Tips for Telling Spooky Stories on Halloween

As Halloween approaches, many are gearing up for pumpkin carving, hayrides, and haunted houses. Of course, one element that can't be ignored is telling spooky stories, which is a fun, creative activity for any age. Scary stories are a traditional aspect of Halloween The following tips will help set the mood and make your scary story telling experience a success.

1. First, decide if you are telling a popular story or writing your own. There are many great horror anthologies, especially the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark books. If you're writing your own, give yourself time to plot out the story and the details so that you don't have to tell your story impromptu.

2. If you're writing your own story, keep it short and spooky. If the story is too long, you might lose the audience. Plot out a story map of the beginning exposition, rising action, the turning point, the climax, and the denouement.

3. Find a scary theme that everyone can relate to. Common plot elements might include ghosts and ghouls, the occult, monsters of any variety, haunted houses, dark and stormy nights, black cats, and so on. Check out books from your local library about themes and icons related to Halloween.

4. There's nothing worse than a scary story that drags on...and on...and on...

5. Practice makes perfect! Give your short story a test run. Make sure you can tell the story straight through without getting tangential. Hammer out the main points and make sure to memorize your tale.

6. Set the ambiance. Decide if you'll be telling ghost stories inside or outside. If outside, a campfire and/or flashlight is a great tool to cast an eerie glow. If inside, you might turn out the lights and put candles in pumpkins to set the mood.

7. Consider props. Some ghost stories might contain elements that can be made tactile. For the gory and gross tales, consider making "brains" out of spaghetti, blood out of food coloring, and so forth.

8. Also consider adding a costume to enhance your story. If your tale contains a character who has a certain look, you might dress as this character. This will add additional fun for all listeners.

9. Utilize pauses for dramatic effect. Start your story slowly, and build speed as you go through your tale. Use different voices for characters, if you so desire.

10. Get a good scare in at the end. Use a loud noise, a shout, or some way to capture the audience's attention. The best ghost stories are the ones with a twist at the end that make all listeners jump.

Ghost stories are a tradition of many Halloween parties, and this year, you should take the chance to try one of your own. By utilizing the following tips, hopefully you'll be able to scare your audience of listeners. Have a spooky evening!