living and life | Rami Ungar The Writer

Posts Tagged ‘living and life’

Why It Took Me So Long to Write a Good Exorcism Story

Posted: November 24, 2023 in Reflections, Writing
Tags: 2023 Israel-Hamas conflict, exorcism, exorcism horror, exorcism story, holiday season, horror, Jewish horror, Jewish literature, jumpscares, living and life, possession, possession horror, publishing, reflections, scary stuff, The House on Lafayette Square, writing

Years ago, when I was interning in Germany, I tried writing an exorcism story. And over the years, most recently 2019, I would try again and again to write this particular exorcism story, which would go by titles like “Summer of the Devil,” “Stuck in the Horror House,” and “Oppression.” I never finished the story. I don’t think I ever got further than five thousand words through it.

The story would have been about four friends breaking into a haunted attraction during the off-season and one of them intentionally summoning a demon for kicks, only for every one of them to get possessed and chaos to ensue. Looking back on it now, I feel it’s pretty paint by the numbers as far as possession and exorcism stories go. More like one of those B-movie summer popcorn munchers that rely way too much on jumpscares and CGI to be scary to veteran horror fans.

However, earlier this month, I started a new exorcism story. This one, titled “The House on Lafayette Square,” featured a totally new scenario and characters, and I ended up finishing it late Wednesday night at about 9,400 words. And after I’d finished it, I came to realize what factors were limiting me from writing the previous exorcism story, or any others for that matter.

Those factors were conventionality and emotional investment.

You guys know me well by now. I don’t march to the beat of anyone else’s drum but my own, and that’s especially true when it comes to the stories I write. I mean, I’ve written about plant/human hybrids (Rose), Mafia-hunting serial killers (Snake), and carnivorous horses and strange gods (Hannah and Other Stories), among other things. Not what you would call run of the mill, even for horror.

And like I said, the story I was trying to write back in 2015-2019 was much more conventional. It confirmed for me something I’ve suspected for a while now: if I consider the story too run-of-the-mill, or if it gets away from what I consider a Rami Ungar-style story (like starting in one genre but becoming too close to another), I just won’t be able to write it. No matter how much I like the idea.

As for emotional investment, let me explain something: “Lafayette Square” is a Jewish exorcism story. That already brought in some emotional investment, as there’s still not a lot of Jewish horror out there and I liked the idea of adding to the catalog with something not usually explored in our stories. However, since the Israel-Hamas conflict began last month, it’s brought about a lot of stress and dark feelings, both for myself and the Jewish community. Thusly, “Lafayette Square” became a story for me to work through my emotions regarding the conflict.

Who knew it would take emotional investment as well as a new angle to finally get me to write an exorcism story?
Photo by Luca Nardone on Pexels.com

In other words, writing it became a cathartic exercise. Or maybe a cathartic exorcism is a better way to put it.

So yeah, having a strong emotional reason to write this story, as well as it feeling like something new and exciting and definitely something I would write, really helped me get through this exorcism story. That’ll be good to know with future stories, whether they’re about exorcism or not.

As for whether or not we’ll see “The House on Lafayette Square” out in print anytime soon, we’ll have to wait and see. I already have someone taking a look at the story and giving me feedback, so hopefully after I get their notes and make some edits, I can find it a home. Still, I think it’s got a chance. And if it does come out, I can’t wait to see how people respond to it.

For now though, I have a new story to research and start working on. And I have a feeling I’m not going to have any trouble writing it.

Until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night and pleasant nightmares.

One last thing, my Followers of Fear: did you know it used to be a tradition during the holiday season to tell scary stories? I think it’s a damn shame this tradition has faded so much. And with the holiday season now upon us, why not revive it? Go out and get yourself or a horror fan you know a new scary story for the holiday season!

And if you’re at all interested, maybe consider checking out some of my work. As I said above, I have plenty of work out there that’s both unique and scary. If that’s your thing, check out my Book Links and Excerpts page. And if you or a friend end up reading some of my work, be sure to leave a review so I and other readers know what you thought.

Happy reading, Followers of Fear!

