Archive for the ‘Living and Life’ Category

Events in 2023

Posted: October 12, 2023 in Living and Life, Writing
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Hey folks! Told you I’d be doing a non-Hannah or Face of Horror post at some point soon.

Anyway, it looks like I have two final events for 2023 (and that’s deliberate so I don’t tucker myself out). On October 30th, 2023, I’ll be at the Bexley Public Library with my friends in HWA Ohio for the Halloween Writing Workshop. We’ll be teaching some tips and tricks for writing flash fiction and then writing flash fiction together. It’ll be from 7 PM – 8 PM, and if you want to, you can join us! Just use the link below to RSVP.

Halloween Writing Workshop with HWA Ohio

And this is exciting, because I’ll be doing an event with Hidden Marietta in Marietta, Ohio! Yeah, I’ll be doing a reading and book signing at their location, the Anchorage Mansion. You know, the one I found was really haunted (see this post to get all the spooky details)? I’m looking forward to working that into my reading!

Anyway, it’ll be happening on Saturday, November 11. Details such as time and whether you need to RSVP prior will be announced as we get closer. And there may be someone else there doing something cool, like reiki healing or Tarot reading, so look forward to it.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’m off to make dinner. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares!

This Year’s Halloween Costume and Yard

Posted: October 8, 2023 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff
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Did I need to write a post about this? No. Am I going to anyway? Oh, hell yeah.

So, as you know, I LOOOOOOOVE Halloween. In fact, I pretty much celebrate it year round and try to get people to freak out with me between late August and November 1st. So, I take great delight and great preparation in my Halloween costume and my front yard (especially now that I have a front yard).

So, without further ado, let me show you my very special Halloween costume. Behold, I am…Cthulhu!

Pretty cool, huh? I’m wearing a kigurumi, which is a Japanese costume you can wear as streatwear, as a costume, or as onesie pajamas. I got them as a birthday present, and have worn them for a couple of YouTube videos. And now that it’s October and it’s gotten colder, I’m wearing this as both pajamas and as a costume. Isn’t it awesome?

I may also wear other stuff, and I’ll be sure to take photos, but this will be my main costume. Besides, it’s so comfy!

And here’s my yard this year. I bought a whole bunch of stuff, so now my yard’s even more creepy! Check it out!

What’s your favorite part? I’m quite proud of the big spider web. I found one that’s not dangerous to wildlife (because, as you may have heard, the stuff that we’ve stretching across our bushes for years can kill birds and small animals) and which I can still hang scary spiders on. One’s even got a baby head! Isn’t that freaky!

And next year, I’ll go even bigger and creepier! Maybe even a giant statue that moves when motion is triggered in front of it!

Whether I dress up as a cosmic horror entity again is another matter (remember last year, when I was the King in Yellow?). Though I’m not sure how I would dress up as Nyarlathotep, Azathoth, or Shub-niggurath without getting an expensive and elaborate costume that’s hard to move around in. I mean, can you imagine what those costumes would like? Without going mad, that is?

Well, that’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I don’t have work tomorrow, so I’m going to pop popcorn and watch a scary movie. Until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night and pleasant nightmares.

Speaking of Halloween, as you’re probably aware, Hannah and Other Stories is out now and is scaring everyone silly! If you would like to check out these stories full of ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses, you can do so using any of the links below. And if you do, please leave me a review after you read the book. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and it helps readers decide whether or not to check out the book.

Once more, until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares, my Followers of Fear.

Amazon
Apple Books
Barnes & Noble
Bertrand
Booktopia
BSC Publishing Square Store
Kobo
Wook

The Face of Horror Contest: Onto the Witch Trials!

Posted: October 5, 2023 in Living and Life, Progress Report, Scary Stuff
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Well, here we are again, my Followers of Fear. I’ve made it past the Bloodsucker round and am now onto the Witch Trials round. And this will be the round that will make or break me. In fact, if things happen like last year, I may not survive this round.

