It’s Friday again, so you know what that means. It’s #FirstLineFriday!
Now if you don’t know what #FirstLineFriday is, let me explain how it works. On Fridays, you:
For this week, I’m doing the first lines for a short story I had the idea for earlier this week. I was talking to a woman at my new workplace about some rain that was expected to fall later that day (didn’t fall till late that night, though, so I brought my umbrella to work for nothing!). I mentioned that I was not a fan of being caught in the rain, and she told me that it was weird for a horror writer to be afraid of rain (I’m not, but I get the jab). She then told me I should write a horror story about the rain. Well, challenge accepted. I thought about it, and I finally came up with something that I thought would work. Don’t know when I’ll write it, but I got something good, so I’m sure when I do it’ll be great.
Anyway, enjoy:
Mellie had left the bank two blocks behind her when the wind stole her umbrella, sending it up into the trees on the other side of the street. At the same time, the rain fell down upon her in waves, soaking her down to her skin.
Thoughts? Errors? Too many cliches? Let’s discuss.
And while you’re at it, why not try #FirstLineFriday on your own blog? It’s easy, a lot of fun, and it’s great for practicing openings. In fact, I’m going to tag one of my followers and make them try it. Let’s see…I choose S. Hunter Nesbit! Congratulations, you’ve been tagged. You have to do your own #FirstLineFriday either today or next week. Good luck and have fun with it!
That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’m editing as much as possible this weekend. If I have anything to post about, I’ll let you know. Until next time!
I know I said last time that I was going to talk about work, but I’ve decided against that. After all, I’m working for the government again, in an agency where even the smallest details can be important to national security, so better to be safe than sorry.* My apologies if you were looking forward to a breakdown of my first week on the job like during my internship in Germany.
So instead, I’m going to do something I’ve been wanting to post about for a while, and that has to do with writing good horror.
So, a little backstory: recently I was at this event for young Jewish adults in Columbus, where we young Members of the Tribe can get together, socialize, and have a tasty kosher meal. The last one was a few days after Video Rage came out, so as you can imagine I was telling as many people as possible about the books in case they might be interested. One person, whom I was sitting at the same table with, asked me a question during our conversation on writing, one that really got me thinking. The question was, “Which element in horror is most important? The monster, the scares, or the atmosphere?”
I can’t remember exactly what I told him at the dinner, but I have thought about this question a bit since then. And you know what? I think that all of them are equally important. You just need the right balance of each and a good execution of each as well How to achieve that balance works depends on the story, as well as the skill of the author. Same goes for the execution, though I feel that is more based on skill than anything else.
Think about it. Obviously when you think of horror stories, you most likely think of some sort of monster, maybe a ghost, or a serial killer, or some demonic looking thing with teeth and horns. But then you think of that monster popping up and attacking you, the scare. And then you think of the fear that suffuses you, fills every inch of you, that fear of being attacked by this monster. That is the atmosphere, felt by you, the reader/viewer, an atmosphere of terror at the idea the monster will attack you. All three elements, present and essential to the story.
You can see all this in the case of Stephen King’s IT: you’ve got a terrifying monster, a shapeshifter that takes on the form of your worst nightmares and eats its victims. Every time the monster appears to attack, it’s pretty creepy to say the least. And the fact that the town It terrorizes is under Its influence to a great degree means anyplace could be where It is hiding, making nowhere safe. That’s a terrifying atmosphere to live under.
But like I said, finding a balance is difficult. One of my biggest criticisms of the movie The Forest is that it couldn’t keep up a creepy, tense atmosphere, which ruined the story despite having a great monster (Aokigahara) and decent scares. This is in contrast to a novel like Within These Walls, which manages to keep a great balance between its ghosts, the scares, and the terrifying atmosphere that builds in the house (I highly recommend reading it).
Great example of a good balance of monster, scares, and atmosphere.
This goes as well for execution. Each element, even if perfectly balanced, will not make for a great story if there’s not a good execution. I saw and reviewed The Boy earlier this year, and I felt that the true nature of the supposedly possessed doll made no sense. Seriously bad execution in the monster. Contrast that with the little girl from The Ring, which is a pretty well-thought out ghost, and you’ve got a very good execution right there.
