From the Hollow

Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities—a collection of gothic history, strange traditions, haunted places, forgotten folklore, dark symbolism, and the stories hidden behind art and books.

Here you’ll find ancient festivals, eerie legends, Victorian oddities, supernatural inspiration, book reviews, collector features, and the beautifully strange details that shape my worlds. From haunted Pittsburgh to poisonous gardens, from ravens and roses to old rituals and whispered ghost stories, this is where mystery, history, and art meet.

If you love gothic atmosphere, dark fiction, and the allure of the unusual, you’re in the right place.

Cryptids and Legends: Regional Monsters, Hidden Creatures, and the Truth Behind the Stories

Cryptids sit in a strange and fascinating space between folklore, fear, curiosity, and sometimes genuine scientific interest. They’re the creatures that “might” exist—at least according to stories, sightings, footprints in the mud, and blurry photographs that refuse to give us a clean answer. Whether it’s something lurking in deep forests, remote lakes, or forgotten corners of human history, cryptids tend to emerge wherever uncertainty and imagination overlap. At its core, th

Jun 124 min read

Plynteria: The Ancient Athenian Festival When Athena's Temple Fell Silent

Among the religious festivals of ancient Athens, few carried a reputation as unsettling as Plynteria. While many Greek celebrations were marked by public gatherings, sacrifices, and festive processions, Plynteria was associated with purification, temporary withdrawal, and a sense of vulnerability. Dedicated to Athena, the patron goddess of Athens, the festival centered on the ritual cleansing of her sacred image and was regarded by many Athenians as an unlucky day. Observed a

Jun 113 min read

Inside a Victorian Cabinet of Curiosities

A Victorian cabinet of curiosities was not simply a display of objects. It was an attempt to contain the world inside a room. These cabinets, popular in the nineteenth century among educated elites, collectors, physicians, naturalists, and wealthy travelers, were deeply shaped by the Victorian desire to classify, understand, and simultaneously marvel at the complexity of existence. What they collected reveals as much about their worldview as it does about the objects themselv

Jun 103 min read

Kallynteria: The Ancient Athenian Festival of Sacred Renewal

Not all ancient festivals were celebrations of abundance, victory, or seasonal change. Some were quieter affairs, focused on maintenance, purification, and the renewal of sacred spaces. Among these lesser-known observances was Kallynteria, an ancient Athenian festival dedicated to the cleansing and restoration of the temple of Athena. Though lacking the spectacle of grand processions or public feasts, Kallynteria reveals an important aspect of Greek religious life: the belief

Jun 103 min read

Vestalia

Among the sacred observances of ancient Rome, few festivals reveal the intimate connection between religion, household life, and the state as clearly as Vestalia. Celebrated annually from June 7 to June 15, this week-long festival honored Vesta, guardian of the sacred flame and protector of both the Roman state and the domestic home. While many Roman festivals focused on public spectacle, military triumph, or agricultural prosperity, Vestalia centered on something far more fu

Jun 73 min read

Fordicidia: The Ancient Roman Festival of Fertility, Sacrifice, and the Earth Goddess Tellus

Among the many agricultural and religious observances that structured the calendar of ancient Rome, few are as striking, or as unsettling to modern sensibilities, as the festival of Fordicidia. Celebrated annually on April 15, this ancient rite was dedicated to ensuring the fertility of the earth and the continued productivity of Rome’s fields. Like many Roman festivals rooted in agricultural cycles, Fordicidia reveals a civilization deeply aware of its dependence on the land

Apr 153 min read

Eleanor's Garden Collector's Edition

I began writing Eleanor’s Garden during a time when Amazon was piloting a new serial novel platform called Kindle Vella. If you have been following me for awhile, you will be familiar with the time I spent writing there. The platform called for episodic fiction. Other novels that were created during that time were The Witching and The Island . I was experimenting with length of episodes (i.e. chapters) and kept this story short per word count while publishing weekly. This a

Mar 282 min read

Book Review: A Place to Die For by A. M. Strong & Sonya Sargent

A Place to Die For is a psychological suspense novel that blends eerie apartment-building horror with a slow-burning mystery. The story follows Jordan and her fiancé Sam, who move into the historic Glendale co-op in Boston after a devastating personal loss. At first the building feels like a stroke of luck—beautiful, prestigious, and full of old-world charm. But the longer Jordan spends alone in the apartment, the more unsettling things become. The building itself is easily

Mar 172 min read

The Lesser Mysteries of Eleusis: Initiation, Renewal, and Sacred Secrets

Each spring, the ancient town of Eleusis, just outside Athens, prepared for a series of ceremonies known as the Lesser Mysteries ( Mikra Mysteria ). Held during the month roughly corresponding to our March, these rites were a precursor to the more famous Greater Mysteries later in the year. While the Lesser Mysteries were less well-known, they were an essential part of the spiritual calendar for initiates of the Eleusinian Mysteries, offering a glimpse into a world of myth, r

