Genre... Fantasy vs. Horror

[elven_wolf]

So, in puttering around OWW, I come to the page where I'm to submit my work

Comments

[urbanfae]

I personally think most stuff falls under urban fantasy anymore, unless there's graphic and/or disturbing violence, then I'd call it horror. Though until recently, didn't most vampire stuff just get tossed into horror or general literature?

[elven_wolf]

I think vampires are still being tossed into horror... Though I see them side by side with the SF/F stuff at Borders.

Of course, now that vampires sparkle, they'll probably end up right next to Tolkien's shiny elves. *facepalm*

But yeah, I think the genres are getting all fused into the urban fantasy umbrella. I think I'll just go with fantasy. That way nobody can say it's not scary enough for horror. And again, I don't consider myself a horror writer (though I think to some extent my earlier influences were mostly horror and that has stayed with me).

[urbanfae]

I've seen some vampire in SF/F at the Borders here too.

*facepalm* They will, won't they?

I think that works. And I totally get the not a horror writer thing. I'm not either. my brain doesn't work in that way, for the most part.

[megsjedi]

I'd classify the horror genre with these words: A movie/story/possibly music genre that glorifies in scaring people through the medium of flying blood and guts, severed arms and legs, and brains leaking out of ears. This genre glorifies gory death, and the stories center around a single character, such as Freddy Krueger, Jason Vorhees and Michael Meyers, who kill people for vengeance or over a percieved wrong; there is usually a supernatural factor to these killers.

[faithchan]

A lot of creatures, I think, overlap horror and fantasy. If the story as a WHOLE (not just a few scenes) is meant to scare the pants off/seriously disturb the reader, then it can be horror. Other than that, I count vampires and werewolves right in there with the fantasy realm, regardless of their "traditional" placement.