User blog comment:ChristianWallis/Is the Written Word Scary?/@comment-26399604-20160824160707/@comment-28266772-20160824162423

That's a fair point to make. I find it interesting that you still become creeped out. I think the biggest tool that the written word has is that ability to create atmosphere and mood, and I think that looking-over-your-shoulder fear is what literature does best. I must admit that some stories remain with me (I still hate mascot costumes because of Abandoned by Disney) it's just that I find newer stories provide diminishing returns.

Can I ask though, do you feel as though the written word can ever come close to a traditional jump scare? I'm starting to wonder whether the tradition of creepypasta narrations might be able to achieve it in a way that printed words can't.