Merry Christmas, Krampus

There's a Krampus children's book currently on Kickstarter called Merry Christmas, Krampus.

Merry Christmas, Krampus is an independently published children’s book that tells the story of legendary Christmastime creature Krampus and how one child from Santa’s Naughty List teaches him that all “bad” children have some good in them.

Any children's book featuring Krampus would be fun but what makes this one a little more special is the way they're creating the images. They're actually building the characters and sets, then photographing them.

The folks creating this have worked for Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Disney Imagineering, and Disney Animation! There's still 22 days left for them to hit their funding goal and I'm really hoping they make it. I'd love to see the final product.

There's some open Early Bird pledge spots open where $30 will get you a copy so head over to their Kickstarter page and check it out.

Creepmas Reading

Ghost stories have been a part of Christmas for a very long time. If you're looking to carry on that tradition and/or inject some horror into your holiday, here's a few suggestions.

Clicking a cover will bring you to Amazon where you can order the book. And if you can't wait to get it, grab an e-book!

“O Horrid Night” revives the tradition of telling ghost stories on Christmas Eve, when it is said that the barrier between the living and the dead is thinnest, and spirits may walk the earth. Such tales were in vogue in Victorian England (remember good old Jacob Marley), but the origins of the tradition stretch back in time, in celebrations of the Winter Solstice, Yule, and Sol Invictus. Gather your friends and loved ones together, get cozy with warm drinks or a roaring fire, and give them the gift of a spine-chilling ancient holiday tradition.

FunDead Publications is near and dear to me. Literally near, they're based in Salem MA!I support them not just because they're local but because they do great stuff.

This collection of 9 twisted tales of Christmas horror brings together weirdo literary talent from around the world, all with the sole purpose of turning the most sacred of holidays on its head, and making sweet, sweet love to its defenseless ear holes!

I just finished this recently and it was my first trip into the realm of StrangeHouse Books. There are two solid horror stories and the other seven are...interesting. They definitely have horror elements but they also have a large dose of sex...sleaze is the best way I can describe it! I mean that in a good way. If you found this in a video rental place, it would be in the back room of the back room. If you're not used to this level of weirdness, it may be shocking to see icons of Christmas getting themselves on the naughty list. The $3 Kindle version is worth it for the last story alone.
But don't say you weren't warned about the rest of it!

The living dead love Christmas. Whether they're hanging their entrails like garland, using severed heads like stockings, or hanging body parts like ornaments, even zombies enjoy the most wonderful time of the year. Santa Claus isn't immune to the walking dead, either. Zombie elves, killer reindeer and undead hordes, all seek to share in the joy of the holiday . . . and tear Santa apart and feed on his flesh!

 This has a good variety of zombie Christmas stories. My favorite being "How Slappy Ended Christmas" which is about one of Santa's elves that finds out what really happens to the elves that aren't up to par and accidentally unleashes a zombie virus at the North Pole.

Matt Shaw has called upon some of the biggest names in horror to put together an anti-Christmas anthology of horror and weirdness!

I haven't read this one but it's only a buck on Kindle and all the proceeds go to charity. How can you say no to that? he asked as he clicked on the 1-Click Order button.

During the Victorian era, it became traditional for publishers of newspapers and magazines to print ghost stories during the Christmas season for chilling winter reading by the fireside or candlelight. Now for the first time thirteen of these tales are collected here, including a wide range of stories from a diverse group of authors, some well-known, others anonymous or forgotten. Readers whose only previous experience with Victorian Christmas ghost stories has been Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol" will be surprised and delighted at the astonishing variety of ghostly tales in this volume.

If you're looking for tales that are more on the spooky side and maybe not so gory, this is a great place to start. There are three volumes in the series.

There are plenty books to be found looking for Christmas Horror.
Do you have any favorites?

Dreadful Decorations

Fright Rags has some officially licensed Krampus goodies, just in time for Creepmas.

They have a shirt and socks but the clear winner is this set of die cut decorations.
The whole set is $20, you can't beat that!

They have holes at the top so you can hang them with a tack or string them all together for festive garland. Bonus! They're double sided so if you put them in a window, they can be enjoyed from both sides.

Vintage Spooky Company is at it again with a new die cut and a series of ornaments.

The Creepy Cracker measures 17"x11" and is sure to keep the spirit of Creepmas in your home throughout the holiday season. How cool would it be to have an actual physical nutcracker based on this design? I really hope Vintage Spooky keeps making Halloween inspired decorations for all the big holidays.

They've also shrunk down some of their Halloween die cut designs so you can hang them from your tree. Or wherever you hang things from at Creepmas.

The die cut is just $10 and the ornaments $5. If you do head over to Vintage Spooky, be careful. Those $10 die cuts add up quick!