Welcome to Litsy!

I had so much fun with #Scarathlon! Thank you, @Emilymdxn, for being an awesome leader! #skeletoncrew

@IndoorDame @moll2 @candc320 @MidnightBookGirl @kwmg40 @Blerdgal_Fenix @bluebird @Q84 @Eyelit @ShananigansReads

October 31 is not quite over yet in my time zone, but I'll be travelling tonight and tomorrow and not sure when I'll get a chance to post, so I thought I'd better do it now! I got 26899 in the second half of #scarathlon to make a grand total of 54402.

I loved being part of the #skeletoncrew team, so ably headed by @Emilymdxn! Thanks to all the event organizers. I had a blast!

It‘s the start of a new week and that means #scarathlon week 3 game is starting 🎃🎃🎃 unlimited points available for this one again! It‘s a great opportunity to stack them up #skeletoncrew

Here is my #scarathlon points total so far: 27503 points!

@Emilymdxn #skeletoncrew

Skeleton crew pals! Can you believe we‘re nearly halfway through #scarathlon??? It‘s almost time for our halfway points check in - you can tell me your point tomorrow (Sunday) or Monday morning, and it can be a post or a comment on here. Remember every single point helps!

#skeletoncrew

Can‘t believe we‘re already going into week 2 of #scarathlon! Here‘s our week 2 game #skeletoncrew - unlimited points available again 🎃

@ShananigansReads @IndoorDame @moll2 @candc320 @MidnightBookGirl @Pigpen_Reads @kwmg40 @Blerdgal_Fenix @Bluebird @Q84 @Eyelit

Ahoy #skeletoncrew - just a reminder that today is the last day to rack up some points for our week 1 #scarathlon game. I‘ll be posting the week 2 game tomorrow morning 🎃

For the #scarathlonphotochallenge day two, it‘s my all time favourite skeleton girl Phoebe Bridgers and a very blurry photo of me seeing her live with Boygenius in London this summer. What a gorgeous representative for the #skeletoncrew 👻

#scarathlon

#scarathlon is here my darling #skeletoncrew members! And we have our first weekly game! This one runs until October 8 and it‘s a big points getter.

Name as many books as you can that have anything in common with our team buddy reads Horrorstor and Small Town Big Magic with its sequel Big Little Spells. You can make the list on your phone or a spreadsheet and see how many you get. Good luck!

Ahoy #skeletoncrew 🎃 #scarathlon 2023 is just three sleeps away and I‘m excited

The first readathon of the challenge is the #20in4 hosted by @Andrew65 starting tomorrow. Set whatever goals you like and start on your first spooky, scary or autumnal read

If you still have early bird points you haven‘t posted to get yet there‘s still time! Now is a great time to make those bucket lists, pick some bingo boards, buy in some snacks… I can‘t wait!

There are a lot of fun bingo boards and readathons to get on board with this month my #skeletoncrew compatriots! Here‘s a very cool looking bingo board from @Read4life which will work great for horror and non horror reads to suit everyone doing #scarathlon and get those stackable readathon points.

I‘m going to put a link in the comments to a google drive with a lot of other readathon stuff and bingo boards in it if anyone fancies some more!

Ahoy there #skeletoncrew 🎃 if anyone wants to take part in the #poetrymatters daily challenge this October I‘ve heard from @Clwojick and @StayCurious that it will get you the same points as the photo challenges if you post poetry and quotes that match the daily prompts. If you‘ve already been doing this a long time (I know loads of you have!) or if you‘re joining in for the first time like me, this looks a lot of fun!

@TheSpineView #scarathlon

Attention #skeletoncrew 🎃 here‘s another readathon running all October that‘s going to be an excellent source of #scarathlon points run by @Catsandbooks

Your goals can be whatever you like - 31 hours of reading, 31 pages a day, 31 books, anything you like! I‘m going to try and go for reading at least 31 books in the month of October 🍂🧙🍁

Here's my #Scarathlon Bucket List #SkeletonCrew @Emilymdxn

1. My perfect Halloween would include a cool evening, the scent of autumn leaves in the wind, handing out full size candy bars to the trick or treaters with the Hubs and dog, and then going inside to turn off the lights and watch something scary.
2. You're Next or Cabin in the Woods
3. Horror and thrillers!
4. Everything, but mostly I love looking at what everyone is reading and the sense of community the game brings.
#SkeletonCrew #Scarathlon

Here‘s some quick #scarathlon tips and tricks for my #skeletoncrew pals from our wonderful hosts @Clwojick and @StayCurious 🎃

I‘ll be posting the spreadsheet tracker in the comments of this post on my lunch break today when I have a computer. Ask me any questions if there‘s anything here that‘s new to you. I‘m so excited to get started - scarathlon brings me so much joy every year and the games this year look REALLY fun 🧙

Hello #SkeletonCrew

1. A cozy night on the couch with a good movie or book and my favorite candies. Oh and no work in the morning.
2. As I‘ve said before I don‘t really do scary but I like the occasional thriller like Secret Window
3. Paranormal Romance which is one of my all the time favorites
4. Racking up points with my awesome team!

