random thoughts on a Tuesday night in August

Well, I am happy again. I just took the Fantasy Writer's Exam - found here
- thanks to Bride of the Book God, whose blog had the link - and, aside from one question, I was able to truthfully to answer no to every question. Hurray! This means I am not writing a millionth retread of Tolkien. And the question I answered yes to - #4 for those who are curious/interested - I have to amend in my head because my plot is different, and my main character doesn't defeat the bad guy on her own! So, if you are a fantasy writer, it's a good quiz to take to make sure you aren't falling into fantasy pitfalls.

4 weeks until Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book is on sale!!! May we have the same release date here in Canada, oh please, book gods....

And, with Carl's RIP 3 challenge about to begin, is anyone else wondering if we should try to view a horror movie as well? Closer to Hallowe'en, of course, but I can't help thinking that it would add a little extra spooky thrill to the experience....maybe if people are interested, we could pick a night in October and watch a scary movie of our choosing, and then post about it afterward? Let me know, maybe we can make it a mini-challenge to go along with Carl's. As a side note, is there a horror movie that you find terrifying to watch? Mine are A Nightmare on Elm Street and Sixth Sense, and The Haunting (the Claire Bloom version from the 60's). As much as I am fascinated by ghosts and esp and psychic ability, these three deal with trying to discern what is real and what is not, that other people can't see (though in The Haunting Theo does experience the events), and that to me is the ultimate scary place to be - defining our own sanity in the face of the irrational which does exist. Sorry, I think I'm scaring myself writing about these movies, which are among my favourite horror movies! But I didnt' realize until now that they even had a link, and now that I think about it, many of my favourite horror novels also deal with the same idea; the Shining comes to mind, little Danny and his terrifyng gift of seeing what others can't, all by himself in that hotel. I wonder now why this theme is so fascinating for me, since I've never thought of myself as particularly psychic (and I sometimes miss the obvious!). Something about this subject draws my attention, that's for certain. Is there a particular horror theme, then, that you come back to again and again, in books or movies or both?