Ever thought of writing a gothic novel? This month, aspiring writers around the world are taking part in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) where they aim to write a first draft of their book in a month (ambitious!). If you’re a lover of gothic books and have always wanted to write one, here are some tips from our in-house author on how to get started.
1. Read, read, and then read some more gothic books.
This is probably the most obvious but also the most important tip. You don’t have to do an MA in Creative Writing to become a brilliant writer. You can learn from the very best authors by reading (and dissecting) their work. See how they build suspense and mystery in their novels. Do they use an unreliable narrator? How do they lean into their setting to create an atmosphere of unease? Reading a wide range of gothic fiction–from romances to hauntings and those featuring monsters, can help you narrow an area of interest in the genre and teach you some new writing techniques.
2. Make sure the gothic genre is right for your story.
Ask yourself this simple question: what is the purpose of my story? Is it mainly to entertain? Is there a social issue that you want to explore through outsider characters like monsters and anti-heroes? The gothic genre lends itself particularly well to stories that dig deeper and challenge the status quo. Knowing why you’re telling your story will give you more clarity when it comes to actually writing it.
3. Treat your gothic setting like a main character.
What we all love about gothic novels are the dark, desolate settings that help create mood and atmosphere. To really bring your setting to life, treat it like a main character. Think about its past and build a full history for it. What happened there five, ten, a hundred years ago (even before it was there)?
For bringing your setting to life, consider the five senses. What does it smell, feel, taste, sound, and look like? How do your characters feel about it? Are they on edge? How does the setting treat your characters? Does it try to spook them? If so, why? Spend lots of time drawing it out so that your setting feels like a living breathing thing.
4. Keep up the level of unease throughout your book.
In a lot of gothic books, a sense of uncertainty and danger helps build mystery and suspense. A lot of writers achieve this at the start of their book but by the middle, the sense of mystery falls flat. How can you keep the momentum going?
For one thing– don’t throw cold water on your mystery by revealing everything to the reader and characters in your book. Keep us (and your characters) second guessing. How can you achieve this? It all depends on the story you’re writing. But here are a few ways to build uncertainty and suspense in your book:
You can use an unreliable narrator
Lean into your setting– creaking floorboard, objects moving, fog/mist that makes things hazy and unclear
Hide the monster– ie. we might not know when it will come out (like in Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde), make it unpredictable
Think of pacing– slow the pace in scenes where there is danger. Think of your 5 senses
5. Lean into gothic tropes.
A damsel in distress, an anti-hero, a crumbling mansion, a winter haunting, a desolate moor– we love a gothic trope. While you don’t want your writing to be full of clichés, you can put a twist on a traditional trope. The first step is to understand how tropes have traditionally been used in gothic fiction. That’s where reading a wide range of gothic books comes in handy. To make a trope feel fresh will all depend on the context of your story. Modern gothic novels like Julia Armfield’s ‘Our Wives Under the Sea’, ‘Ghosted’ by Jenn Ashworth, or ‘Nightbitch’ by Rachel Yoder, or 'Frankissstein' by Jeanette Winterson are great examples of authors who give us a fresh perspective on a traditional trope through the timely issues they explore in their works.
Gothic books are not only thrilling to read, but they’re also a wild adventure to write. It's not an easy job by any means to write a novel, but it is deeply satisfying to imagine and give birth to a gothic book of your own. Who knows-- maybe someday day you can share the thrilling mood and atmosphere of your gothic novel with readers far and wide!
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