There are many different kinds of horror; they all come in different flavors. There’s “subjective horror” in which the horror doesn’t show itself until the very end, if at all. This is often light on gore, and usually uses the “what could be” element to scare the reader or movie watcher. I have to admit; this brand scares me the most. In Cinema, the film that has always scared me time after time was the original Amityville Horror. You never see anything, but you feel it’s there, and you don’t really want to know how diabolical it is, because it would ruin the mystery factor. In literature, Lovecraft is the king in this area. The way he weaves his stories is second to none. He paints the perfect monsters by giving just the right details and leaving what most writers put in, out. Lovecraft “suggests” horror instead of shoving it in your face. A lot of people don’t like this, but I’m one who does. What’s scary is not the monster or the looks of it; it’s what it’s capable of. It’s in the not knowing what you wants to do with you.
Movie Examples:
The Ring
Amityville
The Blair Witch Project
Paranormal Activity
Book examples:
Almost anything Lovecraft
Edgar Allen Poe
The Exorcist (the book may be more frightening than the film!)
The Conqueror Worms by Brian Keene
Stephen King’s “The Mist” (this one’s not entirely subjective, but it’s kind of close)
A short story which was written by ?, entitled, “The Phantom Drug”
Phantoms by Dean Koontz (this also falls into the category below/it’s both)
Then there’s your action, “in your face” horror. Evil entities are revealed and become antagonists instead of mysterious, hidden-in-the-corner “things” that shouldn’t be. These scare me the least, but not always. In cinema, this brand is everywhere and has been done a thousand times before.
Movie examples:
Nightmare on Elm Street (this, in my opinion, falls in both categories—at least the original)
Friday the 13/sequels
Halloween and its sequels
Texas Chainsaw and it’s sequels…
Book Examples:
Lots of Stephen King stories (NOT all)
Almost anything “zombie”
Vampires, werewolves, psychopathic novels
—I really haven’t read a lot of action horror, even though I do write quite a bit of it. Reason? It’s easier to write, it’s easier to sell, and I think more people enjoy it.
This brand relies on excess blood, death, and mayhem to try and scare the watcher/reader. It’s a fast-paced style, and the antagonists are usually as black as night and the protagonists are as white as clouds. Not always. Never always. Different subcategories blend together a lot. Sometimes this works well; other times it fails miserably. And it depends a lot on the reader/readers. A thousand people may think one book is a piece of garbage, but one person may cherish it. Vice-versa. I’ll never read Twilight, because I don’t think a hunky teenager vampire is interesting.
There are several other subcategories of horror, ranging from comedy to post apocalyptic. Everyone has different taste buds, so choose what you will. There are more writers today than ever before. That means there really IS something for everyone.
I hope that you’ll check out my novel, Imaginary Friend. It falls into the second category, but it has a few elements of the first, and is largely based on suggestion (it was my intention). Below is a short blurb.
A little boy. A big imagination. A very rough life…
What if he could just believe… believe enough to make his pretend friend real? Then his father would stop abusing him. Teachers at school might hear him. Kids might be his friend.
Or, perhaps, his pretend friend might simply go on a killing spree and stop anyone from getting close.
Tulpas might just be real…. or, at least, for those willing to have enough faith.
The apostles said to Jesus, “Make our faith greater.” Jesus answered, “If you had faith as big as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Pull yourself up by the roots and plant yourself in the sea!’ and it would obey you.”
Tulpa: a materialized thought that has taken physical form.
Eight-year-old Nathan Stevenson is beat by his father, teased by his peers, and has zero friends—except Max, his imaginary friend. Max is a heroic creature he created years ago when the physical abuse became too much to bear. Strangely, every time Nathan imagines him, he becomes more lifelike, more substantial… but nobody could guess what soon happens when Nathan refuses to be a victim anymore.
The barriers of reality break down, and Max becomes real. Only Nathan can see him, but anyone can feel his violent wrath. The monster slays anyone who gets in his creator’s path, and eats the hearts of his casualties in order to obtain strength. There’s only one question: can Nathan learn to control his Tulpa? Or will it break free from his mental restraints to do whatever it desires? Either way, there will be a lot of dead bodies to clean up!
Author’s Note:
This paranormal/splatterpunk horror novel, Imaginary Friend, has been updated with a new cover and has been reedited for a more soothing read. It also contains elements of science fiction and fantasy, but the information about “Tulpas” are based on fact. For adults only!
This paranormal/splatterpunk horror novel, Imaginary Friend, has been updated with a new cover and has been reedited for a more soothing read. It also contains elements of science fiction and fantasy, but the information about “Tulpas” are based on fact. For adults only!
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Genre – Horror
Rating – R
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