Hey there! I know I just sent a newsletter out earlier this week, but I wanted to share something.

Check out this Juneteenth PSA.

That’s code for I’M IN AN AWESOME PSA!

The holiday is, of course, the important takeaway but, yeah, that’s ME with those amazing poets and authors and publishers in the genre! WOWZA!

Well, not quite yet, but it’s getting there! Summer is right around the corner and that means sitting by the water, sitting on your deck or patio, sitting in the AC – wherever you like to sit – with a book in your hand. Luckily I have a few that you can choose from and they fit just perfectly in your palm or Kindle. 🙂 Yeah, there’s a reason I’m not in Marketing (that was… whew!).

But still… I do have a few books you can sink your teeth into (and you KNOW I meant that pun!) plus a new(ish) release coming right around the corner. Ok, let’s get that out of the way first because YAY!

Like alternative realities with a bit of mystery, copious amounts of thriller, and a pinch each of cosmic and psychological horror? The Realm is PERFECT for you! Literally. Unsettling and filled with action, this story introduces you to Patrick and the curse his family must endure.

Like vampires and the lure of the forbidden, the ferocity of a mother’s love, and darkness that only evil can bring? The Promise Keeper is your JAM! And it’s a little sexy too! Just sayin’. Fangs, the Caribbean sun, New York, NY, and a promise that is too dangerous not to keep? What’s not to love?

Like creepy, eerie tales about the dark and what lives there and fear that starts at the base of your neck and creeps down your spine, cold, cold, like ice in your veins? Ahem, Telecommuting is for you! Psychological horror at its most pure, this story will make you beg your own mind to stay clear, to always be true, to protect you from… from… well, you’ll see!

And then…

Oh, and then…

In July…

The novel that started it all is coming back, rising out of the shadows, pulling back the veil… too much? I might have gotten a little carried away there, but whatever! In July, my first novel, Crescendo, will be re-released by Cedar Grove Publishing! My first book baby! I am so excited about this! The cover? OH MY! Let me just say… Lynne Hansen has done it again! I can’t wait for you to see it but the folks tell me I have to wait to release it – something about a cover reveal… you know how it goes! 🙂 Look for this beautiful artwork on July 1st. The book comes out later in the month of July – I know you know I’ll tell you when!

What’s it about it?

Ghosts? Maybe. Deception? Absolutely! Fear? Oh, H$L& YEAH!

Somebody said this about Crescendo:

“From the very first page this novel is a series of extremely disturbing events, particularly nightmarish dream sequences. Centering on one man’s imminent insanity and death (think Jacobs Ladder and Stir of Echoes) Crescendo draws a fine line between what is madness and what is supernatural.”

Women in horror

Yeah.

Yeah, I have to agree with that.

I love this story. I love all of my stories, but I love this one so much that I adapted it as a screenplay… and was lucky enough to win a Best Horror award for it at a film festival. (WOOOTTTT!!!) I’m so excited that it is coming back and new readers can check it out again. Soon, soon… very soon!

*If you go to my website and see a cover there, ha, that’s not it! But wanna see the book trailer? It’s fun!

A quick note about reading and books and the like. I don’t know if you know this, but reviews are incredibly helpful to authors. If you are so inclined, please post them where you buy and learn about books (Amazon, Goodreads, etc.) – it is the next best thing you can do to support the writers you enjoy. Thanks to all who do so already and to those who will consider doing so now!

So, what else has been up? Have you seen any good movies? I have!

• The Endless
• Saint Maud
• Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter
• La Funeraria

to name a few. I also REALLY enjoyed A Quiet Place II. REALLY, REALLY enjoyed it. Saw it at a drive through (seriously, if you have never done this, try it. There’s nothing like watching a creepy, dark, scary movie in the dark, exposed to the woods… with no protection other than the flimsy windows in your car… There is so much texture in this movie! And John Krasinski – he’s just brilliant. I’ve been a fan for a long time (The Office has to be one of my favorite TV shows like EVER… ok, now I think I will be watching a few episodes tonight! LOL!) but this is John at a whole other level. And I’m liking it.

Books? I have not finished anything this month, I am sad to say. Still nursing the ones from last month and had the nerve to buy a few new titles to sit on top of my TBR list. Ha, oh well! No one who knows me should be surprised by that! Book enthusiast – that’s me!

