Phobias are everywhere. No matter what you fear, I'm sure there is a phobia that describes your fear perfectly. Below are some phobias that I believe should be associated with Halloween.
Pick one or more of the following phobias and use them in a spooky tale, whether or not you write it for Halloween. Have some fun with what you write.
Coimetrophobia is the fear of cemeteries. Cemeteries are full of dead bodies. Unless you happen to be a mortician, you probably don't want to be around any dead bodies, and cadavers tend to make people fearful. Being around a corpse just isn't any fun, especially if you are terrified of them. What if your character had coimetrophobia and was, for some reason, trapped in the morgue overnight?
Curcurbitphobia is the fear of pumpkins. Wow. I wonder, would someone with this fear even be afraid of pumpkin pie or any food made with pumpkin? That opens up so many possibilities. I would place a character with this phobia inside a room that is lit only by pumpkins with hideous faces carved in them. In the center of each pumpkin is a candle. One by one, the candles begin to burn out and he will be alone in the dark with all of these grotesque jack-o-lanterns. His mind fills with images of these things surrounding him and chewing him to death. These terrifying images make his hair stand on end.
Demonophobia or Daemonophobia is the fear of demons. Besides being a phobia, demonophobia is also a horror survival game. How would a person with demonophobia react if they were challenged to a game of demonphobia? Would they also have a phobia of the game? What if someone who knew of their fear had this particular game delivered to him on Halloween? Then the person who bought the game challenges the one who received it to a match.
Felinophobia or Galeophobia or Gatophobia is the fear of cats. I love black cats, but most people seem to associate them with witches and bad luck. I tried to find a specific phobia for fear of these beautiful animals, but there doesn't seem to be one in existence, at least not yet. Melanophobia is fear of the color black, so maybe melgatophobia, melfelinophobia, or melgaleophobia would be used for fear of black cats?
Hadephobia is the fear of hell. I would say that most people with demonophobia also would have hadephobia, since that is where demons reside. Someone with this phobia could be afraid that demons will be sent to capture them and force them to go to hell. Those who believe that Satan is stronger than God could fear eternal torment more than they trust in the One who was sent to save them.
Hemophobia or Hemaphobia or Hematophobia is the fear of blood. Those who make horror movies must feel that a lot of people have this fear, so they capitalize upon it in their movies. Remember the prom scene in Carrie, the one where blood poured down and covered her? What about the Friday the 13th movies? OrNightmare on Elm Street? People like to be scared, well, at least most of them do. But someone with hemophobia might not be particularly fond of movies such as these.
Herpetophobia is the fear of reptiles or creepy, crawly things. I love snakes, but I know from experience that not everyone feels the same way about them that I do. I remember that I used to have to hide my snakes before certain people visited because if they had realized I owned two snakes, they would not have come inside my house. People with this phobia are most definitely not comfortable around reptiles or any other creepy, crawly things. Their fear may go be so deep that they can't even see pictures of them, read about them, or talk about them without having a panic attack.
Hobophobia is the fear of bums or beggars (maybe trick-or-treaters). People fear homeless people, or hobos, possibly because they have a reputation of begging or stealing. Around Halloween, or beggar's night, this could expand into a fear of trick-or-treaters, who knock on doors and beg for treats. There could be a killer, who happens to be a midget, dressed up as a trick-or-treater. He is looking for one particular person. Who is he looking for and why? Where does hobophobia come into the tale?
Homicholophobia or Nebulophobia is the fear of fog. I'll be the first one to admit that fog is downright creepy. If the fog happens to be really thick, you can't even see what is right in front of you. Have a killer roaming the area when the fog sets in and you have a definite suspense or horror story.
I suggest stories for some of the above phobias. Feel free to use my suggestions, or come up with some of your own.
Are there any other phobias you feel should be associated with Halloween? Visit us in the forum and share them.
