  Horror/Scary
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We Are All One In The Dark
In my last newsletter, 'You Are What You Write' (issue #1526), I received a phenomenal amount of emails. So many, in fact, that I can't fit them all in the Ask & Answer section. Most were very interesting and I'd like to share them all with you.
It seems I am not the only one who has thought about getting stuck in one genre, or becoming what you write. I feel that it is important for you to see what your fellow writers, friends, and authors think about it all.
So, let's take a look, shall we? *pulls out a huge bag of mail and drops it on his computer desk* I feel like Strong Bad: "Look around_ I think you'll find_ today's buttons_ are the scrolling kind_"
*ahem*
Anyway, here they are, and since everyone here participated in putting this newsletter together, I will feature each of them in the Editor's Picks below. Thank you all for your help and fond wishes.
Charmin  writes:
This was a great News Letter W.D. Not quite expected, but yet a lot to think
about and how and why one tends to write what they write. I hope that made
sense. I know I tend to write usually at the spur of the moment, and in the
genre of how I seem to feel at the time. I can't write comedy very well,
because I don't find myself a very funny person. However, I manage to do
horror/scary sort of okay, because the slightest things can scare the dickens
out of me. So go figure. And then on a third hand, 75% of the time, I can
write something when a prompt is thrown my way.
Anyway, gotta split.
Best wishes,
Terrie
bazilbob remarks:
Intriguing...there's also the argument that reader's take on aspects from characters, which was used to explain adolescent male behaviour after the publication of 'A Catcher in the Rye'. Maybe we are all a jumble of different characters. A scary thought, especially if you're a horror reader!
Big Mike 2humble2bragbut... says:
Bill,
I had more to share with you than the 1000 character limit for newsletter
feedback would allow, so ...
Some of the best-written horror, or other genres as well, in my opinion,
includes some humor. Some time ago, you read one of my pieces "What Scares You".
You had commented (and others as well) that the scene where the beast had been
clawing at James' apartment door, but when he screamed at it, suddenly it was a
half-deaf old woman who lived across the hall was funny.
I think that a common, if not universal, reaction to terror is laughter. It
might not make sense at the time to be laughing, but I think just about
everybody does it. Some authors utilize this common experience. I try to.
The humor may be dark oftentimes, but it's there. Consider such characters in
horror as The Cryptkeeper, Freddie Krueger, Randall Flagg (The Stand). While
being scary, they were also funny!
When I was reading your most recent newsletter, two things occurred to me:
first, I'm sorry to hear about your mother. I think you're right in that our
loved ones die a little at a time in our minds and hearts (hey, that sounds
like a story idea!); and secondly, I had this idea about a comedy writer
who is being progressively haunted by darkness, and it infiltrates his comedy.
He ends up writing such dark stuff that always turns into horror, that he loses
his job as a humor writer (maybe for a TV sitcom). An ending might have him
discover even greater success in writing horror films, for example.
Anyway, I hadn't written to you in a while, and your newsletter moved me to do
so. Keep up the good work. Write what you are inspired to write. And oh
yeah... don't kill anybody. Okay?
Kotaro  reflects:
Hi, Bill
Intriguing newsletter. You asked for some comments. Here are mine.
Writing doesn’t affect my mood in a way that depends on the genre, but reading
does and so do movies. I think it’s because I’m so involved, in a brainwave
type way, in writing down the images I’m seeing that the emotions don’t get
stroked.
As to why you feel compelled to write horror it’s because you’re filled with
dark thoughts as you say. When I’m like that, (which is unpleasant for me, too)
it’s usually because I’ve read non-fiction about the dark side of human nature.
The remedy for me is to see an uplifting movie or read a story of the good guys
winning.
Aloha, Kotaro
flayme whips out:
Hi,
I am responding to your newsletter I just received today. I have also felt the
plague of being drawn "too far" into the realm of my creations. I have felt
that I can no longer do or be anything that isn't dark and morbid. Everything
I write is dark and twisted, and everything I say has too much suspicion and
cynicism laced into it. I know where you are, because I have been there. It
is difficult to see the silver linings and have faith that you will return to
what is considered a balance. I have found it helpful to keep a small notebook
of things that make me happy each day, even if it is only to note that I managed
to haul my sorry self out of bed. I have had little luck in trying different
genres for writing; everything I try turns twisted before I can get to the end.
I don't have a fix for that.
I am sorry to hear of the loss of your mother. I hope you will find your
balance soon.
Best wishes,
~Chrysalis Flayme~
GypsyPixie foretells:
Hi, my name is Frances Dunn. I just read your article , newsletter this afternoon on Horror and scarry short stories. Your question is still lurking in my mind. "Do we become what we write"? Do the dark thoughts of dark writers make the writer dark? (before I go on, I have to admit I haven't submitted any of my stories on the site for the same fear resides in me about myself.) I get pretty caught up in my characters, I think you have to in order to write what your heart/mind is wanting you to write. But I don't in my heart of hearts think that someone who writes about evil is evil. Just like someone who writes only of love knows exactly how to love in the perfect way, and so on and so forth. To answer your other question, No, you are not alone in having these questions. I am hoping it is normal....cause otherwise I would be pretty weird. Thank you for the newsletter. It set my mind at ease about feelings I have had for a long time.... oh, and also, there is nothing in my oponion , wrong with expanding on the subjects you write about. But it is scary to go outside ones own comfort zone.
