Strange Dream

Page-a-Day WC - 180 words

Last night I had this strange dream. Most I don't remember but my brain is fixated on this one. It starts out with me and a friend at the tail end of a keger. You know when most of the partiers are either passed out or on their way to it. So, I have a drink in my hand, laughing hysterically about something when this woman who looks like a young Holly Hunter comes up to me.

I don't know how I managed to piss her off but I did. She pounced on top of me. Some how I got a letter opener or a knife and just started stabbing her over and over and over. She rolled off of me on to her back but she didn't die. She morphed in to the blob thing, basically a maroon Flubber. Then scooted under a chair.

A few minutes later, the blob appeared again and morphed back in to the Holly Hunter double and tried to kill me again. This time I set her on fire but it still didn't kill her. While all of this is going on, I didn't react to it like a normal person. I wasn't freaked out or didn't even seem drunk. I acted as if it was an everyday thing. Anyways, she morphed back in to the blob and crawled away. I woke up after that.

I swear to you. I did not have Jell-O before going to bed last night.

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Horror Markets

Anthologies are excellent markets for short story writers. Here are a few anthology markets looking for horror stories.

2012AD Anthology – This is an apocalypse themed anthology. Your stories must be based on the ancient Mayan prediction of the world ending on December 21st, 2012. Payment: 1-4.9 US cents per word. Deadline: June 18th, 2009

The Blackness Within Anthology – This one is also themed. Your stories must encompass all stages of Moccus’s reappearance from infancy to death (his middle age and near-future) and how his influence spread throughout the world. Payment: under 1 US cent per word. Deadline: When filled.

Heavy Metal Horror Anthology – Heavy metal is the theme. Your story must contain this element in some way. The rest is up to you. Payment: under 1 US cent per word. Deadline: July 15th, 2009.

Shadows of the Emerald City Anthology – Many love the story of the Wizard of Oz. This is your chance to put your own horror twist to it. Your stories have to be based on the world of Oz. Payment: under 1 US cent per word. Deadline: July 31st, 2009.

Side Show 2: Tales of the Big Top and the Bizarre – For this anthology, they are looking for stories about side shows, carnivals, circuses, fairs, freak shows, and traveling shows. Payment: under 1 US cent per word. Deadline: When filled.

Repost from Write Anything

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Harper's Island

Page-a-Day WC - 192 words

The announcement was made. There will be no second season of Harper's Island. My question is how would they make a second season of this show? I thought it was a one time TV event kind of thing. After they kill a bunch of people off and reveal the killer, what comes next? A copycat?

The funny thing is all these people are dying and the remaining wedding guests are going on like nothing has happened. How do you do that? Personally, I wouldn't want to get married if half the wedding party are in the morgue. And, of course, they had to have a creepy ghost whisperer kid in there somewhere. Sometimes, I think they just tried a little too hard with this show.

And you know the killer is either someone associated with John Wakefield. John Wakefield himself or someone obsessed with the guy. It'll mostly likely be someone who seems completely normal but has underlining problems no one knows about. Probably someone close to Abby. I'll be totally surprised if the killer is none of that.

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Spell Check Please

Page-a-Day WC - 237 words

I think I got ahead of myself on my thoughts about Stalkers. The stories are pretty good. It's the spelling mistakes that are starting to frustrate me. I can understand one or two, but I'm barely passed the halfway mark and the count is up to like six. Spell check, anyone? Wait....did they have spell check in 1989?

What's worse is the book's previous owner decided it was a good idea to go through it and mark out every swear word. Ok...not every one of them but most of them. I'm not talking about drawing a line through it. Scribble it completely out with a blue pen. I feel like I'm playing Mad Libs: obscenity version. Fill in the blanks with curse words.

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The McDow Hole

In the 1860s, Charlie and Jenny Papworth with their infant son Temple made a treacherous journey to what is now known as Alexandra, Texas. Purchasing a spread next to Charlie's cousin Jim McDow's, they built a cabin 200 yards from Green Creek a.k.a. McDow's Hole and got settled. About five years later, Charlie and Jenny welcomed their second son. Unfortunately, not long after the blessed event, Charlie received word his parents had died. In their will, he received all of their furniture. The only way it could be transported was by train and Texarkana was the end of the line out west, 200 miles away.

