Happy Birthday to the blog, Happy Birthday to the blog. Happy Birthday to Rami Ungar the Writer! Happy Birthday to the blog.
I did warn you that I would have a new blog post out sooner than you might expect. Still, pretty incredible, isn’t it? That today is the fourteen year anniversary of when I set up this blog?
I think I say this every year, but it’s kind of incredible that I’m still blogging all these years later. I started writing this blog at the library near my mom’s house the month before I started college, hoping that, as I entered the world as an adult, I could build an audience for when I started publishing. I was just a young, naive, newly-minted adult back then, no idea where my life was going beyond starting school and working towards my dreams.
Now look at me. I’m a man in my thirties, with a job and my own condo and books to my name. Still no idea where my life is going at times, but I’ve already accomplished some dreams and I think I’m getting closer to making some more come true.
And this blog’s been through it with me the whole journey. There were times, especially early on when getting only a view or two per day was considered a good day, where I thought about giving up on the blog. But I persevered. I kept posting, especially when I had good news or stories to share. And before long, people found it. Some of them even became my friends. Some of them read my work. And many of them are still following me, all these years later.
So, thank you, Followers of Fear. Whether you only just started following me a few weeks ago, or you’ve been here since the beginning, or anywhere in-between, you have kept me going through thick and thin. Through good times and tough times, through celebrations and failures, and through times of fast growth and times of slow growth. It’s fair to say that, without you guys, neither me as a person, nor me as a writer, would be where I am today.
Here’s hoping when I write this post in a year from now, I have plenty of developments to celebrate, and plenty more people here to celebrate with.
In the meantime, my Followers of Fear, if you want to celebrate with me, if you want to support me, or if you’re just looking for a good scary story or two to read this spooky season, I’ll include the link to my book page below. From plant/human hybrids and strange gods to Mafia-hunting serial killers and carnivorous horses, I have something for every horror fan (including some free stuff). So, go ahead and take a look. You might find your next favorite read.
And if you do end up reading something of mine, please consider giving it a review. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and it helps both me and your fellow readers in the long run.
That’s all for now. I’m off to a meadery to celebrate. Until next time, my Followers of Fear, good night, pleasant nightmares, and 90 days to Halloween!
Me, my grandfather Seymour Ungar of blessed memory, and my dad Rabbi Michael Ungar at the English Department’s Graduation Breakfast.
I did promise I would write about this in its own post. And I do my best to keep my promises.
This past Saturday, May 10th, as well as being the Halfway to Halloween Expo in Ann Arbor and the third anniversary of when The Pure World Comes was released, it was also the ten-year anniversary of my college graduation. When I became an alumnus of The Ohio State University.
Wow. Ten years. It’s kind of crazy to believe. Some of you were following me even back then, reading as I made my way through my college experience, the highs and lows and everything in-between. I remember it being a very momentous occasion. All of my immediate family, as well as some of my grandparents who were close enough to make it, came to see me make that walk. I remember the head of our alumni association at the time making a speech, none of which I remember, as well as the former Secretary of Health and Human Services speaking as well (and someone booing her, which felt tacky AF). And I remember going down from the stands, getting my diploma, and then coming out feeling different. When I reached my apartment to change, I knew I was different.
I was a graduate.
Not even a year later, when I went on campus for a job interview, I felt so out of place walking among all those students. An adult among relative children. Ridiculous, because some of them were my age or older, and there wasn’t much separating us, but still.
And now, ten years later, how do I feel?
Well, obviously I’m glad I went to college, and that I went to the college I did (Go Bucks!). Sure, there are some things I would have done differently if given the chance to do them over, but I feel like most of my experiences there, positive or negative, made me into the person I am today.
But do I feel any momentous feelings regarding the passage of time? Or that I want to go back to my student days?
My sister Adi and I after I’ve gotten my diploma. And I’m about to go on the craziest journey I’ve yet to experience in my short life.
Not really, no. In fact, when I remembered on Saturday that today was the ten-year anniversary of that momentous occasion, I didn’t really feel anything. I just noted it like how one notes that it’s a bit warmer than the day before, or that I need to put something on the shopping list before I go shopping on Monday. It was a fact, nothing more. And as for whether I want to go back…well, whenever I have dreams about being back in school, no matter what grade I’m in or which school it is, I’m always annoyed about the situation. So I’d say going back feels more like a hassle than a chance to relive my glory days.
I’m not entirely sure why that is. Perhaps that’s because so much has happened in the ten years since, personally and on a global scale. It could be that either the world started becoming a darker place to be, or I started realizing the true extent of its darkness, or both, after college, and that dampens the feelings a bit. Maybe my sense of nostalgia only extends to formative media that I experienced at a certain age, rather than phases of my life.
Most likely, it has to do with not just being a different person than I was then, but the kind of person I am. I’m always looking forward, rather than looking back. Rather than focus on what happened or what I wish happened, I prefer to look into the future and daydream of what might happen or what I hope will happen.
