thewritingcafe:
BASICS
Horror is considered a separate genre, but these three genres often overlap.
Sub Genres:
Paranormal Romance: Romance with a paranormal element. However, the romance outweighs the paranormal aspect in most cases, but is still an integral part to the story.
Urban Fantasy: Urban fantasy is often used interchangeably with “paranormal”. It takes place in urban areas and has fantasy, paranormal, or supernatural elements.
Dark Fantasy: This genre is a cross over between horror and fantasy. It has fantasy and horror elements, but does not focus on them as heavily as other genres. This would be considered paranormal rather than supernatural.
Gothic Horror: This used to be the name for the horror genre. This genre is not related to the goth fashion style. There are several forms of this genre (English, American, southern) that may involve romance or a sense of being “trapped”. Paranormal creatures (like ghosts and other creatures associated with the afterlife or death) are quite popular in this genre.
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HORROR
See Basic Horror Writing Guide for a general overview and some resources.
There is often a paranormal or supernatural element in horror, most likely some form of ghosts. However, there are also other elements present.
Certain abilities given to humans may fall within this category. This can include telekinesis, clairvoyance, and telepathy, among others. However, these abilities often come secondary to the horror element or the main horror creatures (ghosts, psychological torture, etc.). They should come second if horror is the main aspect of the story. Once these elements become primary, you’ve left the horror genre (primarily).
But, as with horror, including paranormal and supernatural elements must be there to further the thrill, suspense, or horror of the story. With supernatural and paranormal fiction, those elements should be integral to the story.
Using Magic in Horror Fiction
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PARANORMAL VS SUPERNATURAL
This is a personal opinion
Supernatural: Something inexplicable that defies the laws of nature or something that was once a part of nature, only to defy it.
Paranormal: Something that shows signs of being beyond scientific understanding.
As noted in the definitions above, supernatural deals with transformation from the ordinary to the impossible. Paranormal deals with something beyond us, like clairvoyance.
Paranormal fiction tends to be lighter and it often has a romantic feel to it. When I say “romantic”, I do not necessarily mean love, but showing something in a light that makes it better than it actually is. Supernatural fiction tends to fall on the side of gritty horror more often than not.
What falls under each definition depends on who you ask, but abilities (for example, telekinesis) are generally considered paranormal while certain creatures (werewolves and vampires) are considered supernatural.
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CREATURES & CLICHES
With this genre comes otherworldly creatures. Right now, the genre is heavy with angels, demons, vampires, and werewolves. While there’s nothing wrong with writing about those creatures, it’s good to expand. After all, supernatural and paranormal are forms of fantasy. You can do anything.
Research some underused creatures and put a new twist on them. Use them as a base for a creature of your own creation. Go nuts with these creatures and make them unique.
They can thrive in one environment and suffer in another. They can be subject to evolution. They can be associated with a certain element or symbol. Give them odd abilities and give them reasons for this. Make up your own mythologies.
Yet with the four main creatures mentioned above comes cliches. We’re all sick of them and you should challenge yourself to write outside these cliches, though you can still rework a cliche and make it unique.
There is a group of cliches in paranormal romance that stand out from the rest because they are harmful. For example, male love interests who are brooding, possessive, and creepy yet written as desirable.
An important point to remember when you’re creating creatures is not to go so far that these become something else entirely. You can’t take away the fundamental characteristics if you’re trying to be unique. That destroys the creature. Your vampires don’t have to sleep in coffins or turn into bats, but you can’t really take away the blood drinking thing, can you? That’s the main characteristic of vampiric creatures (and there are many).
More:
Ten Worst Vampire Cliches
The A-Typical Vampire
Supernatural Creatures Inspiration/Definitions
Vampire Cliches
Werewolf Cliches
Werewolf Genre Pet Peeves
Writing an Overused Supernatural Creature
Vampire Tropes
A Guide on Zombies
Guide to Ghosts
Describing Fantastic Creatures
How to Make Your Supernatural Characters Unique
Myths, Creatures, and Folklore
Werebeast Tropes
Tropes of the Living Dead
Writing Zombies
Sea Creatures
Birds: Mythology
Cliches in Paranormal Novels
Is Your YA Paranormal Romance Cliche Enough? (chart)
Cliches in Paranormal Romance
Top 13 Paranormal Romance Cliches
YA Common Cliches: Paranormal Romance
Overplayed Urban Fantasy Cliche 1 2 3 4
Fantasy/Urban Fantasy Cliches
Mythical Creatures List
Mythical Creatures A-Z
List of Mythical Creatures
Magical/Mythical Creatures
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MUSIC
Some music to listen to while writing:
Bad Moon Rising | Black River Killer | Blood Circus | Come Little Children | Davy Jones Music Box | Ghost Riders in the Sky | Hell | Hell Hound Blues | Herr Drosselmeye’s Doll | Hotel California | House of the Rising Sun | The Killing Moon | Mr Crowley | Oogie Boogie’s Song | Sympathy for the Devil | This House is Haunted | This is Halloween | Void
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BOOKS
Supernatural Romance
Books with Angels, Gods, or Demons
Best Gothic Books of All Time
Ghost Stories
Angels & Demons
Vampires
Favorite Ghost Stories
Best Books About Faeries
Paranormal’s/Urban Fantasies That Don’t Suck
Haunted Houses
Paranormal in New Orleans
Best Gothic Novels/Suspense Novels
Forbidden Love in Fantasy/Paranormal/Supernatural
Supernatural and Addictive Fantasy
Best Shapeshifters
Books with Supernatural Females
Bone Chilling Paranormal Romance
Anything But Vampires
19th Century Supernatural Horror
Gay Horror
I See Dead People
Killer Ghost Stories
Uncommon Supernatural Creatures
Gothic Paranormal
Best Adult Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance
Indie Books - Paranormal Fiction
Humorous Paranormal Books
Hot Paranormal Romance
Werewolf and Shifter Romance
Paranormal Book Lists
Not the “Normal” Paranormal
Literary Fiction Meets Paranormal Romance
Gay Paranormal Romance
Lesbian Paranormal/Urban Fantasy
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MORE
Writing the Supernatural Action-Thriller
Five Tips to Writing a Believable Supernatural Themed Book
Elements of a Paranormal Novel
Supernatural Genre
Magic-Like Psychic Abilities
Introduction to Writing the Paranormal Novel
Five Tips for Writing Paranormal Romance