Don Roff

When you're writing what you love, it's the most fun you can have with your clothing still on, unless of course, you write naked.

If you focus on the humanity of your stories, your characters, then the horror will be stronger, scarier. Without the humanity, the horror becomes nothing more than a tawdry parlor trick. All flash and no magic, and worst of all, no heart.

Writing a story, regardless of length, begins always with a single word.

If you treat your characters like people, they'll reward you by being fully developed individuals.

A migraine is the cockblock of writing.

I've found the best way to revise your own work is to pretend that somebody else wrote it and then to rip the living shit out of it.

The recipe for great art has always been misery and a good bowel movement.

Always mystify, torture, mislead, and surprise the audience as much as possible.

Mothman flew away from town, like a giant bat, and then disappeared from sight behind a thicket of skeletal autumn trees.

Any conversation including the mention of Roald Dahl, Ray Bradbury, or Emily Dickinson is one worth getting into or at least eavesdropping.

Write for impact first, money second. If you do it the other way around, you__l end up with less of either.

Writing a first-draft battle scene is akin to real combat__haos, confusion, and you must keep your cool as you fire word bullets downrange.

A day of bad writing is always better than a day of no writing.

Creativity and intelligence, rather than violence, are the best problem solvers.

Successful writing is a slow, daily, meticulous form of mental illness.

Always work with/surround yourself with people who help make you a better version of you. Kindly avoid those who don't.

Regarding the creative: never assume you're the master, only the student. Your audience will determine if you're masterful.

When you print out your manuscript and read it, marking up with a pen, it sometimes feels like a criminal returning to the scene of a crime.