A well-written short story or book will transport the reader into another world. As he reads it he becomes part of the story. Although he's not one of the characters, the very act of reading it makes him an observer. He's there as the tale unfolds and lives through the events and the action and survives to see the outcome - something that perhaps not all characters manage to do! The experience can be compared to dreaming; while we sleep we experience the dream running though our imagination. So it stands to reason that reading a good horror story transports us into the world of the Waking Nightmare.
The best horror writers give their readers a scare; perhaps make them shiver with fear or squirm at vivid descriptions of a terrifying scene or a frightening character. A good horror story will make its readers feel uncomfortable, afraid to turn the page to read what happens next. This article will discuss setting the scene that a good horror story will be happy to call home.
Ask someone to choose a setting for a horror story and the response will probably be: "Use your imagination". But that's not strictly the right approach. It's all very well to let your mind conjure up images of chainsaw-wielding zombies roaming the highway in search of fresh blood to appease the zombie king who lives on a haunted island in the middle of a lake... but how do you make the story believable? Your imagination may give you a great idea for a horror story, but that's just the first step towards creating something to capture your readers' attention.
A healthy dose of reality is what turns an idea and plotline into a horror story. The good horror writer will use plenty of reality to bring his story to life, creating a world that will - ultimately - terrify his readers. Inspiration is everywhere, and when creating the setting for your story you probably don't have to look very far. The trick is to use your words to paint a typical scene - one with which most people are familiar - perhaps a place where they feel safe. Then add a couple of sentences to imply that perhaps all is not as it seems and there's something not quite right with this picture. The paragraph below is from William Peter Blatty's terrifying book The Exorcist. I've boldened the few words he's used to add a chilling element to the basic description of an average house. Note how he's used a couple of sentences to enhance the "normality" of the scene:
The house was a rental. Brooding. Tight. A brick colonial ripped by ivy in the Georgetown section of Washington, D.C. Across the street, was a fringe of campus belonging to Georgetown University; to the rear, a sheer embankment plummeting steep to busy M Street and, beyond, the muddy Potomac. Early on the morning of April 1, the house was quiet... At approximately 12:25 A.M., Chris glanced from her script with a frown of puzzlement. She heard rapping sounds. They were odd. Muffled. Profound. Rhythmically clustered. Alien code tapped out by a dead man.