So like I said, all three elements of the story are equally important if you want to make a truly scary story. Though that doesn’t mean that it’s easy to do the execution part. Especially for atmosphere. I find that’s a really difficult thing to create, and even harder to keep. Hopefully though, as I write and edit more and more stories, I’ll get better at all three elements (and I like to think I’m already very good at monsters and scares, so…).
That’s all for now. As you can probably guess, I’m busy with work and being an independent adult, so I might be a little restricted in the number of blog posts I write over the coming weeks. I’ll try to keep up my average of two posts a week (unless something special happens and I can’t help but blog about it), with one probably released sometime between Sunday and Tuesday and one on Friday (you know the one I’m talking about). In the meantime, I’m editing Rose and continuing to find ways to get the word out on Video Rage and all my other books. If I’m lucky, I’ll have more news on those in the weeks to come.
Until next time, my Followers of Fear. Have a good one!
*I will say though that I’m doing the same sort of work as I did in Germany, that the people in my office are the nicest people, that I’m enjoying myself, and as soon as all my basic training is out of the way, I plan to do as much as I can for the office and make the best impression possible. Wish me luck!
I’ve got my first review of Video Rage! Yay! And it’s from my friend Katja, aka Kat Impossible, from the blog Life and Other Disasters. You’ve probably seen her comments on my posts once or twice on my blog. She’s got that really awesome black-and-white photo as her profile picture.
Now I’m not going to quote the entire review here. Let’s just say I like that she’s honest. She points out the bad as well as the good, which I appreciate. After all, that shows where I can improve in future stories (though given the nature of what I write, it might be hard to get Kat to read them. She doesn’t really do scary). And when she points out the good, she has a way of putting it that makes me smile. Here’s what she said about how I do endings:
Finally, Rami has a certain talent for ending a story. His epilogue always makes you wonder what will happen next and that’s basically what keeps you hooked in a book.
Just wait till you read the third book! I’ve got an ending that I think will really surprise people.
If you guys want to check out the full review, please click here. And if you like what you read, please feel free to leave Kat a comment with your thoughts.
Also, if you’re interested in checking out Video Rage, or the first book Reborn City, I’ll post the links down below. And if you decide to get a copy of either book and you like what you read, please make sure to let me know. Positive or negative, I love feedback, and it ultimately helps me out as a writer.
That’s all for now. Tomorrow’s Friday, so you know what that means. Until next time, my Followers of Fear!
Reborn City: Amazon, Createspace, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Smashwords, and Kobo
Video Rage: Amazon, Kindle, Createspace, Barnes & Noble, iBooks,Smashwords, and Kobo.
As I mentioned before, today is my twenty-third birthday. Wow, twenty-three. Technically, I’m still pretty young, but I feel old. I’m already paying bills and rent on my own apartment and starting a job. Ah, adulting. How you make me feel older than I am.
And as I mentioned in my last post, it’s also been two years since I published Snake, my second novel. This book, which was inspired by movies like Taken and eighties slasher films, as well as all the suspense novels I read in my first year or two of college, is the story of a serial killer who goes after members of a powerful New York mafia family, and the reasons why he does this.
It’s definitely one of my more “what the fuck?”-worthy stories, as well as one of the ones I had the most fun writing. At the time I wrote it, I just wanted to create a very thrilling, violent story involving a serial killer whom people would find themselves cheering for (like I said, “what the fuck?”-worthy). I did a lot of research into serial killers and psychopaths, even consulting with a forensic psychiatrist who helped me figure out what an actual criminal profiler would say about the crimes, as well as a lot of rewrites and reworking of the plot. The end result was one hell of a bloody, exciting thriller-horror novel.
True, there are some things I would’ve changed in the final product if I could go back (technically I could, but I don’t do rewrites after publication unless absolutely necessary), but yeah, it’s a good novel. And that’s not just my own ego telling me that. Here are some reviews, a few of which are by friends and other authors [WARNING! Some of these reviews do contain spoilers. Please be advised]:
Well, I took yet another vacation where I made my family “just wait until I finish this chapter.” This page-turning read was another great effort by Rami. He is not afraid to take risks in plot twists and turns, character development and he takes the reader on quite the journey in this book. So looking forward to his next creation!
