I’m currently enrolled in a college course called Digital Writing, and one of the required class projects is a blog on the topic of my choice. I’ve chosen to explore the horror romance subgenre. Though I’ve created a whole other blog for the class, I thought readers of this blog might be interested in the topic. Therefore, I’ve decided to cross-post the entries here.
An Introduction to the Topic
I have been fascinated by the darker side of things since I was a young teenager, falling in love with vampires and the books of Amelia Atwater-Rhodes around age 12.
After becoming an avid reader of horror romance and publishing within the genre, I have encountered resistance from other readers and authors. Some don’t believe that horror romance exists; others think it shouldn’t. This series of posts is my love letter to this underappreciated subgenre of romance.
In these posts, I’ll be ruminating on various facets of the horror romance genre, including story elements like character and plot and how horror romance fits into the wonderful world of books.
What is Horror Romance?
Romance Writers of America defines romance as:
Two basic elements comprise every romance novel: a central love story and an emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending.
The Horror Writers Association defines horror as:
Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary gives the primary definition of horror as “a painful and intense fear, dread, or dismay.” It stands to reason then that “horror fiction” is fiction that elicits those emotions in the reader.
Horror Romance is the intersection of the two.
Join me as I explore this boundary-pushing subgenre of romance fiction.
