The Further
Elysian Brewing’s Pumpkin Beer Has Returned for the Halloween Season!
It doesn’t truly feel like Halloween time until the pumpkin beer starts hitting shelves, and one of my personal favorites is the annual Pumpkin Variety Pack from Seattle’s Elysian Brewing. And with September right around the corner, Elysian’s pumpkin offerings have returned!
It’s interesting to note that Elysian is actually the largest producer of pumpkin beer in the United States, with more than 100 pumpkin beers crafted since the first one back in 1997!
In time for the spooky season, Elysian has brought back three fan-favorite beers in its highly anticipated Pumpkin Variety Pack – now available in cans for the first time ever:
- Great Pumpkin: The world’s first Imperial Pumpkin Ale. With a deep copper pour and ghostly white head, this bold brew brings rich pumpkin and spice flavor at a serious 8.4% ABV.
- Night Owl: This innovation is Fall in a glass – a Pumpkin Ale brewed with pumpkin puree, juice and spiced in conditioning with ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice.
- Punkuccino: A Pumpkin Ale with the attitude of a world-weary barista, this beer packs a short shot of coffee toddy with just a shake of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Elysian’s 21st annual Great Pumpkin Beer Festival is also upon us, with this year’s event taking place at the Elysian Capitol Hill Brewery in Seattle on October 3 & October 4, 2025.
The company previews, “60+ pumpkin and seasonal beers (plus surprises) from near and far will be poured! New to the Great Pumpkin Beer Festival? Each night, we have a giant, several-hundred-pound pumpkin that is scooped, scorched, filled with pumpkin beer, sealed, conditioned, and tapped for all to enjoy. Beyond the beers, this year’s GPBF offers a costume contest, live music, plenty of food options, a pumpkin pie-eating contest, and so much more.”
Learn more about the Great Pumpkin Beer Festival 2025 and get your tickets now!
The Further
Killer Shorts Horror Writing Competition Open NOW With New Category for Feature Screenplays!
The annual genre competition dedicated to finding and launching the next generation of horror writing talent, this year’s Killer Shorts is now officially open for entries!
Founded in 2019, Killer Shorts has established itself as a premier industry launchpad. The competition connects screenwriters and prose authors directly with the executives, managers, and producers who actively greenlight and option dark genre cinema.
But this year’s competition isn’t only about killer horror shorts…
For this brand new season, Killer Shorts is expanding its categories to include feature-length screenplays alongside its traditional short script, one-page script, and short story divisions.
The Top 10 finalists across all categories are evaluated by an elite industry jury composed of over a dozen horror legends, literary managers, and producers. The panel includes:
- Barbara Crampton (Horror Icon, Actress & Producer — Jakob’s Wife, Suitable Flesh)
- John Zaozirny (Literary Manager & Producer, Bellevue Productions)
- Tananarive Due (Author, Producer & Horror Historian)
- Lucas Ford (Producer, Ford Films — The Backrooms)
- John Squires (Editor-in-Chief, Bloody Disgusting)
- Sophie Carroll (Creative Director, ALTER & DUST at Gunpowder & Sky)
- Gigi Saul Guerrero (Director & Co-Founder, Luchagore Productions)
- Aaron B. Koontz (Producer & CEO, Paper Street Pictures)
Yes, yours truly is joining the Killer Shorts judging panel for the first time ever!
Killer Shorts has a proven track record of transitioning undiscovered writers into working professionals. Alumni success stories include Season 2 finalist Vanessa Võ, who signed with Bellevue Productions, and Season 3 finalist Kelly Nugent, who secured representation at Wonder Street.
Additionally, screenplays submitted for coverage that receive a “Recommend” rating qualify for inclusion on The Scream List. This real-time tracking board is monitored by top-tier genre companies, including Screambox, Raven Banner Entertainment, Zero Gravity Management, and Grey Matter Productions.
Submissions will be accepted across all major platforms, including the official Killer Shorts website, Scrybe, Stage 32, FilmFreeway, and Network ISA.
For full guidelines, prize breakdowns, and submission details, visit the official website!
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