#a mystery thriller with horror and supernatural

[literaryvein-reblogs]

can you do a blog about the main types of book genres there are if you haven't already? and how to know what you're writing?

Types of Book Genres

Mystery. Follows a crime (like a murder or a disappearance) from the moment it is committed to the moment it is solved. Mystery novels are often called “whodunnits” because they turn the reader into a detective trying to figure out the who, what, when, and how of a particular crime. Most mysteries feature a detective or private eye solving a case as the central character.

Thriller. According to the New York Public Library, thrillers gradually build anxiety and suspense. Examples of thrillers include “Gone Girl” by Gillian Flynn, “All Her Little Secrets” by Wanda M. Morris and “The Silent Patient” by Alex Michaelides. ⚜ Psychological Thriller

Horror. “Carrie” by Stephen King, “The Haunting of Hill House” by Shirley Jackson and Edgar Allen Poe’s work are all under the umbrella of horror. These works are intended to frighten audiences and elicit a feeling of dread, according to the CDE.

Historical Fiction. Historical fiction takes place in a historical setting, the CDE notes. Some examples of historical fiction include “The Prophets” by Robert Jones, Jr. and “The Four Winds” by Kristin Hannah.

Romance. Romance Writers of America (RWA) noted that romance refers to optimistic and emotionally satisfying stories that focus on a central love story. “The Love Hypothesis” by Ali Hazelwood and “Red, White and Royal Blue” by Casey McQuiston are both romance novels.

Western. Primarily set in the American Old West between the late 18th century and late 19th century and tell the stories of cowboys, settlers, and outlaws exploring the western frontier and taming the Wild West.

Bildungsroman. Translates to “novel of education” or “novel of formation,” chronicles a character’s journey from young innocence to worldly adulthood. This is a specific type of coming-of-age story in which the character gains knowledge and experience, even as innocence is lost.

Speculative Fiction. Refers to genres not based in reality, including work with magical, supernatural or otherwise imagined elements. Essentially, speculative fiction is the opposite of mimetic fiction. The category includes subgenres like fantasy, science-fiction, dystopian fiction and more, Witcover noted.

Science Fiction. This genre often involves science and technology of the future. Science fiction is frequently set in space or a different universe or world. It often uses some real theories of science.

Fantasy. According to the California Department of Education (CDE), fantasy "invites suspension of reality." The genre encompasses stories that wouldn't happen in real life, often set in another world or including magical elements.

Dystopian fiction. Imagines a future place in cataclysmic decline.

Action and Adventure. The tension of the protagonist’s journey in an adventure story creates a pulse-pounding, adrenaline-pumping storyline. Dramatic car chases, secret missions, and violent fight scenes often pop up in famous action stories. Great action writing draws in your audience, getting their adrenaline pumping as they turn the page.

Nonfiction (Memoir: Stories from an author’s life that offer a firsthand account of events are called memoirs. According to Reader's Digest, some highly-recommended memoirs include “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou and “Spare” by Prince Harry. ; Autobiography: a nonfiction (true) account of someone’s life. It is written by the subject of the autobiography; Biography: tell the story of a notable person’s life, written by someone other than the subject. Some examples are “Into the Wild” by Jon Krakauer, which tells the story of the adventurer Chris McCandless, and “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” by Rebecca Skloot.)

Food and Travel. Cookbooks, food history books, travel guides and travel memoirs all fall under this category that includes “The Omnivore's Dilemma” by Michael Pollan and “My Life in France” by Julia Child.

Humor. Strong humor writers have a way of spotting the patterns of life and bringing them to the surface at exactly the right moment.

Young Adult. YA books are intended for readers between 12 and 18 years old, according to Smithsonian Magazine. Some examples include “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins and “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas.

Children's Fiction. Many classic examples of children’s literature are picture books, including “Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak or “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus” by Mo Willems. Scholastic noted most picture books are intended for children up to seven years old.

Knowing your Genre. The world of literature abounds with different genres.

Although every literary genre has its own trends and defining characteristics, the divisions between these categories aren't always clear. Whether you’re picking another book off the shelf or plotting out your new novel, learning more about genre can help you decide what comes next.

If you want to become a writer, there are a number of reasons to learn about genres, according to Paul Witcover, associate dean of the online Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Creative Writing program at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU).

“I feel it’s important for writers to have an understanding of genre because it will impact how their books are marketed, as well as how they are perceived by publishers,” he said. “But I also think writers can be too concerned with genre.”

Although he encourages writers to learn about the subject, Witcover noted a tendency for overly rigid ideas about the distinctions between genres. “Concepts of genre are more fluid than writers may believe,” he said. It's important to keep that fluidity in mind.

