THE THIRTEENTH HOUR - October 2019 - Table of Contents

Enchanted Conversation

presents the

October 2019 Issue:

THE
THIRTEENTH HOUR

When the thirteenth hour came,
reality melted away,
and from out of the shadows
something new and strange emerged.

Some tales are meant to be told before the clock strikes midnight, and then there are those that are meant to be told after...in the thirteenth hour, where candles hang weightless in the air, and shadows at the edge of our vision beckon us to follow them.

Here, a dozen writers take us through that thirteenth hour with dark tales to fascinate, terrify, and beguile us. After all, All Hallow's Eve is at the end of this month, and these authors have opened the door for you to follow the shadows through.

She painted from her dreams,
shadowed and ominous...

The Girl Who
Painted Death

Amy Bennett-Zendzian

Their grey bodies surrounded her.
Their howls swept through her

like a winter wind...

Hunter's Moon

M.P. McCune

"They still can't be vengeful, after all this time.
They'll take their treats and go..."
The Turnip and The Trick

Madison McSweeney

"I have no use for Death,
not anymore;
there are better ways to mend a broken heart..."

Deathless
Karina Steffens

"Remember what I told you about the teddies?"
"They only ever speak one word,
and that's their secret name..."

Bedtime Story
Wendy Lynn Newton

"You don't want those spoons.
The curse on them is bad.
People die because of that curse..."

Ten Silver Spoons

Chip Jett

"It's not real," she whispered.
"I am real," the ghostly voice whispered back...

The Peasant, The Pea,
and The Ghost

Carol Scheina

She was buried beneath the ghostberry bush,
so her ghost could have the white berries
to eat as it wandered ...

The Ghostberry Bush
Allyson Shaw

The wind poured in the open window
with a sound that seemed as if
it were a living thing...

Woe Betide
Paul Alex Gray

This was not the first winter of the wolf.
I know the history of our dark times,
of our hunger...

The History of
Our Survival
Kiyomi Appleton Gaines

The mirror's dark glass
mirrored one thing:
her dark, sunless heart...

Black Glass
Julia Stilchen

The others already gather,
outside the pool of light,
watching...

Welcome Home,
Dear Ones
Donna J.W. Munro

And finally,

To everyone who reads this issue, I want to say, thank you. This is one of my favorite issues to produce, (as I am a gothic girl at heart) and I was so fortunate to work with fantastic authors who shared my vision. So, on behalf of myself and the writers, we want to tell you that your support means everything! I want to wish everyone a magical October, and please enjoy the song that accompanies this issue below.

Until next time my friends,

Amanda Bergloff
Editor-in-Chief

ALL COPYRIGHT

to the written works in this issue belong to the individual authors.

Cover Painting: Study for the Magic Circle, John William Waterhouse, 1886
Cover Layout: Amanda Bergloff