I got the chance to do some cool stuff recently:

• Went on Just Joshing and spoke for about 2 hours with Joshua Pantalleresco. Laughed more than I talked. It was a flipping blast.
• Had a convo between writers session that will go live soon. Venessa Giunta and I chatted for a little over an hour about “stuff”… and it was good stuff. You’ll wanna see this when it goes up!
• Got interviewed by NFReads – a fun and quick read!
• Finished writing a novel! (WAHOOOOOO! And now comes the editing – a little less wahooooo.)
• Wrote three short stories – shorty shorts, like I like ’em. None of them are over 1k words and that suits me just fine!
• Have decided that I really should figure out how to work my telescope so I can see some of the beautiful stuff up there in the night sky. It has been collecting dust for years. It’s like a piece of art – immovable art. I need to change this.
• One of my short screenplays, the one that is an ode to the one I wrote and shot and proceeded to misplace during my freshman year at Howard University – 271 Raeburn Avenue – won Best Short Screenplay at an international film festival! YAYAYAYAYYAYA! So very exciting to see my work out there – honored beyond belief.

I think that is all. So all I have to say in closing is bring on more good movies, bring on a few extra hours in the day so I can finish reading one of the books open on my nightstand, bring on the warm weather… and the ice cream, because I must have ice cream.

I’m ready for the world.

And I’m not talking about these guys, though they have a couple tunes that were my JAMS back in the day! (Ha… I said “jam” in all caps twice in this newsletter!)

Get ready for some fun in the sun, friends! Tell YOUR friends about what we do here and have them join the newsletter, get into the conversation on Twitter (@LMarieWood1) and join the FB group (facebook.com/LMarieWood). Share the love!

Until next time…

L. Marie Wood

It’s not every day that an author can say they have two long fiction releases in one month, but this May I can! The first one is such a fun story and is actually my very first novella! It came out on May 4th and, well I just couldn’t resist…

And then an incredibly cool moment happened in my career. On May 11th I was able to say hello, again to my second novel, The Promise Keeper:

And if that wasn’t enough, these cool things happened or will be happening this month:

• I did a fantastic interview on Social Distancing Radio about Telecommuting! Lots of laughing, lots of book talk. Check it out!
• Horror and Romance – unnatural combination or doppelgangers? We had a fantastic discussion about this over at Continual! Check us out and share your thoughts!
• I’ll be at StokerCon (5/20-5/23). I will be speaking on panels, presenting at the Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference, and reading a little bit of The Promise Keeper. Check it check it check it out!
• I will also be at Balticon (5/28-5/30). I will be speaking on panels and reading a little bit of both new releases.

Yeah, May gets a big YES from me!

Even with all the book birthday celebrations that have gone on, replete with glasses of soda and copious amounts of popcorn, I’ve managed to accomplish a few things too. I wrote a short story – and I mean really short… like 229 words because that’s how I roll sometimes. It is creepy and I am very much in love with it. I wrote a poem and (woot!) it will be part of the upcoming horror poetry anthology, Under Her Skin, in 2022. Look at this fantabulous cover:

I also binged the mess out of Safe and Marianne. Different – totally different, and both creepy in their own ways. Both are worth the watch.

I am reading When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole – I’m only a page or two in but enjoying the voice already! I am still listening to Robert McCammon’s Swan Song. I watched The Crow for the first time (don’t judge me. The 90s were a unique time!). I’ll say this – better late than never. Where’s the fan club? I’ll join. I finished Jeanne Adams’ Blood on the Altar – she weaves a tale that keeps you on the edge of your seat for the whole ride. Go check her out – you won’t be disappointed.

What are you reading and/or watching?

Well, I guess that’s it for now! Suggest something for me to read or watch. I am going to start Vincenzo tonight – a Korean-Italian consigliere heading to the motherland to show them what’s up? I didn’t know I needed this in my life. Does he make them an offer they can’t refuse? Will somebody sleep with the fishes? Bet!

Until next time…

L. Marie

I was thinking about this the other day and so I am bringing back a post I made some time ago. If you saw it already, I wonder if your thoughts have changed. If this is your first time seeing it, please weigh in!

Printed media as the mining field for visual media grows in popularity with each passing year.  Film adaptations of books are not a new phenomenon: Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland” was first adapted for film in 1903, but the cyclical popularity of the practice makes some wonder whether creativity is taking a backseat to commercialism.  The result is a lack of interest in one of the two versions – movie or book – because the story seems too familiar.

