The Fright Factory

By Lillian Csernica

The Fright Factory is here to help you as you labor in the control room, on the assembly line, or mixing the chemicals of inspiration and imagination in huge vats that give off dark and eerie vapors. Here you'll find guidance in drawing up the blueprints of your story along with a selection of tools to help you customize your design.

The elements of horror include the setting, the tingle of suspense building into genuine fear, and of course the Monster. Those are the basics. From there horror can become ghost stories, tales of suspense, splatter and/or gross-out horror, and what might be called the O. Henry approach (twist endings). Cross-genre writing mixes in police procedurals, P.I. stories, and medical horror. Romance with monsters has become popular. You can also throw in the weird western, the Elder Gods, and Joe R. Lansdale - a category unto himself. Whether you're telling a weird tale in the classic tradition of Clark Ashton Smith or creating cutting edge steampunk frights, the long and venerable history of the horror story has also spawned a set of clichés you'll want to avoid.

Now the whistle shrieks, signalling the beginning of a new shift. Time to set the machinery of the factory in motion as we explore the art and craft of building better horror.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lillian Csernica
• Release date: May 19, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310760075

Lillian Csernica

I'm a professional writer living in Northern California with my husband and two sons. Fantasy in various forms is my reading and writing pleasure. I'm a history buff, a Japanophile, and I love to learn about language(s).

Book preview

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The Fright Factory

by Lillian Csernica

The Fright Factory

Lillian Csernica

Published by Sense of Wonder Press at Smashwords.

The Smashwords edition of The Fright Factory is copyright 2017, Lillian Csernica. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without prior permission of the publisher, with the exception of brief passages quoted in reviews.

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

INTRODUCTION

The Fright Factory is here to help you as you labor in the control room, on the assembly line, or mixing the chemicals of inspiration and imagination in huge vats that give off dark and eerie vapors. Here you'll find guidance in drawing up the blueprints of your story along with a selection of tools to help you customize your design.

The elements of horror include the setting, the tingle of suspense building into genuine fear, and of course the Monster. Those are the basics. From there horror can become ghost stories, tales of suspense, splatter and/or gross-out horror, and what might be called the O. Henry approach (twist endings). Cross-genre writing mixes in police procedurals, P.I. stories, and medical horror. Romance with monsters has become popular. You can also throw in the weird western, the Elder Gods, and Joe R. Lansdale - a category unto himself. Whether you're telling a weird tale in the classic tradition of Clark Ashton Smith or creating cutting edge steampunk frights, the long and venerable history of the horror story has also spawned a set of clichés you'll want to avoid.

Now the whistle shrieks, signaling the beginning of a new shift. Time to set the machinery of the factory in motion as we explore the art and craft of building better horror.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

MAKING THE MOST OF SETTING

MONSTERS, GOOD VERSUS BAD

CREATING SUSPENSE

MONSTERS AROUND THE WORLD

CROSSING GENRES

HORRIBLE CLICHES TO AVOID

MAKING THE MOST OF SETTING

Instead of being simply a painted flat behind the action, setting can be a dynamic element that affects both