The Art of the Scare: Creating Horror Stories

Just in time for Halloween! Join Springfield author Samuel Minier for a talk about the process of telling terrifying tales. He will share examples of creepy storytelling techniques both from his own work and from popular books and movies. Learn the secrets to "being scary" and use them in your own writing, content creation or spooky stories around the bonfire. Recommended for high schoolers and adults. Horror writer Samuel Minier has published over 60 stories and poems in a variety of magazines, websites and anthologies. A collection of these works will be released in Fall 2026 under the title "Into the Darkness: Tales of Horror and Dread." His first novel Waiting for You is slated for publication in late 2027. Sam is also a screenwriter who has worked in screenplay development with Zero Gravity Management (producers of OZARK). One of his purchased screenplays, the horror short THUNK, is currently in post-production with Shadow Wolves Productions. When not writing, Sam works as a behavior specialist, volunteers at an animal shelter and starts thinking about Halloween in November.