Double Creature Feature Staff Zine by Finnialla

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From, Kayleigh (Aged 10)

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Hey,

Frankly, I’m not doing so well, buddy I’m going to stay in my forest

Losing the light in my eyes and never doing this again, PULP

EDITOR IN CHIEF

Finnialla Wright

PROSE WRITERS

Stephen Mallett

Yasha Sharma

Samantha Barrow

Tom Stuckey

POETRY WRITERS

Will Myers

Samruddhi Patil

Devon Webb

Tom Stuckey

EDITORS

Dimitri Ferraz

Devon Webb

ILLUSTRATOR

Finnialla Wright

PHOTOGRAPHER

Dimitri Ferraz

Fang Bang

Story by Samantha Barrow

THE POSSOM IN THE CEILING

Funeral Home

Queer Horror Movies

Article

Haunted Staff Interviews

Learn about some of our writers

bones

Poem by Finnialla

Diagnosis of the Damned

Fun and Games

Short Story by Tom Stuckey

Poetry by Devon Webb

Short Story by Tom Stuckey

Poem by Devon Webb

Poem from Finnialla

by Finnialla

Fang Bang

Trigger Warnings: non consensual sex, violence, and forced exhibition.

It’s cute, really, the way she tries to run as if her too-high heels aren’t threatening to snap her ankles every time they wobble against the warped concrete. Her desperate pants echo around the deserted parking lot.

The kid on duty at the register inside is too busy with his pierced nose in his phone to pay attention to anything going on out here while the owners of the line of semi trucks are no doubt enjoying our little show from the darkened lairs of their cabs.

I hope they’re watching. I hope they see every single depraved thing I’m about to do to this little fucking cocktease.

Her skin-tight skirt snags on a trailer’s corner, ripping a long, jagged line into it as she forcefully yanks herself away just as my fingers brush her bare shoulder. Wisps of pale, blonde hair dance across my fingertips.

I groan in pleasure, causing her to stumble in shock. One of her heels finally snaps and sends her tumbling to the damp ground with bloody knees and gravel-ridden palms.

Her pants turn into pleas as I loom over her. “P-please, I’m just a d-dumb kid. I-I didn’t mean it. I just want to go home, Mister.”

Tears stream down her flushed cheeks, smearing her dark eye makeup, and I wonder how they would taste on my tongue. Wonder how obscene they’d look soaking into my cock.

“Oh, mi cielito, ” I purr as I haul her up by her hair and fling her into the first unlocked cab I find. “You aren’t going anywhere.”

The front seat is empty as the girl claws her way backwards across the leather. Her skirt is torn to barely-there ribbons while her knees continue to bleed tiny rivers of crimson across her pale flesh, and I know I’m leaking against the hard ridge of my zipper.

I tower over the seat, not bothering to close the truck door behind me as I crawl towards her shaking frame.

“P-please, Mister,” she tries again. “My name is Grace. I’m nineteen years old. I’m a senior in c-college. I have a math t-t-test on Monday. And I don’t want to die. Please, I’ll do anything. I j-just don’t want to die.”

I cock my head at her words.

Killing her had never crossed my mind. I don’t want her to die—don’t want to snuff the life out of her just yet. Don’t want to watch as the light diminishes from her eyes with my big hands around her delicate, little throat. No, that’s not what tonight is about. She doesn’t get to die on me yet. Not until I get my fangs into her and had my fill.

“No, my little heaven. You won’t be dying tonight. You’re finally going to live. ”

A choked cough echoes in the cab as I crowd her. Both of our heads shoot up to see a hunched figure in the back of the truck.

It’s an older man, older than me. Maybe in his early fifties. His dark eyes are beady behind wiry eyebrows, and his long beard is riddled with grays. His gaze doesn’t leave mine as I tense and grit my teeth so hard I feel the enamel crumble beneath the strain.

“You got something to say, old man?” I bark, flexing my hand before balling it into a fist.

But the man remains quiet. He doesn’t speak. Doesn’t cough again. He simply slides from the middle of the backseat to sit directly behind me. Then, he tears his gaze from me and looks down at little Gwen, still shaking. His small eyes roam across her half-dressed body, taking in her distressed state, her bare shoulders, her exposed, soft belly, her ripped skirt, her trembling thighs, her bloody knees, her broken heels.

He slowly removes the threadbare blanket from around his waist and begins unbuttoning his stained jeans. It’s only when his spasming fingers reach his zipper that I release the tension from my fist, letting my hand fall.

A wicked, twisted smile forms on his lips, and I see them then the pointed canines identical to the ones I’m aching to strike into the side of little Grace’s neck.

I chuckle, turning away from the trucker freeing his hard cock from his briefs and giving it a firm stroke.

Grace’s eyes are wide with terror.

“It appears, mi cielito, that we have an audience.” I place a firm hand on her soft belly, pinning her down as I open her thighs wide with my knee and lick along the sharp edge of my fangs. “Let’s not disappoint him.”

