Shirley Jackson

Flavorwire Exclusive: Saïd Sayrafiezadeh on His Favorite Short Story

By Emily Temple on May 22, 2013 10:15am

The short story can be a magical thing. It’s a breath, a moment, a captured mood — or an entire teeming world packed into a few pages. Maybe, if it’s really great, it’s both. The only trouble with short stories is that not enough people read them. So, in a series to celebrate Short Story Month (and help you add to your reading list), Flavorwire is asking some contemporary masters of the form to talk about the short stories they love. In this installment, Saïd Sayrafiezadeh, whose collection Brief Encounters with the Enemy is one of our most anticipated books of the summer, tells us about two stories, both introduced to him by his mother. … Read More

Books

Creepy and Amazing Vintage Horror Paperback Covers

By Emily Temple on Oct 31, 2012 3:30pm

Happy Halloween, lovers of 1970s horror fiction! And the rest of you too, we guess. This morning, The Millions pointed us to this excellent Tumblr of vintage horror paperback covers curated by Too Much Horror Fiction, a blog dedicated to collecting, reviewing and celebrating the same. Some of these covers are eerie, some are bizarre, and some are flat-out horrifying, but they’re all totally weird and amazing — and they all make us want to read them on this spookiest of nights. Click through to see some of our favorites from the Too Much Horror Fiction archives, and then be sure to check out the website for more! … Read More

Books

10 of the Creepiest Ghosts in Literature

By Emily Temple on Sep 20, 2012 10:31am

We know it’s not October yet, but that doesn’t mean we can’t indulge in a few extra scary stories as the nights get longer and the leaves start to change. This week saw the release of The Big Book of Ghost Stories, an anthology of spooky tales starring ghouls of all descriptions, edited by Otto Penzler. Though we haven’t worked our way through it yet, we were inspired to think about the fictional ghosts who have creeped us out the most thoroughly over the years — from those inhabiting classic horror stories to those sneaking into more literary fiction. Click through to read about our picks for the creepiest ghosts in literature — and since everyone has their own specific demons to face, let us know which you’d have chosen in the comments. … Read More

Books

10 Dysfunctional Literary Families We’d Secretly Like to Join

By Emily Temple on Jun 13, 2012 1:30pm

You know the quote: ”Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” Whether you believe Tolstoy or not, there’s something alluring about dysfunctional families, especially when they’re strictly literary. This week saw the release of Mark Haddon’s newest novel The Red House, the story of a family cooped up in a country house together for a week of what should be vacation, but ends up being full of family secrets, personal revelations, and complex dynamics. All that aside, we realized that we wouldn’t mind being part of their tragicomedy, and we got to thinking about some of our other favorite literary families that we sort of wish would adopt us. Click through to see which fictional families we picked, and let us know which ones you’d choose in the comments. … Read More

Books

10 Wonderful Short Films Based on Famous Short Stories

By Emily Temple on Jun 9, 2012 2:00pm

Here at Flavorpill, we’re total suckers for short stories — in any form. The idea of short stories being used as source material for films — even feature films — is nothing new (hello, Brokeback Mountain), but this week, PWxyz pointed us towards a gorgeous short film we had never seen before, based on one of our favorite short stories, Franz Kafka’s “A Country Doctor.” Inspired, we dug up a few more wonderful short films based on short stories, both professional and amateur, which could serve either to accent your understanding of a story, or, you know, let you off easy. After all, there’s nothing lower-effort than kicking back and watching videos online. Even if they’re literary. Click through to check out the films, and let us know which short story you’d love to see in short film form in the comments. … Read More

Books

Creepy Literature: Ode to Shirley Jackson

By Kelsey Keith on Oct 30, 2009 2:45pm

So we’ve heard from Martin Scorsese on the scariest Halloween movies, scoped a roundup of the campiest horror films ever made, and reminisced about beloved/reviled ’80s slasher flicks. The Wall Street Journal brought it back old school yesterday with a reminder that literature can be just as unsettling, especially when writer Shirley Jackson is concerned. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the seminal horror classic The Haunting of Hill House; after the jump, we add our two cents about another Jackson pre-Halloween… Read More