Genre is determined by need and audience expectation. Its set functions are determined by its social need.

Broadly speaking, the fiction world is divided into 2 segments: literary fiction and genre fiction.

Literary fiction typically describes the kinds of books that are assigned in high school and college English classes, that are character driven and describe some aspect of the human condition. Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winners tend to come from the literary fiction genre.

Genre fiction has a more mainstream, populist appeal. It traditionally comprises genres such as romance, mystery, thriller, horror, fantasy, and children’s books.

Some genre writers straddle a line between genre-focused commercial fiction and the traditions of literary fiction.

Traditionally, there are 4 broader categories of genre:

Fiction: Imagined or invented literature is called fiction, Writers & Artists noted. Examples of fiction titles include “1984” by George Orwell and “Little Fires Everywhere” by Celeste Ng.

Nonfiction: According to Writers & Artists, nonfiction refers to fact-based works. Some nonfiction titles include “The Body Keeps Score” by Bessel van der Kolk and “I Am Malala” by Malala Yousafzai, and “Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking” by Marcella Hazan.

Poetry: Britannica defines poetry as “literature that evokes a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience or a specific emotional response through language chosen and arranged for its meaning, sound and rhythm.” Poetry incorporates poetic elements and encompasses the work of writers like Maya Angelou, Robert Frost, Amanda Gorman and Richard Siken.

Drama: Dramatic literature refers to texts of plays that can be read for their literary value as well as performed, according to Britannica. Dramas include stage directions and specific formatting not found in prose or verse. Some of the most studied dramas are Shakespeare’s plays, like “Hamlet” and “Romeo and Juliet.” You might be familiar with other dramas, too, like “Death of a Salesman” and “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller or August Wilson’s Century Cycle of 10 dramas depicting the Black experience in the U.S. throughout the 20th century, including “The Piano Lesson” and “Fences.”

Although most writing falls into at least one of these 4 categories, the edges are a bit blurred, and there can be overlap.

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6 ⚜ More: Writing Notes & References

It seems the general advice is to learn about the different genres first, and try to see which elements your story has that align with them. Perhaps start with the broader categories first, then narrow it down to the major genres, until you identify which specific subgenre your story fits. And it's fine if they overlap, as this happens with most novels. Hope this helps!

[anim-ttrpgs]

Exerpt from Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy (with art by @theblackwarden)

[yage-bejing]

Optical effects in the 2020s horror movie "The Night House"

[sweethoneyrose83]

Final Girl Dialogue Prompts

Facing the villain head-on:

"You’ve taken everything from me. Now it’s my turn."

"You think I’m afraid of you? I survived worse than your nightmares."

"I’m not running anymore. This ends here."

Resolving to fight back:

"If I’m going down, I’m taking you with me."

"You can’t break someone who’s already broken."

"I’ve played your game long enough. Now we play mine."

After a close escape:

"I’m still breathing. You’re going to wish I wasn’t."

"It’s not over until I say it’s over."

"You think I got this far by accident?"

Discovering inner strength:

"All this time, you thought I was the weak one. But I’m still here."

"I’ve been underestimated my whole life. That’s your first mistake."

"Fear used to control me. Now, it fuels me."

Climactic moments:

"One of us isn’t walking away from this… and it won’t be me."

"You want me? Come and get me."

"I’ve been running from this my whole life. Time to stop."

Quiet resilience after the fight:

"I didn’t survive just to die here."

"It’s over. I won."

"Tomorrow’s going to be a better day… if I live to see it."

Psychological resistance:

"You might control my nightmares, but you’ll never control me."

"I know what you are. But you don’t know who I’ve become."

"Every scar is a reminder that I’m stronger than you."

Confrontation with the villain:

"You’ve terrorized me long enough. Tonight, it ends—one way or another."

"I’m not running anymore. If you want me, come and get me."

"You thought I was scared? I’m just getting started."

"It’s funny, I was always afraid of the dark… but now, I see through it."

Moments of fear but gathering courage:

"I can feel you watching… but that means I can see you coming."

"I'm shaking, I won’t lie… but you should be scared too."

"I’m alone, sure. But that makes me dangerous."

"You think fear makes me weak? It’s the only thing keeping me alive."

After surviving a horrific event:

"You’re not the first monster I’ve survived, and you won’t be the last."

"I didn’t survive all this to die here, now."

"I might walk out of here covered in blood, but at least I’ll walk out."

"I’ve faced every nightmare you threw at me. What else do you got?"

In a desperate fight for survival:

"I'm done playing your game! Now it's my turn!"

"I’m not locked in here with you… you’re locked in here with me."

