Women in Horror

References to the lesser status of women are all around. They can be found in the Bible, in ancient texts, and in literature. Women have historically been considered sexual beings and when sexuality was taboo, so were women. Many cultures maintain that a distance be between male and female; their relationships are structured so that the women are subservient to men. As went life, so went literature. Female characters were periphery, as likely to be left out of a piece as not. While this trend gradually changed over time, it was slow going. From silent, milling bystanders, women became important to the storyline because of how the men in the tale reacted. “… [T]he novel depicted women as viewed by men, and the typical heroines were either paragons of virtue or of vice.” It wasn’t until the eighteenth century that women created work that made society take exceptional notice. The horror genre saw the likes of Ann Radcliffe change the way that women were viewed in horror fiction: her propensity toward advocating women’s rights in her work creating a form of reform through osmosis. She joined a handful of women (notably Jane Austen) who changed the face of fiction. Did those changes make an impact on how female horror authors are regarded in present day?

The questions posed in this section lead to the supposition that while women are viewed differently in this century than in times past, gender still plays a part in how their literary work is accepted. This is shown in published statistics, industry surveys, and a questionnaire conducted as research for this paper. Respectively, women continue to write and excel in their field, however their work is not reviewed as often as males. Per The Guardian, at The New York Times Review of Books, of the number of authors reviewed, “… 83% are men (306 compared to 59 women and 306 men), and the same statistic is true of reviewers (200 men, 39 women).” A survey conducted by VIDA Women in Literature reveals that female authors make less than male authors in the same genres. Ten people (five women and five men) were surveyed as part of the research for this paper. They were asked two questions, one of which was to name three authors. Some struggled with naming three, but of the three male respondents who met the criteria, only one named at least one female author.

A popular argument exists to explain the issue at hand. It states that female authors are not writing in genres that appeal overwhelmingly to men, therefore, men are not buying it. As Cruz aptly pondered, “As women, are we pigeon-holing female authors and creating subgroups for them, stunting their growth as writers?” The final question of the research questionnaire asked 10 people to name the genre they enjoyed reading most. Romance topped the list (3 of 10 responses). Science fiction and mystery made the list as well, among other genres. There was no consensus on genre among the male respondents, whereas 60 percent of the female respondents chose romance. None of the 10 respondents chose horror as their genre of choice. These results are further legitimized by the assertion made by Penny Sansevieri as quoted by Cruz, ”I really think the problem is that men are in stronger categories generally—thrillers, mystery, political thrillers, horror, suspense, etc.” These results bring another question to the forefront. If the statistics gathered by the National Endowment for the Arts report are correct, women buy and read more books than men. That reality should serve as a boon to genres within which female authors are predominately read, negating the subgroups created by individual interest and elevating their status in mainstream consumer markets. Why is this not occurring?

Is there a double standard? Can men and women of equal talent and similar style write about the same subject matter and be reviewed and, subsequently, received differently? The propensity for women to assume male pennames when they write in so-called stronger categories/genres begs the question. Are women relegated, in large part, to what has been termed chick lit or beach books (lighter material designed for fanciful escapism) if they are to be successful? Either that, or mask their work as that of a male? Finally, for the female author, is the horror genre too commercially unrewarding to claim? Many female authors who have written horror fiction merely dabble in it, coming to visit for a time, then moving on to greener pastures. Mary Shelley did the same as many contemporary female authors, offering a fantastic piece of work in Frankenstein and moving on to write in other genres. Gender appears to be a defining factor in the success of the female author.

Perhaps men push harder. In the mid to late 1970s, horror fiction made a surge. Authors found success in their released novel and, shortly thereafter, the film adaptation. A newcomer named Stephen King produced a different kind of horror fiction, one that was as believable as an anecdote told at a family gathering. His work resonated with people, scaring them deeper than they expected and keeping them wanting more. Many authors felt they could replicate his style and saturated the market with formulaic, predictable volumes. In the figurative shoving match for leverage, perhaps men gained an advantage.

There is a final reason for the marginalization of female authors in the horror genre, and this, perhaps is the most disturbing: the perception that women just can’t do it. Does society think that males write horror fiction better than women? Do they believe that women are too fragile to imagine unsettling horrors? If dark thoughts lurk in a woman’s mind, is it somehow improper (unladylike?) for them to be entertained and transposed onto a page for all to read? Is this mindset a socialized gender bias? Perhaps there is some merit to the latter. Miller states that, “Conventional wisdom among professionals in the children’s book business is that while girls will read books about either boys or girls, boys only want to read about boys.” Children often take on the characteristics of their parents and respond to what they see. While there is a place for inherent proclivity, much of early learning is parroting. If parents are buying books that are considered gender appropriate (based on societal rules for male and female behavior), children will gravitate to them naturally when they begin to make their own selections. As children age, their interests may change, but the notions of male and female behavior have solidified. Hence the interminable cycle.

An interesting connection exists: those who are more interested in reading literature written by a male were, more than likely, taught by a woman. According to Anderson, “A 2006 study by the National Education Association showed that preschool and elementary school children are taught by 75 percent more female than male teachers.” This trend, albeit with fluctuating percentages, has always existed. Students are more likely to be taught by women in all disciplines and at all grade levels. Is it more acceptable to learn how to write from a woman than to read a woman’s work? The answer to that question lies in many practices and mindsets that persevere in history and to date in not only gender, but also racial and cultural settings.

Women continue to write and publish around the world. While the US and UK produce most of the commercial horror fiction, female authors are influenced by the genre globally. Horror fiction is experiencing a lull in written form and an uptick in visual media as adaptations from past novels are created for movies and television, but that has not stopped the likes of Sara Pinborough and Helen Oyeyemi from producing stellar work in the genre. The horror genre itself is ailing—the change in layout at major bookstores reveals that truth. Horror is lumped in with Thriller, Mystery, and Suspense in some locales, and in other bookstores, the heading of Fiction covers all genres outside of the nonfiction bucket. This reduces the chance that a horror book by a new author might be selected if not deliberately sought out; layouts such as these require readers to know the name of the author they are looking for, as does online shopping.

While we watch the changing of an era, as bookstores close their doors in favor of online storefronts, one can’t help but wonder about the future of the horror genre and, by extension, the fate of the female horror author. Online presence provides for a wider audience with cheap prices and instant gratification in the form of a download, so perhaps, as demographic marketing of horror advances, more people will be willing to try horror written by women. The Internet may prove to be the venue where the playing field is leveled and gender is no longer a factor.