Kampung Kreepy

As many of you know, Halloween, or All Hallows’ Eve, has roots in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (it’s Gaelic and pronounced SAH-win). The Celts believed that between October 31 and November 1, the boundaries between the physical and spiritual worlds were weak and could be breached. That meant that the dead, fairy folk and even monsters could cross into the human world at this time. The Celts left offerings for the Sidhs, or fairies, outside their villages and in fields. They also dressed up as animals and monsters to fool the fairies into not kidnapping them. For this Halloween, I thought it might be fun to breach the walls between the world of the living and the world of the dead. How about watching a few movies about ghosts while waiting for the trick-or-treaters to arrive? If you’re interested, I have a few recommendations for you. My list is in no particular order. Some of these are older movies and/or classics. They are among my favorite horror movies, and they all br

Looking for something else to do this Halloween that’s spooky and fun? How about reading a few Gothic horror stories? You’re probably familiar with stories by Edgar Allan Poe and H.P. Lovecraft. And you may have heard of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” (published in 1892), which has been described as feminist Gothic. Why is Gothic fiction so deliciously creepy? Could it be the setting? The oppressive mood? The time period in which the tales were written? Many of the classic stories were published at a time when most (if not all) people were still using gaslight and candles for lighting. It’s easy to imagine, when the light is poor and fog presses against the windows, that the shadows in the corner aren’t shadows after all … For this Halloween, I’m recommending a few lesser known Gothic short stories. You may recognize a few of the authors. The list is in chronological order according to the year the stories were first published. These tales are among my favorites.

Are you tired of the never-ending horror movie franchises? Want to watch something this Halloween that may not have gotten too much attention? I have a few recommendations for you. In July, I blogged about movies that many horror fans might not have heard of. It was one of my more successful posts. I’m doing it once more for this spooky season. Again, I want to stress that I generally am not a fan of slasher movies. I don’t like overt gore and gratuitous violence. What I do like is mounting dread and dark atmosphere. I want cold fingers tickling my spine. I want the hair on the back of my neck to stand. I also have a thing about ghosts and haunted houses. Many of the flicks I’m recommending don’t have much in the way of jump scares. Some of them are old so you may have forgotten about them. The chill factor is what these movies have in common. The movies are listed in no particular order. 1. The Awakening (2011) A writer who debunks paranormal phenomena investigates an alleged

Joss Paper is my new collection of horror short stories now available on Amazon . “The Chase” is one of the stories in the collection.  If you enjoy the story, please check out the book ! It's priced at $0.99 and is free on Kindle Unlimited.   * ***** The moon brushed the edges of the trees with silver. She ran swiftly, trying to make as little sound as possible. Foliage whipped her face and tangled in her hair; vines on the ground rose up and caught at her feet. Nature seemed to be trying its best to slow her down. She could hear the man’s pounding footfalls nearby. So close. He was so close. She quickened her pace. The footfalls stopped abruptly. She halted as well and listened intently. A night bird hooted. Crickets thrummed; bats squeaked above her in their drunken dance. The jungle was alive with noises, but she couldn’t hear him. Where was he? A rustle so furtive she almost missed it. Dry leaves crackled. A pebble clicked against another. Her muscles tensed. She crept be

Terror lurks in the prettiest places Holiday destinations. Sun-drenched beaches. Pristine rainforests. But what comes out to play when the sun sets? Vengeful spirits. Malignant ghosts. Horrific creatures from Asian folklore. Sometimes the old wives’ tales are real. East meets West in this collection of seven short horror stories set in the United States and Southeast Asia. American ghost hunters investigate a tropical island with a dark past … A man returns to a Thai resort that was devastated by the 2004 tsunami … A woman travels to Singapore to claim her inheritance after her father dies in a freak accident … And more … $0.99 on Amazon, or free on Kindle Unlimited Buy the book on Amazon