Rish Outcast 327: My Friend of Misery 1

After a very long introduction, Rish presents the first section of his novella "My Friend of Misery." Teenager Brielle Montrose hears a voice coming from her little brother Brent's room in the middle of the night. And it sure ain't Bluey.

Afterward, Rish tells (in excruciating detail) the inspiration for this story, wonders about the genders of the characters, and proposes an assignment for a Writing class.

Download the file directly by Right-Clicking HERE.

Support me on Patreon HERE!

Logo by Gino "My Fiend" Moretto.

When I See You Smile

 My buddy Jonathan Wilson*, months ago, asked me for a couple of my readings of public domain stories that he could run on his YouTube channel, and he's put another one up.

"The Dead Smile" by F. Marion Crawford tells of the evil Hugh Ockram, who, despite being dead, still manages to ruin the lives of his son Gabriel and the woman he loves.  

I really ought to see if I can find another story by him--I spent an hour on Sunday reading a story by a much higher-profile author that ended so badly I just deleted the whole thing--but in the meantime, check it out HERE.

*Is that okay to say?  Is he my buddy?  Would he lend me ten dollars in a pinch?

My Voice In "Manor Of Frights" Collection

I often mention it when I narrate or lend my voice to a story on other podcasts, but I suppose I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that Emerian Rich has recently put out a collection of stories that she performed on the HorrorAddicts podcast, many of which feature my voice as well.

The collection includes (at least as far as I can tell) seventeen stories, each taking place in a room of a macabre Victorian manor, and are as follows:

Flowers in the Foyer by DW Milton
Storage by Ollie Fox
Bye, Baby Bunting by Leslie Warren

Withered Bindings by Michael Fassbender
Dinner Guests by Emerian Rich
A Green Thumb by Daphne Strasert
Turning Pages by Mark Orr

A Fresh Start by D.J. Pitsiladis
The Living Room by Amanda Leslie
Lanai by BF Vega
Cacophony by Judith Pancoast
Nightbears by Loren Rhodes
Beyond the Ensuite by Barend Nieuwstraten III (I remember reading this one and thinking, "What the devil's an ensuite?"  Oh, I was so naive in those days.  But I still don't know)
The Desiccated Heart by Sumiko Saulson
A Study in Terror by Jason Fischer
Come Find Me, Mummy by Rosetta Yorke
Missing by R.L. Merrill

Emz put these out where you can buy the whole collection in audio, and it's now up on Audible HERE.  Just pray the doors don't lock behind you.

Marshal & Rish Bury . . . The Living??

I remember watching I BURY THE LIVING! at the family cabin alone on a Sunday afternoon last fall.  It's a 1958 horror film about a man (Richard Boone) hired to work at a cemetery with a big map of all the burial plots who discovers that, when he puts a pin in a space, the person who owns that plot dies.  Or do they?

Okay, I'll be honest: until today, I had completely forgotten we had watched this movie, and had it confused with the Daisy Ridley zombie flick that came out a month back.  But not too long ago, Marshal Latham and I did an episode talking about it, and I even did a whole separate podcast episode inspired by it, talking about Stephen King's "Obits," which was also inspired by it.

Maybe you'll be inspired too.  Check it out HERE.

Rish Outcast 321: The Dark Gift Part I

Rish presents the first half of his recent carnival story, "The Dark Gift." Nobie, Eris, and Grump are enjoying the 1992 Pickle Days celebration when Nobie spins a wheel and it stops on something it wasn't supposed to.

Afterward, Rish explains the title and inspiration--making this probably the only story he's ever written due to spite.

Note: This was not intended to be split into two episodes, so it might behoove you to wait and listen to both parts together.  Or, judging by its reaction elsewhere . . . not at all.

If you want to download the episode, Right-Click HERE.

If you want to support me on Patreon, click HERE.

Logo by Gino "The Dork Gift" Moretto.

How Much Horror Is Enough?

(I covered this in my New Year's episode, but since I went to the trouble of typing it up . . .)

