Haunted October ... It's That Time of Year Again!

[dawn_felagund]

Every year, I participate in a personal writing challenge called Haunted October. I started this back in 2006 with the aim to post a horror story on my LJ every week in October, ending on Halloween. It serves the dual purpose of forcing me to write at least five short stories, as well as serving as a fitting celebration of Halloween, which is Bobby's and my biggest holiday and a month-long affair in the House of Felagund.

Well, it's almost that time again.

I am sincerely hoping to be able to do the challenge fully again this year. So far, I have two stories finished and one started. This year, as well, I'm changing it a bit and reserving one week as "flash week," in which I will post a short-short piece (< 2000 words) every day for the week. Whether I will be able to come up with several pieces of flash and 1.5 short stories will largely depend on my school schedule. (I am up to my ears in assignments at the moment; American Fiction ends this week, so I have two major projects due this week. I have a Poe anthology tapping its foot and looking at me imploringly as I type this ...)

As in years past, I welcome anyone else who would like to play along during Haunted October to join me. It doesn't have to be a story a week; the point is to meet a challenge that is a challenge for you, not me. I am disgustingly prolific and know that. But I'd love to read as well as write some spooky stories in October, so let me know if you'll be writing anything!

All of my stories will be posted here on Friday. They will be friend-locked in order to maintain my first rights to publication, so if there are any lurkers who want to read them who are not on my flist, let me know and I will add you. If you're not on LJ at all, let me know and we'll work something out.

Past years' stories are here.

Comments

[heartofoshun.livejournal.com]

Only for you and, at best, a single ficlet. I tried to write a scary story last year for IgnobleBard (birthday in October and loves scary stories and I always owe him for putting up with me). It wasn’t entirely wasted. I never did finish it, but it became Maitimo’s flash-back-to-Angband scene in one of the last chapters to A New Day. My plans will necessarily be more modest this year, in the hopes that I can actually finish something.

I don’t think I will wish you luck on the schoolwork; you really don’t need it. Oh, I forgot that I had started and was interrupted from writing a response to your last email to me relating to a point about your Tolkien class. I should finish it soon and send it off.

[dawn_felagund]

Oh, you don't have to feel obligated to write for me! (Hence giving you two prompts for my birthday drabble, since I know horror really isn't your thing, but sometimes inspiration lurks in strange corners. ;) But, every year, people say, "Next year, I'm going to do this!" So I remind them in hopes that they actually will. ;) (Bobby's supposed to be writing something, but he hasn't talked about it in a while, so I think the muses might have absconded. They're probably off somewhere with my muses, who are pissed since I've been devoting my mental energies to entirely serious pursuits.)

I look forward to that email! :)

[telperion1.livejournal.com]

You know, I really want to... I doubt I will because of time issues, but if I get inspired I may write something.

Suggestion: Could you post a link post when we get closer to Halloween? I think I'd find that helpful.

[dawn_felagund]

It'd be really cool if you wrote something ... but believe me, I understand time issues! :)

Do you mean that you'd like a list of links to the stories posted thus far? I can certainly do so, I just want to be clear that I'm understanding what you mean! :)

[telperion1.livejournal.com]

I actually was thinking that it would be great to have a post after you post the last story, with links to *all* the stories. But including links to stories posted thus far would be even better.

You know, I was thinking... if this seems like a lot of work, you could just tag them and include a link to

http://dawn-felagund.livejournal.com/tag/halloweenfic08

or whatever you decide to call it? That might be easier for you.

[dawn_felagund]

If it's any help, all are and will be tagged under "haunted october":

http://dawn-felagund.livejournal.com/tag/haunted+october

I can add tags by year as well, if you think this would be useful. (When I first tried this challenge, I figured it would be a one-year thing, never counting on how much I enjoyed it and [especially!] how much others looked forward to its repeat in '07! :)

[pandemonium-213.livejournal.com]

Ai, carambë! It's Haunted October already? Well, I have one that I wrote way before October, but I am inordinately pleased with the damn thing. Then yesterday, when Rampaging Frodo and I went flying around the hills of Jersey horse country in the Mini, I was yammering away about your "Haunted October" challenge, prompted by a sign for a "corn maze" at the Howell Living History Farm (that's where the actors in "The Village" learned how to do old timey stuff). Then there's the hedge row idea and a Lovecraftian horror-that-should-not-be ficcish notion with the hard boiled Boston detective out of a Dennis Lehane (Gone Baby Gone, Mystic River) novel. I'm afraid the latter is too ambitious although I'd love to take a crack at it. Well, stay tuned. Ack! And I need to make the List o' Weaponry for the Green Knight, too!

[dawn_felagund]

I know, time flies! It doesn't seem so long ago that noliel was saying, "I can't wait for the next Haunted October!" and I was grumbling not to hurry things ... and that was two years ago. O.O

I always write some of mine way before October too; this year's "Quail" started back in the spring when I was still working at Guilford Avenue! (That place would inspire even Oshun to write horror. ;) If you share yours, I am really, really looking forward to it. You have proven yourself quite good at creepy fic, at least in my humble estimation! :)

[pandemonium-213.livejournal.com]

I'll definitely share the one that's finished. Now I'm all fired up with ideas, dammit. That Boston detective meets Cthulhu idea started churning when I went out for my walk along the borders of Mirkwood* this evening. I even came up with names for the protagonist -- Charlie Conway -- and his old friend, the pathologist -- Madonna Flannery. They grew up in the same neighborhood in "Dot" (Doahchestah a.k.a Dorchester) and...and...

*Really. The trees are tall (many beeches and incredible tulip poplars), there are black squirrels, and nasty arthropods -- deer ticks that carry Lyme disease -- lurking back there in the woods.

[dawn_felagund]

Could I bother you to let me know when you post your story? 8^) Now that I have LJ access at work, I reward myself for accomplishments by reading my flist, but I haven't been able to manage it every day. And I really don't want to miss it.

I love the names, and I have to laugh at your "Dorchester" in dialect. We have a Dorchester (County) as well, which we manage to pronounce pretty normally ... but we also have a Worcester (County), which has somehow earned the pronunciation "Wooster."

[elfscribe5.livejournal.com]

A great idea - I'll look forward to your spooky stories. For me, erm, my goal will be to start writing a fic that's been cooking in my head for literally years. Now that's spooky.

[dawn_felagund]

The icon is my doggie's response to a fic years in the making. ;)

But I can't talk; I have stories that have taken years (or stories only several thousand words that have taken months ... one of this year's Haunted October stories is one such). If you get it started and post it somewhere, let me know! :) I'm really hoping for schoolwork to settle down enough to allow some reading for fun again.

[noliel.livejournal.com]

I can't believe it's almost time for Haunted October already (wooooooohoo~)! Let the spookiness begin! As long as it doesn't mess with your school work, which I am sure it won't. (You make want to hug Poe anthology xD ) And as I haven't written a prper scary story for a long time, I'm entirely tempted to join in... :I

[dawn_felagund]

Yes. You should join in. >;^)

I can't believe it's that time again either. Time flies!

I hope that I can write all the stories in addition to school. I should be able to; the next week should be relatively mild schoolwork-wise, so I should be able to catch up on writing and betas. I'm going to give it my best try! :)