“Regression is slow. Gradual. Unhurried in it’s bid to drive one to madness. Creeping tendrils digging further and further into the mind like forgotten seeds, sprouting forests of disquiet and skepticism as to ones’s true self; the conundrum of self-agnosticism.”
It was a thought that passed through his mind as quickly and as slowly as it took to say it out loud. The sprawling forest echoed back his stilted voice, rising with the muffled squawk of bird somewhere above and beyond the slits of light breaking through twisting vines. A golden hue that saturated the world in blurred sepia.
He’d been walking for a while now, though it was hard to tell. The smell of pine was rich in his nostrils, overbearing and powerful against his senses. Muffled voices rose and fell about him, sifting through tree barks, carpets of grass and thickened tree roots about him.
Drifting between them were familiar songs he’d heard in his youth, at church and at home with his mother’s soothing voice. He could almost see her silhouette against the golden aura of light seeping through the kitchen window. Could almost reach out and touch her…
The world fell into silence.
A crackling sound echoed above his head like thunder.
His body contorted into itself against the sound, frigid coils shooting through every nerve ending. Images of his mother slid away into the blurred vision of forest before him.
The sound shot through his mind again.
He took off through the forest, suddenly aware of the rising crescendo of wails that followed from above. Screeching his name through the cracking shots resounding all about him. Yet no matter how far he ran, the sounds blared through his mind and ears.
The slits of light were quickly fading, throwing him into a cold nothingness. The air around him grew thicker, making breathing almost impossible. A weight fell over his body, bringing with it a crashing realization; he hadn’t been running at all.
The stillness of his body kicked his fear into overdrive, bolts of it rocketing through his petrified limbs like lightning.
With what felt like superhuman strength, he fought through the syrupy air trying to keep him locked in the darkness. His arms shot forward, only to bounce against a barrier and flop back against his abdomen. His constricted body bounced again in the darkness, arms floundering against the barrier in futility.
He found his voice again and began to yell against the consuming darkness – despair his only hope against the nebulous confines.
~
A sea of shocked faces in an ocean of black cloth, gazed at the coffin as it began to thrum. Inhumane lamentations surging through the wood.
“Bury him quicker.” A woman said, stepping forward quickly from the crowd, bible clutched tight against hitching bosom.
A peaceful village in Wiltshire is shattered by a disaster which strikes without reason or explanation, leaving behind a trail of misery and horror. A yawning, bottomless crack spreads through the earth, out of which creeps a fog that resembles no other.
Whatever it is, it must be controlled.
First Thoughts
I must admit that it took a few stop-starts to get far enough in the book, to actually finish it. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t that great either. The scenes of utter violence and human depravity were quite dark and James Herbert didn’t hold back on the descriptions. A very old-school horror.
Understandably, the story focuses on a fog that drives people literally insane. It is only this fact, that justifies the horrific events unfolding within the book. If you yourself can imagine, there is no escaping an intangible force such as fog; a real fear-factor.
There were moments when I (unintentionally and out of habit) compared Herbert to King. Yet, they are of two very different persuasions when it comes to horror. Nonetheless, the book was action packed, filled with drama right until the final chapter – and the main character was tolerable throughout.
I cringed at the violence but wasn’t pushed to the point of fear any time while reading, making the book feel like those slasher films where people die gruesome deaths while the story itself is relatively simple and straight forward.
The Story
We are introduced to John Holman who just happens to be in the right place at the wrong time. An earthquake erupts, causing a fissure to cut through a village. From within the crevice, a yellowish fog rises from the depths and with it, despair and horror rocks the village and then the country at large.
None can escape it, not even children. Shivers.
John spends his time attempting to figure out who caused the catastrophe (though he has an inkling of an idea) and eventually it becomes a race and effort, to quell the insanity-inducing fog.
Writing
This is a much older Herbert book and it is evident in various scenes throughout the book. Not just the lack of cellphones and “modern” technology, but also some offhanded statements here and there about women in general – slightly misogynistic.
