MicroHorror

I’ve said it before, but even if I said it a thousand times it wouldn’t be enough: Thank you for making this contest, and this site, such a success. I received over fifty entries, each one a gem that I’m proud to host here, and there were some absolutely magnificent stories in this bunch. I know it’s a cliché, but picking the three winners was a very, very difficult task.

Without further ado, the winners of the 2007 MicroHorror.com story contest:

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Oonah V Joslin, for Autumn Fruit
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James Lacey, for The Patch
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and Kevin Sweeney for Sit Down By the Fire.Congratulations to Oonah, James and Kevin, and thank you again to everyone who entered. Winners, e-mail me with your mailing addresses, and I’ll get to work on those trophies.

This will almost certainly be my final front-page update before November, so I’ll say this just a tiny bit prematurely: Thank you, all of you, who have submitted your work to the October story contest. My gratitude, of course, also extends to everyone who has contributed stories outside of the contest, but I’m amazed at how successful this contest has been. Over 50 entries, and there’s still 28-and-one-half hours to go. Amazing work, too. It’s going to be hard to pick the winners, and that’s an understatement. Just remember that the deadline isn’t until 11:59 PM EST on October 31, so you can still send in your stories and get them in under the wire.

I’m sure you’re wondering what the prize is. I think I can tell you now. Each of the three winners of the 2007 contest will win a beautiful, personalized, custom-designed trophy made by LazrArt. This trophy will immortalize your story and your skill as a writer. Display it proudly in your home, office, crypt or dungeon for all of your friends, family and victims to admire. You want this.

Happy Halloween, everyone.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have… Igor, stop teasing him! Oh, look what you’ve done. Look, just pack it in ice; I’ll sew it back on later.

Sorry about that, folks. As I was saying, ladies and gentlemen, I have several announcements to make. First, MicroHorror has quietly passed yet another milestone. At this time last year, I hoped that maybe, just maybe, the archive might reach 100 stories by the end of October. It didn’t. But now, we have passed 500. Five hundred beautiful horror stories! Count von Count would be so proud. And it’s all thanks to you. Give yourself a pat on the back, and if you can’t reach with your own arm, I’ve got a few spares I’d be glad to lend you.

Have you been keeping up with the latest stories? I hope you have; I can barely keep up with them myself. Big thanks to everyone who’s contributed since the last update: Jon Catron, Andrew JM Stone, Chris O’Neal, Brayden Krell, Patricia J. Hale, Nathan Tyree, Yuichi Mendez, Heather Kuehl, R. K. Gemienhardt, J. White, Steve Talbert, S. Tucker, Brick Marlin (to whom I award special recognition for having the name that sounds the most like a hard-boiled ’30s private eye), Kimberly D. Robinson, Damien Cowger, Jeff Alan, Andrew Shaffer, Kevin Sweeney, Ashleigh Rhodes, Brett W, Natasha Bennett, Kris Osk, Rod Drake, R. S. Pyne, Aurelio Rico Lopez III, G.S. Riley, Dennis S. Thornton, Bill West, Michael A. Kechula, Adrian W. Ludens, Larry Siemens, John Ritchie and Douglas Ford. As you can see, a fine assortment of veterans and newcomers. Thank you all.

There’s still plenty of time to enter the 2007 Story Contest! Capture the spirit of Halloween in 100 words or less. As an extra bonus feature, I’ve created a page where you can see all of the entries to date. Read them here!

And by the way, I’ve decided what the prizes will be for the three winners. It is a truly marvelous object, custom designed for MicroHorror and the winners of the story contest. You’ll be proud to own it and display it. But what is it? I’ll say no more for now.

Happy hauntings!

October already! Where does the time go? I swear it was April just a few weeks ago. Maybe I should spend more time aboveground… nah. Anyway, let me begin by extending my heartiest thanks to Yuichi Mendez, Brayden Krell, Chris O’Neal, R. K. Gemienhardt, Thomas Turren, Alexandra Erin, Andrew JM Stone, Adrian W. Ludens, A D Dawson, Heather Kuehl, Brick Marlin, Charles Skorzewski, Nathan Tyree, Amanda Blackburn and Kimberly D. Robinson for their generous and chilling contributions, and particularly warm-and-still-dripping hearty thanks to all the newcomers and first-timers. Nothing suits a horror fiction archive more than–you guessed it–fresh blood.

