MY NEXT VICTIM THIS HALLOWEEN!
Thanks, Nancy, for agreeing to be part of
the fun.
Drum roll for Nancy's
Halloween Interview & Flash Fiction
Challenge
1. You're born on Halloween and have the ghostly
evil super powers of one of the following: The Ghost from Poltergeist, The
Frankenstein Monster, The Mummy, The most Evil of Witches, The Devil himself,
Freddy Kruger, Pumpkin Head, Michael from Halloween, or Jason from Friday the
13th. Alternatively, if you prefer, pick one of your own. Otherwise,
tell us which one you would choose and why? No friendly ghosts allowed! You're
to wreak havoc in this scenario!
I would use the ghost of the drunken seventeen year old who fell
into the frigid Pacific when he tried to pee off a cliff near Davenport. He
died on Halloween, the day the first Regan McHenry Real estate mystery was
published. He lurks under the waves and drags surfers who are foolish enough to
surf alone off their boards to a watery death deep in the ocean.
2. The
Zombie Apocalypse is going to occur this Halloween and for 48 hours, the world
is thrown into chaos. Live through it and consider yourself lucky, you've been
warned. What is your first step, especially as no one else knows or believes
you? Do you leave family behind and seek shelter to ride it out, or do you try
to save your family? How and why?
I’d try
to save not only my family, but a group of friends. I’d invite them to a Halloween
party at an abandoned factory which has been carefully sealed with concrete in
the windows. Once inside, I’d close
a massive metal door and secure it with many bolts and beams. We’d party through the whole
apocalypse.\
3. Because
of the time of your birth, (see the 1st question) the angels have decided to
forgive your sins and are offering to remedy one evil that now exists in the
world, but only one! Which would you choose and why?
I’d put the Middle East back
together because it’s such
a cruel place at the moment.
4. Why is
Halloween a favorite holiday, or not a favorite, and if it isn't why did you
participate in this query? Come on; tell us your biggest most secret Halloween
fantasy!
Opening from “The Widow’s Walk League” which explains why
Halloween is so appealing not only in Santa Cruz, but everywhere. “Halloween in Santa
Cruz coupled unbridled creativity with people freed from their normal
inhibitions. The night was festive and exhilarating, but with so many people
anonymous behind masks, there was always the potential for trouble.”
I’ve
seen my Halloween fantasy done. The reactions of the people who were given a
piece of paper with their death date on it by a person in a black shroud was so
spectacular, I used it in the book. I may do that again this Halloween.
Now the fun part: Finish the story. I've given
you the first 100 words. Provide us with the rest, but please hold the number
to 750 words or less unless the restriction is just impossible then no more
than 1000 words. The winner will receive a $10 Amazon gift card. The contest
will be judged by another lover of the horror genre, the person to be announced
later. The winner will be posted no later than a week after Halloween!
DESPERATION HOLLER
Jerry sauntered along
Desperation Holler Road that earlier echoed with the excited shouts of ghosts
and ghouls as the children scrambled from house to house in colorful and
frightening costumes.
Dusk dissolved into the
blackest of nights as the little monsters disappeared into the shelter of the
brightly lit houses with their chocolate goodies.
Jerry smiled, even suppressed
laughter, because he knew there was no refuge, not in Desperation Holler on
this most evil of Halloweens.
Concealed by the dark limbs of
deformed trees and invasive ivy, the innocuous little cabin looked abandoned,
but Jerry knew better.
The witches abode was anything but abandoned. Jerry used
the secret knock—three rapid strikes followed by silence for a count of three,
and then three more rapid knocks—and waited for the door to open.
He was greeted by the quintessential grandmother: an old woman
short and round, her gray-haired pulled into a neat bun and her pink coat
sweater buttoned at her neck to better display a large smiling jack-o-lantern
pin attached to it near her shoulder. She reached into the basket slung over
her arm and produced a Snickers Bar, not the fun size but a full-sized dollar
bar, and extended it toward Jerry.
After a quick look left and right to make certain no one was
spying, she morphed into a hunchbacked witch with a long curved nose complete
with a prominent mole. Her lips turned up into a cruel smile. “Come in, my
darling,” she cooed.
“You have done well this evening. I have four
children-pies backing in the oven and only need one more pie for my coven’s
midnight party. “He’s another bunch of stuffed animals for you; use them to
bring me two more children and then all my candy will be wrapped in hundred
dollar bills and be just for you.
“Here’s a special toy,” she said as she placed a large stuffed
spider around his shoulders, “a treat for you, my darling.” The witch pointed a
bony finger in his direction. As she did so, the spider tightening its legs
around Jerry’s neck as it sunk its fangs into his jugular vein. Stuffed animals
flew from his arms as he twisted and struggled to pull the spider off.
His anguish only lasted a few seconds before he collapsed.
“Thank you, my pet,” she cackled at the spider. “He’s a big one. I’ll have
enough of him for my famous mincemeat pie and may be able to make some head
cheese out of him as well. What’s that? Yes, of course, all his blood belongs
to you.”
~The End~
Santa Cruz husbands are
being murdered. The local news media is buzzing because a dark-clad figure
witnesses describe as Death has been seen lurking nearby each time a murder is
committed.
When new widows start hiring real estate agent
Regan McHenry to sell their houses, she discovers all the murdered men have
something in common: their wives belong to a walking group called The Widow’s
Walk League.
No wonder Regan is worried when
the group’s leader starts paying special attention to her husband, Tom.
Regan invites you to attend
Woodies on the Wharf and go to a séance with her as adventures unfold and she
tries to keep her husband safe in the fourth book in the Regan McHenry Real
Estate Mystery Series.
Regan’s best friend, Dave
Everett, Santa Cruz Police Community Relations Ombudsman, is back to lead a new
cast of quirky characters and struggle with Regan’s amateur detecting.
Nancy Lynn Jarvis was a Santa Cruz, California, Realtor for twenty-five years but was having so much fun writing that she let her license lapse in May of 2013.
After earning a BA in behavioral science from San Jose State University, she worked in the advertising department of the San Jose Mercury News. A move to Santa Cruz meant a new job as a librarian and later a stint as the business manager of Shakespeare/Santa Cruz. Nancy's work history reflects her philosophy: people should try something radically different every few years. Writing is her newest adventure.
Thanks Nancy!
I hate spiders but love your ending!
Come on folks a comment may win you a copy of
The Widow's Walk League!
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
*****
CONGRATULATIONS!
DENISE COVEY
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COPY OF
THE WIDOW'S WALK LEAGUE
*****
CONGRATULATIONS!
DENISE COVEY
YOU'VE WON AN EBOOK
COPY OF
THE WIDOW'S WALK LEAGUE