Monday, October 15, 2012

Even More Spooky Stories for the Halloween Season!







Hello everyone!
Welcome to part three of my horror fiction blog! This week, I’m sharing an inside look at two more stories, “The Ape” and “Not Your Ordinary Little Green Men”.


The Ape” appeared in TheFour Horsemen: An Anthology of Conquest, War, Famine & Death, published by Pill Hill Press. This anthology of twenty-five short stories is based on The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. In “The Ape” a young boy in South Carolina uses an unusual “toy” as a tool for revenge.

An Excerpt from The Ape

Billy wrinkled his nose as he entered the dimly lit shop. The air smelled funny, like a mix of spices and smoke. He closed the door behind him, cutting himself off from the outside world. His mind fired a jumble of warnings. Nobody knew where he was… he wasn’t supposed to be here… who knew what might happen to him?

He fought the urge to yank open the door and run, but he couldn’t. He had work to do. It had taken every bit of courage he had to get this far, and he wasn’t going to give up now. Everyone in town knew where the voodoo-lady practiced her magic—but no kid in fourth grade had ever been brave enough to come inside before.

The red curtain behind the high wooden counter whipped open. An ancient black woman wearing a bright yellow dress stood in the doorway, looking him up and down. She frowned. “Little boy, what you doin’ here? Don’ you know better?”

“I need a spell,” he whispered.


My humorous sci-fi short, "Not Your Ordinary Little Green Men" is one of 14 sci-fi tales appearing in What if…. Each story is unique and is based around the concept of “what if…” In “Not Your Ordinary Little Green Men”, a young couple moves into an old Victorian house and discovers they’re not alone.

An Excerpt from Not Your Ordinary Little Green Men

Sam grabbed a handful of yellowed "Not of This World" newsletters and dumped them into a trashbag. Everywhere he looked, he found books and pulp magazines about UFOs, aliens, and mystical creatures.

"No wonder everyone thought the old lady was a wacko," he muttered. He glanced at the cover of a sci fi magazine. The poorly drawn illustration showed three little green men standing next to a rocket. He frowned. Maybe these magazines had given Margie the idea about the pixies, or maybe she'd been hearing the strange noises at night, too.


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Next week I’ll be back with a look at paranormal romances. Until then, you can check out more of my writings on my site: www.KelliWilkins.com

Happy Haunting!
Kelli


Monday, October 1, 2012

Two Spooky Stories for the Halloween Holiday Season






Happy October!

As most everyone knows by now, I not only write sizzling erotic romances, I also write short horror fiction. I’m kicking off my month of horror blogs with a look at two of my short stories that have appeared in horror anthologies.

If you’re looking for a gift for someone who likes to read horror stories - or if you’re a horror fan who wants to get in the spirit of the holiday season, Frightmares and Haunted are just for you!

Haunted is a collection of 42 stories about haunted places! Set in a haunted house, “Whispers from the Past” blends the paranormal with a startling bit of reality. The anthology is available in paperback and electronic formats

Here’s an excerpt:
Paul rolled over in the narrow twin bed and tried to ignore the faint whispers. No matter what he did, they invaded his mind like silvery moonbeams.

He closed his eyes and counted to fifty, hoping to focus on anything but those quiet sounds on the edge of his sanity. Ghosts did not exist, yet he was hearing eerie noises in the dead of night.

The whispers grew louder, more insistent. Now and then, he could make out a word or two in the hushed voice he recognized from long ago. It can't really be him. It's just my over-stimulated imagination, or maybe the contest people are playing tricks on me.
"Stop it!"

He snapped back the bedclothes and stood up. The whispery voice fell silent. He let out a deep breath and ran his fingers through his hair.

My flash fiction story, “Death is Just a Tick Away” appeared in Dark Moon Digest’s e-magazine (Issue #1), and it also appears in the Frightmares:A Fistful of Flash Fiction Horror paperback anthology published by Dark Moon Books. The story is based on a real superstition!

The book is a compilation of dozens of flash fiction horror stories. Each tale is under 500 words and is a quick read. The authors weren’t limited to a central theme (vampires, zombies, or haunted places), so each story is completely unique.

Here’s an excerpt:

Dave couldn’t sleep. The ticking echoed through the house. Even at 35 years old, the damn thing still spooked him. Lots of families passed down stories to scare kids, but most of them didn’t involve cursed objects that could kill.

He was seven when Dad had told him about the clock. His great, great grandfather had severely beaten a servant who had forgotten to wind the clock, and the old lady had cast the curse on them. If ever the clock was allowed to wind down to a stop, one of his family members would die.

Three days ago, Dave’s father had been found lying at the base of the black walnut clock, one arm stretched toward the ten-foot high carved demon. Paramedics said he had suffered a heart attack. But Dave thought he knew better. Dad had been trying to wind the clock.

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Next week on the blog I’ll share two more horror stories! And I've also added links to my horror stories on the blog’s upper right corner. 

Until next time!
Happy Haunting,
Kelli