Next year's topics?

Is it too early to start thinking about what topics we'd like to choose if we continue next year? How were this year's topics picked?

I think PolymathicMonkey, who created this group, picked them.

>1 Moomin_Mama: thanks for starting this thread. Here are some first thoughts, off the top of my head.

I'd be happy to repeat some of the topics (especially graphic novels) as well as see new ones.

I wouldn't mind combining the various gothic categories into just one or two (maybe "early" classic/gothic, and "later", such as after 1930).

Apart from sub-genres, I'd be interested in categories like:
- books made into or based on movies
- Stephen King and his prolific family (esp. Joe Hill)
- haunted houses (though the current broader category, "hauntings and ghost stories", is fine)

If we're throwing out some ideas, here are some off the top of my head:
- monsters
- psychos
- paranormal
- end of the world
- 1970s - I think this decade was really a formative one for modern horror; so many great choices

Would like to repeat the women category and short stories

I like all of the suggestions in >3 mathgirl40: especially reducing the gothic categories, and I will always read a Stephen King or Joe Hill book at any excuse.

>2 sturlington: Hopefully PolymathicMonkey pops back in and joins us, her efforts have been very much appreciated and I think we have a good thing going thanks to her :)

>3 mathgirl40: I thought the same about the Gothic and older categories - maybe 'Early Gothic to Late Victorian'? Movie-linked books is a fantastic idea (maybe we could watch the movies too), and you are talking my language with 'Haunted Houses'.

>4 sturlington: I like 'End of the World'! 1970s is a good idea too, the more I think about it.

My own ideas:
- Early Gothic to Late Victorian
- Short Stories (not combined with anything else - all told we didn't read many)
- Graphic Novels combined with Children's and YA
- Non-English (not combined either for same reasons as Short Stories)
- Non-Fiction (true crime, investigations of hauntings, Forteana - cryptids, raining frogs, etc, Ripperology, and hoaxes)

>4 sturlington: All those categories sound good, especially "end of the world". I'd love to do a 1970's category. Actually, when I suggested the books/movies topic, I really did have the 1970's in mind: The Amityville Horror, The Exorcist, Carrie, Jaws, The Omen, etc. So I would be OK with doing these two topics together or separately.

>5 Moomin_Mama: I'm good with all these categories too! I think we need 15 months in the year. :) I particularly like the idea of a non-fiction category.

I also like your idea of watching the movies along with reading the books if we do a movie/book theme. I have to confess ... I've always wanted to watch the movies I listed above but I never have. I'm rather timid when it comes to scary movies but I'm hoping that, if I read the book first, I won't find the movie so frightening. :)

I agree splitting the Gothic into 2 categories Early-Late Victorian and then Post-Victorian or whatever you want to call it. ;-) Pre 1930s and 1930s and later would work for me too.

Short stories would be a great category all by itself because you could read some traditional like Poe or some newer like Gaiman etc....

While women was great you can just about find a woman author for many categories so I would also like to see Non-English be a standalone category next year.

I would love to do Graphic Novels again next year. I am perfectly okay with combining the category with Children's and YA.

I could live with or without 1970s. Lots to choose from if we pick this category.

Definitely haunting and ghost stories because there is SO much to choose from.

Supernatural would be good for monsters, vamps, wolves etc...

Psychological I like because lots can fit into this category.

That's all I've got. I'm sure I'll come up with more and/or change my mind. I'm pretty open to suggestions.

>6 mathgirl40: Me too (timid watching horrors) - doesn't seem to stop me, but I couldn't watch them all the time. I like sleeping with the lights out :)

>7 luvamystery65: Quite a lot of the categories are quite broad, which is great as it gives us all lots of leeway to pick and choose.

It's only a few of us but so far it seems that cutting down the number of Gothics is popular, plus splitting some categories and maybe re-combining them with other things. I reckon this would leave us picking between only a few new topics to fill the gaps. Narrowing those few would be the way to go, which of course we don't have to do just yet. I agree with >7 luvamystery65: that I'm open to suggestions - as long as I have a basic list of topics as a guide, I'm happy. I'm also happy, if there's no agreement between us, to re-do a year with what we have, because most topics give quite a bit of flexibility.

