Eric James Wolf, professional storyteller and host of the Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf Show, is available for print, radio and television interviews to defend the use of the scary Halloween stories in the oral tradition with children.

Scary Halloween stories and ghost stories for children have taken the place of ritual trials of adulthood for teenagers, according to Mr. Wolf. They also serve as a means for adults to warn children away from dangerous places or behavior. Ghost stories and scary Halloween stories in the oral tradition can be age appropriate and satisfying for families. Currently on his the Art of Storytelling shows website he has five interviews available for easy download about the art of telling scary Halloween stories.

Eric Wolf does not condone or support horror or the graphic use of violence. “It is possible, however, by carefully working within the confines of scary Halloween stories and ghost stories for children, to leave our audience psychologically stronger and more emotionally capable of dealing with their fears or the shock of real world disasters,” Mr. Wolf says.

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Storyteller Eric James Wolf has performed nationally at such venues as the American Museum of Natural History; Bank Street School for Children; Barnard College; Blue Theater – Toronto, Canada; Columbia University; The Fund for the City of New York; Kings Island Amusement Park; New York City Clearwater Festival; New Jersey Liberty Science Center; and The International Performing Artists for Youth.

He is the host and producer of the Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf, a one hour interview format show. Mr. Wolf has M.S. in Education from Lesley University.

Eric Wolf’s Websitehttp://www.ericwolf.org

The Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf Show
http://www.artofstorytellingshow.com

A list of five episodes on the Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf with storytellers speaking on how to use scary storytelling with kids.
http://www.artofstorytellingshow.com/category/scary-storytelling/

To schedule an interview, call…
(937) 767-8696

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Tired of the tin sound? Purchase a HQ Mp3 File of Interview #063 Donna Washington for $2.23 The Anatomy of a Scary Story

Donna Washington Writes…
Why do kids love ghost stories? I asked my eleven year old son this question because I have discovered that my academic and empirical observations about these sorts of subjects often bears little resemblance to the actual answer. He was good enough to inform me that he loves the fact that the characters are frightened and they have no idea what is about to happen next. He didn’t say word one about wanting to be scared. In other words, it’s the idea of the scary thing being someplace far away from you so that you can have a good scare in a safe place and then walk away and be all right. Just for the record, that’s what I thought. In other words, I agree with the expert.

http://www.donnawashington.com

Play to hear this interview that was recorded as a conference call on September 24th at 8 PM ET – 2008. Thomas Freeze spike about the advantages of sharing ghost stories with children.

Thomas Freese writes…
I ejoyied being on Eric’s “Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf Podcast” on September 23, 8PM Eastern time. I’ve been a professional storyteller and author of ghost story books for over a decade in addition to my work as an art therapist and licensed professional counselor. Our topic will be “Why tell children scary ghost stories?” I have over a dozen storytelling programs that I perform for schools, libraries, festivals, churches and private parties. And several of those themed programs are ghost stories. I’ve collected both true ghost stories as well as authoring original fiction mysteries. Kids love storytelling and kids really love ghost stories!

I was fascinated with ghost stories since I was a middle school student. In fact, one of my favorite books, Strangely Enough, which I bought at a Scholastic Book Fair, is still in print and still available for kids at school. After reading it and questioning my Mom about real experiences with ghosts she related a tale of an encounter at her Aunt’s farm when out horse riding. I’ve been hooked on ghostly mysteries ever since.

Fast forward to my life in Kentucky where I was a volunteer singer at the historic 200 plus year Shaker village called Pleasant Hill, located near Harrodsburg in Mercer County. During my ten years singing I heard numerous stories of experiences with the Shaker spirits and I decided to take a stand, rescue the fact or folklore that would be lost oral accounts if no one else researched and recorded them. I interviewed over 60 employees and guests starting in 1998 and later (2005) published those first-hand tales in my Shaker Ghost Stories from Pleasant Hill, Kentucky. I found children of all ages fascinated with the stories of spirits who seemed to act very much in character with the once-living Shakers. Folks heard singing, shouting, stomping in the 1820 Meeting House. They saw Shaker-dressed figures on the old village pike.

As I performed my ghost stories program I included some true tales along with the fanciful entertaining fictional tales. I found kids no less interested in the true tales despite some of those seeming a bit less high-impact than fiction stories. I created a number of guitar songs to accompany my tales of witches, ghosts and other creatures. In live performances of mixed ages I noticed children mesmerized by true ghost stories.

In planning discussions with some teachers or librarians I was intrigued to see that some basically requested “the scarier the better” whereas others wanted assurances at least concerning the younger ages, say up to Kindergarten or first grade. I think a number of scary tales can be done successfully and without undue “trauma” at younger ages but the teller’s environment makes a difference. I sing a song to normalize the fear of ghostly stories at the beginning of my program. What I find fascinating also is that whatever the age of the audience, younger children through adult, one can find individuals sitting side by side of the same age where one is wide eyed with participatory “fear” and the other smirks and says, “That’s not scary enough!”

Please join me for this Podcast as I consider the topic with several professional hats, ghost story author, storyteller and professional counselor and therapist. My credentials include BA Psychology, MA Expressive Therapies, LPCC (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, ATR-BC (Art Therapist Board Certified). In addition, I have worked as a Psychic Counselor and I can tell you that some things kids see are not “just their imagination!” Check out my books, first one mentioned above, and also Fog Swirler and 11 Other Ghost Stories and just released Strange and Wonderful Things: a Collection of Ghost Stories with Special Appearances by Witches and Other Bizarre Creatures.

