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Printed from https://writing.com/main/newsletters/action/archives/id/11712
Horror/Scary: December 28, 2022 Issue [#11712]




 This week: Common Phobias & Fears
  Edited by: NaNoNette Author IconMail Icon
                             More Newsletters By This Editor  Open in new Window.

Table of Contents

1. About this Newsletter
2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
7. Removal instructions

About This Newsletter

"Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold." - Helen Keller

"Always do what you are afraid to do." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it." - Salvador Dali


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Letter from the editor

Common Phobias & Fears


Horror and scary stories are full of things that go bump in the night. Some of those bumping things are real. Some are imagined. Enrich your scary stories with a little background on phobias and fears and what they mean and do.

A phobia is a type of anxiety that shows itself through significant, irrational, and at times extreme fear of specific things or situations. Some phobia symptoms can feel debilitating to those who suffer from them. If one of your characters has a phobia, describing their reactions might include:
*Bullet* Extreme or irrational fear to specific triggers
*Bullet* Inability to control response to fear
*Bullet* Anxiety, panic or fear
*Bullet* Rapid heartbeat
*Bullet* Shortness of breath
*Bullet* Avoidance behaviors

Ten common fears:

1. Acrophobia: fear of heights.

2. Aerophobia: fear of flying.

3. Arachnophobia: fear of spiders and other arachnids.

4. Ophidiophobia: fear of snakes.

5. Cynophobia: fear of dogs.

6. Trypanophobia: fear of injections.

7. Astraphobia: fear of thunder and lightning.

8. Agoraphobia: fear of being alone in a situation or place where escape might be difficult.

9. Mysophobia: excessive fear of germs and dirt.

10. Social Phobia: fear of social situations.

Now that you have a neat list of common fears for things that are not supernatural, mix them with creativity and a werewolf of something else. Vindicate your character for his fear - or burst the fear bubble by showing how that one fear was irrational.

Which irrational fears have you used in your stories?


Editor's Picks

The Ghost In My Mind Open in new Window. (13+)
A person faces their biggest fear. Will they survive?
#2283554 by The Puppet Master Author IconMail Icon

 
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What are aliens? Open in new Window. (ASR)
A question about separation and fear of the other.
#2284083 by TheGrayCat Author IconMail Icon

 Invalid Item Open in new Window.
This item number is not valid.
#2283915 by Not Available.

 Feeling/Fear Open in new Window. (E)
Just some words/thoughts about the feeling of fear
#2285362 by J_conscious Author IconMail Icon

 Fear on a Mountain Ridge - True Story Open in new Window. (13+)
An encounter in the rugged southern Appalachian Mountains.
#2282870 by Damon Nomad Author IconMail Icon

 Fear is the only thing... Open in new Window. (E)
horror flash fiction piece for The Grim Reaper Contest 2022
#2282833 by Pumpkin Spice Sox Author IconMail Icon

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3. Thaumaturge Open in new Window. (18+)
There is fear written in the dust
#2282669 by Eric Wharton Author IconMail Icon

 A Fear of Needles Open in new Window. (E)
A boy and their parent share a moment of bravery.
#2282338 by Bry Author IconMail Icon

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Cave of Fears Open in new Window. (13+)
Lost in a labyrinth
#2282139 by ദƖυҽყҽʐ 🤍 Author IconMail Icon

 Invalid Item Open in new Window.
This item number is not valid.
#2282227 by Not Available.

 
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Word from Writing.Com

Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
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Ask & Answer

Replies to my last Horror/Scary newsletter "Haunted Mansions" Open in new Window. that asked: Are you going to that haunted house at the end of the road? Why did you say, "Yes?"

dragonwoman Author Icon wrote: "I Kid You Not," was such fun to write and I'm pleased you picked it for the newsletter.

Sumojo Author Icon wrote: Hi, Annette, I agree with the statement about letting others see your work as being scary. However I’ve got over that now. My first public reading at writing group, I was shaking in my boots, but now when my stories are workshopped for our annual anthology, critical feedback doesn’t worry me at all. It’s not that I don’t make errors or my story can’t be improved, it’s appreciation I feel and that is why, hopefully, I’ve improved as a writer.
Thank you so much for highlighting my story, ‘Dream House,’ in today’s newsletter.

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