A Question For Anyone Who Writes Horror

[The Villain]

Whenever i tell people that i write novels, they always seemed slightly intrigued until i tell them that i write horror. Then i always get the same response:

"Oh."

After that its like they feign interest and don't really pay any attention to me.

I was just wondering if this happens to anyone else. Why do people seem to not only be uninterested in horror but also basically treat it like it doesn't matter?

[neverending]

Because it's genre fiction and not considered of literary merit.

[The Villain]

Thats basically the consensus i get from people which really bothers me. Horror deserves more respect then it gets.

[kelvecion]

The more horror I read the more I think the actual word misrepresents what is in the stories. Character, plot and the use of language are largely ignored by the average mainstream reader because they envisage guts and gore et al. But anyone with half a finger on the pulse of the movie going trend should realise horror is massive.

[The Villain]

That also makes sense. Thanks for your input.

[Zombieness]

Yeah, that happens to me too. Horror is just sadly not as loved and appreciated as other genres, and not only in literature. People who go 'Oh' and 'Okay, nevermind then' help motivate me to write good horror.

I had a deal with my mother (this was quite a few years back when she was really starting to worry about my, er, obsessions). I told her I'll stop writing anything 'disturbing' when they stop being good. She was the one who judged everything I wrote first.

She was hooked on most of the stuff I wrote (not like a supportive mother. She was God honest every time, even when it hurt), finding the symbolism and powerful values deep in the story's morals. What made me proud was the fact that my mom hated any type of horror fiction, and after reading stuff I wrote she started really getting into the genre.

Similar stuff happened with me and my friends and family. Almost everyone I gave some stuff I wrote to read to hated horror fiction, and gradually I used my stories to introduce them to the genre.

I think basically the perception people make are that horror writers are the Devil-worshiping, psychopathic and anti-social versions of comedy and romance writers, who make stories to promote darkness and excessive violence.

I believe it should be part of every horror writer's goal to try to teach people that the genre is just as good as all the others, and that it isn't just all about random violence and gore.

[The Villain]

Those are some good points. Thank you