Writing Prescription Twenty-One
Do you write horror fiction? Today I present to you a dose of tips for all budding Stephen King writers:
1. Live it. And relive it.
Replay every scene a number of times that in your head before putting pen to paper. Visualize scene after scene in high definition. It’s these little details you see with your mind’s eye that ultimately help you in writing a tantalizing horror story.
2. Take the pacing slow.
Timing is essential. Take your time with the build-up. When you have ensured that all factors leading up to the main climax have been put in place, you can then safely plunge your readers into the moment of fear or catastrophe.
3. Manipulation is thrilling; make use of a twist, or surprise.
Think about how your readers will view the characters in your story, then give them a twist into something completely unexpected.
4. Read the best of horror and learn from the professionals.
I read Stephen King’s “Pet Sematary”. That crazed look in Gage’s eyes when he murdered his own mother with a scalpel. Watching the scene unfold in my mind’s eye still gives me the chills.
Study works by the masters of horror and observe the way that they unveil their story. Learn a little from them and you’ll get better.
5. Too much gore spoils it all.
Some blood here and there is not a bad thing. Too much just desensitizes your readers to it.
6. Out of ideas? Think of something perfectly ordinary.
Think of the most ordinary situations in your world around you. That park near your house. Watching television. Wearing a certain red dress. Using a certain knife to cut fruits. Anything ordinary can be spun into a horror story with great imagination. These are scenarios your readers can relate too, so scare them with ordinary things, and you’ve got them where you want them.
7. Don’t rely on pictorial elements to create lasting memories in your reader’s mind.
Usually, we remember the horrific images from the movies we watch. But in writing, pictorial memories are often hard to maintain within your reader’s mind. Aim not for your reader’s imagination, but your reader’s state of mind. Do something that potentially drives both your character and readers to the point of insanity. When they think back to the frenzied feeling they experienced as they read and related to the specific scene, they will remember the story.
Word of the day – CONFABULATE: chat, converse, discuss.
Character flaw # LIAR: compulsively and purposefully tells false truths more often than not, lies repeatedly.