indie Nightmares

A blog for my Horror Fiction class!!

[jk-indienightmares]

The Nature of Horror

By Jake White : 1806941.

The nature of horror

The genre of horror originates from the gothic genre dating back in the pre-romantic era, 1800’s. The first gothic piece to be birthed into the world was ‘Castle of Otranto’ by Walpole, bringing with it images of romance and tragic death[1]. It became one of the most popular pieces of literature, being favoured by authors such as Edgar Allen Poe and Bram Stoker, inspiring them to create their own gothic pieces[2]. With the gothic genre in mind, with a few sadistic twists, the horror genre was birthed as a branch from its mother, gothic. Horror was designed with images created to torment the mind and soul with  no romance in sight, instead in its place just pure fear. Staying true to its roots, horror doesn’t disappoint to captivate and terrify its audiences all at the same time.

Muriel Gray’s ‘Roundabout’, captures the attention of its readers as the monster, known as the ‘Dark Thing’, that lurks within the jungle of greenery that sits on a roundabout remains unseen. The main character, Danny, plans to move the ‘Dark Thing’, but slowly realises that its much harder than it looks. The begin to find bones, when suddenly one of his work colleagues is waist deep in sand and suspense is built, “ Danny knew then what was going to happen. The Dark Thing was just waiting.”[3]

Horror has become increasingly popular over the years, so as a result, it adapted throughout time becoming darker and more twisted. But why if it scares us so much do we continue to go back for more? Psychologist have explained that a reason why we enjoy fear is to do with the rush of adrenaline. Adrenaline is produced in the body when faced with fear, this causes it to pump full of adrenaline which can either be used towards defence or in some cases create a pleasurable feeling. Psychologists say that if we experience a fear in the comfortable place or we have a subconscious understanding that the horror stimuli aren’t real, the sudden rush of adrenaline can create a euphoric and pleasurable feeling, that is enough to make any us crave more[4].

However, no matter how blood curdling a piece may be, Horrors fundamental purpose is to entertain the masses. Horror has become a form of entertainment as crowds delve deeper into the storylines that keep us hooked. Tapping into our senses , most horrors focus on psychology, meddling  with our heads, slowly drip feeding darkness and crude images into the pits of our minds, waiting for the slightest noise to keep us awake at night. Playing tricks on the brain and disrupting the senses, it creates an almost disorientated feeling. Whilst a few who have caught on to the storyline wait anxiously for the moment their theories are proven, the majority are caught off guard and scared beyond belief. In the end, no matter how scared we become, we view the horror genre as nothing more than a form of entertainment, so we feel assured that we will return to our homes and be completely safe from harm. But what we seem to forget is that we can never escape the darkness in our own minds.

  Word count (excluding quotes): 517

  Bibliography:

Morris, Mark, ed. NEW FEARS. London: Titans Books, 2017.

Psychology Today. “Christopher Dwyer Ph.D.” Last modified October 19, 2018. https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/thoughts-thinking/201810/5-reasons-we-enjoy-being-scared

Wikipedia. “The Castle of Otranto.” Last modified April 2, 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Castle_of_Otranto

Wikipedia. “The Castle of Otranto.” Last modified April 2, 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Castle_of_Otranto

   [1] “Castle of Otranto,” last modified April 2, 2020, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Castle_of_Otranto

[2] “Castle of Otranto,” last modified April 2, 2020, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Castle_of_Otranto

[3] Mark Morris ed., NEW FEARS (London: Titans Books, 2017), 291.

[4] “Christopher Dwyer Ph.D.,” last modified October 19, 2018, https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/thoughts-thinking/201810/5-reasons-we-enjoy-being-scared

[jk-indienightmares]

Horror and Location

Since the genre of horror began, scenery and location have played a key part of helping to create the tension for a dramatic and horrifying ending. Stereotypically, most horror genres are set during the evening or the dark. You may think this is accidental, but in actuality it relates back to one of our innate instincts. Rewinding back to a time where humans were the hunted and not the hunter, it was built within us to have a natural fear of the dark and for our senses to be aroused to avoid surprise attacks from creatures in the night[1]. As well as this, in most horror films the protagonist is isolated, either throughout the story or through an unfortunate circumstance.