Big hugs, FD
kiyasama says:
Another great newsletter, Bill and you do bring up some good points here. I like to consider myself able to distinguish fantasy from reality, but then again, I have an imagination that tends to run wild and even at a grocery store, it somehow ends up becoming an exotic market square in some Eastern nation. So no, you're not the only one who has to deal with situations like that. I just hope no one eventually gets too paranoid about their stories and gets completely lost in both worlds.
very thankful twinkles:
Sometimes I feel as if I live in a world of faeries because I have been writing about them so much. It is almost as if I can see them everywhere at times. I know this probably sounds crazy!
-Sister of Mercy
P. A. Matthews/E. A. Irwin explains:
Bill
I know what you mean about the dark images and writing horror. I try to balance this with other writing as well; mystery, thriller, a tad of comedy, but I’ve found I can’t write a romance unless something mysterious or horror is an added element. Even my poetry swings back and forth like some off-kilter pendulum.
I have found the more I stretch myself as a writer, the more I include elements of different genres in a story. Perhaps this is the fact that life isn’t just horror, mystery, or romance, but a combination of all, and the more we understand who we are the writing becomes more honest.
I understand the emotional impact of writing in stress-filled genres and often find myself feeling a tad psychotic if all the characters are in a heightened state rushing toward the finish line in a screaming frenzy. I walk away from it for awhile and clear my mind of the dark, and then begin again.
Hope this helps.
Abominae adds:
This newletter made me think, so I'll try to make this as short as I can. Fantasy and horror are my most preferred themes, fantasy in particular. At first I would occaisionally let my mind drift off into a world of swords and sorcery, or of superheroes and villains. I deemed it harmless escapism and a source for ideas, of course. But as I continued writing, I found that my mind is more often in my fantastic realms rather than reality.
When you ask if you're the only one who has dark thoughts for an extended period of time, I answer that you are not. I may not write a lot of horror, but I often think about it. I think about stories and characters I've come up with, they exist, I only haven't written them down. When I sink down into a dark mood, these thoughts take control. I've seen myself in the mirror before while I'm thinking these dark things, and it is not an easy site. I don't know if this will really have a harmful effect or not. The only thing I can affirm is that it exists.
StaiNed-House Targaryen makes a re-mark:
Indeed, I agree For me write in darkness, I "feel" darkness in it's lure and distaste. I agree, to write horror, I must put myself in what I'm trying to portray, embrace the marcrabre. Bwhaha.
stained.
dmack acts up:
Hello W.D., No matter what the genre, the writer, just like an actor, must get in side the skin of the character and become that character. If the character is a nasty one it can be a creepy experience. I've been asked by readers where my character come from and I tell people; they're all in my head pleading to have their stories told.
schipperke barks:
I think Mr. King has flashbacks from using some 'organic' substances in the 60's and 70's! Maybe that helps him....
Robert Waltz  internalizes:
Bill, a writer's internal feedback does affect him - look at how Poe turned out. But what is the cause, and which the effect? I don't know.
Oh, and I, too, talk to imaginary people and have dark thoughts all the time. It's called the Internet! See you on the funny farm!
diana schools:
According to my former psychology professor, Steven King was always on the dark side. He was a student of his when he taught in New York, and it was the study of psychology that gave King these ideas for his novels.
In studying literature, I found that it is our experiences that make for good writing and soul searching, and those who are willing 'live' their story make for great writers. Your not crazy, your an artist.
StephBee  advises:
Bill, I agree. When I write I become the characters. It's a sign that we're passionate about the stories we're telling. Horror is not an easy genre for me, but to some, it comes easy. Let your mind and your muse take you where you need to go to tell the story.
-Steph
zwisis pants:
Bill
The last real bit of writing I did was a story about the world inhabited by my pets - a kid's story. A fantasy, I guess. It's about 20,000 words long, and during the time I wrote it I lived in that world. And loved it. A wonderful escape.
And no, you are not alone. Anyone with an imagination can confirm the existance of "friends" - be they human or otherwise. My dogs talk to me... they really do!
GhostDragon is inspired:
Thank you for writing this newsletter. As you have inspired me to write a story on something horrific, in my opinion, that happened to me some years ago. Thank you again also I would like to apologize for, what seems to me, writing my comment so late.
PSanta-I'm ba-ack! psychoanalyzes:
Nietzsche says that when we peer into the abyss, the abyss peers into us. On the other hand, my thought about people like Stephen King is that they are effictively saying, "If I have to suffer through this, so do you."
