212. The Scary Stories you Wrote

winners of this month's tiny story contest

Dear reader,

Fear is your imagination looking out for you. A sufficiently active imagination can help you avoid harm and danger. But an overactive imagination can imprison you inside your own mind. Because the fear may be real, even when the threat is not. So be careful of what you fear. Many people these days are in the business of fear-mongering.

The challenge of last week’s tiny story contest was to write tiny (scary) stories. In today’s post, I share the winning entries from readers.

The SneakyArt Post is a publication of secretly drawn art of the world. Every week, I share my latest drawings, and sometimes readers write tiny stories for them. This is one of those times.

If you like having SneakyArt in your inbox, help me reach more people.

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The Best Stories

Congratulations Katie, you have won an original signed drawing in your mail. Please send your mailing address to nishant[at]sneakyartist[dot]com.

Alex Dobrenko`

of

Both Are True

wins a signed print for this brutal takedown of the monstrous

Mike Sowden

. Alex, please send your mailing address to nishant[at]sneakyartist[dot]com.

Jason McBride

of

Weirdo Poetry

steps up with a haiku, and wins a print for proving that few words are needed to incite horror. Jason, please send your mailing address to nishant[at]sneakyartist[dot]com.

Writing stories for tiny people is a way to breathe tiny life into these drawings. I am grateful to every reader who engages with my art, and every storyteller who took the time to tell a tiny story. Thank you!

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Tiny Zines!

This Sunday at the SneakyArt Insiders Hangout, we made tiny zines by folding single sheets of paper and drawing inside them.

Pages 4 and 5 of my single sheet 8-page zine.

Insider Kate formats the pages on her computer, then prints and staples her zines. Check out her blog!

Insider Beth used great, big splashes of colour to spark creativity and paint her many pets. Check out her Substack!

Insider Rabia used ink, pastels, and liquid watercolours to paint the items on her desk.

The SneakyArt Insiders Hangout is the monthly virtual hangout with all the people who support my work. I share pages from my sketchbooks, demo my latest art supplies, share ideas, and (sometimes) we make zines together!

To join the next session, become a SneakyArt Insider.

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Everybody As Good as New

Kurt Vonnegut was a German PoW during WW2, trapped in a slaughterhouse during the Allied bombing of Dresden. In Slaughterhouse Five, he tells the story of protagonist Billy Pilgrim undergoing the same experience and coming unstuck in time. For Billy, sometimes time moved forward, just as it did for the rest of us. But sometimes time moved backward too. He never knew what to expect.

Slaughterhouse Five is one of the great anti-war (and sci-fi) novels of the 20th century. It is on my list of greatest novels of all time. If you have not yet read it, do yourself the favour.

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Thank you, dear reader, for your time and attention. I am glad to have a space in your inbox.