Creaky Doors: Using Sound in Horror Writing

Oct 19, 2012 by Barry

There’s nothing like a good sound effect to really help set the tone for a scene, and that applies doubly when writing horror scenes.

When we get scared all our senses become heightened as adrenaline start to push fear through our veins. Sounds seem louder and much more pronounced, and our imagination twists even the most innocent of noises into something dark and sinister. Wind whistling through a gap can sound like distant screams. Branches brushing against the window can conjure up images of serial killers tapping on the glass.

Adding “sound effects” to your scary scenes can really help to ramp up the level of tension. Let’s look at the example below to see it in action.

Barry froze halfway along corridor. He’d thought he was alone, but he realised now that he had made a terrible mistake.

A door opened at the end of the passageway and a man came through. He began to walk slowly towards Barry. Barry turned and ran, his heart crashing in his chest. He had to get free, had to get away!

He stopped at the double doors he knew led out to safety. Before he could throw them open, though, a thunderous knocking came from the other side…

OK, so it’s a little scary, but not much. It’s all a bit… bleh. That’s because it’s easier to be scared of things we can’t see. In the piece above we know it’s a man who came through the door, but let’s switch off the lights and see how much more effective it is.

Barry froze halfway along the darkened corridor. He’d thought he was alone, but he realised now that he had made a terrible mistake.

A door opened at the end of the passageway and someone – or something – began to walk slowly towards him. Barry turned and ran, stumbling blindly through the darkness, his heart crashing in his chest. He had to get free, had to get away!

Lost in the dark he ran straight into the double doors he knew led out to safety. He felt around frantically for the handle, and at last his fingers wrapped around the cool metal. Before he could throw the doors open, though, a thunderous knocking came from the other side…

Better. Definitely better. But now let’s add in some sound effects, both direct (in red) and implied (in blue).

Barry froze in the dark corridor. He’d thought he was alone, but he realised now that he had made a terrible mistake.

CREEEEEEEAK.

A door opened at the end of the passageway and someone began to walk slowly towards him, their footsteps clacking on the polished floor. Barry turned and ran, stumbling blindly through the darkness, his heart crashing in his chest – boom-boom, boom-boom, boom-boom. He had to get free, had to get away!

Lost in the dark he clattered into the double doors he knew led out to safety. He felt around frantically for the handle, and at last his fingers wrapped around the cool metal. Before he could throw the doors open, though, a thunderous knocking came from the other side.

THUD.

I may have gone a little overboard with the sound effects there, but you get the idea. Read all three paragraphs aloud as if you were telling a ghost story. Which is the most effective?

You don’t have to stop with sound effects, either. Use your other senses, too. When I talk at schools who have read my first Invisible Fiends book and ask them to describe the villain, Mr Mumbles, they almost always mention the fact he smells like rotten meat, even though this is only mentioned in a single sentence in the book. Ironically, smells and sounds can be more “visual” to a reader than things a character sees, so using them can really bring your scary descriptions to life.

Exercise.

Make a list of scary sounds – noises that could be terrifying in the right (or wrong!) situation. Start with obvious ones – screaming, growling, the roar of a chainsaw – then try to think of less obvious scary sounds. A whisper can be terrifying when all around is silent. Or what about a crying baby, or the high-pitched giggle of a clown?

Have your pupils pick three sounds from the list and use them in a short, scary paragraph.