Charlie made arrangements for the furniture to be shipped and set off with his wagon to pick it up. A decision he would come to regret. Increasing danger of cattle rustlers, worried him. He insisted Jenny and the kids not sleep at home; therefore, a routine was established. Jenny stayed in their cabin by day, preparing for winter and caring for their children. At night, she would bundled up the children and ride to either the McDow's or Keith's place. About a month after Charlie's departure, Jenny and the children didn't show up at the McDow's. Mrs. McDow checked with Mrs. Keith the next day and discovered they had not slept their either. The two women rode to the Papworth's cabin.

Upon their arrival, nothing seemed out of place. However, no one answered the door. The two entered the cabin, finding no sign of Jenny or the children, but all was not right. A scuffle had taken place leaving two overturned chairs and a small spot of blood on the floor. They feared the worst. The sound of a sob from under a bed brought them some hope. They found five year old Temple hidden and scared to death. The child attempted to talk but was never able to give a coherent account of what happened to his mother and brother. A search party was quickly formed.

A large, obnoxious man named Brownlow soon pointed the finger at the Comanche despite there not being any reports of them in the county. It was because of his insistence on their guilt that made him the suspect in some eyes. His quirt or whip was also found near the Papworth cabin. He claimed to have been by the day before to talk to Jenny and there was no way to disprove his statement. Therefore, the search party pursued the Comanche which led to no sign of Indians or the missing Papworth family members. Charlie returned two weeks later only to discover his world destroyed. He was told Indians were responsible but he grew to suspect Brownlow as well.

Back then, many took the law in to their own hands. Brownlow took advantage of this fact when he sensed he was under suspicion. He stirred up rumors about Charlie, calling him a horse their and rustler. Many refused to believe him but the damage had been done. In 1867, one vigilante group, led by Brownlow, raided the area, dragging men from their beds. They forced Charlie out of his bed, tied his hands behind his back and made him mount a horse. He and six other men were strung up on the Papworth's big pecan tree next to McDow's Hole. The group fled at daybreak in fear of being discovered. Charlie Papworth, thanks to his son Temple, was the only one to have survived. The next day, Charlie and Temple road off to the Oklahoma territory, never to return again. Later, on his deathbed, Brownlow confessed to killing Jenny Papworth and her infant son because she had witnessed him associating with known cattle rustlers.

Many who have stayed or lived in the abandoned Papworth cabin have witnessed Jenny walking in to a wall, scratching at the door, and the air becoming chilled. A woman has also been seen at McDow's hole floating above the water sometimes holding a baby. Is it really the ghost of Jenny Papworth or the ghost of some other unfortunate person killed on the land? Today, trespassers are not allowed in the area.

Page-a-Day WC -
Repost from Ghost Stories

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Stalkers Anthology

Page-a-Day WC - 230 words

Has anyone read this anthology? It's kind of old, published in 1989. It contains novellas by Dean Koontz, John Coyne and F. Paul Wilson and stories by Rex Miller, Ed Gorman (who also edited it) and Robert R. McCammon.

So far it's pretty good. I liked the novella by Dean Koontz called "Trapped". It's similar to his book Watchers which I loved. I live in the country. So, mice don't really bother me but smart rats who put rat poison pellets in your breakfast cereal would terrify anyone.

BTW: The Barnes & Nobles website is offering 9 free audiobook MP3 downloads until May 16th. Here's the short stories up for grabs:

"The Babysitters Code" By: Laura Lippman
"Super Goat Man" By: Jonathan Lethem
"Best New Horror" By: Joe Hill
"Great Day" By: Kurt Vonnegut
"Fathers" By: Alice Munro
"Truth or Dare" By: Elizabeth Berg
"Ysrael" By: Junot Diaz
"Merrano of the Dry Country" By: Louis L'Amour
"The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" By: Mark Twain

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Disturbed - The Night

Page-a-Day WC - 174 words

I'm not a big Disturbed fan but I LOVE this song!

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History of Mother's Day

Page-a-Day WC - 174 words

Mother's Day celebrations date back to a Greek spring festival dedicated to the goddess Rhea, the mother of many deities. In ancient Rome, offerings were made to the Great Mother of Gods, Cybele. Celtic Pagans celebrated the mother goddess Brigid. Here in the United States, we have Anna Jarvis and her daughter Anna for our celebrations.

The first celebration of Mother's Day here in the United States took place in 1858. Of course, it wasn't exactly called "Mother's Day". Jarvis organized Mother's Work Day to raise awareness of the poor health conditions in her community. Jarvis died in 1905. Her daughter, also named Anna, began campaigning to memorialize her mother's life work. She lobbied for a special day just for mothers. In 1908, a service was held at her West Virginia church in honor of Anna's mother. White Carnations, Jarvis' favorite flower, were handed out to those that attended.

