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Horror/Scary: June 24, 2015 Issue [#7058]

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Horror/Scary


 This week: Come in to my story
  Edited by: Arakun the twisted raccoon Author IconMail Icon
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Table of Contents

1. About this Newsletter
2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
7. Removal instructions

About This Newsletter

Quote for the week: Searchers after horror haunt strange, far places.
~H.P. Lovecraft


Word from our sponsor



Letter from the editor

I recently listened to a wonderfully creepy old radio play called, "The Thing on the Fourble Board." It was an episode of a horror series called "Quiet Please" which originally aired in 1948. For those who haven't heard it, I won't give away the ending, but you can listen to it here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilRbcBhD9_0

It is only about a half hour long, and I dare you to listen to it with the lights off! *Shock*

This play is considered one of the best examples of horror from the golden age of radio for many reasons. It has an engaging story with a great twist, but I believe the main reason it is so effective is that the narrator draws the reader into the story.

The main character, a former "roughneck" or oil field worker named Porky, tells the story in first person, recounting a frightening experience he had on an oil derrick twenty years before. He speaks to the audience as if he were in the room with them. He uses a relaxed, conversational style, and addresses the listener as "friend", interjecting phrases like "you see", "let me tell you about it", and "oh, I forgot to tell you something". At one point, he stops to call out to his wife in the kitchen, telling her to come and meet their visitor. One minute the listener is hanging on every word, listening to a likeable character recount an engaging story, and then, almost as an afterthought, the trap is sprung! The unwitting victim is caught like a fly in a spider's web. *Spider*

This story would not have been anywhere near as effective as a third person narrative. Of course, as a radio play it has the advantage of a talented voice actor, spooky music, and frightening sound effects, but you can create the same atmosphere in your writing. Maybe include your reader in a circle of friends sitting around a campfire telling ghost stories. Or maybe write your story as a letter or set of instructions to your reader.

Something to try: Write a horror story in which a character speaks to the reader.





Editor's Picks

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When The Dust Settles Open in new Window. (GC)
Very unsettling story of a disturbed man looking for comfort.
#1437291 by Robert 'BobCat' Author IconMail Icon


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Grip of Terror Open in new Window. (13+)
The town of Shipton On The Wold is in trouble.
#2016417 by Andy~hating university Author IconMail Icon


The Faerie of Tooth and Bone Open in new Window. (13+)
This is why you believe.
#1877025 by elizjohn Author IconMail Icon


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Mistaken Open in new Window. (18+)
A man is obsessed with a spider bite
#1682963 by W.D.Wilcox Author IconMail Icon


Castle Fear Open in new Window. (13+)
A dark story poem in Poe's style of The Raven. My hat tip to a classic.
#1804369 by Perish Throckmorton Author IconMail Icon

 
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Ask & Answer

Question for next time: What is your favorite horror story?

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