What stands out most in the writing, is how visceral the deaths and gore are written. As I’ve said before, James Herbert does not hold back. He describes the acts of violence fully. Including a disturbing scene containing a pair of garden shears. You know? Those giant pair of scissors used to trim hedges? Yeah…
The characters are well portrayed, with enough distinction between them to not appear as “different character same hat” kind of roles. There is even an element of romance between everything, as Holman and his love Casey, work to overcome the horror of the fog, the people affected by the fog… and themselves.
Final Thoughts
The Fog is not my favourite book but it’s also not the worst book I’ve read. There are other Herbert novels I’ve enjoyed and I’m currently reading another two of his works.
I wasn’t left with any real or lasting effect. This rather short and uninspired book review should be evident enough.
The Fog was first published in 1975.
Did you know: James Herbert’s novels The Fog, The Dark, and The Survivor have been hailed as classics of the genre.
James Herbert was Britain’s number one bestselling writer (a position he held ever since publication of his first novel) and one of the world’s top writers of thriller/horror fiction.
He was one of our greatest popular novelists, whose books are sold in thirty-three other languages, including Russian and Chinese. Widely imitated and hugely influential, his 19 novels have sold more than 42 million copies worldwide.
It is with great excitement that I present to you my first “solo” published novella, Beneath The Wax. A big thank you to Nicky from Chasing Dreams Publishing who believed in me and pushed me to complete this work. And many thanks to quite a number of people, some of whom may never see this post, but were integral to sustaining me while I was writing. Thank you all.
1723: Constantine Bourgeois is a man of many secrets. Artisan by day, killer by night, he turns his victims into wax figures for his shop.
2045: Richard Baines works for the renowned Anthony Garfield Historical Museum. His mundane existence is a stark counterpoint to his fascination with serial killers and science fiction.
Constantine’s nightmares drive him to undertake a journey to uncover a long-forgotten secret. Richard’s research uncovers a company secret and the mystery of Madame Bourgeois.
Two men, two timelines, and truths that will only be revealed when they look Beneath the Wax…
Book procurement: I bought the original copy ages ago and read through it. In a recent (okay maybe not so recent) Christmas gift exchange, I got The Gunslinger revised version from my cousin – see, I am easy to buy gifts for.
Rating:
An intriguing 4 out of 5
Synopsis:
In The Gunslinger (originally published in 1982), King introduces his most enigmatic hero, Roland Deschain of Gilead, the Last Gunslinger. He is a haunting, solitary figure at first, on a mysterious quest through a desolate world that eerily mirrors our own. Pursuing the man in black, an evil being who can bring the dead back to life, Roland is a good man who seems to leave nothing but death in his wake.
First Thoughts
I will admit that I’ve been meaning to reread this series for a while, and when The Dark Tower movie was announced, I was motivated further. Unfortunately, my original Tower series is in storage somewhere so I found the revised version in a box of growing “To-Be-Read” collections. This review won’t be a comparison between the different book editions and the movie, though I might make references to the original and the movie compared to this revised version.
Everyone remembers this opening line: The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed. It still gives me goosebumps as it says much in so little. It works an introduction to the two main characters of the book. We know one is a gunslinger, giving a Western feel. The “man in black” already sounds like a bad guy or someone who has done something to the gunslinger, hence the pursuit.
The second line is classic king and really sets the standard for the rest of the novel. This line goes “The desert was the apotheosis of all deserts…” and that age old King writing style throws you into the middle of quite an epic quest (when considering all volumes in the series).
The Story
In its simplest form, the story follows Roland Deschain of Gilead in pursuit of Walter O’Dim a.k.a The Man in Black (who bares many other names as seen in other King books such as The Stand). Beyond the man in black lies the “apotheosis” of every dimension in existence – The Dark Tower. And yet the tower’s significance must begin with the man in black.
This first book is basically setting precedence for what will occur in future books – the journey. We visit desolate landscapes, a seemingly endless desert, a small town (which reminded me of a scene during The Saint of Killers memories from the comic book Preacher), a way station, and various other interesting places.
