Why does horror attract?

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nandu

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There's a basic question I want to ask.

What's the attraction of horror?

All horror buffs know that a good horror movie or novel makes us uncomfortable for days. We sit up at night, devouring page after page of the antics of "ghoulies and ghosties and long-legged beasties and things that go bump in the night": then spend an extremely uncomfortable night, sometimes punctuated by trips to the toilet.:eek:

Why the hell are we obsessed with scaring ourselves to death?
 

Jcomp

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nandu said:
There's a basic question I want to ask.

What's the attraction of horror?

All horror buffs know that a good horror movie or novel makes us uncomfortable for days. We sit up at night, devouring page after page of the antics of "ghoulies and ghosties and long-legged beasties and things that go bump in the night": then spend an extremely uncomfortable night, sometimes punctuated by trips to the toilet.:eek:

Why the hell are we obsessed with scaring ourselves to death?

I've long wondered this question. Some people say it's just the "thrill" of it, but I don't think that quite covers it. A roller coaster's a good thrill, but I don't ride one with the hopes that it will give me nightmares for a week. And secretly, that's what all horror fans are seeking. Even if you're not easily scared (or especially if you're not easily scared) you're looking for that story that will scare the hell out of you and stay with you for days. That's a major (primary?) factor in how we gage whether a story's good or not; does it deliver the scares?

But like you said, if we seek that story and actually find it, we just make ourselves miserable. Are we all masochists or is there another explanation? Truly, I'm not sure. Not much scares me fiction wise, but the stuff that does really gets to me, yet I wake up the next day feening for more like an addict. Maybe it's just such a good diversion, there's so much to really fear in the world, fearing something fictional that in our heart of hearts we know isn't truly a threat may be therapeudic somehow. Or maybe I'm just pulling this stuff out of thin air... who knows? Good inquiry though...
 

Cathy C

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Because you can close the cover and nothing can follow you home afterward.

Everybody likes to feel the edge of danger, see a glimpse of the darkness that lurks at the edge of our sanity. But we ONLY want a glimpse. We want to be able to walk back into the sunlight, secure in the knowledge that a thin piece of cardboard is a sufficient barrier to the darkness. Just as a child believes that the covers over his head are a barrier to the monsters in the closet, so do adults believe that the monsters can be silenced by the covers.

They're wrong, of course . . . but that's another tale. ;)
 

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I think it is because we are thrill junkies and let's face it fear is the biggest thrill there is. When you find that one book/movie that scares the hell out of you and it stays with you for days you keep that thrill a little while longer, not just when you are reading the pages or sitting in front of the idiot box.

It's the thrill to me. I don't get it from fantasy or sci-fi, at least not to the degree that I get from horror. Fear takes us to the edge and shows us what is beyond it, what lies below. And horror shows us that edge and all the dark things that can dwell there but allow us the chance to come back, intact and sane.
 

Pike

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Kevin Yarbrough said:
I think it is because we are thrill junkies and let's face it fear is the biggest thrill there is. When you find that one book/movie that scares the hell out of you and it stays with you for days you keep that thrill a little while longer, not just when you are reading the pages or sitting in front of the idiot box.

It's the thrill to me. I don't get it from fantasy or sci-fi, at least not to the degree that I get from horror. Fear takes us to the edge and shows us what is beyond it, what lies below. And horror shows us that edge and all the dark things that can dwell there but allow us the chance to come back, intact and sane.

No doubt. Ever driven by a car accident and NOT looked at the scene? When you hear a child cry in the store, do you wonder if they're being beaten by their parent, or carted off by some sick molester? It's human nature to peek into the dark side of life. Horror is just an avenue that, like fantasy, allows us a view of those things violent and morbid then we can put doen the book and go to work or play with our kids without having to literally wipe the blood from our hands. It's a sick view but it's the one I hold to. Besides, some of us have experienced the dark side of life and this helps coop with it.
 

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Jamesaritchie

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Horror

I guess I'm a bit different here. I don't read horror to be frightened, and I've never been frightened by anything I've read in a horror novel. I read horror for the same reasons I read mystery, literary, fantasy, etc., which is to simply get a good story, well-told.
 

Liam Jackson

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People have been asking that question for a long, long time. While there are some reocurring themes expressed in various answers, I don't know that there will ever be a consensus.

