I blog horror. When you take a second to think about that statement it begins to sound… strange.
Sometimes people ask me “Why blog about horror?” To that, I say: ‘there’s nothing like a little horror to get the ol’ ticker thumping!’
I realize most people don’t see the magic in a good horror story the way I do. So, today, I’d like to tell you a little bit about what made me fall in love with monsters, mayhem, and the maniacal in general.
Most of us read for a specific feeling. An ‘endnote’, if you will. An emotional ride. Horror readers do the same, but we aren’t looking for that fuzzy feeling of comfort you might experience after drinking a hot cocoa. No. We want to question our reality.
And that’s the key. When we read something that speaks to us, it’s because we were able to suspend our beliefs long enough for the story to hook us, drag us in, and make us forget that we are supposed to be washing dishes, feeding the dog or doing a million other things.
Reason No. 1: The Short Distraction That Reels Us In…
I’m a sucker for a good hook. One sentence is all you need at the beginning of your short story to reel me in. The stranger that sentence, the better.
The first time I ever read a collection of short stories, I realized the importance of the hook. At the time, I was going through a lot, and I needed a good distraction. What’s a better distraction than a good book? (Not much if you ask me).
I knew the risks when it came to reading a collection. Some of the stories could end up being not so hot, others could be gems– but you never really know till you’ve read them. So I said, “I’ll read the first few and then see if I want to keep going.”
Wow!
Best decision I’ve ever made. This collection changed my life. I know it sounds cheesy and maybe even a little smarmy, but it’s true. I had no idea I loved horror until I read this book. Each story was short— like, about 1,500 words each short, and every one of them hit like a sledgehammer. I read this book so fast, it almost gave me whiplash. For some reason, when reading horror, the story question in my reader mind became more urgent. More frenzied. My ‘need to know’ was stronger. When I turned the last page of “Small Horrors” by Darcy Coates, I was forever changed.
And that’s why we read, isn’t it? To be so completely drawn into a story, we forget about our real-world problems and are transported somewhere else.
Reason No. 2: The Doubt That Grows
Earlier, I mentioned that some of us who enjoy horror are reading to see if an author can present them with an idea strange enough to make them question their own realities. When you start making normal, safe situations, well, not so safe; things get creepy fast.
Here’s a great example:
You pick up your toothbrush, apply toothpaste and just as you put it in your mouth, you feel its short, rubber handle wiggle against your palm…
One sentence and you wonder about your own toothbrush. That sentence makes me inspect my own toothbrush every time I go into the bathroom, you know, just to make sure my stories aren’t coming true. (If my stories come true, I need to run. And fast).
Reason No. 3: Ahh, Sweet Memories
For me, the stories that have stuck with me the longest are the ones that scared the crap out of me. When I read the SCP about mirrors, I put my own full-length mirror in my closet for two months.
When I read Stairs In The Woods: (Search and Rescue Woods), I wondered about the truth of it all (obsessively) for weeks. In fact, I still wonder; are there stairs in the woods somewhere? And if so, what happens when you climb them?
I love literature that makes me question my reality and everything I think I know. I love the doubt that sticks with me. That question in my mind that just won’t go away. The story itself took me 10 minutes to read, but the idea, well, that’ll probably haunt me forever. And if you like feeling your heart race or being reminded that we as humans don’t have all the answers, then horror is probably for you too.
There you have it! Three reasons why I blog and write horror.
- It’s the truest and most complete distraction I can find out about any genre.
- It makes me doubt what I know because there’s no logical reason why any of the events in these stories couldn’t happen to me one day (or you).
- The ideas from these stories stick with me for years; it’s as if the fear it ignited in me burns forever in the back of my mind.
Creepy, huh?
Yeah, I know, I’m totally addicted to horror and that quick thrill. I just can’t help myself. The truth is these stories and this feeling of being completely inspired and blown away by short-form fiction changed me. It taught me how great of an impact just a few words can have. One sentence can imprint an idea, or an image in your mind so completely that it haunts you forever. To me, that’s overwhelmingly impressive.
I’d always wanted to write novels, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get my word count higher than a novella. I thought, “how am I going to reach readers if I can’t finish a book?”!
In short, I found my answer and it’s been my passion for quite a while now. My blog, Wicked Shorts, is my baby. And it’s full of ideas and stories that will (hopefully) haunt you, make you question your reality and stick with you forever.
About Avrin Kelly
Writer. Author. Blogger. Procrastinator. Sometimes artist. I post short scary stories on my blog, www.wickedshortsblog.com, in hopes that they’ll give my readers a chill.
I’m addicted to anime and most animated TV shows, I love coffee, weird music and my dog (not necessarily in that order).
Join me for the Wicked Shorts “Oddcast”! On Wednesdays, I release new episodes of my horror web series “Have Tools, Will Travel…” on YouTube (and anywhere podcasts are free)! Hope to see you there.💀
Leave a Reply