Horror tropes to subvert — and help with doing so

So Writer's Digest recently shared a list of twenty-one popular horror tropes.

And then it also shared advice on how to write unique horror fiction.

Seem contradictory?

Well, not exactly.

WD Senior Editor Robert Lee Brewer points out that readers will expect certain features to pop up in horror fiction — just like in any genre.

But in his opening to the list of tropes, he specifically encourages writers to consider and subvert them.

And that's precisely what award-winning novelist Richard Thomas's advice guides writers towards doing (with illustrative examples), to make those tropes feel fresh.

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