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Best horror-writing author?

tommydarascal

tommydarascal

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Hi everyone!

Out of interest, who do you think it the best horror-writing author?

Mine's Stephen King.

Anybody else?

tommydarascal
 
I'd agree 100%. Sure, not every book he's written is great. But if you look at the whole of his output, you can find at least 10 or more great horror books. What's more, Stephen King the person - when you see him on talk shows and in interviews, is engaging, intelligent, funny, and very likeable. And furthermore, he's pretty modest about his achievments, calling his work "..the Big Mac and fries of the literature world."
(quotation not exact - just from memory)
 
Since you asked who our favorite horror-"writing" author is (which I guess you mean to be living), I would say King. But if Poe was still alive, he'd be king.
 
Well... Poe or Lovecraft....

I'm not too sure about King though... I love his work! I really do... but it just doesn't scare me... I don't think of a lot of his work as horror... ::shrug::
 
I agree that Poe would be the one to pick. King impresses me rather than scares me.
 
Stewart is right - horror comes in many forms.
H.G. Wells is maybe more Sci-Fi/Fantasy, but his work overlaps into horror. I find his pros to be more natural, more modern, less lugubrious than Poe. The War of the Worlds is a great book, The Time Machine, The Invisible Man-, I'm currently reading The Island of Dr. Moreau.
If you're only familiar with the movie adaptations of his classics, give yourself a treat.
 
Stewart said:
It depends on what sort of horror you are into. So, what sort of horror are you into?
Click to expand...

I'm into ... ummm ... well let me tell you the sort of horror I don't like. I don't like unnecessary gory horror and sci-fi horror. (War of the Worlds wouldn't interest me.)

Actually, thinking about it, I suppose I like phsycological horror and supernatural horror. Books such as House of Leaves, Misery, The Stand ...

Are there any other books you'd like to recommend to me?

Thanks,

tommydarascal
 
I think Peter Straub's early stuff is some of the best I've read. Julia, If You Could See Me Now, Ghost Story, Floating Dragon, and Shadowland are all faves of mine. I love his prose.
 
I don't recall reading anything that truly scared me. But one book comes to mind - The Keep by F Paul Wilson (published in 1981). They made a film out of it which, in my opinion, was a poor immitation to the actual imagery of the book. I've never liked the dark and the 'being' that emerges to quench its bloodlust made we want to sleep with the light on when I first read it. The author leaves you with no doubt that something powerful and evil (and intelligent) is lurking in the darkness - waiting. You can sense the impending doom and uneasiness of the characters in the book.
 
lenny nero said:
I think Peter Straub's early stuff is some of the best I've read. Julia, If You Could See Me Now, Ghost Story, Floating Dragon, and Shadowland are all faves of mine. I love his prose.
Click to expand...
His latest two are quite amazing. Both won Bram Stokers.
 
I really need to get back to reading him again, I haven't read anything by him since Mystery or Koko. I love his subtle brand of horror. Poppy Z. Brite is another good one. Last one I read by her was Exquisite Corpse. I think she stopped writing horror, didn't she?
 
David Moody

David Moody is one of my favortites writes. I read Autumn (free download), and I've the next 2 books in the series. If you like horror with zombies then you should read his books.
 
It always surprises me how little Ramsey Campbell and Arthur Machen are mentioned - these are legends, and not far making TV movies. I also enjoy Thomas Ligootti.
 
Stewart said:
It depends on what sort of horror you are into. So, what sort of horror are you into?
Click to expand...

Any old daily newspaper is usually horrific enough for me. The question might well be: why, with what is going on in the world at any given time, do we crave fictional horror? Stephen King claims that people read his books as a form of escapism from the horror of the real thing.

:eek:
 
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