Feature Post: Jorie | the Cosy Horror Girl via #OTBHorrorOctober

Posted Saturday, 18 October, 2014 by jorielov 0 Comments

Horror October 2014

I am quite certain when most of my readers caught sight of the fact I am participating in an event entitled Horror October they did more than a ‘second look’ to see if they had read that statement correctly! I know my personal friends who regularly read this blog might not be as gobsmacked as my dear readers – as they have known me far longer & already know I’m quite a bit quirky! The truth is that I did not realise how much I am in love with aspects of Horror which place me firmly on the fringes of the genre!

The lightbulb moment for me happened quite innocently as I started to read a heap about what everyone had either created for the event last year (where I must admit was disappointed I hadn’t had a blog live to the world in order to participate!) OR were making plans to create for the fortnight this year! One of the ideas was to talk about all the lovely Horror motion pictures &/or tv serials that we fancied. Now. I took stock of that idea, allowed it to percolate inside me head, and realised that if I were to come up with a Top 5 Most Beloved Horror Film list I’d be plumb happy!

I mean, how could it be possible that I could name more than *5!* films for this genre!? I apparently was quite a bit foolishly re missive of realising that Horror by definition grew out of a most decidedly guilty pleasure of mine: Psychological Suspense! Imagine my growing dismay and quick delight (uniquely enough my shock turnt to pride!) in finding that my quick googling of motion pictures (my main focus was on ‘classic’ films) returnt such an alarmingly LONG! query of choices that I decided that I need to scribble in a day where I can blog about quite a heap more than 13 but not quite 40 personal favourites spread between the days of Golden Hollywood & modern cinema! From the silver screen to the small screen, I found a startling array of options for the Cosy Horror Girl I never knew I was!

Let me empathsis that the ONE simple truth in my family was that we were NEVER into Horror; no matter which way to Sunday you asked this of us, we’d always lament the same: sorry, no, not a chance really, horror just isn’t something that floats our boat!

At the very same time, there are elements of the genre knitted within my everyday life & world, from wicked collections I gather as an appreciator of art & artistry of design inasmuch as the fact one of the best parts of being a book blogger for Seventh Star Press (via Tomorrow Comes Media) is the ability to get to know several Indie authors of Horror; most of whom I noted I had things we shared in common, even if at the end of the day, most of their releases I would faint before I could read!

I still remember having to explain why I sent a friend a Halloween card last October *why!* I celebrate Halloween ~ as if being exclusively (previously true) non-Horror meant I would not celebrate one of the most delightfully wicked times of the year! Lest, I even mention the fact I have been a long-term appreciator of the Day of the Dead & everything related to Old Hallow’s Eve since I was quite young! (no trunk or treat for me!)

Let me break-down what I *love!* vs what I do not:

  • Psychological Suspense
  • film noir
  • classic horror films
  • eerie settings & atmospheric elements
  • ghost stories & hauntings of the unexplained
  • Thrillers
  • Southern Gothic & Gothic Lit 
  • Supernatural Phenomena & elements within the parapsychological branch of science
  • Cosy Mysteries which breach over into Hard-Boiled &/or Psychological Suspense
  • Halloween & the Day of the Dead celebrations
  • A L F R E D H I T C H C O C K (minus: the Birds & Psycho)

& what I am not keen on:

  • Gore & Viscerally Graphic Violence
  • Aliens (unless it is similar to I-D4!)
  • Werewolves (amending this to appreciating ‘wolf’ shifters such as in “Moonflower”)
  • Zombies, Cannibals, & Other Monstrous Creatures
  • Vampires (amending this as I read Dance Until Dawn & Dracula)
  • honestly it is so natural what I shirk away from & outright boycott it’s hard to list it all!

And, where I fit according to Wikipedia’s definitions of the genre itself:
(on film) (on fiction)

  1. Psychological Horror – fittingly includes all the lovelies I appreciate from Hitchcock straight through to a stirring ghost story!
  2. Science Fiction Horror – I may fit slightly into this category but not completely either!
  3. Gothic Fiction – ooh really? yes, please!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

One of my first followers on Riffle (my social bookish site of choice!), was the Editor & Curator of the Riffle Horror account, Mr. Fisher who is a bonefide librarian IRL!

Tweet Riffle Horror: @RiffleHorror | Tweet the Undead Rat: @UndeadRat 

{ read the story BEHIND the undead rat } – Horror Books w/ the Undead Rat 

And, of whom do you think I instantly thought of to contact on this project looming in front of me about how to sort out how to officially participate in a fortnight event rooted in a genre I barely felt I could handle yet was intensely curious about if there were any aspect of it, I could not only read but find a footing that could root me inside a piece of the genre without compromising my reasons for why I shirk away from Horror to begin with!? I knew I would NOT be open to straight-up horror which would involve gore & the viscerally disturbing graphic images I dare not even contemplate existing but with if there were hidden stories within the scope of Horror that I could fancy!?

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

This is where Mr. Fisher came to the rescue!