As much as the overall story and payoff are important, the location is essential in clasping your audience into the story-line as it will be the main source of imagery throughout. The story of ‘Shepherds’ business’  by Stephen Gallagher, uses imagery to reveal the location as an island, “Picture me on an island supply boat…., Picture also a choppy sea, a deck that rose and fell with every wave”[2]. This helps to create the dark scenery that is typical for horror, as we’ve been introduced into the storyline amongst what appears to be a storm.

Moreover, despite there being multiple people that inhabit the island, the use of an island indicates a sense of isolation as it is separated from any other form of society by a dangerous and choppy sea.

Other common images used in location are buildings that are either haunted or abandoned. This taps into a fear that I explored in one of my previous blogs on how we fear the unknown and a threat we can’t locate. Abandoned buildings have been a popular option for writers such as Bram Stoker with his hit ‘Dracula’, a vampire that lived in an abandoned castle. Others include ‘The woman in Black’, by Susan Hill, which based its story around an abandoned house that was being haunted by its previous owner[3]. Edgar. A. Poe suggested, isolating reading is important in ensuring a fear response, so what better than to place your reader alone in an abandoned and haunted building where they will be in constant danger and fear with no chance of help. Furthermore, abandoned and derelict buildings provide a lot of room for imagery as the writer can take the reader through the building into each room and explore it in deep detail to enhance the image in their head as they read. In reality, anywhere can be used as a location for a horror, as long as it follows the main and important themes of isolation and to be encompassed by a dark and dreary atmosphere. In addition to this, a common theme amongst all locations is that they all have an element of danger or house a danger. An example of this would be the ghost  in ‘The woman in black’, the danger is her and not so much the house. However, due to association, the dark and creepy description of the house emphasises and heightens the tense atmosphere.

Location may be key, but it’s the danger the location presents and isolation that separates successful horrors and ones that fall short.

  Word count (excluding quotes); 550

  Bibliography:

[1]  “There’s an Evolutionary Reason Why We’re Afraid of The Dark”, last modified, February 19, 2016, https://www.sciencealert.com/here-s-the-evolutionary-reason-why-we-re-afraid-of-the-dark

[2] Mark Morris, New fears (London: Titan publishing group Ltd, 2017), 29

[3]  “The Woman in Black”, last modified March 10, 2020, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Woman_in_Black_(2012_film)

[1] “There’s an Evolutionary Reason Why We’re Afraid of The Dark”, last modified, February 19, 2016, https://www.sciencealert.com/here-s-the-evolutionary-reason-why-we-re-afraid-of-the-dark

[2] Mark Morris, New fears (London: Titan publishing group Ltd, 2017), 29

[3] “The Woman in Black”, last modified March 10, 2020, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Woman_in_Black_(2012_film)

[jk-indienightmares]

Horror and the writer

Horror and the writer by Jake White

Through writing horror, I have learned that horror isn’t all that different to comedy. Like comedy, a horror’s success solely relies on its build up and pay off. For a build up to work, just enough information needs to be drip fed to the reader, enough so that the reader is left with the eerie feeling that something is going to happen. But what is going to happen and when must remain a mystery. Tension can be built by using a variety of methods, including ‘creating a conflict for your characters that could lead to devastating consequences, or introducing secondary sources of tension such as sounds and visions.’[1] Once enough tension has been built up and the reader has become isolated and completely submerged within the story, the payoff is ready to spring into action.

