What Is A Cozy Horror & How Do I Write One?

A cozy horror is a relatively new sub-genre of horror. In this post, we explore what a cozy horror is, with examples. We also give you tips on how to write a cozy horror.

What Is A Cozy Horror?

Cozy horror is a relatively new sub-genre of horror. Rather than going for a bleak or emotionally stressful effect, it leans toward the absurd and even hopeful. The goal is to provide a pleasant scare, not traumatic damage. The horror exists, but it doesn’t disturb the characters too much. There is often a sense of fun that leads to a comfortable, entertaining read or viewing. ‘In mainstream media, movies and series such as Beetlejuice, The Addams Family, Interview with the Vampire, and even Scooby-Doo … are classic examples of cozy horror that allow readers to build up a tolerance for all things scary.’ (Penguin Random House)

How Do I Write A Cozy Horror?

Key points:

Tone: Creepy but not terrifying.
Setting: Small towns, or fun fantasy worlds (with silly vampires and such).
Tropes: Monsters, ghosts, or curses, but often humorous ones.
Characters: Likable odd characters who are playful amid the horror.
Mood: Often nostalgic with gentle dread that can often be overlooked.

The structure and plot are as follows in many cases:

1. Establishing comfort in the setting.

The setting can be anywhere from a small town to the biggest city. What matters is that it seems low stakes from the point of view of the protagonist. This will help set the tone to fun with a chance of danger. The goal created by the setting will be some personal wish/desire of the protagonist.

Example: A zombie outbreak makes it impossible to go to work. Which is great because your protagonist hates his job. So, he is free to do whatever he wants for the first time. And thusly, he decides to go on a heroic zombie-slaying pilgrimage to places he always wanted to travel to. (Zom 100)

2. A disturbance the protagonist can live with or enjoy.

The inciting moment must contain a threat. But not one that is not so world-ending that your character can’t still have fun.

Example: Sure the world has seen a vampire takeover and most of it is now under the control of the blood-sucking menace but your protagonist is the heir to the Van Helsing blood line and is thus able to easily dispatch any vampire he comes across. (What We Do in the Shadows)

3. An investigation or adventure.

The story goal is when your protagonist finds something to do.

Example: They find another world that is a mirror of our world. It even has your family. It seems better than the one we live in. People are kinder. But it is a trap (metaphor); the protagonist must learn to overcome adversity or be stuck in the shadow world forever. (Coraline)

4. Confrontation that turns to healing.

The character changes. Your protagonist should have a turning point where they can no longer just have fun but must make a stand.

Example: Perhaps zombies are destroying the one place in their life that they don’t want to lose. They might have to make a heroic last stand, end up losing a dear friend. But, ultimately coming out of the fight ahead. (Shaun of the Dead)

5. A semblance of restoration.

There is an ending. The world enters a new phase. Where things are different but life goes on.

Example: Although the ghost of his haunted home raised him, your protagonist must leave this place. He bids them farewell and moves out into the wider world. (The Graveyard Book (Ghosts) or Faraway Paladin (Monsters))

Examples Of A Cozy Horror

Books

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman — A boy raised by ghosts in a graveyard, eerie but heart-warming. Quote: “You’re always you, and that don’t change, and you’re always changing, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix — Family trauma and haunted puppets, emotional, funny, and unsettling. Quote: “Houses remember everything. Even when the people inside try to forget.”
A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher — A return to one’s ancestral home in rural North Carolina leads the protagonist into family secrets, a house with quirks, and Southern-gothic horror with a dose of wit. Quote: “It was the kind of Southern spring day that smelled like new beginnings and pollen.”

Films & Television

Coraline — A mirror world that seems better at first glance. Dark fairy-tale horror with a whimsical aesthetic.
What We Do in the Shadows — Four useless vampires take over a sleepy American suburb near New York and do nothing for hundreds of years due to being consumed by their own personal drama. They have a faithful human familiar descended from the dread vampire slayer Van Helsing himself.

Games

Graveyard Keeper – A game where you manage a spooky graveyard

Anime

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead — The world is over… That means I don’t have to go to work ever again! Hooray! “If I’m going to die someday anyway, I might as well enjoy every day until then.” — Akira Tendo

The Last Word

Cozy horror should be a good time with horror elements. It should not be stressful. You are writing something for a reader to relax to after a hard day that can make them giggle and even feel a sense of longing for your world. You want to build your horror off a foundation of calm moving into manageable disturbances leading to a sense of change and betterment but in a cute, possibly bizarre way.

[Cozy horror is a sub-genre of the broader cozy fiction genre, which includes cozy fantasy and cozy mystery.]

Additional Reading:

Source for image: Pixabay

Christopher Luke Dean writes and facilitates for Writers Write. Follow him on Twitter: @ChrisLukeDean

What Is A Cozy Horror & How Do I Write One?