The Heart of Horror by Emma Pullar

When people ask me what I read/write and I reply with horror, their face often twists into a pained expression as if I’ve plunged a knife into them.

“Horror? Ew! I don’t like horror.”

I also read sci-fi fantasy and children’s books but that answer never gets the same reaction. Some don’t like sci-fi because they think it’s too heavy on the science, and very few adults read children’s books. Which is a shame because there’s so much value in reading children’s books as an adult. There is also a lot of value in reading horror.

Why don’t people want to read horror stories?

Many people don’t enjoy being uncomfortable and horror is about that crawling feeling over your skin, jump scares, monsters and gore but it’s so much more than the scary elements. At its core, horror is about the human condition and people supporting each other (or not) in order to survive. Sure, it might be futile, and a terrifying monster is likely to rip them limb from limb and suck out their brain or the psycho killer chasing them will chop them into teeny tiny pieces but the important thing is they bonded with those around them to fight a common foe. Maybe they even saved humanity from the monster or their family from the psycho before their blood and body parts could be splattered all over the house. The heart of horror isn’t an organ ripped out and thrown on a grimey table while still beating, it’s about the hearts beating fast inside all of us. About sharing the common fears that connect us.

Another great thing that horror stories do is remind us that we’re safe in our bed. Though our minds might play tricks, there’s nothing under the bed waiting to grab us. From the safety of the couch, we get to imagine what we would do in the same situation and what we might have done differently in order to survive. None of us would try to escape by running up the stairs screaming, right?

Lastly, horror is an amazing way to stretch the imagination. Take an ordinary thing and make it scary. Dolls, clowns, a sweet old lady, worms, sheep… none of these things are frightening. Until… the doll is possessed by the spirit of a murderer, the clown starts killing kids, the sweet old lady is a witch that eats babies, the worms crawl into people’s orifices and eat them alive, the sheep become zombified and go on a rampage.

Horror isn’t only gratuitous violence and jump scares, horror is about thinking your way out of an unusual circumstance. It’s about friendship, family, empathy, cooperation, resourcefulness, resilience, and beating the bad guy or at least trying to.

Everyone should have a go at writing horror at least once, and a short story is the best place to start. Why not give it a try and see where your imagination takes you?