The POSSOM IN THE CEILING

I’m getting paranoid about the possum in the ceiling I hear it scuttling in the walls at night in the morning, it wakes me up like clockwork I stare at the gap under the skirting board as if I’m gonna see a menacing little paw reach out as if it’s gonna dig a fucking hole through the plaster & one day I’ll wake to see it staring at me from the corner with those big lamp eyes possums have beaming bright & terrifying through the dust & dark fuck me I hate this little cunt it taunts me, like its one purpose in its little possum life is to ruin me to draw me further & further out onto the fucking brink as I lie awake wondering how close it is, if it can sense me as I trust the integrity of this building to fate which is to say, I do not trust it at all & maybe I share the same destiny as the possum which is to be inevitably removed calling pest control like: save me from this landlord’s cage.

FUNERAL HOME

Funeral: A ceremony or group of ceremonies held in connection with the burial or cremation of a dead person.

IMy dad once said: work with the dead, there is an endless supply, and they don’t ever talk back or complain; but even the dead bring their own problems in this age. I once wanted to be a vet and work with animals, I am one of those people who have an affinity with them, and maybe less so with people, but I was not good with facts and remembering and grew up with concentration problems. So the dead it was. I have been working at Park Funeral Homes, situated in a small town in the south of England for ten years now. He was right about one thing though, they don’t talk back, at least not until the other night when one did. I was working through the night as I often do because of insomnia, and I was preparing Ralph for his wake, doing the usual plugging of holes and opening of eyes, and expression of the lips and brows, when I clearly heard him say, “Don’t make me smile like that, I am not happy, and I never was happy, so don’t force me to smile now. ” This obviously came as a shock and freaked me out to the point where I have not been back for several days, retreating to my room here on this brightly lit morning, with the curtains closed, surly going mad.

I have to go back tonight though, the boss is worried, and the dead are still arriving at his door.

Ok ok, maybe it was a one off, lack of sleep, inducing hallucination, just carry on as normal. Normal. Everything is as normal; the front door is still dark green with the sign faded and one of the letterings slightly slanted to the side. This hall way, with its red night light, leading to the back rooms, and the smell of cleaning products, all normal. Put the coffee machine on, put the apron on, check the logs: yes, Gladys tonight. Open the fridge and slide out the body, bring over the table, slide her over, bring the light down and equipment table, open the bag. Needle and thread, begin, pierce the skin around the wound, and again, bring it together. It reminds me of grandma’s knitting, her sitting there smoking and watching the snooker.

“Hello dear, oh that is going to leave a big scar, I have never had one like it.” Gladys is speaking too! Ok don’t run, talk back.

“You are dead, why are you speaking to me, it’s scaring me?” I mumbled a bit.

“Oh don’t be scared deary, Ralph told me he thought he scared you; you have been gone for a few days.” Nothing moved, her eyes were still closed and her mouth open like a fish.

“Yes, this is not normal, I think I’m losing it.”

“You are OK deary, we all think you are ok, you have been working with us for so long, making us pretty in our death state, we appreciate you, you know many of us haven’t had such good care and attention as what we get with you. We all think you are the best. Can I give you a kiss, and a hug, I’d like that.”

- "Hmmm, ok." I leant over and kissed her cold blue veined cheek and put my hands on her shoulders and squeezed them.

“Ah thank you dear that’s lovely, they say you need at least seven hugs a day.” I noticed my hand white hand prints on the puttied skin. “You know me and a few others would love it if you could help us out?”

“How can I help you?” I liked the feeling of being able to help the dead though.

“Well dear, and this is going to sound like a strange request, but we’d like it, if you would be willing to take a small part of each of us, and take us up to a sacred place up on the moors and reconstruct us there as one so we can move on. You see we are not really meant for the ground, as we understand, but to be burned and in ash return to space. You see this would be preferable.”

“I can’t do that, I mean how?”

“Well you just need to take that saw and that knife and the sewing kit and you know dear, we have faith in you, it’s what we all want you see, don’t we everyone?” A loud cheer came from the other refrigerators.

“Really!”

“Yes. “

“OK, so which part would you like to be Gladys?”

“The head please dear, we took a vote."

Who am I to deny the dead, maybe this is the way it should be.

So I began the sawing through Gladys neck and spine until it detached, there was not a lot of blood, and it's easier when everything was more turgor. Then pushing the rest of her onto the floor, took out another body, Peter who had voted to be the legs, as he like to run, again sawing through and pushing the body off the table, no time for talking just a quick hello. Then Simon, who was the torso, and Jim who was the arms, and so on until it came to some ears and genitals, dick from Dick. Putting all the parts onto the table, beginning to sew them all back together again, until it was a body of them all, and didn’t look too bad, considering. “Done guys, what do you think?” “Yeah, good job! Katie!” Another cheer. The hard part came in manoeuvring it into the hearse, but you get used and stronger with how to move dead weight, there are ways. So slipping it into a bag and sliding it down and over the bodies and down the hall and into the hearses boot was actually easier than you would think.