"You may be stronger, but I’m faster, and a hell of a lot smarter."

"You want a final girl? I’ll give you one you’ll never forget."

Mocking or taunting the villain:

"All that stalking, for what? Just to lose to a girl?"

"I guess you didn’t plan on me fighting back, huh?"

"You had me running scared, but look who’s cornered now."

"Oh, did you think it was going to be easy? That’s cute."

Facing near-certain death but refusing to give up:

"Maybe I’ll die here tonight, but not without taking you with me."

"You might kill me, but I swear you’ll regret it."

"I’m not dying without a fight, not tonight."

"Every scar you gave me just made me harder to kill."

After defeating the villain:

"I told you. This ends with me."

"You should’ve killed me when you had the chance."

"Looks like the monster finally met its match."

"Who’s the hunter now?"

[fallensapphires]

Genres: Paranormal

I do believe in the paranormal, that there are things our brains just can't understand.

[obamasleftkidney]

HEAR YE HEAR YE

I have some wonderful news!!!

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ROLL IN YOUR GUESSES

THE CLOCK IS TICKINGGGGG!!!

If this is your first time seeing my post; I'm writing a novel which will be released soon. I refuse to tell you the plot, the characters, the tropes, nor the premise. I only ask for your follow + I write my followers names down in a little pretty notebook. I will drop little clues and quotes and paragraphs. Ominous little hints. And the first follower to guess the plot receives a free signed copy of the novel once it's published. (Merch included according to the guessed plot's accuracy)

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If you're interested, follow me, and go read my posts. Clues have already been dropped. Best of Luck!

[jessread-s]

hello I just wanted to ask if you have any good book recommendations that are thriller ,suspense and murder mystery for example the inheritance games or haunting adeline if you do know any books like these two please tell me thank you 😊.

Hello @lila-216 ! Thank you so much for your ask! 🫶📖✨🌷 I LOVE giving recommendations. If you need more individualized recommendations (ex: by trope) please let me know and I'd be happy to fulfill your request!

My favorite YA mystery/thriller books ₊˚ʚ 🔍₊˚✧ ﾟ.

The Naturals series by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

A Crane Among Wolves by June Hur

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

The Truly Devious series by Maureen Johnson

The Stalking Jack the Ripper Series by Kerri Maniscalco

One of Us is Lying by Karen McManus

Six Months Later by Natalie D. Richards

My favorite Adult mystery/thriller books ₊˚ʚ 🔍₊˚✧ ﾟ.

The Alex Stern series by Leigh Bardugo

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

In the Woods by Tana French

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

A Dark and Drowning Tide by Allison Saft

The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager

Locke Every Door by Riley Sager

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

[cinemaobscura]

Inugami | 狗神 (2001) dir. Harada Masato

[agentnico]

Longlegs (2024) review

His legs aren’t THAT long, jeez.

Plot: FBI Agent Lee Harker is assigned to an unsolved serial killer case that takes an unexpected turn, revealing evidence of the occult. Harker discovers a personal connection to the killer and must stop him before he strikes again.

Before we get to the movie itself I must applaud Neon for giving this film such a stellar marketing campaign. Most common complaint about modern day trailers is that they show too much of the movie. They’re essentially summaries of the entire film, giving away every major set piece, with the whole narrative showcased from beginning to end, leaving little to the imagination. Makes one wonder why even it’s worth seeing the actual movie when you’ve already essentially been spoiled. Hence why Neon’s advertising strategy for Longlegs stands out so much. Throughout the last half of the year they have been releasing small 10 second untitled cryptic teaser snippets that intentionally left the premise vague, as discontinuous editing was employed to display snapshots of brutal murders, ominous world building and nightmarishly surreal images of primal fears including snakes and blood. In fact, those teasers didn’t even show the film’s title, just the release date. Then there were the billboards that had a phone number that, if you called, you’d get to hear Nicolas Cage. Speaking of Cage, again the teasers don’t really show him at all, allowing for the build up of his mysterious character to be left till the audience were in the cinema seats. Then when the early reviews came out, praises were hailed as well as comparisons to Silence of the Lambs, so naturally expectations were high.

Unfortunately, the truth is much more disappointing: Longlegs is just another run-of-the-mill, albeit well-executed, serial killer film. It’s evident that director Oz Perkins took inspiration from the aforementioned Silence of the Lambs, as well as the ambiance and possession themes of David Lynch’s iconic series Twin Peaks. However unlike those films there is a lack of urgency or mythos here, with the FBI agent feeling somewhat unimportant to the grand scheme of the story, and Maika Monroe’s acting is as plain as a cardboard. That shtick worked for her in 2014’s thriller The Guest, as there she played a moody teenager, however in Longlegs she simply comes off wooden. Look, all I’m saying is she’s no Jodie Foster. There too is a lack of backstory or explanation in regards to the supernatural elements, and I feel like the film wouldn’t have hurt having an extra scene or two to delve deeper into Longlegs’ powers and his origins.

