Newsletter 10/27

Okay, I apologize. I'm going to break my promise from last time. I forgot what time of year it would be when my next newsletter was due out. It's Halloween season. So, I'm going to save the discussion of fantasy cultures until the next newsletter and this time take a look at a few common elements of horror stories that are useful in fantasy, and some of the differences between the two genres.

1) Ghosts.
Ghosts are a staple of both horror and fantasy. The restless spirits of the dead are useful for so many things. In literature, we've seen the ghost of Hamlet's father urge him on to destroy his uncle and mother. We've seen the ghost of a greedy business man's partner nudge him toward the path of redemption. We've even had a ghost indirectly point the way to a hidden chamber where evil dwelt withing Hogwart's School.

In horror fiction, ghosts are generally the enemy. They are typically vengeful spirits that seek to bring woe and harm to the living, particularly the main characters of the story. They often are more than just frightening apparitions as well. Most ghosts have a host of powers to draw from, from the ability to possess the living to telekinesis for throwing knives at people. They tend to be very destructive and malicious, although that is not always the case. Some ghosts in horror stories have more noble motivations and try to guide the heroes in the right direction to stop the horror that is occurring. Those ghosts, however, are normally only able to manifest a visible form, often only visible to select people. They also are seldom able to do more than that.

In fantasy stories, ghosts are more often restless spirits. They are the ethereal remains of a person with unfinished business. They are often fairly neutral toward the heroes. Sometimes they are even friendly or protective. They also tend to lack the power of the horror ghosts, often only able to make themselves known and give advice. That advice, however, is often the difference between success and failure for the heroes. Fantasy ghosts normally work behind the scenes. They are not active in the main part of the story, but appear to the heroes when no one else is around.

2) The Walking Dead
In horror fiction, walking corpses are normally out to kill as many people as they can, often in as many gruesome ways as possible. They are pretty much always hostile. They also generally don't have much in the way of personality, seeking only to kill and sometimes eat the living. They tend to be difficult to stop since they are already dead. Negotiation is also generally impossible. One twist that was added some years ago is that being one of the walking dead is contagious. If you are bitten by a walking corpse, you will become one yourself.

In fantasy fiction, the walking dead are gross and a bit scary, but they aren't that much more dangerous than a living target. Chop them, burn them or smash them and they fall over just like a living warrior. They also seldom turn other people into walking dead, although they are generally created by a necromancer who may be around to turn people killed into the same. In general, however, the fantasy version of these creatures are just another obstacle for the heroes to overcome. One odd note for the fantasy varieties is that they sometimes talk, and can often remember their former lives. This can make them a bit of comic relief. Sometimes the walking dead are not on the side of the enemy either.

3) Werewolves and other Man-Beasts

In horror, these types of creatures are generally cursed people. Under certain circumstances (under the full moon traditionally) they become wild beasts driven to hunt and kill. They are rarely in control of their bestial nature and often deeply regret what they do as animals. They are also generally contagious. If a victim survives, they are normally doomed to become a beast. Werewolves and their ilk are also notoriously hard to bring down. They are often only vulnerable to specific weapons, silver being the traditional choice.

In fantasy, man-beasts tend to have more control over their bestial natures. They can work for any side of the spectrum at all. They also tend to have a wider variety of alternate forms. While they may retain the traditional invulnerabilties, many fantasy writers prefer to let them live and die as easily as any other race, so they may not be any harder to kill than any other warrior.

4) Demons
In horror, demons are generally completely alien creatures of pure malevolance. They are normally unstoppable by ordinary means. Bullets bounce off or go straight through harmlessly. Flames lick their hides and do nothing. Live wires light them up but don't slow them down. Only specific means will stop them and even that generally only drives them back to where they came from. Demons are truly scary because each one is usually unique. There is no set folklore on how to stop them so the heroes generally must find a way to deal with the specific demon they are up against, and they have to do it fast, because it's always coming for them.

In fantasy, demons are generally just things from somewhere else. They are still alien, but not always inherently evil. The nature of the demon typically is related to the wizard that summoned it. Demons are generally difficult to stop, but strength, skill and perseverance (and a decent weapon) will often do the job. Unlike horror, demons in fantasy do not have to be the villains. Heroic wizards can make use of them too, often with risks involved, but simply different risks than in using other kinds of magic.

So, there you have some examples of Halloween themes you can use easily in your fantasy writing. Happy Halloween everybody. Next time we'll do fantasy cultures.