Creepy Countdown Day 8 - Canopy of Doom

We're almost at Halloween and we all know how that get's the mind turning. It's often just the idea of ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties that make us hide under the covers, or run for the light switch, so from now until the big day I thought it would be fun to talk about ordinary things that scare us when the mood is right. These are the kind of thing good horror movies love to twist to get us going.

Canopy of Doom

And here we are on the last day before Halloween! Everyone ready with all the candy, costumes and chocolate? We don't go in much for trick or treating around here, but I have the goodies in, just in case we get a few.

So on a bright summer's day there is nothing nicer than driving along a lovely road with overhanging trees. The beautiful greens and natural atmosphere is wonderful. This is especially true on those amazing roads that have a complete canopy over them. We have several near where I live and they are exquisite.

However ...

We all knew that was coming didn't we :)

There is nothing more sinister on a dark Autumn night than driving down the same kind of road with only headlights to guide the way. It doesn't matter if it's a two lane road or a single track lane - the effect is the same.

These are the roads all those ghost stories talk about. The ones with the phantom hitchhiker, or the lady in white that appears in the back or passenger seat of the car. The ones we can't do anything to avoid.

It doesn't matter what we believe during the day, at night, all bets are off. There are definitely ghosts waiting for us somewhere under the dark, eerie canopy.

All there is in front of us is a dark tunnel with seemingly no end. No stars, no moon, just trees reaching down, ready to bar our way when the ghost tells them to. What is beautiful in the sun is terrifying when night descends.

Do you have any road with tree canopies near you or have you driven down such roads? Were they scary? Do you have any other types of roads that give you the creeps?

~*~

Coming October 31st

FREE for 1 day only for All Hallows Read

Possession is Nine Tenths of the Law

by Natasha Duncan-Drake and Sophie Duncan

Two spooky stories to give you chills.

Check back on Halloween for details of how to download.

poster by blablover5

Creepy Counrdown Day 7 - Into the Dark

We're almost at Halloween and we all know how that get's the mind turning. It's often just the idea of ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties that make us hide under the covers, or run for the light switch, so from now until the big day I thought it would be fun to talk about ordinary things that scare us when the mood is right. These are the kind of thing good horror movies love to twist to get us going.

Into the Dark

Entering a dark room can be unsettling, simply because, most of us, at some level, are scared of the dark. It's a primeval instinct left over from when the dark could kill us, and since some of us still regularly fall over the cat, the instinct is well honed. However, I find that this instinct is even worse if there is a staircase involved.

At home there is nothing worse on an Autumn evening, than working away upstairs and then realising I have forgotten to turn any lights on downstairs. I have to go from the brightness of my PC screens, down into blackness.

Equally, sometimes on a Winter morning, when I have to go up to my office, all there is upstairs is darkness and my heart always skips a beat. It never helps when one of my cats comes with me and then decides to hightail it back downstairs half way up, either!

Somehow the stairs are like the doorway into another world, one of light and the other of darkness. There could be nasty, creepy things waiting in that darkness, patiently sitting there until I bridge the gap between realities.

I also hate to admit it, but there have been a number of times I have charged downstairs after turning the lights off up there too!

Do you have any places you really don't like to enter if they are dark? How do you feel about staircases that descend or rise into darkness?

~*~

Coming October 31st

FREE for 1 day only for All Hallows Read

Possession is Nine Tenths of the Law

by Natasha Duncan-Drake and Sophie Duncan

Two spooky stories to give you chills.

Check back on Halloween for details of how to download.

poster by blablover5

Creepy Countdown Day 6 - Tap, Tap, Tapping At the Window Pane

We're almost at Halloween and we all know how that get's the mind turning. It's often just the idea of ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties that make us hide under the covers, or run for the light switch, so from now until the big day I thought it would be fun to talk about ordinary things that scare us when the mood is right. These are the kind of thing good horror movies love to twist to get us going.

Tap, Tap, Tapping At the Window Pane

So, the other day I talked about shadows through the window, but there is, of course, something even worse. What could be creepier than something tapping on our windows in the middle of the night, or even scraping along the glass?

It's an image that works so well to terrify - everyone remember that iconic scene in Poltergeist. Of course that film takes it a little further in that the tree really is out to get Robbie.

Come to think of it, it may be that film I have to blame for my long held fear of branches tap, tap, tapping at the window. I'm very glad to say there is no tree anywhere near our bedroom window.

Of course in horror it doesn't just have to be a tree, it could be an insane bird, or even Dracula. That is what makes such noises in the middle of the night so utterly terrifying. When we are in the mindset to believe, the monster is always trying to get in.

Windows these days are a little more sturdy then they once were, but we all know even tripple glazing wouldn't stand up to the monster slowly scratching away at the glass. Its claws must be really long and sharp to make that noise, or is that the sound of fingernails as ghostly apparitions make known they want to come in.

I'll tell you one thing, I'm diving under the duvet - no way am I parting the curtains to check!

Have you ever had a room or stayed in one where a tree made itself known by tapping at night? Or anything else for that matter?

