Question about Supernatural Horror

[Billy Freeman]

Hi all,

I realise that this site doesn't cater for just self-promoters, so as well as raising awareness of my self-published novel The Pack (available via...well, you can guess. A well-known bookselling website ), I wish to ask a question.

My novel is a non-supernatural story set in North-East England, in a recession-hit town where a deadly virus is turning dogs - domestic and stray - into viscous killers. I like to think it has classic horror, and a little noir mixed in there. This ties into my question, which concerns horror fiction in general.

I've been reading a bunch of Stephen Kings recently and having finally read The Stand, Complete and Uncut, I came to a conclusion. King uses the supernatural as a cop-out to good storytelling. Under the Dome is testament to that, too (the dog and the deadvoices, anyone?). Similarly, 'Salem's Lot is a little too close to Dracula in places and feels forced. Point is, I've come to the point where I'm reading a good novel, only to roll my eyes when a red-eyed monster appears or a ghost starts speaking. My favourite King novels are all non-supernatural, and as for The Stand, I just think you could have mixed non-supernatural elements of that and Under the Dome to create a damn good story. The Stand in particular set up so much as a riveting post-apocalyptic story, but ended up trying to be a new book of the Bible. Religious and supernatural themes swamped all vestige of realism and reneged on the promises of the earlier parts of the book (like Glen's discussion of the future of mankind and new societies making the same old mistakes).

In short, my question is this; is supernatural horror sometimes a cop-out for good storytelling, instead of part of a meaningful story in itself?

[JohnShaft]

Originally Posted by Billy Freeman

My novel is a non-supernatural story set in North-East England, in a recession-hit town where a deadly virus is turning dogs - domestic and stray - into viscous killers.

First of all a big welcome to Horror Express, Billy. Coming not only from a fellow Englishman, but also a fellow North-Eastern lad. Much luck with your book (I'm going to add some links for people to buy it in your post).

I've been reading a bunch of Stephen Kings recently and having finally read The Stand, Complete and Uncut, I came to a conclusion. King uses the supernatural as a cop-out to good storytelling.

Very interesting, and somewhat controversial, take. (I think we'll get some opinions on this.)

But I have to say I'm rather with you. I often think his Supernatural elements get in the way. As you say with The Stand, he takes an interesting post-Apocalypse future, and some interesting character work, then throws a whole lot of Supernatural mumbo jumbo in there. Religious mumbo jumbo at that. The visions of the mystic old black woman have always grated on me. The Villain of the piece is rather hackneyed. It's not an end-of-the-world take, an exploration of what it would be like for the people that survive. It's a religious morality tale, essentially stripping the human protagonists of free will, to make them "puppets of god".
I mean, in a number of ways I liked the story (when I read it many years ago) but I did think it often got in the way of itself. King then had a power in his writing, which he has since lost, which carried his writings.

I'll use a much more recent example - 2006's CELL. God that disappointed me. He takes an idea with mileage - again a post Apocalyptic world, populated by, very relevant, Cell-phone zombies - and has to throw in a telepathic fucking zombie king. I mean, please. I literally read 90% and stopped with a thought of "f*** this".

I do think his non-Supernatural (but often still horror work) is his best. The Long Walk is my favourite piece of his.

So my answer to

In short, my question is this; is supernatural horror sometimes a cop-out for good storytelling, instead of part of a meaningful story in itself?

is:
if it's not a cop-out, it can definitely be used as a crutch, to prop up a story that otherwise cannot Stand (pardon the pun) on its own two legs.