The Final Girl Report Card (@kat090515): "Today is my fortieth birthday. This Substack represents a type of writing I have wanted to do since I found Chuck Klosterman,The Agony Booth, and My Year of Flops in college. I always told myself no one cared what I had to say about movies or horror and it was silly to put my vo…"

Make money doing the work you believe in

Start your SubstackLearn more


You made it, you own it

You always own your intellectual property, mailing list, and subscriber payments. With full editorial control and no gatekeepers, you can do the work you most believe in.


Great discussions

Join the most interesting and insightful discussions.


Related notes

Kimberly Ramsawak

The thing that makes body horror so visceral for women isn't the gore.

It's the familiarity.

A body that transforms against your will. That belongs to you and simultaneously doesn't. That other people feel entitled to have opinions about.

Horror didn't invent that experience. It just finally put it on screen and called it what it is.


Kimberly Ramsawak

People think horror fans love gore. Cute.

I can watch someone get taken apart in full detail and reach for the popcorn at the same time. Buckets of blood, no problem. The thing that actually gets me is a long quiet hallway with no music, or a door sitting open a little wider than I left it.

The blood is the easy part. It’s the tension. The breath you hold waiting for the thing to finally happen.

Civilians think we’re desensitized lol. No we’re just scared of better things.

What scares you more, the gore or the dread before it?


Emerald City Ghosts

Share your recent horror and paranormal stories, poems, or essays and we’ll restack our favorites!