Last week, Chinese famous horror story writer Zhou Dedong attended a launching ceremony of his new book, Qi Men Dun Jia. The many copies of his new book put on display at the ceremony were quickly sold out in just a few hours. Previously, another horror novel, Gui Chui Deng (the ghost blows out the lamp), also became the favorite pick among novel lovers.

Industrial analysts say that horror novels written by domestic writers are widely read by people these days. Many people like to read horror stories or watch horror films. This new trend has aroused the concern of some psychologists who say that people who indulge in horror stories might have some psychological problems.

Xiao Ding, a 30-year-old guy who works as a truck driver at the Beijing Dahongmen Logistics Center, is a horror story lover. His home is full of CDs and books about horror films.

“I will read or watch them whenever I have the time. Many of the horror stories are made in series. I find them quite interesting,” Xiao Ding said.

In Beijing, there are many horror story lovers like Xiao Ding, said an article in the Beijing Morning Post. Many horror story lovers even gather together from time to time to discuss about the stories they have read or watched. They talk about the story plots and the photographing techniques and share each other’s collections. Reading horror books or watching horror films has become a main activity for them to kill the time.

“I am scared by horror stories. However, at the same time, I feel even more excited by reading them,” a student at the Renmin University of China who remained anonymous told this reporter.

As people face more pressure in their work and study, they find life quite boring. Sometimes people “want to look for some excitement in life.” In the investigation, this reporter found that many people who read horror stories shared this kind of thinking. To them, reading horror stories or watching horror films can alleviate their pressure in life.

In 2006, China introduced a large number of horror books from abroad, a book publisher said. 2006 also served as a beginning for the rapid development of horror books at home. In 2006, many horror books from home and abroad were repeatedly chosen as the bestsellers by book stores and the trend has continued into 2007. Now publishers recognize that there is a large potential market for horror stories.

(China News Service September 14, 2007)