Check out my site for more information: http://www.thomaslfreese.com/

Dale Jarvis in the Flesh.

Tired of the tin sound? Purchase a HQ Mp3 File of Interview #064 Dale Gilbert Jarvis for $2.23 How to collect true scary stories for Halloween.

Dale Jarvis Writes
Near to where I live is a small lake with the delightfully ghoulish name of Deadman’s Pond. According to local legend, the pond is bottomless, and I’m sure many people know of similar stories for lakes near where they live. These lakes and ponds offer us tantalizing doorways to another realm. Peering into the reflective surface of a still body of water and wondering what lies beneath provides us with a link to the unexplained. Perhaps this is why they fascinate us. It is not so much that we think they actually are bottomless, but that part of us wishes that they might be.

So too with ghost stories. I’ve told ghost stories to literally thousands of people over the past 13 years, and they continue to be the stories most often requested when I do work with school kids. Most of the stories I tell are true, or at least were thought to be true by the people I learned them from. I love collecting true scary stories that are tied to specific places, and sharing them with people who love that delicious shiver that runs up one’s spine when they are well told.

“A teller of spine tingling tales that are so convincing, that even if you don’t believe in ghosts… you soon will!”
‑Wayne Rostad, On the Road Again

Bio of storyteller Dale Gilbert Jarvis:
Dale Gilbert Jarvis is a storyteller, professional folklorist, and writer living and working in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada. Dale tells ghost stories, faerie stories, legends and traditional tales from Newfoundland, Ireland, the United Kingdom and beyond. Dale is the founder of the St. John’s Storytelling Circle, president of the annual St. John’s Storytelling Festival, and a member of the board of Storytellers of Canada/Conteurs du Canada.

As a storyteller, Dale has performed locally and at international festivals, but is perhaps less well known than his alter ego, the distinguished Reverend Thomas Wyckham Jarvis, Esquire. Since 1997, The Reverend has been the host and guide of the St. John’s Haunted Hike, a walking ghost tour through the haunted streets of St. John’s. Under his supervision, locals and tourists have been introduced to the vengeful lovers, murdered soldiers, and mysterious fires which await those brave enough to explore the secrets that lie in wait in St. John’s darkest corners. Mixing history, humour, true scary stories and traditional storytelling, Dale has been winning over audiences and throwing in the odd scare here and there, and has been covered by a wide variety of local, national and international media. Over the past years, the Hike has grown from a small idea to a fixture in the St. John’s tourism industry.

Dale is the author of two books of local ghost stories, “Haunted Shores: True Ghost Stories of Newfoundland and Labrador” and “Wonderful Strange: Ghosts, Fairies and Fabulous Beasts of Newfoundland and Labrador” both published by Flanker Press, and a collection of world ghost stories for young adult readers, “The Golden Leg and Other Ghostly Campfire Tales” also published by Flanker.

You can read more about Dale on his various websites at
http://www.hauntedhike.com
http://www.dalejarvis.ca
http://storytellingstjohns.blogspot.com/

Tired of the tin sound? Purchase a HQ Mp3 File of Interview #012 Rick Carson for $2.23 Working with Fear and Children.

Written by Rick Carson….
Rick has been a professional storyteller for almost 25 years. He specializes in mountain and tall tales, ghost and humorous stories for all ages. Rick is experienced in telling at schools, libraries, organizational meetings and festivals and in giving workshops and residencies. He’s a member of the National Storytelling Network, the International Order of EARS, the Ohio Order for the Preservation of Storytelling and a charter member of Miami Valley Storytellers.

It has been my experience that the scary story is one of the most popular genres. Children begin liking scary stories from about the age of 8 or 10, although the exact age varies with each individual child. Some children never like them. Scary stories seem to hold a fascination for adults as well as children. This is true for a variety of reasons and such stories have been written and told for a variety of reasons as well.

The scary story is like a roller coaster ride. It is an easy way to get a thrill with very little actual danger. We love to raise our adrenaline and hear our heart pounding in our ears and feel the blood rushing through our veins and still know that in just a short time we will return to safety.

We also love to question what is possible and what is real. Does a part of us live on after death? Are there really such things as ghosts, vampires and werewolves? How come some people are able to see ghosts and others aren’t? Will I ever see a ghost? Do I want to see a ghost?!

Scary stories are told to entertain. They also hold wisdom and warnings concerning the evil that exists in our world. Some are morality tales where good triumphs over evil. Others caution us to always keep a check on our baser natures so we are not lured out of the light and into darkness.

When telling scary stories, I believe the teller always needs to be aware of the audience, more so than in any other type of story. Whenever possible, a number of criteria need to be in place to make sure the audience gets as much as possible out of the experience. An atmosphere of a campfire, with darkness lurking on the periphery, will add to the mood. When telling to children, the teller should be aware of the eyes of the listeners, as the eyes convey the amount of fear that the mind and heart are feeling. Keeping in mind the roller coaster analogy, it is important to remember that children need to know that at the end of the story, they are going to be safe again. Whenever possible, scary stories should be told in a family setting where the kids can feel safe next to Mom and Dad. Since parents know their children best, they can always remove the children if the stories are getting too scary.

Roller coasters are not for everyone. Neither are scary stories. But when the mood is right, the teller in top form, and the audience receptive, everyone is in for the ride of their lives!

Learn more about Rick Carson on the Miami Valley Storytellers Website