Listen now:
There’s a lot going on in the world today. AI, publishing worries, the world…the feeling that writing is somehow not as ‘important’ as any of that.
Bah!
In this week’s podcast episode I make the case that it’s absolutely the time you should be writing — not because I can guarantee you publishing deals, awards, cash, or screaming fans, but because the act of creation matters.
And then, because it’s October, I’m giving you pointers on how to write a spooky story (and no, you don’t have to like horror, for, or long, dark staircases.) I’ll show you how to take an extremely ordinary premise and make it deeply unsettling, by changing just a few details.
In This Episode
00:00 Why “a good idea” can stop you before you start
00:17 October, spooky stories — and why I want you writing
01:03 Why writing still matters when the world feels noisy
03:30 Why external success won’t sustain your writing life
07:10 Writing as an antidote to cynicism 10:09 Why finishing stories matters
10:09 StoryADay November is coming 11:30 The trap of waiting for a good idea
13:30 How to turn an ordinary idea into a spooky story
15:30 Use setting, isolation and sensory details
17:00 Make one thing feel slightly wrong
18:00 Repetition, unease and psychological spookiness
19:00 What has your character done to deserve this?
20:00 Your spooky story challenge If you’re inspired to write, don’t go and try to learn anything else.
Instead do this: Put on one of my WRITE WITH ME videos and write: No teaching, no scrolling, just quiet company while you get your words down.
Also mentioned:
StoryADay November (sign up here: https://storyaday.org/signup)
The Short Story Framework https://storyaday.org/framework
StoryADay Writing Prompts