Book Links and Excerpts

Cracked Skull Press is Shutting Down

Posted: November 16, 2023 in Living and Life, short story
Tags: authors, Cracked Skull Press, entertainment, horror, living and life, Ohio, Ohio authors, Ohio horror, publishing, reflections, short story, short story anthology, That Which Cannot Be Undone, writing

Many of you know that some of my fellow Ohio horror writers and I published an anthology of Ohio horror stories last year. The book, That Which Cannot Be Undone, was published through Cracked Skull Press, a small press three of my friends and I created specifically for this project. We got the book out last October, and everybody really liked it.

Of course, after you publish your first book, whether you’re an author or a small press, everyone wants to know what you’re going to do next. And after a lot of discussion, my friends and I, not without some reluctance, decided to shutter Cracked Skull Press.

Like I said, we do this somewhat reluctantly, and it wasn’t an easy decision to make. But running a press is a lot of work. It’s basically a full-time job in and of itself, and we all already have full-time jobs in addition to writing on the side. You have to deal with distribution and quality control, taxes, responding to customers, etc. And the amount of work needed to do a second project, even if we really wanted to do one, was just too much for us to try again.

So, we’re shutting down Cracked Skull Press, with our final day being December 15th. Just one month from now. And on that day, That Which Cannot Be Undone will go out of print. Perhaps forever.

Honestly, I’m a little bummed about this. I would have liked to see this company continue onward. But I couldn’t run it alone, and we all have other stuff in our lives that require our attention. Hell, look at how many stories I’m working on as well as all the other stuff in my life, and you’ll see what I mean.

Still, I’m not coming away from this with just extra copies of TWCBU. My friends and I learned a lot from this experience of running a press and creating an anthology, and we had some fun times along the way. And hopefully we’ll be able to collaborate on other projects in the future, or at least meet up every now and again as writers and as friends.

Anyway, I wanted to get this out before too much time passed. The news is already out on Cracked Skull Press’s social media, so I’m putting it out on mine. If any of you would like to get a copy of TWCBU, I’ll post a link below. It’ll only be available till December 15th, so grab your copy now while you still have a chance. It’s a great anthology, filled with stories by Ohio horror authors (including myself), all set in Ohio and revolving around the theme that which cannot be undone. You’ll love it, and it might make a great gift for the holidays as well.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ll probably have more to say this weekend. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

That Which Cannot Be Undone

A Much Needed Trip to Marietta

Posted: November 12, 2023 in Reflections, Tales across the US
Tags: Anchorage Mansion, authors, Brian Keene, Car Chasers, Ghoul (novel), haunted houses, haunted locations, haunted Ohio, Hidden Marietta, Historic Lafayette Hotel, Indian burial mound, living and life, Marietta OH, Mound Cemetery, reflections, scary stuff, Tales across the US, travel, travelogue, vacation, Veterans Day

The Ohio river at the tip of Marietta’s downtown at sunset.

Y’all, life has been stressful lately.

You guys know I have a day job, right? Well, without getting into details, mine has gotten super busy lately, to the point where I’ve been working late nights. Consequently, I’ve been unable to do as much writing as I would like, which only stresses me out more. Plus, everything is more expensive these days, especially gas and food. All this and then some were really stressing me out, so I was in desperate need of a vacation.

Luckily, Friday was Veterans Day (thank you to all vets for your service) and my workplace gave me Friday off. And, since I was already planning on going down to Marietta for that event with Hidden Marietta, I decided to make it a weekend-long mini-vacation and have some fun.

And you know what? It was just what the doctor ordered! I just got back from Marietta a few hours ago and these past couple of days were among the most relaxing of my life.

So, if you don’t know, Marietta is the oldest town in Ohio and is located in southeast Ohio along the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers. It has a beautiful historic downtown section, the crown of which (in my opinion, anyway) is the Historic Lafayette Hotel. It’s a beautiful and historic hotel, as well as a very haunted hotel, so I like to stay there when possible.

Sadly, I didn’t experience anything paranormal (unless I dreamed it), but I stayed in a lovely little room and was able to walk around downtown and check out the shops and restaurants, something I’ve always wanted to do.

I also got to visit the Mound Cemetery, which is such a cool place. It’s located in the center of Marietta’s residential district and contains graves of people who fought in the American Revolution and helped found the earliest settlements in Ohio. Being among all those people who helped shape this country from its earliest days was kind of humbling.

