It’s October, the month of Scary.
Let’s talk horror.
Today’s Guest Post is by Friend of Fine Lines Larry Leeds and comes with the caution: The following may contain gruesome examples of horror that has been known to offend the faint of heart, small children, and/or spiritually persuaded.
Why Horror Stories?
In his book The Philosophy of Horror or Paradoxes of the Heart, Noël Carroll offers two Paradoxes of the Heart: “…this is the question of how we can be frightened by that which we know does not exist.” and his second. “It is the question of why. . . anyone would subject themselves to it.” I would like to add my own question: Why would anyone want to tell such stories?
Some say we read horror stories for the adrenaline rush; to satisfy the “fight or flight” situations we rarely have in these modern times. Perhaps it’s for the visceral reaction that others get jumping out of a plane, usually with a parachute. Familiarity, maybe, like the way dad used to turn you upside down and toss you in the air, scaring the wits out of you the whole time you were laughing. I approach a horror story as a controlled nightmare from which I can awaken anytime I want. Others read horror for the reasons some like watching road accidents – so they can say, “There but for the grace of God, go I.”
What Is Horror?
Continue reading “Five Questions to Consider Before Writing a Horror Story”