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Horror/Scary: September 17, 2014 Issue [#6551]

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Horror/Scary


 This week: Beautiful but deadly
  Edited by: Arakun the twisted raccoon Author IconMail Icon
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Table of Contents

1. About this Newsletter
2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
7. Removal instructions

About This Newsletter

Quote for the week:“It's your gift, to see the beauty and the horror in ordinary things. It doesn't make you crazy, just different.”
~Cassandra Clare


Word from our sponsor

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Letter from the editor

Which of these is more frightening?

A) A rotting zombie

B) A snarling werewolf

C) A bloodsucking vampire

D) A beautiful butterfly resting on a flower

Most of you probably did not pick D as your first choice. But what if the rose had poison tipped thorns and the butterfly had a sting? Humans are attracted to beautiful things, so we get a shock when they turn deadly. *Shock*

Nature has many examples of beautiful things that can kill, such as tigers, hawks, and snakes. The bright colors of coral snakes and poison dart frogs are an advertisement that says, "Stay away. I'm dangerous." Monarch butterflies contain a poison from the milkweed leaves they eat. Any bird that eats one will get so sick that it will never eat another one as long as it lives. Most people wouldn't think of spiders as beautiful, but many of them have wonderful color patterns, and their webs have a delicate symmetry.

Mythology also contains examples of lethal beauty, such as the sirens who captivated sailors with their lovely songs. Unable to resist the siren song, the sailors met death when they wrecked their boats on the rocks. Other dark beauties of mythology include the Morrigan of Celtic myth and Persephone, the Iron Queen of the Underworld. While these characters are dark forces of nature rather than villains, they could be great horror characters.

Disney movies even have some beautiful dark characters, such as Maleficent from "Sleeping Beauty" and the Wicked Queen in the story of Snow White.

The short story "Rappacini's Daughter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne tells of a doctor who experimented with poisonous plants. His daughter, Beatrice, grew up with the plants and became resistant to the poison, and in the process, became poisonous to other humans. Beatrice isn't evil, but a victim of her father's obsession with poison.

Something to try: Write a horror story that features a beautiful villain.


Editor's Picks

 
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Longevity  Open in new Window. (13+)
Youth is wasted on the young... (Quill award winner)
#1953051 by Bilal Latif Author IconMail Icon


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Tears in the Gathering Mist Open in new Window. (13+)
A tale of discovery and misunderstanding
#1970647 by Escape Artist Author IconMail Icon


The Shop Open in new Window. (18+)
I had been in a lot of antique shops that day and this one was by far the strangest.
#2007388 by Duane Engelhardt Author IconMail Icon


 
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Of Like Mind Open in new Window. (GC)
Her beautiful smile had an intoxicating effect -- which made her a "must have." ToT Aug'14
#2006341 by Indelible Ink Author IconMail Icon


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Ask & Answer

Question for next time: What topics would you like to see in future horror newsletters?

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