All American Horror of the 21st Century

Introduction

INTRODUCTION

by Mort Castle

Let’s talk about the unique, but often ignored, sub-genre of literature: American Horror.

It might be argued that American Horror begins with Ye Olde Master, Edgar Allan Poe, himself who wrote some of it, philosophized greatly about it, and lived way too much of it. Whatever the beginnings (which you can argue about in your next term paper), American Horror is distinguished by certain definitively American, rather than universal, themes, by a decided vigorousness of constantly evolving language in even the most cerebral of stories, and by tropes thought of as quintessentially American. It’s not wrong to say that American horror can be recognized as much for what it is not and does not as for what is.

The worldly Middle European count with a long history and longer fangs and the quaint ghost of the manor house are not likely to be found in the American horror story, which could more likely be peopled with inbred, chainsaw swinging morons.

There will be that “rose for Aramantha” on that silken pillow in our Southern Gothic crumbling mansion, next to Aramantha’s fetid corpse, but the cursed vase, necklace, rabbit’s foot will find its natural habitat in the haunted museum in Liverpool and not in Rd Gein’s combination garage-rumpus room-workshop-abattoir.

In the first decade of this century, new American voices in horror were heard and the older guard undertook horrifying (literary) experiments (many of them successful) to grow the horror genre. There were horrors in convenience stores and condominiums, monsters bred of steroid use and crack cocaine, and of course, there was 9/11, when horror invaded the security of the mundane and changed everything and every American.

Perhaps citing examples of American Horror scribes and their not so American counterparts might help to define the category, and thus, not implying anything about quality ...

American Horror: Stephen King, Jack Ketchum, Bentley Little, Weston Ochse, Joe R. Lansdale, Jeff Jacobson, Dean Koontz. Not American Horror (notice, I did not say “Un-American”): Clive Barker, Thomas Ligotti, Ramsey Campbell, usually, Anne Rice.

Sometimes American Horror: Wayne Allen Sallee, Tina L. Jens, David Niall Wilson,Tom Monteleone, Steve Rasnic Tem.

Brief Digression: Some of the American/Sometimes American writers can be found in this very volume, yessir, you betcha! But in selecting these stories, I’ve often tried to present gems of American horror fiction that might have been lost in Internet obscurity or the Arcane Archives of Small Press Magazinedom read mainly by people hoping to write for small press magazines.)

Back to Matters Lit’ry: American Horror: not just about setting, it’s about sensibility. It’s not what is filled in on “Country of Origin” on your official papers, it’s about your “World Perception.” It’s not subject matter alone that differentiates painters Gustave Caillebotte from Frederic Remington, nor the folk themes employed by composer Modest Mussorgsky (Russian, in case you couldn’t figure it out) from those of Red, White, and Blue Aaron Copeland. It’s an approach which can be contemplative but still has a degree of cowboy consciousness, it’s a fierce independence in tone and style which might well be seen as the prime motivation for both Daniel Boone and Chuck Palahniuk, or Teddy Roosevelt and Jackson Pollock.

American Horror: Well, this bubbling national cauldron, if not exactly a melting pot, gives us the abiding bedrock horror of our unique style of racism, gives us our “never say die – smile is my umbrella even when the mushroom clouds are blooming” attitude, gives us that mind control voodoo that Clyde Cult King can pull off in ways that would make Svengali scratch his head, gives us the non-British sound of a rocking rolling rapping exploding amplifier turned way the hell past 11.

I can say, just like that All American Supreme Court of the Nixon Era (Yes, an American horror and tragedy his own se’f ) rendering its ruling on pornography ...

“Heh, can’t quite define it, but I know it when I see it.”

So do you, right?

Guess so, pilgrim, looks like it amigo, seems as if, citizen.

Because you are holding in your very own hand this cultural testament and time capsule: All American Horror Of The 21st Century: The First Decade.

Let us go then, you and I ...

Nah.

That’s much too ivory tower high-minded, even with the grammar goof.

Hey-Ho, Let’s go ...

Nah!

Punk is world-view, not confined to national boundaries.

Whatever … WTF …

No, let’s begin with invitation most traditional, plucked from the working vocabulary of a gazillion hash-slinging honeys in those crossroads diners that no longer exist: I give you All American Horror of The 21st Century: The First Decade.

Enjoy!

Mort Castle

May 12, 2011