Bring Horror Back
I've been seeing a lot of writers of "horror" write about stories that aren’t horror. Don't get me wrong. There are many things that people do that can constitute as horror. Yes. But I'm talking about horror. Real horror. Supernatural aspect. The feel of it, where you know you're unmistakably reading horror.
You know, that feeling where even if it's not flat-out horror, you still know it belongs in the genre. Sort of like Korn, which they call "Nu-Metal;" it sounds different in a lot of ways, but you know it's still metal. And you also know it is still Korn.
Remember, this is opinion, some aspects of it can change as I evolve, but for the most part I feel that horror has dropped down a few notches due to current events in the world. Why read something horrific when you could just turn on the news and there you go? Just about every time you turn on the news...
See horror is...well...horrific, but even though it should seem real and plausible, there should still be a back door that you could open and go, "there, see? It's not real little Timmy." So I don't want to hear that we can't have horror because of horrific events in the world, because there have always been horrific events in the world--for as long as the human race has been on this world. Well, as far as I know--if there was a time when this wasn't the case, let me know in the comments below.
So even if there are things happening in the real world, horrific things, you can still go to this made up world where you know at the back of your head it's not real, but is real enough to entertain you--to scare you for a few moments and then put you back in your current world, out of danger. Depending on where you live, of course. That's another post.
The characters should lift you and take you back to a time in your life when you may have known similar characters, or even just had a similar frame of mind. It should take you to another world where you escape the current one.
I also feel, and a lot of people fail to remember this, but the genre of horror is about us; the inner most sanctum of thought inside our minds. Horror, if done right, should tell us about ourselves, should tell us it is okay to think that, everyone thinks that, didn't you know? Just shhhh, don't say anything. Or you might want to say something. It's up to you. You may want to shout it from the rooftops. That's fine. But horror is about us and an exploration of the mind.
Ok, if I'm not making sense I apologize, but that's the beauty. To some I may be making perfect sense and to some I might not. And that's ok. That's also part of why I think if you're new you should be blogging, or getting your voice out there. Because you never know who might want to listen to you. But it's more than that. You have to get your voice out there. You never know if you can do it unless you actually do it.
There is a saying I like from Ray Bradbury: "Jump, and you will find out how to unfold your wings as you fall."
Think about that for a moment. Don't jump if you don't have the wings (which could mean talent, knowledge and simply the yerning), but if you know you have them. And you know you want this. JUMP! You will not fall. I've just jumped. I've been building and getting my wings ready for years! Afraid of this, or that. But now I've jumped. And they are unfolding. And soon I will fly.
Emenem says it well in one of his songs, "The Real Slim Shady," where he says he's like a head trip to listen to, and how he's giving you things you joke about in private with your friends. I feel that's why he got so popular, because even if what he's saying is shocking in its face value, it rings true on a certain level with a lot of people. You may hear some people say, "I don't get it." But that's okay. There are people who do.
Choice. That's what it's all about.
But to get back to the main subject. Horror. I want to see it make a come back. I want to see agents and editors go, "Oh yes, we do horror." Not like it is today where you barely see it when searching for agents. Or it will be mashed together with Scifi. Not saying that's bad, but it should stand out on its own.
So who's with me? Let's make horror great again. Like when the Crypt Keeper would come on Saturdays late night. Or you had to watch something normal for a bit after watching a Nightmare on Elm Street movie before bed.
Okay, I'll stop here and we'll talk next time.
WCM
You know, that feeling where even if it's not flat-out horror, you still know it belongs in the genre. Sort of like Korn, which they call "Nu-Metal;" it sounds different in a lot of ways, but you know it's still metal. And you also know it is still Korn.
Remember, this is opinion, some aspects of it can change as I evolve, but for the most part I feel that horror has dropped down a few notches due to current events in the world. Why read something horrific when you could just turn on the news and there you go? Just about every time you turn on the news...
See horror is...well...horrific, but even though it should seem real and plausible, there should still be a back door that you could open and go, "there, see? It's not real little Timmy." So I don't want to hear that we can't have horror because of horrific events in the world, because there have always been horrific events in the world--for as long as the human race has been on this world. Well, as far as I know--if there was a time when this wasn't the case, let me know in the comments below.
So even if there are things happening in the real world, horrific things, you can still go to this made up world where you know at the back of your head it's not real, but is real enough to entertain you--to scare you for a few moments and then put you back in your current world, out of danger. Depending on where you live, of course. That's another post.
The characters should lift you and take you back to a time in your life when you may have known similar characters, or even just had a similar frame of mind. It should take you to another world where you escape the current one.
I also feel, and a lot of people fail to remember this, but the genre of horror is about us; the inner most sanctum of thought inside our minds. Horror, if done right, should tell us about ourselves, should tell us it is okay to think that, everyone thinks that, didn't you know? Just shhhh, don't say anything. Or you might want to say something. It's up to you. You may want to shout it from the rooftops. That's fine. But horror is about us and an exploration of the mind.
Ok, if I'm not making sense I apologize, but that's the beauty. To some I may be making perfect sense and to some I might not. And that's ok. That's also part of why I think if you're new you should be blogging, or getting your voice out there. Because you never know who might want to listen to you. But it's more than that. You have to get your voice out there. You never know if you can do it unless you actually do it.
There is a saying I like from Ray Bradbury: "Jump, and you will find out how to unfold your wings as you fall."
Think about that for a moment. Don't jump if you don't have the wings (which could mean talent, knowledge and simply the yerning), but if you know you have them. And you know you want this. JUMP! You will not fall. I've just jumped. I've been building and getting my wings ready for years! Afraid of this, or that. But now I've jumped. And they are unfolding. And soon I will fly.
Emenem says it well in one of his songs, "The Real Slim Shady," where he says he's like a head trip to listen to, and how he's giving you things you joke about in private with your friends. I feel that's why he got so popular, because even if what he's saying is shocking in its face value, it rings true on a certain level with a lot of people. You may hear some people say, "I don't get it." But that's okay. There are people who do.
Choice. That's what it's all about.
But to get back to the main subject. Horror. I want to see it make a come back. I want to see agents and editors go, "Oh yes, we do horror." Not like it is today where you barely see it when searching for agents. Or it will be mashed together with Scifi. Not saying that's bad, but it should stand out on its own.
So who's with me? Let's make horror great again. Like when the Crypt Keeper would come on Saturdays late night. Or you had to watch something normal for a bit after watching a Nightmare on Elm Street movie before bed.
Okay, I'll stop here and we'll talk next time.
WCM
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