Walk a mile in another’s shoes, you may just begin to see things differently. But what does that look like, really? To be so thoroughly engrossed in another person’s position that the lines between self and other are blurred?
Horror authors know the answer to this question, something that is readily apparent in their stories that spotlight primal fears. You may be wondering how a genre like this could work so poetically with empathy or how humane this area of fiction can be if it is predicated on scares.
The truth lies in the human condition and in our ability to connect with those outside of ourselves. While most folks are capable of empathy, some authors have the knack for evoking our dormant emotions, insecurities, and anxieties.
These authors provide a friendly tap on the shoulder, a reassurance that we’re not so alone in our experiences however horrific or mundane they may be. And this is what makes horror shine.
On that note, here are five dazzling horror recommendations that are packed with empathetic heart.
Coup de Grâce
Giving an actual landscape to the enigma that is depression, Sophia Ajram’s Coup de Grace is a novella that packs one hell of an emotional punch.
Loneliness, depression, suicidality, and choice are held under the world’s bleakest, most claustrophobic microscope as one man, Vicken, boards a train determined to end his life.
However, the train stops somewhere “other,” a concrete labyrinth that never seems to end. Faced with this incredibly harsh reality, Vicken is forced to wrestle with his will to live as every passing moment feels more endless than the next.
Ajram confronts one of the most common, yet most rejected, aspects of the human condition in such a terrifying, fascinating way.
The prose in Coup de Grace is nothing short of arresting with quite a memorable ending to boot.
Kill Your Darling
If there is one thing that is true in this life, it is death itself, a fact that Glenn Partridge has wrestled with ever since his teen son was murdered many years ago.
Despite Glenn’s elderly age, his grip on this tragedy has never relented. That is until Glenn’s wife signs him up for a writing course as a way to help Glenn move on.
The story that Glenn decides to tell is that of a man defined by his nerve endings, stripped raw by grief.
An introspective tour de force of grief horror, Clay McLeod Chapman’s Kill Your Darling feels like one of the most genuine, tender, and brutal stories I have ever encountered.
Chapman manages to comment on parenthood, responsibility, grief, creation, and reckonings of every sort, lasting long within the realm of emotional poignancy.
I Was A Teenage Slasher
Imagine actively rooting for a known murderer, a mass murder at that. A little hard to fathom?
Think again when you’re reading a Stephen Graham Jones (aka SGJ) novel.
SGJ seemingly exists within the sphere of horror as a slasher master, a guy who is so knowledgeable regarding a rather niche subgenre.
While Jones’s extensive knowledge is impressive, what’s even more inspiring is his ability to craft emotional bridges between readers and the most unlikely of characters. I Was a Teenage Slasher follows Tolly Driver, a kid who’s on the edge of something.
Whether it’s the precipice of adulthood or the ledge of an oil rig in small-town Texas is hard to say. The only certainty for Tolly is his uncertainty.
However, all this changes when Tolly finds himself in the uncanniest predicament: becoming a slasher.
SGJ combines the horrors of uncontrollable transformation with the emotionality of young adulthood to give us I Was a Teenage Slasher, a story of love, otherness, and sacrifice that will slash your heart to shreds.
Such Sharp Teeth
Exemplifying all that modern horror can accomplish, Rachel Harrison’s Such Sharp Teeth reads like a mouth full of fangs straight to the heart.
While that is a bit of a gory image, so is changing as a human, becoming something (or someone), you may or may not recognize. Rory Morris finds herself in this very place as she is back at home living with her expecting twin sister.
Surely, this isn’t the ideal circumstance for Rory, but following a night out and one mysterious bite later, she finds herself in even deeper uncharted territory. Harrison provides so much iconic nuance regarding change and unwanted shifts within our lives, especially as it relates to the female experience.
Through physical manifestations and metaphorical ones, Rachel Harrison gives us characters who undergo supernatural events that ultimately don’t feel that fantastical when you zoom out from the details.
Such Sharp Teeth is perhaps my most favorite examination of the female experience, a story that howls with empathy.
Bury Your Gays
No list of empathetic stories would be complete without Chuck Tingle, a man whose motto is literally, “Love is real.” Bury Your Gays is a novel that is built upon the blocks of constructs like self-acceptance, empathy, compassion, and love.
Misha is a successful writer working in Hollywood; in fact, he’s just been nominated for an Oscar when he’s told he must kill off his queer characters or his show will be canceled by executives.
Naturally, Misha revolts against such a demand until threats begin to emerge, threats that look and sound like things Misha knows all too well.
Tingle crafts one masterfully meta-story with Misha’s journey, one that is paved with horrifyingly bloody confrontations and genuine examinations of self-reflection.
Perhaps the most impressive aspects of Bury Your Gays are the numerous ways in which Chuck Tingle delivers on his promises that love is real, providing endings and solutions that speak so profoundly to our humanity.
This is a story that, while equally unsettling, is deeply invigorating and inspiring. May we all fight the good fight to prove how real love is.
