Blog Archives
WANT SOME “CHEESY FUN” THIS HALLOWEEN? CHECK OUT THESE SCARY SHORTS!
Culture: the word on cheese, a magazine for cheese enthusiasts, retailers and the like, is running its second annual “Scary Dairy” Contest with a winner announced on November 4.
If you’re looking for something short (and cheesy) to read in between the trick or treaters, head on over there and enjoy the current entries. My short “Slow Grill,” written specifically for this contest, is over there, and so are stories by friends and New England Horror Writers members David Goudsward and Stacey Longo. The other entrants I don’t know, but all of the stories are fun to read.
Writer? I think there’s also still time to enter—entries must be 500 words or fewer. Take a shot at it! The cheese basket they’re offering as a prize sounds YUMMY.
Enjoy and Happy Cheesing!
http://www.culturecheesemag.com/blog/wfertman_scary_dairy_contest_2011
AN AUDIO TREAT FOR HALLOWEEN: I READ THE OUT-OF-PRINT “HOUSE SITTER” ON PARANORMAL, EH? RADIO!
Nathan’s apartment decked out for Halloween, 2005. Yes, he carved all those pumpkins. It’s one of his favorite activities.
Ghost stories have always been an oral tradition—shared around the Victorian hearth, intoned around the campfire, whispered while passing the haunted house.
For Halloween, Canada’s Paranormal Eh? honors that tradition with an audio treat—a reading of my out-of-print ghost story “House Sitter”…followed by the true story that inspired it.
Enjoy…and Happy Haunting! Listen here: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/paranormaleh/2011/10/25/kristi-petersen-schoonover
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WHICH GHOST STORIES MAY HAVE INSPIRED SCENES IN DISNEY’S HAUNTED MANSION ATTRACTION? FIND OUT ON DAVE’S DISNEY VIEW!
Some of the tableaux in the Haunted Mansion may have been inspired by classic ghost stories. Find out which ones—well, some of which ones, anyway, we’ve barely scratched the surface—on Dave’s Disney View Podcast Episode 72. Dave and I had a great time talking all things spooky in the Haunted Mansion, just in time for Halloween!
If you’re a Disney Parks fan, then consider checking out his other episodes as well. Good stuff.
You can listen to the Haunted Mansion episode here:
http://disneyview.blogspot.com/2011/10/ddv-72-look-at-some-of-stories-of.html
…or, you can play it directly by clicking below:
GhoStory Guru: OCTOBER HIATUS
My Poe action figure. I can't write without him around!
October may be a strange time to choose to put GhoStory Guru on hiatus, but this month, I decided to do a special five-part series on Disney’s Haunted Mansion and the real ghost stories that may have inspired some of its scenes. The series runs every Monday, and on Sunday, October 30, 2011, I’m releasing a never-before-published short story from the original Tales from Haunted Disney World collection called “Grave Error,” written just for Haunted Mansion fans.
Here are the links to episodes #1 – #4 of “A Lit Look at the Haunted Mansion.” Enjoy, and visit this blog on Sunday, October 30 for that Halloween Treat!
A “Lit” Look at Disney’s HauntedMansion: The Cemetery’s Caretaker & Dog http://wp.me/pIXRs-Y1
A “Lit” Look at Disney’s HauntedMansion: The Attic’s Portrait http://wp.me/pIXRs-Y7
A “Lit” Look at Disney’s Haunted Mansion: The Skeleton in the Coffin http://wp.me/pIXRs-Yd
A “Lit” Look at Disney’s HauntedMansion: The Changing Portrait Hallway’s Ghost Ship http://wp.me/pIXRs-Yk
GhoStory Guru: OCTOBER HIATUS
Walt Disney World Haunted Mansion's Bride Action Figure.
October may be a strange time to choose to put GhoStory Guru on hiatus, but this month, I decided to do a special five-part series on Disney’sHauntedMansionand the real ghost stories that may have inspired some of its scenes. The series runs every Monday, and on Sunday, October 30, 2011, I’m releasing a never-before-published short story from the original Tales from Haunted Disney World collection called “Grave Error,” written just for Haunted Mansion fans.
Here are the links to episodes #1 and #2 of “A Lit Look at the Haunted Mansion.” Enjoy and have a safe and happy Halloween!
A “Lit” Look at Disney’s HauntedMansion: The Cemetery’s Caretaker & Dog http://wp.me/pIXRs-Y1
A “Lit” Look at Disney’s HauntedMansion: The Attic’s Portrait http://wp.me/pIXRs-Y7
NOW ON KINDLE: SKELETONS IN THE SWIMMIN’ HOLE—TALES FROM HAUNTED DISNEY WORLD
Just in time for autumn in New England, Skeletons in the Swmmin’ Hole—Tales from Haunted Disney World is now available for Kindle here: http://amzn.com/B0052N333Q.
