So You Want to Write a Ghost Story
It’s time for ghosts and rattling chains and cold, eerie nights. It’s certainly a time when I pull out my Poe collection and read until I’m sufficiently scared and can’t turn off the lights. Maybe this is when you might think, “I’ll write a ghost story!” If that idea has crossed your mind, here are a few pointers for where to start.
This category of fiction seems to be divided into two major camps: the really scary and the “cozy” ghost stories. Between these extremes, I’ve sampled ones that are what I call the scary, but not-so-much ones.
Most of us are familiar with Stephen King’s The Shining, and I haven’t found a book about ghosts that scares me more, so I’d rank that one at the top end of spine-tingling. At the other end of the spectrum, there are books like Tall Tails Secret Book Club: The Secret Library Cozy Mysteries by CeeCee James or A Scandal in Boohemia by Gwen Gardner. These are slightly spooky and fun.
The first decision ghost story writers have to make is which type they want to craft. If they’re headed toward the Stephen King side of things, the ghostly presence can be of the paranormal ilk, seen or unseen (the scariest choice), it’s malignant and fear-inducing—the cause of the unexplained events. On the other hand, if it’s a story that warms your heart instead of chilling your bones, the ghost(s) become characters with names, a history, physical characteristics, and personalities.
Even with a lightly and spooky tale, I like to think about what scares me most when I set out to write a ghostly tale. For me, that’s when I’m alone in a dark space, especially when there’s something I can sense, but not see. I’m working on a story now and the first encounter I have with the not-so-scary ghost is in a darkened room. The protagonist–Calista–has just gotten some shocking news and has gone to bed, troubled and asking herself how she’s going to deal with it. Enter ghost–Mrs. Wilhelm:
“It won’t be that difficult, dear.” The woman’s voice was sweet. It came to Calista like a flickering of tiny lights in her heart, not in her ears.
Calista bolted upright, her skin needled by the shock of hearing it. With a shaking hand, she lit the candle again and held it overhead, but the room was as it had been, empty except for her wardrobe, writing table, and chair. “Who…”
“I’m Mrs. Wilhelm, the third from the left, near the gate.”
That made no sense at all.
“You’re a sweet girl. Now I have a chance to tell you so.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Calista set down her candle and stooped to look under her bed.
“You won’t find me there.” The voice was sprinkled with laughter.
“Then where?”
“I told you already, but where I am isn’t important anymore.” The woman’s sigh brushed along Calista’s mind.
It’s also important to build the ghost as the book moves forward. The whispered words in the first scene introduce the ghost, but the next time there will have to be something more concrete. Here’s the next ghostly encounter in my example. We’ve moved to the cemetery:
The cold increased and numbed Calista’s fingertips. She regretted rushing from the cottage without her heavy shawl, but before the cemetery, the morning hadn’t been as nippy. She wrapped her arms around her middle.
Mrs. Wilhelm called one name, and when a spirit curled up from the grave just in front of where Calista huddled, she fell back trembling. She no longer felt the chill, only panic. She considered running, but Mrs. Wilhelm shook her head. “You have nothing to fear from the dead. You are quite safe here.”
Be sure to note the details about your ghost: when or if it appears, how it enters and leaves, the way it looks or how the character(s) react to it. Is there anything that signals the ghost’s arrival? Can your ghost move things? Does it float or walk? Pass through walls, open doors? Is there a specific time the ghost arrives or can it come at all hours? How did it die? When did it die?
And then the setting. Here’s where you can explore all kinds of possibilities. Does everything happen on a wind-swept moor or in a New York townhouse? Is the ghost tied to a place or does it follow the fleeing person it haunts?
It’s always good to read some examples and get the feeling for what’s been done before, but then become creative. Just because there are traditions, doesn’t mean you can’t find something fresh for your story.
If you want to do some ghostly reading, here are two links to help you choose between Fright Night and Titillating Fun by the Fire Night .
Link for scary ghost stories–Don’t read these alone…at night…did I make it clear…don’t read them alone?
Link for cozy ghost stories–Make some cocoa. Grab a blankie. Cuddle up and enjoy.
I’m sure there are some writers here who might like to chime in with more suggestions about crafting a good ghost story, so check the comments.
BIG NEWS for me at least… Shattered will be published on October 29th. It’s on my Goodreads Book page and if you’d mark it as one TBR, I would really appreciate it! You can download it on Net Galley, but if you’d pre-order it…well what’s there to say?
