It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns

Today is that day! It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns has been around for the last 7 years. Wow! It's amazing how time flies.

Normally, I color code questions and answers in orange and green because I usually change the background scenery for Halloween. It goes without saying that 2020 has been an extremely shitty year for most of us.

The incessant Doomsday reports about the Coronavirus by the media and social media fucked up everything for all of us. The only silver lining to this year for me personally is that sometime next year Black Bed Sheets Books will be publishing my novella, Just Desserts: Capricorn's Ultimate Revenge.

In celebration of It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns' 7th anniversary, questions about rare Horror Anime, Carl Jung's Typologist Test, etc. will be answered in today's Q&A blog. All questions are in bold red italics and my answers are simply bolded. So, let's begin!

1) DanniDarkness: Are there any rare Horror Anime that you would recommend?

Answer: Murder Princess OVA's, Another, Tokko, Shiki, and the Hell Girl franchise.

I don't know your exact definition of Horror Anime, but if you happen to enjoy Horror Comedy, I highly recommend watching Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge. Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge was renamed "The Wallflower" in English.

Sunako Nakahara is the protagonist spoofed off the character from the J-Horror movie, Ringu, which soon became the Americanized remake called The Ring in 2002.

2) A. P. Fuchs: Do you write regardless of how you feel, whether you're tired or slightly sick or just plain unmotivated?

Answer: It really all depends on the situation. If I am extremely nauseated from something and have been barfing up my lungs for rounds, then no. If lethargic, I will take a nap then finish writing.

Meanwhile, writing angry poetry was my personal catharsis during my adolescence.

Growing up, I always took a lot of shit from people ranging from my classmates to certain teachers intentionally making negative examples out of me.

Generally speaking, that ALWAYS contributed to bullying and has especially led to more school shootings if not teen suicides within the last nearly 3 decades. I don't condone school shootings and teenagers committing suicide, but I understand why both happen.

Sometimes teachers ARE to blame for the bullying, school shootings, and suicides with their need to make negative examples out of their students.

It has been 15 years, since I last wrote any poetry. Whenever I did, it was usually angry poetry. Yeah, in some ways, I've been that weird, stereotypical, angry Goth Chick for 2-3 decades.

An estranged guy friend from college loved mocking me and the Goth Sub-culture. A longtime mutual friend of ours introduced him to some BDSM and fetish communities. Gotta love those bandwagoners always trying to "fit in." Most average people do NOT know, that BDSM originated from the Goth Sub-culture.

BDSM is NOTHING like 50 Shades of B.S. Those novels are piss poor representations of BDSM.

3) Donald: Based on Carl Jung standards, what is your personality type?

Answer: For those who didn't already know, Carl Jung is usually discussed in both Psychology and Sociology classes. It has been many years, since the time of taking those classes.

If you are interested, you can learn more about Carl Jung's theory of personality types, right here.

According to the Humanmetrics Jung Typology Test I took last Friday, my type is ISTJ. 12% Introvert 25% Sensing 3% Thinking 56% Judging

4) DJ Scott Wilcox: It's so hard to get published nowadays. What is the status of your short story collection?

Answer: Please re-read the beginning of this Q&A blog. Also, ~2 weeks ago, I published a blog explaining more about my writing status.

"Maliciousness," "The Bill Collector," and "Psycho Vs. Psycho" have all been converted into 1 novella.

"Across The Street," "The Horrors Of Womanhood," and "All Of Chastity's Men" still have yet to be published. The last 3 stories are much darker and grislier than my novella.

"Across The Street" is a Horror Flash Fiction piece and the shortest story I have ever written.

Because that story is different from the others, I don't know HOW it will be published. Maybe it will have to be published separately from the others.

Also, I still have yet to finish writing "All Of Chastity's Men." This particular story has been put on hiatus more times than any other story I have ever written. You may be wondering, "WHY?"

I think the hiatus is somewhat because I am writing "All Of Chastity's Men" more for my own personal catharsis.

Normally, I wrote poems for my catharsis. Writing THIS story for my own catharsis is a much bigger challenge.

Well, it appears that I answered everyone's questions for today's Q&A blog. It would've been fantastic, if more readers and subscribers had questions to ask. Then again, less is more.

Thank you for asking your questions and reading today's Q&A blog in celebration of It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns' 7th anniversary! I look forward to your feedback!

How's it going my gumdrops? Yes, I know it has been months, since I last published a blog on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns. However, that does not mean I have been sitting idle.

In fact, I have been decorating the Guestbook and Horror/Thriller pages. Before I forget, make sure you sign up to my TinyLetter newsletter, if you haven't already.

In case you haven't noticed over the last few months, I had someone from Webs install the TinyLetter newsletter on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns.

Then, I published a blog about it on OMG, Anna! What's Going On?!

Get On My TinyLetter, STAT! (2020)

Because Webs' engineers still have yet to fix the e-mail notifications, having a newsletter works better than Webs' barely functioning e-mail blasts and other notifications alerts.

Aside from the latest changes that were made to It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns, have you ever created your own vision board?

It has been more than 2 decades, since I last created my own. The last time I made a vision board was for Speech class my high school freshman year. Like I already said, it has been YEARS.

Lately, I have been thinking about creating a brand new vision board for the 21st Century because there is still more that I have yet to accomplish. By 20, I already accomplished my dream of becoming a Radio DJ/Hostess.

My BA may not be in Japanese and I never became a Japanese Consecutive Translator, never had the chance to marry the man I fell really hard for, or had any kids, but I DO have:

* My BA in Asian Studies and Creative Writing Minor

* Some poems and short stories already bound at Carthage College but unpublished

* Learned how to self-build my own website

* Had the wonderful opportunity to interview White Zombie's former bassist and co-founder, Sean Yseult

* Interacted with authors, musicians, voice actors, etc. in person and in cyber space

Basically, I gained more (depending on the way you look at it) and lost some.

To be innovative, I created my own online vision board.

It was somewhat difficult trying to organize my goals in the order I wanted them to be in because I had some problems with the alignment. Therefore, I listed them in order. So, bear with me.

Anna's Online Vision Board:

1] New Job- Trying to find a permanent job for the last 16 years has been the biggest struggle of my life. Dealing with so-called "gate keepers" for employers does not help anyone, especially not me. A new, high paying job will make it easier to pay off my student loans.

2] Money- Finding a new job which pays well goes hand in hand with each other like peanut butter and jelly. Considering that I am ~$75K + in student loan debt, I need a lot of money to break this curse of forever being in poverty.

Lately, I have thought about getting a job doing voiceovers for commercials. It's not like I don't have work experience behind a microphone. Also, I have experience as a PA Announcer from 7th-12th grade.

Every March we had Foreign Language Week, I read our student announcements in foreign languages (mostly Japanese); For 6 years, I mostly read announcements in Japanese.

Even though I am not fluent in foreign languages, I CAN read in both German and Japanese like someone, who is fluent in them. Advertisers can give me a script in either German, or Japanese and I will simply read it. I can most definitely wing it reading German WITH a German accent!

3] Published Author- Since the time I was a teenager, this has been another dream of mine. I want my stories to be traditionally published rather than self-published.

Years ago, self-publishing my book seemed like a great idea for having control of my stories and royalties. Self-publishing requires a lot of time and money, which I don't have. I don't have time, money, and skills to pay for everything and to do everything. Therefore, it is better to be traditionally published.

4] Bookshelves- Traditionally published books have a much greater chance of being sold on bookshelves at stores than a self-published book. If books are self-published, the author or publisher is forced to spend more money trying to sell his/her book. I want my work sold on the shelves at bookstores.

5] Audiobooks- I especially want my book released on audiobook. Finding the perfect male voice actors/narrators to collaborate with on my stories is definitely a must. In addition, I want my stories to be released in English, German, and Japanese.

I am confident that I can do some of the narrating/voice acting, especially when it comes to female protagonists. Casting the right male voice actors and narrators has been the biggest challenge. 

Throughout last year, I spent most of my time contacting certain male voice actors. Some auditioned for "The Horrors Of Womahood."

Most of my time was spent finding the right voice actor/narrator for that story because I want Dr. Woody Johnson to sound frightening to my audience.

