Friday 28 October 2011

Coffin Hop Part Three: Halloween in Prose and Poetry


To start off the hauntingly good weekend leading into Halloween (and for another excuse to post for Coffin Hop) I'm sharing a few dark Halloween themed poems and a short excerpt from my Gothic horror mishmash WIP, Gothic Cavalcade.

All commenters will have a chance to win an free copy (via Smashwords) of my ebook, Once Upon a Dark and Eerie... 
And don't forget to check out the rest of the hoppers by scrolling down to the List at the end of this blog or popping over to the Author List at the Coffin Hop main page.



The Poems:


Night of the Hunter’s Moon 

They come by the moonlight
off the mountain, from the mist,
riding in the darkened night.
They come by the moonlight,
for their eve of haunting flight.
Hear the horn, by Death be kissed
They come by the moonlight
off the mountain from the mist



Darkness, under a full moon 

Once, under a full moon
a shadow grew.
Just a spot by the yew tree
where blood soiled the ground.
Where anger ended a soul
and bones still lie unmourned.
The earth fed on flesh and fury,
haunted screams and marrow,
until unholy life was born.

Once, under a full moon
a shadow hated.
From its grave by the yew tree,
it waits, it seethes, it hungers.
Drawn from this earth too soon,
it wants to come back, to roam.
To spew its venom and revenge
to shriek its pain and horror,
until blood is spilled for blood.

Once, under a full moon
Darkness,
Death,
clawed into the world.


Celestial Season

Blood Moon, Hunter’s Moon.
Ghosts wail to you in the night,
Queen of the Harvest.

The moon of white turns to red
with the coming of the frost.

Through the barren trees
voices beyond call to you,
Sovereign of the Wood.

Luminous fingers entwine
that first and last icy breath.



Halloween

Dark is the night of fear, still of all sound.
This haunted eve, the silver Moon is queen;
in the shadows, the undead ghouls come ’round.
They dance, they play, with souls on Halloween.

You can hear them whisper behind your ear;
shiver when the cold chills run down your spine.
Aren’t you thankful it comes but once a year,
this time to hunt, to roam, so they can dine?

Close tight your doors when the goblins do creep
and the knocking shall echo through the dim hall.
Eerie ghosts stray, know there’s plunder to reap,
alarming chills, bats, howls and things that crawl.

So fill your bowls high with candy to eat
For those scary children that trick or treat.



Excerpt from Gothic Cavalcade:


Althea stood in the center of the circle. The family surrounded her, those strange denizens of the carnival she trusted in blind faith. The palpitating tin sound of the calliope electrified her skin and pushed through her pores to infest her flesh and bones. The notes snaked their way into her mind, twining around her will until the pulsing rhythm controlled her rational thought.

Her consciousness drifted, suspended in the melodic spell and her body swayed with the tune. She tumbled in mental freefall -a lingering pawn aimless in focus and influence- as her sanity danced with the song of the calliope and a feeling of euphoria engulfed her senses. But somewhere, locked away in a deep recess of her brain, fear crawled.

The music grew louder, more insistent, opposing other sound from reaching her ears. Every vibration of the melody shredded into her body unravelling her being. Althea cried out as the notes of the song coursed through her nerves and pain sang its way through her body to consume the essence of her inner self. She screamed, defiant, as she felt hands touch her, pull at her, the family’s voices mingling with the sound of the music...

25 comments:

Julie Jansen said...

Beautiful poetry. I love it!

A. F. Stewart said...

Thanks, Julie.

EC said...

Hi A.F. Stewart,

I liked these all, but "Night of the Hunter's Moon" and "Darkness, under a full moon," were excellent. Definitely put me in the Halloween Spirit.

Best of luck Coffin Hoppin!

Sheila Deeth said...

Ah, cool and dark and scary. I love these.

A. F. Stewart said...

It's good to be back, thanks.

A. F. Stewart said...

Two of my favourites as well, Erin.

A. F. Stewart said...

Well that's me, Sheila, cool and dark and scary.

Anonymous said...

Agreed with the others. "Darkness, under a full moon" was my favorite. I'm loving finding horror poetry. This is a whole new thing for me. Not that I think I could write it, but I'm loving find those who can.

Have you seen the Haiku contest at Axel Howerton's blog? Wait a minute, maybe I shouldn't mention it. Less competition for my entry :)

Happy continued Coffin Hopping.

Paul D. Dail
www.pauldail.com- A horror writer's not necessarily horrific blog

A. F. Stewart said...

Paul, I love writing horror and fantasy poetry; I even have a couple of serial killer poems.
I haven't checked out the haiku competition yet, but I adore writing haiku.

Nora B. Peevy said...

Coffin hopping ...

I like the images you included with your poems. I write dark fiction too and interviewed Ellen Datlow on my blog this week. Creep on by The Demon Stole My Pencil.

-Nora
http://norabpeevy.blogspot.com/2011/10/twenty-questions-with-editor-ellen.html

A. F. Stewart said...

Thanks, Nora. Most of the pics in the post are my artwork or photos.

J.C. Martin said...

Great poems, and great excerpt!

J.C.
Coffin Hopper

Read my Coffin Hop post HERE

A. F. Stewart said...

Thanks, JC.

Anne Michaud said...

Vivid images, great rhythm:)

Happy blog hop!

A. F. Stewart said...

Thank you, Anne, glad you enjoyed.

James Everington said...

Good stuff, there's not enough 'horror poetry'. Popped over to say thanks for your horror story suggestions on my Coffin Hop post! Cheers, J

Anonymous said...

I loved all the poems!
Darkness, under a full moon was chilling.
You should really check out Undead Poets Society...I think you would like it. There is a link to it on my site.
Great post!
- Kim

Penelope Crowe said...

Very nice poems. Love moody and dark.

A. F. Stewart said...

Thanks Kim. I saw the link for the Undead Poets Society the other day, but haven't had the time yet to check it out. It is on my to-do list though.

A. F. Stewart said...

Thanks, Penelope, moody and dark are my specialties.

A. F. Stewart said...

Thanks James, I write a lot of horror and fantasy poetry. I'm a big fan of bleak and dark verse.

Sarah Butland said...

Loved Darkness, under a full moon!

I do wonder if you've considered switching your first and second sentence of your excerpt. The second sentence grabbed me much more than the first. Just a thought.

A. F. Stewart said...

Hi Sarah. Interesting thought about the sentences, I'll keep it in mind. I haven't written the scene leading into the excerpt yet, so that first sentence may get switched around, or disappear altogether.

Rae Lori said...

Wonderfully chilling poems! I imagined Vincent Price & Orson Welles reading them in my head. :-D

A. F. Stewart said...

Thanks Rae.

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