Bite-Sized Horror News
Horror Book Bits
- Congratulations to Emma E. Murray for winning the Horror category of the 2026 Next Generation Indie Books Awards with her novel Shoot Me in the Face on a Beautiful Day.
- J.D. Barker’s serial killer book series 4MK is getting a TV series adaptation.
- Wendy Walker’s psychological thriller novel What Remains is getting a TV series adaptation.
- Fay Weldon’s 1980 supernatural novel Puffball is getting a TV series adaptation.
- John Carpenter’s first original graphic novel Cathedral releases on 4 Aug 2026 and Carpenter is also working on an accompanying metal album. One track from the album has been released on YouTube.
- 3 of Clive Barker’s Hellraiser comics are being recreated and released in Aug 2026: Hellraiser Facsimile Edition #1, The Harrowers Facsimile Edition #1, and Pinhead Facsimile Edition #1.
- Dan Aykroyd’s first novel Soulhider releases on 27 Oct 2026 and is about “a regular guy caught up in a battle between warring aliens”.
- A new Stephen King short story, Dinah’s Hat, exploring a family’s dark secret is available in the June issue of The Atlantic, but you need a subscription or a 30-day free trial to read it. Let me know if it’s any good.
Horror Movie Morsels
- The sequel to 2023 shark horror movie The Black Demon is called The Black Demon: Atlantis and takes place at a remote maximum-security prison in the Pacific Ocean.
- Director Curry Barker says he’s interested in doing Obsession 2 and/or an anthology series based on the Obsession concept.
- Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark 2 is “stuck in a bit of a copyright ownership hell with two studios that don’t exist anymore”.
- Two movies in new supernatural franchise Birds of the Soul will be shot back-to-back. The first movie is about a remote village, unexplained events, and wartime paranoia colliding with ancient mythology and supernatural forces.
- Supernatural comedy horror movie Turmoil in the Toybox has reached its Kickstarter funding goal but you can still get Late Pledge rewards if you want to add some money to the campaign.
- Markiplier’s sci-fi horror movie Iron Lung releases on YouTube on 31 May 2026.
Horror TV Treats
- Matthew Lillard and Frank Welker will be voicing Shaggy and Scooby Doo in a new anime series called Yokoso Scooby Doo! set in Japan.
- FX has officially ordered a Very Young Frankenstein series based on Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein.
- American Horror Story: Freak Show characters Twisty the Clown and Paul the Illustrated Seal will be back for American Horror Story Season 13.
- Season 2 of Shudder’s Hell Motel horror anthology series is called Hell Motel: Murder at Red Mountain.
Horror Game Goodies
- Pre-registration is open for The Walking Dead: Aftermath, a free-to-play mobile game. If you pre-register, you get exclusive launch rewards.
Horror Music Moments
- Californian trio Xiu Xiu’s album based on 1977 horror movie Eraserhead releases on 10 Jul 2026.
Horror Festival Fare
- Sinners will be one of the haunted house experiences at this year’s Halloween Horror Nights.
“I discovered that what most people call creepy, scary, and spooky, I call comfy, cozy, and home.”
― Zak Bagans, Dark World
Writing Horror
Some places accepting submissions
Heavy are the Years (Bonedust Press)
Pays: 5 cents per word and $100 per illustration, plus royalties, upon successful crowdfunding
Looking for: 15-25k words of speculative fiction (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, a genre mash-up, or something not-quite-defined) about the weight of time on our minds, our bodies, and our souls
Submissions close: 31 May 2026
Hatching Season charity anthology (Devil’s Rock Books)
Pays: All profits from the book will be donated to Mind, which provides vital support for people experiencing mental health challenges
Looking for: Stories that explore infestation in any form
Submissions close: 28 Jun 2026
Small Town Weirdness anthology (Kilter & Rammel Publishing)
Pays: £20 plus a copy of both the print and e-book editions
Looking for: Stories set in places where the ordinary or mundane sits alongside the bizarre or uncanny
Submissions close: 30 Jun 2026
Spookane: A Spokane-Based Horror Anthology (Mystery Rebellion)
Pays: Profit-sharing through PubShare + complimentary ebook copy
Looking for: Stories, real and imagined, about the creepier side of the Lilac City
Submissions close: 31 Jul 2026
Upcoming submission calls
Tales to Terrify
Pays: 3 cents per word for original stories, 1 cent per word for reprints
Looking for: 2-10k words of horror, dark fantasy, and other disturbing fiction
Submissions open 1 Jun 2026
“Certainly, the terror of a deserted house swells in geometrical rather than arithmetical progression as houses multiply to form a city of stark desolation.”
― H.P. Lovecraft, The Shadow over Innsmouth
Trailer Horror
A taste of things to come.
