This morning I woke up to the door of my girlfriend's bedroom rattling in its frame. It was dark. As I pulled my head up the room seemed to be vibrating along with the door, blood pushing against my eyes with every beat of my heart. It's Jane, her roommates' cat, my girlfriend insists, but what if its not? What if it's a ghost that cannot come in unless it is invited? What if, when I turn the handle and open the door, there is nothing on the other side?
Alas, it was just her cat, but imagine if.
Fear and love are, according to Patrick Swayze in Donnie Darko, the two driving emotions of human existence. You'll get a bit of both in this, the inaugural issue of Things Created By People, the e-zine published by Roving Brooklyn. Our theme this time is Peril. Risk. Fear. Family road trips. and we have writing, video, and audio that touch on all of those words. (Check out the full table of contents for Issue One.)
Some people, when they watch scary movies, they'll just deny that it's happening. They'll cover their eyes, get up to make more popcorn, or take an extended trip to the bathroom to wash their face. Other people, they'll spend the whole time pointing out shitty effects or crappy dialogue or unrealistic situations. The best people, they just watch it, and let themselves become afraid. Even the shittiest horror movies can be terrifying if you let them soak through your skin, grab a hold of your muscles, burrow into your bones.
I sometimes get chastised by friends for thinking that Paranormal Activity is a scary movie. I watched it for the first time in my parent's living room in the middle of Vermont. In Vermont, when the lights are off, there is no light. In Vermont, when you don't make a sound, there is no sound. But, no, there is sound - there is the wind howling, the house settling, and doors creaking and rattling on their own. When the movie was over and it was time for me to go to bed, I was shaking as I climbed up the stairs. I barely made it to my room alive, believing that around any corner there would be an invisible demon ready to take me.
Of course, it was nothing but a shaky old house in Vermont, but... imagine if?
Yours,
Adam Cecil
Managing Editor