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This challenge was so popular two weeks ago and we have another open blog today, so I thought we'd have some more Halloween fun. It's almost here! It's a super simple challenge that helps get your creative juices flowing... write a caption for this image below that tells a story and share it in the blog comments. You have just 30 words or less to share what you think is happening in the picture. Narrate the scene, give a spooky reason why those jack-o-lantern's are clustered there, or give us a peek at the events about to happen... Are they about to get revenge for the carving? Eeek! You tell us! CAPTION THIS Remember, authors, you can get featured in the site blogs with several author features but you have to sign up for them! Story Critique: Open to all GA authors. Sign up here Story Recommendations: Open to all GA authors & readers. PM your recommendation and why you recommend it to a Site Admin.

In the past, I've done Caption This Challenges in the newsletter, and since we have an open blog today, I thought we'd have some Halloween fun with one on the site blog. It's a super simple challenge that helps get your creative juices flowing... write a caption for this image below that tells the story in a minimum of words and share it in the blog comments. You have just 30 words or less to share what you think is happening in the picture. Narrate the scene, share what's going through the viewer's mind, give us a peek at the events about to happen... Is it exactly what it looks like? Will there be a twist? You tell us! CAPTION THIS Remember, authors, you can get featured in the site blogs with several author features but you have to sign up for them! Story Critique: Open to all GA authors. Sign up here Story Recommendations: Open to all GA authors & readers. PM your recommendation and why you recommend it to a Site Admin.

It's time!!! For everyone that has been waiting, we've got 11 brand new stories for you to sink your teeth into. After you've read all the stories, make sure to vote for your favorite. The winners will be announced on October 31st, 2017. The top three stories will receive not only the recognition, but the following prizes: 1st Place 6 month Premium access 2nd Place 3 month Premium access 3rd Place 1 Month Premium access Reminder Authors and editing/beta teams are prohibited from revealing the author behind each story. Revealing the authors' identity will disqualify the story in question. Voting Procedure We are going with a blind vote for this contest. Neither the voter, nor the staff member collecting the votes will know which author wrote which story. All stories have been posted under the author name of Headless Horseman. The only site member/staff that knows the identity of each story's author is Renee Stevens. Reader1810 has willingly volunteered to collect votes. After you've read all 11 stories, PM the story name you'd like to vote for to Reader and use the subject Halloween Contest Vote. Members get to vote for one story. Please wait to vote for your choice until you have read all the stories and are certain as to which story you'd like to vote for. Voting will conclude at 2:00 PM EST on October 21st, 2017. No votes will be accepted after that time. Now, onto the stories!

What do you plan to do to celebrate the season? Multiple answers encouraged!

PT Prompt #1 – Technical Halloween Onomatopeias - Write a story or vignette using as many words that sound like they mean like "splat", "plop", or"fizzle".

Write a story that include the following five words: Ghost, Monster, bag, scary, and pumpkin.

PT Prompt #2 – Creative You wake up in a crypt on All Hallows Eve, your clothes ripped, bloody, definitely yours-- and from the seventeenth century.

I thought it might be nice to share our favorite Halloween stories that have been posted on GA. I can only think of a couple off the top of my head, but would love to read more. What are your favorites? King of the Corn Maze - by Cynus https://www.gayauthors.org/story/cynus/kingofthecornmaze Nachtmerrie - by Geron Kees https://www.gayauthors.org/story/geron-kees/nachtmerrie

Happy Halloween everyone! Special thanks to Cia for making this cute graphic.