The story also shifts between past Roland and current Roland, where we begin where his pursuit for Walter/Man In Black began and why. We meet a cast of characters from his youth and his travels, we explore the beauty of Gilead (and its tragedies) and the desolation that has overrun the world.
We also get to meet the fated Jake Chambers (who is nothing like the Jake in the movie, nor do their meeting of the Gunslinger match except for the presence of a desert). That is all I can say about him…
Writing
I am pretty sure almost everyone knows I am a Stephen King fan. He’s writing is something I strive for in terms of execution – I don’t want to be another King but I sure want to learn from him. What annoys people about King is his seemingly laborious descriptions, but these are what give the characters and the world a greater depth. You begin to imagine the characters as real, the worlds they explore tangible, and the emotions they express relatable. You don’t need to be the character of have a frame of reference to them, because King gives you all of that as you read.
Roland’s character is definitely written well. The stoic-yet-drained, fatigued-but-relentless, kind-but-maligned gunslinger with a past riddled with death, pain, and suffering which are also the dull motivators that drum with each heart beat. We see many facets of this tuckered-out gunslinger, and we are only in the first book.
Final Thoughts
There are not a lot of disparities between the original and the revised except that early King edge in how the original reads. There are too many disparities between the movie and the book to even count that I will view them as two separate universes completely.
Final thoughts on the book itself however are a lot more confused between my memory of the first book and reading it again. Let alone that ending, which shocked me, as the following books clearly require this particular concept to work. I mean! What!?
So now I’m even more enthused to read through the series again and rekindle my favourite Stephen King flame that is The Dark Tower.
Did you know: The Dark Tower was borne from short stories published to The Magazine Of Fantasy and Science Fiction? The inspiration itself comes from a poem by English author Robert Browning, “Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came“, written in 1855.
“THE GUNSLINGER” OCT. 1978
“THE WAY STATION” APR. 1980
“THE ORACLE AND THE MOUNTAINS” FEB. 1981
“THE SLOW MUTANTS” JUL 1981
“THE GUNSLINGER AND THE DARK MAN” NOV 1981.
On a side note, I saw the premise (and trailer) for Arrivals on Netflix, and it reminded me of “Try To Remember” which is a short story by Frank Herbert in The Priests of Psi. Here’s the premise for the Herbert short story in my book review of this anthology:
Try to Remember!
A spaceship arrives on Earth. The aliens within send out representatives who speak in weird noises and make weird body movements. The reason: interpret the message or be eradicated. Thus the worlds greatest minds across the planet converge in an effort to make sense of the message.
The story is told from a woman’s perspective, who happens to be the only female in a room full of men. And desert sand. (PS: she’s a linguist) Really well written and a commentary on the different ways men and women think or rather, interpret the world around them. Women are the future!
And here’s the premise on Netflix:
Arrivals
A linguist charged with finding a way to communicate with aliens that have landed on Earth uncovers a connection with meaning for mankind and herself.
A stretch? Perhaps, but I find the similarities quite fascinating nonetheless…
Aldo Evans is a desperate man. Fired from his job and deeply in debt, he struggles to balance a broken family life with his passion for music.
Luce Figura is a troubled woman. A rhythmic perfectionist, she is haunted by childhood trauma and scorned by her religiously devout mother.
Ross McArthur is a wiseass. Orphaned as an infant and raised by the state, his interests include game shows, home-grown weed, occasional violence and the bass guitar.
They are Public Alibi. A rock n’ roll band going nowhere fast.
When the sharp-suited, smooth talking producer Gappa Bale offers them a once in a lifetime chance to make their dreams come true, they are caught up in a maelstrom of fame, obsession, music and murder.
Soon, Aldo, Luce and Ross must ask themselves: is it really better to burn out than to fade away?
First Thoughts
I genuinely love musicals. Though thinking about it, Tenacious D and The Relentless (American Satan) wouldn’t think themselves musicals even when they technically are. This is also true, despite their deals with the Devil cliched contract that leads to epic music, drugs broken friendships and all underhanded devilish tricks. I genuinely thought of a Scottish version of American Satan while reading this book, with a very distinct difference between the two; D.A. Watson knows what he’s talking about. The musical notation, the combination of story telling and musical knowledge, the character portrayal and depth, with combination of horror and fear that makes you resonate with the characters, their individuality, thoughts and persona, and watching the constant digression like the best movie you’ve ever seen. I even have music in my head from a written story. That is true talent.
