Screenwriting : Who loves to WRITE HORROR MOVIE SCRIPT? by Andrew Munoz

What type of horror movie are you trying to write?

It's hard to write any good script.

It's actually quite simple. Just follow my five E-Z Principles for Horror Screenplaywriting: 1. Jump scares, jump scares, and more jump scares! Write your first draft straight, then go back and add the word "Suddenly" to every other paragraph of action. 2. Write about what scares you! All my horror screenplays are about public speaking. 3. Twists rule! Just before "FADE OUT", add this line: "That's when Jane realized they were all zombies." (This works best if you have a character named Jane in your script. Make sure she survives until the end!) 4. Vampires are okay, but if you find that your vampire character is becoming a brooding, hunky Twilight-esque vampire, have him kill a baby onscreen. 5. Found footage is very popular right now. On the title page, add this writer's note: "OPTIONAL: shot entirely from one first-person camera".

No.

I write them and have been paid to write them many times (once by the company that produced the FRIDAY THE 13th remake, and they're pretty damned big). What Marcus said: hard to write any script. Every genre takes a particular set of skills.

PS: What's up with the rash of vague questions around here? This isn't "how do you create dread on the page?" or something specific about writing horror, this is hardly even a question! People: ask real questions.

Agree with D Marcus: it's hard to write any good script. That said, horror might be a bit "easier" than some other genres because it has clear genre expectations and a clear structural formula. Aspiring horror writers can paint within the lines to some extent, learn from past horror movie models, and use them as guidelines to start refining their craft.

Okay, let me see if I have anything I can offer: Within horror there are several types of sub-genres, such as teen-slasher, deep suspense, dark Twilight-zonish ... But all come down to man vs. self, man vs. man, man vs. nature. So, find something you know about (you probably shouldn't try to write a hospital-based scare fest unless you have worked at as doctor/nurse/EMT -- but if you are stuck as a waiter and can write a good line of speculation involving a group of hospital workers that always order the same food that might not only involve nefarious ingredients, but also result in their extended longevity/supernatural abilities, with your character being tempted between turning them in or joining them, by all means go for it. At that point, you are writing what you know -- and situations to put in the first draft should start flowing more easily.