I finished up the cover wrap and formatting for Small Town Slasher. I know some people read it and may never give this one a chance if they didn't like the first one but I'm glad it's now a novella AND part of a new series, Woods Bay. I didn't plan on the title being similar to a new show I hadn't heard about but oh well that might help! I'll be sending away for one copy to line edit the whole book one more time. I just announced the next anthology theme SLASHERS and it's great to see so many people excited about it!

I've been attending StokerCon virtually since Thursday and have learned a lot and I'm grateful to have the opportunity to attend online. It still has a long way to go to be better for the virtual attendees but I'm grateful I can attend. It's my third year and I put time aside to attend virtually. I'm exhausted and will definitely have a whole separate post sharing what I've learned, a review and reflection of it if you will.

BOOKS
Moss'd in Space by Rebecca Thorne
Platform Decay by Martha Wells
Dead But Dreaming of Electric Sheep by Paul Tremblay

Currently reading: The Secret Lives of Zombie Wives by Barbara Truelove (It's a novella and I'm super slow reading print but I do love it so far) and I'm almost done with the audiobook for Dead and Breakfast by Kat Hillis & Rosiee Thor.

SHOWS
NEW
24 in 24
Next Level Chef
Pop Culture Jeopardy
Euphoria

FILMS - I'm on LetterBoxd - horrormaven13
Erupja
Hokum
16 Wishes

Rewatches that I'm enjoying as I pretend to live in the late 90s/early 00s.

TV
Buffy the Vampire Slayer RIP Giles :(
The X-Files
Law and Order: SVU
Owl House

FILMS
The Parent Trap

That's all for this week! I hope you get some time to read and watch and relax.

xoxo

Spooky Girl

The press release for Twisted Tales to Tell in the Night: Another Halloween Horror Anthology has been sent out! I am finishing up editing the submissions for Twisted Tales to Tell in the Night: A Yuletide Horror Anthology, and at the end of June, I'll have the stories from the invited authors to read and edit. It's releasing THIS November AND I am starting to contact potential authors for the next anthology.

In addition to working on these anthologies and beginning book 2 of the Woods Bay series my super secret project is a children's chapter book! I'll share more soon!

BOOKS

I'll Watch Your Baby by Neena Viel
Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker (relisten)
The Last Time We Drowned by Saratoga Schaefer
Kill All Wizards by Jedediah Berry

Currently reading: The Secret Lives of Zombie Wives by Barbara Truelove (I wasn't able to read print this week but I'm so grateful for audiobooks, Moss'd in Space by Rebecca Thorne.

SHOWS
NEW
24 in 24
Next Level Chef
Widows Bay
Euphoria

FILMS - I'm on LetterBoxd - horrormaven13
Over Your Dead Body
Contact
The Mummy

Rewatches that I'm enjoying as I pretend to live in the late 90s/early 00s.

TV
Daria
Twin Peaks
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The X-Files
Law and Order: SVU
The Hills

FILMS
Promising Young Woman
The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride

That's all for this week! I hope you get some time to read and watch and relax. Oh and I started a new Instagram for my personal nerdom. If you're interested my handle is: stephanieisspooky

xoxo

Spooky Girl

I have recently started rewatching a lot of my favorite shows. For some I had started the series but never finished it. I thought I had seen all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer but I definitely hadn't. I watch some new shows but watching Buffy, The X-Files, Twin Peaks, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Daria, and more are keeping me sane right now. Nostalgic posters along with DVDs and VHS tapes are helping too. So here are 31 thoughts I had while rewatching season 1 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This show definitely is and will continue to influence my Woods Bay series including Small Town Slasher.