6] Awards- Since childhood, my teachers gave me academic awards. Because my grades were mostly terrible, I never had any awards from middle school. It wasn't until high school, that I started getting academic awards, again.

I DID clean up on Achievers Awards mostly for Japanese from 9th to 12th grade. Usually, I got 3 awards a year. Therefore, you do the math on that.

Now, I strive for awards outside of academics. Winning an award for Best Horror Author, for example would be a major accomplishment.

I always wanted to have my own trophy. Certificates and pendants are nice but I would love to have my own trophy to set on my dresser or shelf.

7] Fans- Since the time I was a Radio DJ/Hostess at UW-Parkside's 101.7 WIPZ, my audience was always niche because I mostly played Metal.

My listeners were mostly white male. Very few females listened to my show and they were usually my co-workers. Even though I no longer work in radio, my audience still is niche.

Workshopping my poems and short stories in Creative Writing was about the same as when I was a DJ. My female classmates could not understand my work and typically disliked it, whereas my male classmates and professors loved it.

With that being said, I would really LOVE to have diversity in fans male, female, different races, religions, cultures, sexual orientations, etc. I don't want or need sycophants for fans, although I do want them to like and respect me as a person, author, and my work.

8] Eternal Love- Chances of this ever coming to fruition is definitely slim to none. I have a much greater chance of winning the lottery than having a husband, who loves, respects, and resonates with me.

As of April 6th this year, it has officially been 14 years since the time of dumping my womanizing, crooked cop ex and going on dating retirement.

From time to time, I have thought about dating again but a lot has changed over the last 14 years. I may look eternally youthful, but I don't want some man-child playing games on his cell phone in the middle of a date, or taking pictures of himself and his whereabouts all over social media.

I purposely added that gif of Gomez and Morticia Addams because I will always be that kook with a dark sense of humor. I want my own Gomez Addams!

Horror and a dark humor go hand in hand with each other, as well. Like it was said on Drawn Together years ago, "You can't spell slaughter without laughter."

People today in this politically correct era are highly lacking in having a dark sense of humor. It's a special kind of humor for some of us.

I want and need a husband of my own, who is handsome, strong, intelligent, talented, devoted, supportive, loyal, has a dark sense of humor, creative, and KNOWS HOW TO DRESS!

It sounds like I'm asking for too much but these men really DO exist! I just haven't had that much luck because they're always with another woman OR man.

Considering that I am almost 40, the chances of me being able to have my own son and daughter will probably never happen. I can still dream, right?

So, how do you like my cyber version of a vision board? Let me know what you think!

So, what's your poison (pun intended)?

Are you interested in any blogs about Writing?

How about Foreign Folklores?

Got any fear-triggering phobias?

Or are you more interested in learning more about the kooky, "One-Woman Show," that is yours truly?

Blogs, that are normally published on this site consist of Song Saturday (as BLOGSTER TRADITION), Cartoon Sunday, and blogs featuring other topics. Therefore, please feel free to read, listen, and watch my Song Saturday and Cartoon Sunday blogs, as well as the other blogs, that I have published.

Sometimes I publish entertainment reviews about music, movies, and animation. In fact, there are Horror Reviews I have published over the years.

Want to learn more about Horror in general, including reviews I published for some Retro Christmas Slashers and some Horror Anime?

Speaking of Horror Anime, are you a fellow Tokyo Ghoul fan?

Also, have you ever wondered if a social media site dedicated to Anime fans really existed? If so, you are in LUCK.

How's it going my gumdrops? Is it just me, or does that gif look creepy? Staring at the illustration of those hands typing and the texture of the hands somewhat makes my skin crawl. It appears that I managed to creep myself out.

Since I write Psychological Horror, Crime, and Psychological Thriller Short Stories, it would only be fitting to have a creepy-looking gif to help set the tone for this blog.

Recently, I realized that I never published a character list for any of my short stories. You already know, that I self-built my Horror/Thriller page with excerpts of my short stories. That's along with publishing blogs explaining about some of them. However, I have NEVER published a character list on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns. At least, not to my recollection.

Before publishing today's blog, listing the characters for my Flash Fiction piece, "Across The Street" was impossible. How? How could I?

Feeling stumped, how could I POSSIBLY create a character list for this particular story, that I originally wrote in 2005?

When I originally wrote the story, it was titled "Dolls" and mostly in homage to Octavio Paz's "The Blue Bouquet." It was really surprising that my Creative Writing Professor at the time enjoyed my horrifying version of the late author's Flash Fiction piece.

In "Across The Street," the characters are nameless. A young, female author is the narrator. After taking a break from writing on a dark and stormy night, she goes to bed and begins to have what are called, "false awakenings."

False awakenings are dreams within a dream. In this particular situation, the narrator's dreams are nightmares within a nightmare.

Hearing a monstrous thunderclap and a domestic disturbance from across the street break her nightmare. Being an interloper, the narrator walks across the street to her neighbors' house only to discover a domestic murder.

The husband's mutilated corpse is found propped on the floor by the narrator, inside the garage, after he attempted to rape his deranged wife. The narrator is soon held hostage by the widow.

Aside from "Across The Street," the characters in my other short stories can be viewed as darker as well as more depraved and sadistic than in the preceding piece.

Some feedback was given about the characters in "Maliciousness," "The Bill Collector," and "Psycho Vs. Psycho," over the last year or 2.

I've always considered those 3 short stories to be a "short story trilogy." According to a writing coach, "Maliciousness," "The Bill Collector," and "Psycho Vs. Psycho" would be considered a so-called "novel-in-short story."

So, why is that?

Well, all 3 short stories read like a fast pace novel and have the same recurring characters.

Anyway, here are the lists of all the characters found in "Maliciousness," "The Bill Collector," and "Psycho Vs. Psycho."

Part 1: "Maliciousness" Character List

Terry- 1st person narrator/bully explaining about his 1-sided friendship with Alice

Alice- Victim with a past vendetta against Terry, Tiffany, Carrie, Drew, and Michael

Tiffany- Terry's ex-girlfriend, who he cheated on with Carrie

Carrie- Terry's former friend/one night stand

Drew- Terry's former friend and Carrie's ex-boyfriend, who she cheated on with Terry 

Michael- Terry's former high school jock best friend and Alice's scumbag crush/prom date

Part 2: "The Bill Collector" Character List

Alice- 21-year-old petite, chunky blonde protagonist, and a Capricorn

Damon- Alice's recently unemployed live-in boyfriend, who could pass as LL Cool J's young doppelganger and spoils her with expensive birthday gifts

Alexis- Alice's feisty, Rottweiler/Doberman Pinscher that Damon bought her as a birthday gift

Greg- Somewhat resembles actor/voice actor Seth Green and is Americana's clerk and Alice's love-struck stalker with jaw dropping secrets

Gwendalyn- Americana's clerk and Greg's co-worker, who helps Alice and Damon with Alice's 21st birthday gift

Part 3: "Psycho Vs. Psycho" Character List

Alice- 21-year-old protagonist being objectified and stalked by 3 scumbags

Damon- Alice's unemployed, live-in boyfriend, who rushes to her rescue with Alexis

Alexis- Alice's feisty, Rottweiler/Doberman Pinscher that Damon bought her as a birthday gift

Greg- Americana's clerk, Gwendalyn's co-worker, and Alice's love-struck stalker going under the guise of "Larry" with jaw dropping secrets

Michael- Terry's former jock best friend and Alice's antagonistic, deranged, scumbag crush/prom date from the past with a 3-year-old high school vendetta

Tony Sausalito- Sleazy, opportunistic, Spanish American, security guard at the gas station, who is titillated by Alice

The preceding character lists are only lists for 3 of my 6 short stories. Have any thoughts regarding these 3 character lists? If so, let me know what you think!

Wow! Can you believe it? Today is the day that marks It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns' 6th anniversary. How's it going my gumdrops? Before I forget, Happy Birthday to Whiskey Brewer on MeWe!

While still working for my uncle, I self-built this website on September 23, 2013. In a way, I cannot help feeling somewhat disappointed that I still haven't accomplished as much as I really wanted this year.

Since 2017, I have endured a plethora of issues ranging from dealing with my mother's eternal health issues to chores, editing, revising, and submitting my short stories for publishing, contacting publishers, voice actors, editors, job hunting, etc.