But hey, maybe that’s all for the best. After all, there’s a time and place for everything. There was a time when college was one of the main focuses of my life, and that time has long ended. And like I said, I still have fond memories of what I experienced during those four years. Not to mention knowledge from my classes and life lessons that I’ve carried with me through the years. And I will always be grateful for that.
I think I’m a good example of OSU’s motto in action. At least, I hope so.
I just don’t want to focus on what was and what could have been. Instead, I want to focus on what is now and what could be.
Which, in its way, is probably a good thing. And I bet my old alma mater would agree. After all, Ohio State’s motto is disciplina in civitatem, or “education for citizenship.” And I got the education I needed to make my way as an adult and a citizen in this crazy world, trying to improve it and eke out a living as best I can. And if I’m not dying to go back or constantly wistful for my college days, then I consider it a job well done.
How do you feel about your college days, Followers of Fear? Do you miss them? What do you think and how do you feel when you look back at them? Let’s discuss.
Happy Birthday to the blog, Happy Birthday to the blog, Happy Birthday to Rami Ungar the Writer, Happy Birthday to the blog.
So yeah, it’s been exactly twelve years since this blog was created. Hard to believe, right?
For those of you who don’t know, I first created this blog a few weeks before I was supposed to start college at Ohio State. I was sitting in the library down the road from my mom’s house, on one of their computers, and signed up for WordPress. I had barely any idea what I was doing back then. I had just heard that having a blog might be a good way to build an audience for when I published my first book (which I always considered an inevitability).
Even so, I consider that moment a turning point in my nascent career. Before then, while I had had one paid publication and some unpaid publications prior to the blog, I was still just writing on my parents’ computers and those who knew me as a writer were confined to my social circles. But beginning with my blog, I was able to start making connections with people from around the world. Blogging opened my world, and was essential in me making the connections that would help me grow as a writer and as a person.
Today, at the time of this writing, my blog has over two-thousand posts, over fourteen hundred subscribers, and gets between fifteen hundred and two-thousand views per month. And over the last year, this blog has seen me through so many things in my life: all the editing on Hannah and Other Stories; the publication of That Which Cannot Be Undone, my dragon bat story, and The Dedication of the High Priestess; the audio book for The Pure World Comes was released; I celebrated my first Halloween, Hanukkah, and Passover in my condo, among other things; I took part in the Face of Horror contest and The Great Editing; I went to my first ever Stoker Con; I celebrated several big publishing anniversaries, including The Quiet Game‘s ten-year release anniversary; and, as I announced the other day, I got a grant from the Greater Columbus Arts Council.
I wonder what will happen in the next year? Obviously, Hannah is due out next month, and I have big hopes for that book. But what else? I was invited to submit to an anthology, but we’ll see if that story gets accepted or fits the publisher’s vision for the anthology. And I have a number of stories I need to edit and start shopping around, so hopefully that goes well. And I want to try and finish writing Crawler, the mummy novel I started last year.
Whatever happens, I know I’ll have the support of so many amazing readers and writers behind me. Reading this blog, reading my books, and leaving their thoughts in comments and reviews.
Speaking of which, if you would like to preorder Hannah and Other Stories, or you would like to check out any of my books that are already available, I’ll leave links below. And if you like what you read, please leave a review online so I know what you thought.
That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. Until next time, good night, happy anniversary, and pleasant nightmares!
Funny story: when I was writing the title of this post, I accidentally wrote “Days’ instead of “Years.” I thought about the confusion my Followers of Fear would feel when they saw that title, smiled maliciously, then decided to change the title. You’re welcome.
So, today marks eight years since The Quiet Game: Five Tales to Chill Your Bones was released. This was my first published book, and my first published collection of short stories to boot. I wrote it in early 2013 because I decided to self-publish the year before. As I was working on a novel that wasn’t ready to be published, but wanted something out anyway, I started writing stories with the goal of making a small collection. A lot of work, some feedback from one of my creative writing classes, and on July 17th, 2013, The Quiet Game was released!
Looking back, the work I wrote then sometimes feels a bit amateur to me. If I wrote some of those stories today, I think I would have written some of them differently. Still, I’m proud of them and I’m glad that people enjoy them (more on that in a bit).
And then there’s the cover. I actually took that photo on a snowy night at Ohio State. It’s actually Orton Hall on the Oval, our central quad. I then added some special effects to make writing in the sky, and then added the letters. Which, as I mentioned in my unboxing video from March, accidentally had an extra F in the subtitle. Oops. But I’m fond of the typo now. It means people shiver when they read it!
And shiver they do. Here is what people have been saying about The Quiet Game:
A collection of five varied stories that get stronger as the collection builds, with the final being my favorite. Though I fancy myself able to “solve” the stories before the reveals, there were several surprises here, especially the reveal in the Quiet Game and I’m Going to be the Next James Bond. I also liked that Rami pulled no punches with his characters. In one instance, an anti-semite for instances uses words that would be hard for any author to write -though are necessary to his character. There are other examples sprinkled throughout the stories that show Rami’s commitment to telling the story in the way it needs to be told. A good collection for a stormy night!
