The Horror GenreWriting Scary Stories

Purpose of Horror Story (film)

Create FEAR within your audience (Reader or viewer)

Build suspense by making the reader or viewer feel tense, as they are faced with the unknown and potential danger

Send a message to the reader/viewer about the threat of things in the real world

Entertain us through thrills and chills

Origins Part of Ancient European culture – myths and

legends Ancient Greek mythology (Medusa, Cyclops

etc) 12th and 13th Century the Catholic Church

(Vatican) attempted to re-establish the power it held and the charge of heresy was mixed with accusations of witchcraft (predominantly women)

Literature and Art reflected man’s fear of Hell as created by the Catholic Church

The Middle Ages Position of the church was upheld by

perpetuating FEAR of going to HELL, so Hell and horror had to be shown as an option to not believing in Heaven and the power of the Catholic Church.

Barbaric inquisitions, tortures and witch trials created a nightmarish world where no-one was safe and death was everywhere.

Dracula (Vlad the Impaler) Traditional horror ‘Archetype’ of blood

sucking vampire came from a real person (tyrant)

Vlad's cruelty wasn't confined to this means of execution. He decapitated, blinded, strangled, hanged, burned, boiled, skinned, 'stuck stakes in both breasts of mothers and thrust their babies onto them' (http://www.tabula-rasa.info/DarkAges/VladTheImpaler.html)

Edgar Allan Poe One of the originators of the more

traditional ‘Gothic’ horror Wrote stories and poems about the

supernatural, murder, torture, being buried alive and hauntings

Work is a philosophical reflection about the evil side of human nature and the afterlife

Hollywood and Horror Films With the late 1890s and early 1900s

came the first short (silent films) and the first ‘archetypal’ characters (that were derived from historical people and events)

Dracula, Frankenstein, Werewolf etc These archetypal characters became

entrenched in the culture of cinematography.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Frankenstein's_monster_(Boris_Karloff).jpg

Literature and Art There was a market for Horror in both

Literature and Art; and with the development of Hollywood and the film industry, there was a market for Horror films (consequently horror writing).

From traditional Gothic horror, to modern horror and psychopaths, to Comedy and Horror musical theatre, such as: Rocky Horror Show.

Basic Features of Horror Good versus Evil – struggle for the balance

of power (something or someone represents evil)

Protagonist – hero or one who represents goodness

A killer/villain/monster that has a trademark behaviour or evil trait

Plot involves a conflict or problem to overcome – in horror stories the end does not always resolve

Horror Writing Techniques Sensory description – feel, hear, see,

smell, taste, touch Build suspense – keep the

reader/viewer guessing Unexpected events or twists Events that defy logic or reason Details that make us nervous or

uncomfortable

Contemporary Horror Individuals are no longer fearful of the

unknown or of fantastical creatures Dysfunctional real world is exposed, fear of

the individual, mentally unstable and a break down in law and order

Protagonist and antagonist now exhibit qualities of both good and bad

Children are often antagonists or protagonists and balance of power is unclear

Contemporary audience Is cynical and sceptical, so horror

needs to be believable and not too far fetched

Building of tension, unexpected twists and imagery needs to be crafted carefully

Ending can leave audience with more questions than answers

Consider what horror films reveal about social fears and concerns...

How can I start a story? “. . . naked, naked . . . I don’t have any clothes . . . so so

cold . . .” “Who is this?” I asked. “So cold,” the voice said again. “Who is this?” “. . . cold and naked. Sleeping in the trees.” He hung up then. It was the fourth evening in a week that he’d

called. The first night he only grunted and moaned. Two days later, he spoke in single words. Those words were cold and naked. The voice was definitely masculine but strained and frightened. The next night he used the same two words, but he doubled up on them from time to time, saying, naked, cold, cold, naked. He was pleading, but I didn’t know what he wanted. He didn’t seem threatening, just desperate and crazed.

Tips Detail Unexpected twists Build suspense Believability Hope for character Point or purpose Thoughts and feelings