Hello, children of the dark. This writing malarky can be awfully solitary, can’t it? By our very nature, writers tend to be introverts. Add in the lure of the dark stuff, and you’re likely to find us huddled in corners, by candlelight, scribbling away and creating nightmares.
But, just because we hate to be cast as the creep in the corner, there are exceptions to this rule. Around the world, you’ll find writers regularly gathering to celebrate each other and talk shop at conferences. This aspect of the writerly life is still quite new to me; I only attended my first conference last year, a ghost story festival, which is where I met our wonderful Steph Ellis for the first time. Earlier this year, I was at ChillerCon, the UK’s answer to StokerCon, and felt so welcomed and embraced by the horror community that it confirmed in my heart that I’d made the right decision to properly pursue my writing.
So imagine my surprise that less than a year after my first proper writers’ conference, I find myself planning to lead a workshop at this month’s UK FantasyCon. Yes, I’m not only going to be there, but I’ll be kicking off proceedings by running a workshop on building an author brand in a natural way, without any of the hacks or tricks that can feel intimidating. It’s kind of a marriage of my old life in content marketing and my new(though fated) life in fiction and writing coaching. If you’re in the vicinity, maybe I’ll see you there?
I know, I know – not everyone is lucky enough to go to conferences. Not everyone has the location, the money, the means to attend these things; they can get pricey between tickets, travel and accommodation. And not everyone has the confidence to walk into those rooms alone – I am definitely one of those socially awkward types who cannot do small talk! What is a writer to do in these cases?
I’ll let you in on one of my secrets… over the pandemic lockdowns, I joined a global online writing community that has really helped build my confidence and courage in my convictions. It’s called the London Writers Salon, and it actually hosts Zoom-based writing sessions four times a day, for free. You just join, set an intention, go on mute, and write in community. Something strange happens in those sessions… Words get on the page when you have 100 people on your screen doing the same thing. This community has helped me so much that I actually now host a few of the sessions – usually 8am New Zealand time on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays (a day earlier in the northern hemisphere – it’s 9pm here in the UK or 4pm ET) – so I might see you there some time? If you do join when I’m the host, DM me to let me know you read TWF!
And who knows? Maybe a writing community is just what you need to kickstart your next submission to Trembling With Fear. You could join those providing this week’s feast of darkness.
Our trembling main course from Beth Mills has a woman trying everything she can to save her marriage. Meanwhile, we have three delicious quick bites for you this week:
- Michael Bettendorf’s folk horror explores the bond between father and daughter
- Eddie D. Moore’s retirement is not quite as he imagined, and
- Mark Humphries’ old wives tale has more truth than you realise
If these stories inspire you to get writing, you’ll find details on how to submit to us over here on our freshly-updated submission guidelines page.
And maybe I’ll see you at the British Fantasy Society’s Conference? Or in a Zoom room for Writers’ Hour some time soon?
For now, it’s over to you, Stuart…
The word “gothic” can conjure very specific images depending on who you’re talking to. Some out there might see Robert Smith very clearly in their mind’s eye, while others will think of heroines in white night dresses fleeing ruined castles by dark. Once the dominant speculative genre – back before Shelley and Stoker and Lovecraft and Orwell were but a sparkle in their mothers’ eyes – Gothic has gone through the trends and the tribulations of genre over the last few centuries.