And speaking of blood, it’s October 1! We’re at the dawn of the greatest horror month of the year and only thirty days away from All Hallows’ Eve, when ghosts and ghouls stalk the streets and witches roam abroad. (Of course, with the dollar at a record low, American witches might just as well stay home, but I digress.) All of this, of course, means that it’s time to announce the Second MicroHorror.com Story Contest! We’re doing something different this year, though. This year, I want to see stories that capture the spirit of Halloween, and that do it in 100 words or less. This is real microfiction, folks, and we’re cutting right down to the bone. And yes, there will be fabulous prizes! Start sending in your entries now, because the deadline is 11:59 PM EST, October 31. Read the official contest rules here!

Hiya, friends! I’m sure you’ve seen the latest stories from Alexandra Erin, Blu Gilliand, D.W. Green, Yuichi Mendez, Sean Ryan, Jeff Ryan, Brick Marlin and Lyndon Perry. It never fails to blow my mind just how successful this little idea of mine has been, and I’m grateful to you all. Thank you.

That said, I promised D.W. Green that I’d give a mention to this project, and it’s my pleasure to do so now, because it’s a really fantastic concept. D.W. is currently accepting submissions of both fiction and art for an upcoming 365-day horror calendar. Every single day will feature either a terrifying illustration or a short-short horror story no longer than 365 words. This is going to be a very high profile item, and D.W. is going to shop it around to some of the best horror publishers in the business. Get in on this! D.W. is only accepting submissions until October 30. Learn more about The Twisted Twins–Daily Chills Calendar at www.myspace.com/the_twisted_twins.

Good news, everyone. The unpleasantness from last month has been dealt with, and I’m ready to put it behind me. Thank you, thank you, a million times thank you to the writers and fans who’ve been sticking with me. We’ve got some great new stories from a whole bunch of authors, some returning and some new: David Nordahl, John Young, JJ Collins, Andrew JM Stone, Jeff Ryan, Michael Staines, Mark Kilbain Lazer, Lyndon Perry, Thomas Turren, Brian N. Hare, R. K. Gemienhardt, Rose Dewy Knickers, Kimberly D. Robinson, Wesley Lambert, Jeff Alan, J. White, Oscar Valdez, Chris Chapman, Yuichi Mendez, Jennifer Michel and Damien Cowger. Go read! Enjoy! I’ll wait here.

My supply of MicroHorror T-shirts is dwindling, but I’ve still got some left, and one can be yours for a mere $25. Shipping inside the continental US is free!

Finally, it has come to my attention that my excellent hosting provider, NearlyFreeSpeech.net, is doing some major upgrades. Regrettably, that means that every site they host, including MicroHorror, will be unavailable for several hours on Monday, September 10. They’ve promised to redirect all traffic during that time to a friendly page explaining the situation, and you can follow their progress on their status page.

Ladies and gentlemen, loyal MicroHorror readers and writers all. I owe you all an apology.

I have been an unwitting accomplice to plagiarism.

Like all small-time editors, I have to accept submissions on the honor system. When you send me a stories, I trust that you wrote them, and I act in good faith. One person betrayed that trust.

Nothing will be gained by naming names. Suffice it to say that upon positive confirmation that plagiarism had been committed, I addressed the problem to the best of my ability. I immediately removed all stories submitted previously by this person, and have banned that person from ever submitting to MicroHorror again.

I’m making this post to clear my conscience, and to assure you that I am committed to running this site ethically and lawfully. I will never, ever, publish a story that I know to be plagiarized, and if I discover any plagiarism in the future, I will address it swiftly and harshly.

Again, I apologize to you, the reader, and to any author whose works have been abused by this plagiarist. I ask your forgiveness, and ask that if you ever suspect plagiarism on MicroHorror.com, please bring it to my attention immediately.

Thank you for your understanding.

Sincerely,
Nathan Rosen
Founder & Editor, MicroHorror.com

Monday the 13th, eh? That might actually be worse than Friday the 13th. Anyway, Horrorfind was great. I got some autographs, bought a few books, and met all sorts of wonderful people including Katherine Patterson, editor of AlienSkin Magazine and recidivist MicroHorror contributor, and her husband. It was great seeing you guys, and I hope our paths cross again. Let me also give a shoutout to Julia of Resurrection Arts, who makes gorgeous jewelry out of animal bones. Suitable for any horror fan or pirate!

