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/lit/ - Literature

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17974679 No.17974679 [Reply] [Original]

Are there truly scary books?

>> No.17974692

>>17974679
No.

>> No.17974694

>>17974679
Call of the kappa

>> No.17974695

>>17974679
The Listener, by Algernon Blackwood was the only book to legitimately make me feel uncomfortable.
It's a short read, I suggest you give it a go.

>> No.17974701

>>17974679
12 Years a Slave

>> No.17974736
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17974736

>>17974679
It scared the shit out of me.

>> No.17974738

>>17974679
The only scary books are blackpilled nihilism books if you've never been exposed to that kind of content before

>> No.17974778

The Conspiracy Against The Sneed Race

>> No.17974786

>>17974695
>Algernon Blackwood
I like The Wendigo by him, it was quite a good short story
Although, to be honest, I didn't actually read it. I listened to a LibriVox recording by a cute girl who did a Southern accent for one of the characters and didn't flinch at the racist parts. I love her very much and hope she will record more Algernon Blackwood short stories in the future

>> No.17974829

>>17974786
>racist parts
I’ll be sure to skip him then

>> No.17974836

>>17974786
>racist parts
I'm already in bookstore looking for this

>> No.17974842

This made my rather uncomfortable, not exactly scary.
https://thesanguinewoods.wordpress.com/2016/05/27/the-human-chair-a-weird-story-by-edogawa-rampo/

>> No.17974846 [DELETED] 
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17974846

>>17974736
Lmao poop

>> No.17974854

>>17974846
>tfw you ll never put your trunk up your mates' bum to scoop up some chocolate cake to feast on

>> No.17974856
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17974856

>>17974854
Dont let your dreams be dreams

>> No.17974858

>>17974736
There's no such thing as poop and literally nobody poops except degenerates

>> No.17974914

unironically Metro 2033

>> No.17974923

The horror genre is more about fascination than fear for me nowadays. There's a thrill but no true terror. The only terror I experience is from dreams, like the one I just had an hour before, where a mountain lion pounced on my back as I was walking down a path.

>> No.17974951

Edgar Alan Poe. I don't know why nobody talks about him

>> No.17975059

>>17974951
who?

>> No.17975062

>>17975059
Edgar Alan Poe.

>> No.17975067

>>17975062
a literal who?

>> No.17975087

>>17974679
no. the emotion fear is a reflex. to process it is to nullify it.
you can be horrified by a book, or you can dread what happens next, but you can't be truly scared of what you're reading.
Unless you're super religious and scared of demons and reading, like, the necronomicon, or something, then I guess it's possible, but I don't know if that counts.

>> No.17975091

Zoo by Otsuichi

>> No.17975102

>>17975087
Instead of being so smart you could just give some books that horrified, dreaded you.
Damn people like you are annoying. I heard that House of Leaves is quite scary. Anyone?

>> No.17975115

>>17975102
eat me

>> No.17975218
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17975218

>>17974829
>>17974836
The duality of man

>> No.17975227

>>17974679
Tartar steppe

>> No.17975275
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17975275

Depends on how you mean. Do you mean genuine fear? Or do you mean books that can truly unsettle me?

If the latter, there are many books that can do that I think, at least for me. I was, in some ways, scared while reading Dracula. Not because of vampires or any such nonsense, but because I felt attached to the characters and feared for them.

If the former, there are certainly fewer. It's partially up to you, the reader. These stories play on the irrational mind in order to get a reaction. We know that it's not real, but if we allow ourselves to be scared by it, we can be. It's along the lines of suspension of disbelief.
As for stories like these, I have a hard time finding them. I'm trying to read more horror, but so far the only story that's done it for me is Lovecraft's short story "Pickman's Model". I feel like it's really under appreciated, and I like that the horror doesn't become very evident until the end when you can reflect on what you've learned.

Horror stories lack a lot of the gut punch fear that movies can utilize, being visual, but some may argue they're better for it. It requires a greater degree of skill and ultimately a more polished product to produce good horror fiction.

>> No.17975297

>>17975275
Also I should add, effective horror novels often strive to play on real fears. Someone reading a gory scene about zombies probably won't be scared. Someone reading a scene where the protagonist walks into their child's room and finds them missing may be very scared.

Likewise, stories that play on our fears of mental illness beyond our control or some other way of making us powerless can be very effective as well.

>> No.17975383

>>17974829
>>17974836
lel

>> No.17975643

>>17974786
The Wndigo was very good too, I also think The Willows and The Kit Bag were definitely worth reading.

>> No.17976167

>>17975643
Any recommendations on a collection of his with at the very least the Wendigo and the Willows? I've been meaning to get into Blackwood.

>> No.17976647

>>17975275
just read it om your reccomendation and it's pretty good desu. Lovecraft uses his last sentence very effectively in his stories. The story had me asking OP's question but for painting's