Tomb of unknown soldiers who fought in the revolution. Quite amazing to visit.

I also got to stop by the cemetery’s namesake, a giant Indian burial mound in the center of the cemetery. It rises like a small mountain, and you can actually walk up some stone steps along the side of the mound to the top, where there are a couple of benches and a raised stone denoting where a time capsule was buried. I climbed those steps and the view was breathtaking. These photos don’t do it justice, but I hope you got some of the magnificence of the mound and the surrounding cemetery.

The mound. It looks a lot more awesome and imposing in person, believe me.

The view from atop the mound. In the center, you can see the stone where the time capsule is.

Pretty cool, right?

Also, there was this.

I know what you’re thinking. What was in there, how did it get out, and should we be worried? It actually reminded me of Ghoul by Brian Keene, where a ghoul is released from a tomb in an old cemetery like this one. I actually reached out to him on BlueSky about this, and he said it was either a ghoul or an incredibly powerful groundhog (new Ohio cryptid?).

Whatever caused this, both the broken-open tomb and the mound melded in my mind to create an interesting idea for a story. I would like to write it someday, though of course, there are a million things to get through before I can even consider writing it.

After that, I visited the Anchorage Mansion for the event (you can read about the last time I was there here). Sadly, unlike last time I did not experience anything paranormal beyond a few doors that opened and closed when I wasn’t looking (probably just a coincidence). A friend who was there did see a ghost, but I wasn’t in the room. I also only sold one book, which was a letdown. But I did get to see some friends, and one of them did join me for dinner afterwards, which was nice.

And then today, I had breakfast and then went to a frozen custard parlor for a snack. I then visited the Campus Martius museum, which chronicles the settlement and history of the area, and has some of the oldest buildings still in existence in Ohio on its grounds. No photos of those, but I did enjoy stopping there and I even found a gift for a friend of mine for the holidays. It was a good way to wrap up the trip before hitting the road for Columbus.

And you know what? I really needed this. As I said before, life has been really crazy lately, and this trip was super relaxing. Yeah, there were a few hiccups and those weren’t fun, but I still had a wonderful time walking around Marietta and seeing more of this beautiful town.

And I think we all need these breaks from life’s stresses every now and again. It isn’t easy to get away and may cost some money, but with the world the way it is, it’s important to take care of your physical and mental health and find time to unwind. I honestly feel like I can take on whatever this week throws at me with more ease than I would if I hadn’t taken this trip (helps that I can’t work late this week for various reasons). Perhaps I’ll even be able to stay chilled out until my next vacation, whenever that is.

I hope you get to take the time to care of yourself and enjoy a different locale as well very soon.

Have you gone anywhere for a mini-vacation lately? Where did you go and what did you do? And did it help with your stress?

One last thing, Followers of Fear: since Friday morning, thirty-two people have downloaded copies of my short story Car Chasers. This does not include how many people read it off the website itself, so the number could be even higher. Thank you all for checking it out. This is exactly the response I was hoping for, and I hope this response continues and gets more people interested in my work.

If you haven’t checked out Car Chasers but would like to, you can find it on my Book Links and Excerpts page, along with all my other work. It’s completely free to read and download, so I hope you’ll check it out and let me know what you think.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’m going to try to get to bed early tonight so I’m well-rested for work tomorrow. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

My First New Story in a While

Posted: October 29, 2023 in Living and Life, Reflections, Writing
Tags: authors, Bexley Ohio, Bexley Public Library, editing, horror, HWA Ohio, Jewish horror, living and life, publishing, reflections, scary stuff, second person POV, short story, The Great Editing, White Leaves, writing

I actually wanted to write this post days ago, but you know how life gets. It gets crazy, and my life has been especially crazy lately. Still, it was nice that last week, on Wednesday, I started a new short story. And on Thursday, I finished that story. It’s been my first new work in…God, I don’t know how long.

So yeah, it’s safe to say The Great Editing has ended. However, because of that crazy life I mentioned above, I wasn’t able to start writing for several days after my last editing project. When I did, when I started working on that story, it was such a release! Like something that had been building up inside of my brain and in my fingers was released in the course of eleven-hundred words. And the next night, I wrote the rest of the story in one glorious sitting. Again, there was that sense of relief and release. Like, after so many months of editing and promotion, telling a new story that had been rattling around in my head for months was exactly what the doctor ordered.

