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Christy Tidwell and Carter Soles note, in their introduction to Fear and Nature: Ecohorror Studies in the Anthropocene (2021), that “ecohorror is not defined only by fear of nature but also encompasses fear for nature” and thus that ecohorror “is not simply a venue for ecophobia" (14). Ecohorror, then, offers a unique vantage into our contemporary epoch, wherein factory farming and other Eurowestern practices of ecocidal, colonialist imperialism pose existential threats to human and more than human species.

Horror’s interest in the more than human world predates the relatively contemporary category of “ecohorror.” In Gothic Metaphysics: From Alchemy to the Anthropocene (2021), Jodey Castricano traces the genre’s ecological interests to its literary Gothic origins. She asserts that Gothic horror proves more prescient now than ever, stating: “In the time of the Anthropocene, the return of the concept of animistic interrelationship and interconnectedness cannot be overemphasized, if only because it is the harbinger of the failure of the Cartesian paradigm, which had once ‘seemed infallible to most Westerners’ and which has, arguably, contributed to the crisis facing the planet today with respect to climate change” (190).

In what ways, then, can horror fictions help us better understand relations between human and more than human animals? How do horror texts contend with the real-world horrors of capitalist human exceptionalism that justify the industrial exploitation and killing of more than human animals? How might horror’s “speculative” or “excessive” aesthetics offer insights into animals’ perceptual or experiential modalities? How does the horror genre employ its self-announcing affect to these ends?

Submissions are now open for Monstrum 8.2, a special issue devoted to horror and ecohorror’s engagements with veganism and animal liberation. We seek proposals for essays (5,000-7,000 words) devoted to horror texts, modalities, and philosophies with a focus on veganism or animal rights. Your essays might consider how issues of animal liberation present in canonical Gothic and horror fiction (e.g. the work of Shirley Jackson, Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe, Stephen King), in the Weird literary tradition (e.g. Algernon Blackwood, Robert Aickman, Thomas Ligotti), in works of folk horror, in horror cinema, or in contemporary and “understudied” horror texts. They might consider issues of animal liberation in works of Indigenous horror (e.g. Eden Robinson, Stephen Graham Jones, Owl Goingback), or how veganism manifests in horror texts by publicly vegan and vegetarian writers and filmmakers (e.g. Rob Zombie, Kathe Koja, Clive Barker, Dario Argento). We are open to all manner of proposals pertaining to the intersection of horror and animal liberation, including videographic criticism (video essays).

Proposals should be no longer than 500 words and should be submitted no later than Friday, November 15. For inquiries or further information, or to submit a proposal, please contact Guest Editor Mike Thorn.
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Proposal Guidelines
Proposals should include the following elements:

1. Title: A descriptive title for your essay.

2. Abstract: A concise summary of your proposed essay, identifying your object of study, articulating the main argument, and outlining your methodology/approach. If you are proposing a videographic essay, describe the methods and techniques you intend to use in your video essay, including how you plan to convey your ideas visually and aurally.

3. References: Provide a preliminary list of key texts, media objects, etc., that inform your project.

Please see the Monstrum submission guidelines for more information.