IV

The roads were quiet through the streets of the sleepy town, many of which the people had lived all their lives. Fine rain filled the air and left everything shimmering in the moons light, as the town slowly disappeared, making way to the moors. Winding along and up, past places I remember being with Dad as a child. Parking by the side of the road at the top, and dragging the bag to the peak, which was more difficult.

Unzipping and rolling the body out, “Right over here dear, If you can sit us on that bench so we can look out over the hills.” Putting them on to the bench and sitting beside. “Thank you dear, this means so much to us all. We know you have given up so much for us, in the physical world anyway.

You know it might be quite difficult to go back know, you can come with us if you like? I think deep down you know this is not the end, that there is no end, just new beginnings.” I smiled and knew deep down that she was right. “It would be a thing to see, what is next, I have never really thought I belonged here, and it was all some long dream.”

Going back to the hearses back to collect the petrol can, and walking back to the bench and sitting down, douching myself and then them, feeling the peace begin to wash over with the fumes. “Hang on tight dear, the ride is about to begin again.” Lighting the match.

Queer Horror Movies

Queer people have been quintessential in cinema since its inception over a hundred years ago, and especially in horror, queers have found their place as villains, storytellers, and connoisseurs of the craft.

Since the beginning of film, horror has been a genre that has captivated audiences and brought them into worlds of the unknown, which is something queer people know best. One of the first horror films that still exists in its full form is the silent German picture, Nosferatu. It was released in 1922 to multiple lawsuits by Bram Stoker’s widow for copyright infringement, which she won. Because of that, the German production company that made the movie had to be shut down and all copies of the film were to be destroyed. In Europe, every single copy of the movie was destroyed forever. Little did Bram Stoker’s widow know that one reel had made its way to New York. That reel is the reason we can watch Nosferatu today, and proudly chant gay at the screen, when the two main characters, Hudder and Orlock, grace the screen. And while it’s currently being remade right now, I encourage everyone to watch the original, as it is the purest form of Dracula by Bram Stoker anyone has ever produced.

Another reason to watch Nosferatu is because it’s one of the first instances of a queer-coded villain. Just like in the book and the Universal Pictures movie released in 1931, and well, every single retelling of Dracula ever, Bram Stoker’s tale has always been the subject of queer subtext. Bram Stoker, an Irish Catholic who lived in a loveless marriage and spent most of his time in the company of men, did have his fair share of scandals about his sexuality.

The trope of queer vampires, a subsect of the queer villain category, appealed to a community with the same sense of nonconformity. It has been used by closeted writers and moviemakers for years to skirt around the overbearing Hays Code and to portray same sex relationships.

There’s even the trope of sapphic vampires throughout film history, with such films as Daughter of Dracula, Blood and Roses, Vampyros Lesbos, Nadja, and Jennifer’s Body (although the vampiress is actually a demon in Jennifer’s Body), just to name a few. The lesbian vampire trope comes from an explicit vampire novella that predates Dracula. Carmilla, released in 1872 by Irish author Sheridan Le Fanu, follows an older female vampire preying on young women.

Monsters as well, like Frankenstein, also appealed to early queer moviegoers. In the same subsect of feeling different, many closeted queer people found solace in Frankenstein, and even in the Bride of Frankenstein. Just as the monster feels alone in the world, so did queers back in the day, and the monster’s feeling to be loved is a just and familiar one. Queer people resonate with monsters on screen because our peers treat us as such. We see ourselves in the fringes of society, just like the movie monsters of the day.

Just like Dracula, Frankenstein is also a very queer book, with an equally queer author. Mary Shelley, a bisexual woman, was the original horror and science fiction writer. Her book, Frankenstein, is the idea of a man, a cis man, who dares to create life and succeeds. Then it follows this love obsession between the creature and his creator.

Boris Karloff and Bela Legosi, the actors for Frankenstein and Dracula respectively, were queer icons in their own right. As the actors for the respective monsters, both Karloff and Legosi were seen as icons, but The Black Cat solidified them as these sort of queer icons. The movie makes this pair almost like a married couple who bicker back and forth.

But it’s not just Universal monsters. Queer villains have been pervasive in film since its founding over a hundred years ago. In the early days, queer characters were subjected to playing villain roles, or the queer-coding of villains.

This was due heavily because of the sanctions brought upon filmmakers by the Hays Code. It barred showing any positive attributes of homosexuality, so many villains took on stereotypical effeminate features, or just traditionally feminine features to vilify queerness.

One of the most prolific queer directors of the time was James Whale. His four masterpieces are Frankenstein in 1931, The Old Dark House in 1932, The Invisible Man in 1933, and Bride of Frankenstein in 1935.

Frankenstein is the most well-known and least queer of his works. It’s still steeped in queer undertones, along with the queerness that Mary Shelley had put into the story. Whale was still getting his footing in Hollywood and the success of this movie allowed the three other horror films to thrive.

One of the queerest movies we see from James Whale is The Old Dark House. James cast known queer actors, had actors crossdress for his roles, and filled the movie with barely queer coded language and humor. As this is pre-Hays Code, the queerness in the next three works is barely hidden. With his next two movies, The Invisible Man and Bride of Frankenstein, Whale followed in his The Old Dark House roots and added queer references that were just subtle enough to get past the censors that queer people still understood.