1. The first pilot is better than the one they went with. It matches the film the show is based on way more.

2. I will never skip this intro. It's still gold.

3. I wish we had The Bronze in my town.

4. I had the sunglasses Buffy has in The Harvest episode.

5. Ahhh early Buffy and Angel moments.

6. So that's where I got the idea of the high ponytail with a few loose strands in front of my face.

7. Adorkable Willow and her computer.

8. Love combining cheerleading with the first witch we meet on the show.

9. I want Giles' car.

10. Ahhh 1997 fashion. /chefskiss

11. I love the idea of putting a spirit into a trophy. So cool!

12. The library shots are done so well.

13. Cheerleader on fire!

14. Totally thought of Joe from You when I saw the cage in the library.

15. It's such a great twist that the mother was the one evil not the cheerleader.

16. Preying mantis sexy teacher.

17. Ewwww the sandwich scene totally reminded me of the similar scene in The Girl Who Cried Monster by R.L. Stine.

18. Even during my rewatch I was shocked by The Master.

19. Xander acting like a hyena is awesome. It also makes me want to go to the zoo.

20. One of the actresses from the Angel episode is in Dexter.

21. The chemistry between Buffy and Angel. Oh my.

22. The Willow and robot episode was just okay but fun cheesy.

23. A dummy and the organs it wants to harvest.

24. Worst nightmares coming true. That's terrifying.

25. Hey it's the girl from The Faculty.

26. Loved the dress she wore in the finale.

27. Even though you know Buffy is going to be okay it's still horrible to watch her die.

28. A short first season but still excellent.

29. I feel bad that I totally forgot about Ms. Carpenter I love her.

30. I think the white dress and leather jacket is a nod to the final showdown in the film.

31. Not one skip of the intro or outro. EGH so good!!

I took the final pass of Twisted Tales to Tell in the Night: Another Halloween Horror Anthology and placed a BIG order. It's always a bit scary around this time. Early reviews start to come in (which I'm trying to stay away from) and all the other pieces fall into place. I'll be sending some copies to those who are part of the upcoming Bookstagram Tour, as well as writing and sending a press release out.

I am also starting to edit the stories that will be in Twisted Tales to Tell in the Night: A Yuletide Horror Anthology releasing THIS November AND I am starting to contact potential authors for the next anthology.

I am going on a day trip tomorrow to do some research for the Woods Bay series, and I just finished my outline for book 2!

BOOKS
Tea You At the Altar by Rebecca Thorne
Caller Unknown by Gillian McAllister
Fabulous Bodies by Chuck Tingle
The Dorians by Nick Cutter

Currently reading: The Secret Lives of Zombie Wives by Barbara Truelove and I'll Watch Your Baby by Neena Viel.

SHOWS
NEW
24 in 24
Widows Bay
Euphoria

FILMS - I'm on LetterBoxd - horrormaven13
Mother May I - A big of a let down
Lee Cronin's The Mummy
The Tingler
The House at the Edge of the Woods

Rewatches that I'm enjoying as I pretend to live in the late 90s/early 00s.

TV
Daria
Twin Peaks
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The X-Files
Law and Order: SVU
The Hills

FILMS
The Swan Princess
The Terminator
Fly Away Home

That's all for this week! I hope you get some time to read and watch and relax. Oh and I started a new Instagram for my personal nerdom. If you're interested my handle is: stephanieisspooky

xoxo

Spooky Girl

I’m so excited to share this here with you first.

Our next Twisted Tales to Tell in the Night anthology theme is officially…

🔪 SLASHERS. 🔪

I’ll be announcing it soon on social media and in the monthly newsletter, but you get to know before everyone else because I love giving this little haunted corner the first peek.

This collection will be all about slashers in every form. Classic masked killers, small-town massacres, camp carnage, final girls, revenge stories, suburban bloodshed, 90s and 2000s throwback vibes, weird slashers, psychological slashers, and stories that take the trope and carve something completely new into it.

So I want to know:

What kind of slashers do you love most?

Are you into the masked killer stalking a sleepy town? The revenge slasher? The summer camp bloodbath? The final girl who refuses to stay in her assigned role? The killer with a creepy gimmick? The kind of slasher that feels fun until it suddenly feels very, very scary?

Is there a specific trope, setting, or type of slasher you’d love to see in this collection?

One of the things I really love about having this space is that paid members get to give feedback I actually take into consideration during the submission and selection process. I want this anthology to feel scary, fun, sharp, and bloody in all the best ways, so your thoughts genuinely help shape what I’ll be looking for.

Also, a quick reminder that our second anthology releases in a little over a month! If you preorder, you’ll also receive the preorder exclusive sticker.

🔗 PREORDER HERE

This week has been a productive one, and it's really exciting to see the progress I've made on Death by TBR Books Press. The updated version of Small Town Slasher has been formatted. I will do one more pass on it before the publication date, but ePubs are now being sent out! One benefit of the FIRST VICTIM TIER (or higher) is digital ARCs! So if you sign up for it, you can receive an eARC of both Small Town Slasher and Twisted Tales to Tell in the Night: Another Halloween Horror Anthology. If you are already a member, just message or email me and I'll send it over.

