• 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 #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 2021 #28 – Crispy

    I drew a perch for this prompt because one of the things I’m going to miss is my dad’s fish fry! You may have read in a previous Inktober post that my family and I would often take my dad’s boat out on Lake Erie. We would spend all day in the sun, fishing for perch. Whatever we caught, we would bring back home and fry them up for one of my favorite meals of all time. My dad would take care of the fish and my mom made this home made tarter sauce. Together, it was sooooo goood. I never even remember what the sides were because I was so focused on the fish.

    I know I can have a fish fry anywhere but it’s not the same if my dad doesn’t make it. I always enjoyed his cooking. Some of the things he would make became my favorite meals. When I try to remake them though, it’s just not as good. I guess I’ll just have to keep practicing.

    Thanks for stopping by. I have one more Inktober sketch to do for my collection. I will not be doing #30 or #31. The prompts don’t bring up any memories for me. Plus it’s Halloween so I will be having fun with my son that weekend! Check back soon for the final sketch!

    Fry it up, free spirits!

  • Inktober 2021 #27 – Spark

    My dad was a metal worker by trade. He was a welder at Jeep for over 40 years. He worked on various parts of the jeeps over the years. We are a huge jeep family, always have been. I always thought it was cool to see them on the road or even driving our own and I would think, Yea, my dad made that. He obviously only welded one part of the vehicle but I gave him all the credit.

    He would also work on projects at home. He had his own welder so he did repairs for various things and every once and a while he would do fun projects like a coat rack made from horseshoes and stuff like that. He would show me what he had done once he was finished. He told me about the different types of welds you can do. He was very talented and his work always came out clean and perfect. At least it looked perfect to me.

    The number one rule when my dad was welding was to not look at the light. He always made me turn my back or go somewhere else for the moment. I was always tempted to look but it was so incredibly bright I never actually did. Okay, maybe from a distance I glimpsed for a split second one time but I immediately looked away and never did it again. My dad always wore the welding helmet and the gloves for protection. Although, he usually had a t-shirt on with little holes all over from the burn marks. I always wondered how it didn’t hurt when the sparks would hit his arms and shirt but it didn’t seem to bother him.

    My dad was a jack of all trades and a master of a few. I think metal working was definitely on the mastered list. I’ve always wanted to get into it artistically and make sculptures or something but I have yet to do so. One day.

    Thanks for reading! I’ll be posting #28 later today so check back soon!

    Master your craft, free spirits!

  • Inktober 2021 #24 – Extinct

    There was only one memory that came to mind when I saw the word extinct. I was fortunate enough to see Jurassic Park in theaters when it first came out. I went with my mom, dad and brother. I was only about five years old but I remember how amazing it was to see on the big screen. I was blown away by the dinosaurs themselves, unbelievable. I also remember being really scared but excited when the raptors were in the kitchen hunting the kids. It was an awesome experience and I’m glad my parents let me go even though I was so young. It was such a rush. This must have been where my love for movies and theater first started. I still to this day feel that rush from watching a great movie in the theaters. When it’s done well, you feel like you are really there. Plus the lighting and the sound, I don’t know, it just gets me excited!! What about you?

    I only have a few more sketches left for my Inktober project. I hope you have enjoyed my sketches so far. It’s really helped me a lot to do this project related to my dad and I know a lot of these were his favorite memories as well. Plus this will be a nice collection to go back and flip through when I need some help thinking of the good ol’ days with my dad.

    Thanks for reading. Check back soon for the last few sketches!

    Feel the rush, free spirits!