Joleene Naylor, author of the Amaranthine vampire novels.
Imagine if you will a young Stephen King penning dark scenarios inspired by his youth, and what you get is this anthology. Through this collection of short stories, Rami Ungar brings us into the world of dark urges, childhood traumas, ghosts, phantoms, and dark psychological thrillers. An inspired creation, and definitely a good intro to this indie author’s world!
Matthew Williams, author of The Cronian Incident.
this book was filled with action pacted fun and the scary vibes are always coming and I think that you need to write more of these 5 book scare rides. totaly a 6 (; star book.
KATHLEEN LYNN LEVEN
My friend and fellow author Allen Huntsman with his new copy of “The Quiet Game.” I look forward to hearing his thoughts.
I should mention, the reviews come straight from Amazon, so any typos are the reviewers’ and not mine.
Anyway, most of the reviews are like this and I’m happy that people enjoy the book so much. In fact, before Rose, The Quiet Game was my most reviewed book on Amazon. And while Rose may still be ahead in terms of reader feedback, I still get people picking up The Quiet Game every now and then and leaving their thoughts. So, I guess I wrote some stories that have aged well.
One can hope, anyway.
If you would like to check out The Quiet Game, I’ll leave links below. It’s a short but enjoyable read, so I hope you’ll get a kick out of it if you pick up a copy. And if you like what you read, or if you don’t, please leave some feedback for me. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback and it helps me, as well as other readers, in the long run.
Thanks for checking the book out, and happy publishing anniversary.
One last thing, my Followers of Fear: the tenth anniversary of when I started this blog is coming up, and I’m having an Ask Me Anything, or an AMA, to celebrate. Submit a question to me, along with your name and where you’re from, to my email at ramiungar@ramiungarthewriter.com by 11:59 PM July 28th, 2021. Not only will you get your question answered, but one lucky person will win a prize!
I look forward to answering all your questions and celebrating the big event with you. Until next time, stay safe and pleasant nightmares!
It’s hard to believe that two years have passed by since Rose was released. For one thing, 2020 felt like it was way longer than a year. And January 2021 felt like at least three months. Still, it’s been two years since Rose was released, and so I’m celebrating it with you today.
So if you’re unaware, Rose is a novel I wrote that was released June 20th, 2019 by Castrum Press, based in Belfast, North Ireland. The novel follows Rose Taggert, a young graduate student who wakes up in a greenhouse with no memory of the past two years. Suddenly, she undergoes a transformation into a plant/human hybrid! And then, as people around her react to her new form, particularly a young man who claims to be her boyfriend and to have saved her life, she realizes that not everyone can be trusted. Dark forces are swirling around her, and if she’s not careful, not only will her life be forfeit, but her loved ones as well.
Rose Trivia
I’ve heard that readers love behind-the-scenes trivia about books they’ve read or they’re considering reading. Especially if it comes from the original author. So, with that in mind, I thought I’d do some trivia for Rose’s anniversary today. Hopefully you find it interesting.
The original idea for this novel came to me in a science fiction class at school. Back in college, I was taking a Science Fiction & Fantasy literature course (yes, Ohio State taught that class, because Ohio State is awesome). I was just sitting in class, listening to the lecture, when the basic idea for Rose just popped into my head. I liked the idea, so I wrote it down in my idea notebook and set it aside for later. Later on, when it came time to do my senior thesis, I decided to write Rose and had that very same teacher from my Science Fiction class be one of my critics for the novel. So if anyone ever says a Liberal Arts degree doesn’t pay, point them my way. I benefited so much from one!
Rose took fifteen months to get edited for publication, and it was the most anxiety-producing time of my life. I’ve had an anxiety disorder for a few years now, and I’ve been pretty good about keeping it under control and not letting it interfere with my life. That being said, Rose was accepted during the time when I was just learning how to control that disorder, and all the edits and rewrites I had to do to get the book ready for publication just sent my anxiety into overdrive. It took a lot of work to calm me down, let alone get work done on the novel. I was just overwhelmed by it all. Figuring out how to rewrite the story, trying not to disappoint readers or the publisher or myself. Fearing that the story would be hated and then I would be hated because I was the writer. Even just general, irrational fear bothered me on a daily basis. It probably didn’t help that I had to rewrite two-thirds of the novel because one of those thirds was irrelevant flashbacks and the other third was dependent on those flashbacks. Thankfully, I was able to learn coping strategies and get inspiration on how to rewrite the story. The result was that I was able to put out Rose. And I’m happy to say that none of my anxieties have come to pass.
I got to use some of my ballet knowledge in this story. After college, I became a huge fan of ballet, to the point that I and my family actually buy subscription packages to our local company’s shows every year. And in the novel, Rose’s younger sister Maddie is a ballerina. In the first couple of drafts, Maddie was a very minor character and her dancing only got one or two mentions. However, when it became apparent that nearly two-thirds of the novel needed to be rewritten, I saw an opportunity to expand Maddie’s role in the story, and thus her career. I even got to teach my editor the word barre, which he thought was an error on my part but which is actually a technical term from the French. And since I’m a big ballet fan, you can expect it to appear in another story someday. Maybe even more prominently than it does in Rose. Only time will tell!