I think true horror junkies like to be scared by something that really can't hurt them. As someone said, they can close the covers, turn the channel or leave the theather without a scratch. We can confront the boogey man and survive, and maybe even spit in his eye on the way out. Part thrill, part catharsis, part who-the-hell-knows.

Perhaps an equally valid question is, "why do certain authors seemed locked into the horror genre?" Can it only be because they've discovered the knack for reaching readers, and therefore, can sell more books? Maybe thats true for some. But, if big bucks are the ultimate goal, surely those writers would be better served by turning out mainstream work, or by choosing a wider-based genre.

I quit analyzing the why and wherefores. Hell, I don't even know why I write the stuff. Maybe because it's fun. Yeah, that's it. It's fun.

Regardless of the reason(s) I'm just glad horror fans still exist in significant numbers. *grins*
 

Jamesaritchie

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LiamJackson said:
Can it only be because they've discovered the knack for reaching readers, and therefore, can sell more books? Maybe thats true for some. But, if big bucks are the ultimate goal, surely those writers would be better served by turning out mainstream work, or by choosing a wider-based genre.

*

I think the promise of big bucks does attract many writers. When a Stephen King or an Ann Rice average about fifty million per year, I suspect many horror writers envision themselves making that kind of money if they just keep writing long enough.

I also suspect most of us write what we most love to read, whatever the sales potential. I also doubt most writers have the width of talent or the reading habits to pick and choose the genre they write in.
 

Pike

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I got into horror late. I read a lot of fantasy fic and tried my hand at writing it but it always came out stiff and contrived. But horror, that came easy. Something about attributing my childhood fears and teenage anxieties translated easier to the page. I'd love to make a living off of it but know that unless I polish my craft until it wrists ache I'll have to settle for what I can get. I and will settle because I simply love to write. And I LOVE horror.
 

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Jamesaritchie said:
I think the promise of big bucks does attract many writers. When a Stephen King or an Ann Rice average about fifty million per year, I suspect many horror writers envision themselves making that kind of money if they just keep writing long enough.

I also suspect most of us write what we most love to read, whatever the sales potential. I also doubt most writers have the width of talent or the reading habits to pick and choose the genre they write in.


James, I'm sure some writers hope to hit the home run, riding coat tails of established genre authors. I was actually questining those more established authors. Not the best sellers, but rather, the midlist folk who after 10-15 years, keep turning out the same genre stuff. If it's readership they want, why not choose a genre with a larger audience? While horror is a firmly established niche with loyals readers, it's not as large as some others, for instance, fantasy. Yet, some midlist folk spend entire careers writing the same stuff. If money is the "end all, be all" of writing for these folk, you would think they'd select a different route, or at least, diversify.

As for the high-end crowd, I don't know if a guy like King could write a compelling mainstream novel if he tried. He just doesn't seem hardwired for such work. Same for Saul, Rice, Straub, etc... I have a feeling Koontz might be the exception, all though I doubt he has any desire to write crossver material at this stage of his career. (Now, watch him write a "coming of age" piece set in 1950s Des Moine, just to spite me)

I think in the end analysis, your second paragraph nailed it. There's no accounting for the tastes of readers. New authors ( like me) should be careful to avoid "paralysis by analysis," and write what they enjoy. There are readers for nearly every subject, theme, and plot line under the sun....as long as the work is well written.
 

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As Cathy C said, "Because you can close the cover and nothing can follow you home afterward. "

...or turn off the tv, or cover my eyes in the movie theatre.

I read horror for enjoyment. I like to write it because it lets my imagination run wild. Can't reign it in. :D
 

Jamesaritchie

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LiamJackson said:
[/b]

James, I'm sure some writers hope to hit the home run, riding coat tails of established genre authors. I was actually questining those more established authors. Not the best sellers, but rather, the midlist folk who after 10-15 years, keep turning out the same genre stuff. If it's readership they want, why not choose a genre with a larger audience? While horror is a firmly established niche with loyals readers, it's not as large as some others, for instance, fantasy. Yet, some midlist folk spend entire careers writing the same stuff. If money is the "end all, be all" of writing for these folk, you would think they'd select a different route, or at least, diversify.

