When I read news stories about the kind of terrible, brutal things that parents can do to their own children, it makes me stop and think. First, I want to cry for the lives of these poor babies that are lost, or permanently scarred, or screwed up in some other way. A two-year old shouldn't have to have parents that are so consumed with themselves that they they disregard, mistreat, or abuse an innocent babe.
It also makes me look at myself, and ask, "Isn't there enough real horror in the world? Why do you feel the need to add to that?"
I don't know that I have a good answer for myself. Why do horror writers write what we do? Is it purely to create entertainment, for the purpose of an escape? Escape for the writer or the reader? Both, maybe? Does a writer write horror to try to chase away the thoughts that may be roaming in his own head, to chase those stories of murder and abuse away with a fanciful tale that, while it might be scary, he ultimately knows isn't real?
I don't think the answer is just that the horror writer likes to scare people. If that's the case, there must be an underlying reason for that as well. Who wants to scare people?
I think for me it's a little like Bill Murray's title character in the movie What About Bob? He would fake diseases, because as long as he was faking them, that meant he didn't have them. I think I tend to write horror, because, as long as I'm writing horrific, crazy things, they're not happening to my family.
I don't know. I can't think right now.
7 hours ago
7 comments:
We must have seen the same news story. That just left me in tears.
I think your answer is a good one. Sometimes we write to experience a fantasy world we couldn't visit otherwise. And sometimes we write to keep a nightmare at bay.
My writing comes out of a 'what if' philosophy, that and my natural curiosity to explore topics that haven't been explored yet.
Rob,
Out of all the crimes to commit, those against children are the most heinous and also unforgivable.
I have a good explanation for why we write horror but I need to think about it for a bit to properly articulate it.
I'm curious about this story now, was it on Fox News? Fox News always posts the worst, most atrocious stories that they can find because, in my opinion, they are driven by scare tactics. Talk about terrorism, but I'm not trying to get into some political debate here.
Either way, take care and know that, at the very least (but maybe its the very most important), your children are safe because they are in your care.
I think like other genres it’s a form of escapism and maybe the adrenalin rush you get from being scared while you’re reading/watching horror books/movies. So maybe we strive to give that to people when we’re writing and also look for that when we’re reading horror. I hate the idea of being scared to death in real life but I get a real kick out of seeing a horror movie that actually does give me a real fright. I know I get a thrill when someone has read one of my stories and I’ve scared them or creeped them out. Does that make sense?
Sherrie--I like the "nightmare at bay" theory. Good way to put it.
Jamie--good answer as well. And that's a good reason to write any speculative fiction. I notice a lot of my "what ifs" tend to lead me more down the contemporary fantasy road.
Will--you don't want to read the story. It was on Yahoo. I don't have cable, and don't go to Fox news very much, but when I do, any crazy, terrible stories I read there, I'm already familiar with. Fox is just like any other news organization--out to get your attention however they can.
Danielle--you're right, I do get that thrill too when someone tells me something I wrote scared them. That is exciting.
I used to be scared of many things; now that I write, most of those old fears seem silly.
Maybe I write dark stories (I don't want to always call them "horror") because I control the monsters that way.
Hmmm.
Aaron, I understand your reluctance to call your writing "horror." Like I mentioned above, I think of a lot of my work as contemporary fantasy or magic realism, although from what I can tell, those two terms really mean the same thing. But I'd have to call it dark contemporary fantasy.
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