Book Review: “Writing in the Dark” by Tim Waggoner
Writing in the Dark | Tim Waggoner
If you have absolutely any interest in writing horror and/or dark fiction, this book is required reading. Tim Waggoner has put together an absolutely brilliant resource, containing tips for crafting horror in various subgenres, exercises to focus your mind, or to let it have free rein, as well as advice from established authors in the genre.
One of the biggest pieces of advice I would give new writers is to read. Read the genre you’re writing in, read outside the genre, but also read books about the craft of writing. There are some not great ones out there, but the good ones are absolutely invaluable, and Writing in the Dark tops the list of good ones.
Waggoner clearly knows what he’s talking about. And as I was reading Writing in the Dark, I also managed to read Your Turn to Suffer. The interesting part about this was seeing Waggoner practice what he preaches, using his own advice in the crafting of the novel. And it works.
There is a lot of insight in this book, from handling character creation, character arcs and ensuring they remain vivid and realistic, to crafting monsters that’ll keep readers on edge, to ensuring your writing keeps the reader’s suspension of disbelief, whether it’s set in ‘our world’ or not. There is an absolute wealth of information contained in this book, from deconstructions, examples (some from Waggoner’s very early work), and even tips on marketing yourself as a horror writer.
This book does what the best craft books do – it makes you consider your own work more deeply, sparks off ideas, and assists in really helping you tap into the tools you already have at your disposal, as well as providing new ones. A truly excellent book – again, if you have any interest in writing in this genre, you can’t afford to ignore this.
Now, if you excuse me, I have some exercises to get working on.
Grade: A
Review by Elle Turpitt
Twitter & Instagram: @elleturpitt
I received this paperback for review consideration.