A good example of seeing the Hays Code mess with censorship in relation to queerness is by watching the two different movies of The Maltese Falcon, one from before the Hays Code took effect, and one after. Both have queer villains, but the 1931 movie, with Bebe Daniels and Ricardo Cortez, also keeps the queerness present in the rest of the novel, where the 1941 movie with Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor, only portrays the queer villain.

In any movie you watch from the silver era of cinema, many of the villains take on more effeminate qualities to appear unlikeable in the eyes of the audience.

Many films had the villains crossdress to emasculate the character itself. A big company that has a problem with queer coding and vilifying queers is Disney, a lot more in their older work, and well, in their newer work too. Disney isn’t really any better about that now than it was in the 50s.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t some gems stuck in, but they tend to have less overt queerness and more subtle references. With such films like Rebecca in 1940, Cat People in 1942, The Ghost Ship in 1943, The Uninvited in 1944, or The Picture of Dorian Gray in 1945, which was written by queer author Oscar Wilde, we have the stereotypical Hays Code queer villain, with their over-the-top feminine male that always loses to the more masculine and heterosexual male lead. Surprisingly, this is less likely for queer villains who are women to have to fight heterosexual women. They also have to fight some heterosexual male.

In any case, it’s absurd how they choose to show queers back in the day, but this comes from a deeply hurtful rulebook that banned movies from saying the word pregnant, so it’s not that big of a surprise.

And I’m not saying these movies are bad. Cat People is great, and terrible, but that’s just because it’s so cheesy, but after the Hays Code took effect, a lot of the representation queers had were these over-the-top caricatures of themselves. These characters weren’t true to life, and they actively hurt queer people by putting into straight people’s minds that all gays are crazy, or deranged, or really want to kill, which they don’t. Queer people just want an iced coffee and a nap, honestly.

In the 50s, we actually see one pervasive director that does feature some queer narratives, and surprisingly, that’s Alfred Hitchcock.

One of the kings of horror movies, Hitchcock had a couple movies that seemed to seep with queer undertones or even some overtly queer themes.

Rope in 1948 is one of the first movies to toy with the idea of a queer-coded murder “couple” who play off each other’s psychosis, inspired from real-life homosexual lovers-turned-murderers Leopold and Loeb. The movie would go on to inspire an entire genre of films about gay lovers-turned-villains, most notably in another Hitchcock film, Les Diaboliques in 1955 (this time with lesbians), and the first Scream in 1996.

The next movie, Strangers on a Train in 1951, is less openly queer-inspired, but still involves the stereotyped queer villain that’s up to some schemes. What still makes this movie queer is Patricia Highsmith being the writer, who was a lesbian herself. By itself, the film doesn’t stand out among the other queer-coded villains, but it’s still important to mention for our next film. In 1960, Hitchcock would release one of his masterpieces of the horror genre, Psycho.

Psycho has made its mark on horror history, from its tropes being used and overused in countless other films, to shot for shot remakes of famous scenes to convey Hollywood's love of the film. Even if you haven’t seen the film, you know the shower scene with Janet Leigh, and the twist ending with Anthony Hopkins, a gay actor. Its depiction of a crossdressing gay villain was nothing new, and it did no favors for the burgeoning trans movement; it was one of the most influential films of the period.

On the other end of the spectrum, we have movies that are technically classified as movies, but are so campy, they smell like a bonfire fucked a tent. They are the complete opposite of a Hitchcock horror movie, with bad special effects and even worse acting, but some queerness does slip out of them.

Some examples would be I Was a Teenage Frankenstien, I Was a Teenage Werewolf, and I Married a Monster From Outer Space.

Their campy and barely-there plots, overt sexual tension between the male leads, and the terrible effects make these less horror movies and more just a fleeting moment in queer film history, but they are fun for a night of bad movies.

It wouldn’t be until the 60s, when the Hays Code was retired for the MPAA, or the Motion Pictures Association of America- you know, the people who rate movies- that queer horror movie makers were coming out of the woodwork. The 60s and 70s called for an indie revolution for horror movies, such as Night of the Living Dead, Halloween, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Queer horror popped up in other ways too. 1975 brought us The Rocky Horror Picture Show, beloved by queers and theater kids alike, and the first The Haunting movie in 1963, which was so bad, it’s good.

Some other queer horror movies of the period are Carnival of Souls in 1962, a psychological horror about a car crash, a carnival, and lesbians; Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde in 1971, which takes the concept of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, flips it on its head, and makes it a trans allegory, and still has time for transphobia; Daughters of Darkness in 1971, which is if you put Death Becomes Her at a resort with lesbians; and Blacula in 1972, which has a gay couple release Blacula, (black Dracula) onto the streets of New York.

