TOP TEN HORROR WRITERS OF ALL TIME!

[@GuardianKnightoftheRealm]

"He is just so f'kng awesome I cant even STAND IT." As you're holding up The Stand and It. Bravo, Brian Lee Durfee. Bravo.

[@TheARJAY69]

The Stand is so big I can't even CARRIE IT.

[@angusorvid8840]

Great choices, all. I enjoy all of these authors. My number one favorite horror writer is John Farris, with Ramsey Campbell coming in a close second. I also am a big fan of Koontz up till about 2006, Robert McCammon, who deserves to be a household name, Peter Straub, who I consider superior to King in every way, Brian Lumley who is just a blast, Clive Barker who is a true poet of horror, and Dan Simmons, who is a literary acrobat, capable of mastery in any genre, and an absolute Shogun of horror. Yes, I love King, but I can't call him a favorite anymore. He was, but I began reading other horror writers in 1985 and discovered he wasn't the only show in town, just one of the best, and certainly the most successful. King deserves credit for lifting the horror genre to new heights of quality and popularity. The reason he is so popular is because he is so reliable and a constant fount of creativity. King was the first horror writer to bring horror into the rock and roll age, and it would take a boomer to do it. King is one reason I've never been down on my parents' generation. Every generation of writers has made a strong contribution to the genre, but King was the writer who told us, "Yes, it's okay to fear that rusty lawnmower in the corner of the garage, the neighbor's very large, very angry dog on the other side of your fence. Yes, the man who runs the antique store probably is in league with vampires and demons." King showed us the horror or adolescence with novels such as Carrie and IT; the insane love affair with cars and its dark side; how modern people would take on Satan himself in a post-apocalyptic wasteland; and the ghoulish afterlife of our favorite pets.

[@Michael_L_Morrison]

Great list! Agree with you about your number one selection.

[@JohnInTheShelter]

So glad to see you've got Peter Straub (RIP) on your list. I've continued to enjoy his books long after I drifted away from King. I just read GHOST STORY for the first time, after having a copy for forty years; it's good, but I liked SHADOWLAND, KOKO, IF YOU COULD SEE ME NOW more. His short novels are his finest work. Dan Simmons is one of the best fiction writers alive.

[@alexfrederick3404]

Great list. How about a top 10 cover paintings? Or top 10 covers? I love good cover paintings ... would love to see this.

[@B.LEE.DbrianleedurfeeREVIEWS]

I have thought of that. SOON!

[@alexfrederick3404]

@@B.LEE.DbrianleedurfeeREVIEWS Awesome ... can't wait!

[@jeremyadams1521]

Awesome list Mr. Durfee! Love your videos so much. Just wondering where you would rank some of the older Classic authors, like Lovecraft, Stoker, Shirley Jackson, Richard Matheson, Ira Levin, William Peter Blatty?

[@reginaldforthright805]

Don’t forget Poe, Shelley, Bradbury

[@saucebot7214]

Phenomenal list Mr Durfee. I’m definitely gonna check out de Lint. I picked up Graham Stephen Jones from your reviews. He’s awesome. I’ve gone into full collectors mode with Robert McCammon, which is hard because his books are rare and expensive. And my number favourite author of all time is the legend Stephen King.

[@cleverlydevisedmyth]

more people should know about "Carrion Comfort"! It just is a looooong read, LOL. Also, "Summer of Night" is kind of Dan Simmons' homage to King's "IT". Damn, it's sweet you have all those signed McCammon novels! I've owned "Boy's Life" for 30+ years and still haven't read it-maybe this summer? 🤔

[@guasiacosta5375]

Thanks to you and Mike reviews I take the chance of reading Stephen King and Iam so glad I did! I hated horror but King's writing changed my perception on horror. Sorry for the writing, english is not my main language.

[@saucebot7214]

Hey Guasi. I’m glad your enjoying Stephen King. While he is classified as horror and a lot of his books have horror elements, I think he is in a class of his own and can’t be defined to one genre. He is my number one favourite author of all time.

[@loudoesreviews]

Oooo! 360 panning! Getting fancy with the production values. Great list. Love Carrion Comfort. The Terror didn't stick the landing for me. Love McCammon's Matthew Corbett series. Stephen King has the most apt last name.

[@Saltkiing]

I love you telling us what and who you got signed by it really does inspire me to hunt for mccammon and Simmons signature 😆

[@myrarucker7953]

I just read tommyknockers. I really did like it.

[@djpowell5261]

The Ghost Road Blues Trilogy is Dope AF

[@johnriddlebaugh7436]

One writer I would put on my list of Top 10 Horror Writers would be Adam Nevill. I've only read one short story collection (SOME WILL NOT SLEEP) and two novels (THE RITUAL and HOUSE OF SMALL SHADOWS), but I thought his writing seemed reminiscent of late 19th/early 20th century horror such as MR James.

[@SiddhantParkar]

Glad to see Dan Simmons getting recognition. He’s quite overlooked these days.

[@Sunnyvalereject24]

What a kick ass video

[@yodaavataroflight3651]

I wasnt aware that Dan Simmons wrote horror novel (only knew him for his Sci Fi Hyperion Cantos serie. I've discovered several new authors such as Lumley and Joe hill thanks to this video, so thank ya for this list

[@angelaholmes8888]

I'm planning on reading joe hill book heart shaped box in December

[@StElna]

If you like 80s horror, check out Michael Talbot. The Bog is my favorite.

