Creepy Bitches: Essays On Horror From Women In Horror

by Alyse Wax, Rebekah McKendry

For far too long, horror has been considered a male genre, made by men, marketed to men, and enjoyed by men. But in the last decade, we have seen an emergence of women as horror filmmakers, academics, and fans, all making sure their voices were heard! Editors Alyse Wax and Rebekah McKendry, PhD have gathered some of the greatest minds in horror film theory—all women—to discuss their love of the genre.

The scope of Creepy Bitches covers all areas of the horror genre, film industry, and fandom – from the Cronenbergian experience of giving birth to how The X-Files plays in the #MeToo moment; from growing up at Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion to growing up in a video store. The book explores gender roles in The Creature From the Black Lagoon trilogy and Mexican horror cinema, as well as the bisexual energy of I Know What You Did Last Summer. It covers the therapeutic benefits of watching horror and how to love home invasion movies again after experiencing real-life trauma. But the book’s overarching purpose is to celebrate new voices and increase our understanding of women in the horror realm, celebrating that horror does not only scare us, but helps us understand the world around us, providing a lens through which to view and explore our own selves.

Genres: Nonfiction, Horror, Film, Gender

204 pages, Paperback

First published June 9, 2021

Reviews

[Nora · Rating 2 out of 5]

The idea of this book is way better than the book itself, which kinda broke my heart. Needed editing, balance, and more. A couple of strong pieces, but alongside others, the stronger pieces seem like they showed up that way.

[Kathryn Grace Loves Horror · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horror has been seen as man's domain, and I've never quite understood why. I'm the biggest horror fan I've ever met, and I have a lot of women friends that like horror a lot too. There are also a ton of women out there working in the horror field, and Creepy Bitches collects some of those women's essays on the genre in one entertaining book.

The essays range from analytical to personal to a cross between the two. I enjoyed almost all of them. There were some that I liked better than others and only two that didn't really work for me. My favorites include "Underground Horror: The New York City Subway Scene and its Effect on my Daily Commute" by Jean Wexler, "Taking the 'Ick' Out of Icthyology: Gender in the Creature from the Black Lagoon Trilogy" by Heather Hendershot and Stacie Ponder's "Passing Into Myth: Candyman and the Final Woman." (Ponder is also the writer of the excellent Final Girl blog). I admit I almost skipped Hendershot's essay - I'm not a huge fan of the Creature from the Black Lagoon - but am glad I didn't, as it turned out to be one of the most fascinating in the collection.

Creepy Bitches is a must read for horror fans in general, but especially those of the women-identifying type. This feminist horror fan, at least, was not disappointed.

[Shant · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book with a wide variety of subjects covered in a short amount of space. I liked the X-Files, I Know What You Did Last Summer, and Creature from the Black Lagoon chapters, as well as the last chapter, for how what is a monster has changed for each decade. For the personal essays, I liked the one about pregnancy, as well as the one about growing up in a town too rural for Halloween.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very enjoyable collection of essays on all dimensions of the horror genre from gender studies to the affect of horror on life in general. A must read for horror scholars and lovers of the genre alike.

[Matthew Barker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this. Anybody who likes horror should read this. Brought back so many memories of my own original delving into horror movies and tv as a kid.

[Jess Hagemann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enough compelling ideas in this book to keep me reading until the end, but a good editor would have gone a long way here.

[Slendernose]

FAVES:
A Cure for Your Disco Problems
The Elvira One
The Therapeutic Benefits of Horror for …

[D'Artagnan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Juvenile essays not worth reading.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to buy and read this book simply due to the inclusion of some of my very favorite horror writers and podcasters, namely Dr. Rebekah McKendry (my queen!!!), Zena Dixon, and Stacie Ponder. And they didn't disappoint. I love the passion here, and how each writer gets to just geek out about how much the love the genre.

I have mixed feelings about the quality of each essay. I think it needed to be edited down a bit. And I also would have liked a more cohesive theme to the book, since it seemed like some of the writers just phoned it in with some horror-related memories. But the good stuff is really good, and I love to see my horror ladies in action!