–Michele K
This book is another awesome creation by Rami. This book is scary and brings the reader to the depths of how evil the human character can be and how anyone can be driven to commit acts of torture. The author does a wonderful job of developing the plot and characters and there are certainly twists and turns. I highly recommend reading this book if you love a good frightening thrill.
–ENJ
Rami Ungar makes a promise to (the reader) in all his writings: he WILL scare you, and if he does “his job is done.” Snake will scare you. I am a huge Stephen King fan, so this should give you some idea of my tolerance level for gore, death and mayhem – I was scared. Rami takes you into places you would never have believed possible, and manages to pull his hero (and eventually his heroine) out of them against all odds. If you like to be scared. If you LOVE to be scared. You should read this book.
–Angela Misri, author of No Matter How Improbable
I really enjoyed this book. When I selected “dark” for the mood, it was almost a toss up with suspenseful. You knew early on who the mafia killer was, but the question of how he was going to find his girlfriend and rescue her was suspenseful. I ended up choosing “dark” because of the level of violence our main character used in getting to the girlfriend. But he was a complex character. Even though he definitely had the dark side to him, there was a surprisingly good side to him, too. You don’t really see this until later on in the book. So early on, you might think this is an unredeemable character. But one of the most intriguing characters are those who aren’t what they initially seem, and for this reason, I enjoyed this character. The pacing was just right. It wasn’t rushed, and in no way did I ever feel it dragged, which is awesome for a book that was over 500 pages in paperback.
–Ruth Ann Nordin, author of The Mistaken Mail Order Bride
I guess people really like it. Which is good, because I have plans to someday write a sequel. I just have too much right now to devote time to one. Though considering the experience I had with the first book, I’d probably have a blast getting the second one written and going back down that creepy-as-hell rabbit hole.
So if you would like to read Snake and see if it’s as good and as scary as these lovely reviewers have made it out to be, I’ll include the links below. And if you do decide to read the book, please let me know what you think. Positive or negative, I love feedback from readers (and it makes me a better writer to boot).
That’s all for now. I’m off to have birthday celebrations with my family. I’ll see you around, my Followers of Fear. Have a great weekend.
Snake: Amazon, Createspace, Barnes & Noble,iBooks, Smashwords, and Kobo
I can’t believe how fast a single week can go. And I’m happy to say that Video Rage‘s first week has been very successful. Already a lot of people are getting copies of it, and even sales of Reborn City, the first book in the trilogy, has picked up a bit. This makes me really happy because it lets me know that people are very interested in reading these creations of mine.
Now, if you’re unfamiliar with Reborn City and Video Rage (and you must be really new here if that’s the case), they’re the first two books in the science fiction trilogy I’ve been writing since high school. The series follows Zahara Bakur, a Muslim teenager living in a dystopian future, and how her life changes drastically when she is forced to join the Hydras, a rising street gang in the western projects of the Vegas-style city-state Reborn City. Once in the Hydras, she learns that the gang’s leaders have amazing powers and abilities, and that there’s some connection between them and Reborn City’s mysterious leaders. The events that occur in the aftermath of these revelations will not only shape the lives of Zahara and her friends, but perhaps change the world.
When the first book came out back in 2013 (yeah, it took me three years to get the second book out. I was busy with school and work and a few other things), I was gladdened by how much people liked it. Indeed, those who left reviews had some very nice things to say:
This is not a genre I typically delve into, but I took this book on vacation and couldn’t put it down. The plot had me turning pages at quite the clip. The characters were unique and interesting and the imagery had me creating my own visual of what Rami’s interpretation of the future looked like. For first time novelist, Rami Ungar, this was an outstanding showing of talent and commitment to his passion of writing. Looking forward to seeing what he comes up with next!
–Michele K
As a reader who does not read books in this genre, I must admit that I could not put down the book. I attribute this to the talent of the author. I am looking forward to reading the next books published by Ungar. I recommend this book to readers who enjoy action with features of supernatural powers and sci-fi.
