Category: Eerie
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Edward Gorey, master of the macabre
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I suppose fiction writers must seem a little strange to people, spending much of our time inside our heads in imaginary worlds where we make up weird and wonderful tales to entertain you with. Especially those of us who specialize in the eerie and macabre. We love to twist your…
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The Great Art of Light and Shadow
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Phantasmagoria and Magic Lanterns “Fear does not have any special power unless you empower it by submitting to it.” Les Brown Terrifying audiences isn’t a modern invention. There’s something about shared horror that has captivated people for several centuries, huddling in a darkened room waiting to be scared out of…
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Mysticism, Divination & Tarot
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We’ve reached that point of the year when the world balances between 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night. This year it took place on Sunday, September 22. From hereon in, until the Winter Solstice, the nights will get longer, which creates a magical feel to our days.…
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Forbidden Planet and the Golden Age of Sci-Fi Movies
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Our theme for the month is exploration, and this week we’re going to have some fun and take a look at one of my all-time favourite movies, Forbidden Planet. Forbidden Planet (1956) was a ground-breaking science fiction movie in many ways. The script had a great pedigree – it was…
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An eerie poem for Halloween
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This poem has long been one of my favourites. Written by Walter de la Mare, an English poet who passed away 1956, it’s one of his best known works. He also wrote short stories and novels, many of them about the supernatural. You can find all kinds of analyses of…
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Codex Gigas, the Devil’s Bible
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Just in case you were thinking that old books are dusty things collected by boring people with their heads buried in parchment, let me introduce you to the Devil’s Bible. The Devil’s Bible – sounds like something Satanists would use, doesn’t it? Or maybe a tome written by the Prince…
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Damn thee to hell, book thief!
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Curses and hexes are possibly the oldest form of magic, going back to distant recorded history. Magic was an everyday part of life for many ancient peoples around the world. Babylonians used clay tablets to dispel witchcraft and Romans made leaden curse tablets to defeat their enemies. Greeks hired professional…
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Tea and a ghost story
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Why do we love ghost stories? Well, we have fun being scared. Even babies like being a little spooked, as in the game of Peek-a-boo we play with them, which has been described as ‘an infant jump scare’. When we read a good spooky story or watch a creepy movie,…
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The Kraken Strikes Back
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I’ve always found the legends of sea monsters rather fascinating. The depths of the deep blue ocean have long held mysteries – scientists are still trying to research them all – and are so vast that they could easily contain gigantic creatures terrorizing ancient mariners. Legends of sea monsters go…
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True Crime Victorian Style
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It’s only forty-one days to Halloween, so it’s time to introduce a little eeriness to my blog 😉 True crime is extremely popular these days, with plenty of reality shows to watch on television, as well as fictional series that have capitalized on the trend – e.g. Only Murders in…