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Creep This Way: How to Become a Horror Writer With 24 Tips to Get You Ghouling
Wanna be a horror writer but don't know where to start?Try Creep This Way!Fun and pressure-free, it's a guide to the business of boo!In a voice that sounds like a longtime friend, Rebecca Cuthbert offers clear advice you can immediately apply to your writing aspirations."Cuthbert's 'how-to' is a delightful blend of memoir and no-nonsense advice for all aspiring writers." -- Rowan Hill, author of Foxfire"In an industry that is constantly changing, even seasoned pros will learn something new from this book." -- James Sabata, author of Caduceus"An essential guide for the aspiring horror writer." -- D. M. Guay, author of the 24/7 Demon Mart book series.
129 pages, Paperback
Published January 19, 2024
5 people are currently reading
34 people want to read
About the author
Rebecca Cuthbert
40 books62 followerslinktr.ee/rebeccacuthbertwrites
Rebecca Cuthbert is a dark fiction and poetry writer living in Western New York. She loves ghost stories, folklore, witchy women, and anything that involves nature getting revenge.
Her debut poetry collection, In Memory of Exoskeletons, is out from Alien Buddha Press (March 2023), and CREEP THIS WAY: How to Become a Horror Writer With 24 Steps to Get You Ghouling is available now from Seamus & Nunzio Productions (Jan. 2024). Look for her hybrid poetry and story collection, Self-Made Monsters, in fall of 2024, also from ABP. News about a children’s horror picture book, a spicy gothic novella, and a ghost story collection will be out soon.
Notable publications include the story “The Quilting Circle of Bygone Gardens” in Soul Scream Antholozine (Seamus & Nunzio Productions, 2023); the sonnet “No Rest Nor Relief For You With Me Dead” in Shakespeare Unleashed (Monstrous Books and Crystal Lake Publishing, 2023); and the story “Falling to Pieces” in We’re Here: Best Queer Speculative Fiction 2022 (Neon Hemlock Press, 2023).
Her poem “Still Love” was published in Nocturne Magazine, and nominated for both a Pushcart Prize and a Best of the Net award. Her poem “Bloodthirsty” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize as well (Alien Buddha Press). Both are included in her debut collection. A story, “Grafting,” was published in Miniskirt Magazine and nominated for a Best of the Net award.
Soon, her grief-horror story “Rock-a-Bye” will be out as part of Cemetery Dance Publications’ DREAD anthology (2024); and her story “The Taste of Other People’s Teeth” will be out as part of Spirited Giving’s Shadows in the Stacks anthology. A poem, “Estuary,” will be published in Seaside Gothic this summer, and “Mrs. Anderson, Mrs. Anderson,” a spicy ghost story, will be part of RebellionLit’s Two for the Show anthology.
Rebecca is an Active Pro Member of the Horror Writers Association and part of the HWA NY chapter. Additionally, she is proud to be a Moanaria Fright Club alumna and a co-conspirator in Lindsay Merbaum’s Study Coven. She is the Editor-in-Chief of Undertaker Books, a new horror press.
Amazon Author Profile: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Rebecca...
Rebecca Cuthbert is a dark fiction and poetry writer living in Western New York. She loves ghost stories, folklore, witchy women, and anything that involves nature getting revenge.
Her debut poetry collection, In Memory of Exoskeletons, is out from Alien Buddha Press (March 2023), and CREEP THIS WAY: How to Become a Horror Writer With 24 Steps to Get You Ghouling is available now from Seamus & Nunzio Productions (Jan. 2024). Look for her hybrid poetry and story collection, Self-Made Monsters, in fall of 2024, also from ABP. News about a children’s horror picture book, a spicy gothic novella, and a ghost story collection will be out soon.
