I don't know about other bloggers but the purpose of mine is both to entertain and to educate. I'm no expert, in terms of fictional writing, but I do have decades of experience as a film script writer and feel compelled to help other writers out when given the opportunity. So, take my advice with a skeptical mind and find out if it works and is true for you.
Frankly, I don't give a rats ass whether you take my advice or not. Some will and some won't. Some will be determined to criticize me and try and prove how much better their advice is than mine.
Why, there's one of them now at the edge of the diving board screaming, "Mom, MOM look at me mom! I'm so much smarter than CM!" To which I and their mother exhaustedly reply, "That's nice dear."
Today, I thought I would tackle the rules of horror or more accurately - debunking the rules of horror. In a nutshell, there are no rules! Thanks for stopping by and see you next time.
Oh, I wouldn't do that. Just leave you hanging like that. I'll do that at the end of my next novel! lol.
As I'm a member of a few horror writer and book promo groups on fartbook - I read a lot of questions from new writers and would be writers that haven't put pen to paper yet. A recurring theme that I've observed is: Can I do this? Do I have to adhere to this? What do you guys think about this?
The answer is quite simple in all cases, do whatever you damn well please! And stop trying to pander to other writers to win their favour and boost your self-worth. You're worthy enough, aren't you?
To hell with other writers and what they think!
I know, I know - life is full of paradox - but let me have my fun.
As I said so cheekily early on, there are no rules.
If your vampire only drinks blood through a bamboo straw, for environmental reasons, then write it that way. I chose a vampire example on purpose because that genre has been written in countless directions in an attempt to create originality.
Authors keep trying to re-invent and refresh.
created good ole boy vamps from the south.
created the uber cool goths of #TheHunger.
So be original!
Don't follow any trends unless you are a money-grubbing demon solely interested in making a quick buck and thereby forfeiting your immortal soul. See my blog https://www.cmhindmarshbooks.com/post/there-is-no-thought-of-money-here for more on money.
You don't need anyones permission to break the rules. Rules are meant to be broken. The more original you can be, the more your writing will stand out.
Unfortunately, this type of uncertainty and need to question your every move is Science's fault!
As science is now entrenched as the new religion, the scientific priests demand adherence to scientific fact and principal. I'm also a film and tv scriptwriter and I've been amazed at how many writers demand that one sticks to the rules.
But let's make one thing crystal clear.
Fictional writing, be it novel or film script, does not have to make scientific sense.
Why do you think they call it 'suspension or belief' and 'escapism'? People read and watch film to escape the reality of the really real world. No one wants the fictional world to be regimented and fact-checked to death!
So, just piss off science! Go jump off a cliff and at least prove the existence of gravity. Even though it's just a theory with no provable opposing force which makes density and buoyancy far more believable. But I digress.
I'm not anti-science by any means. Believe it or not, in my younger years I was a scientist working in a lab, as a consultant and with the government. But I got better. Whew!
So, to wrap things all up - there are no rules or regiment to follow. Follow your imagination wherever that leads you. Be original and strive to be different or add a new spin to an existing genre. You can't be wrong if your write your own truth.