It’s That Time of Year Again!

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What’s that I hear you say? “Josh, we had no idea that Halloween was your favourite holiday! That’s so unexpected! Who’d have guessed that the lunatic who has an unhealthy obsession with horror likes Halloween? Not me!”

Alas, it is true. Halloween and October are my most treasured times of year. The burnt-orange leaves that scatter and make skittering noises as the wind ushers them down the streets. The acrid perfume of bonfires and fireworks lingering in the air. The cooler temperatures, the thick jumpers, the hugging scarfs. And, of course, All Hallow’s Eve.

I love all things Halloween. The movies, the music, the TV specials, the books, the decorations, the costumes. All of it. All of it. From the legitimately terrifying stuff to the kid-friendly goofy stuff. It simply warms the cold, cobwebby recesses of my heart.

So, to celebrate, Bite-Sized Horror will undergo a special Halloween theme for the rest of this month! I’m not sure how many posts there’ll be, but there’s going to be an underlying connection to them — perhaps even one overarching story. I think I may stray from my two-sentence rule — maybe I’ll play around with the 99-word structure I’ve recently come to love (check out CarrotRanch’s weekly prompts!). If I (temporarily) abandon the two-sentence shocker, I’ll probably not post every day, due to time constraints… But we’ll see — I think I’m going to wing it, and see where my dark, rotten soul leads me.

Additionally, I’ll be sharing parts of my other creative passion as well: music. I play a few different instruments and I love composing. Unsurprisingly, I adore horror soundtracks — particularly the works of John Carpenter. Writing music (especially creepy, horror-themed electronica) is one of my most enjoyable pastimes — so I’ll be posting tidbits, here and there, when the mood is right and the moon is full.

So keep your eyes peeled and your ear to the ground — terrible things are lurking in the shadows.

Read ‘Public Order’: My entry for the October #BlogBattle!

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Well, here we go again! It’s time for the monthly #BlogBattle! The prompt for October is ‘clone’. Such a great word! So many directions to take it in…

As with the last #BlogBattle, I wrote this piece as quickly as possible — to give it a sense of urgency. I hope the sensation translates well to the story! You can read my entry here, it’s titled Public Order.

Our eyes lock, and for an instant, I can’t breathe. I avert my gaze to the floor. Keep walking, I tell myself. Just. Keep. Walking.

Continue Reading

I really enjoyed writing this piece, and I feel as though it’s slightly more horrific than my straightforward horror pieces — mainly because, for the most part, it’s rooted in reality, rather than fantasy.

As always, you should definitely check out the other bloggers’ stories, when they’re up!

‘Visit’: A story in 99 words

Gusts of wind moaned through the skeletal trees, scattering the burnt-orange leaves across the graves.

“That time of year again, Frank?”

“Yep.”

“Same as last year?”

“Same as every year, Harry.”

“Hmm.”

The wind wailed between the headstones, shrieking like a ghoul.

Harry cleared his throat. “Well… maybe they forgot?”

“Twenty-seven years in a row?”

“I—well, maybe not…”

“Yeah, maybe not.”

The gale was picking up speed now. The town’s citizens would be battening down the hatches.

Frank was changing, too. Becoming. Tattered skin and rotten flesh were stitching themselves together again.

“This year,” he said, “they’ll remember.”

 

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Photo by Skitterphoto on Pexels.com

 

Written in response to CarrotRanch’s September 26, 2019, prompt: unremembered.

‘Dorsal’: A story in 99 words

The whole world seemed to hold its breath. A calm fell across the ocean, silencing the whispering waves and the crying gulls.

The waters around her were dark grey; murky and gloomy. She knew that the aquatic tranquillity was false – a temporary peace.

She trod the water, suspended between two ticks in time. The instant before had revealed a flash of black and white, a beady eye, a fin slicing the glassy waves. Then the depths had reclaimed it.

Her mind’s eye told her what was next: the strike from below, the eyes rolled white, a row of teeth.

 

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Photo by Oliver Sjöström on Pexels.com

 

Due to my busy schedule, this was written after the closure of last week’s CarrotRanch prompt, ‘interlude’. I had an idea for the theme, so I thought I’d write it and share it nonetheless!