>1 Moomin_Mama: Nope, it's not too early to get next year's choices picked out, imho. :)

>3 mathgirl40: Ditto. I really liked the graphic novel category. And I love your addition: "books made into or based on movies." Could that include short stories, especially since some writers (like Stephen King) have movies based on their short stories? And would novelizations be ok to add to this category?

>5 Moomin_Mama: I do like the nonfiction idea. That'll be an interesting mix of books.

Does anyone think combining 'Books made into or based on movies' with 'The 1970's' would work? I'm with mathgirl, as I'd like to cover both 1970's books and film; Sturlington likes the 70's; everyone else so far likes the movie theme and hasn't mentioned the 70's. Just an idea if we can't fit both in when we come to decide.

>4 sturlington: The 70's was such a good decade for horror but I'm sure I've missed loads. As it's a decade you're particularly keen on I'd love some recommendations. Burnt Offerings immediately came to mind as I've never seen the film or read the book, but have heard good things about both.

>9 saraslibrary: I've always wanted to read about Borley Rectory and The Enfield Poltergeist (The Highgate Vampire too but it's out of print and expensive). I'm also intrigued by the story of Jack the Ripper.

>10 Moomin_Mama: I think books made into movies would cover most of the most awesome 1970s books plus include a few earlier and later ones. Yes, Whatever happened to Baby Jane? and Silver Bullet Cycle of the Werewolf I'm talking about you.

>9 saraslibrary: Certainly, short stories and novelizations would fit the book/movie theme!

>10 Moomin_Mama: I think having a "books related to movies and/or 1970's" topic would be fine. We could pick books that fit into either category, and there are plenty that fit into both.

Though I've stated some preferences, I'm really OK with whatever categories are chosen. They all sound good to me.

How about a category called early modern horror? I'm looking right now at Stephen King's Danse Macabre for inspiration, which discusses horror film and fiction from 1950-1980. There's a great reading list at the back, as well as tons of movies, most of them based on books. I think it could be a fun period to explore, especially since there was a focus on early Gothic this year.

I have Burnt Offerings on my wish list, I'll probably get to it sooner rather than later. Might be a good Halloween read.

Some authors from King's list: Thomas Tryon, Richard Matheson, Robert Bloch, Ray Bradbury, Jack Finney, James Herbert, Ira Levin, Anne Rice, Peter Straub, John Wyndham. And of course most of the best King books were published in the 1970s and pretty much all were made into movies.

Just realized I could read Burnt Offerings next month for the hauntings category. Probably will!

>13 sturlington: I love this idea instead of just limiting to 1970s or movies.

>13 sturlington: 'Early Modern Horror' sounds really good - it's broader than just the 70s therefore more justifiable to have it on its own, if that's what people prefer, and you're right, there's an excellent reading list in Danse Macabre.

>10 Moomin_Mama: I guess combining the two depends on whether we have too many categories or something. I haven't been watching a whole lot of movies that have been based on 1970's stories/books, or even 70's movies, for that matter.

I'll admit I'm very ignorant about Borley Rectory, The Enfield Poltergeist, and The Highgate Vampire. (Holy crap! You weren't joking about the latter book being expensive. I just saw what it was going for on Amazon--$99+.) Jack the Ripper, of course, you'll find tons on. :)

>11 luvamystery65: Yeah, Silver Bullet/Cycle of the Werewolf is a good one. :)

>12 mathgirl40: Cool! :) I'm glad those are acceptable.

>13 sturlington: & >16 Moomin_Mama: Thanks for bringing up Danse Macabre! :) I'll have to flip to that section.

>17 saraslibrary: The Enfield Poltergeist is hysterical. There's plenty of footage on YouTube. Clearly it's two sisters playing up.

I did create an LT list for the books recommended in Danse Macabre, if anyone wants a look:

http://www.librarything.com/list/275/all/Stephen-Kings-Danse-Macabre-reading-lis...

