• Inktober 2022 Recap

    Inktober 2022 Recap

    Hey All! Last year, I completed 31 sketches for the annual Inktober challenge following the official prompt list. I chose horror movies for a theme, so each prompt correlates with a horror movie in some way. It can be difficult to think of things that fit with the prompt but its a great way to exercise my creativity and I think of a lot of great movies to watch for the season! I have so much fun with Inktober and it is an amazing way to stretch out my fingers and do something different from my main body of work. My work improves tremendously every year that I participate!

    I wanted to share last years collection one last time before I move on to my 2023 collection! I did something completely different this year! I am still sticking to the official prompt list but my theme and approach are unique from the ways I’ve done it in the past. Check back later to see the first installment of Inktober 2023!

    In the meantime, enjoy last years sketches and let me know what your favorite one is in the comments below! Did I do your favorite horror movie justice? Thanks for stopping by today!

    Stay spooky, free spirits!

  • Inktober #10 – Crabby- 2022

    The tenth Inktober prompt is “crabby”. The movie I chose for this prompt is the The Babadook. This movie is a wild ride. It does have it’s creepy parts but all in all it’s emotionally terrifying. The story is heart wrenching and touches base with many overwhelming feelings such as depression, anger, worry, fear and many more.

    I think the scariest part about it is how relatable it can be for anyone. It covers so many difficult emotions that most of us hide from the rest of the world. It’s a great reminder to make sure you don’t hide them too well because they might manifest into the babadook and you can’t get rid of the babadook!

    We all have our demons and this movie is a scary reminder of what can happen if you don’t face your demons. This is a psychological roller coaster of a movie so if you decide to watch it be prepared to check your emotions.

    Have you seen The Babadook? What did you think about it? Drop a line in the comments below! Check back tomorrow to see the next prompt, eagle.

    Take care, free spirits!

  • Inktober #9 – Nest- 2022

    The ninth prompt for Inktober is “nest”. The movie I chose for this prompt is “Them!” (1954). I don’t remember much about this movie except for the giant ants attacking a town. I watched it when I was about 3 or 4 years old with my great grandfather. I remember going over there to stay the night and my grandpa always had some kind of old monster movie on. I think this was where my passion for horror was first instilled in me. It’s in my blood I guess.

    I can remember being so confused while watching this particular movie about the giant ants. I was baffled by the size of the ants and I remember wondering, “Holy crap, is this real?!” I had no idea and at that age you don’t really know about the “It’s just a movie” adage. I was amazed that this was happening on the screen in front of me. It scared me but my fascination for this unexplained phenomenon was stronger than my fear and I wanted to watch more.

    There were several other horror movies I had watched with my grandfather at a young age but I don’t remember what the were. The only other one I remember was watching Critters which scared the life out of me but again I was too fascinated to look away nor did I express any fear because I didn’t want him to turn it off.

    This is probably one of my earliest memories and my first memory with my grandfather. I have always treasured those memories. Now that I’m older, I am grateful that he allowed me to experience those feelings for the first time; the joy of being scared but feeling safe in his home, the fascination of the unknown and the unexplained and the fearful curiosity to want to see more. The first time you experience certain emotions is always the strongest and you’ll never quite feel it that way again. Kind of like when you find your soulmate and you fall in love with them for the first time. Your emotions are always so powerful in the beginning because it’s the first time you’re feeling them. Emotions are like drugs, you can never truly experience that first high again. I guess it’s the same when you discover your love for horror.

    What was the first horror/monster movie you remember watching? How did you feel? Leave a comment below! Check back soon for the next Inktober prompt, crabby.

    Stay fascinated, free spirits!

  • Inktober #8 – Match – 2022

    The eighth prompt for Inktober is “match”. I wasn’t sure how I wanted to approach this one. My first thought was a match to light a fire. My second thought was match as in a couple, like the perfect match. Then I thought well maybe a match as in a game.

    There are a couple horror movies plotted around video games that I thought of but it didn’t feel right. There were a couple horror-related couples that I could think of but that didn’t feel right either. Then I thought of another one of my favorite horror movies out there, The Conjuring.

    Many would agree that this was a fantastic movie. It gives you chills all throughout and the story is great. Plus, it is based on true accounts that real life demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren experienced. Which now that I have said their names, I realize they happened to be a perfectly matched couple! If you have never heard of them, I would recommend looking them up. They are very interesting people.

    Anyways, there is a scene in the movie where the lights go out and the main character is forced to use a match to see what is in front of them. The only problem is they should have been more focused on what was behind them! I don’t want to spoil the movie so if you haven’t seen it and are looking for a good horror that will truly give you the heebie jeebies through out the story rather than gross you out with gore and violence, this is the one!

    In fact, there are many great horror movies that coincide in the Warrens universe. The Conjuring now has two sequels, plus, the Annabelle trilogy and The Nun are all stories related to the Warrens and their encounters as demonologists in real life. Spooky!

    Have you seen The Conjuring? What are your thoughts about it? Leave a comment below! Check back tomorrow for the next prompt, nest.

    Strike a match, free spirits!

  • Inktober #7 – Trip – 2022

    The seventh prompt for Inktober is “trip”. This prompt had several possibilities, it was just a matter of picking one! I decided to go with one of my favorite horror movies, The Descent (2005).