So, if you didn’t know, the Face of Horror contest is a contest I’ve been participating in since last month. Competitors compete against one another to stay high in the rankings in order to make it to further rounds. To get through the rounds, competitors mobilize their social media followings for daily votes. The final winner will get a cash prize and a photo spread in Rue Morgue magazine with Kane Hodder, AKA the actor who played Jason Voorhees the most.

I’ve survived the Bloodsucker round, so now we’re in the Witch Trials round. And here is where it’ll get way more cutthroat than previous rounds. You see, I had to stay in the Top 5 in the Bloodsucker round. But now, I need to stay in the Top 2 spots to survive.

If I stay in second place, I’ll go into the Re-Animator round, and have a further chance to stay in the contest. If I get into first place, I’ll get a short break and compete in the Living Dead round after the Re-Animator round. Either way, I still have a fighting chance.

At the time I’m writing this, I’m currently in second place, so I think I have a chance. Still, if I manage to survive the Witch Trials round, I think I might seriously have a real chance to win this whole contest. I would totally love it if I did.

Anyway, if you would like to support me, you can go to my contest page using the link below and cast a daily vote for me. Or you can buy extra votes by donating to a charity associated with the contest, but only do that if you want to. Whatever you do, we’ll know on October 12th if I made it or not.

Rami’s Face of Horror page

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I look forward to keeping you updated on my progress in the contest and whether I have a real shot of winning this.

One last thing, my Followers of Fear: Hannah and Other Stories has been out nearly two weeks now and has been doing spectacularly! It’s received reviews on Amazon and Goodreads and all so far have been around five stars. Like I’ve been saying, this book full of ghosts, budding serial killers and carnivorous horses (among other things), is perfect Halloween reading. And if you would like to check it out, I’ll leave links below.

Happy reading and pleasant nightmares, Followers of Fear. And if you do read it, I hope you’ll leave a review so I know what you think.

Amazon
Apple Books
Barnes & Noble
Bertrand
Booktopia
BSC Publishing Square Store
Kobo
Wook

The Face of Horror Contest: Onto the Bloodsucker Round

Posted: September 28, 2023 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff
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Well, I made it to the fourth round! Not bad. Thanks for getting me this far, everyone.

Anyway, if you didn’t know, I’m taking part in something known as the Face of Horror contest. Competitors compete to gain votes and get through the rounds. The final person standing gets a cash prize and a photo spread in Rue Morgue magazine with Kane Hodder, who played Jason Voorhees the most of any actor.

As of this evening, I’m now in the Bloodsucker Round, the fourth round of the contest. And guess what? I’m only this far thanks to you all. Every time you cast a daily vote for me (or buy extra votes that go to charity, some of you may be doing that, I don’t know), you help me stay high in the rankings and ensure I get through to the next round.

Now, I need your help again for this next round. In the Bloodsucker Round, every group of contestants is down to its Top 10, and now we’ll be whittled down to the Top 5. Now, at the time I’m writing this, I’m #4 in the rankings for my group. However, if I slip below fifth place, I may never get back up. So, if you would be kind enough to help me, I would appreciate it if you could continue voting for me through October 5th. Either you can vote for me for free every day, or, if you’re comfortable with it, donating to charity for extra votes.

If you do, who knows? I could even get to the final rounds.

Anyway, if you would like to vote for me, you can do so using the link below. I look forward to updating you on my progress and I hope when we discuss this again, I’ll have made it to the fifth round.

Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

Rami Ungar’s Face of Horror Profile

The End of the Great Editing?

Posted: September 28, 2023 in Living and Life, Progress Report, Reflections, Writing
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It’s almost October, meaning we’re three-quarters of the way through calendar year 2023.

Before 2023 started, I announced that I would be doing something called The Great Editing, where I would spending several months deep in editing stories, mainly drafts of Hannah and Other Stories, plus a couple of novellas and novelettes. Every now and then, I’d take breaks to work on original work, and hopefully it would be done in a couple of months.

Somehow, the Great Editing extended through the summer, and in recent months has been very revved up as I go through stories I wanted to get edited back in the spring. Sure, I still worked on original stories, such as the story I wanted to submit to the grimdark anthology* and a weird fiction story, but for the most part, I’ve been doing a ton of editing.