The Story
We follow Aldo, Luce, and Ross on their musical journey from small town nobodies to musical stars of fame and wonder in a very short amount of time, and at no small price. Gappa Bale is more than he seems even when he appears after an amazing gig at a local bar. Gappa, representing Easy Going Records, approaches the trio after the stellar performance with an opportunity to bring their music dreams to life – but then, things begin to spiral out of control.
Writing
I absolutely adore the writing. It’s easy to read yet fluid and real. Each character has a unique voice and character persona which carries well throughout the book. Switching between characters does not throw you off the story.
Aldo has his own voice and thought processes that you can easily fall in to. With a music passion that hinges on obsession but a true love and care for his boy Dylan whom he cannot be a father to as much as he wants, puts him as the perfect front man for Public Alibi.
Luce’s Italian Catholic background and shake in faith from an event in her past combined with her love of music and drumming has hardened her to be an amazing drummer and hardcore band member. Her character comes out strong and infallible regardless of her collision with Gappa Bale.
Rose is strong as an ox and kind as one too, not afraid to show the horns when he has to. His shaky childhood as an orphan and his work at the hospital shape him into an amazing young man. A killer on the bass guitar and true friend, his character is clear and distinct and strong. I loved him.
D.A. Watson is able to delve into the individual characters of Aldo, Ross, Luce, and Gappa without jarring chapter breaks or unnecessary story changes. Brilliant writing.
Final Thoughts
Absolutely adored this book both from a horror perspective (Remember May wow) and from a story and music perspective. A truly inspiring musical journey, intermingled with musical folklore and music knowledge that makes you question the fame of popular rock artists. Like a conspiracy theory and fantastic book all in one. Cuttin’ Heads makes me want to pick up my guitar again, while questioning any person who comes to me with a record label deal.
Oh and that last chapter between Aldo and Gappa Bale? Absolutely epic!
It has been a while since I posted any book reviews, and it’s not for want of trying. The last couple of months (how is it almost June already?) have been quite trying on many fronts, but as with many things in life, they pass on. Along with my desire to continue “horrifying” my blog, with the occasional splash of sci-fi and fantasy to cure the nightmares, the next few books up on review will be dedicated to horror.
One of these is an upcoming book from author D.A Watson.
Aldo Evans is a desperate man. Fired from his job and deeply in debt, he struggles to balance a broken family life with his passion for music.
Luce Figura is a troubled woman. A rhythmic perfectionist, she is haunted by childhood trauma and scorned by her religiously devout mother.
Ross McArthur is a wiseass. Orphaned as an infant and raised by the state, his interests include game shows, home-grown weed, occasional violence and the bass guitar.
They are Public Alibi. A rock n’ roll band going nowhere fast.
When the sharp-suited, smooth talking producer Gappa Bale offers them a once in a lifetime chance to make their dreams come true, they are caught up in a maelstrom of fame, obsession, music and murder.
Soon, Aldo, Luce and Ross must ask themselves: is it really better to burn out than to fade away?
I have already started diving into this book and I must admit I’m really enjoying it. I’ll be part of the Cuttin’ Heads blog tour and this is just my shout out to Nicky Stephens, my editor over at Chasing Dreams Publishing, who told me about the book, and to Rachel of Rachel’s Random Resources, who generously provided a copy.
From my experience watching and reading horror novels, grief always leaves an indelible impression on characters, even more so when those characters are parents, and deeper still when the grief is driven by the loss of a child.
In some cases it is not the loss of a child physically but mentally, that old case where rearing children in a particular way leads the child to exhibiting unexpected behaviour. The “christian” parents whose child abandons the faith. The overprotective parents whose child rebels. And so on.
