This week: Suspense Is The Spice Of A Good Tale Edited by: Angus  
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'What was the worst thing you've ever done? I won't tell you that, but I'll tell you the worst thing that ever happened to me...the most dreadful thing.'
~Peter Straub~ |
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One of the most important elements of writing horror (in my humble opinion) is, of course, surprising your readers. I like to think of it as the ‘shock factor’, that moment that makes the reader jump or cringe, or do a double take and say, “Whooooaaah…did not see that coming!”
As writers, we’re limited to how we can convey our stories. We don’t have the auditory and visual options that movies do. They have the advantages of using creepy background music and showing the terror on their character’s faces, to name just a few. But words can be just effective if done well.
That’s where suspense comes into play. And the suspense leads to the shock factor.
Keep the reader on their toes! Keep them guessing! Keep them on the edge of their seats!
Or not. Sometimes it's best to just build up to it.
Some stories are fast paced where the action is almost constant from the opening scene to the last. There really is no ‘shock factor’ since the reader knows what’s going to happen and when, but they might not know how. A lot of slasher movies use this method, such as the Saw movies. The suspense is minimal, and the only real ‘shock factor’ is finding out what crazy contraption Jigsaw will come up with to use on his victim and then watching their demise.
Other stories are medium paced with the suspense growing gradually, while the writer weaves twists and turns throughout the plot. Oftentimes they’ll lull the reader into a calm atmosphere where everything seems fine, and then suddenly make them jump out of their seat by having something unpredictable happen. Or maybe they’ll pull the old ‘bait and switch’ on them by making the reader think something will happen, but then it doesn’t. And then it does! Think of the frightened young girl who goes to the closet where she believes the monster is hiding. She cautiously opens the door and the reader expects to see her tormentor jump out, but there’s nothing there. She (and the reader) lets out a sigh of relief, but as soon as she turns around, guess who (or what) is standing there with a machete in their hand or a grinning mouth full of long, sharp teeth with blood running down their chin?
I’m probably known for my flash fiction stories more than anything else. I don’t have a lot of room for twists and turns throughout the story, so the shock factor has to come at the end.
No matter how you write your stories, just be sure you have suspense. Suspense is the spice of a good tale, and it’s the one thing that will keep the reader turning the page. |
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This week's question: What is your favorite horror book?
In my last Newsletter I asked what your favorite horror genre is.
OOT™
'As always, a terrific issue. I completely agree that the psychological genre is perhaps the scariest of the four main horror genres. I love all types of horror, but the psychological genre is my favorite, because those stories often stay with me for days. You also provided excellent examples for each genre.
I know you're a master of horror. Do you have a preference of the four for your writing?'
Thank you, but I'm not even close to being a 'master of horror'. But if I had to pick one, I'd say Paranormal/Supernatural
BIG BAD WOLF Feeling Thankful
'I like a good Creature Feature, where the Hero has to deal with some sort of mutant animal. Always interesting to see what happens.'
Quick-Quill
'I don't like to be scared. I get up and leave the room when the music turns creepy. I do like Horror/crime. I still look away at the gory parts, but true crime or crime styled stories are interesting.'
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Horror/Scary: June 05, 2019 Issue [#9584]
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