By Claudia Larsen

If you’re a horror movie buff like me then you prefer to take part in America’s other favorite pastime: slasher films.

A hallmark of slasher films, the “Scream” series, reignited the genre’s popularity after a 20-30 year slump. Like most slashers, it’s easy to notice the little mistakes that characters make, typically leading to their demise.

With that said, here’s a list of things “not to do” in order to survive any and all of the movies in the “Scream” series:

• Answer the phone when you are home alone
• Throw a party after someone you know, someone in your school/town, etc. has been murdered
• Sneak off to have sex at said party
• Assume your attacker is working alone or is a total stranger
• Refuse to involve the police if you are being harassed, stalked, or think someone has disappeared/been killed
• Assume your attacker isn’t behind you or is dead
• Open the door if someone has knocked on it in the middle of the night
• Continue to make noise or breathe loudly when hiding (especially in a place where you cannot easily escape)
• Leave your hiding place if your attacker cannot see and/or hear you
• Assume the person in a mask who’s being creepy is your friend pranking you
• Assume you are safe and let out that deep breath you’ve been holding in