>18 Moomin_Mama: I'll have to check it out on YouTube sometime. Thanks! :) Oh, and thanks again for linking to the Danse Macabre list. I've favorited it.

Just saw this thread!

>3 mathgirl40: I agree with this:
"I wouldn't mind combining the various gothic categories into just one or two (maybe "early" classic/gothic, and "later", such as after 1930)."

>4 sturlington: I like all of these!

- monsters
- psychos
- paranormal
- end of the world
- 1970s

>5 Moomin_Mama: I really like this one:
- Non-Fiction

Sorry, I came in late and am replying individually to most of the posts! Not sure if I said it already, but somewhere along the way (in a couple of places, I think), a movie category was mentioned. I like this one, too.

The more good ideas I read here, I wonder if just going with one gothic month would work? That makes it easier to fit in the new suggestions we're getting!

Are we going to vote on them?

>13 sturlington: For early modern horror, you're thinking 1950-1980, then? I like that idea. It expands the 1970s theme.

>25 LibraryCin: Yes, that's where I settled, based in large part on Danse Macabre.

>24 LibraryCin: there is so much early gothic before Victorian and so much Victorian I would love to see 2 months. If not then maybe a free month?

Posting on my phone sorry for any errors.

>24 LibraryCin: One gothic month sounds good to me. I guess we'll have to take a vote at some point...

>28 Moomin_Mama: Maybe voting at the end of the year so everyone will have a chance to voice their opinions? I'm not sure if everyone's seen this thread yet. Or is December too far away?

>29 saraslibrary: I'm not sure how or when everyone wants to do it, I assumed someone else would figure that one out ;)

Maybe start voting mid-November and finalize by mid-December. That way we are done before the holidays. We can also take volunteers to host each month's thread.

>31 luvamystery65: I'll be happy to host a month or two.

>31 luvamystery65: Sounds like a plan!

I would also love to host a month.

>31 luvamystery65: What >33 sturlington: said :)

Also happy to host a month or two.

I'm also willing to host a month.

>30 Moomin_Mama: If only everything in life worked itself out. I usually just consulted my magic 8 ball until I got the answer I liked. ;)

>31 luvamystery65: Great idea! I'm in agreement with all that. I think I'll pass on hosting a month, though. :)

>37 saraslibrary: Ha! That's such an American answer - you hardly see them here. Us Brits don't have our own magical oracle to consult, which is why we dither. Dithering is very British :D

>38 Moomin_Mama: My sympathies to you Brits without any magical oracles. ;) There are tons of spin-offs of the Magic 8 ball here, like the instant excuse ball, which I'm hoping will eventually have a mini version made for those quick!-my-brain's-stopped-working times.

Dithering is fun...that is, if it's what I think it means. *scratches head* Goofing off? You could always flip a penny or something. I have yet to master that skill. I usually end up flipping it into oblivion and the cheapskate in me goes in manic mode trying to find it.

>39 saraslibrary: Dithering is being indecisive about doing something to the point it doesn't get done - is that the same as goofing off? I'm trying to think of something dither-y... say you can't make up your mind what to wear for an occasion and keep changing your mind - the blue dress, the red dress - but in the end you miss the occasion because you can't decide!

No need for sympathy, I found my own little oracle, an Unazukin:

http://saipakpak.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/creative-super-cutie-unazukin-dolls.html

I need to replace her batteries so I'm lacking her guidance at the moment :)

>39 saraslibrary: & >40 Moomin_Mama: Dithering that is just being Mexican! LOL! I am American but of Mexican descent, brought up on the border. Everything is always mañana (tomorrow). We are famous for dithering! I love it. My new word for the week.

>41 luvamystery65: It's not just us Brits then! Glad you like dithering, it's a great word.

>40 Moomin_Mama: Good definition. :) And I guess goofing off and dithering about are kind of different. But I think I'll still use it when I'm in the work bathroom and someone is knocking and needs in badly. Me: "I'm dithering! I'll be out in a sec!"

Ooh, Unazukin dolls! Those are oddly cute and creepy at the same time. They look like the Russian dolls that fit inside each other. So you can only ask them yes or no questions, I'm guessing by the page?

