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Why Do Readers Enjoy Being Scared?

By Guest

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Scary novels

By Alison Kemper

I saw my first horror movie, Poltergeist, when I was twelve. Afterwards, I locked my toy clown in the closet. I left my bedroom light on all night. I didn’t sleep well for weeks.

But I was totally ready to watch more scary movies.

Why? What’s the lure of horror flicks? Of terrifying books and video games? Why do we willingly immerse ourselves in nightmare situations? Why do we love to be scared?

The answer seems simple: we enjoy the thrill. Being scared is exciting. No one wants to read a boring book! A romance is more electrifying if the guy might bite the girl and turn her into a vampire. Or if the cute guy who lives down the hall turns out to be a stalker.

But can we take it a step further? Does the lure of horror go beyond the simple thrill? Maybe this genre allows us to explore the worst of life from a completely safe space. We watch and read about awful experiences, but from enough distance to make it bearable—and maybe even learn something in the process.

For example, one of my favorite recent reads was April Henry’s The Body in the Woods, a YA thriller about a serial killer strangling teen girls with a dog leash. Sure it was gruesome, but I learned about new tactics serial killers use to track victims (GPS in a flash drive anyone?). I wondered: does reading horror make us more wary? If the baddies are getting craftier, do we need to stay equally savvy? Would I let my teen daughter read The Body in the Woods in the hopes it’ll make her think twice when she sees an unclaimed flash drive left on a table?

Heck, yeah.

In my new novel, Dead Over Heels, I had fun creating a main character, Ava, who uses her smarts in a horrifying situation. She’s a teen girl from the ‘burbs with allergies so severe she’s spent most of her life indoors, EpiPen at the ready. When a rabies-like infection hits the town where she’s spending Thanksgiving, she’s forced to flee into the forest with a local boy, Cole. She has zero experience in the woods, but is used to being hyperaware of her surroundings—this winds up being a major asset on her adventure. As I wrote, there was something satisfying about translating her strengths into skills that might help her survive a terrifying ordeal.

So what do you think? Do we read (and write) horror for the thrill? Or does it serve a deeper need? Does some part of us hope if we find ourselves in a life-or-death situation we might be as crafty as the characters in novels/movies and manage to escape? I’d love your opinions in the comments below!

 

About Alison Kemper:
Alison Kemper grew up in South Florida, the only girl on a street with eleven boys. She spent her childhood paddling a canoe through neighborhood canals and looking for adventure. She usually found it. Sometimes the police were involved. And large dogs. And one time, a very territorial snake. She now lives in North Carolina and writes books. The books often include girls having adventures. With boys. Cute boys. And cute dogs too. But no cute snakes. Never cute snakes. Donna of the Dead is her first novel.  You can follow Alison on Twitter and check out her website for more info.

 

Make sure you check out Alison Kemper’s latest novel, Dead Over Heels.

Novel Dead Over Heels

The end of the world just might be their perfect beginning…

Glenview, North Carolina. Also known—at least to sixteen-year-old Ava Pegg—as the Land of Incredibly Boring Vacations. What exactly were her parents thinking when they bought a summer home here? Then the cute-but-really-annoying boy next door shows up at her place in a panic…hollering something about flesh-eating zombies attacking the town.

At first, Ava’s certain that Cole spent a little too much time with his head in the moonshine barrel. But when someone—or something—rotted and terrifying emerges from behind the woodpile, Ava realizes this is no hooch hallucination. The undead are walking in Glenview, and they are hungry. Panicked, Ava and Cole flee into the national forest. No supplies, no weapons. Just two teenagers who don’t even like each other fighting for their lives. But that’s the funny thing about the Zombpocalypse. You never know when you’ll meet your undead end. Or when you’ll fall dead over heels for a boy…

Related posts:

Why I Read Romance Novels and Why You Should Too
Book Review ~ "High-Heeled" Wonder by Avery Flynn
Book Review: Sex and the Single Vamp by Robin Covington
Seven Day Fiance by Rachel Harris~Review & Giveaway
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Filed Under: Book Nook, Entertainment Tagged With: Alison Kemper, Book Nook, Dead Over Heels, Donna of the Dead, horror books, scary novels, YA paranormal

Comments

  1. Robin (Masshole Mommy) says

    October 16, 2014 at 6:42 am

    I normally don’t read or watch horror because it gives me nightmares, but when I do, I think it’s just so I can pick up a few tips or tricks in case the situation does happen in real life.

    • Alison Kemper says

      October 16, 2014 at 10:03 am

      Have you seen the Halloween commercial (I think it’s for GEICO) where the teens are like, “Let’s go hide in the spooky shed behind the chainsaws?” So funny! Obviously they didn’t pick up any tips or tricks from horror movies/books. 🙂

    • Sunny says

      October 16, 2014 at 10:53 am

      I have seen that commercial. What are they thinking, lol.

  2. becca says

    October 16, 2014 at 7:20 am

    I like the adrenaline rush I get when reading a scary book. Not really sure why but i do.

