The horror writer co-opts the reader’s imagination to scare the pants off them. Violation, possession, mutation, confinement and insignificance are all terrifying. Engaging the character’s senses engages the reader’s emotions. The protocols of horror can be adopted for other genres.…
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How I write: Horror
Tagged with: horror, How I write, short story, Story development
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
How I write: Crime
Crime stories revolve around resolving a mystery. The nature of the crime may illustrate the society it happens in. The mystery format can drive stories that are not about a crime. Crime and mystery fiction demands more attention to plot…
Tagged with: crime fiction, How I write, short story, Story development
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
How I write: Historical fiction
Historical stories are born of interest in a particular time and place. Story-specific research is necessary as the story develops. Details of the setting and dialogue make a story feel authentic, but overdoing it will lose the reader. Period-specific objects…
Tagged with: historical fiction, How I write, short story, Story development
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
How I write: Fantasy
Fantasy has many subgenres, the commonest being epic and urban. Fantasy tropes can be deconstructed and subverted while retaining the power that made them tropes. The reader of a fantasy story will assume anything is possible unless shown it isn’t.…
Tagged with: fantasy, Ghost, How I write, short story, Story development
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
How I write: Science fiction
An idea drawn from current science or politics is likely to end up being science fiction. The story needs characters impacted by the idea and a situation that forces them to confront it. A story set in the present can…
Tagged with: How I write, Ideas, science fiction, Story development
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
Posted in Wednesday Pontification, Writing
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