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Horror fiction is fiction
Fiction

Fiction is an imaginative form of narrative, one of the four basic rhetorical modes. Although the word fiction is derived from the Latin fingo, fingere, finxi, fictum, "to form, create", works of fiction need not be entirely imaginary and may include real people, places, and events....
 in any medium intended to scare, unsettle, or horrify the audience. Historically, the cause of the "horror" experience has often been the intrusion of a supernatural
Supernatural

The term supernatural or supranatural pertains to an order of existence beyond the scientifically visible universe. Religious miracles are typically supernatural claims, as are Spell and curses, divination, the belief that there is an afterlife for the dead, and innumerable others....
 element into everyday human experience. Since the 1960s, any work of fiction with a morbid, gruesome, surreal
Surrealism

Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early-1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
, or exceptionally suspense
Suspense

Suspense is a feeling of uncertainty and anxiety about the outcome of certain actions, most often referring to an audience's perceptions in a dramatic work....
ful or frightening theme has come to be called "horror". Horror fiction often overlaps science fiction
Science fiction

Science fiction is a broad genre of fiction that often involves speculations based on current or future science or technology. Science fiction is found in books, art, television, films, games, theatre, and other media....
 or fantasy
Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of Plot , Theme , and/or Setting . Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of technological and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three ....
, all three categories of which are sometimes placed under the umbrella classification speculative fiction
Speculative fiction

Speculative fiction is a term used as an inclusive descriptor covering a group of fiction genres that speculate about worlds that are unlike the real world in various important ways....
.

Haunting is used as a plot device
Plot device

A plot device is an element introduced into a narrative solely to advance or resolve the Plot of the story. In the hands of a skilled writer, the reader or viewer will not notice that the device is a construction of the author; it will seem to follow naturally from the setting or characters in the story....
 in horror fiction and paranormal-based fiction.






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Horror fiction is fiction
Fiction

Fiction is an imaginative form of narrative, one of the four basic rhetorical modes. Although the word fiction is derived from the Latin fingo, fingere, finxi, fictum, "to form, create", works of fiction need not be entirely imaginary and may include real people, places, and events....
 in any medium intended to scare, unsettle, or horrify the audience. Historically, the cause of the "horror" experience has often been the intrusion of a supernatural
Supernatural

The term supernatural or supranatural pertains to an order of existence beyond the scientifically visible universe. Religious miracles are typically supernatural claims, as are Spell and curses, divination, the belief that there is an afterlife for the dead, and innumerable others....
 element into everyday human experience. Since the 1960s, any work of fiction with a morbid, gruesome, surreal
Surrealism

Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early-1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
, or exceptionally suspense
Suspense

Suspense is a feeling of uncertainty and anxiety about the outcome of certain actions, most often referring to an audience's perceptions in a dramatic work....
ful or frightening theme has come to be called "horror". Horror fiction often overlaps science fiction
Science fiction

Science fiction is a broad genre of fiction that often involves speculations based on current or future science or technology. Science fiction is found in books, art, television, films, games, theatre, and other media....
 or fantasy
Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of Plot , Theme , and/or Setting . Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of technological and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three ....
, all three categories of which are sometimes placed under the umbrella classification speculative fiction
Speculative fiction

Speculative fiction is a term used as an inclusive descriptor covering a group of fiction genres that speculate about worlds that are unlike the real world in various important ways....
.

Haunting is used as a plot device
Plot device

A plot device is an element introduced into a narrative solely to advance or resolve the Plot of the story. In the hands of a skilled writer, the reader or viewer will not notice that the device is a construction of the author; it will seem to follow naturally from the setting or characters in the story....
 in horror fiction and paranormal-based fiction. Legends about haunted house
Haunted house

A haunted house is defined as a house that is believed to be a center for supernatural occurrences or paranormal phenomena. A haunted house may allegedly contain ghosts, poltergeists, or even malevolent entities such as demons....
s have long appeared in literature. For example, the Arabian Nights tale of "Ali the Cairene and the Haunted House in Baghdad" revolves around a house haunted by jinns
Genie

In Islam and Arabian mythology, a genie is a supernatural fiery creature which possesses free will. Genies are mentioned in the Qur'an, wherein a whole Sura is named after them ....
. The influence of the Arabian Nights on modern horror fiction is certainly discernible in the work of H. P. Lovecraft
H. P. Lovecraft

Howard Phillips Lovecraft was an United States author of horror fiction, fantasy fiction, and science fiction, known then simply as weird fiction....
. In his early years as a child, he would imagine himself living the adventures of the heroes in the book, and it inspired him to create his famed Necronomicon
Necronomicon

The Necronomicon is a fictional book appearing in the stories by horror fiction novelist H. P. Lovecraft. It was first mentioned in Lovecraft's 1924 in literature short story "The Hound", written in 1922, though its purported author, the "Mad Arab" Abdul Alhazred, had been quoted a year earlier in Lovecraft's "The Nameless City"....
.

Today horror is one of the most popular categories of film.

See also

  • List of horror fiction writers
  • List of horror films
    List of horror films

    This is chronological list of horror films split by decade. Often there may be considerable overlap particularly between Horror and other genres ; the list should attempt to document films which are more closely related to horror, even if it bends genres....
  • Bram Stoker Award
    Bram Stoker Award

    The Bram Stoker Award is a recognition presented by the Horror Writers Association for "superior achievement" in horror fiction. The awards have been presented annually since 1987, and the winners are selected by ballot of the Active members of the HWA....
    s


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