Horror

It’s a New Decade (But it isn’t)

/ Ben Van Dongen / Leave a comment

20200102_201209Hey! Welcome to 2020. How are you? We’re doing well, thanks. I know, the weather is awfully weathery, isn’t it? Did you know that, technically, a decade starts on year one? Like, 2021. That’s okay, we can do it all over again next year!

Now that we have the pleasantries aside, it’s time to look at what’s in store for the new year and AWP. Obviously, we can’t spill the beans on everything (especially since not everything has been sorted out) but we can at least give you a heads up on some things you can expect from your boys, Christian (Don’t Bother Me, I’m Working) Laforet and Ben (I need another Coffee) Van Dongen. Continue reading →

Fall into AWP!

/ Christian Laforet / Leave a comment

As the leaves change colour, the days get cooler and the nights come earlier, two of AWP’s authors (Ben Van Dongen and Christian Laforet) gear up for a trio of events.

Starting next week, on Devil’s Night (or, as the nearby city of Detroit tried to rename it some years back, Angel’s Night) Ben and Christian will be accompanying author David Nickle for an evening of scary readings at Biblioasis bookstore. The event, suitably called Who’s Afraid of the Dark? will be held at 7pm on October 30th

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Continue reading →

September Boss Rush!

/ Ben Van Dongen / 1 Comment

maxresdefaultIt’s September (even if August was cooler than the heatwave we’re dealing with now). The summer slump is over. Christian and Ben are in the middle of a write-every-day, finish-every-project dash in an attempt to catch up for their slow (though better than average) summer. Christian has the excuse of his children being out of school, but the slacker Ben spent the entire season trying to figure out why he fails so spectacularly. (You can follow his journey on his weekly blog, you know, if you like. You may as well follow Christian too). Continue reading →

Genre Mash-Up! workshop.

/ Christian Laforet / Leave a comment

 

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Back in January, Ben and Christian were asked to host a workshop for Gertrude’s Writing Room. The evening focused on Science Fiction and Horror writing and was a blast. It was so fun, in fact, that they’ve been asked to do it again. This time as part of a month-long series of workshops called the Genre Mash-Up!

The series begins with the boys returning to dish out a second helping of the spooky, weird and futuristic, and then continues each week with workshops on: Poetry, Fiction and Screen Writing. From fine literary talents as: Vanessa Shields, Casey Plett and Nick Shields. Continue reading →

A May Update

/ Ben Van Dongen / Leave a comment

20190414_095208_hdrBen here. I was successful in explaining the value of taking turns posting here each month to Christian. Really, I did that update in March and we got a bunch of views and followers out of it, and he agreed that we should have some news on here at least once a month. Thankfully, we tend to have enough going on to warrant at least a monthly update. I was going to post about The Neon Heart for this one, but Christian was nice enough to do that for me last month. Continue reading →

Just a Little Update

/ Ben Van Dongen / Leave a comment

20190215_182705I’m not sure how to start this post. I’m so used to having some concrete things to say on my weekly blogs over on my personal site, but it has been nearly a year since I’ve posted here. I suppose I just want to let any visitors know that Christian and I are still kicking, doing stuff on our own websites, doing lots of stuff in out in the world. We’ve managed to keep the events page on this website updated, so continue to check out what we’re up to there. We’d love to see you at one of our readings, or at some random convention we attend. If you tell me you know us from the Adventure Worlds website, I’ll see if I can’t give you a discount. Continue reading →

Monster Rabbit Test

/ Ben Van Dongen / Leave a comment

Edele Winnie

“I knew you wouldn’t believe me.”  Allen said. His pale face was completely serious, even though what he was suggesting was ludicrous.

His skinny girlfriend Sheila shook her head, her long chestnut hair catching a shine in the light. “You’re right. I don’t believe you,” she looked again at the metal cage on the dresser and the small black and white rabbit that wiggled its nose within. “Bunny Hopwell wouldn’t hurt a flea.”

“I knew I shouldn’t have told you,” Allen said sullenly, brushing a lock of pale blond hair off his forehead. “You never believe anything I say.”

“That’s not true. Besides this is just a little too much- do you really expect me to believe that he turns into a monster at night?”

“Not every night. Just certain nights. I can’t tell if there’s a pattern.”

Sheila shook her head. “Nope. Don’t believe. How would you know this anyway?”

