Currently Reading: Slenderman by Willow Rose, A Storm of Swords (Song of Fire and Ice book 3) by George R.R. Martin, Beauty’s Punishment by Anne Rice and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling.
Books Read: 20/85 Books pledged to read this year.
TBR List: 4997 I reread a couple of books, so technically my TBR didn’t go down….stupid I know.
Words Written: 18,828
I’m not talking about the fear of failure or dying. I’m talking about the scariest, nastiest thing that keeps you up at night. Some people have a fear of clowns or spiders that instantly causes them to freeze up.
I’m working on a new book that involves a big bad boogeyman type coming after the MC (no names worked out yet it’s that new) and her family. While trying to think of the thing’s backstory, I tried coming up with my greatest fear and I can’t think of it.
I have things that freak me out and things that downright scare me, but nothing that makes me stop dead in my tracks or causes my entire body to shake uncontrollably.
Everyone has a greatest fear, but what does it mean if you can’t pinpoint it? Are we becoming oversensitized to violence, gore and horror in general that we no longer have a tangible greatest fear? No matter how irrational.
Think about it, horror movies have transitioned from what I consider horror to more gore than anything. Movies I do consider horror are now referred to as “psychological thrillers” like Black Swan with Natalie Portman or Shutter Island with Leonardo DiCaprio. They both have components of a broken psyche that make people do horrible things and not realize that they are the monsters. To me this is horror because it can and does happen. We learn at a young age that humans are the true monsters (thank you Scooby-Doo) and not things like the Boogeyman.
Horror movies are now things like Sinister, Nightmare on Elm Street or Scream. Great movies but technically slasher flicks. Someone or something goes around filleting people, gratuitous boob shot and people dying because they had sex. It’s like an expensive “Abstinence” ad. Yes they are good but not horror.
My point is getting away from me, sorry.
Are there such things as greatest fears anymore or is everything now a psychological, non-tangible fear? Is that even real with the newest generation being more rewarded for just participating and told to not fear failure? Have we lost the ability to fear and have a great rush of adrenaline when we find that biggest fear? Is the horror genre dead?
Books and More 