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GhoStory Guru: “The Highboy” by Alison Lurie
Ever had an inanimate object give you the creeps? If you have, then you’ll identify strongly with Alison Lurie’s disturbing “The Highboy.” If you haven’t? Then this story is the best way to connect with that feeling without having to go through it (yes, I know, cheap thrill).
What gives this story its creep-factor—well, other than the very subject itself—is Lurie’s diction: this modern tale is peppered with antiquated words and phrases to invoke the feel of many of the classics.
Read “The Highboy” and the next time you go into your dining room, you might just give that really ugly inherited antique a second glance.
“The Highboy” is found in Lurie’s 1994 collection, Women & Ghosts. You can purchase it here: http://amzn.com/0385518315
GhoStory Guru: “Ghostwriter” by Edward Lodi
The ghost story has developed enough over the years that there are certain plots, characters, settings, and themes that pop up over and over again to the point at which they are considered cliché. Sometimes, use of these can make for tired reading: this is like “XX” by Poe/Hawthorne/Whoever; this has been done to death; I suspect I know how this ends, so I’m not going to bother to finish.
Yet, there is a place in the ghost story canon for some of these—because they work. In the hands of the right person—who is usually doing this intentionally—a few of these slightly skewed and combined can still make for a read that ends in surprise and is one hell of a joyride on the way.
What’s difficult about placing a story of this ilk is the level of skill required to spot one. Some haven’t studied the genre enough to understand the technique; case in point: my short story “Denigrating David,” was rejected by a few people, and the one that impressed me the least was from someone who wrote, “Our reader says there are things wrong with this that can’t be fixed.” The one that impressed me the most was from an editor who totally understood and appreciated what I was doing, but didn’t care for it and took the time to discuss what she thought might have been done differently. Three other editors, however, were quite pleased and all the acceptances, strangely, came in on the same day—I chose the one that came in first. It now appears in State of Imagination’s Issue 3.
“Ghostwriter,” by Edward Lodi, is a piece like “Denigrating.” In his introduction to the story, he writes that he found the manuscript in a drawer and realized he’d written it 25 years before—but didn’t remember why he’d shoved it aside for that long. I could guess—and I’m glad he chose to get it in print.
I can’t tell you what he used or how he skewed them because I will ruin it for those of you that are curious enough to check it out. But I can tell you that if you love the classic horror and ghost story hallmarks you’d find in Poe or even Lovecraft, but you’re looking for something that’s fresh and still going to surprise you, then “Ghostwriter” is a fun, uncomplicated, chilling little chocolate in which you just have to indulge.
“Ghostwriter” can be found in Till Human Voices Wake Us…The Lost Ghost Stories of Edward Lodi, which was published in 2009 in a limited run of 400 copies. It’s a beautiful volume, and should be on every ghost story lover’s shelf. The original price was $27.50, and there are a couple near that in stock through Amazon Marketplace here: http://amzn.com/1934400157
GhoStory Guru: “The Day Ghost” by David Huddle
Ever wonder what goes on in your house when you’re not home? David Huddle’s main character in “The Day Ghost” does—just like the rest of us—and what’s haunting his second floor turns out to be the last thing he expected.
“The Day Ghost” is an unusual ghost story, and that’s what sets it apart. It certainly isn’t your typical chain-rattling chill-fest set in a creepy castle; instead, it’s set in every day modern environments—and what’s haunting David isn’t that much different from what haunts many of us every day. That’s what makes it disturbing: the very same thing could happen to you at any time. For that, I have to place it on my “Genius” list.
You can find “The Day Ghost” in Ghost Writing: Haunted Tales by Contemporary Writers, edited by Richard Weingarten, here: http://amzn.com/096796833X
GhoStory Guru: “Doors” by Pamela Painter
Looking to downsize? After reading Pamela Painter’s “Doors,” you might upsize instead.
“Doors” is a fine example of what extremely subtle ratcheting of tension can do: the situation seems normal. Then it’s normal but curious. Then it’s normal but slightly off…and so on. By the time the reader realizes what’s happening, it’s way too late to put it down—although the story’s subject and content are completely different, the way it was built reminded me of “A Rose for Emily”—and after I’d finished the last line, I felt that same “void.”
While many ghost stories ratchet tension well, I find this extreme subtlety not very common among the modern pieces, so for that reason, “Doors” is a must-own.
You can find “Doors” in Ghost Writing: Haunted Tales by Contemporary Writers, edited by Richard Weingarten, here: http://amzn.com/096796833X
