Val's Blog
31 Nights of Terror: A Movie Marathon Halloween Celebration
Welcome to October – aka Halloween month!
Since Halloween is both my favorite holiday and Viki’s (from “Monster Girl“), I thought we’d have some fun. To celebrate the holiday, I love to watch 31 horror/Halloween movies during the month of October. I watch horror movies year round, but I really ramp it up during this month. This year I thought I would offer my own Halloween viewing schedule for your enjoyment. You’ve probably seen your friends doing those “31 movies in 31 nights” challenges, and this is basically my list of some of the best movies to watch during Halloween. You can also follow me on Instagram @valmakesmovies to see daily posts of what I watched!
We start out with something light in “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” to really set the tone for the season ahead. Think you can hang with all 31? Remember: When you call it a night, be sure to check under the bed and in the closet, for you never know what might be waiting in the shadows. Muahahahahaha!
[Note: Not all of these are kid-friendly, so please be advised.]
October
1. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
2. Creature from the Black Lagoon
3. Puppet Master
4. Dracula
5. Child’s Play
6. Frankenstein
7. Gremlins
8. Young Frankenstein
9. Ginger Snaps
10. The Thing
11. Children of the Corn
12. A Nightmare on Elm Street
13. Poltergeist
14. Jaws
15. Insidious
16. Pet Semetery
17. Pumpkinhead
18. Sleepy Hallow
- 13 Nights Countdown -
This is where the fun really begins! I’ve selected some excellent movies with either the Halloween-theme or a monster-theme for the last 13 days of the season.
19. The Monster Squad
20. ParaNorman
21. Donnie Darko
22. Hocus Pocus
23. Silver Bullet
24. E.T.
25. Satan’s Little Helper
26. Night of the Demons
27. Idle Hands
28. The Nightmare Before Christmas
29. The Crow
30. Trick ‘r Treat
31. Halloween
I’ll check back with you on Halloween to see if the ghosts and goblins got you or if you survived the 31 nights of terror. Share your experience below and if you watched something other than what’s on this list, do tell!
“Monster Girl” NOW Available!
“Monster Girl” is now available at Amazon!
A young girl, obsessed with monsters and the supernatural, befriends the ghost of her grandfather and, with his help, learns valuable lessons while dealing with a bossy older sister, parents who ignore her, and a school bully.
When Viki and her family move to a new house in Draxon Hollow, she makes both a new friend and enemy. While unpacking, she discovers the unexpected … the ghost of her grandfather, whom she had never met.
During a Halloween celebration, Viki is humiliated in front of her classmates. With the guidance of her ghostly grandfather, she devises a plan to teach the bully a lesson.
What she does next may be surprising … for a Monster Girl.
5 Things I Learned Writing “Monster Girl”
Writing “Monster Girl” has been an unforgettable journey.
There were story surprises along the way, and I had a fabulous time writing my first book. Here is just a taste of what I learned writing “Monster Girl”.
1. That falling in love with my characters surprised me.
Sure, I enjoy writing my characters as I’m writing them, but I didn’t realize how much I missed them once I finished “Monster Girl”. I welcomed Viki and Herman into my heart and home, and I felt their absence when they were gone. Immediately starting on a sequel has been like a visit from an old friend. I hope my affection for these characters shines through to you, the reader.
2. That I prefer writing longhand for first drafts.
When I vomit my words all over the first draft (aka “vomit draft”), I must use a pad and pen. While I love Scrivener for writing/formatting on my laptop, and I love my iPad for plain text writing. However, for some reason when I type, the words don’t flow as easily as when I write longhand. It’s as if the pen is the connecting tentacle from the creative part of my brain to the paper below. That connection has to be there or there isn’t an outlet.
3. That getting my butt in the seat to write is tough.
We all lead busy lives, and trying to share my time between work, family obligations, and writing can be difficult. If I force myself to actually sit down and write, I always have a great time. However, convincing myself to do it is sometimes like a trip to the dentist. I kick and scream and think of 15 other things that must be done right then or my world will fold in on itself. Getting into a regular writing routine has definitely helped.
4. That I’m a “Pantser”.
A Plotter is someone who outlines extensively before sitting down to write their project. A Pantser is someone who likes to fly by the seat of their pants and find the story as they write. Even though I have a few plot points in mind when I start writing, I prefer to wing it, and let the story take me where it needs to go rather than build extensive outlines. However, I won’t force any specific plot point if it’s not working. I do typically have my beginning and ending in mind, and sometimes a better idea can spring up during the process. That happened with this story, and I will go into more detail in a future blog post. But I’m a firm believer in trusting the story. Even though I don’t always have the full story when I begin, I trust the story will present itself. Stephen King also touches on this in his superb memoir “On Writing“.
