In an article for Writer’s Digest, Ran Walker offers advice for writing better horror and surprising your reader.
- Use identifiable tropes but be original. Horror fans have expectations, but you can subvert them or use them in new ways. Your audience should feel frightened or uncomfortable, and they expect a certain amount of physical conflict and risk of death. “We don’t want to deprive our readers of what makes something a horror story, just because they might expect some semblance of what we have planned, but we do want to find our own unique ways of expressing these ideas so they feel fresh and original,” Walker writes.
- Flip archetypes on their heads. Horror stories are filled with identifiable types, including the horror fan, the final girl, and the old person who tries to warn your cast of danger. “Final Girl” is practically a sub-genre of its own now. Recognize and use these characters in a new way.
- Read in your genre. Reading in your genre helps you identify what ideas have been used and how. “The more you read in your genre, the better chances you will have of navigating a path that is more unique,” Walker says.
- Don’t be lazy. “When you are writing horror, it can be tempting to go for the easy scares or gross-outs,” Walker. notes. “Be willing to take risks and play the long(er) game when it comes to scaring your readers.”
- Use what scares you. If you aren’t afraid of ghosts, possession, or zombies, you might not capture the right atmosphere and emotion in your writing. “Think about what genuinely frightens you and why that thing frightens you,” Walker recommends. “There are literally thousands of things to be afraid of, and, interestingly, most of them are not explored in books or films.”
