MicroHorror

Ladies and gentlemen, boils and ghouls, please take your seats. Don’t mind the crunching under your feet; it’s probably just popcorn. Now sit back, relax and enjoy the show as I and a very special guest present, in MicroHorror.com’s first-ever video production, the winners of the 2009 MicroHorror Halloween Story Contest!

My heartfelt thanks go to each and every one of you for entering the contest and supporting MicroHorror with your wonderful stories, and here’s a special congratulations to this year’s six winners:

Extra special thanks to my friend Conrad Brooks for hosting the video with me. Each contest winner will receive a DVD from Conrad’s private collection, as well as an autographed photo of Conrad himself. Visit him online at www.conradbrooks.com!

Thank you again, everyone. I really enjoyed our little excursions into The Past, and I hope you did as well.

Stay scary!

I know you’re all on tenterhooks waiting for the contest results. I’m sorry about the delay, but I’m working on something very special and I promise it’ll be worth the wait. All will become clear, including an explanation as to why I made a road trip to West Virginia yesterday.

Greetings. I have been informed by several reliable sources that Gmail has been having problems lately, which may have caused some submissions to go unreceived. So, to make things fair to everyone, I am extending the contest deadline!

The deadline for Halloween contest submissions will be 11:59 PM, Monday, November 2. That ought to be enough time to get things fixed. Thanks for your patience!

Happy Halloween, kiddies! You’ve still got until midnight to submit your last-minute contest entries. But apart from that, have fun and be scary!

Your pal,
Nathan

Who knew that things like Cool Site of the Day were still around in this Web 2.0 day and age? Nevertheless, it’s great to be selected as Cool Site of the Day for October 29, 2009, I thank the editors for the honor, and I welcome every visitor who is newly introduced to MicroHorror today. Enjoy the stories!

Hello, kiddies! I just thought I’d give an update as October draws to a close.

First off, thanks again to everyone who contributed when I was having such a rough time a few weeks ago; things aren’t perfect around here (especially not after our house got burgled; that wasn’t fun at all), but I’ve definitely gotten my head back above water. I’ve also earmarked a portion of the donations to pay for this year’s contest prizes, and I’m making arrangements to have them produced. They’ll be nice. Thank you again.

Speaking of the contest, I couldn’t be happier with this year’s entries. There’s magnificent stuff there, absolutely magnificent, and I thank you all. Of course, there’s still three days left, and that’s plenty of time to write some more historical horror, right? I can’t wait to see what else arrives.

Oh, and I almost forgot– I’ve got something very, very special lined up for when the winners are announced. It’s a secret, but I really think you’ll enjoy it.

Finally, here’s a little bonus treat for you: Blogger Aunt B. of Tiny Cat Pants is writing a series of short-short ghost stories set in and around her hometown of Nashville, Tennessee, and using Google Maps to pinpoint the locations of each story. They’re nice little vignettes with a very cool interface. Enjoy All the Same Old Haunts. (via MetaFilter)

The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.
–L.P. Hartley (1895-1972)

Dearest fiends:

Here on MicroHorror you’ve published hundreds upon hundreds of stories that take place in the present day, and hundreds more that take place in the future, whether it be tomorrow or a million years from now. But right now I’m in a retrospective mood, and that’s why the theme for the 2009 MicroHorror Halloween Story Contest is…

Look deep into history, and you’ll find no shortage of horror to inspire you. Will you look to the ninth century for the miseries of the Dark Ages? The grimness of the nineteenth century, with its soot-filled skies? Or even the recently departed twentieth, when we lived under the existential dread of the Cold War?

Go further back, if you wish. The Biblical era offers plagues, famines, tyrants and wars. Or go still further, to a time before humanity, when our ancestors were tiny, furry creatures who knew nothing but hunger and fear. All of this span is yours to explore.

The stories don’t necessarily have to take place in the past, mind you, but history must be a theme. I want stories that evoke other times with truth and realism, but that are also instilled with timeless terror. Do your research–you might find something scary you never knew before.

The contest, as before, ends at 11:59 PM on October 31. There will be three winners. Read this page for the full contest rules.

Now go forth and write!

EDIT: This is in the official rules, but I just wanted to make sure it was clear. If your story is a contest entry, please say so explicitly in your e-mail so I can keep track. Thanks.

Kiddies, this is a momentous occasion. It’s my pleasure to announce the release of Toe Tags, an anthology of short horror edited by MicroHorror contributors Brian Barnett and William Pauley III, and featuring stories by a cavalcade of other MicroHorror writers: Stephanie Barnett, Angel Zapata, Brett Saunders, LB Goddard, Graeme Reynolds, Lori Titus, Michael A. Kechula, T.J. McIntyre, Joshua Scribner, Jimmy Calabrese, Oonah V Joslin, Robert C. Eccles, Chad Case and me.

If you enjoy reading MicroHorror, you’ll want this book. Order Toe Tags today!

A few announcements.

First, thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who’s offered their assistance. You’ve all been so generous, and while I can’t say I’m in the clear yet, I’m definitely in a better place than I was a week ago. Thank you.

Second, the good news, and the most amazing: I am caught up on submissions. That’s right. You may have noticed that I’ve been updating MicroHorror like a madman over the past few days (not that I know of any other way to do anything, hee-hee), and for the first time in months, there are no more submissions in my in-box! I’m on top of the heap, and it feels great! And best yet, it means that I’m all caught up just in time for…

THE 2009 MICROHORROR HALLOWEEN STORY CONTEST! Yes! It’s really happening! As always, the rules will be announced on October 1. This is going to be a fun one. Watch this space!

Thanks to Sean Monaghan for the new store graphic in the sidebar. Looks nice, doesn’t it?

Now, back to updating the site and preparing for the Halloween contest!