What the Readers Say
At the time I’m writing this, Rose has more reviews than any single one of my books. And I’m happy to say that the majority of people have really enjoyed the novel. Here’s what they had to say.
Loved the premise and all of the descriptions of turning into a plant creature, as well as several other body horror scenes, were disturbing in the best way. I also liked the psychological horror of the story and was often at the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next.
My only criticisms were that sometimes the characters acted in ways I found unbelievable and some of the descriptions and explanations were a little too “on the nose” for me.
Overall, a solid horror story! I feel the strong beginning and surprising and intense ending made this a great horror experience and a book I would definitely recommend.
(Also, I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was superb!!)
Emma, United States
I didn’t know what to expect going into Rose, but I was intrigued first by the cover, and second by the description. Listening to Rose Taggert’s story as she tries to figure out what has happened to her and why she has no memory of the last two years was fascinating, especially as her boyfriend Paris’ version doesn’t really make sense the more she digs. She learns what obsession and power can do, as she is transformed into something not human, and those she loves are brought into danger. I enjoyed the book, and even though I saw what was coming, the way it came was unexpected. Sara Parlier’s narration was very good, and I look forward to hearing more from her.
Manakalita, Audible
In this work, Rami Ungar paints a captivating picture of Japanese folklore and magic, which serves as a backdrop for a story about captivity, manipulation, and possession! His narrative style also captures the dread and claustrophobia of being a captive, not to mention the twisted pathology of the captor! Scary stuff, and all the while you’re rooting for the bad guys to get their just desserts!
Matthew Williams, author of The Formist Trilogy, Canada
And this is just three of the many reviews Rose has acquired over the past two years. I’d guesstimate that there’s fifty individual reviews across the various websites and platforms. Maybe more.
Granted, not all of the reviews have been positive. I’ve had some one or two-stars here and there. One mixed review was published on a prominent website a month or two ago! Still, reviews like that make me want to work harder and show readers how much I can improve. Hopefully that shows in the stories I’ve written since then and which will be coming out later.
Do You Wanna Check theBook Out?
If any of this makes you interested in reading Rose, I’ll be including links below. I would love to hear what you have to say on the novel. And if you do end up reading Rose, let me know what you think. Positive or negative, I love reader feedback, and it helps me out in the long run. Not to mention it helps readers figure out whether Rose is for them or not.
The best way to do so is to leave a review on Amazon/Audible or Goodreads, but I’ll be happy with a mention anywhere.
And thanks again to Paul and the team at Castrum Press, as well as The Golden Quill who did the artwork. It was a great and edifying experience working with you, and I hope we can do so again someday.
Also, if you haven’t checked it out yet, Snake’s seven-year publishing anniversary occurred recently as well. The story follows a serial killer hunting members of a powerful Mafia family in New York City. If you haven’t checked that one out yet, either, I’ll include the links below.
That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. I hope I get to hear what you think of Rose (or Snake) very soon. Until next time, good night and pleasant nightmares!
I recently was able to watch the new Netflix true-crime docuseries “The Sons of Sam.” For those of you who haven’t seen it, the docuseries follows how a man named Maury Terry became convinced in the wake of the arrest, conviction, and incarceration of David Berkowitz, AKA the Son of Sam Killer, that Berkowitz didn’t commit all the murders and was in fact part of a Satanic cult. Berkowitz himself claimed to be part of such a cult, naming the sons of Sam Carr, the man who owned the demon dog (and who, by the way, were both dead and unable to defend themselves at the time of the allegations), as members.
Now, I’m not here to argue whether or not Berkowitz was the lone killer. Most historians and investigators agree anyway that the claims of a cult are unlikely for a number of reasons. Berkowitz himself has been diagnosed as antisocial and seems to enjoy the attention, so he would say anything to stay in the spotlight/keep up the image he’s built for himself since first getting arrested.
What I’m here to talk about is the true horror of the docuseries. It’s not how terrifying Berkowitz and his crimes were, though that is scary too. Nor is it the idea of a nationwide Satanic cult that Berkowitz may have been part of (and which, given how often it keeps cropping up in American history, feels more silly than scary nowadays). It’s the price of obsession. Of becoming so sure of an idea or a hidden truth, that you look for anything that could be considered evidence and end up linking things that might not be evidence at all. You may even lose sight of objective reality and the truth, as well as the respect of your peers and relationships with your loved ones, just to find what you are looking for.
The doucseries revolves around the conspiracy theory that David Berkowitz did not commit the Son of Sam murders alone.
And quite often, what you’ve been looking for has been right in front of you all along. You just refused to see it.
