Friday Fright Nightcaps – Mummy’s Revival

Happy Friday! It’s the return of Friday Fright Nightcaps! Every Friday in October, I post a drink recipe in honor of one of my favorite Universal classic monsters movies. This week is a little concoction called Mummy’s Revival.

I’ll be honest, this recipe is a little sweet. I’m not sure if it’s the coffee or the sugar that can wake the dead, but this is a nice drink to come home to.

Ingredients:

.05 oz -1 oz espresso or dark coffee
1 oz. vodka
1 oz Kahlua
1 oz Bailey’s S’mores or Pumpkin Spice

Garnish:
Chocolate Syrup
Whipped cream for topping

Mixing Instructions:
Mix ingredients well into a shaker. Next, pour into a glass coated with chocolate syrup. Top with whipped cream.

If it’s too sweet, try 1 oz of espresso over coffee. Best when served chilled.

You can stream Universal’s The Mummy, 1932, for free on Prime Video, with a Prime subscription.

Thursday Terror – Brides of Dracula

Legendary screen actor Peter Cushing reprises his role as Professor Van Helsing in Brides of Dracula, a sequel to the popular Hammer film, Horror of Dracula.

Count Dracula is dead, but his disciples live on, terrorizing Transylvania, all thanks to a young school mistress Marianne Danielle, played by Yvonne Monlaur, traveling to a small village to teach girls French and etiquette.

After her stagecoach mysteriously rides away leaving her stranded, Marianne meets the Baroness Meinster and agrees to stay the night in her castle.

Marianne sees a strange man in the chamber across from hers. In the middle of the night, she sneaks over and finds that the man is actually the Baroness’ son and her host keeps him locked up.

Ignorant to the dangers, she helps Baron Meinster escape and unknowingly releases a monster.

The undead Baron wrecks havoc on the local village, but thankfully, infamous vampire hunter Van Helsing, who has been called upon by a local priest, is back to save the day!

Released in 1960, Brides of Dracula was directed by Terence Fisher, a frequent collaborator and director of Hammer films. Despite losing the charismatic Christopher Lee as the titular character, Hammer had vision to expand the vampire universe and this was their first film doing so. I’ve read online that the production was plagued with problems, but totally worth it, as this is one of best Hammer films I’ve seen.

Brides of Dracula is now streaming on Prime Video with paid subscription.

Wicked Art Wednesdays – Enchanted Bruja

Enchanted Bruja is SoCal Artist who loves drawing animals and Halloween themed art.

Alex has also created several cool tarot decks, including Enchanted Bruja Oracle, 30 card oracle deck and guide, which I own and adore.

This deck is so beautiful, spooky, and inspiring. It never fails to lift my spirits and gimme a boost in the right direction. I totally recommend picking up your own set!

Artist: Alexandra Bunch aka The Enchanted Bruja
Social Media: https://instagram.com/the_enchanted_bruja

Company/Studio/Website/Store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheEnchantedBruja

Enter the 5th Annual Halloween Haiku Challenge for a chance to win a copy of this print!

Trick or Treat Tuesdays!

First person to correctly answer all 5 trivia questions in Comments section below wins a prize.

Prize:

Winner receives a Disney Halloween fridge magnet.

Remember, you must be a Halloween Horror Haiku follower and a US resident to qualify to play trivia. See Contest Rules page for more details.

Monthly Haiku Corner – October

Welcome October! It’s Monday Macabre and officially Halloween for normal folks. You know, we celebrate 365, so it’s a super special month when WE all celebrate! Halloween is a time of ghosts and spirits, and spooky fun, which is why this month’s theme is A Haunted Halloween. All haiku posted Mondays will connect to tell a larger story.

Part I of A Haunted Halloween series.

abandoned castle

a shadow in the window

cliffside haunting

Welcome October!

Happy October! Happy Halloween! Today, we kick off the first day of the Halloween Haiku Challenge. Share up to 3 of your best original or scary haiku for a chance to win cool prizes. Contest runs all month long and the grand prize is a witchy prize pack valued over $60. Go to contest page for details.

We celebrate all 31 days in October. For schedule go here. Today is spooky Sunday! Spooky Sundays are going to be like anything goes days. This weekend, I’m up in June Lake, CA, celebrating the wonderful mountain air and all things Fall.

It’s beautiful up here and I highly recommend a visit back to nature once a year. I’m pretty sure that’s what I’ve been missing in my life in recent years.

So far, we humans only inhabit one planet, pumpkins only grow on planet Earth, Fall only comes around once a year, and Halloween happens every October. We need to take better care of our planet and appreciate the natural beauty of this world, otherwise, we’ll lose all this.

I’m calling on Halloween fans and Autumn lovers to do your part to care for our world, get back to nature, and have a happy Halloween season!

5th Annual Halloween Haiku Challenge

5th Annual Halloween Haiku Challenge
#Halloweenhaikuchallenge

Share your most original or scariest Halloween Haiku during the month of October for a chance to win a witchy prize pack!