What’s new with MicroHorror? I’m glad you asked. Not much new going on, apart from REACHING 400 STORIES IN THE ARCHIVE! That’s right; the 400th story went up over the weekend, and we’ve already gone past that milestone. Thanks are due to returnees Jeff Ryan, Yuichi Mendez, Kimberly D. Robinson and R. K. Gemienhardt, and to newcomers Tom Blunt, Season Harper-Fox, and Adrian W. Ludens. The latter two introduced themselves by bombarding me with multiple stories at once, which I love to see. If you have a back catalog of stories that you’d like to contribute to MicroHorror, don’t be stingy; send ‘em all at once! Last and least, I’ve got a new story up also.

Speaking of me (wait, what?), some of my non-horror extracurricular activities have landed me in the Washington Post. Pity they can’t spell my name right.

And saving the best news for last, MicroHorror T-shirts are now on sale! Supplies are limited, so order yours today!

Good morning, MicroHorror Maniacs! How is everything out there in the land of the living? Me, I’ve been taking a correspondence course about coding and decoding secret messages. It’s interesting, but it’s not what I expected. I guess I misunderstood when I heard about the course in CRYPT-ography! Hee hee hee hee!

I hope you’re all enjoying the latest stories from Eric D. Lehman, A D Dawson, C. M. Clifton, Mark Kilbain Lazer, Yuichi Mendez, Rod Drake, Tiana Bodine, Diana Eid and R. K. Gemienhardt. If you’re not, you might want to check your pulse. If you feel one, consult your mortician immediately!

And now, without further ado (or adon’t), I’d like to turn the (killing) floor over to prolific contributor Jeff Ryan, to tell you all about his latest venture. Jeff?

It took a few more months than I would have preferred, and there’s still a bit of tinkering going on, but I am proud to introduce everyone to the new home of the Daily Scares, www.dailyscares.com!

The biggest change you’ll see is that the words are, um, gone. Instead we’re RECORDING new stories every day. Download them, throw them on your iPod, listen at your desk with headphones on. They run under two minutes each, and each week has a different joining theme. Last week was vampires, this week is ghosts, next week is either hell or diseases–we don’t know yet!

Work for future weeks: an RSS feed, posting of the text of each story, scaring pants off of people, figuring out how to do all the voices and accents I have to do to record these stories!

Also, there’s that “we” thing. I’m not just using it in the royal fashion. My cowriter for the Daily Scares is my identical twin brother Sean Ryan. (Start the rumors that we’re actually the same person… now!) We’ve both been doing this for a few years now, and I think we each have over 500 stories under our belt, with more every day.

We each write and record separately, but our styles and subject matter are similar enough so that there’s gong to be a real unfied feel to everything. E-mail us at dailyscares@gmail.com if you want to suggest a story, or a theme week!

Thanks to Daniel and Vini and Nick and everyone else at Horror Channel for being a great surrogate home. I’ll miss the dark crimson walls of the message boards, and the wall-mount of creepy blinking smiley faces that stared at me whenever I posted.

See you at www.dailyscares.com!

Boo,

Jeff Ryan

So there you have it: Jeff’s and Sean’s fine stories in a handy audio format. Just the thing for rocking the kiddies to sleep.

One last reminder about Horrorfind Weekend in Baltimore, August 10-12! If you’ll be there, let me know. It’s always a pleasure to meat–I mean meet–other horror fans.

Until next time, happy hauntings!

Happy Friday the 13th, everybody! If the day isn’t scaring you enough, I promise you’ll find something to freak you out around here. I’ve been updating like a madman for the past few days (Do you suppose Hannibal Lecter has a blog?), getting caught up on the backlog of stories from familiar faces and talented newcomers. Enjoy the latest from David Nordahl, Yuichi Mendez, Eric D. Lehman, R. K. Gemienhardt, Michael A. Kechula, Brian Beatty, Rod Drake, Paul Sharp, Kimberly D. Robinson, K. A. Patterson, Aurelio Rico Lopez III (all the way from the Philippines), Arnold Emmanuel, Kevin Byrne, Tyler Lizenby and me. Finally, but biggest of all, we have massive updates from not just one, but both of the Brothers Ryan, Jeff and Sean!

So, who’ll be at HorrorFind Weekend next month?