(NOTE: This is a revised and
updated version of an article I wrote some years ago. This version appeared in the
Horror Writers Association Newsletter a while back.)
Genre
fiction walks an extremely fine line. It needs to be familiar and comforting,
while at the same time being different and surprising. We employ well-known
tropes and story types to attract readers, but if we don’t do anything
interesting with these elements, readers will turn away from our work, if they
bother to check it out in the first place. How can we write compelling genre
fiction without merely copying what other writers have produced throughout the
decades? The answer is a simple three-letter word: Y-O-U. Horror readers don’t
need another haunted house story. They need your take on the haunted
house story, one that no one else has even written before, and that no one else
but you could ever write.
In
order to create effective – and original – horror, you have to dig into your
own psyche and find out what scares you. Worried that no one will be
frightened by the same things you are? Don’t be. As Aristotle said, the only
way to get to the universal is through the particular. By focusing on your
personal fears and giving them shivery life on the page, you’ll be connecting
to your audience – guaranteed.
Do
You Need to Re-Traumatize Yourself for Your Writing?
A
word of caution before we get started. This article presents techniques for
exploring your experiences in order to develop story material, and since we’re
discussing writing horror fiction, some of those experiences may be difficult
and even traumatizing for you to revisit. You do not need to harm
yourself emotionally in order to write successful fiction. Delve as far into
yourself as you’re comfortable, and maybe push a bit further, since we learn
and grow by testing our boundaries. There are benefits to doing this beyond
generating story material. You might experience catharsis or an emotional
exorcism. You might gain insight into yourself or make peace with elements of
your past – and you might create one hell of a powerful story. But I’ll stress
it one more time: you do not need to retraumatize yourself.
You
might be hesitant to write horror drawn from your personal experiences because
you’re afraid readers will learn too much about you, and maybe judge you in the
process. Fiction isn’t confession, though. You don’t have to let readers know
where your stories come from. It’s none of their damn business.
That
said, let’s move on to the good stuff – specific techniques for writing
personal horror.
Look
to Your Dreams
In
our dreams, our defenses and pretenses are swept aside, and we are most
ourselves.
Your dreams are
unique; use them to write stories that are uniquely yours. In college, I had a
friend who’d been keeping dream journals for years. Every morning when he woke,
he spent a few minutes recording his dreams, getting them down on paper before
they vanished from his memory. As time went by, he remembered more dreams each
morning, until it wasn’t uncommon for him to have a dozen entries or more each
day. That’s a hell of a lot of potential story material! You can record all
types of dreams, of course, but the following might be of most use to you as a
horror writer.
· Recurring dreams. If you have a
specific dream that repeats, there’s probably something about it that
fascinates or mystifies you, if only on a subconscious level. You have a
cognitive and emotional attachment to this dream. It’s important to you, maybe
for reasons you’ll never fully understand, but that importance makes it
excellent material for fiction. The earliest recurring dream I remember is one
I used to have when I was four. I dreamed that a flying saucer landed in the
cul-de-sac where my parents’ house was located, and a procession of dinosaurs
emerged. To make it even better, the scene was overlayed with a crimson filter.
I’m 60 now, and the memory of this dream has remained with me for over half a
century. I haven’t used it in a story yet, but I’m sure I will one day, and
it’ll be a story that no one but me could tell.
· Dreams which
scared or disturbed you. One of the most frightening
dreams I ever had was one in which my father had become a vampire. There was
nothing left of the man I knew. He was a soulless, unfeeling creature wearing
my father’s shape like a costume. While I haven’t used this specific scenario
in a story, the concept that our friends and family members may not be who we
think they are – may, in fact, wish us harm – has appeared a lot in my fiction.
The dreams that most scare you could be ones that lead you to strong themes to
base stories on.
· Dreams which stick
in your memory.
When I was nine, my Uncle Red died. He was like a second father to me, and his
death hit me hard. I had two dreams about being visited by his ghost. In one,
he was talking to me then became a disembodied head that continued growing
larger and larger until it filled the entire room. He continued talking to me
the entire time, but I can’t remember what he said. In another, he became a
pink, cartoony thing with wiggly arms and legs, which was way more disturbing
than it sounds. Either of these images are strong, personal ones, both
different and striking ways to portray a ghost. I’ve never forgotten these
dreams because of these images, and they’re unlike anything I’ve read about or
seen in movies or TV. That’s what gives them their power. Your most memorable
dreams can do the same thing for you – provide highly original images and
concepts for your stories.
