By Kelly Wiley

Without makeup on, any random person would have thought they were just an average person, but as festival-goers passed under the large Scarefest signs hanging from the entry way, people knew right where to go to see the horror stars they idolized.

Patti Starr, co-creator of Scarefest, said the event was a hit. The VIP passes sold out in advance, ticket sales were great, and vendors, dealers and attendees all seemed to be having a good time, Starr said.

Starr said she had already been contacted to bring her festival to Knoxville, Tenn., Gatlinburg, Tenn., and Milwaukee, Wisc. But, for right now, Starr said she was going to keep it Lexington.

“We love Lexington and we want to keep the love here,” Starr said.

Booths lined the aisles with each aisle taking on a different theme. There were many booths devoted to the paranormal theme with vendors ranging from tarot card readers to aura interpreters, past-life psychics to crystal balls, and demonologists to ghost hunters.

Seminar and film screening rooms also attracted many people. However, most flocked to the back of the Lexington Center where all the film stars were placed.

Tim Towles, Lt. George Wydell in “House of 1000 Corpses,” said being in a row with all the different film stars was like being with his family. Towles got into the horror-film industry because he said he was emotionally unsuited for other standard forms of employment.

“It was either entertainment or institutional care,” Towles said.

Victor Miller, writer of “Friday the 13th,” said he has the best job in the world because he gets paid for telling lies. Miller started writing these lies to support his family.

“It was a thing I did to survive in 1979 to feed my family,” Miller said.

Starr said it seemed like everyone enjoyed Scarefest. For some this was their first paranormal, horror convention, for others this was just a stop on their way to another. Either way, Starr said Scarefest will become a tradition in Lexington, and hopes to see the same faces along with new ones in the years to come.