Earlier this year, I was sick at least twice. For the 4th time in 19 years, I had bronchitis and a cold. Long story short, this year has been brutal.

Since this year's Q&A blog has a few jargon-filled questions, I tried answering them as best as I could by giving them the so-called "college try." Anyway, let's begin!

Kersten: What is the most difficult part about having kept a blog this long? Also, who is your favorite Horror artist?

Answer: When it comes to Horror artists (because they are more than just Metal vocalists and guitarists), I guess I would say Rob Zombie, Glenn Danzig, and Wes Borland. Even though Wes Borland is best known as Limp Bizkit's lead guitarist, he collaborates with other bands besides fronting his own.

In addition to self-building this website, managing it, generating SEO, traffic, visitors, and loyal subscribers, there is enduring social climbing opportunists, selfish and misanthropic "friends" pretending to care about me, indifference, jealousy, envy, the bitterness of others, and copycats. Also, site and server glitches. Those have been my biggest problems.

Creating a blog is nothing compared to self-building a website full of content. All the while, trying to generate exposure and attracting the right demographic.

Tard Tardnation: What's your favorite type of weather?

Answer: I love the hot summer weather. Then again, I was born ~1 week before Summer Solstice. Now that it's fall, I dread having to rake leaves and shovel snow again.

Meanwhile, rain and snow help set ominous tones to my short stories, since I mostly write Psychological Horror, Crime, and Psychological Thriller.

Jesse: Do you ever use Duolingo or Babbel to help learn a new language? I've just started using Duolingo recently because I am interested in learning German.

Answer: Yes, I have heard of both Duolingo and Babbel but have never used either. Even though it has been years since I last took German, I highly recommend the book, Komm mit! You may also want to visit the 50 Languages foreign language website and download their app.

Much like my family, I believe it is best to traditionally learn a foreign language with drills. Using apps make for great aids but it is best to have a quality foreign language book. My youngest aunt uses Duolingo to help her with learning Japanese.

According to her, Duolingo is not the best way to become fluent in a foreign language. Regardless of what foreign language you want to learn, you MUST have quality foreign language books with drills to help learn a foreign language.

DJ Scott: What's your fondest memory from blogging/blog responses?

Answer: My fondest memories actually predate building It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns.

For those, who didn't already know, I originally started blogging 13 years ago on Yahoo 360. This was months after graduating from Carthage College, while still battling a bleeding disorder at the time.

My English Literature Professor would sometimes use my Yahoo 360 blog as an educational sorce for his classes. More educational information was published compared to the last 6 years of blogging on here and Blogster.

Unfortunately, all good things always come to an end. This can most definitely be said about Yahoo 360. Yahoo always discontinues their best products.

Years later, I discovered the blogging community, Xanga. I regret not discovering Xanga years sooner.

Before The Xanga Team dumped their money problems into OUR laps by making it mandatory to pay to blog, which caused division within our community, I had both national AND international traffic, friends, and loyal subscribers. In addition, more readers genuinely cared about my content and I made top blogger AT LEAST a few times, 6 years ago.

C. Afflerbach: Do you like crafting? Ancient aliens? Ghosts?

Answer: The closest I will ever get to crafting is building this website. Otherwise, I always suck at crafting. As cool as crafts look, I never had that skill. 25 years later and I still suck at doing Origami.

In regards to ghosts and aliens, I'm not a huge fan of them. Blame it on Hollywood filmmakers like Steven Spielberg, for example and the media. They love spreading (as I use the cliche term) "misinformation" and stupid ass stereotypes about the paranormal and extraterrestrials.

The contrived and unrealistic scripts and special effects in Spielberg's movies only validate all those skeptics, who don't believe in ghosts and aliens. Even though I'm not a huge fan of either, I know that both DO exist, especially the paranormal.

Whiskey Brewer: Are there any cartoons you grew up watching, that you'd actually like to see remade for youngsters nowadays?

Answer: When it comes to movies and shows, including animation, you could say, that I am more of a "purist." Today's filmmakers, writers, and animators need to leave Classics alone.

Continuously remaking and rebooting movies, shows, and cartoons because they want to stay relevant only proves, that all these said entertainers lack creativity and originality.

The biggest problem with today's writers, filmmakers, cartoonists, musicians, etc. has to be the incessant political correctness, which mostly consists of CONTRIVED tokenism to pander to politically correct hipsters.

Why does Ariel from The Little Mermaid suddenly have to be black? Why does a famous superhero suddenly have to be non-heterosexual or female? Speaking of, have you seen the commercials for CW's Batwoman?

Batwoman Trailer CW (2019)

If anything, more network programmers should introduce younger viewers to Classics. Sure, they may look dated but as they get older, they may have a better appreciation for said movies, shows, and especially cartoons. They should be able to imagine what life was like during an era(s) that was before their existence.

For example, every time I watch a film that was made before, during, and slightly after I was born, that film allows me to embrace and reflect on what life was like before we had cell phones, laptops, the Internet, social media, etc.

As a 37-year-old woman, I miss the days of publicly socializing with friends and on my bedroom's phone line as a teenager, going to public places without someone staring at his cell phone, while playing video games on it, and being able to hold onto memories WITHOUT some girl snapping selfies and recording the play by play of her vapid, daily life with poses on social media for instant likes.

C.S. Michel's Questions:

1) Have you seen the trailer for the new Joker movie?

2) Have you seen Doom Patrol?

3) Do you like Erotic Anime?

My Answers:

1) Yes, I have and please reread my answer to Whiskey Brewer's question. The Batman franchise was meant to be campy. Since the time of the 21st Century, filmmakers have ruined Batman by dramatizing what was originally a campy franchise.

2) I had no idea what Doom Patrol was until Googling it, last week only to discover that it was ANOTHER DC Comic Flick. Batman, Blade, The Phantom, and The Crow are probably the only movies based on comic books, that I enjoyed. Otherwise, I was never a comic book fan. As as a teenage girl 20 years ago, I tried but comic books don't resonate with me.

3) Erotic Anime or in other words, Hentai? Since I love Anime, I am not that fast to dismiss Hentai. It has been a long time, since I last watched any Hentai.

Over the last 13 years, I have watched more Ecchi, Seinen, and Josei Anime that somewhat border the lines of Hentai Anime than actual Hentai.

Donald's Questions:

1) Over the past year, what has been the best resource you have turned toward to promote your own growth, both personal and professional?

2) The notion of incremental improvement is a powerful one, compared to yourself a year ago how have you bettered yourself and in what ways?

3) What are the best books or lectures you have interacted with on the subject of personal development?

My Answers:

1) I would say... reading articles published by John Matthew Fox, Writer's Relief, Web Design Relief, Marie Forleo, and Authors Publish. Just last week, I read this enlightening article published by Thriller author, Joanna Penn about Comparisonitis.

2) While re-revising my short stories recently, I noticed that I am able to mentally re-edit certain lines as I type. I believe that spending HOURS editing and revising all the blogs I've published over these last 6 years, from night to beyond sunrise made me a better writer.

Despite what pompous elitists (including some delusional Fan Fiction writers) think, BLOGGING is a fantastic way to improve writing skills. Blogging is journaling for the most part.

3) Please reread Answer #1.

So, how did I do with answering all your questions?

By giving it the "good ol' college try," I answered each question to the best of my ability.

If I misunderstood your questions, I apologize. However, I will NOT apologize for MY opinions in regards to today's Hollywood entertainment and how political correctness is destroying it with contrived tokenism.

So, thank you my gumdrops! Please leave your feedback in the comments section below!

How's it going my gumdrops? In the middle of searching for images to use for future blogs, I happened to discover the gif above.

I thought to myself, "Hmm... I never published a blog specifically about the topic of blood before. This gif would be perfect for a blog about hemophobia. Then, I can archive the blog link for blogs about fears/phobias."

In case you have not already guessed, today's blog is NOT about hemophilia. It is about hemophobia. Hemophobia is the fear or phobia of blood.

The more I thought about hemophobia, I chose to conduct online research about it, hoping to find informative articles about the phobia. Low and behold, there are at least several.

Stumbling upon the website, FearOf.Net, I discovered that it is a website specifically dedicated to a plethora of phobias. When visiting FearOf.Net's main page, there is an Anxiety Test, as well as lists of the Top 10 and Top 100 Phobias. Of course, 4 of mine made the Top 10 List.