True horror comes from the unknown and unexpected, clichés are not recommended. If a writer wishes to truly terrorise their audience, they introduce and instill into them a fear that they were unaware they had. Alternatively, graphic imagery is always helpful when executing a payoff, something unexpected and truly gruesome can really resonate with an audience. I found this to be the case for myself whilst reading ‘Dollies, New Fears’. The story focuses itself around a young girl who is giving some dolly’s, whom she all names Elizabeth. Overtime they  present blue spots resemblent of an illness, but the young girl perceives them dead. But it wasn't until the ending of the story after she had given birth to a young baby girl, that I was truly horrified by the imagery in front of me. The line read, ‘I laid my fingers gently across her nose and mouth...she didn’t really struggle… I watched for her chest to rise and fall, and when it no longer did ....put her on the shelf beside the other Elizabeths.’[2] This line was effective in creating a horrified response as it taps into our fragile and vulnerable views towards babies. A newborn baby is seemingly helpless, so for such a sadistic act to occur against one is enough to chill the bones of any reader.

Fear can also be placed into basic and common fears, as well as using the senses to capture an audience. ‘Bird Box’ a Netflix original film directed by Susanne Bier, is a perfect example of incorporating the senses and common fears into a horror. The story follows a family who try to flee a global epidemic of horror, in which people are driven to suicide after an unseen presence shows them there worst fears. ‘To remain safe a mother and her two children blindfold themselves to avoid seeing a devastating end as they run for safety.’[3] This psychological horror was particularly successful as it took advantage of possibly one our most important, yet taken for granted senses, our site. This left audience members scared of looking for those things that made noises in the night, psychologically playing with their heads. True horror stays with the reader even after it’s over. This is only done when the readers biological responses react to the fear as if it is something physical. Have you ever noticed that even when you are scared or watching a horror film, it’s hard not to look away from the screen. Well, that’s because it’s your body's natural response to danger. When we are threatened, our bodies become aroused, which causes us to seek out and  locate the threat so that our body and brain can decipher what to do next. ‘Our heart rate rises, pumping blood around the body faster in preparation for fight or flight, and in some cases our bowel movements are prohibited’[4], resulting in some people releasing themselves unintentionally.

Overall, the key to writing a successful horror piece lies within the ability to take advantage of your readers senses and natural responses through building up enough tension that is followed by an equally terrorising pay off.

  Word count (excluding quotes): 550

 Bibliography:

[3] “IMDb”, last modified 2019, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2737304/

[2] Kathryn Ptacek, New fears (London: Titan publishing group Ltd, 2017), 348.

 [1] Now Novel, “ How to create tension in a story: 8 simple steps”, last modified 2019, https://www.nownovel.com/blog/create-tension-writing/

[4] PMC, “The biology of fear- and anxiety- related behaviours”, last modified September 2002, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181681/ 

[1] Now Novel, “ How to create tension in a story: 8 simple steps”, last modified 2019, https://www.nownovel.com/blog/create-tension-writing/

  [2] Kathryn Ptacek, New fears (London: Titan publishing group Ltd, 2017), 348.

  [3] “IMDb”,  “Bird Box”, last modified 2019, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2737304/

[4] PMC, “The biology of fear- and anxiety- related behaviours”, last modified September 2002, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181681/

[jk-indienightmares]

Horror and Me by Jake white

Horror focuses on the concepts of everything dark, unusual and creating an unsettling environment for the audience, but one that they cannot escape from investing in. People are most scared when their vulnerabilities are at risk of attack and they feel unstable and in a place of unfamiliarity. The horror genre does this perfectly and most effectively when enough suspense, using visual dark imagery and creepy noises, is met with a surprising and shocking payoff.[1] Horror has always been a fond interest of mine and growing up in a wiccan household, I was always superstitious of the unknown. I was first introduced to the horror genre around the age of six when my mother, out of pure desperation, would tell me scary stories before bedtime to ensure I’d stay in my bed all night. One story that caught my attention, and one that I believe fueled my phobia/fear of clowns was the story of the letter-box man. My mother described him as a tall slender man with partially rubbed make up similar to a clown’s. He travels from house to house searching for children that awake when they shouldn’t be. Once he’s found a child he crumbles his bones within his sack like skin and slithers his way through the letterbox, cramming the young child in his brown sack, he slips back out the letter box with the child and they never return. It’s safe to say that I didn’t sleep for months.