“I saw it happen. I had let him out to stretch his legs. A shaft of moon light hit him and he transformed into this big scary thing. His ears- he still had big bunny ears- they were touching the ceiling. That’s how big he was. And he looked- demented.”

This time Sheila laughed. “Stop it,” she said. “You’re just making it worse. “

Allen became pouty and it made Sheila laugh even more.

“Come on you big goof, give me a hug. I love you even if you do have a weird sense of humour.”

They cuddled on the couch for half a bit and then he wanted to watch a movie on TV. She fell asleep near the middle of the martial arts and bang bang flick and when she opened her eyes again the house was in darkness, and she was shivering and alone. Allen must have gone to bed. She padded to the kitchen to get a drink of water before joining her boyfriend and passed by the room where Bunny Hopwell’s cage was located. The little door was open and the rabbit was nowhere in sight. A long beam of moon light shone in through the window and caressed the green shag carpet. Continue reading →

Mommy Won’t Wake Up

/ Ben Van Dongen / Leave a comment

Edele Winnie

Abigail was walking home from the dollar store when she heard the little voice. She had the day off and needed some new rubber gloves for washing dishes, as she was allergic to the soap. It was a beautiful Fall morning; warm and breezy and the few leaves that had already deserted their branches were racing with the wind across the road and through the grass.

Abbey liked to look around, she found other people, and the hints about their lives you could see in passing, fascinating. She was on a quiet street and at first the voice sounded like a squeak. She kept walking, ever mindful of rats in this city but then she heard it again, and recognized words this time.

“Hello, hello,” the little child’s voice called.

She tried to see where the voice was coming from. And then there it was- the house she was passing had the front door propped open and the little girl was standing there looking out. Abbey gave her a quick wave and kept walking.

The sound of little bare feet slapping concrete followed her and the little girl grabbed onto her shirt.

“Hello,” the little girl said.

Abbey smiled warmly at her. The girl’s clothes were worn and tattered and her face was smudged with dirt.

“My mother won’t wake up,” the little girl said. Continue reading →

Night Whispers

/ Ben Van Dongen / Leave a comment

Edele Winnie

It was the middle of the night when Megan heard the soft sounds. She clamped her hands over her ears and willed the sound to stop. If only she could fall asleep this way. She’d tried earplugs but the unnatural silence made her feel panicky. Her boyfriend Derek, asleep beside her, never heard anything in the night. He’d suggested she take a sleep aid, but Megan liked natural things and eschewed pharmaceuticals. Although after several weeks of night whispering she was ready to try anything.

She unclamped her ears and held her breath. Silence. Blessed quiet. She exhaled with relief. She was so tired. She could feel the gentle hands of sleep reaching up through the mattress for her.

“Sss sssh ssh-law sha-law.” The whispering went. “Sshh slee she slaw.”

Megan’s eyes flew open. No. No. Why wouldn’t it stop? They’d lived in the house two years before the whispering started. She looked at Derek and he was sound asleep, his lips slightly parted, peaceful. She felt a flash of anger towards him and sighed.  

            She was wide–awake now. She swung her bare feet out onto the cold floor. Continue reading →

Hole in the Wall: The Fifth Monday Three – Part Four

/ Ben Van Dongen / Leave a comment

By Edele Winnie

“Jocelyn, is it really you?” Carol asked the white-coated woman up on the catwalk. “I am so…. muddled.” Carol ran her hands through her brown hair but the confusion remained. They were surrounded by buzzing machines, tubes and metal catwalks. “What is this place?”

Jocelyn laughed. “It’s definitely not the bank. The Jocelyn who works there with you is just one version of me. A sister, if you like.”

Carol pointed at one of the large glass tubes. It was filled with green liquid and an exact copy of Carol herself, floating languidly. Beside that there were more tubes and copies. Carol shook her head, unable to find words. Beside her, Gary shifted into a quivering red cylinder shape.

“I see you’ve met Gary. He’s a portal jumper. A creature that can transfer between dimensions without decomposing.”

“You make me sound so dull.” Gary complained and transformed into a star shape. “I’m actually a star.”

Everything seemed to be swirling in her head and Carol looked for a place to sit. She settled on the bottom step of a metal ladder that led to a catwalk above.

Gary changed into a rhombus. “There was a cloh enforcer right behind us.” Continue reading →