Danse Macabre

As someone who takes the writing craft seriously (although I haven't published yet; still working on drafts), I can say without a doubt that Stephen King's "On Writing" and "Danse Macabre" are the two books that any aspiring horror writer/filmmaker needs to read. Now, where "On Writing" is a book that isn't specific to the horror genre (I mean, King references Cormac McCarthy, along with an array of other non-horror authors), "Danse Macabre" is specific to the horror genre. And, as someone who has read "On Writing Horror" and "Writers Workshop of Horror" (which were both a collection of essays from authors--and one of those "self-help" books had an entire chapter bashing Stephen King's writing advice; I forgot which one), I can say without a doubt that King's "On Writing" and "Danse Macabre" are the only "how to/informative" books that an inspiring horror author NEEDS to read. Why "Danse Macabre" is so important is the same reason why Kobe Bryant's pre-season workout/mentality is important for aspiring basketball players; because, to give some sanity to the world, those who aspire to be great need a role model to look up, to learn from, to "be" like: and King, like no other horror author, is that ONE author in which every aspiring horror writer (heck, let's broaden the category to any subgenre of fiction) has something to learn from. Whether or not you like his books, his stories, his style--there is a reason why he's successful, and one can only become more knowledgable to read "Danse Macabre."With that being said, "Danse Macabre" is not particularly an exciting read. It's just a subjective informative read for those who are interested in the horror genre--rather personally (but I'd say an "obsession" would be the reason for you to read this book just for the heck of it) or aspiring to be professionally.The reason for such a narrow target audience is the reason for this being one of his least read books--if not his very least* read book. Is it academic? No. But, is Kobe Bryant's opinions on how to become a good basketball player academic? No. But it's beneficial to the upcoming basketball player, and Stephen King's opinions are beneficial for the upcoming horror writer/filmmaker. It's as simple as that.