Well, just turning on the news is too much horror, but as far as horror movies go, this is what I watched in 2025.  I had set a goal of seeing fifty horror movies in that year (and I'll set it again for this year), so here's how I did:

 13.  Watch 50 Horror movies (149 films total)

-1.  Nosferatu (2024)*

-2.  Village of the Damned (1960)*

-3.  Children of the Damned (1964)

-4. 13 Ghosts (1960)

-5.  Hell's Trap (1989)

-6.  Bloodbath at the House of Death (1984)

-7.  Food of the Gods (1976)

-8.  The Ghost Ship (1943)

-9.  The Leopard Man (1943)*

-10.  Talk To Me (2022)*

-11.  Heart Eyes (2025)*

-12.  The Monkey (2025)

-13.  The Monster of Piedras Blancas (1959)

-14.  The Thing From Another World (1951)*

-15.  Squirm (1976)

-16.  Sinners* (2025)

-17.  The Conjuring  (2013)

-18. Until Dawn (2025)

-19.  Frogs (1972)

-20.  Final Destination Bloodlines* (2025)

-21.  IT! The Terror From Beyond Space (1958)

-22.  The Monster That Challenged The World (1957)

-23.  Annabelle (2014)

-24.  28 Years Later (2025)*

-25.  Fantasy Island (2020)

-26.  M3GAN 2.0

-27.  Planet of the Vampires (1965)

-28.  Daughters of Darkness (1971)

-29.  House of Whipcord (1974)

-30.  I Know What You Did Last Summer (2025)

-31. Dead of Night (1945)

-32.  Kingdom of the Spiders (1977)

-33.  Tarantulas: The Deadly Cargo (1977)

-34.  Weapons (2025)*

35.  Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)

36.  Jaws (1975)*

37.  The Conjuring 2 (2016)

38.  Transylvania Twist (1989)

39.  Jurassic World: Rebirth (2025)

40.  The Dungeonmaster (1984)

41.  Kill, Baby, Kill (1966)

42.  Ants/It Happened At Lakewood Manor (1977)

43.  Annabelle Creation (2017)

44.  The Savage Bees (1976)

45.  Terror Out Of The Sky (1978)

46.  The Bees (1978)

47.  Invasion of the Bee Girls (1973)

48.  Black Phone 2 (2025)*

49.  The Cabin In The Woods (2011)*

50.  Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (1982)

51.  The Nun (2018)

52.  The Woman In The Yard (2025)

53. Birdemic: Shock and Terror (2010)

54. The Birds (1963)*

55.  Five Nights At Freddy’s (2023)

56.  Willy’s Wonderland (2021)

57.  Jaws 2 (1978)

58.  The Curse of La Llorona (2019)

59.  Anaconda (2025)

60.  The Incubus (1982)  

(*Denotes particularly good, underline denotes seen before)

How did you do last year? If you watched more than twenty horror films, between you and me, you have a problem.

Marshal & I Visit A Planet of Vampires

Years ago, I tried to watch Mario Bava's 1965 film PLANET OF THE VAMPIRES, but only made it a few minutes in before losing consciousness.  Years later, while visiting my friend in Germany, I tried it again, and maybe it was jetlag, but I fell asleep once again.

Here we are today (well, last year, actually), and I am attempting to watch it a third time, this time for Marshal Latham's "Outfield Excursions" podcast.  Can I stay awake?  Is the movie good?  And was there any influence on Ridley Scott's ALIEN, the way the folks say?  Find out HERE.

Podcast That Dares 65: The Birds

Happy Halloween, kids!  What, it's not Halloween where you are?

For an extra-long treat (rather than a trick), Rish presents Daphne du Maurier's 1952 story "The Birds," about an English village beset by flocks of avian killers almost as sick of humanity as you are. Apparently, they once made a film of it.

Note: This very nearly was split into two episodes, and only the promise of the greatest holiday of the year kept them stuck together.

Note 2: You're welcome.

If you want to download the episode, Right-Click HERE.

If you want to support me on Patreon, click HERE.

Logo by Gino "The Nerds" Moretto.

Come On A Grand(ish) Tour With Me

A couple of years ago, I told my niece about a local ghost tour they do in town every Halloween season, thinking it would be fun to go to it.  But then I read the press release, in which the guide actually said--surely to appease the religious fanatics--that it was all in fun and that he doesn't actually believe in ghosts, so there's no chance of anything scary ever happening on one of his tours.

Well, that really pissed me off (and we decided not to go).  Heck, it still does.

And about a year or so back, after getting hired to work in a building they say is haunted*, I decided to write a story about it.  That tale, "The Grand Tour," tells of Savannah, whose new boyfriend works nights in October hosting a ghost tour in town, but when she shows interest in going, Dorian tells her not to come, that there's no ghosts, and it's all pretty boring, actually.  So, she goes in costume, to satisfy her curiosity.

