Writing the Horror Movie

As Halloween approaches, we rely on the horror genre for a fun night of thrills. But not all of the thrills have to be cheap. Horror uses a surprisingly tricky form, and so often the writers don’t get it right. Let’s take a look at what you can do to transcend the genre in your own writing.

Create a strong crime in the past. Connect it to your hero’s weaknesses, and to a horrifying crime in the present story. This gives you a single horror line from past to future that is unique to your hero’s flaws. Careful, though, that you don’t rely too heavily on the past and forget about the story in the present.

Start the main character as grand as possible. The more intelligent, powerful or decent the hero at the beginning, the farther he has to fall. And it will help you avoid the weak or stupid hero who is simply a victim.

Create a duality within the hero’s mind. Your character should be hiding something in himself so horrible he cannot face it. His mind is ready to crack.

Show the pleasure of the dark side and the greater power and freedom the hero feels by acting on what is forbidden.

Determine the hero’s great fear and personify it in the form of the monster. This connects the opponent to the hero’s ghost and helps to avoid the pitfall of the cardboard villain. A monster that is portrayed as simply evil deprives the opposition of thought, craft and reason, and makes the genre seem mechanical.

Create a hierarchy of opposition. A single monster that attacks relentlessly has little plot. A multiple attack by two or more opponents makes surprise more likely and pressure more intense.

Keep much of the opponent hidden. Let out the true power of the monster(s) over the course of the plot.

Give the hero a plan over the course of the story. A hero with no plan is simply reacting to the opponent.

Figure out a series of conflicts with the opponent attacking. Keep constant pressure on the hero by using a confined space, injury, absence of help, and both direct and hidden attacks by the opponent.

Give the hero tools to fight and grow as the story progresses.

Come up with a symbol to represent the drop of the hero. Horror is the most symbolic of all genres.

In the final battle, the hero must fight not only the monster, but also the monster in himself.. Horror films often forgo the self-revelation because the hero is simply a victim to a powerful monster, weakening the story.

Try for the double ending. This entails an apparent death or disappearance of the monster, allowing the audience to catch its breath – followed by a sudden return of the monster.

When you hit the theater or rent a horror classic this month, take an analytical approach to see if the movie hits these beats. And, you can check out my Horror Class on CD.