[@reginaldforthright805]

Good call. Night things is a great haunted house tale.

[@CliffsDarkGems]

Great list! I would add in some Ray Bradbury, Michael McDowell, and even possibly Michael Slade as seriously under-appreciated horror authors.

[@Darkfacts2080]

Agree with your top 2 authors as they are mine too. I would also recommend Michael McDowell, especially since you like Robert Mccammon. His style is very similar.

[@LetitiaTopp]

Have you ever read Richard Matheson?

[@KVP94Guitar]

I read 30 pages of Only The Good Indians and lost interest lol. I may go back and try again at some point

[@chevalierdulys]

let me put here four names - Bentley Little (if you want to try please go for The Association or The Store); Brian Keene; Tim Curran (Very gore, violent). Brian Lumley I love his lovecraftian novels... Where is HP Lovecraft? :P good choice of authors... loving horror and since a third of the novel I've read (around 1000) are horror. I love discover new ones..

[@camwatters644]

Still liking kings new work. Billy summers and mr mercedes different from older king but still real good

[@daveedmunds1109]

Great top ten. Very happy to see Peter Straub on there. Just getting into him and shocked at how good his writing is. Often portrayed as Stephen King's poor relation with their work on the Talisman and Black House. He certainly is not. The guy can write like a mo fo.

[@jimfarmar5939]

Peter Straub is Legend

[@AllenFreemanMediaGuru]

I was in a panic. Where is Robert McCammon??? Then he pops up at #2! Bravo. #1 I already expected and totally agree with. King is the King.

[@danynumero6]

Great list, but no HP Lovecraft? So many of these writers wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for him.

[@Element9846]

Your list is a shit show....but because I have no idea what I am talking about...I subscribed. Haha, I love your channel. Thanks for the video! You are an authoritative source on Horror IMO. 🤘🏻😊

[@Tonysmithmusic]

joe hill heart shaped box is also great.

[@zanemarion7211]

Joe Hill is awesome to read and a great writer.

[@zanemarion7211]

Brian Lumley is also next after King on my list. King is first.

[@TheHumbleRoots]

All good except Dean Koontz. As a youth I read 30 plus Dean Koontz novels. Is Dean Koontz a good writer? Of course. Does he write good books? No. The way he writes is just basically lazy. The King of mediocrity. Clive Barker on the other hand is a Bloody Genius.

[@reginaldforthright805]

No, twilight eyes is a great horror novel.

[@surpriseitsus9622]

@@reginaldforthright805 My favorite! Great taste

[@jonathankoan]

Have you had the chance to read any of Dan Well's horror novels? He's the only horror writer I've been able to get into (although I'm going to look at your list), and I really like his "Serial Killer" books.

[@B.LEE.DbrianleedurfeeREVIEWS]

I read the first I Am Not A Serial Killer. Ive done a lot of booksignings with Dan. He lives near me here in Utah

[@jonathankoan]

@@B.LEE.DbrianleedurfeeREVIEWS Book 2, Mr Monster, is the best of the trilogy, with the third book close behind. I like how clean (language wise) the books are overall, and the writing style is unique.

[@viktorwolfe8333]

Brian Lee, I was wondering (since you loved The Green Mile so much) if you would consider reading and reviewing my prison horror novel BLACK MOUNTAIN on your channel. I'll send you a free signed hardback.

[@myrarucker7953]

I love Joe hill!! I’ve bought them all!! Better than his daddy

[@myrarucker7953]

Don’t like #10. Nope

[@SpoonsForks]

Need to see some women on this list... No Shirley Jackson? or Mary Shelley?

[@Sophias_booktube]

anyone growing up with Stephen King as a fathere is obvesly going to be the nezt stephen king but wich one with his two sons a horror writers to I think Stephen Kings legacy will live on for a long time.

[@shawnturpin197]

Great list. Except number one. Hate that guy! Can't write an ending to save his life.

[@reginaldforthright805]

Classic pantser. The endings are hit and miss. Writes characters better than anyone.

[@angusorvid8840]

One more thing about King. He's one of the first horror writers to question the values of American life and see the nightmare of the American dream for what it is. I believe this is in large part due to his very difficult childhood, which has been very well documented, least of all by King himself. He knows what it is to struggle, to endure deep loss and tragedy. This is why he can write such good characters. King's writing does not suffer from his success, unlike a Tom Clancy or Ken Follett who can only write about rich, perfect people being heroic. I my coworkers, a cashier in her sixties, was reading a copy of King's novel The Stand. She said what she loved most about King were his characters. That he could create a character and get them up and running in a few pages. She said she loved The Talisman, but when she read Straub on his own, she didn't like him at all and couldn't get into Floating Dragon. Straub has been very successful, but not on the level of King. In fact, besides Ghost Story, the books that gave him the biggest boost in his career were his collaborations with King. I often think about this when it comes to my own writing. I want my books to appeal to the lady who works her tail off at the checkout stand, but I also want to appeal to the attorney who wants to take a break from reading briefs on the weekend and tune into something entertaining. Not only does King attract a wide readership; he retains his readers. There's something to be said for that.

[@B.LEE.DbrianleedurfeeREVIEWS]

Great comment!!!!