Don't be fooled. Just because I am a Horror fan and author, doesn't mean I don't have any phobias of my own. My biggest phobia made Number 1 and must be slayed every time I walk inside and outside the house, throughout spring, summer, and early fall.

To solve any confusions some might already have, being hemophobic is NOT the same as being terrified of needles (trypanophobic). Trypanophobia is more common than hemophobia.

How many people do you know personally enjoy having blood work done and/ shots taken at hospitals/clinics?

Both shots and blood work can be extremely painful. This is especially if you have a ruthless nurse holding a needle in his/her hands just to brutally stab you with it.

Hemophobics typically experience symptoms such as anxiety (duh), nausea, increased heart rate, sweating, and trembling at the sight of blood.

Sudden drops in blood pressure and heart rate leading to pallor or weakness and fainting at the sight of blood are soon to follow.

Some have been caused to have a fear of blood due to traumatic and tragic experiences. Bloody images shown on TV and movies can also contribute to hemophobia.

It goes without saying that genres, sub-genres, and themes that are "near and dear to my heart," so to say (Horror, Thriller, Crime, serial killers, etc.) are mostly to blame for hemophobia. Well, the objective is to frighten audiences, after all. Otherwise, we wouldn't be doing our jobs.

Anyway, if you would like to participate in the poll taking, statistical data, and are more curious about hemophobia specifically, don't be too horrified to LEARN MORE.

So, did I happen to traumatize anyone with the display of blood?

How's it going my gumdrops? In the middle of searching for pictures in regards to phobias, I believe my heart sank, as I jumped back against my bedroom wall each time I saw mine. It had to have been at least 5 times. The chills it makes me feel every time I see it.

Even though I am forced to deal with my number 1 phobia almost every time I walk inside and outside the house, it seems too common of a phobia. There are too many pictures of it.

You may be wondering, "Anna, are you afraid of snakes?" No, for the most part, I happen to like snakes. That's as long as they're not poisonous like the cobra above.

Regardless, I will choose reptiles over bugs and insects every time. Considering all things frightening, what REALLY triggers your fears?

We are all afraid of something(s). Maybe it is a certain Horror sub-genre or film, that INVOKES your fears.

Or, maybe it is a certain day of the week, month, holiday, person, place, or thing that EVOKES your fears. Below are blog links with some topics regarding the Horror genre and phobias.

Overkill In Horror Today: Is The Zombie Craze Highly Overrated? (2014)

Why Are Some People Coulrophobic? (2014)

Paraskevidekatriaphobia: Fear Of Friday The 13th (2017)

Don't Faint, Hemophobics! It's Only Blood! (2019)

More blog links are subject to be added, in the near future.

How's it going my gumdrops? Have you ever wondered about foreign folklores? If so, there are currently 8 blog links to choose from below!

Cartoon Sunday: Fruits Basket (2015)

The 13 Yule Lads Before & During Christmas In Iceland (2015)

Do Irish Horror Folktales Really Exist In Ireland?! (2016)

Shinigami In Japanese Folklores (2016)

Revisiting The Gremlins Franchise & Mogwais In Chinese Folklores (2016)

Gruss vom Krampus! (2016)

Want To Learn More About Leprechauns? (2017)

What Are My Thoughts About Grimm's Series Finale? (2017)

Also, what are your thoughts? Don't forget to like, share, and leave your feedback in the comments section!

How's it going my gumdrops? You might say the About page for It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns gives a brief timeline about me as a New Adult Psychological Horror, Crime, and Psychological Thriller author, blogger, and webmaster.

So, want to learn more about a kook like moi as a person? Click on the following blog links:

What Blogsterians Don't Know About Me (2013)

What We Didn't Know About Saint Patrick's Day (2014)

It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns: Q&A #1 (2014)

It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns: Q&A #2 (2014)

Here's More About Yours Truly, Horror-Punks, And Others (2015)

It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns' 2nd Birthday [Q&A EDITION] (2015)

Why Do I Publish Song Saturday + Cartoon Sunday Blogs? (2016)

How I Label Content On It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns (2016)

How Morbid Am I Really? (2016)

It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns 3rd Anniversary: Q&A (2016)

Questions About Music, Anime, + Pets (2017)

It's Not All Gumdrops And Unicorns Q+A 2017 [Part 1] (2017)

It's Not All Gumdrops And Unicorns Q+A 2017 [Part 2] (2017)

It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns Q&A 2018 [2018]

It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns 6th Anniversary Q&A (2019)

So, What Is Anna H's Vision? (2020)

More blog links are subject to be added in the near future.

How's it going my gumdrops? Recently, I combed through pages of previously published blogs. Originally, I was going to add a few to the About page on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns. That was until I realized there are numerous of blogs, that have been previously published over the last 6 years about writing.

Because there are so many, here is a list of links to all my previously published blogs about writing.

People Who Can't Handle Constructive Criticism (2013)

What About My Writing And How To Handle Writer's Block? (2013)

Guess Who Has Done Sleep Writing? (2013)

What Was It Like Taking Creative Writing Classes In High School And College? (2014)

How About Scheduling Time For Writing? (2014)

What Are My Thoughts About Audiobooks & Soundtracks As An Aspiring Author? (2014)

How About Writing More Short Realistic Fiction? (2014)

Writer's Relief's Top 10 Horror Writers Countdown (2016)

Learning About New Adult Fiction (2016)

NOOO! There Are Too Many Horror Authors! Should I Switch Genres? [2018]

About The Short Story Trilogy I Recently Submitted To Writer's Relief [2018]

HAPPY HALLOWEEN GUMDROPS!!! It appears that the engineers are STILL unable to fix the eternal glitches on Webs. Webs is partly why I stopped blogging on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns this year.

As some of you already know, it has been a tad over a month, since I last published a blog on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns. A long overdue blog update was published on OMG, Anna! What's Going On?! 2 weeks ago.

When visiting OMG, Anna! What's Going On?! make sure to click the following blog link:

omgannawhatsgoingon.blogspot.com/2018/10/what-roller-coaster-2018-has-been.html

Even though I have not published more blogs this year {especially for October 2018}, doesn't mean you can't watch, listen, and read previously published blogs. On It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns, there are 5 years worth of content.

For Halloween (that's if you are still interested), click on the previously published blog links below.

Updates, Updates, & More Updates (2016)

Halloween Special Updates (2016)

2 Classic Horror-Punk Songs With More Halloween Updates (2017)

In addition, here is a Cartoon Sunday blog that was published 2 weeks after Halloween last year.

Cartoon Sunday: Noella Borie's The Face Shop (2017)

In case you didn't already know, I submitted 3 of my short stories to Writer's Relief for reviews. "Maliciousness," "The Bill Collector," and "Psycho Vs. Psycho" were the 3 short stories I submitted.

Because all 3 stories are centered around the character, Alice I view them as being The Alice Trilogy. The first 2 short stories were written 12-13 years ago for Creative Writing. Both were bound to my Carthage College chapbook but are unpublished.

"Psycho Vs. Psycho" on the other hand, was written 6 years ago. It is in continuation of "The Bill Collector." The opening for "Psycho Vs. Psycho" picks up where "The Bill Collector" left off; "The Bill Collector's" ending segues into "Psycho Vs. Psycho."

When you really think about it, those 2 particular stories are parts 1 and 2 of "The Bill Collector." At the same time, "Psycho Vs. Psycho" could also be seen as the conclusion to "Maliciousness."

In "Maliciousness," Terry went as far as tricking Alice into eating an Oreo Cookie, that he previously had in his mouth. Terry sucked the cream filling out of the Oreo, stuck it back together, and fooled Alice into eating it, when they were 2nd graders.

As the years progressed, Alice had time to swear vengeance against Terry and their so-called friends, Tiffany, Carrie, and Drew.

Considering that Michael Dimitrius Peyton was Alice's high school crush/prom date at the time, she did not expect his deception.

It was not until their prom night, that Alice overheard Mike colluding with Terry over his cell phone about taking her virginity. Those 2 lowlives betted on Alice losing her virginity to Michael.