Only 3 haiku are permitted per contestant. Pick your best 3 and post. If I see more than 3 from the same participant, they won’t count. Three is the magic number.

SUBMISSIONS

You must be a WordPress or Instagram follower to particpate. Two ways to enter a submission this year 1) post your haiku in comments section below, or 2) Tag me on Instagram and use the following #halloweenhaikuchallenge

PRIZES

Grand Prize – 1st Place Winner will receive a Poison the Patriarchy Pack, which includes some witchy stickers, a Poison the Patriarchy card, Witchcraft Spellbook, Rabbits Grim enamel pin and Antlers and Hares tote bag, both created by Diana Levin of Ghoulish Bunny Studios. This prize pack is worth over $60.

Second Place Prize: Halloween Spooky Print created the Enchanted Bruja.

Third Place Prize: Winner chooses a sticker and pin from this year’s prizes pool.

DEADLINE

The contest starts on October 1st and ends at midnight, the witching hour, on October 31st, 2023. Winners will be announced on November 1, 2023, here and on social media.

Please see Contest Rules and Eligibility Page more details.

Best Fall Bucketlist of Halloween Movies

Lots of scary movies are set in the Fall or even on Halloween Day, but only special films with smart art direction or good production design really know how to invoke that cozy Halloween spirit. Here’s my list of great Halloween movies to watch this Fall:

All for Fall (movies for everyone):

Hocus Pocus, 1993
Halloweentown, 1998
The Addams Family, 1993
Casper, 1995
Hubie Halloween, 2020
The House with a Clock in Its Walls, 2018

Awesome Autumn (non-scary fall thrillers)

Lady in White, 1988
Practical Magic, 1998
Knives Out, 2019
Crimson Peak, 2015
The Craft, 1996
The Crow, 1994
Sleepy Hollow, 1999

Harvest Hell (for grown-ups only):

Hellions, 2015
Ginger Snaps, 2000
Scream, 1996
Tales of Halloween, 2015
The Conjuring, 2013
Halloween, 1978
The Exorcist, 1973
Trick or Treat 2007

If you don’t see your favorites here, post ’em down in the comment section!

Happy Halloween Season!

Haiku of the Week

Part IV of the Autumn Windows series.

through Autumn windows,
a writer can bare their soul,
fall leaves keep secrets

Halloween Schedule 2023

**PROGRAM UPDATE 10-07-23: Due to a malfunctioning oven, I will not be able whip up recipes for Sinister Saturdays as promised. So instead, I’ll do something little more in my wheelhouse, scary movie reviews. Every Saturday in October will now be dedicated to reviewing a scary paranormal movie.**

Happy Autumn! Don’t be scared, but October is exactly one week away!

Earlier this year, Halloween Horror Haiku celebrated its 5th anniversary. I can’t believe it’s been 5 years already. It hasn’t always been easy, especially these days when work consumes most of my life, but I’m still enjoying writing haiku and sharing in the spirit of Halloween. That’s why instead of easing up, I’m forging ahead with a 31-day plan to celebrate Halloween 2023!

Be sure to check in every day in October for cool, fun, and inspirational Halloween artwork, haiku, poems, stories, and PRIZES!!! That’s right, I’m giving away a ton of cool prizes this year, but you must be a follower of Halloween Horror Haiku, either here on WordPress or Instagram (click the links to join me).

HALLOWEEN SCHEDULE 2023

Monday Macabre

Our theme this month is A Haunted Halloween. What’s Halloween without a visit to a haunted house? New haiku will be posted every Monday and will connect to tell an overarching story.

Trick or Treat Tuesdays

Play spooky games and win spooky prizes, every Tuesday this October.

Wicked Art Wednesdays

Every Wednesday, I’ll showcase original Halloween art that most represents our theme of “A Haunted Halloween” from the world’s most talented artists.

Thursday Terror

Every Thursday, let’s travel back and revisit the scariest films to come out of the golden age of Hammer Horror.

Friday Fright Nightcaps

What did the ghost say to the bartender? More boos, please!
Grab your cauldron, it’s the return of Friday Fright Nightcaps!

Sinister Saturdays

Join me in my own personal dungeon in hell, y’all might know as the kitchen, as I share some spooook-tacular recipes to die for every Saturday, and post pics and videos of my follies. This could be the scariest day on the schedule, folks (definitely the funniest)!

Spooky Sundays

Spooky Sundays are for reading, relaxing, and recharging our brooms.

5th Annual Halloween Haiku Challenge
#Halloweenhaikuchallenge

Share your most original or scariest Halloween Haiku during the month of October for a chance to win a witchy prize pack!

I’ve got a great grand prize for the top winner this year and lots of cool stickers for runner-ups. More details will be announced!

Don’t forget to follow Halloweenhorrorhaiku on social media: Instagram, Threads, and Pinterest.

Have a faboooooo-lous Halloween season, everyone!