Mar 103 min read

Starting Your Journey in Beginner Art Collecting

Embarking on the path of beginner art collecting can be both exciting and overwhelming. The world of art is vast, filled with diverse styles, mediums, and histories. As someone who has navigated this journey, I understand the importance of starting with a clear mindset and practical knowledge. This post aims to guide you through the essential steps, helping you build a meaningful collection that reflects your taste and values. Understanding Beginner Art Collecting: Where to S

Mar 74 min read

Book Review: They Call Her Regret by Channelle Desamours

Channelle Desamours’ They Call Her Regret is a darkly enchanting YA horror novel that blends spine-tingling suspense with the emotional weight of past trauma. The story follows Simone Washington, a high school senior whose love of Halloween parties and horror is both a passion and a coping mechanism for the secrets she hides. When her invitation-only eighteenth birthday bash at Doll’s Head Lake goes horribly wrong with the death of her best friend Kira, Simone is forced to c

Mar 21 min read

Anthesteria: Athens’ Three Days of Wine and the Dead

If winter in Athens felt long and heavy, the arrival of Anthesteria must have felt like a door flung open. Celebrated in the month of Anthesterion (roughly February–March), Anthesteria was a three-day Athenian festival dedicated to Dionysus, marking the opening of the new wine and, more eerily, the temporary return of the dead. It was joyful, chaotic, sacred, and unsettling all at once. Where Theogamia affirmed cosmic order and lawful union, Anthesteria loosened the knots. It

Mar 13 min read

Book Review: The Ravine by Maia Chance

I went into The Ravine expecting something sharper—something that leaned harder into the horror it so clearly flirts with. Instead, what I found was a slow-burning psychological suspense novel that hovers right at the edge of darkness without ever quite plunging in. The premise is unsettling: a misty, wooded island; a husband returning to his childhood home; a luminous tradwife influencer neighbor who feels just slightly too polished to be real; and a ravine that may, or may

Mar 12 min read

Book Review: Pendergast by Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child

It’s hard to believe that I was first introduced to the enigmatic Agent Aloysius X. L. Pendergast back in 1995 with the release of Relic. That novel was phenomenal—intelligent, atmospheric, and chilling in all the right ways. I devoured it and subsequently read everything by them while eagerly awaiting the next release. Life, as it tends to do, intervened, and I eventually fell behind. So when I discovered they had written an origin story for one of my all-time favorite liter

Feb 282 min read

Theogamia: The Sacred Marriage of Hera and Zeus

Each winter, as the ancient Greek month of Gamelion unfolded, the divine household turned its attention to a marriage that shaped both heaven and earth. This was Theogamia—the sacred wedding of Hera and Zeus, queen and king of the Olympian gods. To modern ears, the idea of gods “celebrating their anniversary” might sound quaint or even ironic, given Zeus’s reputation. But Theogamia was no romantic fairytale. It was a ritual affirmation of cosmic order, social stability, and t

Feb 153 min read

The Libation of Aphrodite: Love, Desire, and Sacred Offering

On the modern Gregorian calendar, February 14 is loudly associated with roses, chocolates, and commercialized romance. But long before Valentine cards existed, this date aligned—by coincidence of calendar drift—with Gamelion 26, a day connected in parts of the ancient Greek world with Aphrodite, goddess of love, desire, beauty, and generative power. Rather than grand temple festivals, this observance centered on something quieter and more intimate: libation—the ritual pouring

Feb 143 min read

Sementivae (Paganalia): Honoring the Seeds Beneath the Winter Soil

In the heart of winter, when the land appears dormant and the year feels newly uncertain, the ancient Romans turned their attention not to harvest but to hope. Sementivae, also known as Paganalia, was a rural festival dedicated to the sowing of seeds and the unseen work happening beneath the frozen ground. It was a celebration of beginnings that could not yet be seen. Sementivae was an ancient Roman agricultural festival observed in late January, though the exact date varied

Jan 242 min read

Book Review: Dead Fake (Bleak Haven #1) by Vincent Ralph

Dead Fake by Vincent Ralph introduces readers to Bleak Haven—a town with secrets, shadows, and a disturbing relationship with technology. When a mysterious website allows students at Bleak Haven High to view AI-generated “deepfake” videos of their own deaths, it initially feels like just another morbid online trend. That illusion shatters when those fabricated deaths begin to play out in real life. The story follows Ava Wilson, who refuses to participate in the craze. As the

Jan 202 min read

Book Review: Night Terror (Bleak Haven #2) by Vincent Ralph

Night Terror is the second installment in Vincent Ralph’s Bleak Haven series, though chronologically it takes place before Dead Fake . Set in 1987, the novel dives headfirst into the town’s dark past and offers readers a deeper look at the horrors that shaped Bleak Haven long before modern technology entered the picture. The story centers on 17-year-old Noah, a survivor of the town’s most devastating tragedy to date. He works at a bookstore in the local mall—until a robbery