Here are nine basic types of plots you’ll find in the bones of a lot of horror novels. Some novels stick to the script of just one of these while others pick and choose parts of multiple types to build a narrative entirely their own. Want to read about other types of plots? Check out these 8 kinds of murder mystery plots or these 10 types of crime plots. Often, these people are inhumanely indestructible and manage to survive any number of attacks that should have killed them. The babysitter or the teenage girl is often a target, their dedication to taking her out occasionally spanning decades. A few novels that fit this type of plot include Hairspray and Switchblades by V. Castro or The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix. If you like this type of horror plot, try Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon or Little Heaven by Nick Cutter. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia with High Place, the house in Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey, or The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson are all great examples. In psychological horror, the main character is often questioning their own sanity, whether it be because of a traumatic event, mental stress, or because it was purposely caused by someone. With these, the scary parts boil down to how easily someone or something is able to get into a character’s head and play with their emotions or even their reality. Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs is a great example of this. While the book does feature a serial killer, it’s really about Clarice and her relationship with the psychologist and the ways in which he can get under her, and everyone else’s, skin. I’m Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid and This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno are also great examples of how psychological horror can leave even the reader questioning what really happened after all. Then, there’s body horror. This type of plot digs into what can go wrong with the human body: the things it can grow and the ways it can break. Mutations, diseases, even possession can fit in this type of plot. Characters often discover the thing happening to their body early in the story and whatever it is progresses until they either kill the parasite or become something else entirely. The Fly, Tusk, and Human Centipede are all popular film examples. For novel examples, check out Annihilation by Jeff VenderMeer or the novella Helpmeet by Naben Ruthnum.
