Updates, Chilling Seasonal Quotes, and Holiday Horror Movies

Fast Updates:

Wishing you all a safe and happy December!

We had a blast at the events in November and are looking forward to the upcoming shows!

During the month of December there will be a limited time sale on The Warning Signs (For Kindle). This countdown deal is available through Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com. It began on the 7th and ends on the 14th.

Also:

readersfavorite.com will have three of my available books listed as prizes in the monthly book giveaway. If you are interested in winning some amazing books by great authors you can check out the monthly giveaway here: book giveaway /Rise or/and here: book-giveaway/combo and here: book-giveaway/The Warning Signs

Upcoming Event Reminders:

2023

We plan to participate at the Davenport Quad Con! This event is set to take place on December 9^th and 10^th at the Northpark Mall.

Concealed Realms is scheduled to participate in the Quad Con which will be held at the Des Moines Merle Hay Mall on December 16th and 17th!

2024

On February 3rd and 4th we plan to participate at the Champaign, IL Quad Con! This event is set to take place at the Market Place Shopping Center.

Concealed Realms is scheduled to return to Saluki Con! This Eclipse Con will be held on April 6th and 7th.

Concealed Realms plans to participate at the inaugural horror fiesta in Peoria IL on September 14th. This event is set to take place at the exposition gardens opera house

Chilling Seasonal Quotes and Sayings:

“You scared, ain’t ya? You should be! Christmas Eve is the scariest damn night of the year!”

– Grandpa Chapman, Silent Night, Deadly Night

“Moments later, from the orphanage roof,

a creature made of Christmas nightmares and holding a bulging sack

that looked to hold doll-shaped toys made its escape through the silhouette of the city,

not to be seen for another year.”
-Sebastian Gregory

“At the Winter Solstice, the wind is cold, trees are bare,

and all lies in stillness beneath blankets of snow.”

– Gary Zukav

“And on a dark cold night, under full moonlight,

he flies into the fog like a vulture in the sky!”

-Jack Skellington, The Nightmare Before Christmas

“I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure of the landscape

—the loneliness of it, the dead feeling of winter.

Something waits beneath it, the whole story doesn’t show.”

– Andrew Wyeth

“All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.”

— Edgar Allan Poe

“I am Krampus, the Lord of Yule.

Now if you do not get out of my way

I will tear out your heart and eat it!”
– Brom, Krampus: The Yule Lord

“You may be an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard,

a crumb of cheese, a fragment of underdone potato.

There’s more of gravy than of grave about you, whatever you are!”
– Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

“…There is death in the clouds,
There is fear in the night,
For the dead in their shrouds
Hail the sun’s turning flight,
And chant wild in the woods as they dance round a Yule-altar fungous and white.”…

-HP Lovecraft, Yule Horror

“Maybe the difference between horror and holiday

was just the width of an ordinary street.”

– Dean Koontz

Definition of : Holiday Season

Dictionary.com

noun

“…most often refers to the approximately 5–6 weeks from Thanksgiving in November to New Year’s Day in January”– www.dictionary.com

CambridgeDictionary.org

noun

“the period between late December and early January that includes Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year:” – dictionary.cambridge.org

Holiday Horror

The lights have been strung around homes and hedges, casting a cheery glow throughout the neighborhood. The tree is set up in preparation to be weighed down by all sorts of trinkets, the stockings are hung on the fireplace mantle. It’s time to snuggle up with a blanket, grab a cup of cocoa to wash down a few holiday cookies, and watch some hair-raising horror movies.

Scary Christmas tales may not be for everyone during this most festive time of year, and you might find yourself asking just where this seemingly contradictory tradition came from. As it turns out, you may be surprised at the answer.

Christmas and horror have gone hand in hand for a very long time. During the winter solstice, the tradition of swapping ghost stories as well as sharing seasonal mythology, wherein if you are nice, you’ll be rewarded and if you are naughty, you’ll be punished, extends back thousands of years and has continued consistently, throughout the ages evolving as time passed. Knowing this, makes it easy to see how the Christmas horror movie genre came to fruition.

With the advent of television and film, it was just a matter of time. The shift toward holiday themed horror in moving pictures began in the early 70’s, with films such as Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? and Tales from the Crypt. Then the release of 1974’s Black Christmas set the stage for seasonal horror to come. By the mid 80s, the Christmas horror movie genre had expanded rapidly.

The best holiday horror movies conquer and control some of the less cheerful aspects of the season, skillfully blending together the delightful and unsavory elements that seep into the holidays. These movies entertain by offering us an escape when needed, to what can often be a hectic time of year. And so, in this creativity post, for those who appreciate the darker side of the season, I will share a list of twelve seasonal horror flicks that are sure to help you have yourself a scary little Christmas.

Twelve Horror Films to claw your way through:

Below you will find a list of twelve frightfully entertaining holiday themed horror flicks, listed in no particular order. These movie plots and presentations are full of yuletide mayhem and include everything from maniacal slashers to musicals… so whether you love ghosts, creatures from ancient lore, good old-fashioned murder, or an apocalyptic event, this list should have something for almost everyone.

An Important Note:

*Something for everyone does not necessarily mean everyone would enjoy all of the films I have included. You should consider that the movies themselves, as well as the style it which the stories were filmed vary a great deal. Some have explicit content and some may be considered family friendlier, so it is up to you to use your own judgement to decide if you would like the viewing experience or not, do not rely on the “rating” alone.