Notable publications include the story “The Quilting Circle of Bygone Gardens” in Soul Scream Antholozine (Seamus & Nunzio Productions, 2023); the sonnet “No Rest Nor Relief For You With Me Dead” in Shakespeare Unleashed (Monstrous Books and Crystal Lake Publishing, 2023); and the story “Falling to Pieces” in We’re Here: Best Queer Speculative Fiction 2022 (Neon Hemlock Press, 2023).
Her poem “Still Love” was published in Nocturne Magazine, and nominated for both a Pushcart Prize and a Best of the Net award. Her poem “Bloodthirsty” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize as well (Alien Buddha Press). Both are included in her debut collection. A story, “Grafting,” was published in Miniskirt Magazine and nominated for a Best of the Net award.
Soon, her grief-horror story “Rock-a-Bye” will be out as part of Cemetery Dance Publications’ DREAD anthology (2024); and her story “The Taste of Other People’s Teeth” will be out as part of Spirited Giving’s Shadows in the Stacks anthology. A poem, “Estuary,” will be published in Seaside Gothic this summer, and “Mrs. Anderson, Mrs. Anderson,” a spicy ghost story, will be part of RebellionLit’s Two for the Show anthology.
Rebecca is an Active Pro Member of the Horror Writers Association and part of the HWA NY chapter. Additionally, she is proud to be a Moanaria Fright Club alumna and a co-conspirator in Lindsay Merbaum’s Study Coven. She is the Editor-in-Chief of Undertaker Books, a new horror press.
Amazon Author Profile: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Rebecca...
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
September 26, 2024
For about a year now I have toyed around with the idea of trying to write horror. I have some ideas drafted up and part of a story written, but I haven't really felt I have any idea how to approach it.
I've been very tentative about taking the plunge. It felt a bit silly, and maybe something that I wasn't going to be able to do.
Creep This Way is exactly what I needed to read. Rebecca Cuthbert's writing has an amazingly supportive tone. She isn't talking down to the reader. Rather, this felt like a supportive friend talking you through a confusing process they have already started to navigate. Creep This Way pushes the reader to consider what drives them, and how to hit those goals.
Cuthbert isn't talking in terms of enormous goals right away, but rather revealing a pathway of tiny steps and celebrations, and methods to deal with the inevitable rejections. It navigates finding readers, reviewers, writing groups, creating writing schedules, editing, and everything else that a fledgling writer might be curious about.
Over the course of this book through anecdotes of her journey, she demystifies the process, walking the reader through things to expect and anticipate. This isn't a 6 easy steps to success book, but rather and honest exploration of the winding journey every writer takes.
Each chapter is a self-contained essay. This means you can jump around based on the subject that interests you most at the time, though I do recommend reading all of it, as each chapter has a ton of great insight.
I will be rereading, highlighting, and sticky noting my copy in the following days, and even using it to help as encouragement.
By the end of this book, I felt excited to start my writing journey. I'm excited to get out there and push for my rejection goals!
I will be recommending this book to all my writing friends, even the non-horror writers!
I've been very tentative about taking the plunge. It felt a bit silly, and maybe something that I wasn't going to be able to do.
Creep This Way is exactly what I needed to read. Rebecca Cuthbert's writing has an amazingly supportive tone. She isn't talking down to the reader. Rather, this felt like a supportive friend talking you through a confusing process they have already started to navigate. Creep This Way pushes the reader to consider what drives them, and how to hit those goals.
Cuthbert isn't talking in terms of enormous goals right away, but rather revealing a pathway of tiny steps and celebrations, and methods to deal with the inevitable rejections. It navigates finding readers, reviewers, writing groups, creating writing schedules, editing, and everything else that a fledgling writer might be curious about.
Over the course of this book through anecdotes of her journey, she demystifies the process, walking the reader through things to expect and anticipate. This isn't a 6 easy steps to success book, but rather and honest exploration of the winding journey every writer takes.
Each chapter is a self-contained essay. This means you can jump around based on the subject that interests you most at the time, though I do recommend reading all of it, as each chapter has a ton of great insight.
