Bite-Sized Horror News
Vale
- Condolences to family, friends, and fans of writer director Mark Jones. Jones was known for B-horror comedies such as Leprechaun (1992) and Rumpelstiltskin (1995). RIP.
Horror Book Bits
- The preliminary programming schedule is up for Scares That Care AuthorCon 6 (27 Feb to 1 Mar 2026).
- Congratulations to all the British Science Fiction Association award nominees, including Chuck Wendig for his blog post My Open Letter to that Open Letter About AI in Writing and Publishing and Pedro Iniguez for his children’s book The Fib. If you’re a BSFA member, you can vote up until 19 Feb 2026.
- There is a signed, limited edition of The End of the World as We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand on the way.
- Tracy Sierra’s psychological horror novel Nightwatching is getting a movie adaptation.
- Carinn Jade’s mystery thriller novel The Astrology House is getting a TV series adaptation.
Horror Movie Morsels
- Horror comedy sequel Ready or Not 2: Here I Come has been rated R for “strong bloody violence, gore, pervasive language and brief drug use”.
- Inspired by the classic Abbott and Costello monster movies, 90’s Kenan & Kel sitcom stars are reuniting to produce and star in horror comedy Kenan & Kel Meet Frankenstein.
- 2006 serial killer horror movie Seed is getting a 3rd movie: Seed: Legacy.
- Sony’s shark thriller Beneath the Storm had its name changed to Shiver but now has no title at all (maybe because there’s another Shiver shark movie releasing on 3 Jul 2026) and no release date. But the untitled movie will go straight to Netflix rather than opening in cinemas.
- Friday the 13th short film Sweet Revenge was removed from both YouTube and the website a while ago with no explanation. Now, the director says it was because it was the end of the promotional period and that “they need to work some stuff out to bring it back”.
- Vietnam War dinosaur horror movie Primitive War is getting a sequel.
- Found footage horror movie Dooba Dooba was supposed to have been released this week but Dark Sky Films says there is a delay “for a very good reason” that they’ll tell us soon.
- Congratulations (?) to the 2026 Razzie Award nominees. Horror movies making the list include War of the Worlds with 6 nominations, and In the Lost Lands, I Know What You Did Last Summer, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, and The Strangers: Chapter 2 with 1 nomination each.
- Congratulations to all the horror movie 2026 Oscar nominees: Sinners x 16 (a new record), Frankenstein x 9, Bugonia x 4, Kpop Demon Hunters x2, Weapons x 1, The Ugly Stepsister x 1.
- If you like building stuff and you like Halloween, you might like this official Rob Zombie Halloween Buildable Halloween Advent Calendar. There are 13 pieces that clip together to build a 7” Michael Myers statue.
Horror TV Treats
- Even though HBO has not officially renewed Welcome to Derry, apparently the second season is now in the works.
- David Dastmalchian’s interview show Grave Conversations (where guests relax in coffins as they talk) returns for Season 4 on 28 Jan 2026. The 10 episodes will be released one each week on the show’s YouTube channel with the first guest being WWE’s Cody Rhodes.
Horror Podcast Pieces
- Body horror TV series The Beauty also has a podcast.
Horror Game Goodies
- Meet a selection of the playable civilian characters in the upcoming Halloween video game?
- A new video has turned up for Poppy Playtime: Chapter 5 showing employees experimenting on a mysterious character named Catnap.
“When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
― Arthur Conan Doyle, The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes
Writing Horror
Some places accepting submissions
Monthly flash fiction contest (Apex Books & Apex Magazine)
Prize: USD 8 cents per word or $10, whichever is more
Theme: Interrupted rites
Submissions close: 31 Jan 2026
The Rock-Horror Anthology (The Slab Press)
Pays: GBP 1p per word, max £50
Looking for: Stories with music or music culture as a predominant theme
Submissions close: 28 Feb 2026
Waxen
Pays: USD $50 + contributor copy for US contributors only
Looking for: Occult/weird horror, with an eye for experimental work
Submissions close: 15 Mar 2026
Shared World
Pays: CAD 10 cents per word
Looking for: Stories set in the fantasy-horror, sword-and-sorcery world called Shared World. Think Conan meets Cthulhu.
Upcoming submission calls
Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores
Pays: USD 8 cents per word new fiction, 2 cents per word reprint fiction
Looking for: Science fiction, fantasy, myth, legend, fairy tales, eldritch in written, podcast, video and/or graphic story form
Submissions open 1 Feb and close 2 Feb 2026
“When I read a book I seem to read it with my eyes only, but now and then I come across a passage, perhaps only a phrase, which has a meaning for me, and it becomes part of me.”
― W. Somerset Maugham
Trailer Horror
A taste of things to come.