>41 luvamystery65: But in that heat, you have to dither or you'll die from heatstroke. So dither away! :) Or wait, maybe I'm thinking of siestas during the day. We really need those at work here in the US, as well as some paid dithering time. Good words! I wonder how I can convince my bosses to add those to our job duties AND get paid for doing them. ;)

>42 Moomin_Mama: Naw. It's a multi-cultural thing. Every country and culture has their word/slang for being indecisive and wasting time. :)

>43 saraslibrary: Unazukin can only answer in four ways: 1 or 2 nods (for yes or HELL YES!) and 1 or 2 shakes (for no or HELL NO!). Mine is currently on my desk, staring at me - yes she is a bit creepy... although I think she looks a little like an egg or a Weeble :)

>44 Moomin_Mama: I remember weebles!!! I had some with a little weeble house. I also remember a little weeble tricycle. :-)

hmmm. Obviously I need to read this thread from the beginning!

>45 LibraryCin: "Weebles wobble but they don't fall down" :D

>47 Moomin_Mama: We seem to have gone off track, as usual.

>47 Moomin_Mama: Yes!!!

Any thoughts to setting up a wiki to record our reads that fit the themes next year? I think the wikis are a great idea and can sometimes help with suggestions when we are stuck.

(I don't know how to set up the wikis here, so I'm just throwing the idea out there!)

>49 LibraryCin: I wouldn't know how to go about it. I'm new to these online group reads (this is my first and only), although I've heard they are used. How do they work? Do you add as you read or put up a list at the beginning of the year? I can see the benefit of having all the books read in one place, as opposed to going through each thread.

>49 LibraryCin: >50 Moomin_Mama: I've set up Wiki pages before, for other group reads, and can help with that. Sorry I've not been too active these past weeks. It's been a busy summer (in a good way) with work, family and vacation, but I'll have more time later and am definitely willing to help with organization for next year.

I maintain the wikis for the 75ers Challenge, so am happy to help get things set up.

>51 mathgirl40: No need to apologise for having a life!

>51 mathgirl40: >52 drneutron: Thank you both for offering to organise the Wiki :)

>50 Moomin_Mama: It seems that different people update the wiki at different rates/intervals/times. I wait until I'm finished my book before adding it. Others fill in their planned reads once they know what they'd like to read (one of the extra bits that people add in when they finish is '''COMPLETED''').

(ETA: In the wiki, the ''' on either end of the word COMPLETED will bold it.)

I've started adding in my rating, as well, in case that helps anyone out (yes, I do realize different people consider 3, 4 or 5 stars differently, but I still think it gives an idea), though no one else seems to have followed suit with that in the wikis for the Category Challenge group.

And thank you to those who have offered to help set up a wiki for next year!

I'm a little belated, but thank you to whomever plans on doing the wiki page for this group! Oodles of chocolate, books, and fake cash to you! :)

>53 Moomin_Mama: LOL! I was thinking the same thing: No need to apologise for having a life!

>54 LibraryCin: >55 saraslibrary: Thanks for those words, but I do wish I can keep up with all my favourite threads! :)

More on Wiki pages ....

My offer to help start a Wiki page for next year still stands, but for those of you who are interested in learning how to add a book or start a page yourself, I've created a thread in the Category Challenge group for this topic:
http://www.librarything.com/topic/195220

I just want to say that I have really been enjoying this group! I know we are a small group, but I think our discussions are fun and lively and supportive, and they have revived my interest in reading horror. I'm really looking forward to next year.

>58 sturlington: Likewise! For this year I decided to get through my charity shop stash of horrors, so it's been stuff I've meant to get round to for ages, but for next year I'm going to try a lot of the books recommended by members of the group this year. As much as I love horror I'd really fallen out of touch with the genre, and I'm so glad to have been guided back into it in the company of such enthusiastic and interesting people.

>58 sturlington: and >59 Moomin_Mama: Agreed! I used to read soooo much horror in high school (longer ago than I'd like to mention...*cough*the 80s*cough*), but got away from it. I was still reading something here or there occasionally, but not much. It's nice to focus more on it and try to get to at least one per month!

