Horror appreciates that, frequently, what scares us the most, is a lot more ubiquitous than mega-tornadoes flinging Great White Sharks at the unwitting public.
Tag: Speculative fiction
Jan 06 2020
FEAR: Why Humans Crave Stories That Scare Them
Since fear practically saturates every area of our lives, readers are gravitating more and more to books that allow them to put a face to the fear and then kick its metaphorical @$$. We can’t do much of anything about escalating tensions with Iran and Iraq or the Fukishima reactors that continue to pollute the oceans. And, since we DO NOT LIKE feeling powerless, these stories hand us back some form of agency and ease our terrors.
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Aug 29 2018
DysFUNctional: World-Building from Orwell to Apocalypse
Say it with me: world-building is fun. Seriously! It’s the only way—aside from global domination—we will ever get to arrange the world exactly as we want. Don’t like green peppers on your supreme pizza? Banish them! Hate people who squeeze the toothpaste tube from the middle? Declare them subversive enemies of the regime! Yet, some …
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Aug 27 2018
FEAR: Why Humans Crave Stories That Disturb Them
Fear is, in all likelihood, the single most complex human emotion. Our fears can keep us up at night, but they can also be the only thing that keeps us alive. They can save us, strangle us, liberate us or even destroy us. Like fire, fear can be mesmerizing and for sound reasons. We understand …
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Jul 24 2017
Science Fiction, Horror & More—Why Speculative Fiction Matters
On Friday, we explored how shame is the beating heart of great fiction, how probing the shadow sides of human nature is what can separate the mundane from the magnificent. All fiction has its place. Some fiction is purely fun and escape and the world needs more fun and feel good. Certain books are simply a …
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International Association of Professional Writers & Editors
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