I will be rereading, highlighting, and sticky noting my copy in the following days, and even using it to help as encouragement.
By the end of this book, I felt excited to start my writing journey. I'm excited to get out there and push for my rejection goals!
I will be recommending this book to all my writing friends, even the non-horror writers!
April 1, 2024
Horror is not my genre but this book is!
While the author writes horror, her words of wisdom are applicable across all genres.
This is by far the most digestible book about how to become a writer I’ve ever read. The chapter are stuffed full of practical advice and stories about Cuthbert’s own experience as a writer.
One of the best parts about this book is you don’t have to read it in order! You want to know Cuthbert’s advice for getting book reviews, go to Chapter 23. Should you pay submission fees or join online writing communities? This book has chapters on that too!
If you’re beginning your writing journey, Creep This Way has the answers to all the questions you should ask.
Great book!
While the author writes horror, her words of wisdom are applicable across all genres.
This is by far the most digestible book about how to become a writer I’ve ever read. The chapter are stuffed full of practical advice and stories about Cuthbert’s own experience as a writer.
One of the best parts about this book is you don’t have to read it in order! You want to know Cuthbert’s advice for getting book reviews, go to Chapter 23. Should you pay submission fees or join online writing communities? This book has chapters on that too!
If you’re beginning your writing journey, Creep This Way has the answers to all the questions you should ask.
Great book!
January 17, 2024
Unlike any other craft book I've read! Lots of practical advice I'll be coming back to again and again.
January 22, 2024
Rebecca Cuthbert presents a masterclass on how to become, and be a horror writer in today's world. Creep This Way is at once a reference, a memoir, and a trail map for wherever you might find yourself in your horror and dark fiction career.
Going beyond the usual guidebooks on the craft, she points to what is next--the EVERYTHING that is next after the story is written (and if you haven't figured out that it all starts with the writing, get your butt in the chair, and put words on paper first).
Take a brief look through the Table of Contents and you'll find all aspects of the writing life are situated in there, and there is no reason to read this straight through, though the author presents the material with such a comfortable and no-nonsense voice it is also a pleasure to read and follow her own journey to success.
Going beyond the usual guidebooks on the craft, she points to what is next--the EVERYTHING that is next after the story is written (and if you haven't figured out that it all starts with the writing, get your butt in the chair, and put words on paper first).
Take a brief look through the Table of Contents and you'll find all aspects of the writing life are situated in there, and there is no reason to read this straight through, though the author presents the material with such a comfortable and no-nonsense voice it is also a pleasure to read and follow her own journey to success.
January 17, 2024
Creep This Way by Rebecca Cuthbert is an excellent resource for any aspiring horror writer. I loved how accessible Cuthbert's writing is; it felt like an old friend giving you advice!
In particular, I thought her personal examples and anecdotes were incredibly helpful. I like that she gives practical suggestions that anyone can implement in their own writing process as they work toward publishing more horror writing.
The book is a quick read, but I know I will go back to it again and again. She provides a lot of invaluable information, especially in terms of finding markets for horror fiction, how to build a network of writing friends, and marketing your own work as a writer.
I look forward to reading more of Cuthbert's work.
In particular, I thought her personal examples and anecdotes were incredibly helpful. I like that she gives practical suggestions that anyone can implement in their own writing process as they work toward publishing more horror writing.
The book is a quick read, but I know I will go back to it again and again. She provides a lot of invaluable information, especially in terms of finding markets for horror fiction, how to build a network of writing friends, and marketing your own work as a writer.
I look forward to reading more of Cuthbert's work.
January 26, 2024
An excellent book for horror writers just starting out (and even for more seasoned writers as I found quite a lot of the tips helpful and great refreshers!)