>57 mathgirl40: Awesome, thank you for the link! :) I would like to help out if/when I can, so I'll study more on that thread. Thanks again!

>58 sturlington: I couldn't have said it better. Same here. :) Plus I really need a horror group like this one to get my TBR pile under control.

>59 Moomin_Mama: Ah, the loved/hated "book bullets." ;) I try to keep recommendations in mind when I'm at work or out shopping, but I think for me I need to focus on the books I own. And I know what you mean about falling out of touch with horror. I was glancing back through my reads over the years, and I really haven't read a lot of horror in the past few years or so. I watched quite a few horror movies, sure, but not enough books that gave me the willies. (Those are hard to find anyway, horror or other--true crime, thriller/mysteries, etc.)

And agreed: I love everyone's individual tastes and enthusiasm for certain months. It's fun to get different views on sub-genres of horror, too, because there's so much about horror I don't know.

>60 LibraryCin: Same here! :D My biggest years of horror-reading was in middle and high school, only a decade after you (the 90's). You got the better years of horror, or at least when it was in full-swing. :) Sadly, I've noticed horror has been dwindling, though it always puts a smile on my face to see horror sections in bookstores and at library book sales. So, yes, horror isn't dead! :)

I also read a lot of horror in high school. LibraryCin and I are of an age. Stephen King was my gateway drug. When I discovered him, I read everything I could get my hands on. But a lot of it was bad. I have to credit Joe Hill with pulling me back in. I'd like to seek out more women writing horror, or at least thrillers. Shirley Jackson has become one of my favorite writers, and I'm starting to get into Patricia Highsmith,.

Yes, Stephen King was the author who really got me into horror, as well. I'm happy I'm enjoying Joe Hill's books now, too. I loved IT! It kept me up completely freaked out a few times!!!

>63 LibraryCin: IT is one of my favorite books of all time.

>63 LibraryCin: I've only read it the once... I'd guess around grade 9 or so. I'd like to reread it at some point, but I rarely reread, so it's tricky for me to fit in such a long one!

>63 LibraryCin: >64 sturlington: I have fond memories of looking out for newly released Stephen King books from my local bookshop as a teenager. It was one and it's still a favourite of mine.

>62 sturlington: - >66 Moomin_Mama: I'm a little behind, but that's interesting Stephen King's been most of our first lead into horror fiction. He was mine, too. My mom had a few of his books around the house, but I think I watched a lot of his movie adaptations first before starting The Eyes of the Dragon in late elementary school/middle school. It's been years, though, since I've read a SK book. :(

*just very quickly skimmed but* Glad folks have enjoyed this so much, even if I did poof before it ever truly got started! Sorry about that, but glad it lived on regardless! :))

>67 saraslibrary: I loved Revival. It came out last year. Maybe we should have a king month next year. There are a couple I want to reread.

>68 .Monkey.: PMM!!! Glad you popped in! This group has been great fun. I sort of have fizzled out but I am game to jump in again soon.

>69 sturlington: I love that idea! If we go for the movie month or books from the 70s/80s whichever gets decided we can also do on the side a month long King read.

>70 luvamystery65: I'm hoping to be back around these parts on a regular basis again soon. Slowly wading my way back in now, haha, and plotting on next year's goals. :)

#71 by @PolymathicMonkey> Hurrah!

>71 .Monkey.: This group has been a lot of fun. I've read way more horror this year than I expected to. It would be great to see you around here more.

>68 .Monkey.: Welcome back! It's good to "see" you again!

Now that I've had some time to read this properly, I will just toss out some comments:
• There was an excess of Gothic focus on purpose, because that was a large part of the intent of the group's creation. ;) Gothic was mentioned in the CC ideas and I'd said how it could nearly work by itself with all its subgenres, and many people weren't very familiar with the genre, so then there was encouragement to do such a thing. :)
• All the suggestions look fine & feasible to me, though it looks like there's a couple more than 12 and some question about which things ought to get put together, so that needs some further discussion and/or voting.
• I have no problem "hosting" as many of the threads as need be. I think I saw 4? folks say so far they wanted to and I'm good with pretty much whatever (though I don't really do the apocalyptic thing so if "end of the world" is one, someone who's into that might want to take it?), as I read pretty much all types of horror, so, yeah.