And promoting for Hannah and the Face of Horror contest. But mostly editing.

Now, I think I’m close to finishing this insane process. I’ve got one more story I’m definitely editing, then another I haven’t decided if I want to edit or if I want to put it in the proverbial trunk. After that, unless beta readers or publishers have notes for me (and usually those edits can be done in less than an hour), I plan to end the Great Editing and work on some original stories. In fact, I have five or six shorter works I want to work on, because they just intrigue me and seem like a ton of fun.

And after those are done, I want to get back to Crawler, the mummy novel I started last year, then put on the back burner, and then entirely off the stove. I’d like to go over what I’ve written once more, apply all the learning and experience I’ve gained since I last worked on the book, and then get to the end of it. I absolutely hate that this book is unfinished, especially when it has such potential. Perhaps by this time next year, it’ll be finished. I would like that.

Well, before that happens, I need to get some edits done. Wish me luck, my Followers of Fear. If I can, I’ll finish The Great Editing done by Halloween.

*Unfortunately, the story I wrote for the anthology wasn’t exactly grimdark, so the anthology rejected it. However, they did say it was a great story and really enjoyed it, so I was happy to hear that. I’ve already resubmitted it, and will hopefully have news soon.

How about that, my Followers of Fear? I only mentioned Hannah and the Face of Horror without trying to get you to buy something or take part. But don’t worry, I’ll do plenty of that in later posts.

Until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night, pleasant nightmares, and 33 days till Halloween! Release the scary clown army!

Face of Horror: Onto the “Silver Bullet” Round

Posted: September 21, 2023 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff
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Well, we’re here again. Somehow, I survived. Can you believe it?

Well, actually, yes, I can. You Followers of Fear have been freaking amazing in supporting me in this! I have had so many people visiting my blog just so they can find the link to my profile page, which has allowed me to continue forward with the contest.

Now, I’m in the third round, AKA “The Silver Bullet” round. And if you keep voting for me and help me stay in the Top 10 of my group, I’ll move onto the next round. But I need you all to keep voting for me each day. If you feel comfortable with it, you can buy more votes by donating to a charity connected to the contest, but all I’m asking you to do is vote once a day.

Who knows? If I manage to keep going, I could get farther than I did last year. And if that happens, I could even win! I could get a cash prize and even meet Kane Hodder, who played Jason Voorhees in the Friday the 13th movies four freaking times! Wouldn’t that be amazing?

Though as I’ve said before, I won’t be bummed if I lose. I’ve tried hard this year and I’ve already benefited greatly from all your help in this contest. Still, it would be nice to win. I mean, isn’t it always nice to win?

Anyway, I’ll leave the link to vote below. This round will go until Thursday, September 28th, 2023 at around 11 PM EST. If I survive, you’ll hear about it then.

And then a few hours later, you’ll hear about Hannah! But that’s for another post.

For now though, my Followers of Fear, good night and pleasant nightmares. I’ll be seeing you again very soon.

The Face of Horror contest

Getting Reprinted for the First Time

Posted: September 16, 2023 in Living and Life, Novelette, Scary Stuff, Writing
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A lot of authors I know get their stories reprinted every now and then. Sometimes, a story previously published elsewhere just fits an anthology or magazine call very well. Plus, it can be a good way to make some extra money, especially if you don’t have anything new that you can submit at the moment (happens to the best of us).

That being said, I’ve never been reprinted before. There are a couple of reasons for that, including not a large enough catalog of previously published works and not finding markets for those stories. At least, until now. Because, my dear Followers of Fear, I just got a story accepted for reprint!

To be specific, I’ll be in Solar Press Book’s first horror anthology, simply titled the Solar Press Horror Anthology volume 1. Here’s the graphic they used yesterday to make the announcement.

Fun fact: Ann O’Mara Heyward is a fellow member of HWA Ohio. As soon as I found out we were going to be in an anthology together, I emailed her to let her know. We’re excited about it.