So, how is the new story? Well, as the writer, it’s hard to tell. “White Leaves” involves the strange events occurring in an apartment complex on a chilly Halloween morning (hey, that’s coming up!). It’s also told in the second person, which is something I’ve only done once before. (If you’ve read The Quiet Game, you probably remember the story.) The reason why I did is because I read a horror story recently that was told in the second person, and it was awesome. When I formulated “White Leaves,” the idea of telling the story in the same method as that other story just seemed to make sense.

And, somehow, it’s under three thousand words, which is a surprise for me. Normally my short stories are at least seven-thousand words. I even said on my social media, “Who am I and what have I done with my normal writing style?”

Anyway, it’s weird and fun and I think my critique group is going to get a kick out of it. Perhaps, with their feedback and a bit of a polish, I’ll even be able to find a home for it that will enjoy the strange tale and what I’ve included. That would be nice.

As for my next story, I already have the idea and I’ve done the research necessary. It’ll be a Jewish horror story, so hopefully it becomes a great addition to that growing catalog. I’ll keep you guys updated on it, especially if the story gets published.

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’ve had a long day and I’m going into the office tomorrow, so I better wrap up my night. Especially if I want to watch a scary movie. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares!

One last thing, my Followers of Fear: tomorrow night, at the Bexley Public Library in Bexley, Ohio, me and my fellow Ohio horror writers will be doing a flash fiction writing workshop. If you can come by, please RSVP and show up. We’ll have a good time, we’ll write scary stories, and you’ll see my new author costume in person. Trust me, it’s awesome.

Until next time, another good night and more pleasant nightmares to you.

Halloween Flash Fiction Workshop with HWA Ohio

“Hannah and Other Stories:” One Month Since Release

Posted: October 23, 2023 in Progress Report, Scary Stuff, short story, Writing
Tags: BSC Publishing Group, Doctor Who, entertainment, Hannah and Other Stories, horror, living and life, publishing, publishing anniversary, reviews, scary stuff, writing

Has it really been a whole month? Surprisingly, yes it has. Hannah and Other Stories was released on September 23rd, 2023 and it is now October 23rd, 2023. That’s a month.

And what a month it’s been.

As many of you know, Hannah and Other Stories is my new short story collection, containing seven original tales of ghosts in haunted schools, creepypasta characters taking on lives of their own, carnivorous horses, pandemics, occult magic and cosmic monsters, budding serial killers, and so many more. It is quite the collection, and I’m so proud that it’s finally out and being read by people.

I’m actually filled with a warm feeling just thinking about it. This collection is the result of over two years of work. Most of that work was between the publisher and me just to make sure that the book was up to snuff when it released. I mean, carnivorous horses is a great idea, but you need to make sure it’s done well so that the story sticks in people’s heads.

And if the reviews are anything to go by, the stories are sticking in people’s heads. Here is what people are saying:

One of the most important things authors forget is the character’s depth and motivations. This is not the case with this book. The different stories in this novel builds out characters and scenes extremely well and as a reader I actually cared about them.

It starts off with a wonderful story and keeps moving a real page turner.

Great Job Rami
David Musser, author of The Devil’s Well

Horror anthologies are my favourite kind of horror novel, and for sheer imagination alone Hannah is one of the best I’ve ever read. The level of creativity in each story is seriously impressive; I never knew what was coming next while reading them…Overall this collection of horror tales gets 4.5 from me. Reading it was a blast from start to finish. Highly recommend!
Louise Conway, Goodreads

Ungar is not a new writer and has been publishing books and stories for over a decade. This book is yet another solid collection in an already impressive stable of work. Hannah and Other Stories is a really solid collection of horror stories that span the gamut from cozy and comforting to gory and disturbing. It’s a shorter collection, too, and very quick to read. After you have read this book, you will wonder why you didn’t own it already, and will most likely want to read everything Ungar has written. This is strongly recommended for any read of horror fiction.
Joshua Gage, Cemetery Dance magazine

Pretty good reviews, right? And there are hopefully more on the way. I’m working hard to make that happen, to make people want to read the book and even leave their thoughts on whatever website they bought it from. If they do that, then maybe a paperback version will come out (currently only available in ebook), and then maybe even an audio version.