Sadly, in most cases, it does not take a supernatural occurrence to drive the child into that state, but adding the hyperbole that is horror into the mix, we as the audience see the depths that grief can bring out in people.
It’s not always extreme cases, such as the abuse Carrie White faces from her peers and mother in Carrie, or Alessa Gillespie’s abuse and eventual immolation in Silent Hill or the abusive history of Toshio Saeki in The Grudge.
Sometimes it’s much, much less subtle, such as Cody in Before I Wake:
Still mourning the death of their son, Mark and Jessie Hobson welcome foster child Cody into their lives. Soon they discover he has a strange ability.
The Story
The premise for this dark-fantasy horror film is quite simple. Cody has the ability to make his dreams come to life while he is asleep, and they vanish as soon as he wakes. Sadly he can’t control the ability, and as you can imagine, his nightmares are inevitable.
Writing Style / Atmosphere
Before I Wake carries less of a grisly/dark atmosphere prevalent in horror films. Initially it is much brighter, creating a false sense of security and augmented by Cody’s first dreams coming to life as beautiful blue butterflies, real as they are surreal.
As the story progresses, so does the growing oppressive aura around the whole film, deepened at night when shadows loom around every corner, automatically drawing our eyes to them as we anticipate something lurking in the darkness. This digression is then shown when the butterflies become moths.
Writing: Word choice is as important to creating this gloomy atmosphere as lighting and camera technique is to movies. Not every scene should be foreboding, but there will be elements that coalesce to paint an overarching mood/ambience.
Word choice will hint at the unsaid, willing the reader to see more than you’ve told.
Foreshadowing gives readers a glimpses of what is to or may come, increasing the sense of apprehension.
Sub-plots that seem minor or circumstantial (The Cranker Man) can merge with the bigger picture to tell a much deeper, darker story.
A few deaths necessary to the plot will help add to the reality of this horror.
Fear Factor
Before I Wake centers around a child’s known fear they can’t explain, made manifest by parents who downplay that fear.
The character development of both Jessie and Cody, intertwine perfectly to bring this fear alive. Cody is aware that his nightmares coming to life could mean losing his parents both a) physically from the nightmare monster, and b) physically as his ability may scare them off and send him to another foster home. To a child’s mind, these are very real fears.
You see how he attempts to overcome it in the choices he makes, such as reading books about butterflies to keep the nightmares away (among others), and drinking anything to keep himself awake.
Writing: Writing about a fear is never easy. This is why character development plays an important role in creating that sense of unease and dread.
Let the fear correlate with the characters. Cody’s main fear is the nightmare creature he calls “The Cranker Man” and later on in the movie we get the full story of where the name comes from and why he is so afraid of him.
Ground the fear into the characters until its almost tangible enough that it manifests itself into an almost irrational terror. Cody forced to stay awake leads to an incident that literally haunts him later in the movie, solidifying his fear of both sleeping and The Cranker Man.
Not all fears are rational, however, how you inject and show that fear in characters will make it more plausible and relatable. This helps you turn even the most irrational fear into a paranoid-fueled rational fear.
Character Flaw
The true horror is not in the fact that Cody’s nightmares come to life per se, but grief.
Cody’s grief created The Cranker Man.
Jessie Hobson’s indomitable grief drove her to use Cody’s abilities for herself. Her first child accidentally drowned in the bath so, as a recently grieving mother also suffering from deep-seated guilt, you can imagine the appeal of your new foster child bringing your dead child to life at the mere cost of sleeping. This obsession eventually blurs the line between being a good mom and being a grieving mother.
Mark, Jessie’s husband, sees his wife’s digression and gets drawn in too at first. Sadly he does little to help comfort her, even when he realises just how far she’s been willing to go to use Cody’s abilities.
Writing: In my opinion, writing horror shouldn’t only be about scares and gore and ghosts (among other things). Yes there’s a place for it, but looking at Before I Wake, there’s also delving into the human psyche.
Put yourself in each character’s shoes and ask yourself how you would react in that situation. More importantly, why.
Asking why helps build solid characters. Does the answer slowly grind away at the character’s sanity or belief to the point where logic and realism blur with the illogical and surreal.