After she lost her virginity to Mike, he bragged about it in his cell phone message to Terry. That bet was the worst prank they ever played on Alice. However, Terry and Mike did not get the last laugh.

Both antagonists squandered years seething over Alice and began referring to her as "Malice." Although, Mike carried his vendetta towards Alice 3 years after high school.

Michael Dimitrius Peyton mostly spent 3 years seething over Alice's malicious intent towards Tiffany, Terry, Carrie, Drew, and himself. After what she did to them, Mike felt compelled to retaliate against Alice 3 years later. He had his half-brother, Greg stalk her by posing as a bill collector named "Larry," in "The Bill Collector."

While sending Alice and her boyfriend, Damon harassing phone calls about supposedly having delinquent payments on her laptop, Greg becomes madly in love with Alice in "The Bill Collector."

In "Psycho Vs. Psycho," Alice is unexpectedly reunited with her old high school crush/prom date. In this particular short story, readers should expect murder, mayhem, mystery, dark humor, and fights.

"Psycho Vs. Psycho" has the most activity, which should really hook the readers. Not that "Maliciousness" and "The Bill Collector" ever had problems inciting controversy, but "Psycho Vs. Psycho's" writing has the most depth and depravity.

More time was spent on the dialogue than the narration. I believe that readers will favor "Psycho Vs. Psycho" over "Maliciousness" and "The Bill Collector." In "Psycho Vs. Psycho," readers will have a chance to learn just how merciless Alice can be.

All those who are members on this site, should be able to sign in and read the latest excerpts on the Horror/Thriller page. A few months ago, I added excerpts from all 6 of my short stories to the Horror/Thriller page. Therefore, I highly encourage you to take the time to sign in and read them.

Hopefully, you enjoyed today's blog. I managed to squeeze in time from my hectic schedule on HALLOWEEN to explain about the short stories I submitted to Writer's Relief.

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, share, and let me know what you think!

How's it going my gumdrops? Can you believe that 2018 will be over in 4 more months? I can't believe how much time has gone passed. This year did not exactly go the way I planned, which is highly disappointing. Realizing this makes me feel unaccomplished.

Throughout every year, I always hope for the better but it seems like everything keeps getting worse. Today is the 5th anniversary of It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns. There are fewer questions this year. Here are the following questions I have answered:

Zombified: How do you think things with your website will evolve in the future?

Answer: Honestly, I have no idea. Webs' engineers need to hurry with their repairs. They are that 1 straw breaking every camel's back. In other words, most of us, who use Webs as a platform for publishing content like myself and/ business owners are suffering.

As I explained to a Webs Customer Service Representative over the phone last Friday, we have been losing customers, subscribers, traffic, etc. It all depends on what that person is using Webs for.

I personally use Webs' service for publishing and sharing excerpts of my short stories for only members of It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns to read on the Horror/Thriller page. That's along with blogging normally at least 2-3 days a week.

Earlier this year (late January to be more specific), I stopped blogging on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns and started experimenting again on Blogger.

After building my 2nd Blogger page, OMG, Anna! What's Going On?! I noticed there were less problems with publishing my blogs. Also, the features that us bloggers can use on Blogger like scheduling blogs to be published and meta tagging WITHOUT any glitches are free.

Not having to pay for more artistic designs on Blogger is another bonus.

Countless times over these last 5 years, I have said that WordPress is highly overrated and overpriced for vapid designs and is user unfriendly. This statement still holds true today. The ball is currently in everyone else' court other than mine.

Only YOU can help generate traffic to content by liking, sharing, and having discussions. Discussions especially generate THE MOST traffic to a website.

Marquis DeBlood: What inspired you to start writing?

Answer: This is a great question. Since elementary school, I learned how to create my own short stories. My teachers in 1st and 2nd grade made us draw pictures and write short stories.

By 3rd grade, my English teacher gave us a monthly chart with ideas to create stories with for assignments. Once it reached October, we had to create our own Halloween stories. You, as well as some other Horror fans would've loved those assignments in school.

That year in October, I really had fun. I wrote short stories about werewolves, zombies, vampires, and Chucky from Child's Play. Looking back, I suppose that would've been labeled as "Fan Fiction," before Fan Fiction was ever a term or a website. Not that I support Fan Fiction, but you get my point.

After becoming a teenager, that was when I really became interested in Creative Writing.

As a form of personal catharsis, I wrote angry poetry, when I wasn't creating my own characters and short stories. During my high school senior year, I had a disparaging teacher for Creative Writing Class. 

That same teacher claimed, that all my stories and poems were "depressing." Maybe some of my poems were but NOT my stories. You have read some of the excerpts of my short stories on my Horror/Thriller page to know, that they are NOT "depressing."

After minoring In Creative Writing in college, my professors appreciated my work. Those disparaging remarks didn't stop me from graduating college with a Creative Writing Minor.

In a nutshell, that red-headed, divorced cow (or pig) from high school, along with my asshole study hall monitor, who labeled me as "The Next Columbine Student" can go fuck themselves to Icy Hot.

BTW: I added more excerpts to the Horror/Thriller page. Whenever you have the chance, I highly encourage every member to sign in and read them.

Robert: What is your favorite album of all time?

Answer: That is a tough question to answer. After being exposed to numerous music genres, sub-genres, and albums by so many mainstream and underground bands and singers, I cannot name only 1 album. The following is a list of my favorite albums:

Gravity Kills' Gravity Kills and Perversion

Stabbing Westward's Wither, Blister, Burn, & Peel and Darkest Days

Lords Of Acid's Lust, Voodoo-U, and Our Little Secret

Stone Temple Pilots' Core, Purple, and No. 4

Type O Negative's Bloody Kisses and October Rust

KoRn's KoRn, Life Is Peachy, Follow The Leader, and Untouchables

Dokken's Breaking The Chains and Back For The Attack

London After Midnight's Psycho Magnet

Lacuna Coil's In a Reverie, Unleashed Memories, and Comalies

My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult's A Crime For All Seasons

The preceding list only names a few of my favorite albums.

With all that has been answered, did you enjoy learning anything new from today's Q&A blog? What are your thoughts?

In the near future, I always look forward to seeing more of you on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns and on OMG, Anna! What's Going On?! Thank you!

How's it going my gumdrops? While I experiment with a re-branding, It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns will remain live. As a blogger, I could or WOULD probably generate better traffic and more respect on Blogger than on Webs.

You are probably shocked and filled with questions such as "Anna, you built It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns 4 going on 5 years ago. Why the sudden change?"

Do you remember the blog I published 2 Sundays ago?

After publishing OMG, Anna?! What's Going On?! on January 21, 2018, I went to bed that morning. By the afternoon, I woke up and suddenly, it dawned on me. I realized "OMG, Anna! What's Going On?!" sounds MUCH catchier than It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns!

Because we live in an extremely self-righteous, hypersensitive, and politically correct YET politically hypocritical and DIVISIVE era, most people do not understand sarcasm UNLESS it is of benefit to them. They especially do NOT understand my brand of dark and sarcastic humor.

When I originally built It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns on September 23, 2013, it was meant for my chapbook. Throughout these last 5 years, my content has really changed.

The title, "It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns," is incompatible with the type of blogs I publish. The title actually clashes with 98% of my blogs. Blogs I have published, since 2013 are mostly irrelevant to my short stories.

After Xanga shut down, then re-launched on WordPress of ALL blogging platforms, my subscribers and I relocated to what we thought was the next best blogging community to Xanga. That was Blogster. Xanga and Blogster's blogging communities were and still are polar opposites of each other.

Had I not been working for my uncle's company, while trying to get more Xangans to join Blogster, I really could've dedicated MORE time to learning how to use Blogger and converting it into a website.

Because I read articles about why authors/writers should have our own websites, and since my uncle already wanted me to write the content for HIS company's website, I taught myself how to build It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns by watching tutorials on Webs' YouTube Channel.

With all that being said, I have chosen to build a separate website from It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns on Blogger. I will keep publishing Song Saturday and Cartoon Sunday blogs on OMG, Anna! What's Going On?! However, I will continue to share past blogs from here onto the new Blogger site I built.

What is the name of my site on Blogger?

