Killing your darlings (in stories)

I learned the hard way that I could not do comedy. I don’t have a problem with this per se; nothing is wrong with weaknesses, and comedy is one of them. However, that instantly saw the death of two stories I was supposed to include in Eight Nightmare.

Neon Red was supposed to be a black comedy satire on internet culture, born through the lens of a neon-drenched nostalgia for 80s slashers and Sci-Fi. People loved the idea when I told them about it, and after Where Dreams are Lost, I knew I had to write something a little less bleak. However, I got about two and a half pages into the Neon Red first draft, about when the first body was discovered by one of the many internet stereotypes, and something didn’t feel right. After consulting my friends about the pages, they considered it unfunny and embarrassing.

I was hit with a dilemma, the comedy wasn’t just uninspired but painful, so I decided to kill my darlings and cancel Neon Red.

(One of the visual inspirations for Neon Red)

This decision to kill my comedic efforts also resulted in the premature death of another horror comedy: They Plot Among Us (yes, the name is sus). This one will deal with a 1950s American outcast hyped on McCarthy-era speeches and the niche rise of Lovecraft, who starts to think his Neighbours are plotting to summon an eldritch god named The Father in Red.

It was going to be a satire of McCarthyism and the absurdity it entailed. How a single guy could destroy the lives of many with a single politically acceptable accusation created from the most delusional of motives (I thought) would be very funny and relevant.

It was also going to mark the entrance of The Father in Red, a reference to the cosmic horror entity in my original fantasy world of Irsis, which I hope to make the main antagonist in Parable of the Gods.

(Moderate inspiration for They Plot Among Us)

After the failure of Neon Red, I didn’t want to risk making a fool of myself with They Plot Among Us, so I canned it.

Sometimes I wonder if I could revive these projects cause I can see the potential each time. I have considered bringing back Neon Red as a straightforward homage to 80s slashers, but I am not convinced I could do it in a purely written medium to the best of my ability. Neon Red needs the colors of tv or comic, instead of pure text, to work correctly.

I have no idea how to bring back: They Plot Among Us without the comedic element because the premise (to me) is impossible to take seriously. But, of course, if you disagree, you can always let me know.

So why am I talking about any of this?

Well, it is essential for writers, in case anyone is mad enough to read this, let alone an up-and-coming writer, to kill your darlings. Wasting time with ideas that won’t work out, no matter how much you would like them to work, you have to kill your darlings.

It is a painful process; I dream of the beautiful neon-colored holodecks of Neon Red, seeing the light of day. I wish I could write the original concept for The Laughter of Hyenas. But sometimes you can’t, and that is okay.

I am also writing this because even if the original idea doesn’t work, the concept might work in another story or setting. I would love to try my hand at a slasher again; it's unlikely to be Neon Red. I am determined to make The Laughter of Hyenas work because of the number of people in my writer's groups asking me about the Hyena and the Ferals. I have to keep trying.

Killing your darlings doesn’t have to be the end of the road for an idea. It might be the end of a particular avenue for an idea but not the final nail in the coffin necessarily. All you have to do is work on other projects before the solution presents itself.

For personal cases, I have Thought Bubble. Originally Thought Bubble was a political techno-thriller about the disconnect from reality suffered by both sides leading to disaster. Unfortunately, I wasn’t wholly aware of my political biases when initially attempting it. The ambitious desire to convey a short story with such heavy themes via text message proved impossible.

Creator: Dennis Glorie

However, recent developments in Deepfakes and AI blur the line between fake and accurate, with bad actors trying to trick people into believing in fantasy. So I think I can try something that isn’t as obnoxiously political while speaking to my concerns about people wilfully not wanting to engage in reality for their preferred existence. Plus, it's a novel now.

It’s important to not dwell on the failures or try to work with unworkable ideas, however, don’t abandon them entirely. Cause, unlike people, ideas can be revived and reworked.

Cheers for reading, and please keep writing.

Acknowledgments

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