Something is Wrong with That – Seriously
Wrong
I
learned this technique from an interview with Stephen King published in the
B&W magazine Tomb of Dracula in 1980. When the interviewer asked
King the inevitable question about where he got his ideas, King said that he
looked at an everyday, normal thing and told himself that something was wrong
with it. Be like King. Take a look around you and let your imagination run
paranoid. Why does that tree trunk look like it has a face on it? What are
those red stains on the sidewalk? I was at a pharmacy once, and while I was
waiting to pay for my prescription, I noticed a message displayed on the
register’s screen: Have You Seen Bob? I’m sure the message was part of
some kind of store promotion, but it seemed weird to me, seemed wrong. I’m
sure I’ll get a cool story out of it someday.
Here's an exercise
you can try:
·
Choose a minor aspect of your life or an ordinary
event and tell yourself that something is wrong with it. See where your
imagination takes you.
Pay Attention to the Wonderfully Weird
World Around You
This was what I
was doing in the pharmacy example above. When I first started writing at the
age of eighteen, I realized that I wasn’t very observant, so I began training
myself to be much more aware of my surroundings so I would have more material
to draw on for stories – material that came from my actual lived experience
instead of being recycled tropes from comics, movies, TV, and books. No one
else in the world observes the same things I do in exactly the same way, with
the same thoughts, feelings, and imaginative responses. Here are some techniques you can use to help
you observe more effectively.
·
Keep your eyes and ears open all the time. I spend a lot of
time looking around and listening wherever I am. This is how I noticed “What
About Bob?” on the pharmacy register. Several months ago, I was writing at a
local Starbucks, and through the window I saw a procession of motorcycles
accompanying a mobile Vietnam Veterans Exhibit. I began wondering what if the
truck carrying the exhibit was unmarked? What if it contained something sinister
and threatening? (This overlaps with “Something is Wrong With That.”)
·
Look for what seems out of place. Last summer, my
wife and I took a trip to the Cleveland Art Museum. While we were there, I saw
two strange men. One hurried into a room, stood before a single painting for
several moments, then hurried out. The other was dressed in a candy-striped
suit and bow tie. (My first thought was that I was looking at a Time Lord.) If
and when I use these men in a story, I’ll likely combine them into one
character, having the candy-suit man be the one to rush in and examine a single
painting. Why will he do this? I don’t know – I haven’t written the story yet!
·
Look for what sparks questions. During our trip to
Cleveland, my wife and I stopped at a wildlife preserve located on the shore of
Lake Erie. On the beach we found groups of fish skeletons arranged in piles,
and I wondered how the fish had gotten there and what had eaten them? We decided
the bones were left by people who caught the fish, cooked and ate them on the
beach, and then departed, leaving the bones behind. But my original questions
about the bones could lead me to some interesting story ideas – especially if
the bones weren’t from fish, but from something else.
·
Note your misperceptions. I’ll often mishear
or misread something. (This seems to be occurring with more frequency the older
I get.) I heard someone on TV say “My sister’s next,” but I thought they said,
“My sister’s nest.” I decided to use that as the title for a story,
wrote it, and submitted it to Cosmic Horror Monthly. It appeared in the
March 2024 issue. This story would never have existed if I hadn’t misheard that
one line of dialogue in the show.
·
Write down what you experience so you don’t forget it.
I
recorded all of the preceding examples in this section in the Notepad app on my
phone. Whenever I want to write fiction – whether it’s a short story, novella,
or novel – I pull up the app and read over the list, searching for an idea,
experience, or phrase that grabs me and makes me want to start writing. I often
don’t remember where specific items on the list came from, and I like when that
happens. I don’t want reality to get in the way of my imagination!
If it Bleeds, it Leads
Current events can
be good fodder for fiction. Pay attention to the events in the news or covered
in documentaries which engage your emotions and stimulate your imagination and
use them as springboards for your stories. But remember, you’re not a reporter
– you’re a fiction writer fueling your creativity.
·
Look for stories/images which fascinate you, ones you
can’t get out of your head. I once saw a photo in a newspaper of man
who, every October, wore a clown mask when raking leaves in his yard,
supposedly to entertain the neighborhood kids. The photo was very eerie, with
the masked man standing by a tree as leaves fell all around him. I eventually
used the image as the basis for a story called “All Fall Down.”
·
Look for stories/images that have a sense of mystery
about them, which make you wonder why or say WTF? The guy in the
clown mask definitely fell into this category for me. Over twenty years ago,
when I was moving to the town where I currently live, I kept seeing fliers
posted everywhere about a missing girl. I had two young daughters, and the
thought that I was going to be moving them to a town where another young girl
had disappeared was a scary one. Eventually, this experience helped form part
of my novel Like Death. And while I haven’t used this yet, years ago I
saw a news story about the new owner of a building who, when inspecting the
roof, found a replica of an electric chair installed there. Definitely a WTF
situation!
·
Write fiction, not polemic. Bothered by the
rise of fascism around the world? Me too. Concerned about the climate crisis?
