Course curriculum

  • 1

    Introduction

    • Welcome

    • Meet Your Guide: Gareth

    • Start Here: Introduction to the Course

    • JOIN NOW: AutoCrit Community Link

    • Course Schedule Download

    • Opening Survey

    • Easy Link Locator: Live Class Zoom Link
  • 2

    Chapter 1: Fear Warmed Up

    • What You'll Find in This Chapter

    • Introduction

    • Fear Itself

    • Fear Investigation Exercise

    • Inspiration from the Dark

    • Phobias Exercise

    • Rayne Hall: Finding Ideas

    • Story Sample: BURNING by Rayne Hall

    • Chapter Discussion

    • Chapter 1: Closing Quiz

    • Next Steps

    • Recording and Materials - Live Class 1

    • Recording: AutoCrit Demo - Dissecting Frankenstein
  • 3

    Chapter 2: Planning

    • What You'll Find in This Chapter

    • Planning

    • Know Your Story

    • Know Your Characters

    • Use Physical Maps

    • Take Hold of Time

    • Foreshadowing

    • Rayne Hall: From Idea to Plot

    • Story Sample: SCRUPLES by Rayne Hall

    • Rayne Hall: Story Structure

    • Planning Exercise

    • Recap

    • Chapter Discussion

    • Chapter 2: Closing Quiz

    • Recording and Materials - Live Class 2
  • 4

    Chapter 3: Humans and Monsters

    • What You'll Find in This Chapter

    • Introduction

    • Heroes

    • Rising Stakes

    • Rayne Hall: Crafting Characters

    • Villains

    • Rayne Hall: Villain Archetypes

    • Monsters

    • Rayne Hall: Common Creature Tropes

    • Creature Mixtape

    • Creature and Character Creation Exercise

    • Character Creator Worksheet

    • Creature Creator Worksheet

    • Chapter Discussion

    • Coming Up Next

    • Chapter 3: Closing Quiz

    • Recording and Materials - Live Class 3

    • Recording: Q&A with Geoff Brown
  • 5

    Chapter 4: Horror with Style

    • What You'll Find in This Chapter

    • Horror with Style

    • Point of View

    • Rayne Hall: POV Techniques

    • Story Sample: FOUR BONY HANDS by Rayne Hall

    • Managing Tension

    • Escalation

    • Rayne Hall: Building Suspense

    • Sensory Shocks

    • Mood and Atmosphere

    • Rayne Hall: Creepy Locations

    • Story Sample: DOUBLE RAINBOWS by Rayne Hall

    • Getting Gory

    • Impactful Prose

    • Rayne Hall: Dialogue and Body Language

    • Rayne Hall: Refining Your Author Voice

    • Descriptive Writing Exercise

    • Chapter Discussion

    • Chapter 4: Closing Quiz

    • BONUS: Rayne Hall - Writing Gothic Horror

    • Next Up...

    • Recording and Materials - Live Class 4
  • 6

    Chapter 5: Writing Nerve-Shredding Scenes

    • What You'll Find in This Chapter

    • Introduction

    • Setup

    • Lock Them In

    • Pacing

    • Misdirection

    • Call-backs

    • False Alarms

    • The Wrong Move

    • Keep Them Reading

    • The Self-Scare Test

    • Rayne Hall: Crafting Scares

    • Rhythm Excercise

    • BONUS: Scene Autopsies and Scene Blueprint

    • Chapter Discussion

    • Chapter 5: Closing Quiz

    • Almost Home

    • Recording and Materials - Live Class 5
  • 7

    Chapter 6 - Killer Tips and Tricks

    • What You'll Find in This Chapter

    • Introduction

    • Darkness Remains

    • Humor

    • Get Brutal

    • Don't Peak Early

    • Revealing the Beast

    • Suffer the Innocents

    • Punch from Behind

    • Rayne Hall: Assorted Scene Techniques

    • Take Care of Yourself

    • Rayne Hall: Post-Writing Revision

    • Rayne Hall: The Road to Success

    • Chapter Discussion

    • Chapter 6: Closing Quiz

    • Recording and Materials - Live Open Q&A

    • Recording - Closing Party Giveaway Live!
  • 8

    Resource Downloads

    • Worksheets and Character Creators

    • Writing Prompts

    • Exclusive Supplement: The Fearsome Five

    • Reading Recommendations - Optional

    • Beat Sheets