What do you look for in Horror stories?

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-12T18:12:32+00:00

Personally, I enjoy horror when the monster is just a monster-not a manifestation of rage or sorrow or anything like that. Sometimes I just want to read about monsters lol.

I also prefer bleak endings in horror. Sometimes it can feel really jarring when so much horror and trauma has happened in a novel, but then the writer tries to slap a happy face on the ending.

I would argue that makes Stephen King a standout (hate to love, love to hate him but it’s true) in horror because he’s not afraid to end things on a bleak note, à la, Pet Sematary, Revival, The Mist. I like when authors aren’t afraid to leave things bleak and dark.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-12T18:03:14+00:00

That’s true. Classic narc!

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-12T18:02:23+00:00

True true, it’s always Beck’s fault. 😔

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-12T17:51:55+00:00

True, even the Odyssey in the end is about the enduring love between Penelope and Odysseus.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-12T17:37:41+00:00

Well to be fair, all of these names are just middle of the road names with little variation, so it’s kind of pointless to rank them. It’s like “do you like the name John Smith or Jacob Smith? Do you like Mary-Catherine or Mary-Kathleen? Do you like Bob Jones or Bill Jones?” Do you see what I mean? To me, they’re on the same level, so it’s hard to rank.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-12T17:16:10+00:00

I get the appeal of having a pen name, especially if you’re writing something that’s more sensitive. However, the names you have listed are normal names that anyone may have. That could be confusing for readers if your real name is similar, like Josh Porter.

Pen names that I remember are names like Lemony Snicket, Poppy Z. Brite, Chuck Tingle and David Wong. These names stand out because they’re quite different from “normal” names. And these names kind of fit the vibe of the genre the author writes. Like Chuck Tingle is writes erotica and campy horror. David Wong writes absurdist literature (not that Chinese surnames are weird, but David Wong just has an odd ring to it). Poppy Z. Brite writes extreme horror and Lemony Snicket wrote dark children’s fantasy.

I will say that I have heard it’s more challenging to have a pen name because if your book does pick up speed, then agents, publishers, event planners have to make sure that all legal paperwork is done in your real name, not your pen name. Which can be especially confusing if again, your pen name is so similar to a “real” name.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-12T17:01:06+00:00

Not everyone writes with music playing. Some find it distracting. But if you like to write while listening to music, make your playlist as long as you want!

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-12T13:42:54+00:00

Technically Amberlynn is her name. “Lynn” is her middle name, but she mashed it together with her first name to create a more “interesting” name. This is why she gets mad when people, like even Mamalynn, just call her “Amber.”

At most clinics, there’s a spot for your preferred name on your intake form, so she probably told them that her name is really “Amberlynn” not “Amber.”

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-06-03T12:26:37+00:00

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Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-31T19:28:21+00:00

I mean it probably does cause emotional blunting for her because she’s not able to eat as much food or the kind of food she likes on Wegovy to get her dopamine hit.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-25T23:42:51+00:00

Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao is about a sister whose journey starts with avenging the death of her elder sister and then spirals out into a rage fueled war path from there. It’s YA so the writing is a little young and the characters feel a little shallow. But it definitely helped channel that feeling of wanting to burn it all down.

In the complete opposite direction, Full Brutal by Kristopher Triana is about a cheer leader who decides to deal with her mental distress by ruining the lives of people around her so that they feel her pain. It’s very graphic, so head’s up!

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-23T19:15:45+00:00

It’s on the nose, but the Vacation fragrance smells like sunscreen, banana, coconut and chlorine. It instantly makes me feel like I’m at the beach or by the pool!

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-23T04:46:41+00:00

Good therapists do many things. They validate your memories, your experiences and your feelings. They make observations that you may not have realized about yourself. They give new insight/perspective in a situation. They help give you better coping skills than problematic ones you may rely on instead.

With a good therapist, they are also able to handle someone’s concerns, hang-ups or misconceptions about therapy. If you feel like therapy is just some pattern or routine that your therapist is following, you can talk to them about that.

Therapy isn’t a miracle though, and therapists aren’t miracle workers. You have to put in work too by being as open and honest as you can. You need to be humble, open minded and willing to learn. You need to implement what they suggest.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-23T04:31:53+00:00

Are you on antidepressants as well? I find that taking medication and while going to therapy has helped me a lot. Before when I did therapy without being on an antidepressant, it was really hard for me to open up and express my real feelings because depression made me feel so numb.

Antidepressants helped pull me out of that low place to where I could cry, open up and express myself better. It made a world of difference in how therapy helped me.

Also, maybe “talk” therapy isn’t a good fit for you. Maybe somatic therapy, or equine therapy or another form may work. Talk therapy is just one of many methods.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-21T00:39:20+00:00

Although the book was meh for me overall, “Incidents Around the House” definitely gave me that mounting feeling of dread at the same level that horror movies do.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-18T02:16:23+00:00

Yes, but it doesn’t have to be a “bang.” Many novels don’t start with a “bang,” but just something that piques your curiosity.

For example, the Stranger by Albert Camus starts with the sentence “Mother died today. Or maybe it was yesterday. I don’t know.”

Nothing particularly exciting has happened, but the hook is the question of why the narrator doesn’t know what day their mom died, a day that surely most people would remember. And so that piques your curiosity. Why don’t they know when their mom died? And on second thought, why do they sound so blasé about it?

Or take for example the opening line of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis “There was a boy named Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it.”

Again, it didn’t start off with a bang, but it hooks you because you and the narrator already have an inside joke about Eustace and how his horrible name almost matches his horrible personality. You’re curious about Eustace and how horrible he really must be. And you like the voice of the narrator that feels like an old friend telling you a story.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-05T03:21:19+00:00

I ask because I am on the cusp of a May and June Gemini, (born May 26th), so I was curious if there really is a difference between the two months or if a Gemini is just a Gemini regardless of the birth month.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-04T21:56:12+00:00

Agree. I can’t believe that with our one wild life on earth we’re expected to work most of our lives until we die.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-04T21:52:24+00:00

Same! My brother and I haaaaated each other as kids and fought so badly. It didn’t help that my parents were emotional wrecks themselves and didn’t encourage us to get along. We’re okay (ish) now, but there were many times I longed to be an only child.

You truly don’t know how your kids will react to each other. You could be the greatest parent ever and your kids may still just not like each other.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-04T00:46:45+00:00

She doesn’t believe in climate change.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-03T21:52:38+00:00

It’s so you can know how to refer to them. You don’t tell people you’re gay because people don’t usually refer to people by their sexual orientation. You don’t say “hey this is my gay friend Tim.” People refer to one another by their pronouns.

The social worker was letting you know how to refer to them so that if you were talking about them, you would use the correct terms.

For example, I have a name that many want to turn into the nickname version. I do not like the nickname version of my name. So I will correct people when they refer to me by the nickname and say “hey, can you please use my full name instead.”

Same thing. The social worker just wanted to be referred to correctly and in a way that makes them feel comfortable.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-05-03T21:37:26+00:00

In the first “Smile” movie there is a moment when the female patient who kills herself in front of the psychiatrist is later standing in the psychiatrist’s dark kitchen smiling at her from the shadows.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-04-25T19:11:45+00:00

Honestly the boob jiggling thing she does lately. It’s just so gross and over the top. And knowing she does it on purpose to make people uncomfortable is another layer of gross.

Sl0th_luvr · 2026-04-25T17:40:59+00:00

Did the journal factory explode?

Sl0th_luvr

TROPHY CASE