It's called OMG, Anna! What's Going On?!

omgannawhatsgoingon.blogspot.com

I had my friend, Scott Wilcox from Horror-Punks.net design my Blogger banner like he did for It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns' home page. Judging by the looks of it, I need to shrink the banner down a bit, in order for everyone to see the entire design.

Scott worked really hard on the design with the ideas I gave him. After giving him a detailed description of what I want, he can take it and bring it to life. That's what I really love and appreciate about Scott Wilcox as an artist.

Believe it or not, there are other artists, who will ignore your artistic vision for their own. Otherwise, they will allow a random 3rd person to overstep his/her bounderies by dominating your artistic vision because he/she wants to have the spotlight, when nobody asked for his/her opinion.

Luckily, Scott does not possesss those traits or allow interlopers to dominate your artistic vision.

There is still more managing I need to do on OMG, Anna! What's Going On?! As long as there are NO monkey wrenches thrown into my plans, I intend on publishing new Song Saturday and Cartoon Sunday blogs, this weekend.

Since I have not yet published a new blog, OMG, Anna! looks bare naked, right now. Therefore, stay tuned.

What are your thoughts about the new website I built on Blogger?

Anyway...

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

How's it going my gumdrops? There has been a lot of ridiculousness happening both on and offline. Have you noticed, that I have NOT been publishing as many blogs, lately? You are probably wondering, "OMG, Anna! What's going on?!"

Besides the usual sinuses, I caught a cold AND winter allergies on Christmas Day. Then, we had to call the ambulance literally 1 day after because my mother had another medical emergency.

You may also remember a while ago, that I mentioned contacting Webs and Vistaprint regarding the glitches I've been having on It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns.

Earlier last week, I contacted Webs AGAIN about the most recent Song Saturday blog, that I published being deleted. I thought I was only deleting a duplicate draft the site had made.

It turned out I deleted the actual blog, that I originally published. Webs' tech support could NOT restore it, which led to me redoing my Song Saturday blog from scratch. In case you missed the latest Song Saturday blog, here it is once again.

Song Saturday: Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds [Featuring Kylie Minogue] Where The Wild Roses Grow (2018)

Hopefully, you enjoyed the Song Saturday blog above. I worked extremely hard on it TWICE. According to Webs and Vistaprint, they had just as rough of a time last year as the rest of us. Webs has been an absolute nightmare, since last year.

Webs' online tech support page on facebook went as far as blocking our messages and disabling their comments bar. Webs and Vistaprint reassured me by phone, that tech support is working REALLY hard on solving the problems, that we as customers have been experiencing. We cannot help feeling skeptical of their claims.

If tech support HAS been fixing the glitches, we would not know it. These glitches have been ongoing for more than a year without any response. Supposedly, Webs' tech support has not been responding to us because they are fixing the glitches.  

Rather than leaving us with the impression, that they are avoiding our complaints, it would be MUCH better to respond back to us. The fact that I had to find Webs' phone number online to call them about the glitches on here was ridiculous.

While talking to a customer service representative, I informed him about how irate we have been with Webs' lousy service. Some business owners are now using other companies because Webs caused them to lose money and customers.

Every so often, I hunt for a website builder, that is similar to Webs without all the glitches. Since Webs is powered by Vistaprint, their site builder looks identical to Webs. Vistaprint claims to have more features than what they gave Webs.

Vistaprint also requires customers to pay $45 a year to use their services. This may sound reasonable but what if Vistaprint's glitches are just as bad, if not worse than Webs? Luckily, I am not in as terrible of a situation as those, who pay for Webs.

The most popular website builders such as WordPress, Wix, Weebly, Jimdo, Joomla, etc. are NOT as user friendly as they claim. They also lack the ability to customize their interfaces and website templates.

Even though those website builders generate more free site traffic than Webs, the designs they have for websites highly lack artistic and creative expression.

Because they are on that Hipster fad of using photographs and expanding pictures as website template designs, all their templates suck. Where is the creativity?

If I want to look at someone's pictures, I will look at a friend's photo album on facebook. I don't want a photographer's boring pictures as a website design.

Whenever people visit It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns, they normally say, "I love what you did with the look of your site!" You already know that I spend a lot of time designing this website, when I am not publishing blogs.

While attracting 18 to 50-something-year-old adults to read and subscribe to my content, I want my website to look creative. When it comes to having creative templates and user friendliness, Blogger is the closest to Webs.

Last week, I slightly modified the appearance of my Blogger, in case I DO get sick of Webs and leave. It is not as fancy-looking as THIS website, but my current design on Blogger gives you a dark tone in regards to my content.

Speaking of content, I contacted more Horror and Thriller sites last week. Their inboxes are probably flooded with authors' messages. Hopefully, more have the chance to read mine.

In the messages, I explained about myself as a writer, blogger, and webmaster. This was along with e-mailing them additional links to It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns.

So far, only 1 person responded back. I will wait patiently for the others to respond.

Which Horror and Thriller websites did I contact?

Considering that I have spent the last several years dealing with opportunistic, social climbers hovering over It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns to copycat nearly everything I do, and joining ALMOST every Google Plus community I join, I will temporarily keep the names of those sites private.

Before I forget, I want to warn you that I may be publishing LESSER Song Saturday and Cartoon Sunday blogs over these next few weeks.

Literally 2 days before Valentine's Day, I have to get my other wisdom teeth extracted. In addition, I want to revise my most recent short stories again.

These last 5 years, I have continuously backburned working on my stories because of working, blogging, building and managing this website, social networking, etc.

This year, I want to finish writing my other stories and possibly submit them to Horror and Thriller literary journals.

Time flew by and continues to do so. I would really love to have at least 1 of my short stories featured in a Horror AND Thriller anthology. Some of my work is already bound to a chapbook, but it is not the same as having your own work published in a book for everyone to buy for reading.

After everything that was said in today's blog, do you have any thoughts or questions? If so, let me know.

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, +1 on Google Plus, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

How's it going my gumdrops? Happy Belated New Year! Before I became preoccupied offline, I originally planned to publish a blog wishing everyone a happy new year.

In case you missed my posts around social media and the e-mail notifications I sent to my subscribers, I was sick during Christmas. To make matters worse, my mother had a medical emergency literally 1 day after Christmas. We had to call the ambulance.

While battling a cold, winter allergies, sinuses, etc. ~2 weeks ago, I hope you enjoyed those creepy yet festive blogs regarding Yule and Christmas as throwbacks. Honestly, I did not have a chance to enjoy Christmas, in case you are wondering.

Aside from those issues, I cannot help noticing how extremely saturated the Horror Industry has become over the last 10-15 years. It is amazing how an entertainment genre such as Horror has surged in popularity over this last decade.

Within my immediate family, my mother and I are the only Horror fans. Being born and raised in the 1980's and '90s, when the Slasher Horror genre was at its pinnacle yet always being demonized by media watchdog groups, I grew up watching Horror.

As much as I enjoy watching TV shows and movies about the paranormal, vampires, witches, etc. the Slasher Horror sub-genre has always been my favorite.

The villains are more realistic and believeble. Most people will tell you that vampires, zombies, ghouls, werewolves, and other types of monsters are not real.

There are even those skeptics, who refuse to believe in the paranormal. Serial killers, stalkers, sociopaths, psychopaths, and those with other mental disorders on the other hand, DO exist in everyday life. I am not saying, that I don't believe in ghosts because I do.

However, there are still those skeptics regardless if they believe in a higher power or not, who deny that ghosts exist. This especially applies to certain skeptics, who need to prove everything based on SCIENCE.

Out of all the Horror sub-genres, the Slasher sub-genre is the most believable and realistic. I believe the Slasher sub-genre is the most frightening.

When it comes to Slashers, the serial killer is labeled as "The Moral Villain." If you've ever watched Wes Craven's Slasher Horror film, SCREAM within these last 22 years, you should remember Jamie Kennedy's character, Randy Meeks.

In SCREAM, Randy explained what characters should NOT do, in order to survive a Slasher Horror Movie.

SCREAM: Randy’s Rules For Successfully Surviving A Horror Movie (1996)

The Moral Villain will typically serial kill obnoxious teenagers, who are abusing drugs, having pre-marital sex, and saying "I'll be right back." Slashers can also segue into the Thriller genre.

