Split Scream Volume Five

“I devoured ACE doubles back in the day, and SPLIT SCREAM feels like a sleek, bullet-sized iteration of those beauties.”
Laird Barron, author of The Imago Sequence and The Beautiful Thing That Awaits Us All

The SPLIT SCREAM series returns with a brand new double serving of New Weird Horror!

The Girl with Barnacles for Eyes - Lyndsey Croal
Every year, the enigmatic Curator sails into Evie’s coastal town to display his wonders from beneath the ocean. Each time, Evie is drawn by the fascinating sights. But this year, he’s brought something different: a captive girl with barnacles for eyes. Evie risks everything to free her, ignoring her Ma’s warnings to stay away from the freak of nature. But is the Girl truly a monster, or is there more than meets the eye.

The Ballad of Horse Girl - Bitter Karella
California, 1860. The corrupt judge and snake oil baron, Lazarus Dives, murdered her family; now the nameless drifter known only as the Horse Girl is out for revenge. But can a man who’s sold his soul to the devil for eternal life be killed? It’ll be no easy task; but with extra motivation in the form of a bounty on the judge by Death herself, the Horse Girl plans to collect—even if it costs her soul. A classic Western tale of retribution meets supernatural horror.

BITTER KARELLA is a genderfluid transvestite goblin, writer, and creator of the three-time Hugo-nominated microfiction comedy account @Midnight_Pals which asks what if all your favorite horror writers were to gather around the campfire and tell scary stories like in the classic Nickelodeon series “ Are You Afraid of the Dark?” Karella writes gonzo psycho-sexual body horror with a grotesquely humorous edge. His short story “ Low Tide Jenny,” originally published in Seize the Press magazine, was a winner of the Brave New Weird award for best new weird fiction of 2022 by Tenebrous Press. Her work has also appeared in Bag of Bones’ “ Step into the Light,” Tenebrous Press’ “ Your Body is Not Your Body,” Ghoulish Books’ “ Bound in Flesh,” and From Beyond Press’ “ This World Belongs to Us.” She’ s co-host of the podcast “ A Special Presentation, or Alf Will Not be Seen Tonight” about comic strips adapted into TV specials and plays Roger Corman in the “ Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals” podcast. Karella lives with their partner, two cats, and a tarantula. When not writing, he also dabbles in text game design.