Growing up, my dad would tell me scary stories, ones he claimed he experienced during his childhood. His stories would both fascinate and terrify me. As I grew older, the stories he would share became less frequent until they eventually came to an end. Maybe because I stopped believing. I […]
Be Home by Midnight on Halloween Night Read More »
Detective Martinez dragged on his filter-tipped cigarette, watching the fiery cherry rapidly descend to the orange paper. He heaved a deep sigh on the exhale, regretting having to work into the wee hours. The spent cigarette tumbled from his hand, landing on the wet Tarmac with a fizz. He reached
Being poor is tough, but it hits especially hard during the holidays. Halloween is the first reminder that you don’t have the disposable income for your kid’s happiness. I took Austin down to a local thrift store we visited frequently. They had a rack of reject costumes from supermarkets, a
My Son Won’t Take Off His Halloween Costume Read More »
“Dad, just a few more houses, pleeeasseee?” Why did I say yes? I blame myself every day, but how could I not? If you saw his face, if you saw those big beautiful brown eyes staring up at you I don’t see how you could refuse. My son, Daniel, dressed
Don’t Ever Take Your Eyes Off Your Children This Halloween Read More »
When I was seven years old, my mother and I moved to a small town in Massachusetts. It was a rough time for me as my father had just up and left a few weeks before. My mom told me that he had taken a better job somewhere. She told
Something Comes Into My Room Every Night Read More »
It’s that time of year again. Another stupid Halloween night with a bunch of stupid kids breaking into my house, just to prove they have balls to enter a haunted house. Well, I’m a ghost, or at least that’s what they call me. I’m not entirely sure what am I.
I don’t celebrate Halloween. When the trick-or-treaters come out and start prowling my street, I make sure to keep my front porch light off and pull the shades down. If someone rings my doorbell despite all my precautions, I hide in the bedroom and pray that they don’t ring it
The Last Halloween Read More »
“Am I going to be charged with murder?” The detective sighed, and did not answer. His eyes were tired, haunted. “Just help us get to the bottom of this,” he said. “Okay,” I answered. “I’ll do my best.” I could hear the tremor in my voice. I hadn’t stopped shaking
When the Halloween Decorations Start Bleeding Read More »
I had just moved to my current flat in Raynes Park, Southwest London, and was still fairly unfamiliar with the area. Now my current bosses and supervisors know that I am still fighting a losing battle with the underwhelming reliability of Southwest trains and as a result have less than
A Walk Home on Halloween Read More »
My younger brother disappeared on Halloween night when he was seven years old. It hollowed out my mother, who was raising the two of us all by herself, and that was already hard enough in 1971. Mom finished drinking herself to death in ‘74, and I went to live with
Living in the town of Findlay, you hear a lot of urban legends. Scary stories and rumors, usually conjured up to convince the young kids to behave and not to stay out past their bedtimes. As I understand it, it wasn’t always this way. We moved to town two months
The Murphy Horror House Read More »
My father died from pulmonary hypertension when I was only four years old. I still remember the night he had the heart-attack, watching from the third-floor window of my great-grandmother’s bedroom as he was wheeled on a stretcher across the driveway. Hell, I still remember the bare and twisted trees
I hate Halloween for many reasons. I have to answer the door every ten minutes. I have to pretend like I’m excited to give bratty kids free candy. I have to stay inside, because driving on a road filled with crazy, running children gives me panic attacks. I plopped down
The Boy in the Devil Costume Read More »
During my junior year of college, I was on a bit of a bender. My high school girlfriend finally called it quits for the third time and the lure of the one night stand caught in the sweaty mist of beer and perfume was too much for my angry brain
The Ones Who Sleep Alone Read More »
£25 an hour to look after two little children, I wasn’t going to turn that down. It was Halloween night and I had grown out of it, but it didn’t stop their parents from going to a Halloween party of their own. I followed Janet upstairs. She whispered as she
Babysitting on Halloween Read More »
I hate scarecrows. I have ever since I was little. I found something about the dolls stuffed with straw unsettling. I remember my parents tried to help me get over this fear by telling me things like, “They’re not scary, they only want to be friends” or some other lame
Why I Hate Scarecrows Read More »
“Considering how much crap people give this movie, it honestly isn’t that bad,” Mark said while taking another sip of his beer. His wife, Claire, took another fistful of popcorn from her bowl. “Just you wait. This is one of my favorite parts coming up.” In the next scene, a
A Boy in a Michael Myers Mask Read More »
I grew up with a healthy fear of clowns, I’d say. Could’ve been because of Stephen King, could’ve been because of John Wayne Gacy, could’ve just been because they’re fucking creepy looking. My family has never let me live it down, so it shouldn’t have been a surprise to me
My Sister Brought Home A Clown Read More »
“No, I’m going to stay in. It’s been a long day and the most I intend to do tonight is hand out candy.” “Lame. Look, just for once, ignore your spinster instincts and come to Jackson’s. We’ll get sloppy drunk and play strip Twister.” “Sounds like a blast.” “I already
My friend and I have always known not to go into the woods around my house at night. I live in a really, really rural area. Like, the nearest house is about a mile away kind of rural. I love it; I grew up in suburban areas, so living somewhere so far
Over the hill and through the moor, the candle man comes walking, up to your door. He lights up a candle and walks to your bed, leaves the candle in the window, and leaves with your head. That’s the nursery rhyme my grandma used to tell me when I was
It was All Hallows Eve as the old ones called it, but to us it was simply Halloween. A time for darkened skies, for fallen leaves golden and brown and the feet of children kicking with verve through them; for sweets and treats, for frightening films and spooky tales, for
The End of All Hallows’ Eve Read More »
