Where Nightmares Come From

I have been a huge fan of the horror and science fiction genres since I can remember. Heck, I have always loved stuff that was creative and outside the norm. I remember sitting in front of my grandparent’s big TV, watching horror movie creature feature, taking in every scene of movies such as Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things, King Kong (the old black and white version), and the old Hammer horror movies, to name just a few. I’d also get sucked in to shows like The Twilight Zone (both the original and the 1980s remake), Tales from the Dark Side, Amazing Stories, and so on.

It didn’t matter if they would scare the crap at me and I would sometimes spend the night in my bed with the covers over my head, terrified that zombies or some other monster would burst through the door to get me. Well, to be honest, this might have happened more than  a few times, because I was always a creative kid with an overactive imagination. But I didn’t care. I’d get up the next day and looked for something else that amazed or scared me.  When I was not watching horror movies on TV, my grandmother would take me to the theater to see them. I still recall watching Gremlins and a few others at the theater by her house.

When I wasn’t watching something I would be lost in my imagination, fighting one of the many creatures I’d seen in movies or read about in comics. It wasn’t long before I was drawing them and writing out my stories. It was around the time I started writing more that I also started reading books from authors such as Stephen King.  I loved losing myself in the horror genre and being creative.

One of the things I love that deals with both of these is the story being told. There is something about coming up with a story and then sharing it with others. Because of this I have decided to start this blog that will look at storytelling and the world of horror. I will have interviews with some of the masters in the world of both film and fiction so they can share their insights on how they conceive of a story and bring it to life. Hopefully, in learning from them and talking about this awesome topic, you can share with me a glimpse at how great stories develop and—perhaps—learn where nightmares come from.