Today has not been a good day. If I were in a better frame of mind, I would have much to say about what I thought was a shoddy month of capturing myself. But, as it transpires, I managed to get a fair amount of imagery conjured up. I overuse the word ‘conjured.’ I need… Continue reading July’s Self-Portraits
I was supposed to be sharing self-portraits just from June, but ended up with some of July's in the June's Portraits folder and I'm too knackered to take them out now, so you're getting some of July's creations too. And before you scream in the comments, yes, I'm very much aware that the bone in… Continue reading June (and some of July’s) Self-Portraits
It has been a while, a really long while, since I've read something that's creeped me out. I think the last thing was Algernon Blackwood's novella The Wendigo...and we're going back ages now. I thrive on scaring myself half to death, so being unable to find satisfyingly scary stories - or poems - has produced… Continue reading Writing In The Dark – Horror Writing Prompts
Krampus has long intrigued me, but it's only this year that I've started to delve deep into the lore surrounding him. This post is, I imagine, going to be the first of several that will look at and celebrate the folkloric devil. 'The Krampus springs from a deep-rooted European understanding of Christmas as a time… Continue reading The Darkest Days – Krampus
I’ve finally got around to narrating my short story UTBURD and have put it up on YouTube for your listening pleasure. For those of you unfamiliar with this tale, it tells of a mother in olden time Scandinavia who abandons her newborn in the forest. However, the child finds its way home… If you really… Continue reading UTBURD : A SHORT STORY
I think most folk have heard about The Ritual by now, be it via the movie on Netflix or the original novel. Well, for this week's Wyrd Word's Book Club Read, I've chosen Some Will Not Sleep by Adam Nevill, the author of The Ritual. Some Will Not Sleep is a collection of Nevill's best… Continue reading Wyrd Words Book Club : Some Will Not Sleep
Yesterday I talked about The VVitch being my favourite horror film of all time. I also briefly mentioned my second and third favourites which were, in order, The Blair Witch Project and The Babadook. (I know, I know, numbering films in what order I like them best...what am I? Nine years old? Bloody hell. But… Continue reading Art Of Pet Sematary
Most of the people in my life worship the sun. During the cold months, they pine for the long, balmy days of spring and summer, for endless blue skies and the bright light. During the warm months, I pine for the short, cold days of autumn and winter, for the darkness and brooding atmosphere. I… Continue reading Thinking In The Dark : Fog
If I don't like a book, I tend to quietly close it and never mention it again. I don't usually go public with my disappointment. But, on this occasion, I felt it was important to share my grief. Because that's really what I'm feeling today, a whole load of grief and disappointment. I was waiting… Continue reading Reading In The Dark : The Terror
Celebrating the strange and the shadowy, the damned and unseen 