Putting the Horror into Horror Stories – Part 1

So what makes horror stories so...horrifying?

 

Writing a good horror story is all about tapping into the reader’s fears. Everybody is afraid of something, whether it’s the dark, spiders, thunder and lightning, snakes, even death...there is always something that terrifies people, and the best horror stories exploit these irrational fears (or phobias).


Most of our fears come from childhood – an incident that we remember, such as seeing a spider, or behaviours and fears picked up from the adults around us. Often their fears become our fears. Additionally, there are instinctual and primitive fears – such as being afraid of large predatory animals like sharks or bears.

 

On the other side of the coin there is the fear caused by imagination; the monsters we create for ourselves, such as vampires, demons, bogeymen and creatures under the bed. But whether they’re primitive fears or made up ones, they all have something in common – they are all illogical – such fears make people behave irrationally. That’s because humans have always feared what they did not understand. Our minds can cause us to imagine all manner of things.

 

Of course, real horror does exist - the stuff we don’t have to imagine, or monsters we don’t have to create. Terrorism creates horror in us, terrible accidents create horror, psychopaths and serial killers create horror, and recently, global pandemics create a level of horror.

 

And all of these – real, imagined or otherwise – are all borne from fear.

 

You first need to know what kind of horror story you’re going to write, because that will dictate the tone and atmosphere of the story. Some writers prefer subtle or subversive horror story telling, which creates a stifled, closed-in atmosphere that uses psychological fear, and rarely, if at all, shows the monster or dark being at the root of the story.

 

Others prefer vivid horror and gore, with detailed visceral descriptions to shock the reader and the bad guy/monster is very much at the forefront of the story. Some writers like the gothic style of horror, like Dracula, with mysterious characters and dark settings to create atmosphere and tension and a sense of dread.

 

A great horror story needs a solid plot and emotionally resonant elements to keep the reader invested in the story. Even though it’s a horror story, it still needs to be believable (as opposed to being outlandish). Although Frankenstein created a monster (in the eyes of others), the story was still believable – that it could have been true, that it might happen, and that it had consequences. Sometimes writers forget that even with imaginary monsters, the story still must have a sense of reality, otherwise there is no sense of fear. If the story feels real to the reader; then so will the fear.

 

Even with a solid plot, it still needs well-drawn characters that need to achieve a goal. They need to be characters who the reader will want to get to know and become emotionally involved, so where characterisation is concerned, it’s worth taking the time to develop your characters, to get them established and provide the reason for their story right from the outset. Know exactly what the protagonist needs or wants and know what the antagonist needs to try to stop them. Every character has a motivation for their actions – there is always a reason behind what they do. That’s why many horror stories fail – the bad guy does stuff without reasoning, or the monster kills and eats people because that’s what it does and it just can. That will leave readers disappointed and short changed.

 

The reader needs to know what’s at stake – they need to know what the consequences are if the main character doesn’t achieve his or her goal. That’s part of the fear you build for them.

 

A good horror story also needs the correct POV. The point of view and tense will also determine the style of story. First person brings immediacy, because the ‘I’ is the narrator, and it’s his or her story. It brings more emotional depth, because the narrator is talking directly with the reader, but it is also limited because you can’t show anything from the other character’s POVs or build deeper suspense, as with 3rd Person.

 

Third person POV is better for those who are not confident about writing in first person. While it doesn’t have the same intense or emotional immediacy, it can use other characters to tell the story and build up suspense. It allows you to show other character POVs and thereby hide things from the main character and the reader. It gives more control of the story to the writer, and a greater depth to the reader.

 

In part 2, we’ll look at more elements to help you put the horror into horror stories.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Chapter & Novel Lengths

Just how long should a chapter be? What’s the best length? And does a novel have to fit into a set amount of words? These are just two of the most common questions asked by writers.   They assume they have to work to a strict template of X amount of words and X amount of chapters, usually because most novels have around 30 or 40 chapters and around 80,000 words.   Novel Lengths Firstly, let’s dispel a few myths - novel lengths are dictated by the story itself, not the writer or the editor or a specific written formula.   Secondly, writers don’t have to fit their word count into generic set amounts.   Again, the story will dictate how long the novel will be. It’s also worth knowing the different types of novels that work well with different word counts.   Uncomplicated stories containing minimal characters tend to be short – usually around 20,000 to 60,000 words.   These are called novellas. Longer, more complex stories, which contain a handful o...
Read more

What Makes a Story Dark?

If you’re a horror writer or you love to write dark, psychological stories and thrillers, or moralistic tales, this is the one question that needs an answer. Wanting a dark story and writing one are two different things, so how do you actually make a story dark? To answer that you first have to understand what is meant by ‘dark’. We usually define ‘dark’ as quantifiable elements that we know and are familiar with, but it’s more than that. Dark doesn’t necessarily mean scary or gory with a crazy psychopath going around chopping people into bits. Instead we have to think of ‘dark ‘as anything outside our accepted rose-tinted reality. Dark is the underbelly of our society; it’s the handling of ideas, themes, social issues and behaviours that would be seen as morally unacceptable. It’s less about fictional monsters but more about the real monsters that lurk in the shadows, something that is underscored by our fears and anxieties. It’s the unknown, because the things we don’t know ...
Read more

Modifiers, Intensifiers and Qualifiers - Part 2

Unlike modifiers, which modify words or phrases, an Intensifier is a term for a modifier that amplifies the meaning of the word it modifies. An intensifier is used exclusively to modify adverbs and adjectives and is placed  before the word it is meant to modify.  In simple terms, the intensifier emphasises adverbs and adjectives - it makes them more intense . The word is derived from Latin, meaning to “intend or stretch”. In grammatical terms, the intensifier lends no weight to the meaning of a sentence other than to give it an additional emotional nuance to the word it is modifying, however, since they modify adverbs and adjectives, they should be treated in the same way adverbs adjectives – used little and sparingly wherever possible within your writing. This is where learning to spot them will benefit your quality of writing. Intensifiers are attributive and serve only to fill space, so unless there is a valid reason to intensify the meaning and emotion ...
Read more