More of the same : a plan for writing to a target audience using a pastiche based on the macabre fantasies of H. P. Lovecraft as a model

Much of the business of communications is concerned with target audiences. Once one of these groups has been identified, it is a relatively easy matter to aim television programs, motion pictures, books, et cetera, at that particular target. In fact, this is done with increasing frequency. The purpose of this thesis is to present a plan for writing to a target audience of readers who enjoy the macabre fantasies of H. P. Lovecraft.

After an introduction which explains the importance of target audiences and sets forth reasons for using Lovecraft as a subject for study, a biography is presented. Because there is often a firm link between an author's life and his work, as there is in this case, the short biography and character sketch of Lovecraft are included to promote understanding of his writing.

Content analysis of eight of Lovecraft's stories was used to arrive at a group of devices which seemed to be unique to his writing. These devices were then "salted" through an original macabre fantasy to give it a Lovecraftian flavor. This was done to demonstrate that the general effect of Lovecraft's style could be reproduced based on literary content analysis. . Though a full-scale test of the original fantasy was beyond the scope of this thesis, an informal presentation was made, with encouraging results.