Posted inInstigation

Instigation Prompts: Scary Politics

In December’s issue of The Goreletter, I posted the following list of story starters for “Scary Politics.” As the primary season is heating up to the boiling point of hellfire, I thought I’d copy it here to the blog, as a reminder that there's no better place for reimagining the world -- and for doing so in horrific ways -- than in the real world of American politics. If you didn’t see this before, it’s because you don’t subscribe to my newsletter. SUBSCRIBE (or fill out the form to update your email address) and you’ll get Instigation fresh off the…
March 10, 2016Posted inInstigation
Posted inInstigation

Instigation Prompts: Horror for the Holidays

In last November's issue of The Goreletter, I posted the following list of story starters for "Horror for the Holidays." Since the season will soon be upon us, I thought I'd share it here on the blog, to help the sicko writers out there get started on corrupting their holiday imaginations early. If you didn't see this before, it's because you don't subscribe to my newsletter. SUBSCRIBE and you'll get Instigation fresh off the grill. And if you want whole trove of things like this, pick up my ebook, Instigation: Creative Prompts on the Dark Side Horror for the Holidays…
October 3, 2015Posted inInstigation
Posted inInstigation

13 Cannibal Conflicts

Give your cannibal character a dietary restriction. Have your cannibal review a restaurant critic as they dine on him. Put your cannibal on a fat farm. Play referee in a new sporting event: Cannibal vs. Cannibal! Depict the chores of the dishwasher in the back of the cannibal cafe. Your cannibal has lost his teeth. What now? Write The Constitution for the country of Cannibali. Convert your cannibal to a new religion. Poison your cannibal in an inventive way. Describe the day job of your cannibal without ever referencing his or her insatiable appetite. Invent a TV show for the…
June 13, 2014Posted inInstigation1 Comment
Posted inInstigation

Showcase Updated: KZ Morano

The Instigation Showcase page has been updated with a new featured author, KZ Morano, who talks about her creative process and offers up a new Instigation prompt all her own. KZ is the author of the new book, 100 Nightmares -- an illustrated collection of horror drabbles, each 100 words long. Recommended reading! She also generously reviewed Instigation: Creative Prompts on the Dark Side on Amazon with the following kind words: "...These are not the kind of prompts that you can find just anywhere. The ideas are bold, bizarre, brilliant. They make you go to places that you never even…
June 9, 2014Posted inInstigation
Posted inArnzen News Instigation

Diabolique Strategies: Random Provocations into the Dark Side

I've long admired the "Oblique Strategies" -- an infamous deck of creativity cards invented by musician Brian Eno and artist Peter Schmidt that has a cult following among artists and musicians. It is one part thinking game, one part fortune cookie. They made it as a way to spur them into thinking differently about their current projects, by drawing random lateral thinking triggers from the deck (like “destroy the most important thing” or “give the game away”). But I've always wondered: What would they look like if Eno had been in a Death Metal band instead of Roxy Music? Or…
March 23, 2014Posted inArnzen News, Instigation