Jay is studying agrees:
I have also often wondered what drives Stephen King. I've read many interviews as well as On Writing and I think he's probably fairly well adjusted. Maybe what keeps him from having perpetually dark thoughts are his other outlets, such as music and pop culture. Personally, I've only dabbled in horror - it's HARD - but I believe what King says - aim to terrify, and if that doesn't work, then you horrify.
Mostly, I write fantasy, and when my father died a couple of years ago, I went into a horrific writer's block. The computer screen went blank and I lost all desire to write. Perhaps I was unable to fantasize anymore. Continued reading of other people's works as well as the community here has helped me out of that funk, and I find myself in my character's head again.
Great newsletter!
-Jay
Pen Name thought-provokes:
Dear Bill,
It is good to see you helm a H/S Newsletter. You were on hiatus a while back. Very thought-provoking editorial. First, I am so sorry and extend my condolences on the loss of your mother.
I have had your opposite problem. Because of the idea you put forth - the idea that writing horror can blacken your soul - I have been unable or unwilling to write horror since my infant son was born.
Stephen King has written some sick stuff. I wonder if he has ever done any of those horrible things. He writes with such authenticity. But, he has also written sensitive and touching literature, such as The Green Mile and Shawshank Redemption.
I often struggle with the dichotomy of being Christian and writing in the horror genre. I feel I am stepping into dangerous territory.
Sincerely,
Lotusneko
Big Mike 2humble2bragbut... quips:
Bill,
You are a good horror writer. Perhaps that's what you should write for now. Stephen King seems to keep balance intwo ways: his wife Tabitha, and he almost always sneaks some humor in his horror.
Nighala a.k.a. Doxie Do-Right instructs:
W.D. Wilcox
I was a psych major in college and this was actually a topic of one of my lectures. Believe it or not, the darkness you are entering to create your characters may actually be helping to maintain your sanity.
There was a study conducted (and I don't have the cite) that found most writers and artists were clinically depressed on paper, but in real life were normal, and well-adjusted. The conclusion being that their art provided an outlet, a therapy, for the dark emotions that lived inside them.
I know that for myself, writing is catharsis. Those dark creatures you enter, trying to create your worlds could potentially be the manifestations of your grief. And by putting them on paper, you're doing what so many of us fail to do, dealing with them.
I don't think writing about monsters will make you one, but ignoring them and shutting them away can.
Paige Turner sympathizes:
Aww, Bill, you sound sad. I know from when my dad died that grief has it's own time table.
Writing (or even reading) too much of one thing gets me feeling out of whack. I often wondered how Stephen King does it. Can you get too good at what you do? But, I think he does balance his writing some. I recently read an old time detective-type novel he wrote titled "The Colorado Kid."
Maybe I'm lucky to be this "writer of several genres, master of none." Not that I'm not blocked half the time.
On second thought, maybe I just don't have any good advice for ya.
Hope you feel better soon.
PT
Shanna
I understand completely, W. D. Wilcox. Most of my work is dark and horrorific and it can be hard to remember that the whole world is not as dark as my mind and to lighten up once in a while. I have long wondered that about Stephen King myself. As my husband does about me.
-Shanna
johnmcc remembers:
Good newsletter this month. I agree with W.D. Wilcox, the best horror tales are told about the most ordinary people. That's what makes King's stories so good, many of them, remembering the sweet little boy in Pet Semetary... ooooh.
John McC
drifter46 testifies:
An interesting and intriging newletter. Reading it started me thinking about what would happen if a writer of any genre' slipped into the world he was creating. For that image I thank you. But you asked about what others of us talked to imaginary people.
Let me assure you that for most of my 61 years I have been talking to imaginary people. My first love was the theater. I wanted to be on stage so I got use to being other people at a very young age. Now writing I find it very helpful to BE someone else or talk to others, especially if they're imaginary. Works great for dialoge and action/reaction conflict.
I hope this helped you some.
animatqua spurts:
Bill:
I find that I write in genre spurts. That is, sometimes I write nothing but comedy, sometimes nothing but horror, ect. It depends on the mood I'm in and/or what a contest asks for.
"My Love is a Red, Red Rose" reflects an intense era when I was fighting to get custody of an abused grandchild. I'm finding now, though, as my husband and I are fighting to get her brother out of the same situation I must write comedy to relieve the tension.
Go figure.
writeone brightens:
You are not alone Mr. Wilcox. It happens. Sometimes it takes longer than other times to get through it, but eventually, before it is too late, there will be some sort of glimmer. That is what I tell myself. I have this strange belief that if I tell myself enough, it will just have to come true. The face of blackness is deep and soothing, just soothing enough to get through what you are enduring. But the cool blackness will eventually fade into a slate gray, then lighten as time goes by. At one point, I wondered if I would ever be able to write again, and I am getting there. Not just in my particular literary exploits, but also with different forms. It has broadened the darkness - in a peculiar sort of way - so that I may see even through the sludge. It will happen. It will.
Once again, I want to thank you all for responding to my newsletter. God Bless and keep you from dark dreams.
Until next time,
billwilcox |
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Horror/Scary: March 07, 2007 Issue [#1579]
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