R. L. Stedman

Writer

Ghost Stories

Write What You Know: The Story of a Story

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Write What You Know —

Write what you know
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What if You Know Less Than You Thought?

I began working in healthcare when I was a student, before graduating into physiotherapy and, more latterly, working for ACC, Ministry of Health and a number of District Health Boards. That’s thirty-something years in total. Scary, how time flies. So, given my working life has been in healthcare, I suppose it was inevitable that at least one book would be set in the world of a hospital. After all: write what you know.

This is the story of that book, and how I discovered that, despite a lifetime in the sector, I knew next to nothing about healthcare.

The Story of a Story

In 2011 I began a story about Tayla, a nine-year-old with a love of practical jokes. I wanted to explore how intensive care might feel to a child: the machines, the busy-ness, hushed voices, IV lines and intubation. The working title was Practically Joking.

Practically Joking began with Tayla’s admission to ICU after a car crash. I thought this was a great opening; dramatic and sad, but I was able to use practical jokes to provide a leavening of humour. Unfortunately, the story refused to evolve as planned. Within the first chapter of Practically Joking, Tayla, scared and in pain, decided to leave his body and float about the ICU as a small-but-irritating ghost. And just like that, Practically Joking became a ghost story.

Which goes to show, you can’t always control what you write. Sometimes the subconscious takes over.

Haunted Hospitals

A bit of background: I trained as a physiotherapist in the 1980s, when Christchurch Hospital still had nightingale wards. These wards were seriously spooky at night: long, dimly lit corridors, wards of white-sheeted patients, full of echoes and draughts.

And the stories told in hospital tearooms! If you’ve worked in a hospital you’ll know what I mean: cold spots, unexplained happenings, figures at the ends of beds. Every hospital I’ve ever worked at has one or two ghost stories.

spooky stories
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I suppose my subconscious remembered them and wove them into the Tayla’s story.

Anyway, having begun Tayla’s story and finding it morphing into a ghost adventure, I decided to go with it. The title changed to Ghost School. Ghost School took me to strange places: an intimidating inspector, a coffee-holic doctor and a school for ghosts (because every child deserves an education, even if they’re dead).

‘Well,’ I thought, ‘it is kind of interesting.’

Away From Hospital

Then the story changed again, and I just had to follow. The narrative moved away from hospital. In ghostly form, Tayla travelled out into the world of schools and kids and annoying sisters. He met Jamie, newly arrived from Scotland. Jamie was lonely, because no one could understand his accent and, worse still, all his practical jokes were going wrong. The title became The Prankster and the Ghost.

Fortunately, this title stuck! I even added a competition, and a list of practical jokes at the end of the book.

In an earlier incarnation The Prankster and the Ghost was shortlisted for the Tom Fitzgibbon Award, and was finally published in 2015.

And how does the story end? Without giving too much away, you’ll be pleased to know that Tayla recovered. He’s made new friends (and possibly enemies, because he really is totally addicted to practical jokes).

the prankster and the ghost
The Prankster and The Ghost

Writing and The Subconscious

Reading a book I’ve written is an amazing experience. Frequently the language and characters are surprising, and quite often I wonder how I came up with the ideas. Re-reading Prankster for the final time was both humbling and profound, because while I had planned a book about a child’s encounter with Intensive Care, what emerged was a story about resilience. In retrospect I’m pleased that I followed my subconscious’ directions.

Because, a patient’s journey is not a pathway through the health system. It’s not even about recovery from illness. A patient’s journey, at the most fundamental level, is about learning to live. Because just as my fictional Tayla experienced, while a life may begin and end inside the hospital walls a life is lived outside, in the real world.

Credits

Note: This blog post first appeared in Corpus: Conversations about Medicine and Life on March 27, 2017. Thanks to Sue Wootten for permission to repost here. Corpus, an interdisciplinary discussion forum,  is administered by the University of Otago 

Writing Spooky Stories for Children: Tingle, Not Terror

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Writing Spooky Stories for Children —

I love ghost stories! My parents never knew this, but I began reading Stephen King when I was ten years old — Carrie, progressing rapidly to The Shining, It (fantastic title) and The TommyKnockers. While I hate horror, and my kids say I’m a total wimp, I love the spine-tingling freakiness of a great ghost story.

And because a good ghost story is EXCITING, they are a great way to encourage kids to read.

Technique and Terror

While ghost stories are great at hooking kids into reading, writing them for children is surprisingly difficult. You have to keep the reader at the edge of their seat, but in no way do you want them traumatised. Writing a good ghost story requires breakneck pacing, comic relief to offset the bleak moments (and there’s no way you can avoid the bleak moments, it’s a ghost story) and characters and settings that are so extreme they’re almost a parody.

Think of The Addams Family, or Ghostbusters: scary, funny but never dull.

