To help motivate potential Giants to reach the requisite 50 amazing lenses (and have a little fun along the way) our Giant Squid Greeters ran a Halloween challenge, just for people who were hoping to stretch their legs and apply to the Giant Squids program.

The results were frightful. In Halloweenspeak, that's a good thing.

Here's the winning lens, all about Eyeball Recipes. (No, not using eyeballs as an ingredient).
http://www.squidoo.com/halloween-party-recipes

And not to be missed, a few honorable mentions:

Trunk or Treating: http://www.squidoo.com/trunkortreating
A Scary Halloween Fairy: http://www.squidoo.com/halloween-fairy
Halloween by Zodiac Sign: http://www.squidoo.com/zodiachalloween

Good luck to all our potential Giants!

But what I love about today's Lens of the Day, "Heritage Heirloom Cutting Boards" (other than delighting in the truly gorgeous woodwork) is that CCGal and her husband aren't just trying to sell their work... they're telling stories about it.

Oh, and this part too: She's only been a lensmaster for 2 weeks, and look how far she's come already!

http://www.squidoo.com/wooden-kitchen

There.

That said, my interest in video game lenses isn't just personal... I'm also fascinated that they consistently grab tons of traffic, and rate as some of the top content reached via search engines.

The best performing video game lenses are review lenses. They're personal, they detail the individual's reaction to or anticipation for the game, they often discuss wishlist features and tricks, and the big score: when they use a Prediction or Duel module to invite fellow gamers into a debate.

I didn't know much about Football Manager 2009 (I'm more of a Spore, Fable 2, Warcraft kind of geek). But thanks to RichLeigh, now I do. And so do tens of thousands of other people who landed here and found his lens useful.

http://www.squidoo.com/football-manager-2009

Sounds like time for some roasted marshmallows and ghost stories to me!

New lensmaster Sarahjjac has just the thing to help you keep toasty warm this season, from the comfort of your own backyard.

http://www.squidoo.com/backyardfirepit

Squidoo lensmasters have hearts in their eyes just for you.

They make free pages (just to be difficult, we call them "lenses") to spotlight the art they sell on Zazzle. Or to tell the story behind it. Or to make a step by step guide of their process and how-to's. They work hard night and day on their lenses, sending traffic back to their Zazzle stores, and lo and behold, selling more stuff.

From Ladybugs to Voodoo Dolls, Halloween and just a little Cheerful Madness, our lensmasters have a serious crush on you.

I should know. I get letters from them all the time: "Squidoo, why don't you have a Zazzle module for us to use? You know, a module that highlights our Zazzle stuff so other people can find it in more places. You have one for CafePress and Etsy and eBay and Amazon and Lulu, why oh why, Squidoo, don't you have one for Zazzle? We'd be ever so giddy if you did."

Hence this love letter. It's not on my behalf, it's on theirs.

Your ever dutiful matchmaker,

Squidoo