Twas the Night Before Yuletide or Santa vs the Reindeer

My Saturday flash fiction blog and Beowulf: The Midgard Horrors will return on January 7th, 2017. I'll be taking a breather for the holidays. But to tide you over, here's another way to look at "Twas the Night Before Christmas." Seasons greetings from Midgard and me! Twas the Night Before Yuletide or Santa vs. the …

Not Like It Used To Be

Families line the streets. Kids are bundled in coats, hats, gloves and blankets. Adults stand or sit in folding chairs, hands in pockets or laps, their excitement matching the children's. A chill hugs each person tight. Teeth clatter, legs shake and dance; people trying to stay warm. Hot chocolate and coffee work for a while, …

The Ghastly Glittergrieve – A Christmas Cautionary Tale

At the same precise time every year, come dark on Christmas Eve, A blighted spirit springs to life, the ghastly GLITTERGRIEVE. As children try to fall asleep, it’s scurrying 'cross your ceiling, A shadowy nook it'll find itself, (one prime for self-concealing). No bigger than a walnut yet, this nasty little shade. Observing from his …

A Christmas tale from the twisted mind of Ash Hartwell.

  Left Under The Tree.   Ash Hartwell.       Bethany crashed to the icy pavement in the pitch-black alley, and immediately wished she had chosen not to wear the shoes with the kick-ass heels. During the office Christmas Eve party, where, incidentally, she had looked every inch the Partner-to-be, they had been the …

Christmas Mourning

There are times when you witness something happen to someone else that causes you to contemplate your family – parents, spouse, significant other, children or grandchildren; whatever applies to you, and spontaneously, you find yourself thanking God, Fate, the Universe or mere Chance – whatever your faith may rest in, that you are not the …

How Grendel Stole a Christmas …

How Grendel Stole Christmas Christmas in the Hall but not the Spirit of the Feast Came to pay a visit, no, instead a vicious beast Barreled down the doorway shifting shape and size in bounds Scattering the party as they fled beyond the grounds Grendel had awakened to the noisy revelry Sounds of someone singing, …

Terrible Toys (A Christmas Poem) by Lisa Vasquez

Twas the night before Christmas when under the moon A feeling of sadness was followed by doom The children were still in their beds drenched with red While toys giggled madly and danced on their head A doll with one eye held a knife in the air The Robot ate entrails with Ole Mr. Bear …

The 12 Nights of Christmas

Why can’t we have ‘the twelve days of Halloween?' Why does Christmas have a monopoly on almost two whole weeks of the year? It's not fair, I tell you! So just for fun, for those who--like me--walk on the darker side of life here is: The Twelve Nights of Christmas. (I dare you not to …

Do You Believe in Magic?

Julian shuffled his feet as he stood in the long, winding line at the Mills. Shoving his hands into the pockets of a pair of jeans a few inches too short, he huffed out a harsh breath. Out of the corner of his eye. he caught Mrs. Newall’s disapproving glare, but he didn’t care. This …

Beware the Grindylow

Here's a little treat for your Wednesday. It was a response to a blog by fellow #Stitcher, Briana Robertson. One of her Horror Hump Day posts a while back totally inspired me. (Thanks, Briana! Many of your posts do!) As I researched, I discovered many consider the grindylow to be the descendants of Grendel and …