Still, in mainstream media, queers are seen as wrong, and gross, and disgusting, and it was about to get a whole lot worse. The eighties come swinging in and the AIDS crisis ostracizes the queer community even more than they already have been. A lot of the stereotypes not seen since the height of the Hays Code made a comeback, including the demonization of homosexuality as a mental illness.

Most of the media to come from the decade is either wildly inappropriate or so subtle, it’s hard to spot, but one movie comes out slashing, and that’s the 1983 movie Sleepaway Camp.

While its portrayal of a trans character is stereotypically insensitive- and transgender scholars, such as Calpernia Addams, have argued that Angela was not really trans but forced to transition due to the abuse of her aunt, others saw Angela as a trans villain protagonist in a movie that is already more queer than the other slashers before it.

While I get where many trans people feel that the narrative can, and does at many points, fall into the trope that transgenderism is a disease that makes kids lash out in anger; I don’t want to say that’s wrong, but it is the point of the story. Those scholars’ opinions and criticisms are their own, and I appreciate that and can see how it’s a harmful stereotype for cisgender people to use on trans people. I also think that, as a nonbinary person myself, you can watch the film as a trans girl killing the people who had harmed her, and bullied her, and therefore, taking back her power in a time where it was culturally unacceptable to be trans.

Some other movies with less overt queer references, but still worth mentioning are Fear no Evil in 1981, Fright Night and Fright Night 2, The Lost Boys in 1987, Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge in 1985 (and I don’t include the first one because the second one is the only Nightmare on Elm Street with an canonical gay character, who then dies), and The Fly in 1986 as some subtle queer horror recommendations.

So, with the eighties gaslighting us with queerbait, and lots of men ’ s midriffs, the nineties gave us Queer New Cinema. While some, like Heavenly Creatures in 1994, Interview with the Vampire in 1994, and The Craft in 1996 were more positive looks at queer villains and queer coded characters in general, there was still backlash and intolerance in Hollywood at the time. In 1991, The Silence of the Lambs transgender character “Buffalo Bill” was rightly criticized by trans activists.

The actor, Simon Northwood, was not intentionally trying to hurt trans people with his portrayal, but what that role did was reinforce the age-old Hollywood stereotype of trans people as killers. While the character is based on a real killer, Ed Gein, there was no real life basis for Gein being transgender, and all the portrayal did was push trans rights back.

By the 2000s and 2010s, queerness was slowly becoming more accepted in the mainstream, and more queer filmmakers were allowed to make the films they wanted to make. In the 2000’s, two films really stand out: 2002’s Make a Wish and 2006’s The Covenant.

Make a Wish is basically lesbian Psycho with a bisexual main character, and it’s an okay movie with a predictable ending. The Covenant is The Craft with gay men, and it’s a little unwatchable, but has some cute moments. With the 2000s, it’s pretty disappointing to see so little for queer horror from the American media sphere.

However, in the 2010s and 2020s, there was an explosion of queer horror films. We actually got our first animation horror movie with a canonically gay character: ParaNorman in 2012 was a cute, family-friendly, weirdly underrated movie. Watching this with my mom and having the casual drop of Mitch being in a gay relationship was amazing for young, closeted me.

All Cheerleaders Die in 2013 follows in the footsteps of Jennifer’s Body with the sexy “lesbian” killer trope that was popular in the early 2000s, and it’s an okay representation of what mainstream, more straight, cis, executives think queers want from a horror movie.

In that same year, a queer horror movie that’s more creative with the whole queer villain trope is Stranger By The Lake. It follows a man who goes cruising for men, even at a risk of his own safety. What this does is build on the actual risks of casual sex back in the days of cruising without making the villain kill gays doing so for the purpose of their sexual orientation.

Because of this, we get other indie films like What Keeps You Alive in 2018 and We’re All Going to the World’s Fair in 2022. Both of those movies are queer horror indie movies that are ambitious with their concepts and not cheap with their representation of queer people.

Now, this next movie is a bit of a debate, but I want to include it because queer people have adopted him as their own, and that’s The Babadook. As the weirdest queer villain on this list, the movie itself isn’t even queer-coded. What happened was that Netflix put the movie in the queer icons category by accident, someone tweeted it, and the rest is history.

The rise of The Babadook as a queer icon harkens back to queer people relating to movie monsters in the 21st century. His cartoonish appearance and silly makeup in an otherwise serious movie about trauma was perfect for queer people.

I Saw the TV Glow, which came out just this last month, is actually a pretty good arthouse film about being trans, written by a transfeminine nonbinary writer, Jane Schoenbrun. It’s the second in a series they call their screen trilogy, following We’re All Going to The World’s Fair in 2022. While the villain isn’t actually queer, the feeling of not transitioning and staying in a version of yourself is the real big bad, and in that it gives queer horror a whole new meaning. This movie changes what a queer villain is, because it's not a person, but an idea that many queer people face, told from the perspective of someone who gets it.

This is just an overview, though. I can’t list all of the queer horror films in existence because we’d be here for a long time, and I mainly talked about the American film industry. There have been amazing foreign queer horror films from all over the world. What I’m trying to put into words is that queer people have been the basis of villains for the past, well, hundred years of cinema, and we ’ re taking our power back.

