Horror and the Writer

‘Inevitably the narrator makes a strong appeal to the reader’s sympathy and empathy, and the reader begins to respond privately…once the reader feels the slightest identification with the narrator the bond is complete. Whatever anguish or despair the narrator suffers in the tale, the reader also suffers.’[1]

I enjoy writing Horror fiction myself, but when I do I have to throw my emotions aside. Without them, I can manage to write a truly gruesome tale where my sense of wrong and right has completely vanished. I enjoy the sensation of shocking people, but at the same time when I read my own stories I can’t help to think, ‘they must think I’m insane.’ Therefore, I truly admire the Horror writers of the world, as they are willing to imagine a world so terrible and terrifying, that people might not want to walk alone at night or sleep in the dark again. Yet to be able to write such a tale there are a lot of things the writer must have in mind, and ultimately they must use research, imagination and maybe even psychology to make the reader feel true horror. Speaking for myself, I know that the most terrifying Horror is when the story feels real.

According to Stephen King ‘All tales of horror can be divided into two groups: those in which the horror results from an act of free and conscious will – a conscious decision to do evil – and those in which the horror is predestinate, coming from outside like a stroke of lightning.’[2] The way I see it, is that you can either be the evil of the story, or be the one the evil is being done to. Either way, they both bring Horror. Firstly, because as a human I couldn’t imagine wanting to be the cause of someone else’s terror, or worse; death. Secondly, as the character without control, there is nothing that can save you – if not the mercy of the writer. And as the writer plots their story, brings characters to life (whom you sympathies with, or not), they create a world for the reader to dive into, a place where the world you know changes completely. As Elizabeth Massie stated, ‘Put your reader immediately in the psychological mindset of your character with amusing of some sort, but make sure the musing is about something strange, dark, or unsettling.’[3] The Horror writer often seems to use different themes (E.g. the supernatural, murder, etc.) to tell their griping story, however I think what separates a good writer from a bad one when it comes to Horror is their ability to create a world and story so believable that people don’t want to believe.

But although Horror seems to be a wonderful and horrible way of entertaining people, there might be more behind Horror than what might first appear. For example, Mary Shelley who wrote Frankenstein, a classic tale of a monster made my man, is seen as a satire, and ‘Shelley’s novel suggests that it is people (or at least bodies) who terrify people, not ghosts or gods, devils or monks, windswept castles or labyrinthine monasteries.’[4] Because the truth it, although the Horror Genre seems terrible at times, it very often comes from the real world. Horror ‘(…) provide ways of defining, for example, what is evil (and what is good) in societies, what is monstrous (and what is ‘normal’), what should be seen (and what should remain hidden), and so on.’[5] Thus, although fiction, they portray a world where the evils in our society is very much apparent, showing us that murderers, serial killers, kidnappers, etc. surrounding us daily, as one can see in the news regularly. However, the Horror genre is good entertainment for many, myself included, and it’s a comfort to know that what I’m reading or watching is fiction, and if done well the writer might even be able to enlighten the reader about the horrors in our society.

[1] Saliba, D. (1980). A psychology of fear. Washington, D.C.: University Press of America, pp.17-18.

[2]  King, S. (1993). Danse macabre. London: Warner Books, p.79.

[3] Massie, E. (2010). ‘Once Upon a Scary Time: Creating Effective Beginnings’ in Michael Knost (ed.) Writers Workshop of Horro. USA: Woodland Press, p.2.

[4] Halberstam, J. (1995). Skin shows. Durham: Duke University Press, p.28.

[5] Gelder, K. (2002). The horror reader. London: Routledge, p.1.

Horror and Me

 

‘We love to read or view horror because we enjoy the chill with which it disturbs our sense of comfort and equally enjoy the way it then finally, monsters banished, returns us to the comfort, secure.’[1]

I don’t necessarily like to be frightened, neither do I easily scare. However, they go very much hand in hand. My mind is set even before watching or reading Horror, I see no truth or reality, but instead I take it as it is; fiction. Without this safety net, I’m sure I would be in the same situation as many others, and while they indulge themselves in the Horror genre; terrified and paranoid, I watch with interest. My safety net does however have holes in it, I am not immune towards Horror and the terror it brings. I might even go as far as to say that I am my own worst nightmare, because I am the sort of person who simply thinks too much. Thus, I am more likely to imagine a sound in the attic, to see shapes in the dark or to imagine all the horrid things that could happen. Ultimately, I am more scared of my own imagination than the imagination of others.