#Scarathlon

I may be the oddball of the group. I‘m a scaredy-cat and avoid horror/scary books as much as possible. I even had to fast forward through the Ready, Player, One movie when it got to the part about The Shining. Lol. However, I‘m a fan of The Walking Dead and read Chris Carter mysteries that are not for the faint of heart. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I‘ll be enjoying the lighter side of Halloween! #skeletoncrew see below for answers to the questions.

This is my final #scarathlon info post today for the #skeletoncrew 🎃 I know it‘s a lot of content so comment if you have any questions - this is a new element of the challenge and a fun opportunity to get 15 bonus points for a book that happens to meet a prompt from the photo challenge

We‘ve got the photo challenge back this year in #scarathlon 🎃 i love looking out for things that make you feel autumnal, spooky, Halloweenie each day. I love looking for something that resonates with each word in my daily life - it‘s quite mindful and then I love capturing those memories! It doesn‘t have to be photos you take yourself that day, it could be a photo that resonated with you or something you saved from before

#skeletoncrew

The word search is back this year for #scarathlon 🎃

Anytime you spot one of these words in any book you read, that‘s 10 points 🥰 I love this part of the challenge and am so keen it‘s back this year. It‘s so motivating to keep you reading one more chapter before bed, and it‘s a fun way to get points from books with nothing to do with Halloween if you want a break from being spooky.

I‘m gonna be posting some more #skeletoncrew #scarathlon info today!

There‘s quite a lot of ways of getting points - you can bother with as many parts of it as work for you, but I‘m a Get All The Points gal myself 😂

The bucket list is a rly fun way to work out all the autumn experiences you want to have from pumpkin spice lattes to long walks to time with partners and kids, what do you want to do this October? 10 points per item you tick off!

1. Handing out treats to the neighbourhood kids and then watching a scary movie with my family.
2. Cat People (the 1942 version by Val Lewton).
3. Fantasy with witches or vampires, or any kind of mystery.
4. I love all of it -- the games, the encouragement, book recommendations, going for the points!

#skeletoncrew #scarathlon @Emilymdxn

Hello #skeletoncrew !

1. My perfect Halloween would be cool, windy weather with the windows open so I can hear all the kids running around trick-or-treating outside and see the leaves falling all around them (which never happens because I live in the land of no seasons - Central Florida 😜).
2. Why Halloween of course!
3. Definitely horror - something to really get under my skin and scare me.
4. I‘m really looking forward to watching lots of ⬇️

1. Baked apple treats, leaf viewing drives, terrifying audiobooks by candlelight, tarot readings, munchkins in adorable costumes…
2. Hocus Pocus
3. I read from (most) spooky genres, but gravitate toward classic ghost stories and haunted house stories
4. Getting excited about the season with everyone on Litsy who loves all things spooky and witchy as much as I do!

#skeletoncrew #scarathlon @Emilymdxn

Hello to all my #skeletoncrew #scarathlon teammates! I thought it would be nice to get to know each other a little before embarking on our spooky and autumnal reading together so here‘s a little getting to know you post to share and discuss. There‘s no points up for grabs here but it‘d be awesome if you wanted to repost and tell us a bit about yourself!

Here‘s my answers here and in the comments:

1. My perfect Halloween would involve 👇

Just one more info post for the #scarathlon #skeletoncrew 🍁 here‘s the points breakdown. I can also share a blank spreadsheet for tracking your points if anyone would find that helpful to have?

Remember readathons and bingo boards are your friends to get points! If you‘re reading a book to fill a bingo board you found anywhere on the internet that also counts as a readathon, so each hour read could count 5 times (50 points) if you want!

Calling all members of the #skeletoncrew for #scarathlon early bird points! Great chance to get some points in before October 1 for all 3 of the activities above. Start keeping track of your points (spreadsheet, notes app, back of envelope, whatever works) and start earning those points.

I can‘t wait to see your tbrs and to steal some book ideas for myself 🎃

“Includes the stories ‘Uncle Otto‘s Truck‘ and ‘Mrs. Todd‘s Shortcut‘-set in the fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine

Features ‘The Mist‘ now a TV series event on Spike

The #1 New York Times bestseller and winner of the 1986 Locus Award for Best Collection, Skeleton Crew is ‘Stephen King at his best‘ (The Denver Post)—a terrifying, mesmerizing collection of stories from the outer limits of one of the greatest imaginations of our time.”

