Category: Writing

The Dark Allure of the Two-Sentence Horror Story

Horror, Self Improvement, Writing

So, the month of October is finally upon us, and for those of you who follow me on Twitter, you know I was pondering the possibility of writing a two-sentence horror story for every day of the month, up to and including Halloween.  So, now that the month has started and I’m already a story behind, I’ll have to do two of them today.

As previous posts have indicated, I’m something of an enthusiast when it comes to the creepy, the macabre, and the spooky.  It started with scary stories as a kid, and continued with horror movies and some games, both of the video and the board varieties.  Today, the trend goes strong with more online, social media equivalents like creepypastas and certain Youtube channels that talk about them.

two-sentence-horror-stories-13Another one of those scary iterations is the two-sentence horror story.  The two-sentence story seems to be a relatively new phenomenon in general–there are other kinds, like comedy, romance, and two-sentence stories for kids.  They seem to mostly be an exercise in condensing a writer’s storytelling abilities into a brief, hopefully powerful and effective storytelling experience that leaves an impression with the reader.

Nowhere has this phenomenon flourished more than with two-sentence horror stories.

Seriously, it’s a form that’s completely dominated by the horror genre.  A Google search for “two sentence story” will contain links to at least 80% horror content, and while sites and pages for other types of two sentence stories do exist, there seems to be a particular allure that horror fans find in it.  It makes a certain amount of sense: the power of horror can be efficiently, effectively conveyed in a short form like the two-sentence story because our imaginations can so brilliantly fill in the blanks that are left after the story is finished.

There are pages galore that will contain lists and lists of the best, most effective, and bone-chilling two-sentence horror stories you can find on the web.  Their existence means two things for me as I embark on this month-long exercise in the macabre.  First, two-sentence horror stories are really popular, and will probably continue to be for some time.  Second, it’s going to be hard to tell a good, memorable, original two-sentence horror story that isn’t either very similar, or just hasn’t already been done by another creepy, imaginative writer.

two-sentence-horror-stories-19In any case, this is yet another of my writing goals for the rest of this year, since I was unable to accomplish one of them in a timely fashion (didn’t participate in 24-hour comic day over the weekend).  Hopefully, as I accomplish each of these little micro-goals in a day-in, day-out fashion, I’ll get better at doing them, as well as get better at getting into the habit of doing them.

Have a fun, spook-filled October, and enjoy these tasty little tidbits of horror and creep factors that I come up with.  They’ll each have their own posts, and perhaps at the end of the month I’ll compile them all into one long, October 2016-esque style post.  But for now, they’ll have to be enjoyed individually.

Happy reading!

Disclaimer: the two two-sentence stories pictured here in this post are not my own, and are from another list page. Hopefully my own future stories will be just as effective and unsettling.

Writing Goals for the Rest of 2016

Creative Works, Self Improvement, Writing

I’ve recently made a significant change to my life, going from full-time work to a part-time position that is both less stressful and which gives me more time to devote to more creative pursuits.  While I think I’ve gotten good about managing my time over the last few months, I’m trying especially hard to keep my nose to the grindstone with regard to being both more creative and more productive with that creativity, given my newfound extra time.  I therefore went and gave myself a few goals to hit by the end of this year.

  • Do one of the following three things, every day:
    • Write at least 500 words.  That’s the bare minimum, not a finish-line goal for the day.  Getting words written and looking/sounding passable for an audience is one way I’ve found to keep the creative juices flowing.  It could take the form of blog posts (like this one), creative nonfiction (like my reviews on Superior Spider-Talk), or other creative works that don’t get immediately posted.
    • Draw a one-page comic or illustration.  Or part of a comic.  You get the idea.  I’m no great artist, but I wish I was.  At least enough to want to occasionally try my hand at it.  What I’ve found out about it is that it’s hard work, and you have to put a lot of effort in to get any good.  If I can at least do this occasionally, maybe I’ll get marginally better over time.
    • Make something handy or crafty.  This is currently a just-in-case option that I don’t think I’ll be making much use of for the time being, but it falls under the umbrella of doing a craft, or building something decorative or of utility that takes time, energy, supplies, and some level of craftsmanship.  Making a duct tape wallet, making a cutting board, or even playing a song on a musical instrument (of which I currently have no expertise in any instrument).  So, yeah.  Probably a ways off on this one.
  • Finish the “bible” for the novel I’m working on by the end of this month.
    I just started piecing together a comprehensive, up to date version of a bible I had created for a series of stories I’ve been thinking about for far too long.  I’m intending it to have multiple arcs and parts, and figured I’d build up as much of that world as I can retain and put it somewhere I can access it later.  It should contain characters, plot elements, themes, and setting notes that will hopefully allow me to keep things straight as I proceed.  Once it’s done, I’ll start working in earnest on the first novel.
  • Participate in 24-Hour Comics Day this year (October 1).
    I tried this once a few years ago, and failed miserably.  Not entirely shameful, when you consider that the goal is creating a 24-page comic in 24 hours.  At this point, I’ve at least got an idea of what to expect, and hopefully can drum up some moral support and motivation by reaching out to others this year.  I think at this point I’ll need to keep it to simple drawings of simple plots and themes.  And I’ll need lots of caffeine.
  • Participate in NaNoWriMo in November.
    I’ve participated in National Novel Writing Month twice, in 2012 and 2013.  I failed in 2012, but managed to attain victory conditions by writing 50,000 words of a novel in 2013.  I’m hoping and planning to replicate my triumph from three years ago, hopefully in the pursuit of this novel.
  • Start pitching a draft of my novel to agents and/or publishers by year’s end.
    By this point, if I’ve stayed on task, I should have at least a few chapters written and can start trying to shop this story out to potential venues for publication.  I don’t know if I’ll go looking for an agent, try smaller publishers independently, or try to self-publish.  I’m already starting to think about this, but the important thing is that I try to get my work out there.

Anyway, feel free to hold me to these goals by asking me how I’m doing with each of them.  I don’t always manage to complete the daily goal (500 words or such), but I have gotten better at it lately.  I’m hoping that by making these plans and sticking to them, I’ll start making some headway in carving out a more creative and fulfilling path for myself.