Characters with killer instincts and life-threatening mental disorders can be important traits in Thrillers. Some of these traits in villains help assemble Horror/Thrillers.

As a writer, my stories would fall into the Horror/Thriller genre. On Thursday, I spoke with someone on the phone, who helps writers find publishing companies and literary agents. I informed her, that I built my own website, blog, and share blogs regularly.

In addition, I explained about the type of short stories I write. Even though NONE of my stories are about the stereotypical vampires, zombies, werewolves, etc. I mostly consider myself to be a Horror writer

Stories about stalkers, misogynists, the abused, scorned women seeking revenge, etc. can be disturbing as well as frightening.

About The Horrors Of Womanhood (2016)

I would love to see my work published in a Horror anthology and under the category, Horror. At the same time, there will be those narrow-minded critics saying, "You're not a Horror author. Horror has vampires, zombies, creatures, etc."

I would love to have my work categorized as Horror because there is a lot more to the genre than only monsters. Stories and films about vampires and zombies over this last decade have become so cliche.

Anything can be horrifying without vampires, zombies, werewolves, monsters, etc. being involved.

Over these last few years, I was very surprised to learn, that more women are Horror authors. Much like music, the overall Horror genre was always male-dominated. The times really have changed.

I was always that "weird girl" growing up in school, who wrote Horror Stories dating back to 3rd grade. As I became a young woman, I wrote more of them.

In case you haven't spent time reading the About page, some of my short stories are already bound in my Carthage College chapbook. They are just unpublished.

Some of the excerpts for my most recent short stories are on the Horror page. Only subscribers are allowed to read them. Not visitors.

Why Is My Horror Page Restricted? (2016)

If you would like to read my excerpts, you MUST subscribe to It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns. Regarding my stories, this is the only requirement, right now. Subscribing is FREE.

Seeing how saturated and cliche the Horror genre has become today, I have contemplated whether or not to target the Thriller genre.

While speaking to that lady, who helps writers on Thursday, she suggested that I try submitting my stories to literary journals for the Thriller genre.

Both of us believe my short stories would be better suited for the Thriller genre than Horror. In some ways, the Thriller genre seems more versatile than Horror. Also, my work could appeal to other types of readers.

This is where YOU, my subscribers come in:

Those of you, who have read some of my short stories and excerpts, what are your thoughts?

Do you think my stories belong in the Thriller genre or can they be categorized as Horror/Thriller?

If you have NOT already viewed my Horror page, please sign in and read that page right now. I would really love to have your feedback.

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, +1 on Google Plus, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

How's it going my gumdrops? Like the coldest winter chill, Heaven will surely not be beside Chiller TV next year. (Did you catch that Alice In Chains song reference?)

On Black Friday, I browsed around a forum I belong to and discovered that NBC Universal's Chiller TV will drop dead before next year.

Chiller Going Dark As NBCUniversal Axes Horror-Centric Channel

This was unexpected news. Even though Chiller TV's programming could've been a lot better, I am somewhat surprised that NBC Universal chose to ax their Horror-centric channel after all these years.

This March 1st, Chiller TV officially turned 10. Households without a Dish Network or Direct TV package will not be hurt by the channel "going dark;" Only households with Direct TV and Dish were able to watch Chiller.

Time Warner Cable NEVER had Chiller TV. This channel was WAY too niche.

After Dish Network discontinued Chiller TV from their packaging, the Horror-centric channel became nicher. Every household did not have a Direct TV or a Dish Network package.

Had Time Warner Cable added Chiller TV to their package 10 years ago, the channel probably would've acquired more Horror viewers and ratings. More households today may pay to watch online streaming shows, but there are still households with basic cable and satellite packages.

I believe more households had Time Warner Cable as their provider than Direct TV and Dish Network combined. When Horror Anime returned to Chiller's programming, ONLY households with Direct TV and Dish could watch the channel.

Viewers with satellite packages DID watch Chiller's shortly lived Anime Wednesday block. However, we were automatically excluded from the viewer ratings.

There were articles claiming, that ZERO viewers watched Anime Wednesday within the first 3 weeks of its launch. Viewers like myself can declare that was a LOAD of bullshit.

Before Adult Swim's forum was shut down last winter, I posted in threads during July 2015 about Chiller TV's Anime Wednesday block. Those of us with Dish Network and Direct TV watched it. Our viewership just was NOT included in the ratings.

That is a perfect example of WHY I am not OBSESSED with ratings. Ratings can be RIGGED. This is what Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, and Toonami fanboys over the Internet cannot seem to grasp.

By Chiller NOT being on Time Warner Cable's package, it lost more potential viewers.

On August 16, 2015, I published a Cartoon Sunday blog. In the following blog, I gave 5 reasons why Chiller TV's Anime Wednesday block tanked in generating more viewers.

Cartoon Sunday: Tokyo Ghoul Trailer (2015)

All 5 reasons I provided in the Cartoon Sunday blog above are still true, 2 years later. The fact that the Horror-centric channel was excluded from Time Warner hurt Chiller TV's viewership the most, in my opinion.

When I joined the original Xanga 4 years ago, I published a blog explaining about the flaws in Chiller TV's programming.

Chiller TV Or Not So "Chiller TV"? (2013)

As I reflect on 1 of my earliest blogs from Xanga 4 years later, everything that was said still holds true today.

As a Horror AND Anime fan, I remain to be disappointed in Chiller TV's programming. This NBC Universal channel had SO MUCH potential, that went to waste.

On December 31, 2017 at 11:59 pm, Chiller TV will drop dead and be gone forever.

Therefore, if you are a Horror fan with Direct TV, I recommend watching Chiller TV during these final days.

Pretty soon, this channel will bite the dust and we will all have NBC Universal to thank for axing their very own Horror-centric channel.

What are your thoughts?

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, +1 on Google Plus, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

How's it going my gumdrops? Compared to last week, I have been feeling MUCH better. For those who may have missed the previous blog, you can read it HERE.

The blog in the link above explains how I spent Halloween and there are updates, in regards to my website's content on Webs.com. It appears that It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns will be stuck here on Webs a little longer.

Since last week, I have been dabbling with other website builders. While dabbling with other site builders, I managed to stumble upon another blog, that I published days before Halloween 2013.

Have you ever listened to that song by the Industrial Metal band, Ministry? Even though Halloween was on last Tuesday, if you love the holiday and happen to be a fellow Goth and/ Horror fan, everyday is like Halloween.

Today's Throwback Thursday blog was a blog I published, during the early stages of managing It's Not All Gumdrops & Unicorns, while still blogging on Blogster 4 years ago. It was literally 2 days before I also stopped working for my uncle.

Years before I started blogging again, I heard different Hollywood actors narrating Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven. Then, I shared this rare gem in a blog on October 27, 2013 for readers, viewers, and listeners.

Let's revisit Christopher Walken's narration of Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven for today's Throwback Thursday. Click on the link below and you will be directed to that blog.

Christopher Walken Narrates Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven (2013)

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, +1 on Google Plus, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

How's it going my gumdrops? Today is that special day. HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! Do you have any special plans for the official holiday? Other than publishing today's blog, the only real plans I will probably have are the usual chores, maybe re-watching Charlie Brown (if it comes back on ABC tonight), and sleeping in.

Yesterday, I watched Tokyo Ghoul: PINTO in Japanese. PINTO is the 2nd prequel and OVA for Tokyo Ghoul. I would've shared the trailer today, but I had no luck finding it in English or Japanese.

Much like Tokyo Ghoul: Jack, PINTO is a prequel with characters, which have major significance to the protagonist, Ken Kaneki. Tokyo Ghoul: PINTO is mostly a prequel about Shuu Tsukiyama as a teenager.

In the OVA, viewers have the chance to watch Tsukiyama as an affluent and ruthless ghoul in high school, while a human classmate tags along and snaps pictures of him.

Aside from watching Tokyo Ghoul's 2nd OVA, I watched the historical biography, Edgar Allan Poe: Buried Alive on PBS, last night. After watching Edgar Allan Poe: Buried Alive last night, my feelings about Poe have somewhat changed.

Meanwhile, you already know that I have been updating and archiving past and present October blogs. Last year, I updated blogs from 2014 and 2015.