I’m right there with you. But if I were to use either of these situations as
the basis for fiction, I wouldn’t write the equivalent of an angry social media
post. If you want to tell a story about fascism or the climate crisis, remember
that you’re writing fiction, not nonfiction. With fiction, story and character
always come first.
A
Stroll Down Fear Street
This next section
contains a number of questions to help you delve into your life and mine it for
material for horror fiction. Remember what I said in the beginning of this
article, though: You don’t need to retraumatize yourself to get story ideas, so
feel free to skip any questions you’re not comfortable with. For the questions
you do answer, remember that you don’t ever have to show your responses to
anyone, so you can be as honest and detailed as you want.
·
What were you afraid of as a child?
·
Do you recall any specific events in your childhood
during which you were deeply afraid?
·
What were you afraid of as a preteen? Do you recall
any specific events during that period in which you were deeply afraid?
·
What were you afraid of as a teen? Do you recall any
specific events during that period in which you were deeply afraid?
·
What were you afraid of as a new adult? Do you recall
any specific events during that period in which you were deeply afraid?
· What are you
afraid of as an adult? Do you recall any specific events during that period in
which you were deeply afraid? (Depending on your age, you might wish to
answer this question for your middle-age and senior years as well.)
·
What do you imagine you’ll be afraid of in the next
five years? Ten? Twenty? Thirty?
Once you’re finished, go over your
different lists and see if there’s anything you can pull out and use as the
basis for a horror story. Remember, you’re not trying to write autobiography.
Your imagination may transform a memory until it’s unrecognizable to anyone but
you.
Peering
Into the Darkness
Now
it’s time to get even more personal.
This next exercise
is about delving deeper into your fears. I want you to respond to the following
items in as much detail as you wish. You can write your responses as one-word
lists, short phrases, full sentences, or complete paragraphs—whichever you
like.
·
Write about a time (or times) when you experienced
what you consider to be true horror.
·
Write about a time (or times) when family or friends
experienced what you consider to be true horror.
·
Write about a time (or times) when you felt you were
in true danger.
·
Write about a time (or times) when you felt family or
friends were in true danger.
·
Write about a time (or times) when you experienced
something bizarre and uncanny.
·
Write about a time (or times) when family or friends
experienced something bizarre and uncanny.
·
What’s the worst thing that you can imagine happening
to you?
·
What’s the worst thing that you can imagine happening
to the people you love?
·
What’s the one thing that you fear becoming or doing
in the future?
·
What dark part of yourself have you struggled with
throughout your life?
When you’re finished, take a break if you
need to. (Responding to items like these can be rough emotionally!) When you’re
ready, come back to what you wrote and read over it. Are there any responses
which spark story ideas? Do you see a pattern in the responses that suggests
concepts or themes that you might use and return to in your work? Earlier, I
mentioned the death of my Uncle Red when I was nine. That same year I nearly
drowned in a lake. Those two experiences with mortality profoundly affected me,
and I’ve revisited them in my fiction numerous times over the years.
Hopefully,
I’ve given you some techniques that will help you take your horror fiction to
new heights. Remember, we don’t need another Stephen King knock-off. We need what
only you can supply – your fears and your dark imaginings. Now
get writing. We can’t wait to read your personal horror.
DEPARTMENT
OF SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION
It’s rare, but
April is one of those months when I have two novels coming out at the same
time: Lord of the Feast (April 16th) and The Atrocity
Engine (April 30th).
Both books deal
with the same mythos and share settings that I’ve used in a number of my
novels, but Lord of the Feast is a horror novel and The Atrocity
Engine is a dark fantasy adventure. You can enjoy each novel on its own
terms, but it might be interesting to read both and see how I present my mythos
in different ways.
Lord of the Feast
Review
Daniel R.
Robichaud II reviews Lord of the Feast! “Lord of the Feast is an
entertaining mix of bloody horror and honest emotion and a welcome return to
the surreal, gruesome horror hijinks that Waggoner’s longtime fans know and
love.”
Synopsis
Twenty years ago, a cult attempted to create their own
god: The Lord of the Feast. The god was a horrible, misbegotten thing, however,
and the cultists killed the creature before it could come into its full power.
The cultists trapped the pieces of their god inside mystic nightstones then
went their separate ways. Now Kate, one of the cultists’ children, seeks out
her long-lost relatives, hoping to learn the truth of what really happened on
that fateful night. Unknown to Kate, her cousin Ethan is following her, hoping
she’ll lead him to the nightstones so that he might resurrect the Lord of the
Feast – and this time, Ethan plans to do the job right.
