If you like the horror genre and supporting small businesses, you MUST come to the SPOOKY FROG HORROR BOOK FAIR on Feb 22, 11a-5p, at the Factory on Barclay. Samantha Addams is the organizer and she is darn excited about this unique event. Samantha has been a lifelong book-reader and self-proclaimed “weirdo”. She knows a lot about the world of horror and weirdness…and frogs (she has 8 pet frogs) and insect taxidermy, too (she has a wall at home dedicated to displaying it). Samantha has a passion for the odd, and is so happy that Milwaukee has a strong community for the weird and terrifying, demonstrated by events like Tea Krulos’ Paranormal Conference and Krampusnacht, the Twisted Dreams Film Festival, and the Goth Barge (“we put goths on a boat and have a dance-party”) and Goth Prom at Mad Planet (both of which Samantha organizes with her brother). Despite all these great events, Samantha noticed there were no events that were book/author/literature-centric, so she came up with SPOOKY FROG!
This event launched in 2024 with two book fairs and the momentum is going strong! Samantha is sure the Feb 22nd fair is going to be successful – there will be 25 independent authors selling their books, 20+ vendors selling their wares, and Goth Barge will be DJing! Admission is just $3! Samantha has said, “This is an inclusive space…but no nazis. If you’re gonna be a bigot in any way, you’re not welcome here.”
With no previous event-planning experience SPOOKY FROG really is a passion project for Samantha. She has been a reader all her life and loves to get absorbed by, immersed in a book! “Horror is an umbrella, there’s all kinds…it’s for everyone – there’s cozy horror, comfort horror, splatter-punk horror, extreme horror, body horror, possession…so many kinds, though I lean towards the cozy horror.” She continued, “horror does help process feelings…horror speaks to what is going on in a culture. You can tell what’s going on by what horror produces…so many people are drawn to horror because of this.”
Helping make her “weirdo culture” event a success are her event sponsors, WMSE and Black Sheep Tattoo. But still, the majority of the work is all done by Samantha – “all my lunch breaks at work are spent making promo-posts for all the event authors…”. Her commitment to SPOOKY FROG and encouraging other people to become avid readers is so apparent: “my intention was to make an event that was horror author-centric, while also making it broad enough to be appealing to people who are big horror fans, and those that might just want to dabble in the genre…”
So, if you are a horror devotee or you’re just curious about what kind of stories are available, come out to the SPOOKY FROG HORROR BOOK FAIR, at The Factory on Barclay, on Feb 22, 11a-5p.
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I met and photographed Samantha at SUGAR MAPLE, an awesome, woman-owned, craft-beer bar in Milwaukee’s Bay View neighborhood. Go check them out!