With the rise of queer filmmakers, I hope to see more queer horror that comes from a place of love, not of shock and awe of the unknown. With these films, there are some great representations in there, and there are some terrible representations in there, and there’s the rest. What we can ask for as queer people is more representation that treats us as human beings, and not the monsters straight people tried to tell us we were.

Devon - Poetry Writer/Editor

Favorite Halloween costume you’ve ever worn?

Eddie Kaspbrak from the It movies. As a smallstatured, hypochondriac little bitch I resonate with him quite deeply, & the universe aligned to provide me with every element of the costume: the socks, the fanny pack, even the inhaler It was perfect.

What’s your guilty pleasure Halloween film?

In keeping with my previous answer...... It (2017)

Horror Movies, do you love them or hate them?

Absolutely Not. Unless it's It (2017).

Candy corn, love it, leave it, or throw it in the trash?

I am from New Zealand & have no idea what some of these American quirks are.

What is your favorite Halloween or fall scent?

In New Zealand we don't really have a 'Fall', we just have 'mild Summer', so I can't conjure up any particular scents. Crunching leaves is a top sound though, we do have leaves.

Haunted Staff Interviews

Do you like pumpkin spiced flavored things?

Starbucks is less of a cult here so I have no idea

If you could be any Halloween monster or villain, who would you be and why?

Hmmmm..... someone who can fistfight Beetlejuice, because I hate him.

Do you have a favorite horror author? Stephen King but to be fair he's the only one I've read

Are you convinced that ghosts and ghouls exist? Ghosts, definitely I've heard too many Stories to rule out the concept.

If you could have anything etched onto your tombstone, what would it say?

I don't want a tombstone because I think the idea of being buried in a box in a ground to rot is fucking deranged. But I do want a library in my name, although I haven't thought of any charming quips. Maybe something about the everlasting nature of dreams, I want to haunt people but in a nice way.

Finnialla - Editor in Chief

Favorite Halloween costume you’ve ever worn? I was a devil in third grade. It totally matched my hair.

What’s your guilty pleasure Halloween film?

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. It’s visuals are beautiful, and a huge inspiration for my writing style and personal look.

Horror Movies, do you love them or hate them? Love them. I grew up watching horror movies and I watch them all the time.

Candy corn, love it, leave it, or throw it in the trash?

I love candy corn, but now I have to read the labels because Brach’s candy corn has gelatin in it. You never realize how many things have meat byproducts in it until you ’ re forced to become vegetarian.

In the same vein, what’s the best Halloween candy? Why?

Kit Kats I love the crunch of them

If you could be any Halloween monster or villain, who would you be and why?

I would love to be a vampire, but I feel like it would get lonely.

Do you have a favorite horror author? Bram Stoker. Dracula is one of my favorite books. I read it every year.

Are you convinced that ghosts and ghouls exist? Yes Ghosts are totally real I went to college in Savannah and I definitely had some scary experiences in the dorms and halls.

If you could have anything etched onto your tombstone, what would it say?

I definitely feel the same thing as Devon. I never wanted to have like a regular grave. I’ve always said that I wanted to become a tree, like a giant Sequoia or Redwood, but if I had like a plaque, I’d want it to read something stupid like, “there

What is your favorite Halloween or fall scent? Apples.

Do you like pumpkin spiced flavored things?

No. Those lattes give me headaches.

bones

First published in Outlander Magazine

when scientists find my bones in the ground i hope they understand the experiences that made me myself display me for other people to see in a history museum, behind glass with the other humans they found near me a line goes out the door everyone clamors to get a shot peek at my crooked teeth, the left canine chipped slightly healed nose from falling off my bike and they say this was someone who loved and someone who lost they were born and they died but in between, they truly lived

so that in this life, if i’m not remembered i’ll be immortalized with the idea of being human and remind someone that we ’ re all the same the crime of being alive is something we all go through together just separated by time Because the world decided we ’ re all the same somehow Just bones under muscle and skin and the memories that make us human

Diagnosis of the Damned

20th of October 2024

The doctor told me to write down anything unusual with Jane. His working diagnosis is bipolar disorder. We went in after Jane had an episode, it is hard to talk about, but he told me to write about it, to help me process what’s going on. She wasn’t herself; I mean Jane was not there behind the eyes anymore, it was like looking at crazy, it wanted to kill everything, darkness, a void. She woke early one morning and left the house without a word, and was gone for days. I don’t know where she went, or who with and she does not recall anything. We recently moved into this house and the doctor says it could have something to do with triggering of the disorder. Since she got back strange things have been happening, especially at night. She wakes up and screams or just sits at the edge of the bed, with big dark dead eyes. I don’t have the heart to tell her that I’m scared and that I want to sleep in the other room, behind a locked door. But I’m tired, so tired, that every night I fall asleep, even with the fear of what might wake me.

