H is for Horror
Feb. 24th, 2013 02:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snowynightSo you want to scare your readers. To target their primal fear and make them stay awake all the night. To turn the normality into nightmare fuel. To see if the characters can handle tragedy and fear to come out all right. Stay tuned to this post... or we won't know what'd happen to you.
Choices, choices
-It's hard to avoid writing horror tropes when you're writing... horror. There're quite a lot of sub-genres covered under horror, cosmic horror, psychological horror, splatter horror... But more importantly, what kind of fear do you want to target? Do you want to hit people how insignificant they are in the universe? Do you you want to remind them that Nature's far from kind? Do you you want to show how easy it's for ourselves to be corrupted and consumed with madness? Want to strike them how vulnerable their bodies are or force them to open their eyes to the unnatural?
-Who are your horror survivors/victims? Are they armed to the teeth, genre savvy enough to stick close to their buddies? Are they over curious that they stumble onto things they are not mean to know about? Are they ordinary people caught in things bigger than their own? There's usually an anti-sex moral in modern horror but you always can subvert it.
-Where is your horror story set? The Gothic castle in ruin, the gloomy forest that sunlight never shines through, the uncanny town you're snowed in... They all have in common is that they are alien, exotic, and dislocate the characters, leaving them to struggle. Or it may be your safe sweet home. Then one day you wake up and see your name written in blood on the the wall... The Other has invaded your home.
-Horror is a spice that goes good with other genre. Any standard fantasy elements can be turned horrifying. A dragon is a standard. But what about a skeleton dragon with poisonous smell, with an army of mice that spread plaques? You can always set your horror story on the dark side of the Moon, set it in Imperial Rome, and the post-apocalypse fic that is now a staple in the genre.
Pitfalls:
A horror story is after all a story. Cardboard characters who hold idiot ball in plots are easy to annoy your readers. Overused cliche will break the atmosphere fast and beware of unfortunate implication in choosing your victims.
So my characters are big damn action heroes. How do I horrify them?
-Do your heroes have people they love? Do they have things close to themselves? They may be invincible, but what they care aren't. No, don't kill them. There're a lot of fate worse than death.
-Or it's a wonderful chance to explore how hardened your heroes are.
How isolated they're from the society because they can no longer be touched by a cry of baby. How much threat they can pose as can they go by a complex code of morality when you no longer feel guilt and fear?
-How much will your characters be accountable for their actions? Yeah, you know he's a dark mage, but the police will go after you if you kill him. The dark mage may have people who love him too. How do you deal?
Fic rec:
The Probability of Combined Events byjazzypom (Marvel comics, gen, PG) Steve finds himself transported to another dimension, where order rules at the behest of Tony Stark. Before Steve can go back to his own world however, he has to deal with this one. Wonderfully disturbing atmosphere. Dystopia done right
Between 'Outerscope' and the Sleestaks (Candle Cove, gen, PG)
You have to admit, some of those special effects were so scary-looking that you can understand why adults describe a great fondness for the shows of their childhood mixed with an overwhelming feeling of terror. In between discussions of the creepy puppets from "Outerscope" and the Sleestaks, "Candle Cove" comes up again and again.
Reference:
GURPS Horror 4th Edition.
Question: Share your experience with writing or reading horror. What do you think is something done right or wrong?
Choices, choices
-It's hard to avoid writing horror tropes when you're writing... horror. There're quite a lot of sub-genres covered under horror, cosmic horror, psychological horror, splatter horror... But more importantly, what kind of fear do you want to target? Do you want to hit people how insignificant they are in the universe? Do you you want to remind them that Nature's far from kind? Do you you want to show how easy it's for ourselves to be corrupted and consumed with madness? Want to strike them how vulnerable their bodies are or force them to open their eyes to the unnatural?
-Who are your horror survivors/victims? Are they armed to the teeth, genre savvy enough to stick close to their buddies? Are they over curious that they stumble onto things they are not mean to know about? Are they ordinary people caught in things bigger than their own? There's usually an anti-sex moral in modern horror but you always can subvert it.
-Where is your horror story set? The Gothic castle in ruin, the gloomy forest that sunlight never shines through, the uncanny town you're snowed in... They all have in common is that they are alien, exotic, and dislocate the characters, leaving them to struggle. Or it may be your safe sweet home. Then one day you wake up and see your name written in blood on the the wall... The Other has invaded your home.
-Horror is a spice that goes good with other genre. Any standard fantasy elements can be turned horrifying. A dragon is a standard. But what about a skeleton dragon with poisonous smell, with an army of mice that spread plaques? You can always set your horror story on the dark side of the Moon, set it in Imperial Rome, and the post-apocalypse fic that is now a staple in the genre.
Pitfalls:
A horror story is after all a story. Cardboard characters who hold idiot ball in plots are easy to annoy your readers. Overused cliche will break the atmosphere fast and beware of unfortunate implication in choosing your victims.
So my characters are big damn action heroes. How do I horrify them?
-Do your heroes have people they love? Do they have things close to themselves? They may be invincible, but what they care aren't. No, don't kill them. There're a lot of fate worse than death.
-Or it's a wonderful chance to explore how hardened your heroes are.
How isolated they're from the society because they can no longer be touched by a cry of baby. How much threat they can pose as can they go by a complex code of morality when you no longer feel guilt and fear?
-How much will your characters be accountable for their actions? Yeah, you know he's a dark mage, but the police will go after you if you kill him. The dark mage may have people who love him too. How do you deal?
Fic rec:
The Probability of Combined Events by
jazzypom (Marvel comics, gen, PG) Steve finds himself transported to another dimension, where order rules at the behest of Tony Stark. Before Steve can go back to his own world however, he has to deal with this one. Wonderfully disturbing atmosphere. Dystopia done rightBetween 'Outerscope' and the Sleestaks (Candle Cove, gen, PG)
You have to admit, some of those special effects were so scary-looking that you can understand why adults describe a great fondness for the shows of their childhood mixed with an overwhelming feeling of terror. In between discussions of the creepy puppets from "Outerscope" and the Sleestaks, "Candle Cove" comes up again and again.
Reference:
GURPS Horror 4th Edition.
Question: Share your experience with writing or reading horror. What do you think is something done right or wrong?