So, shall we rehash the ideas all in one list here and see about refining them further? (editing to adjust as comments are added!)
- books made into/based on movies (with a focus on 1970s)
- early modern horror: 1950-1980
- Stephen King & family
- haunted houses (/ghost stories)
- monsters
- psychos Slashers, serial killers & the like
- paranormal
- end of the world
- pre-Victorian Gothic
- post-Victorian Gothic
- Short Stories
- Graphic Novels + Children's/YA
- Non-English
- Non-Fiction
- women authors
- plays

That's 15 ideas. Did I miss any? Does anyone want to suggest any more, alter any of these at all, etc?

I know the first three were discussed a bunch but I'm not sure what the actual results of that were. Movies with a focus on the '70s as one, and early modern as another? Or? Edited.

My own thoughts on the rest?
Personally, I'm not into apocalyptic stuff. Nothing against it, I read things that fall under it on rare occasion, but it's just not an interest of mine; so it's up in the air if I'd partake of that one. I think I also usually tend to view most of them more as sci-fi than horror, too, but that's just me, and of course genres are always overlapping.
I'd like to refine "psychos" a bit. a- it sounds slightly derogatory to me (it obviously wasn't intended as such, but as someone with a lot of friends with "invisible illnesses" who get touchy on certain words being tossed around, and having one myself, it's a thing I'm a bit conscious of) but more importantly b- I'm not sure what all it's supposed to cover, exactly. Slashers? Serial killers? Something else? Let's get something with a little more clarity in for that category. :) Amended. Feel free to add further thoughts!
I would probably have monsters with paranormal, for obvious reasons. ;) But if they're wanted separately that's fine. However, some things do need to be cut, so, that's definitely a suggestion for one.
One of those cuts can be reducing Gothic to one month only, since folks seem to be a bit done with that, lol. A couple of the other categories can have Gothic titles fall within it, so anyone who wants to explore more than one month of it still within the categories can look for titles that fit those (like monsters/paranormal, short stories, non-English).

What say ye?

>75 .Monkey.: Thanks for summarizing everything we've talked about so far. As you can tell, this group has generated some enthusiasm! Iirc, 1970s got expanded to early modern horror so I think we could fold those two together. I'd like to suggest another candidate for voting, which is to focus a month on women writing horror. I say we gather all the candidates, then doa big vote. Also I'd be glad to host a month.

>76 sturlington: I'm not as big on concentrating on a whole month of women writing horror because you can find women in most of the categories we are selecting, including Gothic. I would prefer to concentrate on Non-English but I will go with whatever the majority votes.

>75 .Monkey.: I would be happy to have "psychos" include what you've suggested: slashers and serials killers. And yes, I think we should not use that word to "define" the month.

I'm always conflicted on the women one. Women can & do write in all aspects of all genres, so they are certainly there if one wants to choose them, and it can be difficult choosing to make them a focus on their own when there's many options and they can simply be included amongst those. But at the same time, straight white men make up the bulk of the literary world, and many people (myself included) can need some extra pushes to get out of the trap of reading just in the SWM group, simply because there's just so much that falls into it and it can take a more conscious effort to step back and go, Wait, these last X books I've read have all been written by men! without having done so intentionally.

I definitely like non-English as a focus, though.

>79 .Monkey.: Yes, that's my thought as well, especially in a genre where women may be underrepresented.

I'm not usually a fan of the women categories, because they tend to fall in any category, but I would go for this one. As >80 sturlington: said, they are definitely underrepresented in horror.

Since there's multiple people in favor, will definitely keep it among the options, to be determined with voting.

I would be OK with combining women and non-English as we did this year, perhaps calling the theme, "underrepresented groups in horror" or "diversity in horror".

>83 mathgirl40: I would be fine with that too.

>83 mathgirl40: i like that idea!

>68 .Monkey.: Welcome back! :) And thank you for getting this all started. It's been fun!