~*~

Coming October 31st

FREE for 1 day only for All Hallows Read

Possession is Nine Tenths of the Law

by Natasha Duncan-Drake and Sophie Duncan

Two spooky stories to give you chills.

Check back on Halloween for details of how to download.

poster by blablover5

Creepy Countdown Day 5 - What's Up Pussy Cat

We're almost at Halloween and we all know how that get's the mind turning. It's often just the idea of ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties that make us hide under the covers, or run for the light switch, so from now until the big day I thought it would be fun to talk about ordinary things that scare us when the mood is right. These are the kind of thing good horror movies love to twist to get us going.

What's Up Pussy Cat

Apparently today is National Black Cat day, so of course I had to do something to do with cats. Always remember, black cats are lucky—treat them well and we will do well, treat them badly and the worst luck will find us. I don't have a black cat at the moment, but my sister has an adorable little girl called Binx who loves head scritches :).

Now we all know cats are odd creatures and it's no surprise that Ancient Egyptians thought they were sacred. Anyone who has cats knows their cat can never fully be explained by mere mortals. In one way they are very useful to explain away spooky things - anyone with cats will immediately assume that any weird bangs and crashes are the cats getting into things they shouldn't be getting into.

However, there is one really, really creepy thing they do...

We all know what I'm going to say, right?

It's when they suddenly stare at nothing as if they are looking at something we just can't see. Even worse is when they do it just over out shoulder with that OMG expression to go with it.

The other day I was sitting on the floor reordering DVDs on the shelf to put away new ones (yes, my collection is alphabetised ... and by category) and Amber was helping, as cats are wont to do. Then all of a sudden she stared over my left shoulder in that way she has when someone dares enter her presence she does not wish to deal with. It was so very, very creepy. I admit it, I had to turn the lights on at the other end of the room just so there were no dark corners!

Do you have cats? Do they do the stare at nothing thing, or do you know cats that do? Does it freak you out?

~*~

Coming October 31st

FREE for 1 day only for All Hallows Read

Possession is Nine Tenths of the Law

by Natasha Duncan-Drake and Sophie Duncan

Two spooky stories to give you chills.

Check back on Halloween for details of how to download.

poster by blablover5

Creepy Countdown Day 4 - Moving Shadows

We're almost at Halloween and we all know how that get's the mind turning. It's often just the idea of ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties that make us hide under the covers, or run for the light switch, so from now until the big day I thought it would be fun to talk about ordinary things that scare us when the mood is right. These are the kind of thing good horror movies love to twist to get us going.

Moving Shadows

Light coming through a window and curtains and creating shadows on a wall can be incredibly beautiful. It can also be inordinately creepy.

If I can't sleep I sometimes enjoy looking at the shadows on the wall as cars pass. Our bedroom doesn't face the road and it's far enough away that the light isn't intrusive, but when cars come up the road lights come past the house next door and throw interesting patterns sometimes. This is fine most of the time, in fact it's interesting.

However ...

Waking up in the middle of the night just when a car goes past can be really freaky.

That moment between waking and sleeping when our brains remain confused, that's the time when moving shadows are at their worst. When there is no conscious connect between source and what is appearing on the wall.

Shadows, but their very nature can make the most amazing shapes. For example, the one below is actually a leaf being held in bright sunlight, but I cropped it, added a couple of gradients and a Halloween raven and bam, it's a freaky hand reaching out.

Our brains are very good at making shapes into things. We pattern match all the time and come to conclusions, it's how we can process large amounts of information so fast. In the dead of night, just waking up, it's the whole flight of fight reflex that often kicks in, especially if the threat is moving.

It has been many years since I have ended up in the hallway thanks to thinking something will get me, but moving shadows still make my heart pound.

Shadows can be used so effectively in fiction as well. The visual media has used them so well, like in the famous scene from Nosferatu and all through films like Darkness Falls. Also, more than one scene I've read in books makes sinister shadows so very creepy. Horror is a genre that often takes the small things and makes them seem huge in our minds. Shadows should not be allowed to hurt us, but every horror fan knows, we can never trust the darkness.

When you think moving shadows, do any films or TV series immediately jump to mind? Did you ever have a personal creepy experience with shadows in your life?

~*~

Coming October 31st

FREE for 1 day only for All Hallows Read

Possession is Nine Tenths of the Law

by Natasha Duncan-Drake and Sophie Duncan

Two spooky stories to give you chills.

Check back on Halloween for details of how to download.

poster by blablover5

Creepy Countdown Day 3 - Tick, Tock

We're almost at Halloween and we all know how that get's the mind turning. It's often just the idea of ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties that make us hide under the covers, or run for the light switch, so from now until the big day I thought it would be fun to talk about ordinary things that scare us when the mood is right. These are the kind of thing good horror movies love to twist to get us going.

Tick Tock

Normally I love the sound of a ticking clock. That regular rhythm is soothing and restful. It's one of those white noise type of sounds that is great to entertain parts of the brain while working or trying to go to sleep.

However, there are exceptions to this rule.