–ENJ
This is an extremely commendable effort by a new young writer, whom I believe we will see much more of in the years ahead. Rami Ungar’s vision of a frightening dystopian future is peppered with those elements that make us all human. There are quite a few surprises in the book, and I am anxious for the next volume in the series to be released.
–Marc N
Gangland violence, superhero-like enhancements, a futuristic setting, and social commentary that stems from a semi-post-apocalyptic theme. And then there’s a story where people come together as a family to deal with mutual loss and tragedy. What’s not to like?
–Matthew S. Williams, author of Whiskey Delta and Pappa Zulu
That last one was especially important for me, because it came from an author friend whom I admire a lot.
So yeah, people have enjoyed the first book. And I’m hoping that with the second book, people have similar reactions. With sequels, I try to include the parts that worked, improve or fix the parts that didn’t, and overall expand the world and action in the story without just adding more explosions and some flimsy plot a la Michael Bay (there are explosions here and there, but they’re definitely not excessive).
Reborn City and Video Rage, side by side.
I also hope that people take the main theme of the book series to heart. A lot of the characters have been through a lot, and have been told that they are good for only one thing, usually not something good. The series follows them as they realize that they can be better than what people think they’re good for. I’m hoping that a lot of readers will find that theme applies to their own lives and that they take it to heart.
If you wish to check out Reborn City and Video Rage, I’ll include the links below. I hope you enjoy the stories, should you decide to check them out, and that whatever your thoughts, positive or negative, you let me know. I love getting feedback from readers, and it makes me a better writer to begin with.
Until next time, my Followers of Fear. Happy reading!
Reborn City: Amazon, Createspace, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Smashwords, and Kobo
Video Rage: Amazon, Kindle, Createspace, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Smashwords, and Kobo
A screenshot of “A Project in Western Ideals.”
Life’s been going very good for me. I moved into my new apartment (the kitchen’s still a work-in-progress and I still need to take out all the boxes to the dumpsters behind the parking lot, but I’m working on it), I put out a new book (and so far, I think it’s doing well), my birthday’s coming up (yay me!), and I start my new job a week from Monday (I’m planning on making a very good impression). And to top it all off, I’m editing again!
Yeah, remember when I was like, “I’ve just finished a novel and I just don’t feel like doing any work?” Well, a couple days ago I started doing something I hadn’t done in about a month or so: editing. To be specific, I began editing “A Project in Western Ideals”, the short story I wrote last summer about a girl being turned into a human Barbie doll. As of last night, I’mabout three-fourths of the way through the story, though an ending that satisfies me still alludes me (you’d think after having an ending with witchcraft, and then two endings involving an alien-like organism, I’d find something that worked! Apparently not). I’m going to try to finish the story tonight, though I’ll need an ending that works. I wonder if I change the beginning…
Anyway, after that I plan to get right back into my novel-as-a-thesis, Rose. As you well know, I started on the third draft of that story a couple of months ago, after almost a year of not working on that story (I was busy in-between drafts). but I couldn’t get through the first chapter before I had to work on Video Rage again. Now that that’s out and I’m out of the funk that settled over me after I completed the final draft of VR, I’m looking forward to getting back into that book and doing all the work that needs to be done. A lot needs to be changed, and quite a bit needs to be added, but I think I’m up to it.
The writing space in my new apartment. Pretty sweet, huh?
You know, I think writing is a lot like every other skill or profession: there are times when you are in love with it, and times when you just don’t want to deal with it. There are times when you are amazing at it, where everything you write is worthy of publication and awards, and times when everything you write is dreck. I had my phase, where I just couldn’t write anything besides a blog post. But now it’s over, and I’m ready to start something new. Maybe that’s because so many new things are happening in my life. I moved into a new apartment, complete with my own little writing space (you can see it on the right). I’m starting a new job a week from tomorrow. And my birthday is coming up later this week, among other things. Basically, with so much energy of the new in me and around me, how can that funk not be lifted?
So expect a bunch of updates on the writing life in the weeks and months to come. I’m going to definitely try and get Rose done before it’s time to get ready for National Novel Writing Month. Wish me luck in the meantime, my Followers of Fear. I’m definitely going to need a little bit of luck in the weeks and months to come.
Rami Ungar The Writer 