I wonder how those carnivorous horses will come across in audio? Or maybe some of those eldritch monstrosities? That would be something to hear.

Anyway, if you’re at all interested, I’ll leave links for Hannah down below. Like I said, it’s currently only available in ebook, but if it does well, a paperback and an audio version aren’t outside the realms of possibility. So, if it’s not too much trouble, please leave a review once you’ve read the book so others know what you thought and may even consider getting a copy themselves.

Who knows? Maybe by the time we reach the two month anniversary, I’ll be able to make some announcements that will get everyone excited. (Though given that the second-month mark will be both Thanksgiving in the United States and the 60th anniversary of Doctor Who‘s premiere, I may need to post something a day or two early.)

Anyway, that’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I hope you have a good Monday and a good week. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

BSC Publishing Square Store

Kobo

Wook

What is the Future of this Blog?

Posted: October 16, 2023 in Living and Life, Reflections
Tags: "The Face of Horror" contest, blogging, Hannah and Other Stories, horror, living and life, reflections, scary stuff, writing

I’ve been writing this blog for over twelve years now. Several lifetimes in Internet time, if you think about it. Through college and my first publishing successes, job searching and travel and back pain, getting a decent paying job and learning to drive. Past getting a car and getting more books out there, as well as a pandemic and all the changes that brought about. Then having a collection accepted and then buying a home.

And now, Hannah is out and I’m out of the Face of Horror contest, and I wonder to myself: what is the future of this blog?

Understand, I’m not going to shut it down. No way, this blog has always been and will always be important to my life and my plan as an author. It’s how I met so many wonderful Followers of Fear, after all. Nor am I going to change the focus of my blog. It will always be about me, my writing, and my love of horror, as well as me trying to spread those last two to other people.

But I have noticed that, despite a high number of visitors since last month (I believe a certain contest was behind that), this blog needs some sort of change. I’ve actually felt this way for a while. Maybe it’s because nearly half the posts I’ve published lately have been about Hannah, and more than a few were about the Face of Horror.

And of course, some posts on those subjects are to be expected. Like I said, part of this blog is spreading word about what I’m doing and getting people interested in my stories. But I feel like I’ve been doing too much of that. That maybe this blog is slowly becoming just a giant ad, rather than a place for me to interact with my Followers of Fear. And I don’t want that!

So, what am I going to do? Well, I’m still figuring that out. I may try to do more posts where I reflect on the nature of horror and on writing, but those have to come from a real place of wanting to write those posts. I can’t write them just because I feel I have to. The point is, I want to put out posts and content that I feel passionate about putting out there, and that you all will want to read. Not just ads.

Hmm. Now that I think about it, that’s kind of like writing, isn’t it? What you put out there only has real meaning if you have passion about it. If you do that, you’re sure to find someone, maybe a lot of someones, who will want to read your work. Hopefully this new path will lead to new Followers of Fear finding this blog.

But like I said, I’m still figuring out some of the changes I want to make, so if you have any suggestions, let me know. I’d be happy to hear what you think. And don’t be surprised by a certain Hannah-themed post on Monday. After all, that’s the one-month anniversary since its release.

Well, that’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’m off to read and then dream dark dreams. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares!

What changes should I make to this blog? What would help keep this blog interesting?

The Face of Horror: Well, I Lost

Posted: October 12, 2023 in Living and Life, Scary Stuff
Tags: "The Face of Horror" contest, contest, entertainment, Hannah and Other Stories, horror, Jason Voorhees, Kane Hodder, living and life, scary stuff

If you’ve been following this blog recently, my Followers of Fear, you know that I’ve been participating in a contest called The Face of Horror. Participants competed for daily votes, and would advance through the rounds based on how many votes they got. The winner will get a cash prize and be in a photo shoot with Kane Hodder, who played Jason Voorhees in four different films.

And, as is obvious from the title of this blog post, I lost. Or rather, I didn’t get enough votes to make it to the next round.