Order Links:
Flame Tree Press Paperback and eBook: https://www.flametreepublishing.com/lord-of-the-feast-isbn-9781787586369.html
Barnes & Noble Paperback: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lord-of-the-feast-tim-waggoner/1143636012?ean=9781787586369
Barnes & Noble
eBook: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lord-of-the-feast-tim-waggoner/1143636012?ean=9781787586376
ISBN-10:
1787586367
ISBN-13:
9781787586369
Lord
of the Feast
Blog Tour
Flame
Tree is doing a blog tour for Lord of the Feast! If you want to follow along,
here’s who to follow and when their entries will appear:
16
Apr
Donna
Reads 03 (IG) @donnareads03
17
Apr
Bookish
Fairytale (IG) @bookishfairytale
Penfold
Layla (IG) @penfoldlayla
18
Apr
Fat
Guy Reading (IG) @fatguyreading
19
Apr
A
Little Mix of Vix (IG) @alittlemixofvix
Kaz
Loves Books 9 (IG) @kaz_loves_books9
22
Apr
Bookshelf
Wonders (IG) @bookshelf_wonders
Natural
Bri Books (IG) @naturalbri_books
23
Apr
Worm
Talk Book Club (IG) @worm_talk_book_club
24
Apr
The
Larl Bookworm (IG) @thelarlbookworm
26
Apr
Lauren
Bookstagram 3 (IG) @lauren.bookstagram3
26
Apr
Aratecla
The Bookrat (IG) @aratecla_the_bookrat
The
Atrocity Engine
Synopsis
Men
in Black
meets Hellraiser in this rollicking mash-up of urban fantasy and cosmic
horror from four-time Bram Stoker Award-Winning author Tim Waggoner.
Creatures
from dark dimensions infesting your home? Demonic beings trying to drive you
insane? Alien gods attempting to destroy your universe?
Just
call Maintenance.
This
underpaid and overworked secret organization is dedicated to battling forces
that seek to speed up Entropy and hasten the Omniverse’s inevitable death.
Neal
Hudson is a twenty-year veteran of Maintenance. A surveyor who drives through
the streets of Ash Creek, Ohio constantly scanning for the deadly energy known
as Corruption. Since the death of his previous partner, Neal prefers to work
alone, and he’s not happy when he’s assigned to mentor a rookie.
But
they better learn to get along fast.
The
Multitude, a group of godlike beings who seek to increase Entropy at every
opportunity, are creating an Atrocity Engine. This foul magical device can
destroy the Earth, and they don’t care how many innocent lives it takes to
build it. (Spoiler alert: It’s a lot!)
Just
another day on the job. . .
Praise for The Atrocity Engine
Here are some fantastic blurbs The Atrocity Engine has received so
far!
“Waggoner offers a fresh variation on the trope of a
covert agency combating evil in his blood-drenched Custodians of the Cosmos
series opener.” – Publishers Weekly
“This gripping dark fantasy boasts an indelible cast
and an unwavering pace.” – Kirkus Reviews
"THE ATROCITY ENGINE is a wild ride full of
entertaining scenarios and scary monsters!" – Booklist
“THE ATROCITY ENGINE is a kick-ass cross-genre
thrill ride of a novel! Holy moly! Tim Waggoner is easily one of today’s best
horror writers.” – Jonathan Maberry, NY Times bestselling author of CAVE 13 and
NECROTEK
"This is edge-of-your-seat Horror Fantasy. It's
as if Stephen King wrote MEN IN BLACK!" —Scott Sigler, #1 NYT Bestselling
author of EARTHCORE
“Fast-paced, cleverly thought-through, and deeply
unnerving in all the right places—urban horror fantasy with a decidedly creepy
difference. Don't read it in the dark!” – Diane Duane, New York Times
bestselling author of TALES OF THE FIVE: THE LIBRARIAN
“A brutal, dark, and disturbing novel that will live
in your nightmares. It’s so good!” – Horror Reads
Purchase
Links
Amazon
Hardback:
https://www.amazon.com/Atrocity-Engine-Tim-Waggoner/dp/1949890899/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1699124447&sr=1-2
B&N
Hardcover:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/book/1144299910?ean=9781949890891
SCHEDULED APPEARANCES
StokerCon 2024. May 30th to
June 2nd. San Diego, California.
In Your Write Mind. June 27th
to June 30th. Greensburg, Pennsylvania.
IGW Genre Con. August 17th
and August 18th. Huntington, West Virginia.
WHERE TO FIND ME ONLINE
- Newsletter Sign-Up: https://timwaggoner.com/contact.htm
- Website: www.timwaggoner.com
- Amazon Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Tim-Waggoner/author/B001JP0XFM?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true
- Blog: http://writinginthedarktw.blogspot.com/
- YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/timwaggonerswritinginthedark
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tim.waggoner.9
- Instagram: tim.waggoner.scribe
- Threads: @tim.waggoner.scribe@threads.net
