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Ten Great Summer Reads for Young Horror Fans

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Summer is on and the temperature is rising, and what’s better during the heat of the day than to curl up in a nice, cool corner with a great book to read?  For the adult horror fan, it’s pretty easy to find something that fits your tastes, but for the younger horror fan who isn’t quite ready for Stephen King and Dean Koontz, it’s a little harder to find something that brings just enough of the thrills and chills without them sleeping with you for a month because they’re terrified.  S0, I decided to put together a list of ten great books and book series that just might fit the needs of your young horror hound.

Things That Go Bump in the Night edited by, Jane Yolen and Martin Harry Greenberg

book1

Ages: 12 and up

I remember wandering through the library when I was in about the 6th or 7th grade when I found this book sitting unnoticed on the shelf.  It was a bit dusty when I pulled it off the shelf, but just from the cover, I knew this was the book for me.  I read it numerous times over the following years, and still have a copy today.  The stories range from solid scary to horror comedy.  There’s definitely something for every kid in this book.  One of my favorites was “Duffy’s Jacket”, which taught me to appreciate the value of a good twist at the ending of a story.  You can buy your copy here.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by, Alvin Schwartz with illustrations by Stephen Gammell

book2

Ages:  8 and up

If you’re reading this list, then at some point in your youth, you were probably a fan of this amazing series of short stories.  The stories were great by themselves, but it was the illustrations by Stephen Gammell that put this collection over the top.  These images stick with you, perfectly enhancing the stories, and make them effective to this day.  Pick up a copy here for your kids today, and you just might find that you’re a fan, yourself, all over again.

Ghosts I Have Been by, Richard Peck

book3

Ages:  10 and up

Young, outspoken Blossom Culp is forever finding herself in trouble.  Her mother is the town “fortune teller”, and she often finds herself telling stories to frighten her fellow students.  The real trouble comes, as it often does in these tales, when Blossom’s stories become reality, and she finds herself with the ability to see spirits.  The next thing you know, she’s transported by these spirits to the deck of the Titanic as it is sinking.  This is just the first book in the series of Culp’s adventures, and I highly recommend them.  Peck has an incredible sense of the moment and scene.  You and your young reader will find yourselves right next to Blossom as the cold water draws closer.  Pick up a copy here today.

Goosebumps by, R.L. Stine

book4

Ages:  8 and up

What’s not to love about R.L. Stine’s now classic series of Goosebumps books?  Short, tightly written horror stories for the kid in all of us, the books had a Tales from the Crypt flair with lots of twists and turns to keep the kids coming back for more.  Browse through this epic series of books and find just the right ones for your reader today.  Take a look at book one here.

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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