Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme that was originally created and hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books starting in August 2019, and was then cohosted with Dani @ Literary Lion from May 2020 to March 2022. Book Nook Bits has hosted since April 2022.
October 28: Halloween Freebie!
Why I Love Horror
Prompts: Halloween is in just a couple of days, so this Friday, write about whatever spooky-season topic you want! Some ideas are: your favorite horror novels, favorite fall reads, or your favorite places to read and write in fall!
As today is a freebie for Let’s Talk Bookish, and it’s still Blogtober, I thought I’d take this chance to talk about one of my favourite genres, and why I love it so much! Horror really is a great genre and in the right hands, horror novels – and short stories and novellas – can be incredibly impactful. Over the last few years we’ve seen more of a push towards diverse horror, too, and a shift in focus away from white, American-centric stories.
Horror offers writers and readers an opportunity to really explore their own fears and anxieties as well as those of society. It can do this sometimes in quite a literal sense, or as allegory, taking something and translating it into something different though still recognisable. Whether you’re approaching it as a creator or consumer, at times horror can be really cathartic, and allow a deeper, darker look into humanity. You can really get under the skin with a good horror story, and there’s something exciting about reading something scary late at night, in the dark, in the safety of your own home.
You also never quite know what sort of ending you’re going to get in horror. In Fantasy, it feels like often you can sort of predict the type of ending based on the tone of the novel. One of the appeals of Romance is you’re guaranteed to get a HEA or HFN, and the opposite is true of Horror; you don’t know if you’re going to get a ‘happy’ ending, though even if the so-called heroes win there’s usually a big price to pay, or if things are going to end up really bleak.
Horror is also full of standalone novels, so you rarely pick up a book only to find it’s number four in a series and you need to go back and read the others, or get really into it and find yourself left with a cliff-hanger that feels like it’s wedged in just to make you pick up the next book.
I love many genres and I read many different types of books, but I truly adore Horror and think it’s a genre full of possibility. With that said, let me know if you like Horror too, and what some of your favourite horror books are – I’m always looking out for recommendations!
Unwrapping Words 