #affiliatelink
#ChristFic
#ChristianRomance
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