User blog comment:TDKMC1/Not like anyone's going to read this anyway/@comment-5927167-20131117202831/@comment-10950063-20131117212048

Subtle horror is great, but, again, for that you need to build up an atmosphere or tension. Getting away from summaries will help that a lot. And you don't need to start with normalcy. You can start with weirdness, but then build it up. You have a really good instinct for avoiding bad detail. Bad detail is unecessary information and description that bogs a story down. You just need to up the good detail, info and description that obviously does the opposite.

As for tactics, this is where I get a little useless. I'm not a good teacher, I've always been bad at explaining how I write. It's just escalation. Something strange is going on, it gets stranger. But you need to tell people what's going on. Like I said, in "Mirrors" I didn't really get much of an idea about what was going on.

I wish I could help more, but all I can think to say is the obvious. Think of it as a chart that steadily moves upwards along the horror/weirdness scale. That's how a lot of writers, including me, do things. Some people like to put things on a simmer through the whole thing. A little weird, a little creepy, sustain it over most of the story then bump it way up at the end.

You don't have to do gore. It's a crutch a lot of times. I don't have a lot of room to talk, though. I've written my share. You're aiming for a much more difficult type of horror to write, so it will take time to get it down.

I suggest reading some Thomas Ligotti. He's a very good horror writer who is amazing with tension and slow builds. Here's one of his: http://weirdfictionreview.com/2011/12/the-red-tower-by-thomas-ligotti/

I hope some of this has helped in some way. Remember, reading and writing are the biggest keys to getting better. If you write something else, feel free to give me a link on my talk page.

And most of the stuff I talk about here is stuff you already do/don't do, but maybe there's something helpful in there: http://creepypasta.wikia.com/wiki/User_blog:ImGonnaBeThatGuy/Unsolicited_Writing_Advice!