As I asked him via Twitter the following Qs:

(Archive of our Chat)

(Reasons I gave for the enquiry)

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

 A beautiful convo about a quirky girl’s idea to participate in Horror October led to these beautiful lits of books by Mr. Fisher, being curated & maintained on Riffle:

Cosy Horror curated by Gregory Fisher @ Riffle Horror

 (Cosy) Horror Suspense curated by Gregory Fisher @ Riffle Horror

 2014 Horror October Selections based off of Riffle Horror’s Lists:

(see schedule of readings)

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill – I originally felt this was a film that I wasn’t going to appreciate as I mistook it for a straight-up (i.e. visually gory) horror film; instead it turnt out to be a psychological suspense horror film & thereby selected this to read

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson – a bit of an easy pick for me because I already fell in love with the classic film from 1963 via Turner Classic Movies! I have a bit of a story to relate in regards to this lateron in the fortnight, but suffice to say, I was wicked happy to find it on the list!

The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton – uniquely enough or not, I have been wanting to dig into Wharton’s stories ever since I first ran into Jennie Fields whilst following the blog tour last year for The Age of Desire! When this pulled up as an option knowing how addicted I am to ghosts, wells, it was kismet, really!

The Door Through Washington Square by Elaine Bergstrom – a curious cat & a curious plot were all I needed as motivation to seek this out via ILL at my local library!

There are other books I wanted to read but have left them for 2015’s Horror October!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Coincidently, I will be including a footnote per each book I am reading over the fortnight to explain why I included it on my reading queue! What I wanted to stress tonight is how even though I do not appear to appreciate Horror as it is most readily accepted and beloved, that doesn’t mean that this particularly bookish cosy girl hasn’t found her own quirky way of getting a piece of the Horror genre to warm her heart & invigorate her spirit with a heap of ghoulishly frightful stories! Over the next fortnight I cannot wait to share bits & bobbles of where I alight in the genre & what motivates me to continue to seek out the shockingly addictive stories that might keep me on the edge of my seat but do not stimulate nightmares! And, to me that is the most definitive mark of being a Cosy Horror Girl!

And, now I direct the conversation to populate in the comment threads — as I am not the only non-traditional Horror participant this year nor am I the only one who doesn’t want to get freaked out of her skull in order to appreciate a bit of suspense & a bit of a frightful experience of a fictional story! I implore you to share your own wanderings & if anything I have shared thus far resonates with you! I look forward to your continued visits during the fortnight & conversing about all the lovely books I am reading as well!

I encourage you to hit the ‘heart’ on the lists Mr. Fisher created if they give you an inkling of how you can read Horror by staying within the Cosy side of the genre! Don’t forget — I am a 2nd Year Participant of Sci Fi November, so if science fiction & fantasy is more of a passion of yours, sit tight! I have a heap of wicked brilliant events coming in November! Be sure to read my reflective thoughts on the Piercing the Veil series before my showcases for it begin!

This is my second post for:
Main Archive of my Horror October Fortnight of Events

#OTBHorrorOctober badge created by Jorie in Canva

{SOURCES: Horror October banner provided by Oh! The Books for participants to promote the event on their book blogs; used with permission. #OTBHorrorOctober badge for Jorie created by Jorie in Canva. Riffle Lists are embedded due to codes provided by Riffle. Tweets embedded due to codes provided by Twitter.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2014.

Comments via Twitter in regards to this entry for #OTBHorrorOctober:

{ favourite and/or RT to share if you’re inspired }

About jorielov

I am self-educated through local libraries and alternative education opportunities. I am a writer by trade and I cured a ten-year writer’s block by the discovery of Nanowrimo in November 2008. The event changed my life by re-establishing my muse and solidifying my path. Five years later whilst exploring the bookish blogosphere I decided to become a book blogger. I am a champion of wordsmiths who evoke a visceral experience in narrative. I write comprehensive book showcases electing to get into the heart of my reading observations. I dance through genres seeking literary enlightenment and enchantment. Starting in Autumn 2013 I became a blog book tour hostess featuring books and authors. I joined The Classics Club in January 2014 to seek out appreciators of the timeless works of literature whose breadth of scope and voice resonate with us all.

"I write my heart out and own my writing after it has spilt out of the pen." - self quote (Jorie of Jorie Loves A Story)

read more >> | Visit my Story Vault of Book Reviews | Policies & Review Requests | Contact Jorie

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Posted Saturday, 18 October, 2014 by jorielov in #HorrorOctober, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blogosphere Events & Happenings, Bookish Discussions, Cemeteries & Graveyards, Classic Horror, Classical Literature, Cosy Horror, Cosy Horror Suspense, Cosy Mystery, Ghost Story, Ghosts & the Supernatural, Good vs. Evil, Gothic Literature, Gothic Mystery, Hard-Boiled Mystery, Haunting & Ethereal, Horror, Horror-Lite, Indie Book Trade, Library Find, Library Love, Parapsychological Gifts, Parapsychological Suspense, Psychological Suspense, Reading Challenges, Southern Gothic, Supernatural Fiction, Suspense, YA Paranormal &/or Paranormal Romance




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