1.) Gremlins

1984 (PG Rating) Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Horror

An inventor is looking for a special holiday gift for his son and finds one at a store in Chinatown. The shopkeeper is reluctant to sell him the mogwai, well his grandson is quick to finalize the deal, but warns the inventor of three very specific rules he must follow when caring for the creature. When the recipient of the gift breaks the rules concerning his new pet, he unleashes mischievous monsters that reek havoc on his small town.

2.) A Christmas Horror Story

2015 (R Rated) Genre: Horror, Mystery, Fantasy

On Christmas Eve in Bailey downs a student documentary becomes a ghostly possession, zombified elves terrorize Santa, a family brings home more than a Christmas tree, and Krampus seeks vengeance. These interwoven tales all take place while a radio DJ at the local station broadcasts music and shares warnings of a disturbance at the local mall.

3.) Silent Night, Deadly Night

1984 (R Rating) Genre: Thriller, Horror

Young Billy witnesses his parents getting killed by Santa after being warned by his senile grandfather that the man in the suit punishes those who are naughty. Regularly abused at the orphanage where he is sent to live, his trauma continues until he turns 18 and experiences a psychotic break.

4.) Better Watch Out

2016 (R Rating) Genre: Thriller, Horror

On a peaceful suburban street during the holidays, a babysitter attempts to defend herself and her charge from unwelcome intruders, only to discover the truth behind the home invasion isn’t as simple as she believed.

5.) Rare Exports

2010 (R Rating) Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Horror

This Santa Claus origin story is unearthed from the depths of the Korvatunturi mountains, in Finland. Little Pietari lives with his dad Rauno in the shadow of snow-covered mountain, where a company is drilling at the top. Pietari and his friend sneak up to the dig where he overhears a curious announcement which insights him to delve into the legend of Santa. What he finds is a far cry from the jolly old fellow he is expecting and when radiators, burlap-sacks, and children begin to disappear, Pietari must convince the adults to act fast.

6.) Anna and the Apocalypse

2017 (Not Rated) Genre: Horror, Comedy, Musical

Teen Anna is unhappy with her humdrum life in the town of Little haven. As she goes about her normal routine, warnings of a virus are issued and signs that all is not as it should be creep in around her. Before long, the once sleepy town is filled with zombies and with undead all around them, Anna and her friends have to fight and sing to survive as they make their way through a horde of Christmastime shoppers, snowmen, and elves while attempting to get to the high school, where they hope to find safety.

7.) Black Christmas

1974 (R Rating) Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller

In this quintessential slasher flick, its the start of winter break when a group of sorority sisters, begin to receive anonymous, salacious phone calls. Initially one sister, Barb eggs the caller on, but stops when he responds with threats. Soon, her friend Claire goes missing from the sorority house and a young local girl is murdered, leading the sorority sisters to suspect a serial killer is on the loose. But no one realizes just how close the murderer really is.

8.) The Mean One

2022 (16+ Rating) Genre: Horror, Comedy, Action

One Christmas eve in a mountain town, Cindy witnesses the murder of her mother by a green skinned monster dressed in a Santa suit. Twenty years later, when she returns to Newville, she discovers that the Christmas hating creature is still ruining the holiday by terrorizing the town. Cindy attempts to stop the beast once and for all, in this low budget parody.

9.) Krampus

2015 (PG13 Rating) Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Horror

All Max wants for Christmas is to keep holiday traditions going and for his family to stop bickering, but between his cousins bullying and the constant arguing amongst his parents and extended family, Max he looses his holiday spirit. When he angrily rips up his letter to Santa, he unknowingly summons a creature from ancient European folklore to his town. As all hell breaks loose, his family must try to band together if they hope to survive.

10.) Jack Frost

1997 (R Rating) Genre: Horror, Comedy, Fantasy

Serial killer Jack Frost wants vengeance for Sheriff Tiler who brought an end to his murder spree. One snowy night, he sees his chance as his execution transfer vehicle crosses into the quiet town where Tiler lives. When he attacks the guard, causing the vehicle to crash into a genetic research truck, Jack is exposed to chemicals, which dissolve him and fuse him with the snow. Barely slowed down from the interruption, Jack pulls himself together and sets out to exact his revenge.

11.) Wind Chill

2007 (R Rating) Genre: Horror, Drama, Adventure

The lead female character in this story is in a bind and needs a ride home for the holidays. Luckily a fellow student going in the right direction has posted an add on the ride share board. As these two unnamed characters become acquainted, things get awkward. It seems the poster knows quite a bit more about the lead female than he should, giving off stalker vibes. When a reckless motorist forces the pair off the road, stranding them in the snowy scenery along a haunted road, the mood intensifies quickly in this supernatural tale.

12.) Red Snow

2021 (Not Rated) Genre: Horror, Thriller, Comedy

While spending her Christmas holiday alone at her deceased mother’s cabin, vampire novelist Olivia takes a wounded bat into her garage intent on nursing it back to health. The next morning, she is surprised to find that the animal has transformed into a vampire. As the pair get to know one another, Olivia grows suspicious of his intentions.

Final thoughts

I had a lot of fun creating this list of movies and peeking into the history behind the holiday themed horror genre. I hope that you enjoyed this creativity post! Stay safe and keep being awesome. Happy Holidays!