We see this play out with Maurice Terry in “Sons of Sam.” After Berkowitz is arrested and sent to jail, Terry believes that Berkowitz may not have committed all the murders or acted alone because most of the police sketches don’t resemble him or because one or two people saw Berkowitz far from the site of a Son of Sam murder minutes before it happened. Rather than chalking it up to disguises, the noted unreliability of police sketches, or that all these sightings took place at night under low visibility settings, Terry believes there may have been multiple people involved in the shootings.
This leads to him looking into Berkowitz’s hometown and alleged Satanic rituals occurring near Berkowitz’s home, which leads to conversations with people who claim to have belonged to the cult or know people who were, including the Carr brothers mentioned above. He goes on to link the Manson murders, the murder of a woman at Stanford University, and the deaths of a billionaire and a filmmaker to the cult, the last two being members who were allegedly killed to silence them.
And sometimes it seems convincing. Mutilated German shepherds were found in the park near Berkowitz’s home, as well as Satanic graffiti. Charles Manson was likely influenced by belief systems such as Christianity, Satanism, and Scientology, just to name a few. Some of the people who knew or met the Carr brothers say they were interested in the occult and at least one of them was afraid of being followed. And Berkowitz, as we stated above, has said he was part of a cult, though he refuses to name names other than the dead.
The problem is, none of these can be definitively proven as being Satanic. Yes, dogs were mutilated near the park, but there’s no way to prove that it was Satanic or Berkowitz was linked. Satanic graffiti can be found all over the place (I saw plenty in the college bathrooms at Ohio State), and doesn’t mean Satanists are at work. Manson and his followers never claimed to be linked to any other group, though they’ve at times claimed that Manson was God, Jesus and the Devil all at once. The Carr brothers aren’t around to defend themselves, and we don’t have enough information to know if they suffered from mental illness or if their alleged interest in the occult was serious. A couple of the murdered people Terry linked to the cult have since been solved and have mundane, if horrible, explanations.
And Berkowitz, as noted, is likely a psychopath who enjoys the attention. He would say anything if it keeps him in the spotlight.
The horror of consipracy theories is that, while they seem plausible and preferable, they hide the truth and can destroy so much in the lives of believers.
We especially see this in the interviews Terry has with Berkowitz. A lot of the questions Terry asks Berkowitz seem leading, and he seems less concerned with getting to the truth than with confirming what he already believes. Berkowitz himself doesn’t give any new information that can be investigated, like a name for an active member of the cult or where proof like member logs or photographs can be found. But Terry believes it, because he wants to believe.
And that’s the horror. Terry has woven a spider web of possible links and maybe connections around himself. And it’s so tightly and thickly woven with “facts” that he’s unable to see anything that might disprove this theories. He, and those who believe like him, only see the idea of the cult that they say committed the Son of Sam murders. In the process, Terry drives away many people close to him, ruins his credibility as a journalist, and suffers from health issues while searching for his truth. And in the end, he dies still pursuing his truth.
It’s unfortunately an all-too common story. Since time immemorial, mankind has spun spiderwebs of conspiracy theories around themselves and others, refusing to see the truth because it doesn’t fit with their worldview or beliefs. In the US alone, we’ve seen it time and time again with a variety of boogeymen and alleged cover ups. Since 1692, the idea of Satanists operating in the US has been especially prevalent, most recently gaining new life in the 1980s with the Satanic Panic (which Terry unintentionally contributed to trying to convince people of his beliefs) and with today’s QAnon conspiracy.
The result is not just the actual truth being ignored or denied by many people. It can lead to lost relationships, ordinary people being misled, the ruination of reputations, laws being broken, and day-to-day life being severely disrupted. Occasionally, lives are even lost.
And all because someone sees something, may not like or understand what it means, and an alternative presents itself that seems to make more sense. To an outsider, it can seem impossible and extraordinary when so many different and unrelated people, events or things are connected or enlisted to “support” the central idea of the theory. But to the believer, it’s all so simple, and if the connections out of left field help to make the core idea make sense or more believable, or if powerful figures back it up for whatever reason, all the better.
It’s preferable to admitting that a sick and twisted individual work alone and takes lives for their own sheer pleasure. Or that some people have never liked a former President because of what he said/stood for and enough came out and voted against him to keep him from a second term. Or that horrible stuff happens, and there isn’t some grand, simple, good-vs-evil reason behind it.
And to admitting you might’ve been fooled and gone through so much just to be wrong.
If you want to check out “The Sons of Sam” docuseries on Netflix, by all means go ahead. I’m not saying you shouldn’t. Just go in with quite a bit of salt. It may make what you’re watching feel more psychologically difficult, because it’ll feel like you’re watching someone fall down a bottomless pit of conspiracy and experiencing the fallout of it. But it’s a fascinating watch nonetheless, and it might deepen your understanding of the allure and journey into conspiracy.
That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. Thanks for reading through my entire TED talk. I just wanted to discuss what I’d watched and how it made me feel. I had no idea it would get this long. Hopefully, I made it interesting enough.
Anyway, I plan to have a shorter but just as exciting post out before too long. Until then, you know me. I’ll be busy writing stories and trying to find them homes, as well as experiencing (and in some cases, causing) all the terrifying phenomena I can. Should be fun.
