Fulfilment day! This month's zine is an apocalyptic double header featuring myself and guest author @michelleheller.bsky.social
Michelle Heller | Indie Horror Author
@michelleheller.bsky.social
Just a local cryptid (She/Her) Horror Nerd | Movie Fanatic | General Weirdo Definitely, totally human, don't worry about it 🚫NO GEN AI🚫 https://linktr.ee/Michelle_Heller
Oooo. OooooOoOOOOOh hear me out Exit 8. But it's in the Black Forest in the 1700s and it's a group of kids trying to find their way out after being, of course, explicitly told NOT to go into the weird cursed woods-- #HorrorWritersChat
Mary Wyrd (she/her)@marywyrd.bsky.social · 6d agoMake horror history with a new setting. Q4: #HorrorWritersChat - Choose an existing horror IP or horror creation and add it to an historical period different from its origin. Share your idea. ---- Outro in 10 mins
Probably a fair amount. Worst Summer was massively influenced by my retail experience. SOUR DOE is riddled with my childhood of growing up in the absolute middle of nowhere and hearing weird shit in the woods, haha. My WIP is basically me dealing with my dad's death. Etc #HorrorWritersChat
Mary Wyrd (she/her)@marywyrd.bsky.social · 6d agoMaking it personal. Q3: #HorrorWritersChat - In what ways has your own history (past) impacted or inspired your horror writing? Examples: giving a character your childhood trauma, reimagining an experience with a different ending.
It depends ENTIRELY on the story. One of my characters has like, I'm not even kidding, 30k words about his life. Others just get a page! The 30k character is Kyle from The Worst Summer of My Life. He has a LOT of backstory, not all of my which will ever be revealed lol. #HorrorWritersChat
Mary Wyrd (she/her)@marywyrd.bsky.social · 6d agoEven fictional characters have a past. Q2: #HorrorWritersChat - How much history, how much of a past, do you give your horror characters? Share an example.
Late as hell because work got wild. I'm Michelle Heller, I write really weird horror lol, and...hmm. I don't think I've read a lot of that niche! Does Pride and Prejudice and Zombies count? 🤣. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter was also a ride. I don't think I have a third 👀 #HorrorWritersChat
Mary Wyrd (she/her)@marywyrd.bsky.social · 6d agoWelcome to Horror Writers Chat. It’s time to explore the past. Q1: #HorrorWritersChat - Introduce yourself, the horror you write, and share up to three historical horror fiction stories you’ve enjoyed. (Horror set in the past.)
I'm really bad at keeping up on Social Media because I am not a Social Cryptid so I neglect these pages hardcore BUT For anyone still listening I have three novels/novellas in the works on rotation. Two are sequels. One's brand new. Weeeeeeee
In a rabbithole of MLP Analog horror thanks to @danielprofeta.bsky.social this weekend lmao. LOVE this guy, watch all of these, but my favorite one so far is Divine Swamp Fever. Tfw the best body horror you've encountered since The Substance is MLP AUs 🤣 www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBDQ...
Divine Swamp Fever is the scariest MLP has ever been
YouTube video by daniel profeta
youtube.com
From my own home of Florida: the Machineel tree. Just standing under it can fuck you up. It is the most toxic tree in the WORLD. I keep telling people that everything everyone's afraid Australia is, is actually Florida, and the Machineel is proof lmao (will comment with info) #HorrorWritersChat
Artemis Quinn 🏳️⚧️🎨📚@vampireantihero.com · 2w agoThe sun feels warmer, your skin buzzing with new life. Do you have a favorite poisonous plant, #HorrorWritersChat ? Why? What draws you to it?
