NoSleep's April 1 Day Event – April Folly – is over.

For this event ONLY, your OP's April Fools' Day prank has failed horribly for them. The focus and horror of the story must be on the failed prank. At the end of the post your OP is in jail, or dying, or dead. See full details here.

If you're participating:

* Flair your entry with **AprilFolly2024 💘 **💀.

* Link to your submission in the comments below!

Quick reminders:

* ALL OTHER NOSLEEP RULES ARE STILL IN EFFECT. These stories still have to be scary personal experiences! All submissions should be standalones/one-parters, must be at least (minimum) 500 words and are subject to Reddit's 40,000 CHARACTER post limit~~.

* Non-event stories can still be posted! If you're not participating in the event and want to post a "regular" NoSleep story, it must follow all rules.

• More helpful links: Reddit App Users Please Read, Formatting for NoSleep, Editing Your Post, NoSleep's Reposting Rules.

Thank you for participating!

April fools r/odd_directions event: EVEN THE ODDS! for one day only on April 1 we ask our writers to submit only comedic content and not scary at all. Make it funny, make a sitcom, make a bromance. We don’t care, we just want laughs. Even the odds and make the funniest story you can. It’s that simple. All other ordinary rules within the subreddit apply. Event goes from 12:01 AM CST to 11:59 PM CST on April Fool’s Day. If you have any questions send a mod message to the subreddit mods as soon as possible or join the Odd directions discord here

Hello, sleepless!

Fantastic Mr. Fox here to shine some light on the “Original Story” and “Celebrity/Politician/Public Figure” rules, which have been known to trip authors up from time to time.

Generally, if a particular work wasn't created by yourself or can be traced back to its origins, it's not suitable to use as your own. Urban legends, folklore, and myths are different and usually fine to use, but more about those later.

We don't allow the use of any intellectual properties (IPs) not owned by yourself as a significant part of your story. That includes, but is not limited to, characters and settings from books, movies, TV shows, video games, songs, creepypastas, SCPs, and even other r/nosleep stories.

Some examples of characters that are considered IPs are Siren Head, the Rake, Freddy Fazbear, Claire Redfield, Arthur Morgan, Pinhead, Tommy Taffy, Laurie Strode, Rose the Hat, and the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.

Some examples of settings that are considered IPs are Rivendell, The Upside Down, Tatooine, USCSS Nostromo, Vice City, Amity Island, and Shawshank State Prison.

Even if you create your own characters, you can't use The Upside Down as your setting. Even if you create your own setting, you can't use Freddy Fazbear as your character.

I hasten to add that it doesn't matter if an IP is now in the public domain. It's still not allowed at r/nosleep. We try to keep things pretty immersive here. As fun as it is to read about Winnie-the-Pooh’s bloodlust or your experience in Wonderland, these are known fiction.

Fan-Fiction, piggybacking/bandwagoning, and using AI to write or help write your story breaks the original story rule. We judge such stories at our discretion, but plagiarism will earn you a shiny permaban with no further discussion.

There are some ways in which you can use/mention established works in your own stories. Here are some examples:

Character - Count Dracula

What's not allowed:

• OP finds themselves in Transylvania, or any other location, being stalked by Dracula.

• OP tells the story of how they became a vampire and reveals at the end that they are Dracula.

What is allowed:

• OP is stalked by a vampire. “I read Dracula in high school, but this vampire is nothing like that!”

• OP is stalked by someone wearing a Dracula costume.

Character - Jason Vorhees

What's not allowed:

• OP is camping with friends. One of them is found decapitated in the woods. Later, OP is attacked by someone wearing a hockey mask and holding a machete. Even if this character isn’t explicitly named Jason, his likeness is iconic and not suitable for r/nosleep.

What is allowed:

• OP is camping with friends. One of them is found decapitated in the woods. Later, OP is attacked by someone wearing a balaclava and holding a machete. “He made Jason Vorhees look like Bambi!”

Using an existing character's likeness is a no-no. If it's more reasonable to suggest that, as written, your character is supposed to be “X”, it will be removed. “It was a tall, skeletal, humanoid creature with two sirens where its head should be.” Even if it was one siren, that doesn't work.

There are exceptions for more generic character descriptions. A killer wearing a mask of human skin isn't necessarily going to be connected to Leatherface. Put them in an apron and give them a chainsaw; there will be blood. And originality issues.

Character - Mickey Mouse

What's not allowed:

• OP is watching some old Disney cartoons. Mickey Mouse climbs out of the screen. “Oh, boy, I'm gonna enjoy eating your liver, ha-ha!”

