Halloween Haunts 2013: Halloween Treats by Charles Day

Halloween. This is one of my favorite times of the year. In fact, the whole month of October is such a wonderful time for me. Aside from the noticeable changes in the sultry, hot and sweaty summer, of which I totally despise, to the cool crisp northerly breezes I simply love, I seem to come alive again. Not sure if there’s something in this air that passes through my open windows, or perhaps the stars in my astrological whatever you call it, align around this time, but I do.

As Halloween approaches, the smell of Pumpkin pie and the hunt for a big Pumpkin -or-two to carve out and place on my porch, becomes just some of the sought after desires I crave. All par for the course as we head toward the creepiest time of the year.  But the best part for me is the final few days leading up to when the spooks come out to play.

As Halloween approaches, I put aside reading books on horror. I do this all year long. No worries on taking a break here.  What I do enjoy is going back and watching all the scary movies that frightened me as a kid. You know many of them, Halloween, The Exorcist, and Nightmare on Elm Street.  Nothing excites me more than to chill out on the couch with some snacks and go back through memory lane with my favorite movie characters, Jason, Freddy, Chucky and yes even Jack, Jack Skeleton.

Now, when the final night arrives, Halloween Eve, I like to stay up as late as humanly possible at my age and watch the Halloween scary movie marathons and prepare for Halloween.  And the very next morning, I spend the day roasting Pumpkin seeds, getting the Halloween candy ready, and because I now have a daughter who is just beginning to experience this part of the year, I get to go trick-or-treating again. Do I wear a costume alongside my daughter? But, of course. The evil Jester costume! Hehehehe!  So cool to be a kid again,

So . . . to all my horror writer and Halloween enthusiasts, that’s what I do for Halloween. And I try and keep this up each year. Have a great Halloween too.

CHARLES DAY is the Bram Stoker Award® Nominated author of The Legend Of The Pumpkin Thief.  His first book in the Adventures of Kyle McGerrt trilogy, a YA western horror/heroic fantasy, The Hunt for the Ghoulish Bartender is now available. His forthcoming works for 2013 include his first adult horror novel, Deep Within (Alter Press, Fall 2013) a comic book series based on the Adventures of Kyle McGerrt, He’s currently at work on his first middle-grade series, The Underdwellers.