Five years later, the House of Representatives adopted a resolution for all federal officials to wear white carnations on Mother's Day. However, it wasn't until 1914 that President Woodrow Wilson signed a bill making it an official national holiday. Unfortunately, Anna was not pleased with the gift-giving tradition that became associated with the holiday. She was even arrested for disturbing the peace at a convention selling carnations for a war mother's group. Anna died in 1948 in West Chester, Pennsylvania poor having spent her inheritance campaigning against the commercialization of the holiday.

Today, don't just send a simple card. Write your mother a letter or show her how much you appreciate everything she has done. Happy Mother's Day!

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Book Borrowing Etiquette

Page-a-Day WC - 150 words

One of my biggest pet peeves is when someone borrows something from me and returns it damaged in some way. It may be the control freak in me. I have this problem mostly with books.

I don't care if someone borrows a book from me but I expect it to be returned in the same condition it left in. A lot of times people fold down the corner of a page rather than use a bookmark. Or they messed up the spine so badly that pages are falling out. Or they loose the book jacket. Or it gets wet somehow. I understand accidents happen, but I don't like having to replace my favorite books because someone didn't care to respect my property.

I just think that if you borrow something it should be returned undamaged. If it does get broke, you should at the very least offer to pay for the damages, depending on what the item is. It's just common courtesy.

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Ghost Stories Carnival May Edition

Welcome to the May 2009 edition of Ghost Stories Carnival.

The purpose of this carnival is to gather articles about the paranormal from around the blog-o-sphere. If you would like to submit an article for the next Ghost Stories Carnival, please read the guidelines.

So, without further ado, sit back and start clicking away.

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Article

NAOMI presents SPOOKY CASTLE GHOST CAUSES STIR posted at Diary From England.

floslib presents The Paranormal, Belief, and Skepticism posted at Spirited Script.

Ghost Stories presents The Seven Sisters Inn posted at Ghost Stories.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents 10 Facts About Buying and Selling A House of Horrors posted at The Digerati Life


Essay

Vanessa Wolf presents Save me from myself posted at Wide Awake in Wonderland, saying, "This is largely humorous (as is my blog), but it does cover my (former) very real fear of aliens + some related stuff. No hard feelings if it's not appropriate!

Thanks! Vanessa"

Romeo Vitelli presents Hunting The Wendigo (Part 1) posted at Providentia, saying, "A two-part essay on Wendigo folklore and the actual cases that it inspired."

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This concludes the May 2009 edition of the Ghost Stories Carnival. THANK YOU for submitting your links! If you would like to see your work showcased in the June 2009 edition, please submit your links here.

If you submitted your link and don’t see it here, that probably means I received it after the deadline.

Thanks for visiting the carnival participants and don’t forget to check back June 2nd for the next Creative Carnival. Happy Cinco De Mayo!

Page-a-Day WC - 203 words
Repost from Ghost Stories

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PARA ABNORMAL

Page-a-Day WC - 151 words

If you haven't seen this web comic, you so should. It's be a guy named Dave Lowe. He depicts everything from Piglet turned zombie to an Easter basket full of skulls. Check it out!

PARA ABNORMAL

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Managing Time

Page-a-Day WC - 229 words

I decided to monitor my internet time for the next couple of weeks if not during the entire month. I've noticed I spend about three to four hours a day on the net. I guess that may not be a lot compared to some people.

Majority of that time goes to maintaining blogs or checking social networks. I hardly do any chatting anymore. I don't even bring up my yahoo messenger upon signing on. May or may not be a good thing. I haven't decided yet.

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Tweet Story

Page-a-Day WC - 168 words

This is my attempt at a tweet story. I don't know. Does it make sense to you?


Footsteps paced outside her room. “Who’s there?” The air grew cold. She pulled the sheets over her head. “Why did you abandon her?” he said.

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Drabble This, Tweet That

Page-a-day WC - 164 words
Repost from Write Anything

After publishing last week’s post, I came across a new market. Tweet the Meat is a Twitter-based horrorzine. You have 140 characters to write something scary. How can anyone bring on the fear in 140 characters or less? I didn’t think it could be possible but after reading a few tweets, I guess it is.

I’ve had a few people on occasion tell me the idea of writing short stories is considerably challenging for them. I find myself in the same boat with drabbles and now tweetzines. How can you get your message across with such restrictions? Can a reader be truly entertained with less details rather than more? In English, we may see it as confining. However, with languages exhibiting polysynthesis (one word meaning an entire sentence in English), it’s less restraining.