As for the high-end crowd, I don't know if a guy like King could write a compelling mainstream novel if he tried. He just doesn't seem hardwired for such work. Same for Saul, Rice, Straub, etc... I have a feeling Koontz might be the exception, all though I doubt he has any desire to write crossver material at this stage of his career. (Now, watch him write a "coming of age" piece set in 1950s Des Moine, just to spite me)

I think in the end analysis, your second paragraph nailed it. There's no accounting for the tastes of readers. New authors ( like me) should be careful to avoid "paralysis by analysis," and write what they enjoy. There are readers for nearly every subject, theme, and plot line under the sun....as long as the work is well written.

I think I'd vote for King over any of the other writers. Some of his non-horror writing is phenomenal, in my opinion. "Shawshank Redemption," for one. And "Stand by Me," for another. I think it was Gardner Dozois who said that had "Stand by Me" been written by anyone else, it would have been hailed as one of the greatest literary stories of the century. Some of King's New York writers is also extremely good. And at least a couple of his novel can barely be called horror, if at all. He's one of those rare writers who, to me, seems to improve when he mopves away from the kind of writing that made him famous.

As for why writers seem to keep wriitng hoor over anything else, I suspect it's mostly because that's what they love reading and love writing. Many horror writers I've known pretty much read horror exclusively. They live and breathe horror.

Writing to the market isn't easy by any stretch, and trying to write in a certian genre for money is usually the surest way of not making any money.
 

Liam Jackson

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Good points, James. Not sure how I overlooked King's Stand By Me. I recall thinking the same thing as I read it, that had King used a pen name, the literary acclaim would have been off the charts.

Shawshank Redemption was a helluva movie, but I wasn't overly thrilled with the book. Still, a decent story, well told.

By the way, nice to "see" you, again, James. I missed reading your insights while I was away.
 

Pike

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There's also that "how far will they go" factor. When we read a good thriller, action/ adventure, even fantasy or sci-fi, we want to know how far will the hero go to accomplish his or her goal. They run against the conventional or unconventional and come up with fun and interesting ways to prevail. But in a horror novel, unconventional curls its tail between its legs and hides in a corner. How the hell does the normal, desperate housewife fight off a vengeful, sexually motivated ghost? How about a small town reporter against a local priest enpowered by an ancient chinese vampire running amok in the mid west? The outcomes are unpredictible and sometimes, they hit us closer to home. In a good horro piece, we're sucked into a life that could be ours but turns twenty shades uglier then we're accustomed to. These trappings ask the hard questions that most folks shy away from but others turn page after page to see what they will do next.
 

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LiamJackson said:
Good points, James. Not sure how I overlooked King's Stand By Me. I recall thinking the same thing as I read it, that had King used a pen name, the literary acclaim would have been off the charts.

Shawshank Redemption was a helluva movie, but I wasn't overly thrilled with the book. Still, a decent story, well told.

By the way, nice to "see" you, again, James. I missed reading your insights while I was away.



Thanks. I've been away, as well, and I'm about to be gone for another few weeks. I'd be gone now except for a cracked flywheel. They were supposed to put a new one in Friday, but apparently the wrong one came in, so they had to go find another. It goes in today, and tomorrow I'm leaving for my isolation cabin again.

I have a little less than three months to write 200K, and I'm already a bit behind schedule. I should catch up easily enough once I'm again without internet and TV, though I may come home on the weekends. We'll see.
 

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Horror, or being frightened, is a basic need. Where there is nothing scary happening, we'll invent it. Remember the thing under the bed when you were a kid?

Scientists say that with horror movies it's the adrenaline rush during, and relief after that keeps us coming back for more. And for teenage boys, particularly, it's a way of testing themselves against threatening situations safely, with no real threat.

I was reading a while back that some scientist did a study on chimps. They had a tv, with 2 buttons. one showed them nice peaceful scenes, food, etc, the other showed chimps being torn apart by predators; pretty much the scariest thing on earth for a chimp. He found that although the chimps suffered extreme agitation when watching the scary ones, raised pulses, hiding their eyes, etc, they'd play it over and over, and ignore the peaceful one.

So when you read/watch horror, you're satisfying your inner chimp.
 
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Liam Jackson

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Exactly, Pike.

My own short life has been an interesting (for me) series of misadventures. Sort of a Halloween Meets Platoon Meets the Night of the Living Stoned Meets the Fockers Meets Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang Meets...okay, enough.

If I wanted to immerse myself in Ordinary People, I'd spend more time with the in-laws. *shudder* Where's the fun in that?