If you're looking for a book that will
-give you an easy, approachable guide to getting into writing horror
-tips on how to be a professional and successful author
-an easy to read, gentle, and very approachable style for these
Then this book is for you! I also really love the format where Cuthbert will give personal examples and stories and then pass it back to the reader, giving them an idea of how they can approach this step on their own. I honestly wish I'd had this book back when I was first starting out! It would've been a lifesaver in so many ways.
If you're looking for a book that will
-give you an easy, approachable guide to getting into writing horror
-tips on how to be a professional and successful author
-an easy to read, gentle, and very approachable style for these
Then this book is for you! I also really love the format where Cuthbert will give personal examples and stories and then pass it back to the reader, giving them an idea of how they can approach this step on their own. I honestly wish I'd had this book back when I was first starting out! It would've been a lifesaver in so many ways.
January 18, 2024
Dripping in big sister energy, Cuthbert lays out an easy to execute guide for any new writer. I wish I had this three years ago.
February 14, 2024
I absolutely love this practical, insightful, and inspiring guidebook for aspiring horror writers - it’s the perfect blend of “Here’s how to take action” and “Don’t give up, and here’s why.” Thank you for sharing your encouraging stories and writerly wisdom with us weirdos, Rebecca!
May 18, 2024
Who doesn't cringe when they see any kind of "How to ________" book? Well, cringe no longer, because Rebecca Cuthbert has written one that's friendly, not pretentious in any way, and is incredibly inspiring.
As much as we all love being scared (if you don't, I'm not sure how you ended up in the horror community, but welcome anyway😂), it's not fun trying to overcome the fears that are all kicking our mental doors down when we're trying to get started with writing. Hell, even years into writing, those anxieties can still be present. This is really less of a "How to", and more of a, "Here's what my experience was and how what I've learned might help you", from someone who has clearly been through a process we're all very familiar with, and is wonderfully relatable.
It also feels like a great introduction to the community. Despite the politics and string of gross-man-behavior we've experienced, this community is filled with some of the most talented, passionate people I've ever met, and I'm so thankful to have found my ever-growing circle of weirdos to interact with and learn from. What it all boils down to is our love for this genre, in so many forms, and the inspiration we can pull from it for our own tales of terror.
I wish I'd had this resources when I first started and was fumbling my way around social media to get my foot in a door somewhere. Not even with writing, but just as a fan new to the community. Even if you're a grizzled veteran who has hacked and slashed their way through the masses, I think there's something to be learned from what Rebecca has to say.
As much as we all love being scared (if you don't, I'm not sure how you ended up in the horror community, but welcome anyway😂), it's not fun trying to overcome the fears that are all kicking our mental doors down when we're trying to get started with writing. Hell, even years into writing, those anxieties can still be present. This is really less of a "How to", and more of a, "Here's what my experience was and how what I've learned might help you", from someone who has clearly been through a process we're all very familiar with, and is wonderfully relatable.
It also feels like a great introduction to the community. Despite the politics and string of gross-man-behavior we've experienced, this community is filled with some of the most talented, passionate people I've ever met, and I'm so thankful to have found my ever-growing circle of weirdos to interact with and learn from. What it all boils down to is our love for this genre, in so many forms, and the inspiration we can pull from it for our own tales of terror.
I wish I'd had this resources when I first started and was fumbling my way around social media to get my foot in a door somewhere. Not even with writing, but just as a fan new to the community. Even if you're a grizzled veteran who has hacked and slashed their way through the masses, I think there's something to be learned from what Rebecca has to say.
August 1, 2024
A must-read for writers, and soon-to-be, of horror
“To keep evolving, we need to stay humble and keep learning.” This quote from the book is the reason why I read it. Yes, I love Rebecca Cuthbert’s writing and want to read everything she wrote, but that quote alone is the main reason why I wanted to read this book. Like Rebecca, I also believe that no one is ever a master of the writing craft. There are people who are extremely good at it, but no experts. There is always something new to learn about the craft of writing and this book offers a whole lot of it. Specifically, about being a horror writer. And I love that she talks about how writing in other forms and other genres can help enhance your skills as a writer. I also liked how she talks about avoiding drama in the writing community (because there is lots of it!) and being smart with submission fees. Most of all, she reminds writers, “Editors aren’t the enemy.” Written in a conversational and no-holds-barred style, Creep This Way is an informative and helpful guide for writers hoping to break into horror writing or looking for a refresher on how to be a better one.
