My name is Gia Chevis, and for this week's installment of Likely Stories on KWBU, I'm recommending Why I Love Horror: Essays on Horror Literature, edited by Becky Siegel Spratford. She’s arguably the world’s foremost horror librarian, and in this slim volume, she has gathered the horror origin stories of eighteen prominent authors across a variety of horror styles.
My own version of the story isn't unusual. I read Stephen King's It a bit younger than was likely advisable, which might explain...well...some things. Next up were his novels Cujo, Pet Sematary, Carrie, and Christine, followed by a steady diet of horror throughout my teenage years. For me, the difference between horror movies and novels was control. A horror novel could be intense, unsettling, even terrifying. But I could easily close the book, set it down for a bit, and come back when I was ready. That safety net let me immerse myself in stories that explore fear without feeling trapped by it. Judging by this collection, many horror writers had a similar experience.
The essays are short, deeply personal, and wonderfully varied. Some writers describe horror as a way to confront real-life monsters by imagining fictional ones that can actually be defeated. Others see it as a refuge, a place to rehearse fear and wrestle with things real life doesn’t let us control. Again and again, the contributors return to the truth that drew me to the genre: the outcasts, the weirdos, the awkward kids who don't quite fit in are rarely the real monsters. More often, they’re the people who smile just a little too quickly and a little too brightly, working just a little too hard to appear perfectly ordinary.
The collection also pushes back against the idea that horror is somehow lesser literature. Like romance or science fiction, horror is too often dismissed as mere "genre fiction," as though that means it can't be beautifully written or wrestle with themes of love, grief, despair, injustice, or the human condition. These essays are proof of the opposite: they're as lyrical and emotionally honest as the novels their authors write. One of the best parts of the collection is a bit of librarian magic. In her introduction to each essay, Spratford recommends a great place to begin reading that author, along with another horror writer to try if you’re already familiar with and enjoyed that contributor's voice or themes. No repeats. By the end, you've not only read a compelling collection of essays, you've also built yourself an excellent and diverse horror reading list.
Because the essays are relatively brief, it's an ideal book to dip into whenever you have a few spare minutes. And if you've ever wondered why so many seemingly normal people love scaring themselves when reading, Why I Love Horror, edited by Becky Siegel Spratford, offers many fascinating answers. You may even find that horror isn’t really about being frightened at all.
