OH HORRORS! Storytelling that goes bump in the night
October 15, 2021 by Rebecca Forster in category The Write Life by Rebecca Forster, Writing tagged as #Thriller, #writingtips, #writingvoice #writingtips #thrillers, horror
My job as a thriller writer is to keep the reader on the edge of her seat, but when it comes to jump-out-of-your-skin storytelling horror is the cardio workout for the imagination. The writer in me is in awe of the imaginative details; the reader (movie-goer) is in love with the unpredictability of the genre.Here are three of my favorites.
FINAL DESTINATION – MOVIE FRANCHISE
The premise is basic, the acting just decent, but the writing was so darn inventive. Just when I thought the writers couldn’t surprise me again, scenes became more elaborate, unpredictable, and downright delightfully terrifying. This is a great lesson in taking the time to kick your writing up a notch.
MISERY – STEPHEN KING
We’re all suckers for a good plot, especially when it pumps with plausibility. An obsessed fan, a writer who is her captive, and the life and death struggle between them makes this a great look at how a writer can create a nail biter when the characters are locked into a single location.
NEEDFUL THINGS – STEPHEN KING (again)
The slow burn makes the horrific climax in this book incredibly satisfying. King uses multiple characters and their motivations to keep the reader off base. This technique creates a literary funnel that feeds into the one person the reader should have been paying attention to from the beginning. Psychological horror becomes physical and the swiftness of the climax is chilling, and the reader doesn’t even know they are being led down a path until it’s too late.
So, I’ve got the pumpkin carved, the candy bowl is on the table, I’m waiting for the doorbell to ring and before those trick-or-treaters descend I’ve got just enough time to open my book and scare myself silly. What about you? What’s your favorite Halloween-horror page turner?
Show Me A Sign
April 15, 2021 by Rebecca Forster in category The Write Life by Rebecca Forster tagged as #amwriting, #writingvoice #writingtips #thrillers, Craft
I’m superstitious. Not crazy, black-cat superstitious, but hedge-my-bet, listen to the cosmos kind. For instance, when I play tennis and I win a service point, I won’t serve with another ball. I use the lucky one—at least until it isn’t lucky anymore. The point is, I believe in signs, fate, and all that stuff.
This brings me to my new book. I’m excited about it because I am actually working in earnest after a fairly unproductive year. The idea exists, the characters are coming into focus, my rear end is getting used to sitting in a chair for longer than an episode of Law and Order. Yet doubt lingers. Is the story substantial enough? Are the characters interesting enough? Are the turns I’m planning twisty enough.
I needed a sign that I was on the right track, and I got one.
During the pandemic the world has been hunkered down in a bear-cave. Sleep. Eat. Hibernate. Drink from the bottomless well of mesmerizing streaming television. I was right there baking bread and searching for the lost episodes of The Big Bang Theory as I fiddled with this new idea. Then something wonderful happened.
Two days after I penned the first word of this new project, I received an invitation from ATF, Los Angeles to a Zoom meeting. ATF is the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Agency, and this was not a random invitation. I’m a graduate of the ATF Citizen’s Academy. I often join citizen’s law enforcement opportunities for research and adventure, but I graduated well over a year ago. This invitation was a surprise, and it was also a sign that my new book was on the right track.
The inciting incident of this story is fiery explosion. It detonates any number of dramas. For my detective, Finn O’Brien, the situation is personal not professional. He won’t be investigating, the ATF will. That email, that Zoom meeting and the things I learned during the hour gave me confidence in my story. The stars have aligned; Fate has given me the stamp of approval.
Hard work is needed to write a book, but sometimes a little sign is what it takes to go all in.
*(Check out The Bailey Devlin chic lit series where I pour out my superstitious little heart).
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