Movies to get you in the Halloween mood

Horror films are always a favorite on my household, regardless of time of year. I thought I would share some of our favorites we recently watched to get you into the Halloween mood.


The Birds

Summary from Amazon.com:

The Birds follows a chic blonde, Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren), as she travels to the coastal town of Bodega Bay to hook up with a rugged fellow (Rod Taylor) she's only just met. Before long the town is attacked by marauding birds, and Hitchcock's skill at staging action is brought to the fore.

My thoughts:

The Birds is one of Alfred Hitchcock's greatest. After watching this movie, you will feel chills down down your spine and duck every time you hear crows cawing in the trees. The acting is pretty good, with Jessica Tandy leading the way. The effects is way above it's time, and despite the ending falling someone flat (at least for me but I don't want to give it away), the dvd version includes the script to an alternate ending which is fun to read. This old classic is a perfect movie to watch during the Fall and Halloween season.



Psycho

Summary from Amazon.com:

Alfred Hitchcock's landmark masterpiece of the macabre stars Anthony Perkins as the troubled Norman Bates, whose old dark house and adjoining motel are not the place to spend a quiet evening. No one knows that better than Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), the ill-fated traveler whose journey ends in the notorious "shower scene." First a private detective, then Marion's sister (Vera Miles) searches for her, the horror and the suspense mount to a terrifying climax where the mysterious killer is finally revealed.

My thoughts: Sticking with the Hitchcock theme, Psycho should always be on the top of your horror list. If you haven't seen Psycho in awhile, make sure to run out and rent it (and please do not even THINK of renting the 1998 version). If you don't think The Birds is Hitchcock's best, than Psycho has to be up there. All around classic.



Dracula

Summary from Amazon.com:

It gets off to an atmospheric start, as we meet Count Dracula in his shadowy castle in Transylvania, superbly captured by the great cinematographer Karl Freund. Eventually Dracula and his blood-sucking devotee (Dwight Frye, in one of the cinema's truly mad performances) meet their match in a vampire-hunter called Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan). If the later sections of the film are undeniably stage bound and a tad creaky, Dracula nevertheless casts a spell, thanks to Lugosi's creepily lugubrious manner and the eerie silences of Browning's directing style.

My thoughts: I haven't seen this one in awhile but when I think of Halloween, I think of the great Universal monsters. Dracula is just that and with Bela Lugosi, it can't get any better. Bela one of the best at what he did, his career should have been bigger than it was if not for people type casting due to his nationality.


Frankenstein

Summary from Amazon.com:

"It's alive! Alive!" shouts Colin Clive's triumphant Dr. Frankenstein as electricity buzzes over the hulking body of a revived corpse. "In the name of God now I know what it's like to be God!" For years unheard, this line has been restored, along with the legendary scene of the childlike monster tossing a little girl into a lake, in James Whale's Frankenstein, one of the most famous and influential horror movies ever made. Coming off the tremendous success of Dracula, Universal assigned sophomore director Whale to helm an adaptation of Mary Shelley's famous novel with Bela Lugosi as the monster. When Lugosi declined the role, Whale cast the largely unknown character actor Boris Karloff and together with makeup designer Jack Pierce they created the most memorable monster in movie history: a towering, lumbering creature with sunken eyes, a flat head, and a jagged scar running down his forehead. Whale and Karloff made this mute, misunderstood brute, who has the brain of a madman (the most obvious of the many liberties taken with Shelley's story), the most pitiable freak of nature to stumble across the screen. Clive's Dr. Frankenstein is intense and twitchy and Dwight Frye set the standard for mad-scientist sidekicks as the wild-eyed hunchback assistant.

My thoughts: Bela Lugosi should have never turned this down, but he did which lead to Boris Karloff taking the role. If you're Bela Lugosi, that was a mistake, but for fans of horror films, it was a great move because it brought us Boris Karloff. For our younger readers, you may know Karloff as the narrator in the classic animated special How the Grinch Stole Christmas. If you don't know much about Boris Karloff, make sure to check out the list of his movies and tv appearances on IMDB.

Although these old movies don't have the flashiness of current films, most of them were way before their time in effects. If you don't think about the classics when browsing Netflix or whichever rental company you use, check it out for the next few weeks. Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

Winner of Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell

Thanks for those who participated in the contest for a copy of Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell. To pick the winner, I used a random number generator. I'm happy to announce, the winner is:

Gina

Gina, please email us at YAedge AT yahoo DOT com with your address so that I can have the book sent to you!

Watch for another contest next week to win free books!

Halloween Theme Party Tips

The main problem I see with Halloween parties is people try to do too much everything and the décor ends up looking like The Nightmare Before Christmas projectile vomited in your living room. Why not choose a specific ghoulish theme and really dig into a set genre? Once you do, you’ll be surprised at how a single idea can branch out in so many unexpected ways.

