Hi Folks,

Week two of Motown Writers Blogging Challenge. The subject this time, “Why I write my genre.” Well for me that’s an easy one. My Mom was a horror nut. She watched all the old classic movies like Frankenstein, The Mummy, Dracula and her favorite The Thing and not Kurt Russell’s version, the black and white original.  She watched tv shows like One Step Beyond, The Outer Limits and The Sixth Sense. Her favorite author was Stephen King, Dean Koontz, John Saul.  OMGoodness is it any wonder that my favorite genre is horror. I took the horror one step further because I watched shows like The Munsters, The Adams Family and found my humor in horror.

We would read together, sit for hours in front of the T.V. watching a full day of horror. I never had nightmares that scared me because I was already scared when I went to bed but I always knew that when I woke up she would be there. With horror I find a unique challenge. You have to take something most unreal and make it real enough that the fear that it could happen brings the real fear.  Stephen King took an ordinary lawn mower and made you fear Lawn mower man. He took a beautiful St Bernard and made you fear Cujo. Dean Koontz took a common household pest and made you fear the dark. Horror for me is exciting and I can introduce new worlds, new people new situations that only exist in our nightmares and dreams.

When I first started writing my horror my only intent was to scare. I wrote my first one and copy wrote it in 2011. Fear was my only concern, later as I re read it I realized that it was a little too dark for my liking. Mom read everything I wrote and loved them. Her favorite was my published novel In The Footsteps of a Killer through Artistic Words Publishing. She asked me after reading it, “Did I do this to you?”  “Um yeah ma ya did,” We laughed. This novel was a little different then the first one. I wrote it to scare. The fear factor was the most important aspect of it however I needed to bring forth a little light. I needed to add a spiritual touch. A touch of God to remind us that there is always good. Evil does not exist without good. God can and will make right all wrongs. Someone once said that I wrote spiritual warfare, I’m not sure if I’d call it that but I do know that evil can not exist without good and good does not exist without evil.

Now ask me if my horror is still scary. Yes, yes it is. But isn’t it comforting to know that in the midst of horror there is and can be some light? Aren’t you happy that after I scare the hell out of you I will let you down easy (Maybe) not all of my stories have a happy ending. My horror story ideas come to me most times in dreams. Some are so graphic that even I don’t want to touch them. They disappear with the light of dawn and if I can’t introduce some light I leave that dream on the cutting floor. Nightmares, dreams whichever they come to me as I decide if I want to write them or not. I am in control of the horror and as long as I am the horror will almost always have some light.

Until the next weeks blog, Denise signing off and saying ….Happy Horror!

Hi everyone Denise here, Denise Bryson and I have accepted Sylvia Hubbard, fonder of Motown Writers challenge to do a blog, once a week in September. The topic I chose is “The first story I remember writing.” But first a little bit about me. I live in Detroit, Mi. and am an avid Horror fan. I read, watch and write Horror. My Mom was a huge horror nut and I didn’t fall too far from the tree. I am published through Artistic Words Publishing with my story “In The Footsteps of a Killer” as well as being self published at Lulupress.com.

The first story I remember writing was called ‘The Last Witch in Salem.” I was in the fourth grade so I must have been somewhere around 8 or 9. The story was about a woman who indeed was the last witch. While she never used her powers to hurt anyone she was jilted by her boyfriend and turned in as a witch. Not because he knew but because he wanted someone else. So as she stood tied to the stake and about to be burned, she is asked if she has any last words. She recounts her good spells and deeds for the people of the Hamlet and how she helped them all and then her furry takes over. She unleashes her power to enact revenge on all who stood in front of her yelling burn the witch.

I of course won’t tell you how it ends because I still have plans for it. My teacher had a hard time believing that an 8 year old could write such a story and well I’m still looking for the story line so I don’t know what to tell her. My Mom believed in me and my story and even though I never wanted to write again for a long time after that,  I stand by my story. It took until my late twenties before I even considered writing again and I am here now to say, “teachers beware of how you speak. Don’t be a dream crusher”

In acceptance to this challenge I was going to do a video blog and step up my game but I seem to have run into some technical problem which I hope to have fixed by next blog. So until next weeks topic this is Denise signing off and saying…”Happy Horror!”