What are your character’s flaws? Test them severely. Usually in horrors, the characters end up making bad decisions. (Running up the stairs, going into the basement, playing that evil blues record they were told not to).
It would have been easy for this movie to simply be about Jessie and Mark trying to figure out what causes Cody’s dreams coming to life, but before that we see Jessie’s character digression, fueled by the very real and palpable experience of grief. We see innocents suffer for it too. This character flaw not only frustrates (don’t go there!), but shows us that sometimes we’re willing to justify doing the unthinkable for the sake of getting what we think we need. Whether its safety or
Isn’t that true horror?
The Twist
The visible “Cranker Man” is not the villain of this film. He is actually a physical manifestation of Cody’s fear, interlinked with an event in his past and his own coping mechanism for that trauma. He is more Cody’s protector than some nightmare creature like Freddy Kruger would be.
Cody himself is not the villain of this film. Sure it’s his nightmares and physically materialised creature that threatens those around him, but it’s really just how his young mind is trying to cope.
Jessie herself is not the villain either, though her actions are selfish and put her herself, husband and Cody in danger. But as explained, she too is suffering and this is her way of coping, though in her eventual effort to finally solve the mystery of Cody’s dream, she helps bring closure to everyone.
The real villain is actually something more real and not at all supernatural or otherwise. It’s a reality that affects many people in the real world, and this film is about how it affects those around people who fall victim to both its effect and high mortality rate. It was given a personification in Before I Wake, the hyperbole of horror, to show how devastating its effects would be.
Spoiler – highlight to read it.
“The Cranker Man” is Cody mispronouncing the word cancer, which is how his biological mother died, and the Cranker Man is the only way his young mind is able to grasp this unseen monster. This real killer.
Writing: There’s a lot to pull out of this in terms of writing, and how it is the reason why the story, fear factor, character flaw, and final twist work so well together. This is because the horror is not a supernatural being, or some otherworldly creature that one can simply overcome by stabbing or shutting a door leading to the “beyond”. Nor is it a masked killer who is actually just human. It is the real horror of every day life for some people.
Not every creature/entity has to be mythological or supernatural. Sometimes its something as simple as a virus e.g. zombie apocalypse.
The story itself is not always about the creature/entity, but how those around it are coping with the reality of its existence. The entities add the suspense and action. E.g. The Mist by Stephen King.
Not every horror ends in despondency. Sometimes there really is light at the end of the tunnel, and they live on past the darkness.
Fun Fact
Before I Wake was initially called Somnia and was co-written by Director Mike Flanagan and co-writer Jeff Howard. Flanagan had to say about writing the script for this film:
“I think that for someone like me, monsters and ghosts are very real but only in so much as the ones we create, the ones we are all haunted by. They have everything to do with our past, with regrets, mistakes we’ve made, people and time we’ve lost … Somnia, even more than Oculus, is dealing with intense feelings of loss, and of the worse kind. I don’t know if there’s any real world horror, or a personal level at least, that can compare with losing a child. I think my other movies have been building up to Somnia in a way.”
Here’s a trailer for the movie…
Let me know if you’ve seen this film and your thoughts about it. If you’re a writer, horror or otherwise, was this helpful to you? Any way that it could be improved? Let me know in the comments below.
Jack Torrance’s new job at the Overlook Hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. As the off-season caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, he’ll have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his writing. But as the harsh winter weather sets in, the idyllic location feels ever more remote…and more sinister. And the only one to notice the strange and terrible forces gathering around the Overlook is Danny Torrance, a uniquely gifted five-year-old.
Doctor Sleep
On highways across America, a tribe of people called The True Knot travel in search of sustenance. They look harmless—mostly old, lots of polyester, and married to their RVs. But as Dan Torrance knows, and spunky twelve-year-old Abra Stone learns, The True Knot are quasi-immortal, living off the “steam” that children with the “shining” produce when they are slowly tortured to death.
