Is Horror Good For Us?
**Some of the links in this article are affiliate links that allow me to earn a small commission at no cost to you.**
I read a lot of scary books. My favorite horror novels are written by Stephen King. (Keep on reading for some book recommendations.) They're a fantastic method to discover more about who you are and how you handle fear. You can gain fresh insights into our shared humanity and how we interact with reality by reading these stories. One reason why so many people enjoy reading horror books is that they can help you get over phobias.
Horror books can be helpful if you've ever felt that you don't know what you're afraid of or if your fear is so ingrained in your psyche that it limits your ability to grow. A good horror book will enable its readers to get insights into themselves through the experiences of the characters. The protagonist(s) may be terrified of spiders, clowns, or anything else, and there are numerous ways in which this fear manifests itself throughout their lives. As characters travel and grow throughout stories, they are typically forced to confront various obstacles along the way: pools filled with water snakes and other creatures; rooms full of traps designed solely to destroy anyone foolish enough to enter them; mutated plants that will eat anything (including you); and more. I think about reading the Goosebumps series as a kid. Now that I’m older, I can see how some fears that initially seemed superficial were actually rooted in something else. For example, why are so many people afraid of the dark? Darkness itself won’t do anything to us. But what about the things or creatures that hide within it?
Bringing meaning to fear
You can better comprehend your own worries by reading about others' fears. The best approach to overcoming dread is to comprehend it, and reading horror literature will help you do just that.
Knowing more about yourself can enable you to get past any anxieties or issues that might be preventing you from living life to the fullest. Reading is a great method to learn more about other people, their problems, and how they deal with them differently than we do. Sometimes they serve as good examples for us to follow. Sometimes there are lessons learned.
Learning to overcome fear
How to conquer dread is among the most significant lessons to be learned from reading horror. Horror may be quite intense, and you won't be able to handle anything that comes your way if you don't understand your own fears and learn how to face them in healthy ways.
We won't know how to best defend ourselves against those feelings if we don't know what makes us uneasy or afraid. We must be conscious of our own shortcomings and vulnerabilities in order to grow personally as well as for our own survival. By doing this, we can locate these weaknesses and vulnerabilities and attempt to overcome them. Watching scary movies or reading scary books presents a safe avenue to experiment with our fears and learn potential ways to overcome them through the experiences of the author and his or her characters.
Reading horror books will help you learn how to overcome phobias.
Reading scary literature will teach you how to get over phobias.
Horror stories frequently deal with conquering fears, such as a dread of heights or a fear of passing away. Before they can move on with their lives, the characters in these stories must face and overcome their anxieties. This occurs frequently in life; in order to lead happy lives, we must confront our fears. However, there are occasions when we are forced to act in an uncomfortable manner because it is the only way to move forward. Otherwise, we face stagnation, failure, or the chance to settle for less than what is meant for us.
Reading about these situations in books enables us to see how others overcome such challenges and may provide some inspiration when faced with similar challenges ourselves.
Developing a new perspective
Reading the horror genre can help you develop a new perspective.
It's true that you can be reading about something unsettling and frightful, but if you examine it from the perspective of another person, it becomes a whole other experience. Reading a horror book can help you comprehend the motivations behind characters' actions. Since it may be difficult for us to imagine ourselves going through such suffering, reading about someone else's suffering might help us see the world in new ways and broaden our perspectives on the world.
It can help us become more empathetic toward others and their struggles. Reading horror fiction is a great way to broaden your horizons and expand your worldview. It allows you to see things from another person's perspective, which can help you better understand how people think and feel about certain situations.
When we read, we learn more about our shared humanity.
Learning about people, places, and things may be done very well via reading. Getting lost in the narrative, it's also one of the best methods to travel through time and space. Reading an adventure book set in Victorian England or ancient Greece—or even simply reading about those eras more generally—is one of the best ways to comprehend another culture.
Exposing yourself to fresh viewpoints, fears, and ideas that may even conflict with your own beliefs or values can be beneficial to your general mental health since it can help you better comprehend who you are.
Dealing with reality
The horror genre has been a staple in literature for centuries, and it's still one of the best ways to learn about human nature.
In fact, the genre is so effective at teaching us valuable lessons about life that many people believe they can't be written down or explained in any other way. The best way to deal with real-world issues in a safe manner is through fiction—and reading horror novels can help you understand your own behavior better.
Finding new ways to entertain yourself
Reading is a great way to relax, escape reality, and learn new things. It's also a great way to learn about yourself.
Reading books in the horror genre is a terrific way to discover more about who you are, especially in terms of how you handle terror. With this understanding, people can improve their daily decisions for both themselves and those around them. Reading these kinds of books has a lot of additional advantages as well. They provide entertainment value in addition to teaching us how to overcome phobias, better understand ourselves and others, and get fresh perspectives on life.
In 2020, I made a trip to Seattle and stopped by the Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP). In their horror movie exhibit, they had a sign that bulleted several important reasons why the horror genre (through scary movies) is important for humans.
The horror genre can:
Serve as a rite of passage and test of courage
Reinforce the notions of good and evil
Create a rush of heightened emotions
Allow readers or viewers to safely experience taboo subjects
Reflect the landscape of our nightmares and dreams
See below for a few recommendations for horror or thriller books!
Reading and learning are critical for living a life worth writing about.
However, I understand that buying all the books you want can often get expensive. If that’s the case for you, you might want to try Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited (KU) program. With the KU program, you get unlimited access to reading and listening to Amazon’s MASSIVE book catalog (including many of my own books) for a set price every month. If you want to try the program for free, click here to visit Amazon and start your free trial. Don’t miss out on this valuable offer!