21st Oct

We live in the country now, way out, and it is a change from the city life that we are used too. Jane works remotely and so do I so we thought, why carry on living in an expensive apartment in the city. Looks like we will have to go back in regularly to see the psychiatrist now though. Last night I heard Jane get up and go out, I was relieved, she just sat out in the garden, in the dark on the swinging chair, all night.

22nd Oct

Her features are changing too and the way she speaks. Her voice has become more hoarse. She is no less beautiful, and in fact even more beautiful. Her body seems to be ridding itself of imperfections, little creases and age lines are disappearing.

She hasn’t exercised in weeks but she seems more athletic and stronger! She slammed the door today, in anger at my questioning whether she had taken her meds, and the door nearly came of the hinges! She boomed out, “David, if I needed mothering, I would call my own Mother!” The thing is her mother died years ago and she never normally mentions her!

23rd Oct

Last night we had sex. It was the first time in a long time. She instigated it. I was sitting downstairs reading when I heard Good Bye Horses by, Q Lazzarus. It was dusk and amber light shone through the place. She had put on a red lamp and the music was loud! I walked up the stairs and there she was, all red, dressed in black lingerie. Shadows played on her skin, all the curves, she has a perfect body now. Draped in a shall she began to undress, taking off her panties and leaving the stockings, walking over to me and pulling down my pants. She looked up was big space eyes, and sucked on me, all red like a fire. I felt trippy. She then threw me to the bed and mounted me and nearly sucked my cock from my body, her vagina sucked so hard, I thought it would come clean off. I could not do anything about the situation!

25th Oct

She has started having people over. People that I don’t know, strange people, all perfect looking. When they talk no words come out. It’s like they can hear but I cannot. But I hear sometimes what they say in my head. I went to bed early and left them to it, but the voices came. “Do you think about dying? You have a choice you know, about such things, David you are an Angel, special, and meant for things beyond death; it’s not the end.” I think I’m going mad.

26th Oct

Maybe I am an angel, In heaven.

27th Oct

You know doc, when we met you, you seemed like a pompous arsehole. The way you didn’t listen and seemed to have made up your mind before you really had seen all the facts. Jane is a really special person, way beyond your narrow scope. And don’t think I didn’t see you looking up her skirt, at those long legs, did you see what was up there? Maybe you diagnose what you don’t understand, what you are afraid of, that it will find you one day where you sleep, and hover over and eat at what you think is righteous.

28th Oct

So you live at 112 Ocean drive. I came to see you after the sun went down, saw you turn on the light and draw the curtains. It was a beautiful night, the ocean was pink with the setting sun and then deep red and finally cold blue. Black until morning, when you woke to my face, tongue flapping out and uncontrolled and my big eyes, they told me you knew they had taken your righteousness and everything that you loved that lay wet next to you as cold as the morning grey sky. You know doc you really shouldn’t play with gods children. The mad as you think them, walk amongst you at all times, you are the hunted. I will keep your eyes with me so you will see and be reminded, forever.

Pennywise, or am i just high?

So I’m walking along this unpaved road in the middle of nowhere cos that’s where I live & it’s kind of a spooky road I’ve had some pretty ghostly experiences in the gloom cast by the trees & I’m thinking about It by Stephen King cos I’m reading it at the moment & I’m in deep like deep but that’s another story so I’m thinking about It & I get to this bridge which marks the end of the road as it trickles over this little creek & I’m standing there thinking about Pennywise when there’s this honest to god terrifying echo coming from the arch underneath me & I’m like jesus fucking christ if there’s one place where Pennywise is gonna roll up in the middle of nowhere it’s gonna be right here did I manifest this shit or what so bitch I gap cos I have damn well no intention of encountering a demon clown right now fuck that anyway I go back down the road wondering what I would see if Pennywise came for me probably a giant Frostbite spider from Skyrim or if we go deep maybe loneliness but anyway we ’ re not going deep cos this is a piece of prose about my stoner ass gapping it down the street from an echo that was probably fuck all but I perceived as the villain in a piece of literature that I am way too into right now cos it was under a bridge & there was water nearby anyway I’m probably just high.

modern prometheus

First published in Outlander Magazine

you clawed stretch marks into my face roadmaps stretch planes of my back bruised, broken, bathed in sweat rearranged my insides to your liking dr frankenstein, I’m your monster build me into the ultimate fantasy discarded the unnecessary parts

lightning struck my fancy electrified my heart, beats arrhythmic rhythms crisp, blackened edges

scars stretched over my body like tree roots rot seeped, turned into sepsis shaky foundation for a love so fragile touched up my paper skin with absorene keep it from turning to dust

alchemist love, chemical honeymoons given no tongue to speak stitched back together mangled limbs, atrophied muscles covered in Chanel hospital gowns and pearl neck bolts permanent smile lines and rosy cheeks

a mad scientist’s experiment companionship created in test tubes beating my still undead heart filling metallic lungs with air I don’t need

poked and prodded with pitchforks gaslit in torch blazes at my feet a creation feels no happiness in existing the version of me that makes him happy so, devour my body whole suffocate me in smoke burn the ashes of my bones gnaw out a chunk of neck spit it out on the carpet let me rest once again

FUN & GAMES

get your ghaustly groove on: A phantasm compatibility quiz

A lovely undead hottie is checking you out from across the bar at The Cryptic Cocktail, the spookiest spot in town. What’s the best one liner you’ve got to get the conversation started?

