So, are we tired of zombies yet?

[Helen]

They also made The Hangover Part III. Hollywood is completely out of new ideas, so even a fad that's passed is fair game for a sequel.

Well, lets not argue about "Hollywood."

The point is it found an audience and earned good money. Which answers the OPs question.

 

[GeekDavid]

Well, lets not argue about "Hollywood."

The point is it found an audience and earned good money. Which answers the OPs question.

"Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results."

 

[Helen]

"Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results."

I'm sure you've been successful at something and used that to justify (establish your credibility) for the next thing.

 

[GeekDavid]

I'm sure you've been successful at something and used that to justify (establish your credibility) for the next thing.

Not when it comes to fads, I haven't. I threw my pet rock away decades ago.

 

[Helen]

Not when it comes to fads, I haven't. I threw my pet rock away decades ago.

If you're suggesting that zombie movies are a fad right now...because a World War Z sequel is on its way, then all the more reason for the OP to get writing one now.

 

[GeekDavid]

If you're suggesting that zombie movies are a fad right now...because a World War Z sequel is on its way, then all the more reason for the OP to get writing one now.

I've lived almost half a century. I've seen all sorts of movie and book fads. Musicals, gangster movies, spy movies, funny spooky movies (Ghostbusters), funny time travel movies (Back to the Future), street race movies (Cannonball Run, Smokey and the Bandit)... they come, and they go.

Don't hop on fads. Just write what you want to write. If that's zombies, fine, but don't write a zombie book just because the zombie fad is hot right now... there is absolutely no guarantee the fad will still be ongoing when your book hits the shelves. The WWZ sequel might be a tremendous flop if the zombie fad has faded by the time it comes out. It would hardly be the first such happening in Hollywood. (Smokey and the Bandit Part 3, anyone?)

 

[Lord Ben]

I would even question whether or not the tag of fad applies to zombies. They might be briefly more popular now than previously but they've been fairly popular as far back as I can remember. Night of the Living Dead was out in 68, that's 45 years of zombie movies and books.

"Zombie" stuff is here to stay, it might ebb and flow like anything else but it's not going anywhere.

 

[GeekDavid]

I would even question whether or not the tag of fad applies to zombies. They might be briefly more popular now than previously but they've been fairly popular as far back as I can remember. Night of the Living Dead was out in 68, that's 45 years of zombie movies and books.

"Zombie" stuff is here to stay, it might ebb and flow like anything else but it's not going anywhere.

Race movies have been around for years too... most recently the fad resurfaced with The Fast and the Furious. (And how many sequels since?)

Doesn't mean that anything that follows the fad will sell... see (again) Smokey and the Bandit, Part 3.

 

[Devor]

There's two sides of a fad, and all of the attention is unfortunately given to what's published, with not enough attention given to what's produced. I not too long ago took a very long look at various guidelines for submitting short stories, and some variation of "we will not look at zombie stories" appeared pretty often. That's because they get too many of them.

 

[shangrila]

You got a problem with minotaurs, buddy?

Uh...of-of course not, my handsome headed friend.

It just struck me as a weird place to go with fads after werewolves/vampires and zombies.

 

[Helen]

I've lived almost half a century. I've seen all sorts of movie and book fads. Musicals, gangster movies, spy movies, funny spooky movies (Ghostbusters), funny time travel movies (Back to the Future), street race movies (Cannonball Run, Smokey and the Bandit)... they come, and they go.

These aren't fads in the negative sense you mean. They were well written stories, which were successful. And then they became popular and people wanted more. Sequels were written because there was a market.

Don't hop on fads. Just write what you want to write.

Sure. But it's a product driven approach. And that's only half the story.

The bulk of writing work is market driven. Commissions, re/writes...are jobs given because someone sees a market for it.

You don't always have the opportunity to write what you want. Most of the time you're working on other peoples stories and ideas.

(Smokey and the Bandit Part 3, anyone?)

It doesn't follow that a sequel didn't work because they were writing to market forces. There are a million reasons why a sequel may not work.

All in all, if the OP sees an opportunity writing zombie flicks, go for it. We're not making the judgement that the story will be better or worse because it's market driven.

 

[GeekDavid]

Helen, if you want to try to chase fads, go right ahead.

Me, I will write what I am inspired to write, fad or not.

We'll see who ends up more successful in the long run.

 

[Sanctified]

Allow me to interject with something I read today, which is that Damon Lindelof was brought in to assess the World War Z script and outline changes to fix an apparently disjointed sequence near the end of the movie. (I believe it was the bit in Israel, though I could be wrong.)

Damon Lindelof. Damon "Let's take our helmets off on an unblemished alien world so we scientists can contaminate the whole **** thing" Lindelof." Damon "I'm a scientist who rails against skepticism" Lindelof. Damon "Let's introduce The Others who have book clubs, thereby ruining Lost in the process" Lindelof. Damon "Let's borrow Graham Hancock's disproved theories about Orion's Belt" Lindelof.

Damon "I wrote Prometheus" Lindelof.

What, was Uwe Boll unavailable?

 

[DameiThiessen]

I, personally, never liked zombies and would be happy to see them go. The most I have liked them is through The Walking Dead, and that was because it provided the setting for highly emotional character drama under stressful survival situations.