Some of us love stories that leave us listening fearfully for shuffling footsteps in the dark, or movies that make us spray our popcorn about the room when the bogeyman leaps from the shadows, on reflection, we may wonder just what it is about scary stories that causes such fearful reactions. Those who scoff at the horror genre, who flinch at any mention of anything bad happening in a story and whose entertainment choices revolve around TV shows like American Idol, may wonder what all the excitement over the horror genre is about. The balm for both these groups is Stephen King's Danse Macabre, an homage, exploration, and critical analysis of the horror genre during the period 1950-1980, a period that experienced the cultivation and development of the scary story form through radio, TV, movie, and book formats.Lest the very idea of a thirty-year overview of the horror genre conjure up fears of a stale, academic, and tedious exposition, rest assured that this tour through the spooky and macabre is conducted by the perfect guide-King is an award-winning author of more than 49 horror novels and short stories with many movie and TV adaptations. In Danse Macabre he approaches his task as someone who loves and lives the genre, not as the critic, who dissects and pontificates as an outsider. This book is an insider's tour delivered in King's pouncey-bouncy writing style, a conversational one that both entertains and educates.There are three main contributions in this book. First, there is the dutiful comb-through of the horror highlights of the radio, TV, movie, and book formats. But though it is interesting to hear about mid-1950s radio broadcasts, such as Suspense or Orson Wells's War of the Worlds, I suspect that most people today, in an era of streaming Internet movies, may have difficulty relating to (horror) radio broadcasts. Nevertheless, the inclusion of radio makes the overview of the horror genre complete, and it reinforces the fact that telling a scary story is not limited by technological channels--an entire world was frightened by Orson Wells intoning over just a radio microphone.In discussing horror movies and TV shows, rather than heavy analysis King focuses simply on which pieces speak most to our fears, whether they be universal, political, social, or cultural, along with mentioning those films and shows which are just plain entertaining to watch. Again, the tone is light and informational. While we learn how the movie The Amityville Horror can be seen as playing on our economic fears, we also gain insights into how this movie, though it was not critically acclaimed, nevertheless struck a resonant chord with the viewing audience. There are pages to this discussion, touching on many tangents and related movies, such as The Exorcist, Fahrenheit 451, and Them!, but King also sums up his point succinctly with this nugget: "As horror goes, Amityville is pretty pedestrian. So's beer, but you can get drunk on it." Time and again in Danse Macabre King similarly illuminates as well as he entertains.For novels, King discusses ten books that represent the best of the horror genre as both literature and entertainment, such as Peter Straub's Ghost Story and The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson. As with his discussion of radio, movie, and TV shows, King careens through the entire literary corpus with tangents, anecdotes, and behind-the-scenes commentary, such as entertaining stories about what happened when Harlan Ellison, an author with some notoriety, was invited to work on the script for the first Star Trek movie.Beyond just overviewing the horror genre, King more interestingly takes a step back and looks at the elements of the horror story--what scares us and why. He proposes three iconic monsters for the horror genre, and details especially the horror stories those monsters are known for: the thing, (in Frankenstein), the vampire (in Dracula), and the werewolf (in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hide). He also shows three levels of emotion horror stories can target within us: terror, horror, and revulsion. The finest and most primal emotional level reached by a scary story is terror, and we are terrified when stories allow our own minds to fill in the details about the baddies around the corner. So in stories that evoke terror-judged to be the most effective at being scary-we are actually not allowed to see the monster behind the closed door. A slightly more coarse emotion, but still scary enough, is that of horror. Here, the door is opened and we see the monster, lurching. If a story can't achieve the effect of terror or horror, then it can at least cause revulsion--you see the monster, slurping the victim's entrails like pasta in a wine-dark marinara sauce.The third and perhaps most important contribution of Danse Macabre is that this book is an homage to the horror genre. King shows us why horror matters and why people who like horror stories aren't psychopaths. On the contrary, horror can help us understand our deepest fears by showing us a side of life that we don't often experience directly, lifting the lid of the casket, so to speak. By looking inside, we can learn the truth about ourselves.Horror stories have the power to transport us back to when we were young and the world was ominous and life was to be relished, and King generously shares his encyclopedic knowledge and enthusiasm for the genre in Danse Macabre. The book makes us want to be scared, to want to go investigate that strange sound, and King cheerfully leads the way for us down into the dark and dank catacomb. With his insights and recommendations we can crawl as far into the tunnels as we dare in seeking the creepy, guided by Stephen King in the role of our inner child.

While I do love Stephen King's fiction novels I almost couldn't finish this piece of crap. Is just him reviewing the books and movies he'd liked along the way. But more than "reviewing" is more like beating around the bush. At the beginning it does gets you but then you realize he's just talking about the same over and over again and it gets annoying and almost unreadable. I finished the book just cause I'd already bought it.

A bona fide must-read for the horror aficionado. Covers all areas of horror and fantasy in all genres-TV, movies. literature and more. Peppered with anecdotes of King's early years and what made him the finest horror writer of the last 50 years. Recommended.

Esse livro é como um curso acadêmico sobre a estética do horror, com um daqueles professores super descolados e didáticos. Claro, não vou mentir: às vezes algumas "aulas" foram um pouco maçantes, dependendo do meu interesse no tópico discutido em particular, mas outras são simplesmente... brilhantes! Para quem tem um interesse real no horror, na literatura e no cinema, e quer entender o que potencialmente reside sob a superfície do gênero, super recomendo a leitura! Mas friso - pra chegar ao fim do "curso" com aprovação, realmente tem que ser MESMO um fã do gênero.

Horrific things touch our life. It strikes at the most unexpected moment. S King is the writer who presented us the cornucopia of horror in every possible shape size and concept. He is phenomenal and in his journey through mundane life he could pick up the clues. He is a prolific writer. Danse Macabre is a pass word to King's literary world. He is qualified enough to describe the themes and thought behind literary horror. Those who like to read horror books, this one is a perfect guide for them to start with.

Good book