    This was one of those movies I had never even heard of until I randomly stumbled across it at the store. I had no idea what it was or if it was even supposed to be good so I took a chance and bought it. (This was before streaming services were a thing so you had to either rent physical movies or buy them…ah, the good ole days!)

    I was totally blind coming into this movie and once I had watched it, I was completely impressed. The story was great and believable, the actors were great, the monsters were awesomely creepy and had a back story that was logical and the ending was great. How often do you randomly stumble on a horror movie that has it all?!

    The gist of the movie is about a group of friends that go on a trip together, spelunking in a cave. That’s all I am going to say because if you haven’t seen it, you should give it a shot this Halloween season. You will not be disappointed.

    Plus, a little side note, the entire cast was all female. There are so many movies now that force the female roles and it’s done so poorly, it’s an embarrassment to the women watching. This one was just natural and made no point to be like “look at us, we made an all woman movie, pat us on the back”. No, it was just a movie for everyone to enjoy that just happened to be all female.

    Have you seen The Descent, what did you think? Tell me your opinion in the comments below! Check back tomorrow for the next prompt, match.

    See ya next trip, free spirits!

  • Inktober #6 – Bouquet – 2022

    The sixth prompt for Inktober is “bouquet”. This was actually an easy one to come up with even though I could only think of one horror movie for the word bouquet, Frankenstein (1931). Well, my first thought was Bride of Frankenstein but that one didn’t actually have a bouquet in the movie.


    Elizabeth Lavenza in Frankenstein is actually the one with the bouquet. This was the fiancée of Dr. Henry Frankenstein. There is a scene where Elizabeth is waiting for the wedding to begin, meanwhile, Frankenstein’s monster is on the loose. He sees the future bride from outside the window and sneaks into her room, creeping up behind her.

    Have you ever seen the Frankenstein movie? What do you think of the black and white classics? Leave a comment below! Check back tomorrow for the next Inktober prompt, trip.

    Thanks for stopping by, Franken Spirits!

  • Inktober #5 – Flame – 2022

    The fifth prompt for Inktober is Flame. This prompt had several possibilities. There are several horror movies that have fires and literally end in flames. It was just a matter of choosing which movie I wanted to go with.

    There is one classic horror movie that I wanted to incorporate into this years Inktober series and this was the best prompt to link it to in my opinion. I decided to go with Carrie (1973). I am a hardcore Stephen King fan so I wanted to get at least one of his movies in here. I think I managed to get a couple in this year but you will have to wait to see the others.

    I’m sure there are very few horror fans that haven’t seen Carrie. Although, even if you haven’t seen it, many still know about the infamous ending with Carrie’s humiliation that immediately turns into her malicious revenge on her high school. Then, like I stated earlier, it all ends in flames.

    This is my favorite sketch that I have shared with you so far. I have never quite mastered drawing fire. It has always been a struggle for me to make it look realistic. I also wasn’t sure how I was going to make it look like Carrie (spoiler alert) had been drenched in pigs blood either, especially with a black and white sketch. However, I just went for it and hoped for the best. I am pretty pleased with how it came out. I’m quite proud of how I captured the scene. Not to mention, I am not the best at drawing people which is a yearly struggle for me when Inktober rolls around. Although, you will never get better at something if you don’t try. So in the end, one of the most challenging sketches has turned out to be one of my best for this years Inktober.

    Carrie is definitely one of those weird stories from Stephen King but it’s a different approach to the horror genre than your typical ghosts and goblins. Also, there is a remake released in 2013 that was also good. They both follow the same story line but each one is unique in it’s own way. I enjoyed watching both of them. Although, I believe the original holds a little bit more of that “creep” factor. I still would recommend watching the remake at least once.

    Have you seen the Carrie movies? Did you like the original or the remake better? Share your opinion in the comments below! Check back tomorrow for the next Inktober prompt, bouquet.

    Thanks for stopping by! Stay fiery free spirits!

  • Inktober #4 – Scallop – 2022

    The fourth prompt for Inktober 2022 is “scallop”. This was probably the most difficult prompt I had to come up with a relatable horror movie. I tried to think of anything to tie a horror movie to this word but nothing was working. Did Hannibal Lecter ever eat a dish accompanied with scallops….no. How about the weird clam-shaped phone thing the girl had in It Follows?…nah, too far of a stretch. Okay, well, what about a scallop design? Were there any haunted house movies that had scalloped curtains?…wallpaper?…any kind of decor with a scalloped edge?…nada! Creepy mermaid movies that had scallops?….Nope!

    I couldn’t think of anything! I did a some digging online and finally came up with a suitable idea. The Man Clam!!! Never heard of him? Me neither!

    Apparently, there was a Canadian B movie made in the 1960’s called ManClam, The Shell from Hell. The movie was thought to be lost in a fire but a damaged reel was later discovered and the surviving footage was pieced together to create a 5 minute trailer you can watch on YouTube. I watched it and it looks like one of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever seen in my life. Although, in those short 5 minutes it definitely made me laugh.

    I don’t even know if this was even a real thing that had happened or if someone just made a fake trailer for a good laugh. It very well may have been the latter but either way I can associate it with a monster movie so I’m using it to fill in the gap for my “scallop” prompt. Phew! Check it off the list, that one was a pain!

    Do you know anything about this alleged lost film? Watch the trailer and let me know if you think it was once real or a farce. Leave your comments below. Check back tomorrow for prompt #5, flame.

    Thanks for stopping by! Shell ya later!