Many people know when a movie is based on a book, especially when the author is a well-known name like Stephen King or J. K. Rowling.  However, cinema borrows from written word more often than one might think.  Some book to film translations do not carry the same title.  For instance, the 1978 book Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg was made into the 1987 move, Angel Heart.  The 1993 book The Club Dumas by Arturo Pérez-Reverte was made into the 1999 movie The Ninth Gate.  The connection can easily be missed.  When someone who has read the book unwittingly views a movie made from it, they may feel as though the screenplay is too closely related to the book, causing a lack of confidence in the industry’s creativity. This leads to consumer concern about the lack of vision in interpreting the nuances of the storyline, which directly correlates back to the original thought process; creativity is not being fully employed.

What is the inherent difference between books and movies?  While they are both designed to entertain, they have different focuses.  Movies have a considerably smaller window in which to impress the viewer, therefore the storyline needs to be much more concise.  Movies have an easier time showing verses telling. Indeed, the tenet of writing that is so ingrained in our psyche is easier to master in cinema.  An audience only tolerates narration in a film for a fixed amount of time, before they tire of the story.  This is particularly true of action, thriller, and horror fiction movies, where the activity moves the storyline along.  Finally, movies have the added benefit of being able to use special effects to drive a point.  An explosion or spaceship landing in a populated city makes a larger impact when seen onscreen.

Books have the luxury of space.  Authors can use descriptive words in narration far more easily than filmmakers can, allowing them to describe the atmosphere, the subtleties of character interaction, facial expressions, and other attributes that would require lighting and exceptional acting to achieve onscreen.  The author can make every word penetrate the reader’s mind.  Subplots can flourish in a book more so than in a movie, where time is a constraint.  Secondary characters, relationships, background information, locales, and scenarios can be expounded upon in literary fiction.  Character-driven work can become more in depth, allowing the author to delve into the inner workings of a protagonist to understand the motivations and tie them into to a seemingly obscure context.  Prose allows for flourish.

There are times where the movie is favored over the book, as is widely cited in the instance of The Godfather.  Mario Puzzo’s book paled in comparison to the screen version.  Much of that was due to the director’s interpretation, but also because of the nature of film.  The main storyline in the multi-faceted piece had to be focused on and the others downplayed.  Finally, the cast in The Godfather presented the characters so vividly, the audience believed them, felt they were real people.

Movies are often favored over books for the visual aspect and instant gratification, while books are credited with more creativity and well-roundedness.  Length and time investment can be used by both sides as positive: movies are short, so they can be enjoyed quickly.  Book lovers enjoy the time spent reading; the level of detail found in a book provides an enjoyable pastime.

Ultimately, moviegoers tend to enjoy a movie more so than the book version, and vice versa, readers enjoy the book version.  An interesting point to consider is that, often times, movie goers either did not read the book or even know that a book version existed.  The consumer types (moviegoers and book readers) do not share the same space, by and large.  It is uncommon to find a person who actively reads a book and then deliberately watches the movie (or does so after the fact).  Therefore, the comparison between the two is based on a small subset of people, comprised mostly of book fans.

So, which do you like more?

I know… I’m sorry… I couldn’t resist. Could you, when Craig Mack served up such a perfect alley-oop like that? Don’t know what I’m talking about? Stop, don’t say it… I won’t make you admit that out loud. Here, listen, remember… it won’t take long.

So like Mack said, “I’m. Kicking. New. Flava. In your ear…”

Literally.

Flava

Nighlight Podcast did a flipping amazing recording of my short story “Family Dinner”! It just went up, as did the interview Tonia Ransom, creator and executive producer of Nightlight, conducted with me. I am thrilled to have enjoyed such a riveting experience. There is truly nothing like listening to your story come to life. may thanks to the talented voice actors and editors!

The weather is getting nicer… that’s new flava.

MultiverseCon is starting to ramp up for whatever flavor of convention we’re going to have (see what I did there?) and that’s new flava.

I wrote a poem… no, two poems! That is definitely new flava (I haven’t written poetry in yeeaaaarrrrss!).

StokerCon is around the corner (May 20th!) and I’ll be speaking twice, once in my professorly voice and the other time in my author-type voice. New flava and it’s SWEET!