Although I might not feel frightened while observing things (E.g. books, movies, etc.) within the Horror genre, I am very much a victim of what Freud once wrote about in 1919; ‘The Uncanny.’ ‘The uncanny effect occurs when something returns to consciousness that has long been forgotten.’[2] Which means while I don’t think I’m being effected, my sense of safety has been altered and what used to be a simple walk in the woods, can now be a scary experience where I imagine all sorts of dangers. Freud’s ‘Uncanny’ also explained how when you’re affected by horror, it’s the sense of safety or the ‘homely,’ that we go back to after watching said genre, that makes us feel secure again.[3] However, the ‘homely,’ can become horror itself if something that used to feel safe, now becomes ‘unfamiliar,’ because of the new impressions we’ve received from Horror.

Because my sense of reality must be altered for me to truly become terrified, the Horror I indulge myself in is often close to reality with small adjustments, or at least things I can apply to my own life. Therefore, the story ‘Willa,[4]’ in Stephen King’s Just after sunset, which is about ghosts, doesn’t give me a chill or as much as an afterthought, but the ‘The Punishment’[5] by Lord Dunsany, which ultimately is about a theme I know little about; war and its creator, leaves me with a sense of doom. This is because I can imagine it, being left with your own nightmare, forever reoccurring, I can feel the chill just thinking about it.

So, I admit that I am not immune against Horror, no matter how much I’d like to be. And as I read and watch Horror I find myself feeding my own imagination; eventually it takes over my mind and thoughts, and gives me a reason to use my phone as a torch, making sure there’s no one in my room as I lay down to sleep.

[1] Wisker, G. (2005). Horror fiction. New York: Continuum, p.25.

[2] Gelder, K. (2002). The horror reader. London: Routledge, p.49.

[3] Freud, S. and Dickson, A. (1990). Art and literature. 14th ed. London: Penguin, pp.340-41.

[4] King, S. (2012). Just after sunset. London: The Hodder paperback, pp.253-61.

[5] Haining, P. (2007). The mammoth book of modern ghost stories. New York: Carroll & Graf, pp.212-15.

The Nature of Horror

‘Horror is in everyday reality, but it is also a genre, a construction, and a representation of what terrifies and disgusts, what we fear and secretly desire.’[1]

When going back in time and considering where Horror came from, the fingers point towards the Gothic genre, which essentially originated from folklore, superstition and religion. But even though Horror sprung out of the Gothic, it has risen into its own genre.[2] I might even go as far as to say Horror is the modern Gothic, and ultimately does the same thing as Gothic used to do in its prime; lead the audience into the unknown, or ‘The Uncanny’ as Freud called it. The two genres do however appear to have much in common, but where Gothic has romance, Horror have things such as blood and gore instead. This does not necessarily apply to the whole genre on the other hand, there are many kinds of horror and one must go deeper to see the diversity, there is everything from psychological horror (e.g. the book; The Shining by Stephen King), to Horror which simply makes you feel sick to your stomach (e.g. the movie; The Human Centipede). The reason for this diversity within one genre is because we are diverse as people. There is no single and simple recipe for what people are frightened of, what terrifies one might leave another with a simple ‘Nah,’ and a shrug of the shoulders.

Behind this diversity is the change as the years have passed as well. What might have scared people in the 18^th century does not necessarily scare you and me today. Because of this the Horror genre has changed and evolved, starting as early as in year 700 with Beowulf and the supernatural, to where the Horror genre truly began, with the darkness of Edger Allen Poe[3] to more modern work such as Stephen King’s Graduation Afternoon, where the concept of atomic war, a theme closer to our time is more frightening in the 21^st century.[4] As the Horror has grown into a broader spectrum of types, it has also moved into more modern forms, from folklore and telling of tales, to written stories and books, to movies and screen, to the more modern; games (e.g. The Slender Man: The Eight Pages). I see no end to the expanding of the genre either, and as long as we have things to be scared of, such as death, war, and the unknown it will continue to do so.