Haunted by the inhabitants of the Overlook Hotel where he spent one horrific childhood year, Dan has been drifting for decades, desperate to shed his father’s legacy of despair, alcoholism, and violence. Finally, he settles in a New Hampshire town, an AA community that sustains him, and a job at a nursing home where his remnant “shining” power provides the crucial final comfort to the dying. Aided by a prescient cat, he becomes “Doctor Sleep.”
Then Dan meets the evanescent Abra Stone, and it is her spectacular gift, the brightest shining ever seen, that reignites Dan’s own demons and summons him to a battle for Abra’s soul and survival. This is an epic war between good and evil, a gory, glorious story that will thrill the millions of devoted readers of The Shining and satisfy anyone new to the territory of this icon in the King canon.
I loved both these books, and are few of Stephen King’s novels that really hit on the “horror” aspect of his writing. At the same time the character progression is palpable and real, with both Jack and Dan Torrance having to face more than just their own demons. A brilliant series and must read for King fans.
It has been a while since I wrote anything in the horror genre, and as a horror writer I feel as though that is repugnant. Which is why today I announce a rather new endeavour in my genre writing segment which has been on hold since October 2017 (where has the time gone?) You can read those previous iterations here to catch up.
Story Crafting in Movies
The idea for this particular series was borne from two thoughts merging into one. The first is my desire to watch more horror movies as a source of inspiration for future works. The second is the lack of horror content on this blog connected to the sad truth that I haven’t actually written any bone-chilling tales in a while – or rather, haven’t published them to the public.
The idea itself will be simple. Each week I will watch one horror movie and from it, look at the story and how I feel it was crafted, why or why not it worked (in my opinion), look at character and character development, and see what kind of horror trope it falls under if any. I hope to look at as many types of horror movies too, from the old to the new, from slashers to supernatural to psychological and all others in-between. I predict many nightmares in my future.
So Movie Reviews?
The purpose of this genre writing segment isn’t so much to review the movie, as it is to draw out the narrative being told. To see how those elements of story telling were woven together to craft the final work and how it can be applied to your own writing (or mine). It will also include segmenting it into some of the elements I highlighted in Genre Writing: Horror – World Building which looked at the following:
Writing style
Atmosphere
Fear Factor
Character Flaws
Twists
Realism vs Logic
Emotional vs Psychological
Gore
and Cliches
From here I hope to see how they could be applied to writing, and then hopefully craft a story for Friday Fiction to show how I would apply those elements into my own little flash fiction.
On that note, if you know of any horror movies (good or bad) let me know in the comments please, you will definitely get a shout out.
When old spiritualist Marta Herkik gathers together a group of lost souls, each hopes for a change of luck that will help them. But during the séance, the old woman taps into something dark, something with a hunger.
Policeman Jack Fallon, investigating a series of killings, can find no logical reason behind the violence that has visited his town. The killer seems to like high, dark places, but it leaves no clues. The investigation leads him to Lorna Breck, a young highland woman who is gifted, or cursed, with a kind of second sight. She seems to know what is happening, and often knows before it even happens. Only she can unlock the mystery, and only she can lead Jack Fallon to the Shrike.
But the thing brought into the world in a séance gone wrong, is waiting for them.
Joe Donnelly is the author of eight horror chillers and the Jack Flint trilogy for young readers. Joe was born in Glasgow, in Scotland, close to the River Clyde, but at a very young age he came to live in Dumbarton, which is some miles from the city and close to Loch Lomond, Ben Lomond and the Scottish Highlands. At the age of 18, he decided to become a journalist and found a job in the Helensburgh Advertiser, a local paper in a neighbouring town where he learned the first essential of writing: how to type. Quickly.
During his career he won several awards for newspaper work including Reporter of the Year, Campaigning Journalist and Consumer Journalist. It was while working in newspapers that he wrote his first novel, Bane, an adult chiller, which was followed by eight other novels, mostly set in and around the West of Scotland and loosely based on Celtic Mythology.
Recently he completed the Jack Flint trilogy for children, although he says his books are aimed at “young people of all ages…those with some adventure in their soul.”
A-Scribe To Describe 