Last week, I updated and archived blogs from 2016. Today I archived blogs from THIS October. In case you missed any blogs from the last few weeks, click on the following links:

Cartoon Sunday: Tokyo Ghoul A Rare Treat [The Handkerchief Scene] (2017)

What You Didn't Already Know About Tokyo Ghoul's Characters (2017)

Song Saturday: Tom Petty Tribute Block (2017)

Cartoon Sunday: Edgar Allan Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart [REVISITED] (2017)

Paraskevidekatriaphobia: Fear Of Friday The 13th (2017)

Song Saturday: Helicopter Girl's Satan's Seventh Bride (2017)

Cartoon Sunday: Axeman Cartoons' Black Sheep (2017)

Creepy Yet Hilarious All At Once: Playmates Toys' Vintage 1986 Cricket Doll (2017)

Song Saturday: Others' Heart Of Darkness (2017)

Cartoon Sunday: Manuel Ferreira's A Deadly Visit (2017)

A Brief History Of Trick-Or-Treating With A Few Warnings And Suggestions (2017)

Song Saturday: Siouxsie And The Banshees Halloween Block (2017)

Cartoon Sunday: Tokyo Ghoul Jack (2017)

If you click on every link, you will surely have plenty to read, watch, and listen to which is always a positive for those visiting.

You may recall that it was difficult for me to choose between sharing Siouxsie And The Banshees And The Misfits for Song Saturday, last week. Since I shared Siouxsie last Saturday, and considering that today IS Halloween, it would not hurt to share Glenn Danzig's Horror-Punk band, The Misfits for today.

With that being said, I will leave you with The Misfits' "Halloween I" and "Halloween II."

The Misfits "Halloween I"/"Halloween II" (1981)

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, +1 on Google Plus, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

How's it going my gumdrops? I meant to share today's blog earlier this week, but I've been preoccupied with reconnecting with friends, that I haven't talked to in a little while.

We have only 4 more days until Halloween. Do you have your Halloween costumes and candy ready for the next 3 days? Considering that my neighborhood is a ghost town, it serves no purpose to buy bags of Halloween Candy.

Wauwatosa is also strict about who can give children Halloween Candy.

Home owners have to sign up to give candy to children. It sounds preposterous, but I understand why home owners must do it. Because Wisconsin judges allow pedophiles and other criminals to have housing in suburban neighborhoods, parents really should be more cautious of when and where they allow their children to go trick-or-treating.

Meanwhile, there are those brainwashed, Christian zealots and Jehovah's Witnesses, who believe that Halloween is a so-called "Pagan" or "Satanist Holiday."

Even though the tradition of trick-or-treating from door-to-door for Halloween treats began, during the 16th Century in Great Britain and Ireland, did you know that trick-or-treating did not become a tradition in America until the 1930's?

Generally speaking, North America didn't start celebrating Halloween until the 1920's. Nearly a century ago, treats for children consisted of homemade cookies, pieces of cake to fruits, nuts, coins, and toys, according to The History Channel.

It was not until the 1950's, that candy manufacturers such as Hershey's, Nestle's, Reese's, and Mars for example, started promoting their candy for Halloween.

As children trick-or-treating reached popularity, giving candy to trick-or-treators was considered more convenient and affordable.

In addition, stories about candy tampering developed in 1959. A Fremont, CA dentist named William Shyne played a mean-spirited prank on 450 trick-or-treaters by giving them candy-coated laxatives. 30 out of 450 trick-or-treaters became very sick from them.

On Halloween 1970, a 5-year-old boy from Michigan died from heroin ingestion. Test results showed there was heroin dust on the boy's Halloween Candy. During the '70s, adults giving children packaged candy became the only acceptable treat to give trick-or-treaters for Halloween.

As the decades have gone by, parents have warned their children to CHECK their Halloween Candy. Supposedly, people were sticking needles and other dangerous products into our candy.

Growing up during the 1980's and '90s, my mother always told me to check my candy. Sometimes she would help check the candy with me.

Now that the opiate addictions and overdoses have been back on the rise in America these last several years (including in my home state), parents should most definitely be more cautious and check Halloween Candy for their children.

In the Milwaukee County, which is my county, there have been news reports about "Killer Marijuana."

What is "Killer Marijuana"?

It is Marijuana laced with the opiate, Fentanyl. Supposedly, people are dying from "Killer Marijuana" by doing only 1 hit. There are A LOT of new age drugs out there, that most average people know nothing about.

On a lighter note, I have Halloween Candy Suggestions. If I were a little girl trick-or-treating again, I would LOVE to have adults throw chocolate candy bars and gummy candy in my bucket or bag.

For a spooky treat, I highly recommend Sour Gummy Spiders. YES, this is coming from an arachnophobic, who kills spiders constantly!

Last year, my oldest aunt bought me some, when she was returning from Chicago. It had taken me 2 MONTHS to build up the courage to eat that candy. After putting 1 gummy spider in my mouth, I wanted MORE.

The ONLY time I will ever like a spider is when I'm eating it in candy form. Otherwise, let the spider killing spree continue!

Before I forget, I wanted to let you know that I updated and archived blogs from last October. In case you missed any of these blogs from last year, click on the following links:

Song Saturday: Nightmare's The World (2016)

Cartoon Sunday: Tokyo Ghoul (2016)

Grimm's Final Season Premieres Next Year! (2016)

Song Saturday: Hollow Bodies' Infected Lust (2016)

Cartoon Sunday: Ub Iwerks' Skeleton Frolics (2016)

Shinigami In Japanese Folklores (2016)

Song Saturday: Michael Jackson's Ghosts (2016)

Cartoon Sunday: Ub Iwerks' The Skeleton Dance (2016)

Updates, Updates, & More Updates (2016)

Halloween Special Updates (2016)

Hopefully, you learned something new from today's blog! Get ready for a spooky Song Saturday, tomorrow.

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, +1 on Google Plus, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

How's it going my gumdrops? Yes, the gif above is indeed creepy, especially with the twinkling stars in those blue eyes. Does anyone here in their 30's or older remember the talking doll, Cricket?

Playmates Toys' Cricket Commercial: (1986)

Growing up during the mid-1980's, Cricket was a very popular doll by Playmates Toys. She rivaled Worlds of Wonder's Teddy Ruxpin and the Mother Goose dolls. Cricket was similar to Teddy Ruxpin.

She was a talking doll with 2-sided tape sets, 4 C batteries for the player, and a 9-volt battery for her mouth to move. She also came with books. An older cousin owned this doll. I wanted Cricket but never got her.

Looking back, I can understand why my mother never bought me this doll. Cricket was creepy. Her eyes always moved, when she talked and she was a doll, that NEVER shut up.

However, I don't recall of ever seeing Cricket's mouth move, when she was talking. This is something I realized recently.

In addition to recently learning, that the doll's mouth moved, I discovered that Playmates Toys released 3 different types of Cricket dolls.

Did you know there were 2 black versions of the doll?

Black Cricket Doll #1:

Black Cricket Doll #2:

Do you notice the differences in these 2 black Cricket dolls?

Doll #1 is identical to the original white Cricket doll, whereas doll #2 has short curly hair with no ribbons. It's amazing what you discover on the Internet!

I get the impression these 2 dolls were released after the original. Had my cousin seen these versions, she would've made her mother buy them because they were black dolls.

Not only did I recently discover that there were 2 other types of Cricket dolls specifically meant for black girls, but Cricket also had 2 siblings.

In 1987, Playmates Toys released a younger brother named Corky and an older sister named Jill. Jill was slightly different than Corky and Cricket.

Jill had voice recognition capabilities and cartridges compared to Cricket and Corky using tapes. There was another picture I saw of Jill. I'm not gonna lie to you folks. I legitimately felt creepy vibes, as a woman and a Horror fan.

Staring at Jill being out of her box and sitting instantly gave me goosebumps. Maybe I spent too much time watching Child's Play, during my youth.

Meanwhile, watching this video years ago was creepy yet hilarious at the same time. I'm still trying to decide who is creepier, Cricket or the guy in his basement? He looks like a serial killer filming Cricket, which can be viewed as somewhat disturbing.

In this video, Cricket keeps talking. I'm amazed the doll was still working, when this guy was filming her.

Playmates Toys' Vintage 1986 Cricket Doll: (2012)

Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, +1 on Google Pus, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!