    • Alison Kemper says

      October 16, 2014 at 10:04 am

      Me too. No point in reading a boring book, right? 😉

  3. Ave says

    October 16, 2014 at 10:34 am

    I don’t like horror movies neither horror books at all. They give me creeps and I can’t sleep well at night. My husband like horror movies though.

  4. JennieIW says

    October 16, 2014 at 10:58 am

    I used to read Stephen King as a teenager. I stopped with “Pet Semetary” because that book was just too disturbing and creepy for me. I enjoy the occasional scary movie (I still remember seeing “The Blair Witch Project” in the theater and at the end my heart was beating so fast I thought I would have a heart attack!), but I have a push/pull relationship with being scared. Also, too many scary movies are really just gross-out movies – there’s little suspense or real scares. I prefer psychological horror to gross-out horror. (I saw “The Woman in Black” on DVD a few years ago and it really did creep me out.)

    • Alison Kemper says

      October 16, 2014 at 5:13 pm

      Woman in Black was pretty creepy. Lots of jumping and screaming when I saw it at the theater!

  5. Danielle Stewart says

    October 16, 2014 at 11:03 am

    I have a fascination with Serial Killers! Wait…that doesn’t sound right….I mean in the way of books, movies, documentaries. I don’t want to be one! lol I tend to like all things that are psychological and I’m fascinated by the way their minds work.

  6. Barb @ A Life in Balance says

    October 16, 2014 at 12:13 pm

    As a mom, I have a hard time now watching scary stuff, especially if kids are involved.

  7. Nicole says

    October 16, 2014 at 2:58 pm

    I like to read before bed and I’ve learned that some things I can’t read before bed, like anything about zombies, even if it’s humorous. Hubs says that there have been a couple times that he had to push me back down into the bed because I was trying to “rise” while dead asleep after reading a zombie book.

  8. Lois Alter Mark says

    October 16, 2014 at 3:32 pm

    I like books and movies that are suspenseful and keep you on the edge of your seat but I don’t like anything gory or violent. Too scary!

    • Alison Kemper says

      October 16, 2014 at 5:14 pm

      I agree! I’m not into gory or violent either. I like my horror with a side of humor! 🙂

  9. Tough Cookie Mommy says

    October 16, 2014 at 7:06 pm

    I totally get this because I love watching horror movies for that reason. I get scared but I enjoy it.

  10. Annie says

    October 16, 2014 at 10:01 pm

    I love horror movies as well. They scare me, but it’s only temporary…& fake!

  11. Veronica says

    October 16, 2014 at 10:30 pm

    I don’t do horror movies or books. I try not to feed my brain that kind of stuff. I could watch a good thriller though

    • Alison Kemper says

      October 17, 2014 at 8:04 am

      Thanks to everyone for all the great comments! Wishing you all a safe and Happy Halloween!

  12. Erica Brooks says

    October 17, 2014 at 8:54 am

    This book sounds like a good read. I don’t usually read young adult novels but I love a good suspenseful crime story so I may check it out.

  13. celebbabylaundry says

    October 17, 2014 at 8:56 am

    It’s amazing how everyone can remember their first scary movie!

  14. Chrystal @ YUM eating says

    October 17, 2014 at 10:41 am

    I watched Poltergeist at a really young age, too. I remember being even younger than that when I took a peak at The Entity. Wow. I was reading Stephen King and Tolkein at the age of 11 or so. If its weird, odd, gross or scary I want to watch or read it. Although, most of it doesn’t really scare me these days.

  15. Victoria Howe says

    October 17, 2014 at 11:20 am

    I love horror films too. No idea why, but it must be that little thrill, that adreneline feeling! I love watching YouTubers play horror games too.
    BUT, I can’t participate myself: no horror games for me, or venturing into haunted houses. xVx

  16. Heather says

    October 17, 2014 at 2:16 pm

    Even those scary stories and movies freak me out, I still love them.

  17. Chrissy says

    October 17, 2014 at 7:34 pm

    This looks like a great book! I am a huge Stephen King fan so I love being scared haha

  18. Amber NElson says

    October 17, 2014 at 7:50 pm

    Often times I get nightmares, so I really don’t enjoy being scared!

  19. Amanda Love says

    October 17, 2014 at 7:56 pm

    I’m not a big fan of scary movies but hubby is and I just asked him the question. He said it’s the thrill. Go figure!

  20. Farrah says

    October 19, 2014 at 1:03 am

    I enjoy thrillers, but I can’t handle horror movies. I’m not quite sure why. I definitely get nightmares after watching them. My mom, on the other hand, loves the thrill of watching them.

  21. Krystal says

    October 20, 2014 at 12:28 pm

    Haha I definitely DONT like being scared! 😉 I don’t mind haunted houses at Halloween time, but otherwise, no thanks! 😀

  22. Aisha Kristine Chong says

    October 21, 2014 at 9:02 am

    I don’t know much about being scared while reading.. lol.. but I definitely don’t like the feeling of being scared lol

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