Good luck, James. I've got a little two-story cabin nestled in the wilds of the Ozarks that serves as sanctuary. If you ever want a change of scenery and don't mind bears or living off a generator for a couple of weeks, let me know. I'll send you directions to Avalon.

Edit- "Satisfying your inner chimp." I like that, Mike! May I borrow it?
 
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Jamesaritchie

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LiamJackson said:
Exactly, Pike.

My own short life has been an interesting (for me) series of misadventures. Sort of a Halloween Meets Platoon Meets the Night of the Living Stoned Meets the Fockers Meets Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang Meets...okay, enough.

If I wanted to immerse myself in Ordinary People, I'd spend more time with the in-laws. *shudder* Where's the fun in that?

Good luck, James. I've got a little two-story cabin nestled in the wilds of the Ozarks that serves as sanctuary. If you ever want a change of scenery and don't mind bears or living off a generator for a couple of weeks, let me know. I'll send you directions to Avalon.

Edit- "Satisfying your inner chimp." I like that, Mike! May I borrow it?



That's incredibly kind of you. Who knows, someday I may take you up on it. I do love the Ozarks.

Completely off the subject, but it reminds me of something thathappened many years ago, at a remote cabin in Canada where several of us gathered for a deer hunt. One of us, we'll call him Dave because, well, that's his name, was always a late riser. One morning while all else were sitting around the kitchen table drinking coffee and planning the hunt, Dave staggered out of bed and came through the kitchen wearing only his underwear.

Dave is well over six foot, and weighs about 320. Combine this with enough body hair to make King Kong envious, along with a big black mustache, plus a three day growth of beard, and you get the picture. He opened the back door, planning a walk to the little house down the hill. Only when he opened the door a bear was standing there, apparently about to knock. So still groggy with sleep, Ron found himself nose to nose with a bear roughly the same size he was.

Before any of us could react, man and bear both let out a squall of pure terror and bolted in opposite directions, Ron back into the main room where we heard a huge crash. The last we saw of the bear was its rear end diasappearing into the forest, still going full speed, and still squalling in terror Probably the same reaction I'd had if I'd never seen Ron in his underwear before.

We found Dave in the main room, where he'd flipped over a couch and crashed into the table holding a shortwave radio. Maybe you had to be there, but needless to say, we never did get around to hunting that day, and poor Dave never has lived that down. I'm not which was more frightened, the man or the bear, but it kept the rest of us laughing for hours.

Anyway, I gotta go. I have some packing to do, and I'm leaving at first light. I should be gone at least ten days this time. Maybe longer, if all goes well.
 

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What happens when a bunch of monkeys see a leopard? They run *towards* it. I don't know why. The urge to understand what threatens us? perversity?
 

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veinglory said:
What happens when a bunch of monkeys see a leopard? They run *towards* it. I don't know why. The urge to understand what threatens us? perversity?
Because as long as they can see the leopard, they are safe.

It's the leopard they don't see that will kill them.

Mac.
 

Liam Jackson

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By all means. Usual royalty payment applies! ;)

Man, I knew that was coming. :)
 

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I don't want real horror in my life, it's really rather unpleasant. I don't want a real gorilla, especially one bigger than my house, in my life. However, I think people want to watch terror/horror events because it's a vicarious way of being in control of terror or horror. We like caged animals even when we know that if we let them out or get in with them, they will shred us to bits. The cage holds them, the encapsulation of a art medium holds them, but we assume the control of the cage or the artistic experience. Now, there are "those who purposefully inflict horror/terror on victims" and they are ones who have "stepped over the line", like the ones that rape/kill/torture/mutilate/cannabalize, etc. They usually are so fearful their own self that it's a kind of control "if I master terror/horror externally, I master it internally. It's a perversion and they cross the line between fantasy and reality. And for the ones who get excited with something like S/M, I would say it's again a perversion of the lust of control/power.

We are biologically/physically/mentally equipped to respond to terrific/horrific events. Not so that we are entertained/sexually stimulated (and if that's the case, sex for that person is never about love but always about lust/power/control/abuse), but so that we can respond appropriately to survive and not come under the control of fear. I heard someone say, "fear is nature's way of telling to take some action. " If we don't, then we will be subjugated to our fears.

there is a chemical rush to terror/horror/fear. Some people get addicted to anything, including non-stick cooking spray. Addiction is not something to be lauded like an element of character. Addiction is weakness. When we let an addiction dictate our actions, we are slaves and not our own.

my 2 sense
 
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