What Makes a Good Horror Story or Novel: 5 Key Components

Exorcist, first edition

What makes a good horror story or novel?

Ask a dozen horror writers that question, and you’ll probably get twelve different responses.

But I’m willing to be there would be some overlap as well. That’s where the wisdom lies.

The genre has been around for so long, we have a pretty good idea as to what works and why. At its core, a good horror story or novel creates believable (and sometimes ordinary) characters and puts them into extreme situations. Situations where...