Siren Head and Writing Dark Fantasy
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| CREDIT: Moustache Bananna |
"Fear of technology is a common trope, but the old-timey look of Siren Head suggests an uneasy nostalgia. We look back into the past with new eyes, or our phone cameras, and find new horrors along the way.
I also can't help thinking of Siren Head as a representative boundary creature akin to the original concept of the troll, which is a label for any antisocial creature that occupies a space outside of so-called civilization and poses a threat to the living things within the community.
Siren Head occupies spaces
that are becoming increasingly less inhabited by humans--
environments heavily impacted by economic factors
and urban encroachment." - Dr. Zarka
THE MAJORITY OF QUOTES HEREIN ARE FROM DR. EMILY ZARKA'S "Is Siren Head the Ultimate Modern Monster? | Monstrum", ON THE STORIED CHANNEL
I am not a horror writer. I do not write characters shouting "BOO!" before running back into the dark. I do not write about characters entering a room filled with strobe lights and slimy gore all over the floor. I do not write about sexually promiscuous teens ending up on the kill count to serve as a moral lesson.
I believe in keeping the monsters out of the light; the imagination can fill in the blanks thus making the creature more frightening than I ever could describe. I prefer to think of my weird as "Dark Fantasy". I do my best to avoid a cliche monster and all the tropes assigned to it. I stand up and clap every time the monster is done right by others.
Siren Head is the result of imagination and artistic interpretations of fear. Folklore's evolution in popular culture makes new monsters like this one stand out alongside more traditional, rigid structures or sequential stories. - Dr. Zarka
Siren Head isn't the ultimate movie monster on my list. I absolutely appreciate all the effort put in by the writers, designers, animators, and casts. The top of my list is Moder (a Danish word for 'mother'.)
The retelling of dusty stories still holds a special place in my heart.
I do not mean the Disney crap where princesses all have a Prince Charming, or cute animals save the day. I prefer the dark kind of stories where mermaids die or step-sisters have their eyes pecked out.
How about tales where Krampus is part and parcel of Santa's folklore? Why leave coal when you have a creature stuffing a distressed, naughty child into his satchel? Many postcards back in the day depicted Krampus going after children with his sticks, leading them away in chains, or carrying them off in his bag. What else can you expect from the son of Hel, the Norse god of the underworld. (Krampus the movie sucked.)
The thing is, I can borrow the dark elements from folklore and warp solid monsters from it. I don't write humans very well. Sure, I can knock out a short story with them but humans are usually the protagonists if not already used as narrative exposition.
Narrative exposition is the insertion of background information within a story or narrative. This information can be about the setting, characters' backstories, prior plot events, historical context, etc.[1] In literature, exposition appears in the form of expository writing embedded within the narrative. Exposition is one of four rhetorical modes (also known as modes of discourse), along with description, persuasion, and narration. -Wiki
I suppose the entire story could be viewed from a human character's eyes. Or perhaps I can do without them, or let them be the antagonists. Only time will tell.