Not that I’m bummed. I always knew I probably wouldn’t win and was instead aiming to stay in the competition as much as possible. And besides, I had fun. Thanks to all your votes, traffic on my blog went waaaaaaaaaaaaaay up! Just let me know how much you all care for me and were willing to support me in this endeavor. That in itself is its own prize.

So, what happens now? Well, back to the usual, I guess. Work at my day job, writing/editing/submitting stories, doing all those things that responsible adults are known to do, and…oh yeah, I have a new book to promote. You might have heard of it. Hannah and Other Stories? It’s a perfect collection of Halloween reading, with tales of ghosts, budding serial killers, and carnivorous horses, among other things. I’ll leave links below in case you want to check it out.

Again, thank you for supporting me in this contest. It means a lot to me. And now that it’s done, I’ll put my focus on more important stuff. Hell, maybe I’ll make some changes to this blog. I mean, who knows? The future is unwritten, though I intend to write my best life into being. Will I make that happen? Only time will tell.

Well, that’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I’m going to go and dream up dark monsters to put into stories. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares.

BSC Publishing Square Site

Kobo

Wook

Events in 2023

Posted: October 12, 2023 in Living and Life, Writing
Tags: "The Face of Horror" contest, Anchorage Mansion, authors, Bexley Public Library, entertainment, Hannah and Other Stories, haunted Ohio, Hidden Marietta, horror, HWA Ohio, living and life, Ohio Chapter of the Horror Writers Association, Ohio Chapter of the HWA, reflections, scary stuff, writing

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!

Hannah and Other Stories: All the Excerpt Videos

Posted: October 10, 2023 in Scary Stuff, short story, Writing
Tags: "The Face of Horror" contest, entertainment, Fuseli's Horses, Hannah, Hannah and Other Stories, horror, living and life, Poor Unfortunate Souls, Queen Alice, scary stuff, The Autopsy Kid and Doctor Sarah, The Red Bursts, What Errour Awoke, writing, YouTube, YouTube video

If you weren’t aware, I have a YouTube channel (which you can find here). And over the past several weeks and months, I’ve been uploading videos of me reading from Hannah and Other Stories. And as of earlier this week, I’ve uploaded videos from each story in the collection. And since everyone here doesn’t subscribe to my YouTube channel (a crying shame, I know), I thought I would post all those videos here on the blog for you to see. In the order they were uploaded, too.

First, we have “What Errour Awoke,” which is probably my favorite story to read from:

I know the angle for this one was weird. First video trying to be atmospheric and all that. We had improvement with the next video, which was directly from “Hannah:”

And with the “Queen Alice” video, I got special stands for my candles. They rock!

After that, I went with “The Autopsy Kid and Doctor Sarah,” which is the closest to extreme horror Hannah gets.

And then we get to the carnivorous horses. You know, “Fuseli’s Horses?” That’s a popular story in the collection.

Then we have The Red Bursts.

And finally, we have “Poor, Unfortunate Souls,” which has a similar camera angle as the first video. Totally not intentional, but in a weird way, it was kind of like going full circle.

Well, I hope you enjoyed those. I know they’re not much, but I do these videos so that you may possibly show interest in the collection. And in that spirit, I’ll be posting links below. If you’re interested, please check out Hannah and Other Stories and let me know what you think. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and doing so helps other readers decide whether to check out the book.

BSC Publishing Square Store

Kobo

Wook

Also, if you could subscribe to my YouTube channel, I would appreciate it. The stuff I post isn’t like the top YouTubers, but often they’re stuff I love or want to share it. And occasionally I even get ghosts on camera! So check it out.

And if you could, I’m trying to up my rank in the Face of Horror contest, so if you could vote for me, I would appreciate it. Who knows? I may even win. Thanks!

That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I swear, I’ll do some non-Hannah or Face of Horror posts in the near future. Hopefully, you all aren’t annoyed with all this promotional stuff. 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
Tags: Azathoth, cosmic horror, Cthulhu, Cthulhu Mythos, Halloween, Halloween costume, Halloween decor, Halloween season, horror, kigurumi, living and life, Nyarlathotep, scary stuff, Shub-niggurath, The King in Yellow

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.

BSC Publishing Square Store

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