5. That no matter how good of a writer I THINK I am, I NEED an editor.
Structure can be at the discretion of the writer, but there is no excuse for not having a proofreader. An author is so close to his/her work that it’s impossible to catch every mistake. Since we know our stories so well, our minds tend to fill in the gaps when reading, and it’s easy to skip over mistakes. I had plenty! I’m very appreciative of the assistance I received when editing “Monster Girl”.
I look forward to every new book because I know it will be a whole new learning process. Thank you for reading!
( “5 Things” was inspired by a regular feature at Chuck Wendig’s Terribleminds blog.)
Monster Girl: Birth of an Author
How “Monster Girl” Came To Be
Writing has always been a part of my life. As a kid, when I wasn’t playing softball or riding bikes, I kept myself entertained with movies, TV, and writing. When a poem I wrote in fifth grade won first place in a school contest, I was officially bitten by the writing bug. Later, when the teacher would assign writing projects, I was one of the few who didn’t moan and complain about it. I enjoyed it. I especially loved creative writing, because that meant I got to invent my own ideas.
When I was young, I wasn’t an avid book reader, although I did enjoy reading horror magazines and horror short stories, and still do today. However, I began reading much more fiction in early adulthood. A friend of mine gave me a trilogy of vampire novels called “The Family Dracul”, which were fantastic. After that, I devoured the “Harry Potter” series. Two recent books that I really enjoyed are “Killer Pizza” and “The Drive-In”.
Reading inspires me to write my own stories, just like watching movies inspires my filmmaking.
In 2007, my husband and I formed Cinegore Pictures, a filmmaking production company. To date, we have made nine short films and a handful of commercials. Seeing our work aired on local TV and shown in film festivals have been the highlights. Along with producing and directing, filmmaking allowed me the outlet for storytelling.
Filmmaking is an extraordinary rewarding endeavor, with its biggest adversary being time. As a writer, I have more scripts and short stories written than we could ever produce. At the same time we began work on our first short film, I also started writing poetry about dogs. I was inspired by my then-four month old chocolate Labrador Retriever. Only, I never completed it.
Fortunately, 2014 marked a year of change. For my birthday, my sister-in-law gave me a book of dog poems. Receiving that gift reminded me that I had never seen my dreams of publishing a book come true.
On January 12th of this year, I sat out to write a short novel. My goal was to have it published by the end of the year. Six months later, I had a completed first draft. As I write this, the book has been edited, my husband has graciously built my author website, my talented artist friend has provided me with a superb illustration for the book cover, and I’m awaiting the arrival of my paperback proof copy. Excited doesn’t begin to describe the joy and sense of accomplishment I’m experiencing.
I have many people to thank for playing a role in this journey, including my sister-in-law for that random birthday gift. Soon, I’ll give birth to “Monster Girl”, my first novel, and it will open my eyes to the world of literature in a whole new way.
Welcome, Monster Kids!
I am so excited to announce my debut book, “Monster Girl”! It’s about a young girl named Viki who befriends the ghost of her grandfather and, with his help, learns how to deal with a school bully. If you’ve ever known someone who has been victimized by a bully, or been there yourself, you know it’s no fun. Viki is teased and humiliated in front of her classmates, but what she does next may surprise. This story can be enjoyed by all ages.
“Monster Girl” will be released in the next few weeks! I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Victoria Skye Cleveland for the beautiful illustration of “Viki” that makes up the book cover. I’d also like to thank my husband, Craig Morris, for designs of both the book cover and this website. You guys rock!
I’ll update this blog regularly with information on new releases, fun monster-themed topics, and insight into the fascinating world of self-publishing. Since I enjoy a more hands-on approach to things, I decided to self-publish rather than go the traditional route. A lot of decision making goes into publishing a book, and my background in business has certainly been useful. I just thought writing was tough. The self-publishing aspect, from the small details to ensuring I do everything as professional as possible , is the real work. But it’s going to be so worth it. I’m eager to get “Monster Girl” published so that I can continue writing. I’ve already started writing the sequel!
If you’d like to be the first to be notified when “Monster Girl” launches, and of new releases and promotions, please consider signing up for my newsletter. As a BONUS, I’ll send you a free short story.
Thank you for stopping by, and I look forward to sharing this journey!