I try to brush them off. I pull and cry out, sharp pains flaring deep in my arms. They're growing too fast to fight, and before long, I'm rooted in place. That's when I finally notice Carrie and Jen. Overgrown. My throat fills with roots before I can yell to Jack to stay away. #HorrorWritersChat
Artemis Quinn 🏳️⚧️🎨📚@vampireantihero.com · 2w agoThe strange compulsion to reach out and touch one of the plants overtakes you. As your fingers touch the petals, they tingle. You freeze, watching tendrils reach out cautiously from the plant. "The roots dig deeper into my veins, foxgloves sprouting from my skin." Finish it. #HorrorWritersChat
I have not! Although, one of my long-abandoned (but still planning to get back to it) WIPs involves a parasitic colony of ancient worms that turns human hosts into fungus farms. So...plant-adjacent 🤣 #HorrorWritersChat
Artemis Quinn 🏳️⚧️🎨📚@vampireantihero.com · 2w agoThe garden is bright and vibrant with a wash of flowers. Oleander. Monkshood. Hydrangea and Mountain Laurel bushes. Small placquards stand beside each one. You realize as you read them, they're symptoms. QUESTION 2 - Have you ever written anything centering plants or poisons? #HorrorWritersChat
Well hey all. It has been a HOT minute since I've done one of these. I'm Michelle Heller, I write mostly comedy horror, and my favorite plant based horror has gotta be The Ruins by Scott Smith. And honestly? The movie was great, too! #HorrorWritersChat
Artemis Quinn 🏳️⚧️🎨📚@vampireantihero.com · 2w agoHowdy, #HorrorWritersChat ! The leaves whisper secrets at the edge of a forest that melts into a garden. Its quiet murmurs guide you. You take a step. Q1 - Introduce yourself, the horror you write, and... share your favorite piece of horror media with plants, poisons, forest, or eco-horror.
The significant other had never seen Twin Peaks/FWWM so I decided to fix that. I'd never seen The Return so now we're on an adventure together. The dialogue audio fucked up on Episode 4 and we watched it for like 14 minutes assuming it was intentional 🤣
[Bob Seger voice] She's runnin from the knife goose Everybody hide, that menace is loooose RUNNIN FROM THE KNIFE GOOSE
I'M BACK, FRIENDS. I'm approaching this at a different angle, now. I'm primarily posting free shorts on Tumblr while offering novels, when I finish them, for cheap (paperback) and free (eBook). A more in-depth post about what I'm gonna be doing from now on:
Hello, Fellow Horror Lovers! — Michelle Heller
Post by Michelle Heller
buymeacoffee.com
I am no longer writing. I've lowered my prices on my Lulu store, and the novels I have will always be available, but I sadly do not have an audience and can't afford to continue doing this. It's been rad, y'all. If you want a silly book, they're here: www.lulu.com/search?contr...
Choose from thousands of sizes, paper types, and binding options to print a custom book.
lulu.com
Evening friends! The cool news: next month I will be at #AuthorConVI with some good pals of mine to mingle, chill, and hopefully sell some books! The not so cool news: It'll probably be my last convention. I'm on the SAVE plan for my student loans, and any day now, I won't be. 🧵
#HorrorWritersChat In my last work, the antagonist was an extremely fucked up deer lol. I generally didn't lean to the supernatural when developing horror stories unless it was like, a backstory. I love me some body horror
Mary Wyrd (she/her)@marywyrd.bsky.social · 7mo agoHorror is known for having both natural and supernatural antagonists, like the landscape or a ghostly presence. Q4 #HorrorWritersChat In your current WIP or latest published horror work, who or what antagonises your protagonist? --- The outro with promo opportunity will be posted in 10 mins.
#HorrorWritersChat It's hard to say! I can't tickle myself, so to speak, lol. I'd mostly write whatever I thought would be cool or exceptionally awful 🤣
Mary Wyrd (she/her)@marywyrd.bsky.social · 7mo agoQ3 #HorrorWritersChat How does your writing style seek to instill fear, disgust, or otherwise unsettle your readers? [See an example from Cynthia Pelayo in the graphic]
#HorrorWritersChat I likes subverting safety and comfort. A lot of my stories, published and otherwise, take place in settings where the characters are not inherently uneasy to begin with!