If you haven't heard, the third Twisted Tales is Yuletide Horror, and after making some changes and receiving more support, I was able to move the release date back to THIS November. That means the next anthology will have an open call, most likely this summer. I'll be sending out a separate email over the next few weeks asking FIRST VICTIM TIER (and higher) what subject they would be excited to see as an anthology. One of the perks of being part of a paid tier is being involved in publishing decisions. Vampires? Werewolves? Witches? Liminal Spaces? Slashers? There are so many options and ideas I have and I don't want to release one in an area that has already had an anthology recently.

In between doing all of that I did find time to read and watch things.

BOOKS I update my Storygraph (deathbytbrbooks more than my GR Stephanie Rose)
The Dorians by Nick Cutter
Molka by Monika Kim
The Fox and the Devil by Kiersten White

All of these kept me engaged in the story and that's the biggest trouble I have when reading.

Currently reading: Fabulous Bodies by Chuck Tingle and Tea You at the Altar by Rebecca Thorne

Next Up - I received an uncorrected bound manuscript of The Secret Lives of Zombie Wives by Barbara Truelove and I cannot WAIT to start it this weekend!

SHOWS
NEW
24 in 24 Love cooking shows
Widows Bay Fun and hilarious. Cozy horror.
Euphoria I do NOT love this season but I have to finish it.

FILMS - I'm on LetterBoxd - horrormaven13
Faces of Death First horror film I've seen this year that I lived up to the hype.
Project Hail Mary Amaze amaze amaze!

Rewatches that I'm enjoying as I pretend to live in the late 90s/early 00s.
Daria
Sabrina the Teenage Witch
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The X-Files
Law and Order: SVU
The Hills

That's all for this week! I hope you get some time to read and watch and relax. Oh and I started a new Instagram for my personal nerdom. If you're interested my handle is: stephanieisspooky

xoxo

Spooky Girl

April was full of strange women, unraveling minds, body horror, caves, literary magic, and at least one scene that permanently altered my brain chemistry.

📖 LOVED

The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer is easily in my top three books of 2026 so far. I related to the main character so much and the anxiety running through this book felt painfully real at times. The tension never lets up. It just slowly tightens around you until every interaction feels wrong in the best possible way. One of those books where you start questioning everyone and everything alongside the protagonist.

Decomposition Book by Sara Van Os completely caught me off guard. Weird, sexy, feral, uncomfortable. Exactly the kind of book I love stumbling into without really knowing what I’m about to experience. It felt messy and human and emotionally raw in a way that really worked for me.

Headlights by C.J. Leede proves once again that C.J. Leede apparently refuses to let readers know peace. There is at least one scene in this book that is going to live in my brain forever like a cursed VHS tape. I loved this more than American Rapture, though Maeve Fly still owns a permanent section of my soul.

The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer had me from the first few pages. A blend of whodunnit, fantasy, and literary love letter with the kind of cozy magic that makes you want to disappear into a rainy bookstore for a weekend. I already know this is a reread for me.

Her Last Breath by Taylor Adams was our book club pick and Taylor Adams really knows how to create panic-inducing situations. The cave imagery especially got under my skin in a very claustrophobic way.

Dead Weight by Hildur Knútsdóttir... that ending. Absolute chef’s kiss. Quietly unsettling in a way that sneaks up on you.

📖 LIKED

The Cove by Claire Rose had a really strong atmosphere, but the plot became a little confusing for me by the end.

My Favorite Thing Is Monsters Part 2 by Emil Ferris is still visually incredible, but I just wasn’t as emotionally pulled in as I hoped to be.

Obstetrix by Naomi Kritzer had a fascinating concept, though the pacing felt a little repetitive for me at times.

📖 NOT FOR ME

Odessa by Gabrielle Sher just never fully grabbed my attention.

Seek the Traitor’s Son by Veronica Roth leaned way too heavily into world building for my personal taste.

Body Count by Codie Crowley unfortunately just didn’t work for me. The dialogue and character voices felt a little too cringy and whiny.

Abyss by Nicholas Binge sounded like something I should have loved on paper, but it never fully hooked me emotionally.

Shoot Me in the Face on a Beautiful Day by Emma E. Murray wasn’t bad at all, it was just a little too emotionally heavy for me personally without enough light breaking through by the end.

❓What was your favorite read of April?

There’s something kind of funny about this time of year for me. As of tomorrow, we’re halfway to Halloween which feels like a holiday I can actually get behind. And today is Beltane, which is technically the halfway point to summer… my least favorite season. So I’m standing right in the middle of two very different energies and trying to appreciate both.