Anyway, you’re probably wondering which of my stories will be reprinted in the anthology. I’ll tell you: I submitted “The Dedication of the High Priestess,” which follows a young ballerina discovering her true destiny after becoming a model for a famous painter. The story was first released last year on the Tales to Terrify podcast as an audio story (which you can listen to here). This will be the first time the story will appear in a print format.

Though if the story hasn’t been printed before and was originally read aloud on a podcast, is it really a reprint?

Fan art of “The Dedication of High Priestess,” painted in oils by my friend and colleague Iseult Murphy.

Well, I’m sure someone else will do a whole essay or YouTube video on whether or not it counts. The point is, I’m excited for this story to get into a print format and to be my first reprint. I’ve said it before, but I consider “Dedication” to be some of my best work, and has even inspired some amazing fan art, which you can see to the side of this paragraph. So, I’m glad it’s going to have a new venue and maybe find some new fans.

Hell, maybe it’ll inspire some new fan art and even a movie. I can hope!

Anyway, I look forward to letting you know when the Solar Press Horror Anthology volume 1 and “Dedication of the High Priestess” are released. If you’re not into the audio format but want to check out the story, this is a great opportunity to do so.

In the meantime, my Followers of Fear, you know pretty well by now that Hannah and Other Stories will be out in one week. This book is perfect Halloween reading, with tales of ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses. If you would like to preorder it, you can do so with the links below.

Amazon
Apple Books
Barnes & Noble
Bertrand
Booktopia
BSC Publishing Square Site
Kobo
Wook

Also, I’m still in the Face of Horror contest, and I need your daily vote to stay in the contest. If you would like to support me, click on the button to do so.

Face of Horror contest

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ve got stuff to do, so I’m going to get on it. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

The Face of Horror: Onto the Full Moon Round

Posted: September 12, 2023 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff
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Well, it looks like I survived the first round of the Face of Horror contest, Followers of Fear. And it has amazed me how many of you came out in droves to vote for me! I kid you not, during the past week thousands of people have visited this very blog just to find the link to my profile page and cast their vote for me. So, thank you, Followers of Fear. I literally couldn’t be doing this without your support, and I hope you’ll continue to support it.

Now, for those unfamiliar, the Face of Horror contest is a contest where competitors try to gather the most votes and prove they’re the greatest horror aficionados around. The winner of the contest will get a cash prize and a photo shoot in Rue Morgue magazine with Kane Hodder, who played Jason Voorhees a total of four times. I participated last year and got pretty far, so I thought I would try again and see if I could get farther than before. And so far, I think I stand a chance.

Now, I don’t think I’ll win this contest. But I’m working to get as far as possible. Why? Because it’s fun, and I get so much out of it. I mean, I got to see just how much people were willing to support me in this contest! That’s amazing, and it makes me think that perhaps some of these people will also help me in other aspects of my career.

So, if you would like to help me (and understand, this is all voluntary on your part), you can do so by voting once per day on my profile page. You can also buy extra votes by donating to a cancer research charity connected to the contest, but I won’t urge you to do that unless you really want to. All I ask is that you go each day to my profile and vote for me so I can stay in the contest.

And speaking of which, we’re now in the “Full Moon” round. Between now and September 21st, I have to stay in the Top 15 in my group or I’ll get kicked out. I hope you’ll continue to help me out in that regard.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. Below is the button to lead you to my profile. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

And no, there wasn’t a reference to Hannah in this post. Don’t worry, you’ll get a whole post about that in a few hours.

The Face of Horror

The Face of Horror Contest: Voting for 2023 Has Begun!!!

Posted: September 5, 2023 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff
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So, if you weren’t aware, I am taking part in the 2023 Face of Horror contest. This contest requires contestants to get votes from their social media platforms. Each round, those who have enough votes move to the next round. The winner will get a cash prize and a photoshoot with Kane Hodder (AKA the actor who played Jason Voorhees the most) in Rue Morgue magazine.

And as of 1 PM EST today, the contest has begun.