Also, ParaPsyCon is only two weeks away. This is the biggest convention of authors, ghost hunters, mediums, psychics and more around, and it’ll be held on May 22nd and 23rd at the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield, OH. Cost of admission is just purchasing a self-guided tour of the former prison, about $25. I’ll be there as well, so I hope you’ll stop by and say hi. You can get more information by checking out the website here.
Until next time, Followers of Fear, stay safe, have a good weekend, and pleasant nightmares.
Happy Birthday to the blog, Happy Birthday to the blog. Happy Birthday to Rami Ungar the Writer Happy Birthday to the blog.
Great job singing, everyone. Except you. Yes, you. You were off-key.
So, as this post says, Rami Ungar the Writer, the very blog you’re reading right now, is nine years old as of today. And even though my memory of starting this blog at my local library has faded over time, this blog hasn’t. True, there were times where I thought it would. During the first year or two of college, there were days where I was lucky to get one or two views a day. I would wonder if writing this blog was even worth it, given how few people were reading what I had to say as I tried to make something of myself as a writer.
But I kept at it. I’m stubborn when it comes to goals, particularly writing-related goals, and I kept blogging. And you know what? People found my posts. They liked them, commented on them. Some even decided to subscribe to the blog. When my books came out, some of those subscribers elected to read them. And many of my subscribers have become dear friends of mine. I’ve even had the pleasure of meeting a few in person, and making happy memories with them. It’s been quite the ride.
As of writing this post (and I know it’s tacky to brag, but nine years! That’s a long time to be blogging, especially in Internet time), Rami Ungar the Writer has 1,694 posts (including this one); 1,217 subscribers; 6,160 likes; and 4,526 comments. Crazy to think about. Even crazier, despite all common sense, some of you are actually proud to be Followers of Fear. I think one or two of you even used the title in hashtags on Twitter. The world is truly something else.
So what’s next? Well, even without a pandemic, I doubt much would change. I’ll be writing and editing stories and working on getting them published. I’ll have reviews on new works of horror as I come across them (and a few new ones are now cheap enough to rent through YouTube, so that’ll work). If I want to discuss a particular aspect of writing or of horror, I will. And if there’s any ghost-hunting or travels to be done, I’ll post about it.
Anyway, thanks for celebrating the blog’s ninth birthday with me. I’m so glad to have so many Followers of Fear interested in my stories and what I have to say. I hope you’ll continue to read what I write, blog or book form, and even let me know what you think.
Also, what do you think I should do for the tenth anniversary? Buy a cake and some champagne? Do another AMA on YouTube? Throw a wild party? I guess we’ll just have to wait till next year to find out.
So, until next time, thanks for being here. And as always, pleasant nightmares!
Ramsey and I doing a selfie in Greenville. And we were in Ramsey’s car, which was why we didn’t wear masks.
I would like to mention that this post is not paid for by the South Carolina Board of Tourism. However, if they would like to pay me, they can figure out how to contact me.
As many of you know, after I left Iowa, I flew to South Carolina to visit my buddy Ramsey, whom you may remember from the New Year’s video I filmed back in January (such innocent times those were). Ramsey lives in Greenville, so we spent the first day there just exploring the city, and I have to say, Greenville was really nice to be in. And not just because it had Borderlands, a comic book store where I finally obtained a Stephen King FunkoPop (though that was cool). What I saw was a small city that’s growing and has a lot to offer. They even have something of a scenic nature park and waterfall in the downtown area. Made for some really great photos, like the one below.
A view of downtown Greenville, SC.
The buildings were also nice to look at, all with this regal nature in their construction and design. It was fun just to look at them, let alone walk around and see them. And of course, there were plenty of houses that looked like they’d been around since the antebellum period, and I enjoyed seeing them as well. They’re not Queen Anne Revival style, which was the preferred style of the Victorian era and my preferred kind of house, but they made me want to live there.
We also almost visited the Confederate History Museum, but it was closed when we arrived. Probably a good thing, because it might’ve been hard for me to hold my tongue in such a place.
Oh, and guess who else lives in Greenville? Sara Parlier, the narrator for Rose‘s audio book (which I highly encourage you to download and check out)! We met up for breakfast outside a nearby Starbucks and managed to have a nice talk (though we made sure to social distance and wear masks as well). That was a cool experience, especially since with everything going on, I didn’t think we would be able to meet. Glad I was able to see her, and I hope we can do it again someday.
Sara Parlier and I meeting for breakfast. We only sat this close because of the photo, believe me.
Ramsey and I also drove down to Charleston for a couple days, and–wow! Charleston is a beautiful city. Some of those buildings have been around since the 17th and 18th centuries or have been built/renovated to match that style, so it kind of feels like you’re stepping back in time. We stayed at the Meeting Street Inn in the historic district, which is just beautiful and enhanced the feeling of stepping back in time, and then spent a good part of the day exploring the Historic District and checking out the waterfront. And despite the Confederate monuments here and there, Charleston is a beautiful place to walk around and take photos of. There’s the Four Corners of Law, at the intersection of Broad and Meeting, which have building that are or were used for various kinds of law at one point or another; Rainbow Row, a series of houses and buildings where the houses are in a rainbow of colors; and the Circular Church, a church dating back to 1681 that looks like it could be the setting of a Gothic novel or movie.