Last night was Hexxenacht, or Witches Night. Traditionally it’s tied to warding off spirits and welcoming in spring energy, but for me it looked like a virtual ritual, lighting a few candles, and settling in with The Craft and Sabrina the Teenage Witch. It felt quiet and a little nostalgic, which was exactly what I needed.

Beltane has a very different feel. It’s a fire festival, all about life, growth, desire, and everything waking up at once. It’s louder in energy, more alive, a little harder to ignore. Instead of rituals inside, I spent today out exploring Whidbey Island. It’s close enough to home that it still feels familiar, but different enough that I can start pulling pieces of it into Woods Bay. The mix of water, trees, and small town spaces felt right for that kind of inspiration.

Tonight I’m leaning into the slower side of it. I’ll sit with the full Flower Moon, pull a tarot spread, and just see what comes up. I’m planning to leave out some water with an intention and drink it tomorrow. Nothing complicated, just taking a moment to pause and let things settle.

I was outside most of today, and honestly that felt like the most important part. Being in nature, noticing things, letting everything feel a little more vivid than usual. Beltane is supposed to be about life at its peak, and even if summer isn’t my season, I can still meet it halfway.

I shared a post on Instagram recently but wanted to give even more book recs on here for Pocahontas characters and the reasons I chose each one.

THOMAS
The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling & Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid
Both stories center control, repression, and systems that look orderly on the surface but are quietly rotting underneath. That tension between logic and something deeply wrong mirrors Thomas perfectly.

KOCOUM
Never Whistle at Night: Back for Blood & Bad Cree by Jessica Johns
These both ground horror in ancestry, land, and generational memory. Together, they reflect Kocoum’s connection to community and the idea that the past is never truly separate from the present.

JOHN
The Hacienda by Isabel Canas & The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell
Both books trap their characters in controlled, domestic spaces that slowly turn hostile. That loss of authority in the face of something supernatural lines up with John’s need for certainty.

RATCLIFFE
Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin & The Violence by Delilah S. Dawson
These are both brutal, society-breaking narratives where survival requires adaptation to constant violence. They match Ratcliffe’s world, where chaos isn’t an anomaly, it’s the baseline.

FLIT
Maeve Fly by CJ Leede & A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers
Both lean into indulgence, performance, and female rage with a sharp, self-aware edge. That mix of chaos and control fits Flit’s unpredictable, almost theatrical energy.

MEEKO
Nothing Tastes As Good by Luke Dumas & Bloom by Delilah S. Dawson
These stories start soft and intimate before shifting into obsession and transformation. That progression mirrors Meeko’s curiosity and loyalty evolving into something more complicated.

PERCY
Diavola by Jennifer Thorne + Rouge by Mona Awad
Both focus on vanity, image, and identity unraveling under pressure. They reflect Percy’s arc from surface-level entitlement to a more self-aware, fractured perspective.

POCAHONTAS
White Horse by Erika T. Wurth + Shutter by Ramona Emerson
These both center cultural memory, spiritual responsibility, and connection to land. Together, they align with Pocahontas’s role as someone who carries history rather than escapes it.

I'm definitely going to do more of these types of posts. Everyone has their own niche on Instagram and I think since I love watching and reading so much it's a great way to combine the two. Also, the books for each character are readalikes so generally if you like one you'll like the other.

I've been working on the outline for Book 2 in the Woods Bay series. I'm not used to outlining but after spending so much time on editing and rewriting Small Town Slasher I know it's needed. It's just not something that comes natural to me. I love brainstorming ideas and tucking certain ones away for future books. It's challenging. I hope to not put too many things in one book, subplots, locations, characters, etc. With the shit show that is America right now it's challenging to want to write.

Part of me just wants to consume media. Books. Shows. Movies. Games. Old. New. Mostly filled with nostalgia and comfort. So I meet in the middle. I have been working on my outline a few hours every day. Tinkering with it. It's challenging to focus but I'm doing my best. I definitely feel like I'm dragging my depression around some days like a piece of tiny piece of tape you can't get off of your finger. Or like Clark in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation where he can't get the sap off of his fingers when he's reading a magazine in bed.

See I can't even write a post without referencing something. Some authors I know don't read or watch much while others do and I find it fascinating. As a child of the 80s I didn't have a lot of money so we would rent movies and watch tv between riding around on our bikes or going to the mall. Now that I'm disabled I enjoy media because it's the one way I can travel in our world or fictional ones.

What media have you found comfort in recently?