Take the latest theme party I attended, hosted by my most amazing friends. They’re particular, they love details, and they throw one hell of party. Our last theme night was all paranormalville (for details see my post as Judith Graves on the Wolfy Chicks Blog), this time, the party theme was magic. DISCLAMER: No offence intended to those who practice the craft – this was purely a night to celebrate magical stereotypes and popular culture.

Witchy Woman by the Eagles was playing in background as guests arrived. Tip #1. A theme soundtrack is a must!



Black cats, green-skinned witches, caldrons, brooms and wizard wands were scattered around the house. Bookcases were transformed into the shelves of a mystical apocothery and a library of magical spell books and grimoires. Tip #2: Stash your “non-theme” related stuff in a spare room so your Star Wars figurine collection doesn’t stifle the mood. Unless you’re having a SW theme party, of course. ;)

To dine, the menu featured: Dead Man’s Toes (chicken fingers), Bat Wings (chicken wings), Fungus Cubes (cheese cubes), Pickled Brains (pickled cauliflower), Entrails Dip (salsa for taco chips). For dessert: Death Brownies (lol…not magic brownies!) and Graveyard Grahams (graham square cookies with chocolate icing, a cookie tombstone and green-dye coconut grass). For more ideas on gravely good desserts go here, because they have pictures – and I can’t make a recipe work without pictures.

No party is complete without mood lighting and a few games. We played Harry Potter Scene It?, had a crazy-funny tarot card reading from Madame Esmeralda (we called her “Ezzy”), a little 5 in 10 (eg. Name 5 famous witches in 10 seconds), movie quotes from witchy/magical films (eg. “I’ll get you, my pretty! And your little dog, too.”) and my favourite game – name that tune (play the first 10 seconds of theme related songs: I Put a Spell on You, Bewitched TV theme song, Abracadabra, etc). Tip #3: Put a little effort into theme games, be creative and never try to bob for apples after a few sips of Essence of Dragon’s Blood brew.

Tip #4: This Halloween, have a zombie theme (the walking dead are all the rage this year), a twisted fairytale theme, a Rest in Peace – graveyard theme, a shapeshifter theme – but make your party one of legend – get focused. For added fun, check out the cool Halloween candy at The Candy Warehouse. The black candy selection looks hauntingly delicious. And now I think I have to get my hands on a copy of Saundra Mitchell's YA ghost story, Shadowed Summer. Looks like an awesome read!

Celebrating October with a Ghost Story

Since it's October and Halloween is just around the corner, I thought it would be a great time to sit down and have a chat with Saundra Mitchell, author of the YA ghost story, Shadowed Summer.

First off, here is the description, courtesy of BN.com:

Iris is ready for another hot, routine summer in her small Louisiana town, hanging around the Red Stripe grocery with her best friend, Collette, and traipsing through the cemetery telling each other spooky stories and pretending to cast spells. Except this summer, Iris doesn’t have to make up a story. This summer, one falls right in her lap. Years ago, before Iris was born, a local boy named Elijah Landry disappeared. All that remained of him were whispers and hushed gossip in the church pews. Until this summer. A ghost begins to haunt Iris, and she’s certain it’s the ghost of Elijah. What really happened to him? And why, of all people, has he chosen Iris to come back to?

Here are a few questions Saundra was so kind enough to answer for us. Thanks again, Saundra!

1. What gave you the idea for Shadowed Summer? And did you always intend to write it for the YA audience?

Saundra Mitchell: My original intention was to write a book that would make readers feel the way Annette Curtis Klaus's THE SILVER KISS made me feel when I was a teen. However, I actually wrote this book thinking it would be for adults (the original draft was twice as long as the final book you hold in your hands!) One of my beta readers told me, "This is a YA novel!" and re-reading it, I realized she was right. I think it speaks to the level of lunacy some writers experience when it comes to their own work. I wanted to write a book like a YA novel I loved when I was a teen... but somehow, I had no idea I'd written a YA novel. Go figure!


2. When you first decided to sit down and write Shadowed Summer, did you know you were going to write a ghost story? Were you inspired by any ghost stories you knew from your childhood?

I definitely knew it was going to be a ghost story. Hauntings and ghosts have fascinated me my entire life. Even in my first novel, which was straight-up historical fiction, I included a ghost story as an aside in the text. And I'd have to say I was probably inspired by all of them! But I think you can see Betty Ren Wright's THE DOLLHOUSE MURDERS and Zilpha Keatly Snyder's THE HEADLESS CUPID in the DNA of my novel.

3. I love the setting of Shadowed Summer. It almost feels like a secondary character (I felt as if I could see the grave yard and like I had been inside the Red Stripe Grocery). Was it hard to develop the setting so that it lived and breathed for your readers? And how much research went into researching the area?

