I won’t lie—cults are one of my special interests. When I was hired to edit textbooks for pharmaceutical students, I would happily listen to hours and hours of the podcast “Cults,” learning about everything from doomsday preppers to obscure religious sects to people who felt like they were communicating with Martians. There’s something about the insidious nature of these groups and the way they’re able to draw people in and control them that hooks me every time.
While cults are fascinating from a psychological perspective, they are also an interesting focal point for storytellers. Whether you’re intrigued by classic horror stories like Anthony Shaffer and Robin Hardy’s or “Children of the Corn” by Stephen King or more humorous works like by Lauren Danhof or, there are plenty of themes you can explore and stories you can tell by incorporating a cult into your world-building. From and to “True Detective” and “Devil in Ohio” to Ira Levin’s and Courtney Summers’ , cults are found across all types of media and genres.