What is allowed:

• OP goes to Disneyland and is stalked by Mickey Mouse after the Meet & Greet.

This kind of thing is generally an exception. If it's clearly someone in a costume and not the character, it will likely be fine. The same goes for a model/statue/toy of a character/mascot. For example, your collectable Star Wars figures burst from their pristine packaging and try to kill you. Double whammy!

Setting - Derry, Maine

What's not allowed:

• OP lives in, has lived in, or visited Derry, Maine. This is a fictional town created by Stephen King.

• OP grew up in Derry. The state isn't mentioned, but they played in the Barrens and lived on Neibolt Street.

What is allowed:

• “I grew up in small-town America. It wouldn't surprise me if it was Stephen King's inspiration for Derry.”

Setting - The Backrooms

What's not allowed:

• OP found themselves in an endless liminal space with yellow walls, fluorescent lights, and wet carpets. Whether this is referred to as the Backrooms or not, it's the Backrooms.

What is allowed:

• The concept of an endless space is generally fine if it's a complete story, you cover plausibility, and the setting can be distinguished from the Backrooms (or something similar like SCP-3008, the infinite IKEA).

Setting - Raccoon City

What's not allowed:

• OP is playing Resident Evil 2. During an electrical storm, they are pulled into the game and find themselves in Raccoon City facing hordes of zombies.

• OP is on a road trip and pulls over when they see a burning vehicle. As they investigate, the driver of the vehicle attacks OP despite being covered in flames. As OP runs to safety, they spot a sign that reads “Welcome to Raccoon City”.

What is allowed:

• OP is playing Resident Evil 2. During an electrical storm, OP looks out of their window to see the streets of small-town nowhere crawling with zombies. “It was like Raccoon City had landed on my doorstep.”

Song - Heart-Shaped Box

What's not allowed:

• OP discovers notes from Kurt Cobain that state Heart-Shaped Box was written to ward off an evil entity. They use the song to fight the entity when it returns.

What is allowed:

• OP faces an evil entity. When Heart-Shaped Box begins to play in the background, it appears to have a negative effect on the entity, giving OP time to escape.

It's fine to reference the things you love as an homage, as long as you don't take it too far. A good example of this is Billy Loomis from Scream was named after Dr. Samuel Loomis from Halloween, who was named after Sam Loomis from Psycho. You can set your story in Haddonfield or mention you grew up on Elm Street (as long as you don't indicate it's that Haddonfield or Elm Street). If you want to name your family John, Wilma, and Dean Torrance, go right ahead! If you name them Jack, Wendy, and Danny, it will raise eyebrows.

Generally, using common horror settings and tropes won't be an issue. A group of college students spending the weekend in a creepy woodland cabin can't really be linked to one particular existing work. Don't use the exact plot of The Evil Dead though.

When it comes to cursed media/lost episodes, you should make up your own fictional movie/TV show/video game, explaining why no one else has heard of it.

Despite popular opinion, we mods are human(ish). There are times when we might miss direct references to IPs due to lack of knowledge. I'll admit that if it's not a reference to Cthulhu, for example, I'm not incredibly knowledgeable on the works of H.P. Lovecraft. We encourage you to report any stories you see that clearly use IPs as their own.

If it's decided that a particular reference is a bit too on the nose and it results in a removal, we will consider reapproval based on the edits you're willing to make.

Urban legends, folklore, and myths

Generally, these are fine to use. They can't be traced back to a single origin or are considered part of a cultural heritage and don't belong to anyone.

You can write your own versions of Bloody Mary, Krampus, Kuchisake-onna, La Llorona, the Loch Ness Monster, the killer in the backseat, the licked hand, etc.

You can't use gods, demigods, angels, or other deities as main characters. For example, you can have an encounter with Medusa, but not Poseidon.

Please note that modern “internet urban legends” are generally not suitable to use as their origins can be traced.

Celebrities/Politicians/Public Figures

The guidelines state you can't use these as a main character in your story, but they can be mentioned in passing or in an insignificant way.

For example, you could be in LA and spot Jamie Foxx having lunch. There's no interaction. He doesn't play a significant role in your story. That's fine.

If you want to use a celebrity in a more significant way, there can be absolutely no direct references or even the slightest implication to it being a particular person. It would need to be 100% vague and also be plausible.

For example, there's a secret conspiracy involving a pop star who is part of an underground cult. She's not explicitly named, but she's “crazy in love” with her plan to “run the world”. It's not subtle. Don't do it.