"Reading a good long novel is in many ways like having a long and satisfying affair. A short story is a different thing altogether - a short story is like a quick kiss in the dark from a stranger. Kisses can be sweet, and their very brevity forms their own attraction."

I came down with a really bad cold in the beginning of the week that I just can't seem to shake. 🤧 I've been mostly sleeping, so I haven't really been able to read much, but during the brief lucid moments when I can concentrate on reading - I turn to my dear Stephen to provide some comfort! 💕📚

A pretty uneven collection of short stories from King. If this collection did not contain some of his best short-form work, I'd be rating this as a whole much lower. Standouts include The Mist, The Monkey, Mrs. Todd's Shortcut, The Jaunt, The Raft, Word Processor of the Gods, The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands, The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet, and The Reach. Low points include just about everything else. 3/5

The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet - This story is, for me, one of King's best. He seems to always be at his best when he's writing about writing, and this tale of an editor and writer's twin descents into madness is elegantly told. 5/5

The Raft - This might be my favorite King short of all time. Character issues aside, this is the work that has, without equivocation, scared me so badly I never wanted to swim again. Anytime I visit a lake and, in general, most other bodies of water, I think of this story - and keep one eye open for a floating patch of black amidst the waves. 5/5

The Jaunt - I loved this one. A delightful blend of sci-fi and horror. The story of the invention of The Jaunt that intercuts the ongoing narrative is delightful, and the grim conclusion ties it all together with a neat bow. This entry reminded me very much of some of the best of Bradbury or Dick. 5/5

Mrs. Todd's Shortcut - This was an amazing story. An incredible, intriguing concept with an engaging storyteller, this is a story that held me spellbound from start to finish. Like any good short story, this is one that left me longing for more. 5/5

The Monkey - King takes an already terrifying child's toy, and finds a way to make it significantly more terrifying. When this creepy little simian jangs its cymbals together, people have a funny tendency to die. I absolutely loved this story, and have a feeling that it - much like its titular furry music maker - will be making unanticipated returns for a long time to come. 5/5

The Mist - This is probably one of King's best-known short stories, and for good reason. It distills the essence of our fear of the unknown, and manages to personify that fear without engaging in that classic blunder of the horror genre - showing us its face. Though we see glimpses of the unspeakable terrors that lurk in the titular mist, we're ultimately left to the devices of our own imaginations. Truly terrifying. 5/5

Can‘t go wrong with Stephen King!
#12BooksOf2022
@Andrew65

Thanks to my amazing coworker I have a new addition to my Stephen King shelf. I was having so much fun placing the hands at various places until I found one I liked.

#TeamSlaughter #Scarathlon2022 #DailyPrompt

Catching up again!

I think this is my favorite short story collection from King. I still remember the thrills, shudders, and delight I got from reading some of these stories for the first time in high school. “The Mist, “The Jaunt,” “The Raft,” “The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet,” “Survivor Type,” - these are stories I wish I could again for the first time. #scarathlondailyprompts #skeleton #teamslaughter

#OminousOctober
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs

#Skeleton ☠

#OminousOctober #Day12 #Skeleton This is actually on my #Scarathlon TBR! It has a few of my favourite King short stories including The Raft, which scared me out of going night swimming for years & The Mist which is a classic horror story. #TeamSlaughter 6pts

#OminousOctober #Skeleton
@Eggs @alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
@StayCurious TeamMonsterMash

Happy Halloween Season, Team Monster Mash! I've got my TBR and TBW above. I forgot to add my Army of Darkness comics to my TBR, but those will most certainly be read as well! Have a Spooky #Scarathlon, everyone!! #TeamMonsterMash #StayCurious #EarlyBirdPoints

“The Reach“ a short story by Stephen King (I believe it can be found in the tagged book) -

#sundayfunday @ozma.of.oz

Make a great day everyone 🙂

The #AwesomeApril #Readathon has come to an end. Hooray! I exceeded my goals!

My goals were to:
✅ finish Skeleton Crew - 177 pages
✅ start The Hundred and One Dalmatians - 23 pages ➡️ 66 pages
📗 Bonus! I also read 90 pages of UDL Now!
= 200 pages ➡️ 333 pages

Thanks again @Andrew65 !

#DogsOfLitsy

It‘s time for an #AwesomeApril #Readathon progress update.
☠️ Skeleton Crew: 85 pages
🍎 UDL Now!: 90 pages
🧮 Total: 175 pages
🍀 Still planning to finish the last 92 pages of Skeleton Crew, and start another book

Thanks again for hosting @Andrew65 !

Photo BOMBadil!
#DogsOfLitsy