Happy Halloween! Our judges have been locked in a dark, damp basement with very little light and only native wildlife to eat this week, in order to read
all of the awesome stories submitted by our subscribers in the Fourth Annual Edhat Halloween Short Story Contest!
As you may recall, all the stories had to begin with the same opening paragraph, not exceed 660 words, and all stories had to include the following
three words or phrases:
1. Bat
2. The Real Housewives of Santa Barbara
3. Kale
Our winner this year is a story by Cody Frederick. Most of our entries were pretty scary, but Cody’s story gave us a chuckle. The Edhat Dog liked the
part about the Chihuahua. Ed admired the author’s use of Kale. No wait, that’s the Rose Parade. Congratulations, Cody!
The First and Second place stories are presented below. Below those, are all the other fantastic entries, in no particular order. Congratulations to all!
First Place
By Cody Frederick - It was, however, as close to normal as it
can be when you're supernatural investigator. I'd lost track of the vampire somewhere close
by, I didn't know what he was up to, but it wasn't good. If I was to catch him, I'd have to take a shortcut.
The first place winner will receive an Edhat T-shirt, and 2 tickets to the Ensemble Theatre
Second Place
A Blood Thirst - A form stirs. Still in bed the figure sits up to cough and
proceeds to hack and gasp for minutes, finally settling down with a weary sigh.
This was the home of Kale Gardner, a fixture in Santa Barbara, known for his ruthless business tactics and vacuity of ethics. (By Tim Durnin)
The second place winner will receive an Edhat T-shirt
Other Ghoulish Entries
By Chris McLoughlin - Kelly forgot how the night had ended.
The details were fuzzy like a puppy but bit her like a dog.
Halloween - "Not enough kale! Not enough kale!" said Barry Seltzer, the
famous Hollywood TV producer, in town for casting his new reality show and eating Julia Child's favorite tacos at Santa Barbara's favorite local restaurant, La
Super Rica. (By GoWest)
By Jeanetta Adkins - I had stayed up way too late last night, watching
the Real Housewives of Santa Barbara and wondering where in the world they found those women, Montecito perhaps?
In The Shadows- She listens to the OUTSIDE sounds and wishes she
could be a part of it but knows she never can. Never can... (By Arthur Tourot)
By Kathie Lynn CantÜ - Down The hall I could hear The children
whispering faintly And giggling, But The harder I listened The closer The giggles Became, and The whispering voices became deeper And harder To
UnderStand.
Have Me…Your Way - Steve had just come downstairs and the boys
were in the bathroom getting ready for school. I was in the kitchen, making quick time at getting the cereal on the table. (By Annette Magneheim)
Sea Change- The room in question belonged to a young man who
should have been there, should have been waking up right that minute to a beautiful new day. But the young man wasn’t in his room at all. (By Robert Call)
Dark Awakening - As the sunlight hit Laura’s face she woke with a gasp.
The sun felt like hot metal on her skin. (By Robert Call)
Great White Black- Over the crashing waves at Sands, Sophia set out on
her SUP board. Pink sunscreen slathered across the bridge of her nose like an 80's teen-ager, she was hoping to catch a glimpse of the 20 ft Great White
shark. (By Maxine Maudlin Merritt)
This year’s judges:
Nicole Friere is a freelance writer and columnist for Edhat.com. Nicole is scared of lots of things, but especially spiders. Scary stories don't bother her,
but scary movies do. She will be dressing up as Mitt Romney this year, because he scares Nicole more than anything. Nicole claims she will happily accept
any and all candy in her Trick or Treat bag EXCEPT for Mounds Bars and Almond Joys.
Lauren Bray is the Dedicated Site Manager of Edhat.com. She is a freelance writer, wine consumer and pie enthusiast. She is currently working on her
first novel. Lauren is afraid of the Real Housewives on Bravo and silverfish. This year, she will be dressing as a guinea pig, but you might think she’s dressed
as a hamster. Lauren will happily eat all of Nicole's discarded Mounds and Almond Joys.
Zack Sklar is a former member of the Dedicated Staff of Edhat.com, a past Halloween Story winner (both Edhat AND the Indy), and a renowned kale
hobbyist. This year, as in years past, he will be donning various odd articles of clothing and a wig, and will give you a strange and knowing look if you ask
him what he is supposed to be. Zack is fearless, and enjoys all types of Trick or Treat candy, especially Reese’s.
Sue Foley has been a member of the dedicated staff since 2003, and is the Editor of Edhat.com. She has written numerous short stories and a novel, as
well as a bunch of stuff online. She is deathly afraid of rabbits, and is dressing up as Elmer Fudd this year. She gets very happy when she finds wax lips in
her Trick or Treat bag.
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Link: 2011 Halloween Story Contest
Link: 2010 Halloween Story Contest