All the zombie media I have seen has been about a zombie apocalypse and the main characters are trying to survive by shooting them in the face. And that has never done anything for me because A) I can't stand when all them characters are hungry and dirty for long periods of time, B) I don't like wasteland settings, and C) I feel like it is more sci-fi than fantasy, and I prefer the latter. Using the zombie apocalypse setting for character motivation is going more the way of the damsel in distress story line, in that it becoming an overused, easy way of getting your characters to do something without needing to develop them in any way.

JUST MY OPINION. NOT RULES BY ANY MEANS.

 

[GeekDavid]

Judging from the new TV series coming on soon, it looks like witches may be replacing zombies as the latest horror fad.

American Horror Story: Coven Oct 9 | Weds 10

Witches of East End - Episodes, Videos & Schedule - myLifetime.com

That's what happens when you try to follow a fad... unless you jump on it really early, you often find that your WIP hits the shelves after the fad is over.

 

[Sanctified]

I'm going ahead with it anyway. There's really no drawback and I could use the practice while I do the remaining legwork on my main project, since the only way to get better is to keep writing and read as much as possible.

The American Horror Story link is broken but Google says it premieres tonight so I'll probably DVR it and give it a try after South Park. Anyone now if season 2 is a must watch before the new season? I watched the first season with Dylan McDermott and Alexandra Breckendridge and it was pretty damn good, but haven't gotten around to S2 yet.

 

[GeekDavid]

I'm going ahead with it anyway. There's really no drawback and I could use the practice while I do the remaining legwork on my main project, since the only way to get better is to keep writing and read as much as possible.

The American Horror Story link is broken but Google says it premieres tonight so I'll probably DVR it and give it a try after South Park. Anyone now if season 2 is a must watch before the new season? I watched the first season with Dylan McDermott and Alexandra Breckendridge and it was pretty damn good, but haven't gotten around to S2 yet.

I've always said, write whatever you want to write, not what you think the latest fad is. If you truly want to write zombies, I truly hope for the best for you.

As for the link, it was working when I posted it... dunno what Fox is doing to their website right now.

 

[Jabrosky]

All the zombie media I have seen has been about a zombie apocalypse and the main characters are trying to survive by shooting them in the face. And that has never done anything for me because A) I can't stand when all them characters are hungry and dirty for long periods of time, B) I don't like wasteland settings, and C) I feel like it is more sci-fi than fantasy, and I prefer the latter.

Here's a fun fact: the word "zombie" comes from a Central African Kikongo word nzambi meaning god or spirit. In the original African myths, zombies were basically dead people or spirits whom sorcerers brought back to life so they could have someone to mind-control for their own ends. This whole trope of the zombie apocalypse, in which zombies are mindless monsters staggering around eating everyone in sight, is a much more recent and Western development. As much as I dislike undead in general, I could stand to read a story which portrayed zombies in the original African sense rather than the usual post-apocalyptic stuff.

I don't mind post-apocalyptic settings as a whole, but I do find wasteland environments dreary and unattractive. If you're going to feature a post-apocalyptic city, I would prefer one overgrown with vegetation and teeming with wildlife than the stereotypical lifeless desert.

 

[Helen]

Here's a fun fact: the word "zombie" comes from a Central African Kikongo word nzambi meaning god or spirit. In the original African myths, zombies were basically dead people or spirits whom sorcerers brought back to life so they could have someone to mind-control for their own ends.

Cool.

This whole trope of the zombie apocalypse, in which zombies are mindless monsters staggering around eating everyone in sight, is a much more recent and Western development.

Generally, zombies are a tool.

In Night of the Living Dead, they keep the characters contained in the house. What's important is what's happening to the characters.

It doesn't matter what does the containing - zombies, witches, vampires, whatever.

The story won't be about the zombies. It'll be about the theme / characters.

 

[senseiseth]

If you want to blatantly make money writing, then write erotica. Of course there are serious erotica writers out there, but there are definitely those who just do it to make a quick buck.

For me, I liked zombies first around 2000. I watched lots of Italian movies by folks like Lucio Fulci, who made unflinching horror movies that still hold up for me to this day. The Walking Dead made zombies cool again after them being kind of schlocky for a while. I don't think I've read a single book about zombies that I can remember (if Max Brooks's Zombie Survival Guide counts, then OK). I've always found zombies to be more interesting in visual media myself.

Maybe I'm not looking in the right places though.

Like anything we've discussed on these forums (elves, orcs, unicorns, vampires, zombies, etc.) a great writer can make even the most trite, overdone concepts awesome. Just because a story is about zombies doesn't mean I'm going to say "Ugh." However, if the blurb reads something like "John and Jane board themselves up inside their winter cabin to avoid zombies" then I'll pass. But if it says "When Jane learns her abusive husband has been cheating on her, she must decide if the zombies outside her window are a living nightmare or a blessing in disguise." If I read the second blurb, I'd say "Ohh...that actually sounds kind of cool." But in my estimation, a bad writer could still take that idea and make it crap.

So...if you want to make a quick buck, I think zombies are still popular enough to do so. However, just because you write zombie fiction doesn't mean people are going to buy it. There still have to be standards.

I don't want to be that hipster guy and say I liked zombies before they were cool, but yeah, I liked zombies before they were cool. I like The Walking Dead because it's good, not because it has zombies. I don't like bad zombie movies because, well, they're bad.

DUDE! I literally saw a article about these two writers who specialize in Dino/Women erotica. How ****ed up is that?! I mean never thought anyone would think it for themselves let alone reading about someone else going through it.