To be sure, there are others out there like me.
Those who thrill at the thoughts of bringing fear to the wee ones.
We congregate in dark corners of the internet, discussing ways to turn those light-up deer into something usefull, like a werewolf. The monster list and other such sites give rise a host of nightmarish potential to those with like minds.
It is the “why” from this group that is more difficult to comprehend.
When I try to describe my goals of providing a (relatively) well lit haunt in which everything is in plain sight, none of this hiding in the dark attempting to scare the kids, and no elaborate illusions trying to re-create the Haunted Mansion. I get a confounded look and a befuddled “why”?
There are several influences on that decision.
First and foremost was my change of attitude reguarding scares all together. Brought on primarily from the time I spent working at a spook alley specifically targeting 3-10 year olds. But at the same time meant to be SCARY to them. Previously I’ld only seen such things with cute characters from fairy tales in costume for this age group. But, here was a spook alley with the philosophy that the kids were “clinging to the parents legs, but not up all night with nightmares”.
We held guided tours for groups of kids through this spook alley, and each room had a story to it. This stuck with me, and while I’m not quite to the point of being able to portray the story at my own house, the plans are there, and that level of scare is the target.
The second came out of nowhere. I was watching some top 100 list of scary shows, and they were interviewing John Carpenter about his influences in making “The Thing”. He was recounting a discussion he had with George Lucas about the formula for movie monsters. Lucas was telling him how you never want to show the monster fully until the end. Just show bits and pieces. Then Carpenter goes on to recount Lucas saying (paraphrasing) “BUT, if you could just put it out there, and do it REALLY WELL, people would never forget it.”
It was that moment I knew I wanted people to SEE things. No more hiding behind the cover of darkness. And, it was to be scary to the wee ones, but ‘cool’ to the older ones. It’s a fine balancing act, and often my wife has to kill one of my ideas as being overboard, but it’s worth it.
Even still, old habits die hard. And there were elements I would use that held fast to the ole darkness tricks to pull off an illusion or two with a strobe.
It was my second year doing this. Things were starting to take shape. I had a strobe lighting a dummy, giving the illusion it was moving as you approached. I would wander through and around everything as normal. By chance, I happened to be up front when a family came up. They had with them a little girl, about 11-12, and I heard her remark that this was another house she could not approach because of the strobe. I offered to turn it off, but she didn’t want to “ruin it for my sister”. I promised her then and there I would not only fix it, but make it better for her the following year.
It was this following year, the 3rd in the house, the first I actually thought things looked nice. I heard them coming from down the street, as this girl excitedly was telling her mom “but he said he would fix it!!!”. And her mom consoling the girl that ‘maybe he forgot’.
I didn’t. I have never seen anyone enjoy the yard more. Her mom told me the girl had given up on halloween up till she had seen my countdown sign go up. From that moment, she had only talked about a halloween house she could actually go through. A first time she could “really celebrate halloween”.
This past year, word spread of the ‘safe’ halloween house, and we had the girl’s entire school come by Halloween night.
Why? They ask.
Why not?