>69 sturlington: I totally agree: we should have a Stephen King month, or something along those lines. :)

>75 .Monkey.: - >85 LibraryCin: Thanks for rehashing the lists we've been talking about. I had kind of forgotten some of them. :) I'm pretty easy to please. Whatever's on the list, I'll definitely give it a go. I'm not super crazy about gothic lit, so combining pre & post-Victorian Gothic would be awesome by me. And I do like the idea of women having their own month, because horror does tend to be written by men (or at least have male pen names). ETA: "Diversity in horror" is a great idea! That can stretch all over the board, I guess, to include LGBT, right?

>86 saraslibrary: I would think "Diversity in horror" could also include LGBT, yes! In my opinion, anyway!

>86 saraslibrary: Yes, definitely, when I suggested "diversity in horror", I did have in mind LGBT and other groups.

>87 LibraryCin: & >88 mathgirl40: Cool beans. :) That way some of my Poppy Z. Brite books will be read. Also, could the books just be LGBT-themed, or do they have to be written by a LGBT author? Because I have some gay/lesbian horror anthologies I'd like to include.

>89 saraslibrary: I'd think that would fit the topic well, though I don't want to be the one making decisions for the group here. :)

Actually, I get the feeling that we're all pretty relaxed about the challenge topics. They're offered as guidelines, and we can make our own decisions about what fits into the challenge and what doesn't.

>89 saraslibrary: >90 mathgirl40: I also think it would fit the topic well, in either case: LGBT-themed OR written by an LGBT author.

>90 mathgirl40: & >91 LibraryCin: Cool, thanks, you two! :) Yeah, I don't think our rules are really very strict, which is nice. Reading should be enjoyable, imho. And besides, it's not like anyone can do anything about someone else's reading choice. ;) I just wanted to get everyone's thoughts and opinions on category reads, because I don't know everything about each section. It's kind of fun learning new subgenres of horror, though I think goth lit and I will always be at odds. ;)

This discussion is moving along very nicely! I am really getting excited about horror again. One because it's October and two my crazy life is still crazy but it's getting more manageable. That means time for reading!

One more thing. For the past four years I have used September to catch up with my series. I follow Judy's (DeltaQueen50) September Series and Sequels thread. I take a week off work and binge on my series! It's been great fun and I look forward to it more every year.

I would ask please if we can pick a topic in September that lends itself to sequels or has series. I'm thinking Monsters or Paranormal, even Graphic Novels.

The dreaded double post! Aack! I'll come post something lovely.

Here is my stack for the month of October. I'm still trying to find a Joe Hill to read and waiting for my copy of The Anatomy Murders by Lisa Rosner.

>95 luvamystery65: Lol!

Yeah I'm sure we can manage that. Just remind once the voting is settled on, in case it's forgotten by those of us with wretched short-term memories who don't follow that. ;)

>96 .Monkey.: Thank you PMM! I figured that it would be easy to do and I will definitely post a reminder once the categories are decided on.

This thread is peopled by courageous readers, all of you much braver than I! Maybe because of that, I stopped in to see what you're considering for next year. Then I got an idea.

For me, horror experienced in the theater has always trumped the watery versions of TV and movies. And is way over the top of books. I scream because the live actors scream. It's just more real when it's "actually" happening right in front of you to breathing people who I feel I have a magical intimate relation to.

So, how about some stage horror?

"Macbeth"
"Richard III"
"Arsenic and Old Lace" heh heh
"Ghost Stories"
"The Woman in Black"
"Little One"
"Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" -- a book, a play, a musical, a movie -- everybody's happy!

Don't feel obligated to entertain (Ha!) any of these suggestions, especially not to humor this intruder. I won't be reading them. Too scary!!

Sure, plays could be added to the list to be voted on, which could include things that have been plays, not necessarily reading the play.

Did anyone have anything else to add here? I'll toss up a voting thread in a few days...

>100 .Monkey.: I take a little time off and miss loads! Nice to meet you and welcome back, PMM - have been enjoying your horror group immensely and will continue next year.

:)