With the invention of Twitter, tweetzines were sure to pop up sooner or later but where did the concept of drabbles originate from? The idea began in the 1980s with the UK science fiction fandom. The actual 100-word format was established by the Birmingham University SF Society. The word “drabble” comes from the Monty Python’s 1971 Big Red Book, applying to a game where the first person to complete a novel wins. The term now is used a little looser. Some consider drabble as short stories of 1,000 words or 500 words. Personally, I think it should only apply to the 100 word limit. Then there’s half-drabble (50 words) and double-drabble (200 words).

Can it be done? If it weren’t possible, no one would be doing it. I challenge you to tweet a story today.

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Karma Cards

Page-a-Day WC - 189 words

Thanks to our upcoming garage sale I'm now the proud owner of a deck of Karma Cards. I've always wanted a deck of Tarot cards. I've heard some writers use them for character developing and whatever. Maybe the Karma cards could be used for a similar purpose. I haven't had a chance to read the book. I also have a set of Rune stones with instruction book. Unfortunately, I'm missing one. Maybe we'll eventually find it somewhere.

I'll be glad when this all over.

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Garage Sale

Page-a-Day WC - 164 words

All week, we have been preparing for our big garage sale on Friday and Saturday. Mos tof the junk we're getting rid of belonged to my step-grandparents. I know my step-dad is looking forward to it. He'll finally have room in his shop to do whatever. Though there were a few gems among it all. I bet you don't know what this is:

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Writing Again

Page-a-Day WC - 202 words

Guess what.....Guess what.....Guess what??? I actually wrote today. After a twenty-three day hiatus, I put pen to paper and wrote something today. I probably should have done it sooner. Really doesn't matter now. I'm getting back in to the routine. That's all that counts.

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Wookey Hole Caves

In its 50,000 year history, Wookey Hole Caves has seen it share of inhabitants such as the Neanderthal man and Romans. At a constant temperature of 11 °C or 52 °F, the caves are a prime location for maturing Cheddar cheese. In 1935, Chamber 7 was the location of the first successful cave diving expedition in Britain performed by Graham Balcombe, Penelope Powell, and their cave diving group. However, Wookey Hole Caves is most known for a certain witch.

Stories surrounding this legend vary. A woman wronged by life in some way decides to take her frustration out on the females of the village. In one version, the villagers banded together and requested the services of a monk from Glastonbury. In another, the witch curses the romance of a couple. When it fails, the man becomes a monk and seeks revenge on the witch. Either way, the monk enters the cave. He blesses the water and begins splashing it among parts of the cave. Supposedly, some of the holy water was splashed on the witch, turning her to stone. She remains in the cave 'til this day.

The Witch of Wookey Hole is actually a stalagmite in the first chamber of the caves. Over the years, the rock took on a human form and thus, a legend is born. But is it really just a tale? The story was first written down in 1748 though circulated among generations for years before. In 1912, cave explorer H. B. Balch found evidence that may substantiate some of the story. He discovered a milking pot, a ball made from a stalagmite, tools and even human remains which may or may not belong to the "witch".

If that weren't enough, the caves are also said to be haunted. The ghost of a potholer who drowned is said to roam the chambers. The spirit of a child who died on the site has also been seen. Of course, the witch herself is believed to demostrate her powers on occasion. For more on Wookey Hole, check out their website, take the virtual tour and watch the live webcam.

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The Battle Continues

So, the last two weeks have been one techie battle after another one. I thought my computer was infected with that stupid conflicker thing, but I'm not so sure anymore. Every scanner I've used to remove it has come up clean, safe or normal modes. I've tried Ad-Aware, Malwarebytes, Symantec, McAfee Stinger, Avast, Microsoft OneCare. Always the same results, but my defrag (Windows and AusLogics) still doesn't work. InCd is acting up as well. It has come to the option of last resort. My step-dad says he's going to exchange my computer for his which means I probably won't see mine for a while. Thank God I have everything backed up on disks.

I didn't really get much done writing wise. However, I did submit "Sealed With Anguish" to Fear and Trembling Mag. It's a piece I wrote for Long Ridge and my instructor didn't get it all. It's suppose to be satirical, but I think because it was set in a "monster reality" he thought it was suppose to be scary. I don't know. After all this mess, here's hoping for some good news.

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I'm Still Alive

I know I haven't posted all week. My excuse is I've been in download hell. With this whole Conflicker worm going around, I realized some of my software needed to be updated. Here's hoping next week is better...

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