Mary Wyrd (she/her)@marywyrd.bsky.social · 7mo ago“Horror comes from a violation of what characters perceive to be reality.” - Writing in the Dark by Tim Waggoner Example: a haunted house violates the assumption that we are alone in our homes. Q2 #HorrorWritersChat Which perceived realities do you utilise in your horror writing?
#HorrorWritersChat Bit late due to work. Heyo all. I'm Michelle and I stuck to horror comedy, mostly. My latest work was inspired by creature features like Tremors and Slither!
Mary Wyrd (she/her)@marywyrd.bsky.social · 7mo agoWelcome to #HorrorWritersChat Q1 Introduce yourself and the horror subgenres you write. Then, share three works of horror that influenced your latest work OR current WIP.
GOT MY LONG HORSE AND HE'S AMAZING
#HorrorWritersChat Scars, muscle, lasting injuries. Kyle in particular winds up covered in them throughout my notes, lol
Gree_@greethewriter.bsky.social · 7mo agoYou spring out of your den, gliding between trees. You follow the winged figures. Your kin. Your home. Your past has left its icy trails behind. Becoming a new self also often includes a physical transformation. Do your characters change physically? In what way? #HorrorWritersChat
#HorrorWritersChat Depends on the story. Some characters have to give up an impossible desire, or a self destructive stubborn goal, etc etc. Usually they're giving up something that hurts them, but they have a hard time letting go of.
Gree_@greethewriter.bsky.social · 7mo agoThe susurrus sharpens into a voice. Your voice. A human rumble deepened by the forest’s savagery bursts from your maw. A question blazes in your mind. Becoming a new self is laden with sacrifices. What do your characters sacrifice? How painful/significant is it? #HorrorWritersChat
#HorrorWritersChat They tend to be better for what they went through. Even if it takes a while.
Gree_@greethewriter.bsky.social · 7mo agoThe figures bury you in frozen earth, in chains of pine needle and bone. Golden eyes fuse into a singular pair. The soil trembles with a question. For characters to survive the horrors, they must often become new selves. What kind of new selves do YOUR characters become? #HorrorWritersChat
#HorrorWritersChat I'm Michelle, I write comedy horror/body horror/etc, and I think I'd be hard pressed to give up my creativity.
Gree_@greethewriter.bsky.social · 7mo agoThe figures encircle you in ursine and lupine furs. Jagged symbols mark their foreheads under antlered hoods. The susurrus coalesces into a question. Tell us who you are, what you write, and what part of your current self would you be scared to give up the most? #HorrorWritersChat
If you see this, post a random fact about yourself: I am a blood relative of comedian Bobcat Goldthwait. I've always wanted to meet him and ask him about my dad's side of the family. Considering Bobcat wrote and directed a horror movie recently, I think I know where I get it from 🤣
Joshua Werner@joshuafrantic.bsky.social · 7mo agoIf you see this, post a random fact about yourself! I used to design jackets for rappers, which slightly overlapped with my time working as a server in a gay bar, carrying a tray of shots around during the drag shows.
#HorrorWritersChat "What do you mean, I can't bring it?" "You won't need it here," the Ferryman gravels. "It is useless in this realm." "But I've had it all my life." They clutch it to their chest. The writhing, black thing squeals softly. "I know," the Ferryman pities. "I know."
Eryn McCee@erynmccee.bsky.social · 7mo agoQ4. Hang around for the outro. I probably won't forget. #HorrorWritersChat
#HorrorWritersChat Hmm. I'd probably be owing something that required my eternal labor rather than a material offering, lol
Eryn McCee@erynmccee.bsky.social · 7mo agoQ3, #HorrorWritersChat. We're inundated with fireworks and a cat who is remarkably unbothered for a change. She's powered by spite today. Anyway. Questions questions.