“To keep evolving, we need to stay humble and keep learning.” This quote from the book is the reason why I read it. Yes, I love Rebecca Cuthbert’s writing and want to read everything she wrote, but that quote alone is the main reason why I wanted to read this book. Like Rebecca, I also believe that no one is ever a master of the writing craft. There are people who are extremely good at it, but no experts. There is always something new to learn about the craft of writing and this book offers a whole lot of it. Specifically, about being a horror writer. And I love that she talks about how writing in other forms and other genres can help enhance your skills as a writer. I also liked how she talks about avoiding drama in the writing community (because there is lots of it!) and being smart with submission fees. Most of all, she reminds writers, “Editors aren’t the enemy.” Written in a conversational and no-holds-barred style, Creep This Way is an informative and helpful guide for writers hoping to break into horror writing or looking for a refresher on how to be a better one.
April 15, 2024
This isn't a book that tells you how to actually write horror. There is no right way or wrong way. CREEP THIS WAY is an inspirational go-getter, to help you plant your butt in the seat and do what you love to do... WRITE.
Rebecca Cuthbert is your cheerleader in this book. She tells her stories like a memoir, and gives you ideas on how to manage the authoring world. Not just in horror but in almost any genre, you can take her words to heart and utilize them to work within whatever genre you write.
Its a fun little book, where you can get to know the author corky personality... and why she is one of the most likable people in the horror community.
Rebecca Cuthbert is your cheerleader in this book. She tells her stories like a memoir, and gives you ideas on how to manage the authoring world. Not just in horror but in almost any genre, you can take her words to heart and utilize them to work within whatever genre you write.
Its a fun little book, where you can get to know the author corky personality... and why she is one of the most likable people in the horror community.
January 11, 2024
Rebecca Cuthbert brings us a how-to-write book for any level of expertise and a roadmap for navigating all the extra pieces that go with being a writer these days.
CREEP THIS WAY offers 24 tips to help you understand not only writing, but also social media, website design, the importance of live events, writing groups, how to build confidence, and how to embrace the inevitability of rejection.
In an industry that is constantly changing, even seasoned pros will learn something new from this book.
Highly Recommended
CREEP THIS WAY offers 24 tips to help you understand not only writing, but also social media, website design, the importance of live events, writing groups, how to build confidence, and how to embrace the inevitability of rejection.
In an industry that is constantly changing, even seasoned pros will learn something new from this book.
Highly Recommended
March 23, 2024
Rebecca Cuthbert offers wise, witty, and very timely advice for any writer, horror or not. I especially admire her council on literary citizenship. "I am most sure that part of my job as a writer is to do what I can for others." The publishing industry is in a constant state of flux and Cuthbert is on top of the changes. She offers a helpful blueprint for navigating the book world. Highly recommended!
March 26, 2025
"Creep This Way" is not only a guide to how to write a horror novel, but 24 tips for any writer of any genre. It's fun, light, and short (which is the exact opposite of most craft books) and full of two dozen useful tips to getting started in the world of getting published. I recommend it to any prospective writer.
January 17, 2024
This is an excellent text for any new writers looking to learn how to write effective horror. Rebecca Cuthbert is effective at breaking the process down into easily learned lessons. Don't miss out on this one.
July 14, 2024
This is the definitive work for new horror writers, as well as anyone who wants to write genre fiction. In the vein of “couch-to-5k” programs, Rebecca has put together an “empty-notebook-to-published” program that anyone setting out in horror writing should read.
November 23, 2024
Excellent guide for new writers and old. Very inspiring.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews