Horror advice

For many of us, 2020 is not a year that we’re going to recall with a great deal of fondness – in fact, I’ll bet that most people will be pretty glad to see this one vanish in the rear-view mirror. But as one year ends another begins, and with that comes fresh opportunities and the chance to make a resolution to do more writing in the next twelve months. So I’ve gathered up 21 bitesize bits of advice to set you up for a mighty creative effort in 2021 – let’s get right into it!

7 Get the atmosphere right

It is pivotal for horror that you get the mood right and ‘prep’ the reader for the scares you are going to deliver later on. Without atmosphere, the story can feel rather hollow, so think carefully about your word choices, the connotations they bring and the ways in which they can add to the mood you are trying to develop.

8 What’s really scary?

While there are all sorts of classic monsters to call upon, it’s well worth horror authors considering what they are really avatars for. Each creature or ‘bad guy’ in the genre almost invariably stands for something deeper – consider what subconscious, fundamental human fear you are tapping into when writing your horror.

9 Get the pace right

Timing is everything in great horror, and it’s important to think about when you are going to show the ‘object of fear’ in your story. Be it ghost, vampire, werewolf, serial killer or something else entirely, ‘opening the door’ (to paraphrase Stephen King) at the right moment is pivotal. Make sure it’s built up enough in readers’ minds, but don’t leave it too long and risk leaving audiences bored.

10 The power of the reveal

To follow up from the previous point, it’s also important to consider how that ‘object of fear’ is going to come over. That first reveal – and maybe even later encounters – should be striking and powerful. Consider the visual elements of how it will appear, give some thought to using the five senses to increase the impact and try and make that first image and impression truly memorable if you can.

11 Don’t be cheap

I hate to say it, but there are many horror films that lean either on easy jumpscares to make you spill your popcorn, or just throw one disturbing/ disgusting image at you after another. That might work to some extent in movies, but books need to go far deeper. You need real substance to have real impacxt – focus on the psychological and not the viscxeral/physical and you’re much more likely to leave the reader truly chilled.

If you write horror, fantasy or sci-fi, get your writing year off to a great start with these writing tips from Alex Davis