They're Coming to Take Me Away!

That's right, it's Saturday Fun Time!  And Halloween is just a few hours away.  In honor of such festivities, I give you...Monster Mash!

It's a special version.

Bwahahahaha!

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Saturday Fun Time! Halloween Edition

Let's face it, it's hard NOT to think of Halloween when we're smack dab in the middle of October.

Enjoy!

Well, it seems this template isn't going to ever let me embed videos directly onto it.  To see the video, click here. Trust me, you'll love it!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

~Emily White

October Celebrations and Other Fun Things

First, I'm proud to announce that I've been chosen as one of the five finalists in maybe genius's Mash-Up Blogfest!  Voting is underway and there are some great selections to pick from.  So head on over there and pick your favorite!

Did you guys know it's October already??  I'm seriously wondering where Summer went!  I feels like it just started.  *sigh*  Well, that's okay because Fall has some of its own fun and spectacular things...like dressing up! And pumpkins!  And deliciousy* goodness!

So my question for you guys is what kind of fun things do you do in Fall?  Do you go apple picking?  Do you go to harvest festivals and load up on pumpkins to decorate your house?

Well, whatever you do, share with us!  I want to see pictures of your decorated homes and decorated selves!  Yes, that's right.  I'm planning on dressing up as Ella, my MC from ELEMENTAL.  So go out and take those pictures and then email them to me at emilywhite_1112(at)yahoo(dot)com to share with all of us!  And if you don't dress up or otherwise celebrate Halloween, then share pictures of what you DO do.  :D

~Emily White

Were-sirens and Zombie Elves?

Oh my!

Halloween is tomorrow and it's pretty natural for the gruesome side of our imaginative brains to take center stage. So how can we make our love of fantasy fit in with our desire for horror? Why that's simple! Combine them!

Some of the most original novels out there have melded two or more genres. I mean really, what's so unique about plain old elves anymore? They've been done. A lot. But make them zombie elves and you've got a pretty interesting story! Or put a character through hell by making them struggle against the irresistible call of a were-siren! It gives a whole new fear factor to howling at the moon.

What other creatures from fantasy could you combine with horror? Put your thinking caps on class and share!

~Emily White

Monday's Myths--Halloween

Oooh! Scaarrryyy!

Halloween usually invokes images of ghosts, goblins, and vampires. Oh my! But did you know that this part of the year has a deep history that has very little (or nothing) to do with our little cuties dressing up as ballerinas or superheroes?

The word halloween itself derives from the day before a Catholic holiday, hallowmas where the inducted saints of the past year were honored. So, halloween was originally hallow eve. However, the early Christian church created this holiday in order to appease new converts who still wanted to celebrate something during their previously hallowed Samhain.

Samhain was (and for many people, still is) the celtic celebration of Summer's End. It is the transition from light to darkness when the boundaries between the spirit world and the world of the living is rather skewed. Traditions arose of leaving food out for your dead ancestors and lighting a candle in your window to guide them home. You may be familiar with the hispanic celebration of El Dia de los Muertos, the day of the dead, which is a similar celebration where the dead are honored.

Many traditions that we have during Halloween today originated with Samhain. Bobbing for apples (called dookin' for apples) once reflected the journey across the sea to find the magic apple in the land of Emhain Abhlach in Ireland and Avalon in Britain. And disguising oneself to avoid pranks from the wee folk who came out to play during this time was a tradition during the celtic festival.

I know that this isn't technically a mythological creature, but I thought it would be interesting to learn a bit about this holiday. I hope you enjoyed it!

~Emily White