I published three stories in a row after Big got me the cover art back, and this is probably the best of the three.  BUT IT'S NOT SCARY, AND GHOSTS DON'T ACTUALLY EXIST, SO DON'T YOU DARE BUY IT!  Otherwise, you could check it out here.

Oh, and I met the ghost tourguide earlier this year, but didn't think to tell him his spiel had inspired a story.  I also didn't call him a buttplug either, so there's that.

*I looked and listened for ghosts quite a bit in the first days of working there, but that has gone way down in recent months.  I probably only pause and listen to something strange or wonder what is causing that shadow five or six times a week, maybe even less.

Rish Outcast 316: Door Number Three 2

 ...and the story continues. Here I present the 2025 portion of the story "Door Number Three," written after considering the original ending unsatisfying/unsatisfactory.

Afterward, I'm including the original second half of the first episode, where I talk about what I would do differently if I wrote the tale now (ultimately redundant, since I went ahead and did it). Sorry(ish).

If you wish to download the episode, Right-Click HERE.

If you wish to support me on Patreon, click HERE.

Logo by Gino "Door Number Pee" Moretto.

Rish Outcast 315: Door Number Three 1

Rish shares a story from many years ago about a babysitter that discovers a new door in the hallway. It was meant to be a single episode, way back in March or April . . . but then it mutated.

Just like your sister-in-law.

Remember, you can download the file by Right-Clicking HERE.

Don't forget, you can support my Patreon by clicking HERE.

Logo by Gino "Dork Number Three" Moretto.

Rish Tries To Mine His Manners

I know I said the last time would be the last time, and the time before that (Never again, is what you swore, the time before), but I ended up doing another narration for the Tales To Terrify podcast. Seth Williams, the editor, asked me to read another story, and as literally no other podcast wants me to do them anymore, I accepted, and even followed the inane directions I was criticized for ignoring the last two times.

But don't worry, I doubt they'll ask me to do it again.

This time, the story was "What's Mine Is Yours, What's Yours Is Mined" by L.T. Williams. It's a dreamlike--almost nonsensical--short tale of the owner of an English coal mine who discovers the world and people around him changing into some kind of bleak industrial hellscape. It's the kind of morality play you used to see on "The Twilight Zone," even though I don't quite understand it. But that's okay--I'm not an audiobook narrator, but I do play one on TV.

Check it out HERE.

Podcast That Dares 64: Smee

Rish presents A.M. Burrage's 1931 short horror story "Smee." A young man tells of a disturbing experience that happened to him while playing a game similar to Hide & Seek.

As always, you can download the file by Right-Clicking HERE.

And of course, you should support my Patreon by clicking HERE (they got an extended version of this episode).

Logo by Gino "Pee" Moretto.

Rish Outcast 312: Heads Up

Rish presents a very short story he wrote a number of years ago for a match-the-image contest, about a boy who gets a strange visit from his brother in the night.

Then Rish talks about floating Danny Glick and the last time he saw A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (1984).

Download the file directly by Right-Clicking HERE.

Support me on Patreon HERE!

Logo by Gino "Foreheads Up" Moretto.

My Voice On "The Wax Shadow" on HorrorAddicts

A lot of the stories Emerian Rich writes for her podcast* have a female main character and female supporting characters. Sometimes, there's a dude who grabs one of the women's butts on the subway or tells her he's gonna kill her daughter if she doesn't give up the briefcase . . . and in those cases, she lately calls me to voice those guys. Everybody else, she voices herself.

But with this new story, "Wax Shadow," it's almost completely the opposite. This tells the tale of Josh Anton, up and coming star of action movies, who is gifted with a wax replica of himself, one that looks remarkably like him. But when Josh spreads himself too thin, the wax version decides to take his place for a little while, to help him get back on his feet.

I voice a whole mess of characters in this one, from Josh and his doppelganger, to his brother, to a talk show host, to a deliveryman, to an Action star from the past that lives down the block (Emerian did change the gender of Josh's assistant to a woman, or it would've been even more).

I tried to make Josh and his brother and his artificial twin sound similar, but slightly different to one another, and that turned out to be a real challenge (sometimes Josh sounds a bit KeanuReevesish, and that wasn't entirely my intention). I'm not sure if it's even apparent in the finished product, but I did try.**

If you've got the time, check it out HERE.

*It's more likely she writes them elsewhere and puts them up on her podcast, since she also publishes collections of them . . . like I oughtta do more of.

