Hello amphibian friends, now when our pond might be covered with a thin layer of ice, and daylight is scarce as candy in a grave we approach Halloween and All Saint Nights. Now it's time to write about the dead and undead. I don't mean the cuteness of a trick or treat, but the real fear a hides beneath your bed. Bring out the beasts at night and make it hard for me to sleep. It could be vampires, ghosts or werewolves. It can be zombies or it can be just the scene of a graveyard at night. Imagine that trees are claws or the wind itself a demon’s breath.
The Vampire Bride [I am come-I am come!]
Henry Thomas Liddell
“I am come—I am come! once again from the tomb,
In return for the ring which you gave;
That I am thine, and that thou art mine,
This nuptial pledge receive.”
He lay like a corse ‘neath the Demon’s force,
And she wrapp’d him in a shround;
And she fixed her teeth his heart beneath,
And she drank of the warm life-blood!
And ever and anon murmur’d the lips of stone,
“Soft and warm is this couch of thine,
Thou’lt to-morrow be laid on a colder bed—
Albert! that bed will be mine!”
In return for the ring which you gave;
That I am thine, and that thou art mine,
This nuptial pledge receive.”
He lay like a corse ‘neath the Demon’s force,
And she wrapp’d him in a shround;
And she fixed her teeth his heart beneath,
And she drank of the warm life-blood!
And ever and anon murmur’d the lips of stone,
“Soft and warm is this couch of thine,
Thou’lt to-morrow be laid on a colder bed—
Albert! that bed will be mine!”
If you want an extra challenge use the beasts as metaphor. A vampire might be illicit love, the ghost your conscious like old Marlow was for Scrooge or the werewolf stand for loneliness.
The Vampire by Edvard Munch
You can also write from the beast’s persona. Walk with the zombies, stalk with the vampire or howl with the werewolf. Watch the corpse bride and delight in decomposing flesh.
Link up your poem below and have fun choosing tricks instead of treats.