And quite a few of these places ended up on the ghost tour Ramsey and I took (more on that in another post).
St. Michael’s Anglican Church, which you can see from almost anywhere in the Historic District, and one of my favorite buildings from the area.
Also, if you’re able to get a reservation, I recommend Hyman’s Seafood. It’s pretty famous in the area, has been around for decades, has had numerous celebrities eat there over the years, and it has a kosher menu! Yeah, apparently the owners are Jewish and took a few measures so that fellow members of the Tribe can have meat there as well. Second best brisket I’ve ever had (after my mom’s, of course).
The next day, we took a trip out to Patriot’s Point, where you could see both Fort Sumter, where the Civil War started, and the USS Yorktown, which saw combat in WWII. As we’d both majored in History at Ohio State, it was a treat for the both of us. Not to mention taking a ferry to and from Fort Sumter was pretty cool.
Fort Sumter from the ferry.
The USS Yorktown, an aircraft carrier from WWII.
It would take too many words to talk about my impressions of both places, but to say the least, seeing these preserved testaments to past wars was humbling and a little haunting, too. You really get to see and even feel how people living in those places and fighting those wars might’ve felt. I especially liked the USS Yorktown, as WWII is of interest to me (and I have an idea for a story aboard an aircraft carrier). You get to see planes used in WWII and Korea, as well as the flight deck, the areas the soldiers and sailors lived, and even a Medal of Honor museum, among other things. When it comes time to do research for that story, I’ll definitely be coming back to see the Yorktown.
And speaking of which, I may have encountered some paranormal stuff aboard the Yorktown. Wasn’t expecting it, though I did buy a book about hauntings aboard the ship earlier in the day in the gift shop. While buying a snack from the vending machine, I turned around to see where Ramsey had gotten off to, and in turning my head, I swear I saw a woman who was gone the second I looked back. I was like, “Did I just see that?” And in the Engine Room, which was empty but for Ramsey and me, we had this strange feeling of being watched. Which isn’t so strange, when you read in the book that people have had experiences in that room as well. At the time though, we had no idea about that, and we were just freaked out about feeling watched. We were almost glad to be out of the Engine Room, with its oppressive air!
Not saying it’s ghosts, but I am saying it’s unexplained.
Our last stop was Folly Beach, a small beach town where, surprisingly, people were social distancing while still enjoying themselves. Ramsey and I took turns watching our stuff and swimming in the ocean, which I hadn’t done in years. And there’s something wonderfully childlike about swimming in the ocean. You get such a kick by bending down so you’re up to the shoulders in the sea, of jumping so the waves carry you along with them.
I’m honestly sad we had to leave the next morning. South Carolina was a beautiful place to visit and I would love to come by again and see it again. And given my friendship with Ramsey and the stories I could write inspired by my trip, I think I will.
Thanks to Ramsey and his mother for being such wonderful hosts while I was with you, and showing me your lovely state. I hope we can see each other again very soon. Until then, hope you’re all doing well, and stay safe.
And I’ll have more posts out this week, my Followers of Fear. So until then, stay safe and pleasant nightmares!
Earlier today, someone in a movie-themed Facebook group I belong to asked when the last time other members were carded before going to see an R-rated movie (if you don’t know, in the US anyone under 17 can’t see an R-rated movie without an accompanying adult). I laughed and commented that I didn’t start seeing R-rated films in theaters until I was in college, and my student ID came with the assumption that I was already over 17. So unless you count my Student ID as being carded, I never got carded at a theater.
This made me realize something: when I told people offline about my history with going to the movies, they always react with amazement. Sometimes, given how many people still turned out to see movies in the theaters before the pandemic, it amazes me, such as the carded story. And then I realized I never told that story to my blogging audience, who would probably appreciate it the most.
So since this weekend is upon us, let me tell you about my odd history of going to the movies, and why I will likely start going again once it’s safer to do so.
First thing you should know is, until I was off at college, the most I got to go to the movies was a few times a year. It was a treat for me. There are probably several reasons for this. My parents were raising four kids and holding down full-time jobs that didn’t always hold to the normal nine-to-five. We had plenty of free movies from the libraries we patronized, as well as from video stores when those were popular and later streaming services like Netflix. Any theater I would want to go to would require a ride, which wasn’t always on hand). And perhaps I just didn’t beg enough to go see movies I was interested in, though I’m not sure how effective asking repeatedly would’ve been.
Still, we did go to see every Harry Potter movie in theaters when they came out. I did on occasion get to see the new superhero film or book adaptation or whatever when I wanted, especially for birthday parties or if I was invited out by friends, or once or twice my folks had something to do nearby and knew I would be bored senseless if I was dragged along (one time I was even dropped off to watch an action film while my sisters went to see something that was more their speed. I was really happy about that arrangement). And of course, having two sisters who were five and seven years younger than me, I got to see a lot more kids films than I care to admit.
