Many like a good ghost story, and you too might enjoy writing a ghost story. Ghost stories usually follow literary patterns belonging to other fictional works, basically focusing on a character and his or her encounters with unknown forces or challenging events. In particular, these kinds of stories focus strictly on evoking feelings of uneasiness, which develop until they reach a climax laden with terror. Learning some of the ideas and techniques behind composing a good ghost story can help you create your own horror stories.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Developing the Storyline
Step 1. Get inspiration from your personal fears
When writing such a short story, it might be helpful to initially think about what scares you about ghosts. Imagine a situation where you yourself meet one and take note of all those aspects that scare you the most. Being aware of what terrifies you can help you find inspiration as you write.
- Think about what situations could be more terrifying in meeting a ghost.
- Imagine the physical characteristics of the ghost and the ways in which it haunts you, noting what scares you most.
- Get inspired by watching your favorite horror movies or reading other ghost stories.
Step 2. Think about the atmosphere
Much of your story will be about the setting. While you may have no trouble writing a ghost story, setting it in the wrong context may make it less scary. Imagine all the most creepy locations you can think of in order to use them to create the setting for the story.
- What places do you find particularly disturbing and disheartening?
- The setting should convey a feeling of isolation and cut the protagonists out of any kind of help.
Step 3. Collect ideas for your story
Chances are you already have some ideas about the characters, setting, and plot of the story. While you may have gotten a big picture of what is going on, it can still be helpful to envision further possibilities for the events that might take place. Take your time to jot down any ideas that may come to your mind.
- Reflect on the details of the story and consider all possible developments.
- Imagine other settings or characters to understand how they affect the overall perception of your story.
- Think of different endings and think about which one you think might be the most suitable.
Step 4. Plan the story arc
Each story is made up of some basic components in relation to its own narrative arc. There are different models and not all stories refer to the same arc. However, the eight-point story arc is commonly used in fiction and can produce a good structure to follow when composing your story. Here is the basic outline of the story arc in eight points:
- Stasis. It represents the introduction to the story and outlines the normal daily life of the characters.
- Trigger. It is about an event that pushes the character out of the limits of his daily life.
- Research. This is where the character sets himself a goal or a task that he has to accomplish.
- Surprise. It forms the central part of the tale and will include the events that occur along the path to the hero's goal.
- Critical choice. The protagonist will have to make a difficult choice to demonstrate the full strength of his character.
- Climax. The story is developed in view of this moment and describes the most dramatic episode in history.
- Inversion. It should highlight the consequence of the critical choice of characters or the main challenge.
- Resolution. This point outlines the moment when the characters return to daily life, transformed by experience.
Step 5. Create a table of contents
Once you have a basic understanding of what will happen during the course of the story, you will need to create a summary. It will help you visualize the progress of the story and review it to find potential issues or any items to change.
- Write your summary by ordering the series of events chronologically.
- Do not leave gaps in the narrative of the episodes that make up the summary.
- Think about the various scenes and analyze how they connect with each other.
Step 6. Develop the sense of fear slowly
Typically, ghost tales develop slowly over the course of the story. By gradually inserting more strange events, the idea that something even more terrifying is about to happen is reinforced. The reader should be able to notice this exponential increase, waiting more and more anxiously for the climax of the story.
- Don't rush to reveal the eventual clash between the protagonists or the climax of the story.
- Slowly developing the tension within the tale can make the climax even more intense.
Part 2 of 3: Developing the Characters
Step 1. Consider the protagonist
The focus of each story is generally made up of the main character or protagonist. This character represents the connection to the world of your story and provides readers with a direct point of observation to refer to within the story. Reflect on qualities, motivations, backstory, and other details about the protagonist.
- Think about why the character is in a given situation.
- Imagine how the character would react to the events that happen in the story.
- Try to mentally create a clear picture of the character's physical appearance.
Step 2. Create the antagonist
The antagonist of the story is usually regarded as the "evil man" and embodies the character who will come into conflict with the protagonist or hero. In this case, your antagonist will likely be the ghost. Think about some of the following aspects that characterize ghosts in horror stories:
- The reason why the ghost manifests and behaves in a certain way.
- There are different types of ghosts, some are more ethereal while others are endowed with special powers.
Step 3. Consider adding a complement or additional characters
Additional characters should be included within the story, in order to provide the reader with more details to understand the overall psychology of the protagonist or antagonist. These characters are called "complements" and, although they have their own motives and structure, they are often used to highlight certain aspects of the main characters.
- The complements usually have different personalities than the main characters, in order to highlight their individual characteristics.
- Support characters should also have their own qualities and personalities.
- Ask yourself what kinds of relationships could develop between these characters and the protagonists of the story.
Part 3 of 3: Writing the Story
Step 1. Avoid telling the reader what is happening
The goal of any ghost or horror story is to engage the reader in order to make him feel what the characters are feeling. Simply telling them what happens may be a less effective technique than describing the characters' emotions. Whenever possible, try to detail the protagonists' emotional reaction to a scary event instead of just saying they were scared.
- "The ghost appeared and I got scared" is an example of how the reader is simply informed about the mood of the character.
- "The ghost appeared and my stomach tangled in a thousand knots. I could feel the sweat dripping down my face; my heart was pounding, as if it wanted to jump out of my chest" is an example of how to "show" the reader what happens.
Step 2. Let the readers figure out the details
While you may have a good idea of exactly what is going on in the story, putting in fewer details can make the tale even more disturbing. Readers will mentally and automatically add these elements into the story, creating the image of what terrifies them personally. Try to keep descriptions to a minimum and let the readers scare themselves.
- For example: "The ghost was 10 feet tall and exactly as wide as the door it passed through" is probably too direct.
- Try writing something like: "The ghost was so huge it made the room small and claustrophobic."
Step 3. Finish the story quickly
The pace of the story should start slowly, pick up speed, and then end abruptly. A sudden and abrupt ending can really shock readers, leaving a lasting impression. When thinking about how to end the story, make sure the final moment can be described quickly.
- Consider ending the story with a single sentence.
- Providing too many explanations at the end of the story can reduce the intensity of the final impact.
Advice
- Think about what scares you most and be inspired by those fears.
- The setting is a key part of the ghost story because it can amplify or reduce the feeling of terror you intend to evoke.
- Try to clearly understand who and what your characters are.
- Consider adopting a standard model to use for the story arc.
- Before adding more details to the story, create a good summary.
- At first, it develops the tension slowly, then accelerates during the climax of the story.
