Thursday, October 8, 2026

Whispers of the Pale Witch by S.A. Sizemore with Exclusive Excerpt #Horror #ParanormalThriller



“The Ghost House – Creative Halloween Decorating on a Budget from a Themed Entertainment Professional” by S.A. Sizemore
 
Okay. Do I want the twelve-foot skeleton that my local hardware store sells? 

Yes. Yes, I do. 

But do I have room to store it when it’s not hanging out in my front yard at Halloween? 

No. No, I do not. I’m also not spending hundreds of dollars on it. 

What else can you do on a budget that will fold up neatly and compactly for next year? Also, how can I ideally recycle and reuse materials I already have around the house and turn them into something spooky?

By night I write spooky horror/thriller books with a touch of speculative history, but by day I’m a themed entertainment professional. Over the years I’ve come up with a few tricks to make my house super spooky during Halloween time without breaking my bank account, adding to a landfill, or making it impossible to park our car in the garage. 




My neighbors refer to us as The Ghost House.
 
The first part of good Halloween decorating is deciding on a theme. I wanted mine to be a haunted house party filled with ghosts and skeletons. Try to tell a story with your decorations and think of some questions to get you going. What happened right before your Halloween guests arrived? Is something going on right now? What will happen when they leave?  


Secondly, you need to decide how your Halloween guests are going to interact with your theme. Will there be sounds? Will there be lights? Will there be things that activate as people walk by? Are there opportunities for photo ops? For The Ghost House I incorporate all of these things to give my trick or treaters the best experience.




On top of that, my goal is to be able to pack most of my decorations into two or three bins that fit neatly on top of one shelf in my garage. They must not be heavy because I live in earthquake country and things can fall. Plus, I want to be able to pull them down by myself and put them back up on the shelf safely.




Let’s start with the ghosts. I’m going to show you a simple way to make a ghost with easy materials you may already have that will squish down into nothing. They can be used multiple times and are made out of recycled items. You will need three things: a white plastic tablecloth (preferably one you have already used), some string, a black marker, and discarded packing paper or crumpled newspaper. Old white sheets can also be used instead of plastic tablecloths, but if they get wet they can weigh down branches and may not blow as well in the wind. They also don’t pack down as small in storage boxes. 



Take one of the table clothes and grab the center where the head will be. Stuff the head with paper towels or newspaper, enough to make it about the size of a soccer ball. 



Cut a piece of string and tie the head shut around the neck. If you want to be adventurous, you can stuff a battery-operated tea light just inside the neck that can be turned on once the sun goes down. 


 
Next, take your marker and add two black eyes to the ghost’s face. 




 
At this point it’s best to hang your ghost up to do the finishing touches. Cut another piece of string and tie it to the back of the neck string and make a loop or two ends that can be tied together around a branch. Hang up your ghost so you can work on the it’s skirt. 
 


Take the bottom of the ghost’s skirt and start ripping the ends vertically up toward the torso. Not all the way. Just about one third to one half up. Vary the lengths. Use a scissors to start the cut but then rip. Jagged edges flow better in a breeze. You will also want to use your fingers to gently stretch areas all over the plastic. This will remove the “flat” feel of the tablecloth and add some texture.
 



Now you are ready to hang up your ghost outside. Once you get it into the desired location, grab two of its “arms” and then tie its “hands” to other branches, edges of a bush, or to your patio eaves. You want your ghost to look like it is dancing with its arms in the arm or about to fly away. When the fall wind picks up, it’s going to look amazing. And the best part, when you are done with Halloween, you can have dozens of ghosts that easy squish down into a box for next year.
 
I mentioned skeletons. If you have a little more storage space, get the three-dimensional skeletons, but for space-saving needs there are lots of flat skeletons you can find that fold up nicely in the bottom of a box. Hang these along your eaves or in between your ghosts. 



 
Another option is to get used skeleton “parts” and make a graveyard. I like getting a pack of premade headstones, which stack nicely together in a bin. You can also go green and make your own headstones with used cardboard boxes. I have a set of pre-owned skeleton arms that I place into the ground as if the skeletons are trying to break out of their graves. Adding some LED flickering tea lights around them adds ambiance. Look around your yard for discarded bricks or other things you can add around your headstones for stability and additional layers. I also hang up marigold garlands for a pop of color and a festive Day of the Dead feel to my Ghost House party.
 


Once you have all these things in place, lighting and sound are super important to really get your ghost party to come alive. I place four or five red and purple spotlights that give a wash of color across the front of the house. I particularly love the kind of lights that have movement to them or a pattern that projects onto the facade. If you can, make sure to light up your skeletons and ghosts with a spotlight or a battery-operated light inside them. There are some great solar lighting options now, too. 

The final touch is sound. I have a curated playlist of Halloween music that I blast from two small speakers in my yard. Not only does this bring home the ghost party theme, but it also draws trick or treaters toward your house, along with the lights.
 
I hope this gave you some fun, inexpensive, green, and easy to store decorating ideas for your Halloween this year. If you want to read a fun horror occult book this spooky season, please check out my new multi-award-winning book series that starts this September with Whispers of the Pale Witch. It’s a story four hundred years in the making set in Salem, Massachusetts.

Shall we begin?

BeckettCoven.com


Whispers of the Pale Witch 
Beckett Coven Series
Book One
S.A. Sizemore

Genre: Horror/Paranormal Thriller
Publisher: Rowan Prose Publishing
Date of Publication: September 29, 2026
ISBN: 978-1-961967-99-1
ASIN: B0FTBTKG9J
Number of pages: 398
Word Count: 98,000
Cover Artist: Kelly Moran

Tagline: Shall we begin?

Book Description: 

Some secrets should just stay buried. 

