A Block of Horror

Today I decided to make a list in honor of Halloween, or more appropriately named, the Horror market. While I don't generally like this genre, I recently came across an article written by Stephen King way back in 1973. It's titled "The Horror Market Writer and the Ten Bears." While there was way too much in his article to cover in this blog, I thought I'd share his "Top Ten Bears"--fears people have--that he has used and encourages other horror writers to use when forming their stories.

1. Fear of the dark
2. Fear of squishy things
3. Fear of deformity
4. Fear of snakes
5. Fear of rats
6. Fear of closed-in places
7. Fear of insects (especially spiders, flies, beetles)
8. Fear of death
9. Fear of others (paranoia)
10. Fear for someone else.

"The bears can be combined, too," King said, but one of his comments that most caught my eye was his opinion about using vampires, werewolves, and mummies. "My humble advice," he said, "is to leave these bears to their well-deserved rest. They've been done to death."

Perhaps that was true back then, but the recent hoopla created by the Twilight series tells me it's resurrection day. Or is it just that the undead have reawakened?

Anyway, back to the bears. While King used this list to illustrate points he made later in his article, he also made it very clear that the above fears are not the only terrors we can use. Most often, writers have their own closeted skeletons they could use to scare the begeebees out of readers. How about you? Do you have any skeletons you'd like to share? I do. Did you know, for instance, I once had a ghost--I'm not kidding--creep up my leg?

CHECK IT OUT!

I read of a lady who promoted her upcoming book at a book fair/signing by making two buttons. One announced her name and the title of her book (which she wore). The other bore the message, "husband of (author's name), author of (book title)" which her spouse wore. I thought this was a fun and clever idea because she and her husband not only utilized the power of the written word, but they also didn't have to feel obligated to vocally promote every time they talked to someone; it was almost like she could be proud and humble at the same time.

So, that's what I'm doing now. I'm using the power of the written word and my blog (not to be confused with my spouse--he's much more appealing) to promote my soon-to-be-published article on yourLDSneighborhood.com It comes out Wednesday, October 24th. CHECK IT OUT! It even has "Halloween" creatures in it.

Exception to the Rule: a List

I found another good list for writers. It was published in an old (March 2003) issue of Writer's Digest's magazine's "Novel Writer," and it came from an article by James Scott Bell, titled "Exception to the Rule. " In summary, this is what it said:

As most of us know, "show don't tell," is the rule. However, there are important exceptions--reasons--we should sometimes tell instead of show. For instance, "telling" might be the quickest way to delineate a character's emotions or set up for a forthcoming, intense scene; but the best way to know if a scene should be told or shown is to rank it from 0-10 on a scene intensity scale.

And now the list, or in this case, the scale:

10= Extreme emotion, handle with care. Very few scenes per book should hit this level. Show.

8-9=Big scenes and turning points. Show.

6-7=Conflict, important emotions and personal turmoil, sharp dialogue. Show.

5= The middle point. Lean toward telling on any scene at this level or below. This is a good place to start scenes that are about to build to a greater intensity.

3-4=Transitions and set up scenes. Another good place to start "about to build" scenes.

1-2=Danger! Get out as soon as you can.

0=DO NOT ENTER. Includes lengthy setting descriptions, especially in the first chapter.

There you have it! So now all you have to do is figure out what level each of your scenes are at and plot them on a graph (just a suggestion) to see if their linear progression makes sense to your novel. Right?

Or is it write?

What They Did Right #2

SAVAGE TWISTS

Plot twists are unexpected elements or events that not only take the audience by surprise but also increase a novel's suspense. Jeffrey S. Savage's novel, "Dead on Arrival," illustrates this technique very well.

First off--and that's just it--first off, right on page 6, Savage begins with a twist: an odd character, Pinky, tells the protagonist, Shandra Covington, his dead wife is trying to kill him. Then, on page 8, Pinky tells her he's dead. Quite a twist! Savage continues to use this "dead on," ploy throughout the rest of the book (leaving a string of bodies along the way, I might add), thereby leaving the reader in a constant state of questioning and guessing. A good thing.

Second, Savage adds twists to his minor story lines, too, as delineated by the fact that Covington's long time, "best" friend, a handsome cop, suddenly becomes engaged to a slinky, and in my opinion, quite suspicious female. Not a good thing, as far as Covington's concerned, but a very good thing for increasing tension and conflict within the protagonist. It also, again, leaves the reader questioning. Will he really go through with the marriage?

Third, Savage takes us on a "who's really who" journey; i.e., one day, Pinky's dead, and the next day he's not. Back and forth, back and forth, until we don't know who Pinky is at all. In fact, he might even be Covington's father. Now that's twisted! And worse, who really is the bad guy? Or is "it" a girl? Only Savages mind can unwind that mess.

Tag with a Twist!

I've been tagged, but the "twist?" I'm answering with a purpose in mind. First, pretend I'm the reader (Maybe an editor? A reluctant reader?) you most want to "catch" with a story you've written (or if you don't have one, use a published novel). Next, study my "tag" to find out what most interests me:

My Reading: My favorite books are those that grab my heart and keep me turning the pages to the very end. Usually, that means "Gothic romances" which are filled with real romance--not explicit sex, suspense, and themes that make me think. In other words, I like the kind of books I'm trying to write, which is romantic suspense with "meat."

The best examples I can think of are "Jane Eyre" and "Rebecca." Yes, they're old, and yes they might be hard to read (the old writing style, you know), but they are soooo romantic, soooo suspenseful, and soooo thought provoking. Fortunately, there's a modern Gothic I love, too: Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series. Whoever thought the "much older hero with a haunted past" could come back to thrill us all?

Total number of books owned: Like every other author I know, this is nearly impossible to calculate. Books are not only our life blood, but also our "study guides."But if I had to guess, I'd say somewhere up to a hundred or so (but then, I have no idea how many are packed in the basement). I know this might be a small number compared to some of you out there, but remember, as I said before, I like books with "meat," so I don't just buy books because they're books. I buy books--both fiction and nonfiction--that I think will enrich me in some way. The only nonfiction I tend to buy, however, are "How to Write . . ." books. The rest is fiction.

Last Book I Bought: I haven't read it yet, but because it's in my desired "market," I bought Brad E. Hainsworth's "Revenge and Redemption." Just prior to that, I bought "Eclipse" and "Austenland."

5 Meaningful Books:
1)- "The Book of Mormon" and all the scriptures. Not only do I rely on them throughout all of my life, but also in my writing. I can't even describe how many "inspirations" and "you must do this" messages I've received through reading them.

2)- "The Outsiders," because it was the book my 6th grade teacher was reading to my class when its "golden" words caught my heart and filled me with the knowledge I would be a writer.

3)- Shakespeare and all the classics, both fiction and poetry, I've read that have left their imprint on me.

4)- "Twilight" series. It's meaningful in ways I previously mentioned, but also because my own writing has improved as I've studied and mimicked her sensual--using all the senses--style.

5)- Jane Austen's books. I love her wit, her eye for romance, and her uncanny understanding of human nature. Somehow, she knows how to tug a girl's heart, even through the most "boring" of scenarios, like "Mansfield Park," all the way to the last page.

Third, and here's the challenge, "pitch" your book to me. Make me want to read it. If you'd like, you can use the following pattern:

When (character's name) faces (character's challenge/goal), he or she overcomes (these obstacles) and learns . . .

Hint: Try to keep your pitch limited to three sentences, AND it would be a really good thing to mention the romantic lead.

Finally, I tag: Stephanie Humphreys & Aneeka.

Have fun, all!