A. No one liner. You just go up and introduce yourself.

B. Call me undead, because my heart stopped the second you walked in the room.

C. Are you a ghost? Because you ’ ve been haunting my dreams all night.

D. I have a monster crush on you!

(S)he/they ask you to buy them a drink. What are you getting both of you?

A. Blackberry Witches Brew Cocktail

B. Pumpkin Spice White Russian

C. Zombie Margarita

D. Caramel Apple Jello Shots

The ghastly gorgeous goulie drags you to the dance floor. What kind of moves are you pulling out?

A. Monster Mash moves straight from the song

B. A full recreation of Thriller

C. A spooky pose with your cocktail between swaying back and forth.

D. Your regular dance moves. Those are scary enough.

This ghastly girl invites you to walk them home. You do, making sure no werewolf or vampire is lurking around the corner. How do you end the night with them?

A. Give them your phone number and kiss them on the cheek.

B. Shoot your shot. Ask to come in for a nightcap.

C. Drop them off and ghost them. They are a ghoul, anyway.

D. Ask when you can meet the undead parents.

Blackberry Witches Brew

Cocktail

2 ounces silver tequila

1 ounce triple sec

6-7 whole blackberries

4 ounces margarita mix

Rim:

Red salt

Black sugar

1 lime

Preparation:

Combine red salt and black sugar on a small plate. Cut lime in half and rub on top of a margarita

glass Dip the rim of the glass into the sugar and salt mixture to coat.

Blend tequila, triple sec, blackberries and margarita mix with ice until thick. Pour into glass and serve.

Pumpkin Spice White Russian

4 gingersnap cookies, crumbled

1 tsp.honey

3/4 c.coffee liqueur (such as Kahlúa)

2/3 c.vodka

1 1/2 tsp.pumpkin pie spice

3/4 c heavy cream

Step 1: Place crumbled cookies on a plate. Rub rims of 4 glasses with honey. Dip in cookie crumbs to coat.

Step 2: Whisk together coffee liqueur, vodka, and pumpkin pie spice in a measuring cup Pour in to prepared glasses, dividing evenly; top with ice.

Divide 3/4 cup heavy cream evenly among glasses and serve immediately.

Zombie Margarita

½ ounce blanco tequila (or silver)

1 ounce blue curaçao

½ ounce lime juice fresh, if possible

1 ounce pineapple juice

1 pinch edible green glitter (optional)

Black salt for rim (optional)

Lime wheel (optional)

Add tequila, curaçao, lime juice, pineapple juice, and edible glitter, if using, in a cocktail shaker with ice.

Shake until well chilled.

Wet the rim of the cocktail glass and roll in the black salt, if using.

Add ice to glass and strain the cocktail shaker into the glass.

Garnish with a lime wheel and a black and/or white striped straw, if using.

vampire blood (Non Alcoholic)

2 cups Sprite

¼ cup Grenadine

1 tablespoon Lime juice

6 Maraschino cherries

Black sugar sprinkles

Red food gel

Purple cotton candy

Creepy Ice cubes

Gummy eyes

Cherries or blueberries

Water

Caramel Apple Jello Shots

3 oz box Jolly Ranchers green apple gelatin

1 cup boiling water

4-5 ice cubes

1/4 cup Sour Apple Pucker

1/4 cup green apple flavored vodka

1/4 cup salted caramel vodka

Caramel topping

Instructions:

Pour the gelatin powder into a medium mixing bowl. Add the boiling water and whisk until the gelatin is dissolved

Add the ice cubes, Sour Apple Pucker and both vodkas. Stir well until the ice cubes are melted.

Pour the gelatin into each shot glass but not all the way up to the top of each glass - you will want to leave room for the caramel sauce

Chill for at least 2 hours.

Remove the shot glasses from the refrigerator and add the caramel sauce, filling up to the top of each glass

Keep chilled until ready to serve.

In a large pitcher mix together Sprite, grenadine, and lime juice.

Grab two small plates and add lime juice to one and black sugar to the other.

Dip rim of glass into the lime juice followed by the black sugar.

Drizzle red food gel over the black sugar, it is okay if it drips, that’s what you want.

Add ice cubes to the glass and pour cherry Sprite all the way up to the rim.

Add a big handful of cotton candy to the top and add a straw.

Over

blood curdling screams, howling werewolves, &

door creaking noises

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ANSWER PAGE

Ghost Quiz

Mostly A’s: You’re getting that second date, that third date, and absolutely dating this ghost. I even see wedding bells in the future.

Mostly B’s: You are at least going on another date, but assume that this is going to be a ghouls with benefits situation.

Mostly C’s: The ghost was really turned off with your behavior. Maybe stick with a live date.

Mostly D’s: If you bring them some undead flowers, you might get another shot, but it’s unlikely.