Use that same rule of thumb for politicians and other public figures. When it comes to politicians and politics in general, we discourage you from using r/nosleep as a platform for political statements.

Mods reserve the right to remove any post at our discretion. If you're not sure about these or any other rules, send a complete draft of such stories (in a Google doc allowing viewing permissions) to the mod team at r/NoSleepAuthors before posting it to r/nosleep. Please include the title of your story in the message. They can let you know if your story works, if it needs more work, or if it won't work at all.

For more information, LanesGrandma poured her blood, sweat, and tears into this super-duper In-Depth Guide, where you can find just about everything regarding the r/nosleep guidelines.

I hope this is useful. Feel free to ask questions or throw in any other scenarios you're unsure about, and we'll do our best to get back to you!

#Our one (1) day April 2024 event, AprilFolly, takes place Monday, April 1, 2024.

For AprilFolly, your OP's April Fools' Day prank has failed horribly for them. The focus and horror of the story must be on the failed prank.

##WHAT THIS MEANS:

• Your OP planned a terrible April Fools' Day prank, such as faking their own death, planning a "bank robbery" or pretending to "break into" a neighbor's home.

• The prank goes horribly wrong – instead of throwing a mannequin out their second story window as planned, OP accidentally falls out the window themself or their "bank robbery" goes awry when the police show up and don't bother to ask questions or their neighbor turns out to be armed to the teeth and doesn't take home invasions lightly.

• Your OP CAN (choose ONE [1] option):
  • be dead or dying by the end of the post.
  • be in jail.

• Your OP CAN'T:
  • be the victim of abuse from a loved one.
  • deliberately, purposefully commit suicide or engage in self-harm to the point of no return.
  • break NoSleep's other rules.

• Your story CAN'T contain Unacceptable Horror (so no abuse, erotic horror, sexual violence, torture porn/gornography, etc) and we WON'T be suspending any other rules.

##EVENT GUIDELINES:

• During this event, ALL OTHER NOSLEEP RULES ARE STILL IN EFFECT for participating stories. For example, your OP can't be in space or in a time loop; your OP can't be a deity or deity-like figure or a doll; you can only post original work and you can only post once every 24 hours. You still need mod permission to repost!

• When in doubt, send your completed, final version to NoSleepAuthors for pre-post review BEFORE noon (12PM) Eastern on Thursday, March 28, 2024.

• ALL stories still have to be scary personal experiences!

• The event STARTS at 12:01 AM EST (one minute after midnight) and ENDS at 11:59 PM EST (one minute before midnight) on Monday, April 1, 2024. If you're not sure about time zones, use timebie.com's EST converter.

• All submissions must be standalones/one-parters, must be at least (minimum) 500 words and are subject to Reddit's 40,000 CHARACTER post limit. Use wordcounter.net for a more accurate count before posting.

• This is an event, not a contest. We're just having fun, and will NOT be handing out prizes.

• Non-event stories can still be posted during the event! If yours is a non-event story, it must follow all rules, including Main Character Can't Die Before The End and Incapacitated, Incarcerated.

More helpful links: For Reddit App Users | Formatting for NoSleep | Editing Your Post | Getting a Comment/Post Link | NoSleep's Reposting Rules | Saving Comments/Posts.

##As always, modmail us any questions. Good luck and have fun!

Elevator pitch: We allow and encourage a disclaimer at the top of every story along the lines of "This is a story that is deeply personal to me and as such I won't be allowing anyone to retell my story without EXPRESS permission."

We put that on every. Single. Story. (Again this is not a call to action which would be breaking rule 5, this is a suggestion of inclusion of text.)

Motivational speech:

How many of you have seen your stories stolen and read aloud for hundreds if not thousands of views that you see NO profit from!?

How many of you develop characters and plots in an effort to further your career or tell your story. Only to have Doctor Creepydickface get ALL the credit!?!?!?

HOW MANY OF YOU ARE TIRED OF SEEING YOUR "CREDIT" BE NOTHING BUT A NAME DROP IN A DESCRIPTION THAT NOBODY READS?

I ASK YOU READ ON!!

Main objective:

It's very simple, we MUST find a way to fight story theft. Notice I did not say stop, because I think that's like draining a pool with a colander (good luck) but in an effort to re-educate or slow down the theft we can add an In Universe/ In character way of telling the potential thieves right up front that they need to be asking us for permission.

