FANTASTIC REALMS
New fears
What trends might we see in horror in 2023? Alex Davis outlines the major contenders for putting the frighteners on your readers in the year ahead
Alex Davis
Over the years, horror has been through many different phases and movements – and while it is fair to say that all genres change over time, I feel horror is particularly flexible and fleet of foot. I’ve been known to argue that horror is an effect rather than a genre per se, which makes it malleable and something you can easily combine with different elements. As such, horror is the most reactive of genres, and is nimbly able to respond to what we are afraid of at the time it is written. Our preoccupations and worries change over time both on an individual and a societal level. Of course that can vary from country to country – with different concerns in different places – so there will be a bit of consideration here for that also.
But as we get into the earliest parts of 2023, we’re going to take a look at what some of the key themes of horror might be this year, and perhaps even beyond…
Technology
I’d argue that technology has been a growing trend in horror, especially as its influence continues to feature ever more in our lives. That of course isn’t a new concept, but during the height of COVID and the lockdown periods this doubtless advanced even faster than usual. We all went through months and months of Zoom and Skype calls, online events and activities, virtual lessons and much more besides. All of that required us to download new apps or perhaps even buy new hardware to keep the human connection we all crave – and equally a lot of the technology we had in that time is not disappearing now things are returning to ‘normal’.