Thanks to numerous horror scenes over the years, the ticking of a grandfather clock, with it's deep sounds and reverberating tocks is not so restful. This is especially true if it has heavy sounding chimes.

We become trained to react to certain things, like Pavlov's dogs, if we experience it over and over again, and the ticking of a grandfather clock does that to me. From Sapphire and Steel to good old Hammer horror, the grandfather clock is a tick tock of doom.

I love the look of such big clocks, but I really couldn't deal with one in my house :).

It's like the clock is counting out until something really bad happens. It could be a ghost, it could be a monster, but it's definitely coming. AND the chimes are like the announcement that the bad thing is here! Even someone describing the deep ticking of a grandfather clock in a novel gives me the shivers.

Hearing is such an important sense, especially when it's dark, and somethings are perfect for getting under our skin.

The other thing that makes my skin crawl is too many clocks. There is something inordinately creepy about a room with clocks all over it. It's as if there's too much time and there is a dred hanging in the air that they will all chime at once.

Ever been disturbed by a clock, or maybe have you heard any scary stories about them you'd like to share?

~*~

Coming October 31st

FREE for 1 day only for All Hallows Read

Possession is Nine Tenths of the Law

by Natasha Duncan-Drake and Sophie Duncan

Two spooky stories to give you chills.

Check back on Halloween for details of how to download.

poster by blablover5

Creepy Countdown Day 2 - Mirror Mirror

We're almost at Halloween and we all know how that get's the mind turning. It's often just the idea of ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties that make us hide under the covers, or run for the light switch, so from now until the big day I thought it would be fun to talk about ordinary things that scare us when the mood is right. These are the kind of thing good horror movies love to twist to get us going.

Mirror Mirror

Okay, I admit it, this one gets me all year round, it doesn't have to be Halloween.

We have a perfectly normal bathroom mirror. It's modern, it's practical, it's easily cleaned. Nothing antique or spooky or remotely strange about it. During the day I often glance into it as I wash my hands or as I clean my teeth etc.

However, you could not pay me enough to look into it on a night time trip to the loo!

It's utterly ridiculous, but somewhere in the back of my brain, that little voice that screams at the people in horror movies for doing really stupid things, is yelling that if I look I will see something terrible.

Admittedly it is always darker in the bathroom at night because I only ever turn the hall light on so my eyes don't adjust too much and make the walk back hazardous :), but it's still totally irrational.

We've all seen the poor person in the horror film innocently standing in front of the mirror, only they catch something hideous or lethal out of the corner of their eye.

Yep, so not taking that risk. Head down, wash hands, flee back to safety of bedroom - that's how it's done!

It gets me so often that I wrote a flash fic about it a while back and published it on this blog - Mirror, Mirror On the Wall.

Anyone else not like to risk the bathroom mirror in the middle of the night or am I the only one?

~*~

Coming October 31st

FREE for 1 day only for All Hallows Read

Possession is Nine Tenths of the Law

by Natasha Duncan-Drake and Sophie Duncan

Two spooky stories to give you chills.

Check back on Halloween for details of how to download.

poster by blablover5

Creepy Countdown Day 1 - What's That Noise?

We're almost at Halloween and we all know how that get's the mind turning. It's often just the idea of ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties that make us hide under the covers, or run for the light switch, so from now until the big day I thought it would be fun to talk about ordinary things that scare us when the mood is right. These are the kind of things good horror movies love to twist to get us going.

What's That Noise?

When we are primed for chills down our spines anything can set us off. The mind is the greatest weapon in the horror creator's arsenal. Once set along the right path, the smallest noise can trigger the creepiest feeling.

Something that is perfectly ordinary during the day can be terrifying at night, or after watching something spooky on the telly. This is both the joy and the drawback of enjoying a good scare.

Anything that is just a little strange, or that we weren't expecting can do it. In my house this is the ice maker in our refrigerator.

I kid you not!

It's getting dark earlier and earlier now and, sometimes, while I'm cooking diner and waiting for Rob to get home, I'll have my laptop on in the kitchen and I'll watch something spooky. Lately this is Evil Things - which is dramatisations of people being haunted in different ways because of things or places. So far the ice maker has got me three times!

When it makes more ice it whirs and drops the ice into the ice box. This makes a sudden, variable noise that spooks me every time. When it does this is also completely random.

It's bad enough with all the lights on, but, in our house, you have to go through the kitchen to get to the bathroom, so sometimes it makes me jump out of my skin when I'm padding to the loo, in the dark, in the middle of the night. Stupid machine!

This is the type of scare a horror movie would use to build tension and then break it with the mundane, making us even more scared because we know next time it's going to be for real. It's silly, but it doesn't half get the blood pumping!

Do you have any appliances in your house that like to randomly scare you?

Check back tomorrow for more Creepy Countdown.

~*~

Coming October 31st

FREE for 1 day only for All Hallows Read

Possession is Nine Tenths of the Law

by Natasha Duncan-Drake and Sophie Duncan

Two spooky stories to give you chills.

Check back on Halloween for details of how to download.

poster by blablover5