Disclaimer: These are not my own works, but those of Jo-Anne Christensen and perhaps others that I come across ^-^
Rydia: This is pretty much for anyone who needs a ghost story for a fic, or simply enjoys ghost stories, such as D ^-^
Oscen: If you have any that you'd like added, then simply email us at either FromtheDark@dangerous-minds.com or dragonlance_3001@hotmail.com
Phoenix: Not like anyone would.
Rydia: Negative attitude man!
Phoenix: It's true.
Rydia: Never the less..
Oscen: I actually agree with Rydia
D: When don't you agree with Rydia?
Phoenix: -snicker- Good one D
D: I know, I know.
Rydia: -growl-
Oscen: -growl-
Phoenix: ^-^
D: Anyways! Enjoy!
Campfire Ghost Stories
By Jo-Anne Christensen
Ten Tips for Storytellers:
1. Select an appropriate story for the audience. The younger your listeners, the shorter and simpler the tale should be. Obviously, very young children don't need to hear anything really frightening, but they often love fairytale-style stories witha few mildly spooky elements
2. Atmosphere is important. Even if you don't have a campfire, a thunderstorm or a power outage conveniently at hand, you can do some things to enhance the experience. Dim the lights and turn off the telephone. Use candles. Allow sufficient time for the event and insist upon respectful silence from your audience.
3. Be comfortably familiar with your material. Even if you're reading from a book, know the story well. That will allow you to look up frequently to make eye contact with your listeners and will give you more freedom to be expressive and theatrical.
4. Find an exciting way to open the story and capture your listeners' attention
5. Use your voice, and your body, expressively. Try to incorporate any gestures that might be appropriate and would add a sense of drama.
6. Experiment with timing. The pace at which you read, or speak, should change with the level of action in the story. Varying the speed and tone of your voice will also help you to maintain your listeners' attention
7. When telling a story, you can create atmosphere through vivid descriptions, but try to avoid being long-winded. It's your job to make the story move; you want to advance the plot at a steady pace.
8. When the story is a scary one, focus on the mystery and suspence, not on the gore and potentially repulsive elements.
9. Don't draw the story out past its natural conclusin. A good story requires a good ending. Also, keeping a strong ending in mind, don't be afraid of the moment of silence that will follow your story. Don't be tempted to fill it with an apologetic "anyways..." or some other chatter. Give your audience time to absorb the story and show their appreciation.
10. Relax. Try to remember that your audience is receptive-They want to enjoy what you're about to share with them. It may also help the remember that, even if you're not accustomed to speaking to a group, you probably are an experienced storyteller. Pretend that you're talking to a friend and enjoy yourself.
D: Anyways, a brief thing to letcha know how this is going to work. The book is seperated into sections, three to be exact. I'll be starting with Part I: Stories Told by Firelight. After this, I may create another story for the next section, or just continue on. Lemme know what you want. If you care. Hopefully I'll be able to type up one of the stories and upload them every day, maybe more than one a day.
Phoenix: That's hopefully. But if you're jus' bored, then I highly suggest going out and buying some ghost story books.
Rydia: This book, Campfire Ghost Stories, is by Jo-Anne Christensen, and is pretty much fictional.
Oscen: There are books that are non-fiction, and very interesting. A series that comes to mind is by -rumages for book-
Phoenix: -puts on Elevator Music-
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Oscen: FOUND THEM!
Rydia: Yay!
D&Phoenix: Finally --;
Oscen: -sticks out tongue- Anyways, the books are written by Barbara Smith, and they're very good.
Rydia: Some that we have are Ghost Stories of Hollywood ^-^
Oscen: Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains
Rydia: Ghost Stories and Myths of British Columbia
Oscen: Even More Ghost Stories of Alberta.
Phoenix: -steals book- Really?
Oscen: -snarl-
Rydia: Do you mind?
Phoenix: Mind? Of course not!
D: -snicker- Again, enjoy! And tell me whatcha think!
Phoenix: If you can...