Oh, and I won BEST HORROR SCREENPLAY at Nova Film and Music Festival. That is 100% NEW FLAVA! I won for my screenplay Crescendo, which is an adaptation of my first novel of the same name. So many twists and turns in this story – I am so excited. I can’t wait to reintroduce Crescendo to you guys this summer… yeah… it’s being rereleased with a brand spanking new cover that is to die for! I can’t wait to show you… but I will have to wait… and so will you! 🙂

What are you reading? I am still reading Jeanne Adams’ Blood on the Altar because editing and life has gotten in the way a lot in the past few weeks. Still enjoying the fast-paced story, though. I am listening to Robert McCammon’s Swan Song. Super interesting story with a real flow to the descriptions. Mesmerizing work. I’m really enjoying it! I finished watching Prime’s Them and have moved on to Netflix’s The Serpent. Honestly, this show further solidifies the reason why I never considered backpacking. Chilling.

Coming Soon

More Flava?

9-1-1 came back on TV the other night. That’s new flava for sure.

OK – that’s all for me this time around. Thanks for checking out my random musings! I’m sure I’ll have more for you in short order, because that’s how random musings go! 🙂

Until next time…

L. Marie Wood

I promised a cover reveal and here it is! This magnificent cover was done by none other than Lynne Hansen, accomplished artist whose work has appeared on the cover of Weird Tales and many horror novels that you know and love. I give you…

A young girl, on the cusp of sexual maturity, in what is now known as Benin, West Africa, is seduced by a beautiful stranger, a man the likes of which she has never seen before. Their encounter changes her forever. She becomes an asiman, a vampire: one of the undead.

The Promise Keeper comes to her, willing her to do his bidding—to keep an unspoken promise. He probes her mind and plants suggestions so she will follow his plan, until she fights back. She runs, her travels taking her to Europe and the Caribbean over centuries to escape him. She finally settles in New York City, convinced that she has eluded him… until she falls in love.

The Promise Keeper is a story of love, despair, murder, and deceit.

Pick up this beauty today! Preorder your copy!

Hey, gang!

I hope this blog finds you well and enjoying the day before the first day of spring!  I am definitely ready to remove some of these layers and walk outside without freezing, so I, for one, am very excited! 

Lots of things going on, even in this socially-distanced existence, and that’s a good thing.   Books to read, movies to watch, stories to write.  For example, I watched a movie that I really want to recommend to you zombie lovers out there.  It is called Train to Busan Presents: Peninsula and it is amazing!  Train to Busan (the first one) is one of the best zombie movies I have ever seen, so I was hoping for something jaw-dropping and I got it.  It is different than the first one – and I don’t want to tell you how and spill any beans but here is the trailer… you’ll see. It is a must see for zombie movie enthusiasts, especially if you like running zombies, character development, and… well, just check it out.

I am reading a new book! Blood on the Altar by Jeanne Adams is a fast-paced gem that I am thoroughly enjoying thus far. Revenge, sweet revenge – and of course, the mention of blood… I’m totally in. I am listening to Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, this after finishing up The Complex by Brian Keene. It’s a totally different kind of house, my friend.

Speaking of Brian Keene, I have the honor of interviewing him for Con-Tinual this month, as well as Linda Addison. I look forward to sitting down with my friends (virtually, of course) and talking about… well, I guess you’ll have to tune in to find out exactly WHAT we will chat about, won’t you? 🙂 Follow me on Twitter (@LMariewood1) and/or Facebook and you’ll get notified when it posts.

Ooh – I changed my website a little! I kinda like it. If you’ve ever met me or seen me on a panel, you know the opening image is 100% correct. Check it out and see what I mean! I also like the books page more. What do you think?

Lemme see… what else… Oh yeah! I will be speaking at the Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference that is part of StokerCon. If you are looking for some fun stuff to do in the beginning of May, come check it out.

I…

• Had a screenplay get nominated for Best Horror at NOVA Film Festival… but not just any screenplay. This is the adaptation of my first novel we’re talking about! AND that novel – my first – a neat ghost story rooted in psychological horror so deeply that you won’t know which way is up – that very book, Crescendo, will be re-released by Cedar Grove Publishing in July 2021 with a brand-spanking new cover! WOOOOOTTTT!
• Have some other goodies coming your way soon – very, very soon. Specifically:

• My award-winning novel (c’mon, indulge me!), The Promise Keeper, is being re-released on May 11, 2021. It too will have a fancy new cover. And I am gonna do a special cover reveal for it shortly! 🙂 Want to learn more about it while you wait with bated breath? (Ha! Dramatic much?) Check out the book on my website with the OLD cover!

