THE ICE PICK

The Key: How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth, by James N. Frey. N.Y.: St. Martin’s Press, 2000. 260 p. $23.95. Includes a bibliography. ISBN 0-312-24197-6.

Much of modern fantasy, science fiction, and horror, as well as mysteries and romances, all use the myth-based story.

If you want to create screenplays or "fiction that has the power to profoundly move a reader" this book is a step-by-step guide to doing that through using the magic of the myth--not a modern copy of a Greek, Roman, or Norse myth--but the universal form and structure that has turned on readers for generations, that speaks to our deepest longings.

"Mythic forms," says Frey, "resonate in every individual human being on this planet. When a human being encounters some version of a myth, the individual responds at a very deep level, subconsciously, and is powerfully drawn to it as by magic."

Emphasizing that heroes must be interesting and well-rounded characters, Frey begins with a discussion of the physical and psychological qualities all heroes and heroines in myth-based stories must possess at the beginning of, or obtain sometime during, the story. He explains in detail the qualities required of your hero: courage, cleverness, some special talent, a wound or vulnerability, expertise at what he does, and a rebellious streak, and he tells why these are important.

He does the same for your antagonist, the Evil One. He shows how you can and should make the Evil One a rounded character and a worthy opponent of your hero. One of Frey’s techniques is to write a "journal" entry in the Evil One’s voice, so that you can get to know how he or she feels and thinks.

According to Frey, "Mythic forms and structures are the foundation on which all good stories are built." Using modern movies and books in various genres, Frey goes on to show how myth has been used and to explain how to construct your own story using the mythic structure.

He begins with "the hero in the world of the common day" who is then called, or forced, to "leave" or begin the adventure, which may or may not be a real "journey" at all. The hero is sent on a mission (or finds one at home), is forced to learn new rules, is tested, and suffers a transformation.

Discussing each of the mythic characters and motifs usually found in myth-based stories--and which you can use or refuse--he shows how you can adapt them to your story, so that you sustain tension throughout its development and end with a dramatic, satisfying climax.

No actual myth has ever had all the elements, and "when creating your own myth-based fiction," Frey says, "you should continually ask yourself: Would my story be stronger, more effective, more dramatic, more engaging, more emotional, and more gripping if I included this or that mythological element?"

These are tools to use, not a prescription, and you can follow his steps as closely as you like in your own story. "The force of myth is irresistible," says Frey. And you can use its form and structure to create your own myth-based heroes and to build your own myth-based stories.

I wish it had an index, but I love this book for its clarity and simplicity and, most of all, for its practical approach. I recommend it very highly.

{Published in SF and Fantasy Workshop Newsletter, Jan. 2003.}

THE ICE PICK

The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits, by Rosemary Ellen Guiley. 2nd ed. N.Y.: Checkmark Books, 2000. Illus. 430 p. $19.95. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8160-4086-9.

This is a comprehensive look at the world of ghost lore and the paranormal, and for those of you, especially, who write horror, it is a treasure house of goodies.

It is arranged in alphabetical order, and many of the entries have lists of books for further reading.

Specific locations believed to be haunted are included along with details on how and when ghosts are said to appear and what the manifestations look and feel like. These places include the well-known "haunts," like London’s Adelphi Theatre and the less famous, like the Decatur House in Washington, D.C.

Societies and organizations of ghost investigators and paranormal debunkers are discussed along with biographies of mediums and psychic researchers. And there are entries for famous people who experienced the paranormal, like Abraham Lincoln, and ghosts themselves, like Chicago’s Resurrection Mary.

Notorious frauds like 18th-century-London’s Cock Lane Ghost and the Schneider Brothers are fully explained, from the motivations to the sentences of the perpetrators, if any.

Guiley has included phenomena and lore from many different cultures around the world.

If you seek information about a specific thing, such as the acheri of India, the Jewish dybbuk, the Japanese gashadokuro, or Yorkshire’s Jack-in-Irons, you may find it here.

Or if you need an idea for a story, you can browse the encyclopedia and be inspired by things like the Arab afrit demon, Brazil’s Jabuticabal Poltergeist, or the more commonly known Voodoo zombie. Some of the entries are brief, others, like the zombie entry, are very extensive.

Guiley has also included discussions of spiritual things like afterlife, near-death experience, and angels.

Necromancy, possession and other broad topics, as well as specific kinds of phenomena, such as orbs and poltergeists, are explained in detail.

Superstitions concerning objects like mirrors, meteors, and the Moon are also covered.

This second edition has been expanded by about one hundred entries over the first edition, and there seem to be more illustrations. I’m not sure if that justifies purchasing this newer edition if you own the older one. Also, the print on this new edition is a bit smaller to read, although not by much. Personally, I would say the first edition is still adequate.

All-in-all, I found the book fascinating and fun to read, and if you do not have the first edition, I recommend it very highly.

{Published in SF and Fantasy Workshop Newsletter, Oct. 2002.}

THE ICE PICK

Writing Horror, edited by Mort Castle. Cincinnati: Writer’s Digest Books, 1997. 224 p. ISBN 0-89879-798-5. $17.99.

As this book says, "A monster’s purpose in life shouldn’t be just to annoy people." Authors should have rules for his/her/its behavior, powers, motivations, love life, beliefs, etc.; just as they should know a human antagonist’s strengths, weaknesses, drives, and quirks.

Although you can obtain books which address the problems writers of science fiction, fantasy, and horror all have in common, such books often treat horror as a poor cousin. Books of advice dedicated to writing horror alone are difficult to find, so this collection of thirty-nine articles and essays by members of the Horror Writers Association is a real treasure for horror writers.

Authors as diverse as Joyce Carol Oates, Harlan Ellison, Gary Brandner, J. N. Williamson, David Morrell, and Robert Weinberg are represented, plus an interview with Stephen King.

Covering all aspects of the genre from developing your ideas and avoiding what’s already been done to marketing and promoting your finished work, these different authors discuss crafting your plot, characters, mood, dialogue, style, setting, etc.

In addition to advice on short story and novel writing, juvenile and young adult horror, comics, erotic horror, and interactive horror are included, as well as an article by John Maclay on writing for horror theme anthologies.

The advice ranges from the philosophical to the practical. As a very small sampling:

"The biggest problem faced by new writers," says Robert Weinberg, "is not lack of skill," but lack of originality because too many read only Stephen King, Dean Koontz, or Anne Rice and then proceed to imitate their work. He gives a list of twenty-one books that every horror writer should read lest they end up using old dead plots and ideas.

Tracy Knight has an essay to help you get manias, phobias, and psychoses straight and tells you to remember in creating characters that "everyone is doing his or her best . . . people in general make the best choices they can at any moment."

"True action," says Jay R. Bonansinga, "can only be generated through character. . . . Don’t merely describe the blood and guts; describe the mind, what the pain and the fear feels like, the colors and textures. . . ."

Joyce Carol Oates advises that "the standards for horror fiction should be no less than those for ‘serious, literary’ fiction in which originality of concept, depth of characters and attentiveness to language are vitally important."

"Breaking into the horror field isn’t easy," says Robert Weinberg. "Even if you use every tip, every suggestion in this book, there is no guarantee you’ll make it." But you knew that.

If you are serious about writing horror, particularly if you are a beginner, this book is an excellent place to start. I recommend it highly.

{Published in SF and Fantasy Workshop Newsletter, Aug. 2002.}