Horror 101
Published on October 01, 2024
By Catherine L.
Calendar: *October 1st*
Horror fans:
A few of us here know there are many like-minded fans of the spooky season out there, so we created Scary on the Prairie, a series of fun events throughout the month, like…
- Friday Night Frights, Oct. 18: a lock-in for adults complete with a costume contest, escape rooms, trivia, and a classic horror movie.
- Midwest Paranormal Files, Oct. 19: The gang of paranormal investigators discusses local legends, cryptids, and folklore.
- Shelf Care, Oct. 22: Spend dedicated time with your current read and then socialize with other readers. We’ll also give away horror Advance Reader Copies!
- Investigate a Crime Scene, Oct. 29: Was the car crash an accident or foul play? Figure it out!
We also have kits you can take home:
- Mystery Kits, register through Oct. 17: There’s a witch terrorizing Salem, SD. Pick up your kit and solve the puzzle.
- Movie kits for your next horror night, including popcorn and bingo sheets, are available at branches now!
As for books, horror fiction is having something of a renaissance right now. Horror stories have a singular ability to surprise and transfix—at least, that’s what I like about them!
Explore some popular horror subgenres below. Pick your poison.
Retellings
Horror retellings are often inspired by traditional sources such as folk tales or well-known novels. These retellings may draw on suspenseful narratives or reinterpret non-horror works through a lens of fear.
Rebecca/ The Picture of Dorian Gray / The Amityville Horror
More Retellings…
Haunted House
These reads are all about the setting. Sprawling old homes that have seen a thing or two are classic, but the haunted "house" may also be an apartment, school, hospital, or other building. What binds the haunted house subgenre together is the element of undiscovered trauma, which can transform into a harmful force.
More Haunted Houses...
Dystopian
Dystopian horror disturbs the reader with ideas of a future society that has declined due to oppression, deprivation, or fear. These stories involve desperate characters attempting to survive by any means necessary. Readers are led to wonder what they would be capable of if it meant life or death.
More Dystopian Horror…
Lovecraftian, a.k.a. Cosmic Horror
Developed and popularized by H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937), cosmic horror deals primarily with the fear of the unknown, often showcasing ancient, powerful beings beyond our human comprehension. It forces readers to wonder what truly lies beyond our world and ponder the consequences of coming face-to-face with it.
More Cosmic Horror…
Body Horror
Body horror, also known as biological horror, aims to scare by showing how far a body can be pushed… and then pushing it even further. Not for the faint of heart, this horror features grotesquely unnatural images of bodies being distorted in ways that seem impossible, all designed to make sure you never forget what you are visualizing.
More Body Horror…
Ecological
Ecological horror delves into the fearsome power of nature, using principles from ecology, zoology, and other science. It shows the degradation that can result from humanity's troubled relationship with the rest of the natural world, depicting scenarios where the environment fights back or natural processes go awry.
More Ecological Horror…
Social Horror
The horror genre has long included social commentary, but these ratchet society's problems up to 11. Many focus on issues of race, gender, sexuality, class, or nationhood. In social horror books, the villain can be the injustices ingrained in our society or dark histories that have yet to be reckoned with.
More Social Horror…
Found Footage
Found footage horror is a popular subgenre of film, but it also has deep roots in literature. These may also be called mixed-media novels or found manuscripts. Their storytelling method can include (or may consist entirely of) interviews, letters, transcripts, reports, emails, screenshots, or newspaper clippings. Found footage adds an element of realism to the reading experience, as though you are experiencing the happenings alongside the main victim character.
More Found Footage…
Based on True Crime
Demonstrating the depravity humans can be capable of, True Crime has become a popular genre for readers to try and understand what causes one person to harm another, and maybe how to avoid that harm within their own lives. These books take direct inspiration from the headlines.
More Based on True Crime…
Keep your eyes peeled for spine-tingling (get it?) horror genre stickers coming soon, so you can more easily find your frights.