There is other stuff coming out this year (I am so excited!!) but I will wait to talk about those. Except I do want to share this one little thing with you. Cacophony, The Realm, Book Two will be released in October 2021. If you haven’t caught up with what’s going on yet, you might want to get it because book 2 takes off like a rocket. In fact, I’m gonna leave this right here for you…

The Realm, Book One is here… waiting for you… 🙂

Ok, lemme see if there is anything else?

• I’m editing book 2 of a project that has not been released yet (book 1 comes out in Feb 2022).
• I’m editing a feature screenplay that I am in love with – a psychological thriller with amazing horror undertones. Loving this one!
• I wrote 5 short stories in 3 days – you know I keep them short – the longest is 2500 words. But wow! I smell a collection coming on…
• A mob came up my street, two rows deep, all hooded coats with fur fringe and hand weights. I stayed inside.

All right, that’s enough random stuff. Until next time!

L. Marie Wood

Happy 2021, folks! Time for new beginnings and new musings. I had a moment of contemplation the other day that took me down a mental rabbit hole and it was pretty darned cool, so I thought I’d share it with you. 🙂

Have you ever let your mind wander and then been surprised by how you ended up in a place filled with purple trees and hippopotamuses being walked on leashes like family pets? It was during one of those daydreaming sessions that I pondered the concept of the theory of relativity—not deliberately and definitely not in those terms, of course, but that’s what it boiled down to—and how something like that could actually happen. What that something was, I was unsure about. See, when I started thinking about it, I realized I didn’t actually know what the theory of relativity was. I always thought it was what is actually called block universe theory—whatever, brainiacs… don’t judge me—which I will talk about below, but still the theory of relativity has one interesting component that plays well with the rest of my wayward imaginings: the concept of bending time.

What if Einstein was right about gravity bending time, time running at a slower pace where gravity is strongest, time-dilation and all that? And now I’m diving into concepts that are highly sci-fi intensive, and I do not, I repeat DO NOT, claim to be an expert about any of this at all, but what if there was a big formation like that Arcturus monstrosity in all those universe comparison videos or a planet we don’t know about (hmmm…. that’s a conversation for another day) that sits on the foam that is space and time and warps it (this is actually a very loose interpretation of the geodetic effect, if you wanted to look it up)? Then what if that same formation drifts away at some point. Maybe an asteroid destroys it, the gravitational pull changes and it dislodges, insert your plausible or implausible reason here. If that happened, couldn’t the imprint remain and the two sides of it might create a bend in space and time…where you could conceivably exist in two planes simultaneously?

Right? (I’m nodding in the way that people who want you to come along with them in their fantasy nod encouragingly at those who have been kind enough to hear them out.)

But seriously…right??

And that was just the beginning! Check out the rest of this incredible mental jaunt at DWASF.

What are you reading right now? I just started My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite and it’s a lot of fun so far. So far there’s been much about hiding bodies and controlling urges – my kind of story!

Are you listening to anything new this year? I am enjoying Kai’s new release, Mmmh, as I type. Very smooth and soulful – slow and groovable.

Have you watched anything new? I just watched Fatale, Michael Ealy’s new movie. The pairing with Hillary Swank worked really well and the story moved at a pretty fast clip. In short, cheating will get you nowhere. I also just finished The Guest, a mini-series about possession, and it was flipping outstanding. I didn’t want it to be over – really. Next up, Cobra Kai (how can anyone who saw The Karate Kid in the movie theater when it was originally released resist watching this show? Daniel and Johnny are at it again!).

Did you set goals for yourself this year? I prefer this over resolutions because I rarely keep my resolutions (facts). I have a few goals this year, one of which is to finish writing a series I have been working on. I am excited about it because I already know what I want to do with it – I just need to start. No spoilers, hahaha!

How ever you do it, I hope you enter 2021 with hope in your mind and joy in your heart. Onward!

Until next time,

L. Marie Wood

The Scary Shit we do in Real Life, Part 2:  Santa Claus

Santa Claus.  Kris Kringle.  Jolly Old Saint Nick.  Father Christmas.  St. Nicholas, the real-life 4^th century bishop who gave gifts to the needy.  You’ve likely referred to the gift-giving rosy-cheeked man in red by one of those names in your lifetime.  You probably also know the 1823 poem titled “’Twas the Night Before Christmas” by Clement Clarke Moore – if you’re of a certain age, you likely know parts of it by heart.  But have you ever stopped to think about what you’ve (ok, we’ve) recited year after year as you sit and contemplate your Christmas tree?  Have you ever thought about the actual words?  Let’s.  Just for a little while, let’s.