So when I learned that my wonderful editor, Sue Copsey, had just finished her first box set of horror books for kids — think RL Stine, but with a New Zealand twist — I grabbed the chance of an interview. I just had to ask this expert writer: ‘How do you do it?’

Here’s her replies. Hope you enjoy.

Sue Copsey
Sue Copsey

How to Write a Spooky Story

What makes a story spooky?

Spookiness in a story is mostly about creating an atmosphere: a waft of chilly air, the feeling of being watched, shadows, darkness, and of course the ever-reliable creaking front door, thunderstorms, and moaning wind!

Spookiness is very different to full-on horror, which I wouldn’t want any child of mine reading. While horror can send you screaming from the room, spooky will have you looking over your shoulder. It’s all about the suggestion of something. It’s … Shh? What was that? Something’s not quite right, something’s making your spine tingle.

 

Why do you write ghost stories? 

I guess most authors write the sort of thing they like to read, and I’ve always been a fan of ghost stories. As a child, there was something delicious about being tucked up in bed reading a scary story by torchlight. I grew up in England, where every village has its myths and spooks, and I was fascinated by the history behind haunted spots. Places like old battlefields, ruins and deserted WWII airfields have such an atmosphere. Is this just because we know what happened there, or is there some sort of echo that we pick up on? I like to explore these ideas through writing.

There’s so much scope in writing ghost stories for children. I can include history, mystery and adventure, as well as the creepy stuff. Generally, I’m keen on finding ways of teaching history that will grab children’s interest. For example, most kids probably have little interest in the Otago Gold Rush (the theme of The Ghosts of Moonlight Creek), but weave that information into a story about a lost golden nugget and a ghostly gold miner, and they might learn some history without even being aware of it.

 

Have you ever seen a real ghost?

Maybe! It was on my wedding night (yes, you may make your smutty joke here). It had of course been a long day with a certain amount of champagne, and I was possibly tired-and-emotional enough to be hallucinating, but I’m still pretty sure the figure silhouetted in the bedroom doorway wasn’t imagined (the door flew open and shut in a matter of seconds). And when I discovered the next day that the hotel was notorious for spooky goings-on, then I thought, maybe …

 

How do you make sure your stories are exciting but not too scary for kids?

I aim to give the reader a little thrill rather than a nightmare. One reviewer said my stories have ‘just the right amount of tingle for the spine’. To make them exciting I keep the pace fast – I want the reader to keep turning the pages. Today’s kids have such short attention spans and soon get bored if there’s nothing much happening, and I’m very aware of this as I write – I’m competing with apps and computer games for kids’ time. And I won’t give up; I really really want kids to keep reading!

As far as ‘not too scary’ goes, out of all the ghosts in my books (a total of seven spooks in three books so far), only one turns out to be nasty. The others are benign. I didn’t initially plan it that way, but no matter how I tried to write them, my ghosts wanted to be lost souls trying to right past wrongs, or sending warnings, and for that they needed the help of my hero, Joe, who has the ability to see ghosts.

spooky stories
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What are some things you’ve learned through writing ghost stories?

As a writer, the most important lesson I’ve learned is how to slash and burn my text to keep the pace moving along. My first in the ghost story series (originally published in 2011) was full of surplus words, and I recently re-edited it to fix it. After three books I think I’ve nailed it – I’m now a demon with the red pen (OK, the delete button, but red pen sounds better). I’ve also learned how to get plenty of tension into a story – how to keep the reader turning those pages.

On the factual side, because my books are set in interesting and historical New Zealand locations, I’ve learned a lot about my lovely adopted country, and have greatly enjoyed my ‘research’ trips J

 

What advice do you have for people wanting to write for children? 

Start by reading a wide variety of children’s books – picture books, chapter books, novels – so you can recognize what makes a great kids’ read. Don’t assume that writing for children is easier than writing for adults. Many authors will tell you it’s harder! If you haven’t grabbed them by the end of page 1, you’re doomed. If you have kids of your own, try and put your finger on why they like certain books and not others. Then learn the craft of writing. Even if you have talent and ideas by the bucketload, you still need to learn what makes a story work, how to write a great character, how to nail your beginning and ending, and how to write text for the age level you’re aiming at – not too many difficult words, for example. Don’t send off your first draft to a publisher or agent. Get feedback – attend workshops and join writing groups, and draft and redraft until everyone is telling you, ‘It’s there – submit!’

 

Where can people find you?

My website is at www.suecopsey.com. It’s a mish-mash of information on my books and editing services, and spooky stuff for kids, like jokes, a colouring-in, and a list of the most haunted places in NZ.

 

What are you working on next?