**Usually, I can alter the pitch or the accent or the age of the character so they sound distinct, but this one gave me way less wiggle room. By the way, when you were a child, did you have a Wiggle Room? I was always jealous of my friend Steven's Wiggle Room. It seemed so wondrous and freeing and fun. Until they found the bones, that was.

Marshal & I Find Monsters Among The White Rocks

Over at the Outfield Excursions podcast, Marshal Latham and I review the 1959 low-budget horror film, THE MONSTER OF PIEDRAS BLANCAS, no doubt one of your favorites.  We have so little to say about it, though, that I change lanes to talk about a little-seen John Cusack adventure, HOT PURSUIT.

Check it out HERE.

Podcast That Dares 59: For The Blood Is The Life

Rish presents F. Marion Crawford's 1911 short story "For The Blood Is The Life." Drink up!

To download the episode, Right-Click HERE.

To support my vain efforts on Patreon, click HERE.

Logo by Gino "The Stud Is The Life" Moretto.

I Narrate "The Sin Eater's Chrysalis" on Tales To Terrify

If you like, check out last week's Tales To Terrify podcast, where you can hear me perform the story "The Sin Eater's Chrysalis" by Matt Hollingsworth.

It tells the story of a lonely, bitter man who, like his father before him, is able to consume the sins of the recently-dead so that they can go to Heaven, using some pretty disgusting supernatural methods.  But every consumption takes its mental and spiritual toll on the sin-eater, so he determines that nobody will follow in his footsteps.  It's a dark one, more so than . . . gee, any story in memory I've been asked to do, and way more so than anything I've written.  Sound fun?

I suppose this could be considered a cursed production, because I recorded and edited the story, sent it in, and only heard back the next year to learn that the podcast didn't have my audio.  Not a huge deal, since I always keep my file until the show is released . . . except this time, apparently.  Not sure why I had deleted it, because now we were both a bit scragged.*  Even so, I sat down and re-recorded the story, transferred it, and re-edited the sucker.  This is the ONLY time I've ever done this, in the, what, fifteen years I've put in narrating stories for podcasts.  

Was it worth it?  Go TO THIS LINK to find out.

*Of course, about a month later, I did find the original recording on my back-up SD Card, though far, far too late.

Rish Performs "The Window Boy" on Cast of Wonders

The last time "Cast of Wonders" asked me to narrate a story was "My Hilt Itches" in May of 2022.  Seems like longer, but hey, better late(ish) than never.

Every writer has his or her strengths and weaknesses.  There are naturally subjects and scenarios I am drawn to, and some I tend to stay as far away from as I can.  One of those that I've struggled with is the dystopian future of Science Fiction or Horror.  

This story, "Window Boy" by Thomas Ha, is a pretty masterful attempt at the age-old idea of a utopian future story . . . where it becomes clear that it's not a utopia at all.  It's also a fanciful Sci-Fi tale about an innocent child that becomes a truly chilling Horror piece by the end.*

Jakey lives with his parents in a world where you don't go outside, but there are TV shows about cybernetic mailmen that protect the outside world from the monsters that roam its streets.  And pretty much every night, Jakey has a conversation with the boy who comes to the window, shares a sandwich with him, and asks him questions about the house he lives in.

Dang, this was a good one--in fact, I'm going to interrupt this blog post and write the author an email about it.  Well, that felt good.  I suggest you do the same, if there's a writer you know of that could use a word of appreciation for their work.  In the meantime, check out my performance of "Window Boy" HERE.  But don't get too close.

*That is, if I interpreted it the way the author intended.  Maybe I didn't.  But if that's the case, well, that would mean the story was much less than the sum of its parts.  And I don't think so.

What's Today, My Fine Fellow?

Probably the horror film that made the biggest impact on teenaged me was DAWN OF THE DEAD.  The concept fascinated me, not just of the dead coming back to life, but the end of civilization with all the trappings of civilization still being there.  Some of the first stories I wrote as a teen were of me and my friends hunkered down at our school or in a shuttered spook alley (sorry) or the barn near Steven's house, while the zombies took over the world outside.

I have written a couple since then, such as one set when I worked in a call center, one set in a Toys R Us, and this one, "Christmas Day of the Dead," set in a sporting goods store.*  It's another of those tales where the POV character is a girl, which pretty much guarantees I'll never narrate it for my podcast, but I did sit down and record it for inclusion in my first Christmas story collection.

If you're inexplicably interested, check it out HERE.

*It's the one with the name that best describes the drivers of Cybertrucks, though I never spell it out in the story.