Horror Movie Trailers
Blood Barn. Comedy horror. A group of teens throw a barn party to cap off their last summer together. Screambox, 17 Feb 2026
Ghost in the Cell. Indonesian supernatural horror. An invisible force starts killing prison inmates, compelling enemy gangs and corrupt guards to work together to survive. Release date TBA
Heel. Psychological horror. A 19-year-old criminal is kidnapped and forced into a rehabilitation process by a dysfunctional couple. VOD, 6 Mar 2026
His Monster. Psychological horror. When his young daughter is swept out to sea, a struggling alcoholic hunts for the monster he believes is responsible. Release date TBA
My Sister’s Bones. Psychological horror. Returning home after a traumatic stint in war-torn Iraq and her mother’s death, Kate begins packing her mother’s belongings, only to suspect something sinister and terrifying is unfolding next door. VOD, 30 Jan 2026
Noseeums. Supernatural horror. When Ember’s weekend getaway descends into a spectral nightmare, she must confront the land’s dark past to survive the swarm of unseen horrors. VOD, 27 Feb 2026
Pinocchio Unleashed. Puppet horror. A puppet breaks free from his creator’s workshop and enters a fractured world ruled by fear and facades. Release date TBA
Vampires of the Velvet Lounge. Comedy vampire horror. A coven of vampires is hunting on dating apps where they meet vampire hunters and schedule dates. Limited, 20 Mar 2026
Horror Game Trailers
The Blessing of Airon. Psychological horror. Uncover the sinister nature of self-combusting phones and voices spoken through AI that originate from the depths of Hell. Available now
Crisol: Theater of Idols. Supernatural horror. In a twisted version of Spain, a soldier uses blood as both weapon and lifeline. Releases 10 Feb 2026
Deadhikers. Wilderness horror. Something is watching you and survival means escaping this hell. Release date TBA
Love Eternal. Psychological horror. A mundane family dinner becomes a waking nightmare for teenager Maya. One minute, she’s dealing with her frustrating parents; the next, the dinner table’s empty, the house destroyed, and the remaining husk has been spirited away into a cavernous, eerie alternate dimension. Releases 19 Feb 2026
The Run. Survival horror. A famous fitness influencer’s morning run spirals into a desperate fight for survival. Hunted by seemingly motiveless killers, players must make split-second decisions that shape the story in real time. Releases 5 Feb 2026
“There are years that ask questions and years that answer.”
― Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God
A Selection of Horror Books Released this Week
16 horror books this week. Themes: Supernatural, psychological, ghosts, sci-fi, dark fantasy, cosmic, gothic, werewolf, post-apocalyptic, and creature horror
See: A Selection of Horror Books Released, 18 to 24 Jan 2026
“I can’t read fiction without visualizing every scene. The result is it becomes a series of pictures rather than a book.”
― Alfred Hitchcock
A Selection of Horror Movies Released this Week
9 horror movies this week. Themes: Supernatural, psychological, slasher, post-apocalyptic, witch, and body horror
See: A Selection of Horror Movies Released, 18 to 24 Jan 2026
“It’s hard to explain the fun to be found in seeing the right kind of bad movie.”
― Roger Ebert, I Hated, Hated, Hated This Movie
A Selection of Horror TV Shows Released this Week
1 horror TV show this week. Theme: Body horror
See: A Selection of Horror TV Shows Released, 18 to 24 Jan 2026
“Everything was beautiful and nothing hurt.”
― Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five
What We Were Thinking About this Week
What We’ve Been Reading
The Voice Inside the Machines by Jonathan Ferro (original fiction, FearSome Fiction)
The Fisherman by John Langan (novel)
You Like It Darker by Stephen King (collection)
What We’re Recommending
Did you know I recommend one horror book every day of the year on Bluesky, Threads, Facebook, and Twitter?
This week’s theme: Horror collections
No Sharks in the Med and Other Stories by Brian Lumley
“See the spores there? Try not to stir them up too much.”
Cyanide Constellations and Other Stories by Sara Tantlinger
“Ana had no rational reason to feel uncomfortable.”
Fifteen Eyes by Tyler Downs
“And there was nothing Solomon Northcutt loved more than telling a good story.”
Out There by Kate Folk
“…it seemed to come down to never dating again, or taking the chance of being blotted.”
These Things That Walk Behind Me by David Surface
“Do not tell your new partner about your former life, no matter how much you are tempted.”
What Dances in the Dark by Shawn Brooks
“The man with the glass bones is going to get you tonight.”
Apocalyptish by Johnny Moscato
“The reflection doesn’t copy her movements. It reaches a hand out.”
“Books became her friends and there was one for every mood.”
― Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Horror Fun
Thanks for reading
Thanks for reading. Catch you on the other side.
Jayson
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