That being said, I did miss out on seeing a lot of films I really wanted to see in theaters. And occasionally, I did feel like I was missing out. When Paranormal Activity came out, and everyone was raving about it, how it was a revolution in horror movies (and for a while, it was), I was sad because I knew I wouldn’t see it in theaters. There was no way in hell I could get my folks to agree to take me to see it, and I would need them. After all, I was only sixteen at the time.
Then college came around, and the nearest theater was only a twenty minute walk from the dorms and later the apartment where I lived. I started going regularly, paying attention to releases. And at some point, I realized that not only was going opening weekend a rush, but it was something I’d been waiting to do my whole life. I was addicted.
Wish I could hop on the TARDIS right now. Then I could see all the movies on opening weekend I want to. Even the ones that have been delayed due to COVID-19.
Even after I moved away from campus, I would go out of my way to see new movies. And then when I moved into my current apartment and learned there was another theater even closer than the ones I went to previously, I went there, taking two buses and nearly two hours to get one way and the other, no matter the weather. And when I got my car? Hoo-boy, did life get good! Now, every movie was only a twenty-minute drive away, no matter the theater I had to go to. It was a blast.
It’s been four months since I’ve been able to sit in a theater, when I saw The Invisible Man (and found it to be average). I miss it. Yeah, occasionally you have to deal with high ticket and food prices, other patrons checking their phones or bringing their babies or otherwise being noisy. And occasionally, when you ask those people to not be so distracting, they threaten you with violence (happened to me once, I did not appreciate it).
But I also enjoy sitting with like-minded viewers right before a big horror or superhero film, that rush of emotions when something amazing or terrifying or heartwarming happens, and the thoughts going through my head as I write my review in my head. I miss the experience that goes with seeing a film opening weekend.
So when it’s safe to do so, I hope to go again, and experience all that again. In fact, I probably will. It’s hard to keep me from a good horror film or superhero film anyway (and I have the eyewitness accounts and court trials to prove it).
Do you miss going to the movies, Followers of Fear? Will you go when the theaters reopen again?
This story is set in the Cthulhu Mythos (and may or may not involve the big tentacled guy. I aim to keep you guessing).
Well, this has been a productive day. Today I finished a new story!
“What Errour Awoke” is a story set in the Cthulhu Mythos.* The story follows Taylor Molton-Reed, a graduate student at my alma mater, Ohio State. One day, while teaching a class on the famous British poem The Faerie Queene, the description of one of the monsters in the poem awakens repressed memories in one of his students of a certain Great Old One (I’ll let you guess which one until you actually read the story). The student later relates to Taylor what he remembered, beginning a chain of events involving this particular eldritch monster and its plans for the people of this world.
This story was actually inspired by my own studies in college. I read the Faerie Queene‘s first book in one of my British literature courses, and remembered one of the monsters in it quite particularly. Years later, after I’d gotten deep into Lovecraft’s canon and became familiar with many of the entities in the story, I found myself thinking back on that monster and thinking to myself, “Hey, wait a minute! That sounds a lot like such-and-such entity!” Thus the idea for this story was birthed.
I had a lot of fun writing this story. For one thing, it’s set right in the Cthulhu Mythos, and there’s a certain thrill for me when it comes to writing stories set in that world (possibly because I’m an entity right out of that world?). For another, the majority of it takes place during our current pandemic. so it was cathartic to write about. I’ve compared the coronavirus to a Lovecraftian entity in the past, so writing about it in a Cthulhu Mythos story felt especially apropos. And finally, I had a lot of fun applying something other than the writing courses from my English major to a story, and modeling certain parts of the story after the first book of Faerie Queene.
In fact, I liked this story so much, I decided to put this into that collection of short stories I’ve been working on and switch out one of the weaker stories in it. That’s how much I loved it, and how confident I am readers will enjoy it.
Now, for the stats on the story. “What Errour Awoke” totaled out to 63 pages and 17,880 words, the last 13 pages and 3,880 words written over the course of this afternoon and evening (yeah, I went on one hell of a writing binge). This puts it at a novelette, so I’m two for two on getting at least one short(er) story done per month for the rest of 2020. Hopefully I can keep that up with the next story, which I’ll likely finish in May.
Speaking of which, what’s next? Well, I’ll be reaching out to some writers I know who may be able to give me some valuable feedback on how to edit “What Errour Awoke.” And while they’re doing that, I’ll be starting work on the last story for that collection, a novelette or novella set in my beloved Victorian England. Believe me, it’s going to be a strange one. A wonderfully strange one.
That’s all for now, my Followers of Fear. There’s a late Shabbat dinner and an Avengers movie calling my name. Until next time, Shabbat Shalom, stay safe, be healthy, and pleasant nightmares.
*Which means, if my parents ever read this story, they’re not going to get any of the references and think I made up more than I did for this story.
Rami Ungar The Writer 