Hello, All! Is that a hint of fall in the air...? Maybe for me it is I've been busy working on a wicked little tale to darken the spirits of this upcoming Halloween. Set in San Francisco, we meet a banker and his irascibly fey rescuer with a stammer...a certain demon-in-training named Terrance. ...Starting to sound familiar...? Without further ado, I offer for your consideration: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- It’s a Dreadful Life – a Halloween Classic Story Description: A demon from Hell is sent to show a desperately frustrated businessman there is still plenty of evil left to do in the world. **mild warning for devilish language** [...After his rescue from jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge, the human and Oni warm up in the abandoned Toll Booth Operators' break room...] “You sound pretty well informed.” “In Demon School we devote an entire semester to studying avaricious human plots.” The hellion’s Pollyanna-fey cum-wholesome wickedness emerges to the fore with a wink. “We learn all the classic examples: GM/Firestone buying up every light-rail system in North America to scrap ‘em for buses; the bill of goods saying Artificial Intelligence will help people, ha! Oh, oh, the 2016 Elections! – Heavens! All the big cons.” The banker nods his head. “Yep, but you be careful and remember to act naïve while you’re tooling around here on Earth.” “Oh, yes,” the evildoer says in total innocence. “We’re warned by our professors not to venture up here on our own; our own. You can never tell what’s on a man’s mind, and you’re likely to be out-deviled at any moment.” As Gregory bundles up tighter, then sips and starts to feel more alive again, he takes a good gander at his rescuer. Terrance’s age is indeterminate. With its store of wrinkled frown lines, a solidly middle-aged face expresses a long, experienced life already lived. Now that the pair sit inside, the banker can see the novice demon’s curly black hair steps away from two bony plates on his skull. They’re in line with Terrance’s temples, and remind Gregory of the protrusions from which deer antlers grow. The remainder of the Oni’s appearance is less interesting. Besides his flame-red skin and yellow cat eyes tricked out with mascara, his tubby beer gut is ill disguised beneath his 70’s era leisure suit. The brown triple-knit polyester – a truly hellish fabric – looks hella uncomfortable and clashes style-wise with the black satin cape he wears with standing velvet collar in back of his head. “So, what’s being a demon-in-training all involve?” “Well, ya see; ya see, we have to pass our final exams and then go out into the world and spread a little wickedness around. You know, make sure people feel sufficiently hopeless. And then, like me, to graduate to a fulltime, tenured demon position, we’re assigned a testcase for our final thesis.” “So I’m your testcase.” “Yep.” “Meaning…?” “Meaning, I help you see things clearly again, and I’ll get my horns.” “Horns?” “Yes! Teacher says every time a banker shouts ‘Get a job!’ at a homeless person, a demon gets his horns.” “That’s all very well and good,” Gregory says, totally self-absorbed, “but in case you haven’t noticed, I want to die.” After a half minute of despondently looking down in his lap, Gregory sees a fiendish hand settle atop his own. “And I’m here to help,” Terrance says as soft as a malicious notion come to a person on the crapper. “How can you help, demon?” “By raising your chin. By cheering you up, by making you see there’s still so much bad left to do in the world.” “You think?” “Yes. And don’t worry about Hell. It’ll always be there, waiting for you. Why, just the other day, Bub himself was saying ‘If there’s one man I need more than any other up there on Earth, it’s Gregory Bailiff. He's an awesome dude!” “Beelzebub said that, about me?” “Yep. He’s a big fan of your work.” “Look, thanks for the evil pep talk, but I’m just a banker. Just a humble…money changer.” Suddenly Terrance sounds like Mr. Paul Lynde. “Oh, you’re so much more than that.” “I still don’t know—” “Don’t know if you should trade one hell for the other?” “Yes, if—” “Look, right now your P.E.I., Personal Evil Index, is low. You’re being exhausted by all these sham do-gooders, raising a stink about a few puny billion dollars; billion dollars. But if you think about it, with your naturally crooked nature, combined with your amazing skills at lying, manipulating, deception – being a banker! – you’ll go into Leavenworth and wind up running the joint in three months.” “Ya think?” Terrance sits back confidently, hands locking behind his head. “I know it. You’re one wicked son of a bitch.” Gregory demurs. “Ah, you’re just saying that.” “No! You are. So I propose we take a look at three special Halloweens: one past, one present and one future. Then you can make your final decision.” “Um – Isn’t that from a different holiday movie—” “Shush”—glances over his shoulder—“they’ll never notice the difference. Plus, they're not paying that much attention anyway.” The banker thinks the proposition over but still hems. “I don’t know.” Terrance pops to his feet. “Oh, come on, Greggy Boy – help an Oni out. You decide if you want to live or die, and maybe I’ll be promoted to fulltime demon in the process; the process.” “Well, what do I have to lose?” “That’s the evil spirit!” Terrance runs and gathers Gregory’s clothes as the man stands to dress. Once they’re all set, Terrance chirps, “Excellent. Now, grab the hem of my cape and we’ll be off.” Gregory does so, thinking they will be whooshed up into the air. Instead, Terrance hoofs it for the door. “Aren’t we – you know – gonna fly?” “Heavens, no! That’s Fallen Angel College, and it takes several millennia to be that bad.” “But if we’re walking, why do I have to hold your cape?” “Atmospherics, and just for chuckles. Now, shall we?” “Lead the way.” Both go back out into the gray blanket of air and start heading for the Marina District. What Gregory can’t know, is they are also stepping back in time. ˚˚˚˚˚ _

It's already that time! I don't want to get too close to Halloween, so that's right, it's only August and I'm already preparing you for the Halloween-themed short story challenge. This one is going to be sooooo fun. There's a central theme for everyone, so the stories will have a certain similarity, but how you will choose to write it, or where in the plot you come into the storyline, and just who the characters will be... now that is where you can get creative. The game particulars as far as length, time frame, etc... will follow in a week or so once I get some feedback from members first. Which leads me to the poll. The POLL! There's a poll for members to answer about the villain they might want to read or write about, and it'll also help decide just which villain each author will have to elude... if they can! Will you get your choice? Hmmm... Of course, I'm hosting the game so there will be a twist! How will YOUR villain be decided. Well, first you have to decide to play, vote, and wait to see. Muahahahahahaha 👹 Update to add: Comment with the list of rules for the game: https://gayauthors.org/forums/topic/45682-halloween-hunt-short-story-game/?do=findComment&comment=978443 Comment with the list of villains: https://gayauthors.org/forums/topic/45682-halloween-hunt-short-story-game/?do=findComment&comment=978959