Thank you very much! I've never been to Louisiana, so there was a lot of research involved! Fortunately, I have family who live in Baton Rouge, and my best friend lives outside Atlanta. Georgia doesn't have the same culture as Louisiana, but visiting in the summer there was an *excellent* reference for the weather. My best friend and I both grew up in very small towns, so that's something I think is universal. There's a lot of Gem, Indiana and Ila, Georgia in fictional Ondine, Louisiana! Making sure all the language was authentic the hard part- and in fact, I've asked my editor if we can make a few tweaks in the second edition. Somehow a very Yankee "soda pop" slipped into my text, disturbing good Southerners everywhere.

4. What is your writing routine like, as far as schedule and what is your writing area like?

When I'm working on a book, I write 1000 words a day, every day, until the book is done. I can write *more* words if I want to, but my count still turns over at midnight. I start at 8.30am, after my daughter is off to school, and I work until 8:00pm or so. The weekends, I try to get my 1000 words done early so I have some time to myself! But this schedule keeps me focused. If I'm lenient with me, I tend to goof off.

As for my surroundings, my desk is a wreck right up until I start writing a book. Then I get reallllllllllly interested in cleaning everything off. But once my area is pristine, I have no more excuses, and then I start writing.

5. Since we're celebrating October and Halloween on YAedge this month, what was your favorite Halloween costume you've ever worn (as a kid or an adult)?

I have to admit, my favorite Halloween costume is my RenFaire costume. At your service, milady!

Thanks again Saundra for taking the time to answer our questions!

For all the readers out there, if you haven't picked up your copy of Shadowed Summer yet, it's your lucky day! We'll be giving away one copy to one lucky person! All you have to do to enter is comment in this blog post. Contest ends Sunday night (10/11/09) at 9pm PT.

Good luck!

Zombie Mania

I saw Zombieland this weekend and was blown away by the witty, well delivered script. Woody Harrelson - amazing as a zombie-killing redneck. Jesse Eisenberg’s performance of an unlikely geek hero ROCKED. You felt Emma Stone's determination as the gritty, suspicious girl, looking out for her younger sister. And Abigail Breslin proved to be as full of gumption as her Little Miss Sunshine character back in 2006. In fact that’s one of the reasons I loved Zombieland – because of the dysfunctional family the characters become (similar to LMS).

Zombie movies really commit. I mean, they're not satisfied with giving you a localized scare. No creature killing off a few schmucks in a small town. Nope. Zombies want us to fear for the world. And in this age of global warming, mutating viruses and a bottle of hand sanitizer beside your sunscreen - so we should.

In the meantime, why wait for the real thing when we can partake in zombie mania while we still enjoy pizza over human flesh? With the big H around the corner, I thought it fitting to point you to a few zombie related sites. Get out your hair mousse (makes great ooze)!

And if you’re really adventurous, find out if your city/town/angry village is participating in World Zombie Day this October 11th. Check out the Myspace page for more details: http://www.myspace.com/worldzombieday


Go Get Zombified!

http://zombies.tomwalsham.com/costume.html - great tips on zombie costume making

http://www.zombiemaker.com/ - cool zombie costumes / props

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DzAwvJCHI0 – instructional video on how to create your own zombie makeup. For those who like to watch. ;)

Happy October!

October is my favorite month of the year. Not only does it include my birthday, but also Fall is upon us. The leaves are changing, the air smells fresh and the winds are blowing. That can only mean one thing...Halloween! Like Tracy, Halloween is my favorite holiday. There's something about piles of candy, cool weather, leaves on the ground that make me excited.

This month, Tracy and I have fun things planned on YAedge: Contests, interviews with a few paranormal YA authors and much more. Please come celebrate our favorite month with us and maybe win a free book or two! And did I mention candy????

Get Your Ghoul On

Whoot! It’s my favourite time of the year. The leaves are turning colour. The wind is crisp. Coyotes howl in the woods behind our house. The sun is low and the moon is huge in the sky.

But best of all - Halloween stuff is showing up in stores!

For everyone else this is a time to purchase creepy decorations they’ll display for a few nights of the year. For me, it’s a time to hunt for more cool spooky items to beef up my office’s macabre feel. What can I say? I write paranormal young adult fiction – I have a thing for atmospheric settings, this one just happens to be a spare room in my house that could pass for a vampire-inhabited crypt. It’s filled with iron-work, a hulking, dark-stained desk, fake tombstones and skulls, as well as antique coloured-glass bottles and vials.

But it can always use more mood, right? Last week I found a particularly impressive fake tombstone. It features a Victorian woman’s portrait (a holograph) that shifts from fair lady to gruesome ghoul as you walk by.

Now, I cheated and purchased all my scares. But there are some incredible DIY projects out there that someday…..I’m going to get my husband to do. ;)

Here are a few you might like:

http://www.hectorturner.com/halloween/celtic.html - super realistic tombstones. And Celtic!

http://www.halloweenmonsterlist.info/ - an old looking website, but the projects! A 13 hour clock. A flying ghost. One of these days my hubbie’s going to be very busy. ;)

If you’re planning a theme party and are going to invest some moola in your ghoula, check out this fab site: http://www.darksidedisplays.com – special effects, costumes, props – I basically want to live here.

Enjoy!