My annual Horror Genre Preview article is in the July 2024 issue of Library Journal and now online here. Everyone gets a few views for free so you should be able to read it.
The format changed this year. I got fewer words but there is also a LARGE spreadsheet of titles I am suggesting people buy for all library collections. It is a shopping list to make your job easier. There is also a link to Emily Hughes' list for even more titles.
While they did edit the piece for length, most of what I wanted to say is intact (to be fair, I always go over so that my editor, Melissa has room to work). You can click here or on the introduction below to access the article.
For those who want access to the unedited article (which has more quotes), you can click here.
The article also includes this interview with Rachel Harrison. Thank you to her for doing this. For sure her book-- So Thirsty-- is one of the most anticipated titles of this Fall... in any genre.
Get ready to break you budgets (not to mention your TBR), but get those orders in now because your readers will thank you come the onset of Spooky Season.
Fiction Shows Its Fangs | Horror Fiction Preview 2024
by Becky Spratford
Jul 09, 2024 | Filed in Reviews+Fall 2024 is a showcase of horror. A who’s who of authors have books publishing this season, underscoring the genre’s continued renaissance, the likes of which readers have not seen in decades—since Stephen King’s Carrie launched the last horror surge in the mid-20th century. This new era, however, reflects a significant change in the genre. The voices it marginalized for so long—women, LGBTQIA+ individuals, and people of color—are now leading the genre forward, channeling the horrors of their real-world existences into spectacularly terrifying tomes.
By including more voices, the genre has not only allowed itself to blossom, but it has also brought more readers along for the terrifying ride. Gabino Iglesias, the New York Times Book Review horror columnist and award-winning horror novelist tells LJ, “We are in a new golden era of horror. The genre is healthier than ever and more diverse than it’s ever been, which means we’re getting horror narratives from a rich variety of perspectives and positionalities. We’re also seeing horror mixing with more genres than ever before, and that means that everyone can find horror they like, no matter what their reading preferences are.
“It’s a superb moment to be a fan of horror, or to become one,” Iglesias continues. “A great time to be a horror writer too. We were the weird kids not allowed to sit at Literature’s table, so we made our own with bones and a lot of swagger. Now we get to look out and proudly say we’re doing it our way, and everyone is welcome. Long live horror.”
As horror expands its reach, several key trends are emerging this season, including the return of the vampire, which sees the eternal creature that has been adopted by romance and fantasy coming back to the genre that birthed it. Psychological horror is also surging, reflecting society and underscoring a pervasive feeling of existential dread. Look as well for books in which women take control of the narrative and for horror novels in translation.
A downloadable list of all titles mentioned can be found here.
Click here to see the full piece on Library Journal's site.
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