Clowns can strike fear into the very heart of many people, myself included. Oh, I’m fine watching a movie with a clown; that doesn’t scare me at all. But real clowns, that’s another story… I’m scared to fucking death of them. It doesn’t help that I saw a story on TV once about what they teach at Clown College. I’ll never forget one line from that show: ‘At clown school we learn how to make people feel things they’re afraid to feel.’

I couldn’t believe what I heard and still can’t. I thought clowns were supposed to make you feel joy and happiness, make you laugh and have a good time. I don’t know a single person who’s afraid of that.

But pain, death, horrible and unspeakable acts, those are things people are afraid to feel…

This inside look into the nature of Clown College only reinforced my fear of them. And I hope this story will too…

So this week on Pen of the Damned, if you dare, read I Hate Clowns by Christopher A. Liccardi.