Horror TV Trailers
The Vampire Lestat, extended look. Vampire horror. An undying life of failure. AMC+, 7 Jun 2026
Horror Movie Trailers
Amityville Shark House. Ghost horror. Richard discovers an ominous shark idol hidden beneath the decaying floorboards and unknowingly awakens an ancient and savage force. VOD, 30 Jun 2026
Burrow. Creature horror. A woman joins her friends on a drug-infused getaway that spirals into a night of horror when an alien insect burrows into one of them, transforming him into a vicious man-eating creature. Release date TBA
Chronicles of Depression. Psychological horror. In a 1950s psychiatric hospital, a series of recorded patient interviews uncovers the “Shadow Man”, a sinister presence emerging from the hospital’s experiments. Release date TBA
Her Private Hell. Serial killer horror. A troubled young woman searches for her father after a mysterious mist engulfs a futuristic metropolis. Cinema, 24 Jul 2026
Hope. Monster horror. Police investigate a mysterious creature wreaking havoc on a remote South Korean village community. Release date TBA
Looky-Loo: Part II. Slasher horror. The faceless killer returns with even grander ambitions. Release date TBA
Strung. Psychological horror. A talented violinist’s new job tutoring for an elite family turns into a battle for safety and sanity when she realizes her past links to the family’s patriarch. Peacock, 26 Jun 2026
The Summoning. Urban legend horror. Three teens summon Baby Blue and survival depends on uncovering the past to escape a mother’s wrath from beyond the grave. VOD, 5 Jun 2026
Victorian Psycho. Gothic horror. In Victorian England, an eccentric governess arrives at a remote gothic manor, where strange happenings stir suspicion that she’s not what she seems. Cinema, 25 Sep 2026
Horror Game Trailers
Abide. Psychological horror. A peaceful retreat where people go to get better. A place for people to air their demons. Release date TBA
After Hell Freezes Over. Survival horror. Venture into the desolate frozen wasteland and struggle to survive in the cold, where strange creatures roam in the darkness. Release date TBA
Blue Ridge Hunting. Appalachian horror. Investigate, document, and hunt cryptids based on real sightings, legends, and eerie phenomena. Release date TBA
Inferius. Dark fantasy card horror. Assemble the perfect deck to take on the heads of each of the 9 levels of Hell. Release date TBA
“In a fleshly Tomb, I am Buried above ground.”
― William Cooper
A Selection of Horror Books Released this Week
10 horror books this week. Themes: Supernatural, psychological, dark fantasy, vampire, gothic, dystopian, and horror movie non-fiction
See: A Selection of Horror Books Released, 17 to 23 May 2026
“…Silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of Hill House, and whatever walked there, walked alone.”
― Shirley Jackson, The Haunting of Hill House
A Selection of Horror Movies Released this Week
10 horror movies this week. Themes: Supernatural, psychological, vampire, survival, and zombie horror
See: A Selection of Horror Movies Released, 17 to 23 May 2026
“I save lives each day because there are people out there who need to be stabbed. And I don’t stab them.”
― A.J. Sherwood, Jon’s Spooky Corpse Conundrum
A Selection of Horror TV Shows Released this Week
1 horror TV show this week. Theme: Sci-fi horror
See: A Selection of Horror TV Shows Released, 17 to 23 May 2026
“None of us want to see portents and omens, no matter how much we like our ghost stories and the spooky films … We want peace and rationality and routine.”
― Stephen King, The Stand
What We Were Thinking About this Week
What We’ve Been Reading This Week
Angel Down by Daniel Kraus (novel)
You by Caroline Kepnes (novel)
Dark Carnival by Ray Bradbury (collection)
What We’re Recommending This Week
Did you know I recommend one horror book every day of the year on Bluesky, Threads, Facebook, and Twitter?
This week’s horror book recommendations
Theme: Possession horror
The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty
“…the beginning of the horror passed almost unnoticed…”
The Case Against Satan by Ray Russell
“His trial began with a series of minor incidents worthy of remark.”
Entity by Justin Boote
“Open your eyes, Danny. Open them and see.”
The Sensitives by Rick Wood
“I’m sorry, Kaylee’s not here right now … Can I take a message?”
Tethered to Darkness by Justin Holley
“The most beautiful of surroundings can harbor the vilest of occurrences…”
DIY Exorcism by David Washburn
“I’m not saying he’s bad, but his father ran things so much smoother.”
My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix
“The devil is loud and brash and full of drama.”
“Craft protects one from facing endless expanding realities—the terror, let us say, of losing your novel in the depths of philosophical insights you are not ready to live with.”
― Norman Mailer, The Spooky Art: Thoughts on Writing
Horror Fun
Graham Annable aka Grickle on Instagram
Thanks for reading
Thanks for reading. Catch you on the other side.
Jayson
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