How to Tell a Campfire Ghost Story

Before you go camping, prepare a couple of ghost stories to tell by the campfire. Now, how you tell the story is as important as the story itself. Follow these story-telling tips for a memorable experience, especially for the kids.

Campfire ghost story-telling tips

Sit around a crackling campfire or flickering candles around the campsite.
Choose a dark night, preferably, with a wind howling softly in the background.
Speak in a soft voice very slowly, so people pay attention and strain to hear you.
Gradually get louder at the end.
Pause before the punch line. Critical. Mark Twain gave a whole lecture about the importance of this pause.
Add a surprise element to the punch line. I have seen 3 very successful ones:

Jump up and pounce or point finger at a person in the audience (see Where is my golden arm? story)

Recruit another person in the audience to make a loud noise.

Hold a flashlight under your face and move it wildly as you scream at the top of your lungs. The audience will start screaming uncontrollably.

Screaming uncontrollably. Yup, that's how a ghost story should end.

Skinny-Toe Mp3 posted by Clinton McClung on October 26, 2006 at http://blog.wfmu.org