Fountain of Knowledge

I know, last week was horror and suspense, and this week is dark...not a lot of difference, right?

I disagree. But that's just me. Something can have dark overtones (or undertones) without being either a horror or a suspense story. Which makes it more of a tone, or subgenre than a genre, but we're all about blurring lines and removing labels, right?

What I'm wondering though, is how dark is dark? For instance, say your main character is completely evil, and it shows because he has no remorse...makes no apology. The story ends with him winning and people dying, and his intentions are pretty clear throughout, but the story itself doesn't have a dark tone. Is it still a dark story?

And of course, anything else you have to say on the topic.

And while we're at it...along the lines of horror, dark, suspense...a question Fadz asked...have you ever written something so dark/horrific/suspense filled that you scared yourself in writing it?