But!?!? Does this break immersion? Not at all. Every story we tell as OP is personal THAT'S the rule yes? So simply stating up front that permission is required to retell our story is us setting the stage for Narrators to make a choice. Reach out to us and ASK or get struck.

This headline IS their warning. You cannot miss it. Even if you're in the process of recording it without permission you are literally reading a warning out loud.

Rousing close:

Am I alone in feeling that No Sleep is no longer safe?

Am I alone in feeling that the best days of No Sleep are behind us?

Am I alone... in believing that we can take back what is ours?

Dramatic exit:

"This is a story that is deeply personal to me and as such I won't be allowing anyone to retell my story without EXPRESS permission."

If you think this is a good solution let's band together (not in a call to action way, as to not break rule 5) and put this headline in our stories from now on.

The Backrooms was created anonymously on 4chan based on a single image. Another user later came along and talked about the entities and flickering lights and wet carpets. And that's how the Backrooms stuff started, as an internet urban legend

I've been told that NoSleep no longer accepts Backrooms posts because it considers them fan fiction, but if the Backrooms was an urban legend that was later made into stories and CGI movies, then doesn't it fall under the guise of something like La Llorono, an urban legend that was later made into something else? That is, how do we know what counts as a legitimate urban legend and what is considered "fan fiction" and banned?

I want to provide these creatures with new variations , I know most of the popular stories in the nosleep subreddit are about stories that they made up themselves and not some inspired shit so I'm interested if people will actually like stories about these already very famous creatures or will they just downvote me and leave

I won't copy and paste , write a different story with a little reference to the real story

Hi all, Just wondering what you do when small channels are using your story without credit or permission?

Do I leave a comment on YouTube asking them to make contact ?

It’s left a sour taste in my mouth, especially when they are all AI voices.

Is there some kind of announcement? Or just that it hasn't started? Sorry but 2024 has been started for 3 months now and I was just wondering if it stopped like the journals did?

Does anyone know if The Left Right Game was made into a book? Like whether it’s a printed book, an ebook or an audiobook, it doesn’t matter.

I see that there’s a podcast of it but it doesn’t really cover it the way the story was originally told… or so I read in some reviews.

I have just released my first nosleep story . But the thing is I'm from India so I don't have the best English writing skills

It's not like you can't understand by stories at all ( I'm not that bad )

But I want to ask , does it matter if there are some grammatical errors in the story

I'm currently writing a story and i have some questions.

I'm unsure about how long different parts of the story should be and how long you can go without getting into the "scary" parts. I really want to let the reader get to know the characters and their freindships to one another. I feel like it's a really important part in writing a story because when things go down, it's more emotional when you care about the characters and understand/is familiar with their world. I feel like some readers become disinterested when a story isn't scary right away. What is your opinion as a writer or reader?

Also, I want the reader to follow the characters through different ages, watch them grow up. I've tried to write like a child would talk/think, but i'm also scared people will become disintereste because they think my writing is just bad and that it isn't the character speaking. Also how long do yall think parts can be through different ages? I feel like the story becomes more interesting when they're older because you can change the language and use more philosophical/adult language when describing their thoughts. Their younger years is so important in the story, but i don't want them to feel rushed or to long.

(Sorry if my english is bad in this, i'm not a native english speaker and this is a bit rushed)

Hi, reminder that NoSleeep is for a specific style of horror, not all horror.

In addition to the info here this is a reminder about discreet links at the end of your post.

This isn't a brand new rule; it's one that hasn't been enforced across the board for some time and now it is.

Thanks!

I just want to say, I’m not saying that horror stories revolving around the occult/demons/spirits/space/different dimentions is a problem. I’ve just come to notice that most if not almost all creepy pastas I listen to now a days have to try and be H.P Lovecraft. I remember a few stories I listened to that had very unique and creepy concepts that, at least to my knowledge, had never been explored before. But as the stories went on, the tones seemed to shift drastically. The stories also ended up being connected to like 30 different other stories about some interconnected dimensional universe. It felt like I was listening to someone describe a marvel movie, and less like I was listening to a horrifying mystery unfold.

Recently I’ve been on a binge of realistic horror stories. Not true crime, but stories that don’t involve any sort of mystical or spiritual, elements, and I find that I enjoy those type of stories the most (penpal, borasska). Borraska specifically has some humorous elements to it, especially the audio story they released on Spotify (highly recommend if you’ve read the original story before)But at its core, it was still a horrifying story that made me feel truly invested in its concept and its characters.

