Words In The Dark

[brightlotusmoon]

The following stories have officially scared the shit out of me, in subtle, gentle ways.

http://www.yankeeclassic.com/miskatonic/library/stacks/literature/blackwood/stories/willows.htm
http://www.topbookz.com/browse/A/Algernon_Blackwood/The_Wendigo/page1/
http://www.kellylink.net/fiction/link-specialist.htm
http://gaslight.mtroyal.ca/mnkyspaw.htm
http://www.online-literature.com/hh-munro/1891/
http://www.thecimmerian.com/?p=5878 *

*If anyone has any links to the actual full text of Karl Edward Wagner's "Sticks" I would appreciate it.

Also, yes:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/27/AR2009102703745.html

I hate horror. I hate horror films, horror stories. But it's the sort of hate that makes me deathly curious. It's a fearful hate. It's a hate that makes me say, "I will never watch this movie on my own, but I will read detailed summaries that trace every step and scene." A good example would be the Saw franchise, although those films are more torture porn than horror. A better example might be the film In The Mouth Of Madness, which I did see, one early afternoon while alone. It left a very distinct impression that has been difficult to shake. I'm very weak when it comes to horror in film, and that movie probably represents the high point of what I can deal with, even though the costumes, masks, and amounts of fake gore are obvious. I cannot handle anything with too much gore, blood, and visual disgust.
I remember back when Freddy vs Jason came out in theaters. I was with a large group of friends who all wanted to see it, and it was hard for me to decline. I didn't have any way to get home unless one of those friends drove me. And I really didn't want to exclude myself from a group activity. We took seats in the middle of the theater. I never really saw the movie. I had my eyes shut throughout. After about an hour, I left to use the restroom. For thirty minutes. I did see the end of the film. But that is a classic example of what happens if I see a horror film in a theater. Which is why I will probably decline the next time a group of friends asks me to see one with them. I honestly would rather be left behind.
I remember when the trailers and previews for The Grudge 2 played on television every hour. I couldn't sleep well for a week. I always made sure my bedroom closet was shut and that a fan was blowing to drown out the freakish, horrific noises my imagination insisted upon making.
I will also admit that if a friend were to play a horror-type prank on me, I might physically injure him or her.
I hate being physically scared. But literature holds a fascinating sway that I find so hard to resist. The right author with the right words can make me shiver deliciously for weeks without regret.

Comments

Re: Part IV (WTF!)

[brightlotusmoon.livejournal.com]

HAH! Aww, energy balls! I LOVE playing with energy balls. Your grandfather is fantastic. I miss playing energy ball catch with people. I need to find someone I can do that with again.

And please please don't ever be embarrassed to babble at me or reveal your life or anything, I can take it. Jenn once told me that psychically I'm a beacon.

One night, when Adam and I were having sex, we went into transcendental sex, and I went into a deep trance. I started talking like a British woman who had lived her adult life in India. Which, apparently, I used to be, I guess, several lives ago. Apparently I'd been the student of a yogi who taught me all sorts of things. I wish I could remember those things.

Keep talking. If I can help you find peace during this awful time with your Grandpa, I plan on taking advantage of that so you can get through it.

Re: Part IV (WTF!)

[tokio.livejournal.com]

That's so sweet of you, hun.