After the sudden death of her great-aunt, Kylie Beckett lands her dream job as a forensic photographer in the small seaside town where she was born. But once there, a series of murders and the theft of a dangerous relic force Kylie to uncover the dark truth about her ancestors. 

With the help of newfound family, she learns to harness unconscious powers to stop the vengeful and unstable Pale Witch before she unleashes a demonic spirit on Salem, Massachusetts once again. 

Shall we begin?

Excerpt 2 from Chapter 3

Elizabeth was distracted. This is just so damn overwhelming, she thought as she studied Kylie’s face.

The last time they were both on this porch, Elizabeth held her small toddler hand and tried not to cry as they hugged goodbye. Now, Kylie Beckett was a grown woman standing in the doorway some twenty years later. Elizabeth waited decades for this moment, but it felt unexpectedly awkward and strange.

Kylie had the same caramel complexion and bright smile of her African American father, along with a feminine version of his athletic build. Her mother’s Anglo-Saxon features were also apparent in her soft reddish-brown hair and intense amber eyes. She looked rather androgynous without any makeup or earrings. Her t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers were more appropriate for Southern California this time of year than the coming New England autumn.

The rain poured down hard on the porch roof.

“You can come inside if you like.” Kylie motioned for her to move forward.

Elizabeth glanced past the front door towards the cellar. A pained look flashed over her eyes. “It was me.” She touched a tiny bronze cylinder hanging from a chain around her neck. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t completely honest. I was the one who found Hester after the heart attack. I haven't been able to step foot in the house since.”

There was an awkward pause between them.

Kylie was thrown upon meeting Elizabeth. After their phone conversations, she had pictured someone quite different. Instead of the frumpy, busy-body white woman she imagined her to be, Elizabeth was by far one of the most strikingly beautiful women she’d ever met. It was strange, though. She felt familiar, like a childhood friend, not just a recent acquaintance.

“I meant to be here when you arrived.” Elizabeth tapped some raindrops from her umbrella again. “My assistant only just told me you called. We had a very busy Friday afternoon.” She pointed to the left of the doorframe. “The switch for the porch light is on the wall just by the coat hook.”

Kylie leaned over to flick it on. The porch became bathed in a warm glow as if the house was coming back to life. A moth tapped on the ceiling lamp after missing its warmth.

“When do you start your new job?” Elizabeth asked.

“Monday.” Kylie brightened. “Thank you so much for the introduction. I’m really looking forward to it.”

A warm smile crept across her mouth as Elizabeth noticed the tiny, white seashell on a black cord around Kylie’s neck. More emotions rose inside her.

“I'm sorry.” Kylie rubbed her eyes. She didn’t want to seem inhospitable, but she was very tired. “It took a few days to get here, and I still need to pull some stuff out of the car before I get to bed.”

“Of course. Of course.” Elizabeth nodded in agreement. “Can I help you?”

“Oh, no worries.” Kylie peered out at the rain and then back at Elizabeth’s impressive heels and expensive suit. She waved her hand. “I've got it. Just bringing in a couple of things.” She paused for extra emphasis as she said, “I really do appreciate everything you've done for me over the last few weeks.”

Elizabeth thought her heart was going to break right there and then. Her fingers fumbled around in her vest pocket and fished out a white business card. She handed it to Kylie. “Here’s my contact info again in case you need anything. I'll have my assistant set up a time for us to talk. Maybe The Roof on Sunday for brunch?” She opened her umbrella, but the showers magically abated as she descended the porch steps.

“Sounds fun.” Kylie nodded in agreement, not having a clue what The Roof was.

“And we can discuss the lawsuit,” Elizabeth said as she walked down the path.

“W-wait, what?” Kylie stuttered. “What lawsuit?”

“I emailed you about it.” Elizabeth turned slightly. “Beulah Prudaetor is contesting your aunt's trust. But don't worry. She can't take this place from you. I'll make sure of that.”

“But...” Kylie moved forward and wrapped a hand around the white porch post. She looked past Elizabeth at the neighborhood beyond. She liked this place. Loved its quirkiness. Hester’s house already felt like home, even though she’d only been there for a few minutes.

The stress on Kylie’s face drew Elizabeth back to the porch. “Please don't worry about it right now. Go in and get a good night's rest.” Then, she broke her promise and said what she had planned to hold back. “You look so much like your father and so very much like your mother.”

“You knew them?” Kylie asked while startled and curious by the sudden compliment. “You knew my mother? I never did.”

“I know.” Elizabeth pushed down her emotions and patted Kylie's hand. “You get settled in. There will be plenty to talk about and lots of time in which to do it...now that you’re back.”

Before Kylie could see her cry, Elizabeth walked out to the rain-soaked street. She got into her brand-new, white, electric sedan and drove off.

Kylie was alone again on the porch.

The rain paused long enough for her to run out to her hatchback and bring in a few boxes. Before going inside, she picked up the business card she had set down on the porch railing and read it aloud, “Elizabeth Ingersoll, Esq.”

There was so much to focus on in such a short time. Kylie hadn’t noticed the surname until now. Ingersoll was her mother's last name.

“Elizabeth is family.”

 

 

 


About the Author:

Drawn to playwriting from an early age, S.A. Sizemore began writing professionally while studying English and theater arts in college. After producing several plays regionally in Southern California, Sizemore pivoted to the themed entertainment industry. Whispers of the Pale Witch is the first installment of the Beckett Coven series inspired by Sizemore’s ancestral connection to the Salem Witch Trials. She is a full member of the Dramatists Guild of America, proud member of the LGBTQ+ community, European and Cherokee/Chickahominy decent, and resides in California with her wife and two dogs, Agatha and Harry.









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