But again, lately, every time I think I find a really creepy and somewhat realistic story, it turns into an action/adventure movie screenplay. Or the concept becomes so convoluted and far fetched that it doesn’t even seem scary anymore. Like the concept was the only thing holding the story together. I’m not faulting any authors for being able to come up with entire narratives that spans across different stories and what knot. These people are far more creative than someone like me, who just listens to these stories. And I do appreciate it when movies and tv shows cleverly weave separate stories together. So that’s not a big problem for me, more so the fact that it can feel forced at times.

I guess I just feel like the elements that made creepypastas scary in the first place just arent there anymore. And that creepypastas channels seem to strictly favor stories like these. So I’m wondering, has anyone else noticed this trend, and does anyone have any recommendations for realistic horror stories?

Side note, one genre of horror stories that I’m a huge fan of but I can’t really seem to find are bottleneck stories. (People trapped or set in one location and have to solve a problem). If anyone finds any stories like these, thank you.

Dear No Sleep,

Three years ago we posted a short teaser trailer for a proof of concept for an anthology horror TV series based on r/NoSleep stories called: Tales From The Void.

We had asked for your humble support, and the enthusiasm and excitement we received from the community was inspiring. Your comments on that thread kept us motivated to work tirelessly toward this dream for the last 3 years and today I am happy to inform you we have good some news...This fall Tales from The Void will be streaming on Scream Box in the US and Super Channel in Canada.

Featuring some great No Sleep stories from:

- u/M59Gar - The Black Square

- u/The_Dalek_Emperor - Betsy The Doll

- u/manen_lyset - I used to hack baby monitors. One night, I learned my lesson.

...and a few more surprises!

You can read more about it in the announcement on: Variety, Bloody Disgusting, or Fangoria.

Thank you for your support and we hope you enjoy the show. For more info follow us on:

r/talesfromthevoidtv (New Subreddit) | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Website - Open for Season 2 Story Submissions

Thanks,

FLfilm

How do I include a content warning if my post is the first part of a series?

Would putting it in parentheses at the beginning be sufficient and not get my post taken down?

Hi everybody!

You may recall my post a few months ago seeking advice on building a NoSleep horror game in partnership with authors.

Well, I'm proud to announce it here first - NoSleep: Nightmare Chronicles is now in production!

We've been quietly working away these last few months, reading hundreds of r/NoSleep stories, and carefully selecting the ones that we feel have the most promise for interactive gameplay.

We've worked hand-in-hand with many authors to license their stories for this medium and will be working with them throughout development to bring their work to life. We're keeping season 1's story lineup a secret for now, but it's a great mix of all-time favorites and hidden gems!

For those who are curious about the gameplay & what to expect - each season will be an anthology of interactive single-player stories. We're blending narrative walking simulator adventure gameplay (think What Remains of Edith Finch, Gone Home, & The Vanishing of Ethan Carter) with classic survival horror mechanics (taking inspiration from Resident Evil 7, Silent Hill 2, and Alien Isolation). We're also blending in some introspective narrative elements inspired by titles like SOMA, Amnesia, and PT. Each episode in the season will be unique & carefully crafted around the source material.

This is a flagship project for our studio and we're very committed to it's success. Development will take time & community support to really do it justice - and we'd love to have you all along on the journey!

We're developing this game with Unreal Engine 5 for PC, consoles, and VR. We're currently aiming to release Season 1 in 2025.

If you're interested in learning more I have a handful of links to share:
- Our Steam page where you can now Wishlist the game!
- Our Discord
- Our Website
- Our Announcement Teaser (shot in-game)

We'll be sharing lots of updates & behind-the-scenes looks as we go along this journey, so be sure to give us a follow if you want to see that kind of thing! We'd really appreciate your Wishlist's on Steam as well!

I enjoy creating characters that feel human, I’m sure we all agree it’s much more relatable. After writing for over 6 years it does feel like clearly there are certain types I enjoy writing more than others. At times it feels like I wind up writing about the same persona but in a different story.

I want to continue to make characters stand out and outlining their traits and flaws usually helps me best but I’m curious what methods work for everyone else? Do you find you write about the same style or do you challenge yourself to be different in style? Does it succeed for you? What mistakes have you made. Discuss below!

Reddit seems to be rolling out the new new layout so if you experience more glitches or errors than usual:

• be patient and try again
• switch to desktop mode if you're on mobile

NoSleep mods aren't Reddit tech support and can't help so if you're having issues, visit r/help and/or r/redditmobile instead.