The first round, “First Kill,” runs from today, September 5th, to September 14th. All competitors are divided into groups, and each group will be reduced to its top twenty competitors based on votes. So, if you would like to help me win this contest, this is the first hurdle. What do you have to do? Well, you can vote for me.

Now, a couple of things to keep in mind:

  • First off, I don’t expect to win. There are plenty of other people participating in the contest, and many of them likely have bigger followings or are better at getting their followers to respond to calls to action. I’m doing it mostly because it’s fun, it’s something I want to do, and I was able to meet many new Followers of Fear by participating last year. I’m hoping for a repeat of that this year.
    That being said, I will fight hard to get as far as I can this year. After all, that’s the point of a contest, isn’t it? And who knows? I may even win. And if I do, woo-hoo! I will be a very happy eldritch entity disguised as a human storyteller.
  • You’re under no obligation to vote for me. This is all voluntary, and you don’t have to participate if you don’t want to. That being said, if you do vote for me and help me get through the rounds, I’ll greatly appreciate it.

So, if you would like to vote for me, all you need to do is click the button below. That will take you to my profile page, where you can cast one vote a day. Do that each day, and that will help me immensely.

You can also buy extra votes by donating to B+, a charitable foundation that provides support to families whose children have cancer, as well as funding research into juvenile cancer. But again, that’s only if you want to.

Anyway, I look forward to updating you on my progress through the contest. Who knows what will happen as a result of my participating and your votes? Only time will tell. That, and you clicking that button.

Rami Ungar’s Face of Horror Page

See you after the first round.

One more thing:

As you know, my Followers of Fear, we’re just eighteen days away from the release of my new collection of short stories, Hannah and Other Stories. This collection is perfect Halloween reading, with tales of ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses, among other things. And while it’s currently only available in ebook format, if it does well, it may end up in paperback and even audio book!

So, use any of the options below and prepare for a world of terror on September 23rd. I look forward to hearing what you think of the book, so be sure to leave reviews. And until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night and pleasant nightmares!

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Bertrand
Booktopia
BSC Publishing Square Store
Kobo
Wook

The Face of Horror Contest: Looks Like I’m Doing This Again.

Posted: August 17, 2023 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff
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Many of you may remember last year, I participated in a contest called The Face of Horror. Participants competed for votes from their social media networks and fans to make it through the rounds, with the eventual prize being a walk-on role in a horror movie and a photo spread with Kane Hodder (he played Jason Voorhees in Friday the 13th four times, the most of any actor). I got pretty far last year, but I lost once the rounds started getting more competitive.

Still, I had fun, I was able to grow the number of my Followers of Fear a bit, and I learned how much some of you support me in my endeavors, which touched me in my cold, black, demonic heart. And I thought that was that.

But recently, I found out the Face of Horror contest would be happening again, this time with the prize being another photo spread with Kane Hodder and a cash prize. And you know what? I decided to sign up again. I mean, I don’t expect to win, but if last year is any indication, I’m going to have fun and meet some new Followers of Fear along the way. And if I win? Great. I’ll be able to spread word of my stories a bit further and get a nice cash prize while I’m at it.

So, the contest formally starts September 5th. My profile for the contest is listed below. If you would like to support me for this contest, you can either vote once daily for me, or you can buy extra votes by donating to a cancer research society through the contest’s page. You’re under no obligation to vote for me, but it would make me happy if you did.

Anyway, that’s all for now. I’ll post again when September 5th rolls around. I hope you’ll support me and help me get through the first few rounds of the contest. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares!

My Face of Horror Profile

One more thing, my Followers of Fear: we’re only 36 days away from Hannah and Other Stories releasing. This book is great Halloween reading, with tales of ghosts, budding serial killers and carnivorous horses, among other things. If you’re looking for another way to support me, or just a good scary book, you can preorder below.

And if you like what you read, please leave a review online so I know what you think. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and they help both me and other readers in the long run. Anyway, once more, good night and pleasant nightmares.

Preorder Hannah and Other Stories
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