Rydia&Oscen: -thwack-
Phoenix: X.x;;
D: -cackle-
Rydia: This is pretty much for anyone who needs a ghost story for a fic, or simply enjoys ghost stories, such as D ^-^
Oscen: If you have any that you'd like added, then simply email us at either FromtheDark@dangerous-minds.com or dragonlance_3001@hotmail.com
Phoenix: Not like anyone would.
Rydia: Negative attitude man!
Phoenix: It's true.
Rydia: Never the less..
Oscen: I actually agree with Rydia
D: When don't you agree with Rydia?
Phoenix: -snicker- Good one D
D: I know, I know.
Rydia: -growl-
Oscen: -growl-
Phoenix: ^-^
D: Anyways! Enjoy!
Campfire Ghost Stories
By Jo-Anne Christensen
Ten Tips for Storytellers:
1. Select an appropriate story for the audience. The younger your listeners, the shorter and simpler the tale should be. Obviously, very young children don't need to hear anything really frightening, but they often love fairytale-style stories witha few mildly spooky elements
2. Atmosphere is important. Even if you don't have a campfire, a thunderstorm or a power outage conveniently at hand, you can do some things to enhance the experience. Dim the lights and turn off the telephone. Use candles. Allow sufficient time for the event and insist upon respectful silence from your audience.
3. Be comfortably familiar with your material. Even if you're reading from a book, know the story well. That will allow you to look up frequently to make eye contact with your listeners and will give you more freedom to be expressive and theatrical.
4. Find an exciting way to open the story and capture your listeners' attention
5. Use your voice, and your body, expressively. Try to incorporate any gestures that might be appropriate and would add a sense of drama.
6. Experiment with timing. The pace at which you read, or speak, should change with the level of action in the story. Varying the speed and tone of your voice will also help you to maintain your listeners' attention
7. When telling a story, you can create atmosphere through vivid descriptions, but try to avoid being long-winded. It's your job to make the story move; you want to advance the plot at a steady pace.
8. When the story is a scary one, focus on the mystery and suspence, not on the gore and potentially repulsive elements.
9. Don't draw the story out past its natural conclusin. A good story requires a good ending. Also, keeping a strong ending in mind, don't be afraid of the moment of silence that will follow your story. Don't be tempted to fill it with an apologetic "anyways..." or some other chatter. Give your audience time to absorb the story and show their appreciation.
10. Relax. Try to remember that your audience is receptive-They want to enjoy what you're about to share with them. It may also help the remember that, even if you're not accustomed to speaking to a group, you probably are an experienced storyteller. Pretend that you're talking to a friend and enjoy yourself.
D: Anyways, a brief thing to letcha know how this is going to work. The book is seperated into sections, three to be exact. I'll be starting with Part I: Stories Told by Firelight. After this, I may create another story for the next section, or just continue on. Lemme know what you want. If you care. Hopefully I'll be able to type up one of the stories and upload them every day, maybe more than one a day.
Phoenix: That's hopefully. But if you're jus' bored, then I highly suggest going out and buying some ghost story books.
Rydia: This book, Campfire Ghost Stories, is by Jo-Anne Christensen, and is pretty much fictional.
Oscen: There are books that are non-fiction, and very interesting. A series that comes to mind is by -rumages for book-
Phoenix: -puts on Elevator Music-
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Oscen: FOUND THEM!
Rydia: Yay!
D&Phoenix: Finally --;
Oscen: -sticks out tongue- Anyways, the books are written by Barbara Smith, and they're very good.
Rydia: Some that we have are Ghost Stories of Hollywood ^-^
Oscen: Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains
Rydia: Ghost Stories and Myths of British Columbia
Oscen: Even More Ghost Stories of Alberta.
Phoenix: -steals book- Really?
Oscen: -snarl-
Rydia: Do you mind?
Phoenix: Mind? Of course not!
D: -snicker- Again, enjoy! And tell me whatcha think!
Phoenix: If you can...
Rydia&Oscen: -thwack-
Phoenix: X.x;;
D: -cackle-