I totally did not come here to brag, but I'm working on securing my first sponsorship (which is kind of huge and unreal to me). My question is, they want me to put the paid advert at the front of the video and I'm worried that will hurt the overall quality of the video. What do you guys think of paid advertisements before your creepy reading?

Hey guys just finished reading fleshgait .. and wanted to clarify/discuss a few things ... The following may contain spoiler for those who haven't read the story.

1. On the first night of keeping guard, OP has deep convo and shares a kiss with Yessica ... But in the morning realizes it wasnt actually her.. I thought the creatures couldn't mimic human sound and were very awkward... And the flesh was slimy and wet... How did OP not know?
2. So who are Gerry and the girl who asked him to look for the lighter? Again, how come they were able to perfectly mimic human voice and movements when the rest of the time, they are very awkward and apparent?
3. Was Heather a real person and OP's gf? Or was that a mind fuck too?

I spend ages going through it at when I post reddit smushes it all into one big wall of text and I can only get full spaces to show up. Is there a way to fix this?

As writers, what are your thoughts on this issue.

I'm currently writing a series, but I was wondering what to do after that, could I write a new one on r/nosleep (using the same account) or would that be too confusing/cluttered? I don't think there's a problem, but I was wondering about the opinions of others!

Hey all, are there any other other writers on here who are also running their own shows? I'm looking to maybe do little ads for each other or story swap if anyone's interested! I'd also just like to find more writer-run shows to listen to and support.

###NoSleep's February Event – ValentinesMorrow – is now over.

Thank you to everyone who posted, commented and enjoyed!

I find that the end product is better when there's more than one mind involved and I'm desperate to be a part of something with the potential for greatness. Any advice on where I can start looking would be appreciated. Also if you yourself are writing a story and would like an extra mind on board feel free to DM me the premise.

Link to u/ChristianWallis ' story: [x]

The post is 3/yo and the comments are closed but I still wanted to poke at the story. It's been living in my head for two days now.

So, we know this ship set sail in the 1530's. Around this time, Santa would have still been considered, among other things, the patron saint of saiolors. While the first mention of Santa's Elves wasn't until the mid-1800s, we can chalk this up to there being no encounters with survivors until around this time.

It's also very important to note that Father Christmas / Saint Nick had a VERY heavy association with Christianity at the time, often spreading word of Christ's birth and teachings. Faefolk were considered as creatures that did exist, but were alien to Christianity. The unpredictable faefolk, just as likely to dance the night away with you as they are to steal the beating heart right from your chest, depending on if you follow arbitrary rules that are never actually laid out for you.

So, what I think happened is this:

Father Christmas, a Christian figure known for good deeds, makes a deal with this clan of Elves in which they work for him and help him in his mission. Possibly, he tricks them into it, thus keeping their violent nature from harming mankind. Faefolk are deeply bound by their word, so regardless of innate bloodlust they must honor their work agreement. (Side theory: 'Krampus' may have come about as part of this deal, in which the Elves are allowed to sate themselves on sinners once a year.)

This may also be the reason for their living in the Arctic. They did not originally live there, but they were brought there by Father Christmas to quarantine them from humanity due to their extraordinarily violent nature (even for faefolk.) Seeing as they remain there to this day, it was an effective choice.

Cut to the early 1500s, when the sailors of the Pinafore arrive. They discover Father Christmas' workshop, and, hey! It's the early 1500s. This is right when European colonization and slave trade from Africa first kicked off. So, surprise-surprise, the sailors want to take an elf or two back home to show off.

This would be very bad--possibly even voiding the deal--so Father Christmas boards the ship, attempting to stop the sailors. There's an argument, it escalates, and the Captain uses the mentioned musket to... well, kill Father Christmas, the patron saint of sailors.

This not only voids the agreement immediately, but now they have no holy protection because they literally murdered it. This is where 'Old Friends' comes from; an ironic statement, directed at humanity in general for stupidly freeing the Elves from their agreement with Father Christmas.

Another bit of irony; the visage of Erasmus, another patron saint of sailors, tattooed on the human-leather horse. Not a particularly effective saint, apparently. I'm sure the Elves had a good giggle. The carving of baby Jesus was likely blasphemous, carved from a human skull. He was crucified on Golgotha, after all--literally, 'skull'. A little in-joke, much up the fae's alley.

And the rest is plain. Freed from their binding and with a deep-seated habit borne from this centuries-old deal, the Elves are free to be as cruel and violent as they ever were, now with a festive twist (which I'm sure they find incredibly fun and enriching.)

And that's my Epileptic Trees theory on the Santa Lore that nobody asked for!