I love Nicolas Cage. He’s one of the greatest actors working today, and truly is one of my favourites as he manages to elevate any film he is in to another level. As Longlegs he is fantastic. They use his expressionistic style of acting very cleverly here, by making him quite over the top with his voice, but done is a creepily eerie and weird way and scenes with him are great. However, as per the marketing and the first half of this movie, Longlegs is mostly hidden from the view of the audience. We see corners of his face or him blurred out in the background, and I feel like that mystery added to the hidden uncomfortable nature of his character. So when we do finally get to see him, Cage is on top form however the make-up department have given him this mask to wear and it looks really cheap. Evidently they had a limited budget with this film, but that’s why the technique of showing a bit less worked more than showing the entire thing, as he does look kind of goofy. Also, Cage is really under-used here. Already mentioned about the lack of backstory, but also in general he’s only in maybe 3-4 scenes but isn’t allowed space to delve too deeper into the demonic mindset of this character.

I do appreciate Oz Perkins’ directing style, as the cinematography was solid and he has some fun with changing the aspect ratio throughout the film to create a sense of claustrophobia, and each scene is filled with that unsettling sense of paranoia, however the movie does suffer from a slow overdrawn pace, and the central mystery in reality is so predictable you can guess what’s happening a mile away. Then when the movie ends fairly abruptly, there’s definitely a lack of satisfaction when it’s over.

It does feel that due to the effective hyped up marketing and the comparisons to Silence of the Lambs have built this movie up to being something truly spectacular, when in reality it’s an okay serial killer flick with elements of the supernatural that has moments of greatness, primarily due to Nicolas Cage, even though, again, his legs aren’t even that long.

Overall score: 6/10

[ssenncex]

Cr: Pinterest

[horrorcrawl]

The City of the Dead / Horror Hotel (1960)💀

Director: John Llewellyn Moxey (Vulcan) Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Horror, Occult 💀 Notes: Witch's Curse, Christopher Lee, Devil Worship, Occult, Atmosphere, Set Design, Black/White Film🖤🤍

Review: I think this movie is great (thank you cousin for the recommendation), from the female lead following her own interests into the occult studies and finding clues to what's going down in the haunting little village of Whitewood, the roll of young Christopher Lee as mentor, the eerie mystery atmosphere and set design like you're watching a spooky campfire story come to screen there is a lot to love. Overall I give The City of the Dead(1960): Must Watch 🖤

[bestlaidplansproductions]

Hey Tumblr... would you play our game, Save the Villainess?

Our demo is dropping this summer and contains one brave and brilliant villainess, one romance novel she cannot remember, and five love interests who may be out to murder her.

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[schlock-luster-video]

On May 21, 2003, Ringu was released on VHS in Italy.

Here's some new Sadako art!

[in-dire-read]

The House Across The Lake (Book Review)

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4 Stars)

Information

Author: Riley Sager

Genre: Thriller

Length: 349 pages

Series: N/A

Summary

Casey Fletcher, a widowed actress seeking refuge at her family’s lake house in Vermont, spends her days watching her wealthy neighbours, Tom and Katherine Royce, across the lake. After saving Katherine from drowning, the two women form a friendship, but Casey soon realizes their seemingly perfect marriage is hiding dark secrets. When Katherine suddenly disappears, Casey becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth, leading to a chilling story of voyeurism, guilt, and deception.

Thoughts

There were several elements I absolutely loved. One of the standout revelations was that Len was the one behind the disappearances of the local missing girls—a dark and gripping twist that kept me on the edge of my seat. I also appreciated Boone, the handyman next door, who immediately dove into investigating what happened to Katherine with an admirable sense of urgency. 

The twist of Katherine being possessed by Len was a surprise that I thoroughly enjoyed, adding an eerie layer to the story. The reveal of the truth behind Len’s accidental drowning tied the plot together in a chilling way. However, there was one element I didn’t quite connect with. While I understand that the main character’s excessive drinking was a coping mechanism to forget her trauma, it seemed like a lot for one person to block out—though I’m no expert in psychology, so I could be wrong there. 

These highs and lows made for an intense and memorable reading experience.

[her-stars]

my dream is to have a trip going to horror movie and supernatural-drama tv show locations with my favorite person 🩷

[clemsfilmdiary]

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (1973, John Newland)

4/28/24