A mystery however, is why people who are safe insist upon reading and watching horror. Why do humans like to feel the rush of terror, and willingly expose themselves to things that might leave them not only scared, but perhaps paranoid and scarred for life. Perhaps the word ‘safe’ is the key word in this question, that feeling safe while scared is exactly why we do it. That while yes, we watch a Horror movie in the dark, or read a Horror book while being home alone, we know deep within that no harm will come to us, it is simply all in our minds.

[1] Wisker, G. (2005). Horror fiction. New York: Continuum, p.5.

[2] Ibid., p.26.

[3] Ibid., p.39.

[4] King, S. (2012). Just after sunset. London: The Hodder paperback, pp.253-61.

 

FREE EBOOK

Read my horror ebook for free here.

In the Dark, contains five very different short stories, all written as a part of my Creative Writing degree.

I’m so happy to finally share it with you all, and I really hope you enjoy it!

 

Horror and Location

‘Atmosphere is created by anything that suggests an ominous state of affairs beyond what our senses perceive and our minds can fully comprehend.’[1]

It’s evening and you’re sitting in a cabin, the light is on and your favorite CD is playing. You are aware that there are miles until the next cabin, but somehow that relaxes you more. To know that it’s just you and your life, finally some alone time. Scared? … No? What if the electricity went out, suddenly you’re sitting in total darkness, there are no longer any sounds… or hold on? There’s a knock at the door. Aware that there are miles until civilization, you suddenly feel truly alone. You debate whether to unlock the door or not, and as you do the door creaks open…

If you have watched or read a bit of Horror, I would assume that you have a somewhat knowledge of the continuation of the story. There might be two reasons for this, first because ‘A horror adept has, typically, a very good sense of what is going to happen next in a story – or at least a very good sense of what range of things that can happen.’[2] Or second, believing Noël Carroll, the genre has reoccurring plots and settings and is easily guessed. Carroll also explains that this might be because of the ‘very limited repertory of narrative strategies.[3]’ I don’t believe however, that this makes the genre any less, after all there are many fans of the genre, myself included. And perhaps what reoccurs are simply what works best for both writer and reader. After all, what matters the most, I think, is that the reader/watcher is satisfied. At the same time, suspense seems to be a huge part of the genre and knowing something is going to happen, but not necessarily what, can contribute to the sense of horror.

The list below shows which locations are typical and most popular for the Horror genre, and what becomes apparent is that they all represent something we have heard of or experienced ourselves. Since people are familiar with these locations, it becomes relatable and perhaps easier for the audience to believe the stories. 

1. Houses, Apartments & Cabins
2. Hotels & Motels
3. Camps, Parks & Wilderness
4. Towns & Islands
5. Hospital/Asylum & other facilities [4]

 In my mind, and perhaps yours, these locations have certain things associated with them. Because of these associations most choices when it comes to location are understandable. For example, in ‘Playing with fire,’[5] by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, it would seem unnatural for the characters to have a séance in the middle of the wilderness, while having it on a table in a house is believable. Therefore, the reoccurrence of settings seems logical within the genre, and as we can see on the list, not much is left uncovered anyway, it would be nearly impossible to not use the same locations.

So, whether or not Horror stories are similar, they are written that way for a reason and ultimately, as long as the readers/watchers enjoys it, I would call it successful. In addition to this, if the TV screen or the words in a book falls short with you, nothing stops you from adding a bit atmosphere yourself. After all, why else do we turn off the lights as we watch a Horror movie, or read a Horror book home alone, if not to strengthen the sense of Horror we already feel.

[1] Ligotti, T. (2010). The conspiracy against the human race. New York: Hippocampus Press, p.185.

[2] Carroll, N. (1990). The philosophy of horror, or, Paradoxes of the heart. New York: Routledge, p.97.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Parvez, S. (2014). IMDb: Best Horror Movie Settings – a list by Sanjid Parvez. [online] IMDb. Available at: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls070074055/#1 [Accessed 23 Nov. 2016].

[5] Haining, P. (2007). The mammoth book of modern ghost stories. New York: Carroll & Graf, pp.75-87.