Moore talks about a lovely night; the kids are asleep and a simple man and his wife have just laid down to close their own eyes when a sound jolts him from his sleep, causing him to investigate.  You know the rest – flying reindeer, one of which has a glowing nose, a bottomless sleigh of gifts, and a portly old gent who breaks into the house to see what’s what… Twilight Zone-level stuff.  Spooked yet?  No?

Wait… there’s more.

If the idea of someone puttering around your house while you sleep isn’t enough to scare you silly, think about what song writers have added to the lore over the years.  The holiday ditty “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” admonishes children to keep a stiff upper lip and be good because Santa is coming to town.  It goes on to remind them that he sees kids when they are asleep and that they’d better be good… for goodness sakes.  “Here Comes Santa Claus” cautions kids to get into bed and cover their heads because Santa is on his way.

Um… what?

On its face, the lyrics are disconcerting; it’s easy to catch stalker vibes a la the Police’s “Every Breath You Take” but think about it for a second.  Let those lyrics resonate…

What kind of otherworldly, omniscient, shapeshifting (because how does he get into houses without a chimney, I ask you?  How’d he get past the home security system?  How’d he…) weirdo is looking inside your house, your very room –  everyone’s room – to know when you are sleeping?  Following you, peeking into your mind to find out what you’ve done and to whom, waiting to mete out punishment for the “bad” deeds? 

Keep it going – what kind of magic does Santa possess to make it to the house of every kid in the world and leave them a gift before Christmas morning… in every time zone? 

How’d he find you if you weren’t at your own house for Christmas? 

And we’re ok letting kids believe in this home-invading conjurer – so much so that we feed him too?

 It’s ok…

Maybe he only practices the good kind of magic…

M-maybe the stories about getting a lump of coal in your stocking for doing bad things is the worst of it…     

L. Marie Wood

Really! December is here! If you’re like me, you just started celebrated on Dec. 1st – I try to give all of the holidays their just due so I wait until after Thanksgiving to get into the spirit. So, now that the season is here, that means it’s time for holiday movies… and by that I mean horror movies!

Must-See Christmas Horror Movies

Snow on the ground.  Hot chocolate in steaming mugs.  Christmas lights twinkling on the tree.  Pick your song and cue the music (“Baby, it’s cold outside,”, “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire,”), and sway… don’t forget to sway.  This scenario is as familiar as they come.  It represents the making of memories, the ones you call upon throughout the year to bring you joy, a sense of belonging, and love.  It is also the default scene for many Christmas horror movies and those of us who like that kind of thing get nostalgic just thinking of cold winter nights with a good slasher film on the TV.  Ah, the holidays.

If you’re looking for a good (and that’s a relative term, mind you) Christmas horror movie, check this list out.  It this goes beyond Gremlins, A Christmas Carol (because… ghosts), and The Night Before Christmas, folks – they are must-see Christmas horror movies in their own right, but you knew that already.  So settle in, pour yourself a cup of hot chocolate, and pull the covers around you real tight… because everyone knows that the covers hide you from what’s lurking in the shadows, the thing waiting in the shadowy place just beyond the flickering lights on your Christmas tree… right?

Black Christmas – Don’t mess with girls in their sorority house… period.  The 1974 original stars Margot Kidder pre-Superman fame and is a slasher movie through and through.  Halloween may have put slasher movies on the map, but Black Christmas is the precursor in the genre.  Alert – there was a remake of this movie in 2019.  There was also one made in 2006.  Compare and contrast, if you dare!

Silent Night, Deadly Night – The beginning of a franchise, Silent Night, Deadly Night might be the most recognizable title in the Christmas slasher genre.  A boy, traumatized at a young age, is triggered later in life to reenact his parents’ gruesome murders.  And then the bleeding commences. 

Krampus – Don’t believe in the spirit of Christmas?  You’d better get yourself in gear before Krampus comes to visit.  The antithesis of Santa Claus, Krampus punishes those who misbehave in the most terrifying of ways.  Kind of sheds new light on the lyrics of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”, doesn’t it?

Being a little spooked inside the confines of one’s own home is not relegated Halloween – stories of home invasions frightening us out of our sleep and hallucinations of flying animals attest to that (you know, ‘Twas the… I know you know).  So, give in.  Add a little Christmas fear with your Christmas cheer!

L. Marie Wood