From that moment on, my fear began to manifest into the popular kids tv character Mr. Blobby. I believed my fear of him could be explained by the fact that he has clown-like features such as big red lips and nose, excluding the undeniable demonic noises that emitted from his mouth whenever he spoke. Over the years as I’ve matured, my fear slowly began to develop to more of a phobia and solidified to the image of clowns. Just the thought of a clown can send my body into a cold shiver with a tsunami of anxiety overwhelming me.

Clowns have been a common and formidable figure in the horror genre throughout history. One of the most recognised clowns being Pennywise which was created into a horror film during the 80’s. He has put nightmares into the minds of children for decades and was recently reimagined in a remake (chapter two) released in 2019.[2] Which like the original, I absolutely refused to watch. Clowns have been a part of the horror genre for decades, with the first use of the clown seen in Italy during the 16th century. But it wasn’t until more modern times when the ‘creepy clown’ craze went viral, with an influx of sightings hitting America and not long after reaching across the pond to the UK.[3]

Fortunately, clowns aren’t the only figures used in horror. More ‘cliché’ horrors involve hideous monsters, zombies and the  most common and popular brand throughout history...ghosts. Although some stories can fall flat if the payoff doesn’t match the buildup, which is something I felt when reading ‘The family car’ by Brady Golden. The overall story and build up was quite intriguing as I found myself desperate to unveil the figure in the car. Unfortunately I was met by disappointment when the ending involved a monster, ‘The face has no mouth to speak of, just four inky orbs arranged in a vertical line down its center,’[4] which in my opinion was a rather lazy and cliché ending for what appeared to be a ghostly story. I believe that the genres involving ghosts and monsters are predominantly more successful horrors as they tap into the fear of human vulnerability. We may be on top of the food change, but when it comes to threats that we can’t see or don’t recognise, we are as good as dead. We as humans have always been afraid of the unknown and the different, which can be seen in general day to day social changes.

Horror uses this vulnerability but twists it into something horrifying, something so outside of our comfort zone, that we are generally scared for our lives. Something such as a horror film, that we know is in no way true and has been fashioned together by actors and film crews, can cause a genuine and biological reaction. We overthink the smallest of noises and begin to notice things that we wouldn’t otherwise notice.[5] Our bodies are even left tainted by the horrid images that leave our hearts thumping through our chests. Leaving us sleepless and afraid, yet we still go back for more.

      Word count (excluding quotes): 540

Bibliography;

Golden, Brady.  New fears. London: Titan publishing group Ltd, 2017, 89. Our Pastimes, “Typical Characteristics of a horror movie”, last modified September 15, 2017, https://ourpastimes.com/typical-characteristics-of-a-horror-movie-12560216.html

History stories, “ A brief history of creepy clowns”, last modified October 30, 2019, https://www.history.com/news/a-brief-history-of-creepy-clowns

IMDb, “IT”, last modified 2019, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1396484/

PMC, “The biology of fear- and anxiety- related behaviours”, last modified September 2002,

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181681/

[1] “Rianne.H. Soriano”, last modified September 15, 2017, https://ourpastimes.com/typical-characteristics-of-a-horror-movie-12560216.html

[2] “IMDb”, last modified 2019, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1396484/

[3] “Becky. Little”, last modified October 30, 2019, https://www.history.com/news/a-brief-history-of-creepy-clowns

 [4] Brady Golden, New fears (London: Titan publishing group Ltd, 2017), 89.

[5] “Thierry. Steimer”, last modified September 2002, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181681/