Monthly Archives

January 2016

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DIEmonds in the Rough: Phantasm (1979)

Welcome to another installment of DIEmonds in the Rough, where we take a look at horror movies, games and stories that are less than perfect, but contain some real nuggets of awesomeness. Today's subject could easily be the poster child for this column. A beautiful, sometimes terrifying mess of a movie that birthed a horror icon. I'm talking about the 1979 cult classic, Don Coscarelli's Phantasm. https://youtu.be/NDyieW6ZFT8 I wrote a couple of weeks ago about the passing of Angus Scrimm, whose on screen persona the Tall Man has been one of horror's most iconi[...]

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Join the 6th #SpookyAllYear BlogHop!

Welcome to the sixth #SpookyAllYear, a Midnight Society Blog Hop! You can find the introduction post here. It essentially tells you the blog hop takes place on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month. You post something Spooky on your blog, and submit the post to the linkup at the bottom of this post. You’re encouraged to visit around to the blogs listed there and enjoy the spooky fun. The ideas for posts are endless (review of a spooky movie you’ve seen, a picture of the mist in your backyard, a spooky book cover, a spooky story you wrote, a recipe for[...]

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Outrunning Zombies

Alright, the idea for this post comes from a comment our very own Jolene made to me on Facebook. For those who haven't yet friended us, here's what was said: Amy: Got a short run in today. The snow made everything so pretty! Jolene: Look at you running! I only run if I am being chased. I've always said this very thing. That running was only useful to get away. I'd even laugh about being one of the first people to die in an apocalypse, because even the zombies would be able to catch me. Not. Any. More. I can't yet run far or very fast, but[...]

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Exploring the Cauldron: How to Spot a Witch

At the end of December, I wrote a post about a new blog series here on The Midnight Society called Exploring The Cauldron. We'll be talking witches, spells, history, and more. I figured for today, we should start at the very beginning. What is a witch? The answer to this question will depend on where you look for answers. If you look up the definition of witch in the Oxford English dictionary, it says that a witch is, "A woman thought to have evil magic powers. Witches are popularly depicted as wearing a black cloak and pointed hat, and flying on a broomstick.[...]

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Curious Things Found on the Internet – Part III

So. This post was planned a few weeks in advance. More on this in a sec; largely because it has to do with where I am when this post goes live. (Delays on comment responses will be inevitable, I'm afraid.) With The Forest's recently released, there's been a spike in talk about Aokighara Forest in Japan -- the setting in which the movie is based. You might have heard of it before, as it is featured in Kendare Blake's follow-up to Anna Dressed in Blood: the sequel to the series, Girl of Nightmares. Maybe you're a fan of Atlas Obscura (I sure am) and came across[...]

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Hearing Horror

Hello, Kittens!   I had originally blocked off this post for a review of the incredible novel HOUSE OF LEAVES, but I am nowhere near being finished. Now I'm a pretty speedy reader, but this novel is a delightful chore. For starters, it's a book within a book, about a film that doesn't exist (or does it??). Confusing, eh? I'll try and explain. The first book starts with an introduction. The narrator is a hot mess. He finds a book, which becomes the second story being told. THAT book describes a film (our narrator has never heard of / doesn't exist) and the[...]

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Writing Bloody–Pitching Your Story

So, you're writing a horror story? Can you tell me about it in a sentence or two? That is a question that freaks out even the most seasoned writer. So, how do you pitch a horror story? The same way you'd pitch any other story, except you need to make sure you represent the conflict between the protagonist and antagonist. Here are my top 5 pieces of advice when pitching: Prepare This is a test. Not really, treat it as though you're studying for a test. Even though this sounds obvious, without preparation you may become too nervous to really take advantage of th[...]

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Read Harder Horror

Book Riot put out its 2016 Read Harder Challenge just before the start of the new year. I did last year's challenge and found it great for expanding my reading. While the point of the challenge is to read widely, I'm offering a tailored version for the horror aficionado. Read a horror book Blood Kin by Steve Rasnic Tem Read a nonfiction book about science The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence by Gavin de Becker Read a collection of essays Lovecraft and a World in Transition: Collected Essays on H.P. Lovecraft by S.T. Joshi Read a[...]

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Rest in Peace, Angus Scrimm

Man, it's been a rough few weeks for both music and movie fans. We've lost Lemmy and David Bowie, Alan Rickman and Richard Libertini. And now we've lost the Tall Man. Angus Scrimm (Lawrence Rory Guy), best known for his portrayal of the iconic villain from the Phantasm series, passed away this week at 89 years old. Before Scrimm got into movies, he'd been a journalist, written for publications like TV Guide, and even won a Grammy for his work writing liner notes for Capital Records. But for horror fans, Angus Scrimm will forever be the man who commands the silv[...]

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Monsters of Dr. Who… The Silence

After a brief break from this series for all things Halloween and Christmas, I am back to share my love of Dr. Who...a sci-fi show that crosses into the wonderful world of horror. I've returned with one of my favorite monsters. The Silence. Don't you just love him? Created by Steven Moffat, these terrifying creatures appeared in the 2011 season opener Part 1 "The Impossible Astronaut" and Part 2 "Day of the Moon" where they met the 11th Doctor played by Matt Smith. Over six and a half feet tall, they can absorb electricity and use it as a weapon.  [...]