I’m having a break from spooks; I’m a short way into a middle-grade fantasy. Against all advice (publishers don’t want books set in New Zealand, apparently – fools!), I AM making it a New Zealand book, because I want Kiwi kids, as well as the rest of the world, to know what a unique and unusual place this is. I have some vague, hopelessly optimistic idea that in making them aware of how awesome it is, and how lucky they are to live here, the next generation might be inspired to protect New Zealand to a greater degree than my own is failing to do. For an author, there is so much scope here – vast areas of mountain and forest wilderness, full of strange animals found nowhere else in the world. Weird birds, prehistoric reptiles, strange sea creatures … wait, did I say fantasy? Actually, this is our reality! I won’t say any more, I’m only a couple of chapters in but the rest of it is there in my head, waiting for me to find the words. I’m excited about it, can you tell?

 

Spooky Stories
Spooky Spine-Tinglers

About Sue:

Sue Copsey is an award-winning writer of spooky adventure stories for older children. Her 2015 title The Ghosts of Tarawera was  a Notable Book Award. As well as children’s fiction, Sue has produced many non-fiction books, including the UK Times Educational Supplement award winner Children Just Like Me, and Our Children Aotearoa, which also won a Notable Book Award. Sue has two children and lives in Auckland, where she edits AMAZING books (sorry Sue, just had to put that in!)

Everything you ever wanted to know about The Prankster and the Ghost

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(but were afraid to ask)

spooky stories
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Why did you decide to write this book?

My son was on holiday at a school camp. On on the first day, there were three accidents: a girl was caught in the doors of the bus, the same bus nearly ran over a girl’s arm and my son broke his wrist on the confidence course. ‘Mum,’ he said, when we were at the hospital, ‘it was like the camp was haunted!’

This got me wondering: what would a haunted school camp be like? I ended up writing a short story about this, and in this story was an old school house. The idea of a haunted schoolhouse stuck with me, so although I never used the first short story, I recycled it into Prankster.

Are any of the characters in Prankster based on real people?

Not really, although the inspector was strongly influenced by an old teacher of mine. In the olden days, when I was young, teachers were often scarey (unlike the lovely people they are today :)). So I suppose Prankster was a way of getting even with someone I used to find totally terrifying!

Why did you write that Jamie came from Scotland? Why couldn’t he come from another country?

There were three reasons why I chose Scotland. The first is because I live in Dunedin, which has a strong Scottish heritage. The second is because of a true story: my son was starting at a new school, and I went along with him for his first day. A boy in the class was really friendly, but unfortunately, neither of us could understand him, because his Scottish accent was so strong! The other kids had to translate for him! Which made me think about how isolating it can be to have no-one understand you. Parents move kids around the world – mostly without asking them first and this can be really hard on the kid, because they have to go to a new school, and perhaps no-one will understand you. I wanted to use these ideas in a story. The third and final reason for using Scotland was because of a (true) ghost story that a friend told me about Edinburgh Castle. You can read about it here.

Do you speak with a Scottish accent?

No! But my boss does (he’s from near Glasgow), so everything Jamie said I mentally imagined my boss saying first! I listened to Scottish podcasts and BBC radio too but they weren’t much use, because when the Scots really get going I find them almost impossible to understand!

Which part of writing Prankster did you find the hardest?

Chapter Twelve was definitely the hardest part to write. This is the scene in Jamie’s classroom. In this chapter the Ghosts start to write on the whiteboard, Milly vanishes into the iPad and Tayla realises that he can travel through the internet.  The reason I found this scene so hard was because it has about eight characters in it, and they’re all talking at once! I ended up breaking the scene into little pieces, and each piece only having two or three people talking at one time. So there would be Becky talking to Tayla, then Tayla arguing with Milly and then Jamie talking to Tayla. This kept it a bit simpler! Roald Dahl worked a bit like that in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I think, and now I know why. If you want to see what it’s like to read a scene with lots of people in it, try and write one, and you’ll see exactly what I mean!

How did you come up with all the practical jokes?

The internet! – google and youtube…

 

 

3 Outstanding Ghost Stories to Encourage Kids to Read

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Ghost Stories To Capture The Imagination.

Spooky stories are thrilling, scary, but always safe – because the child knows that if they put the book down, they can just walk away. Wish life was like that!

spooky stories
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Spooky stories are great at hooking kids into reading. Here are three books I recommend:

The Ghosts of Tarawera by Sue Copsey.

The Ghosts of Tarawera

Quick name drop: Sue was my editor for Prankster. Sue’s writing a three-part series of spooky tales (this is the second in the series) so if your class enjoys this book, then don’t worry, there’s more! The Ghosts of Tarawera is a Storylines Notable Book, and is available from bookstores or directly from Sue, at her website: Suecopsey.com  Sue also has a whole lot of spooky jokes on this website.

Under the Mountain by Maurice Gee

Under the Mountain

A well-known classic, Under the Mountain, is exciting to read aloud. There’s also a movie (which I didn’t like, but some people did), and Penguin have study notes available online here.

The House on the Hill by Kyle Mewburn, Illustrations by Sarah Davis

The House on the Hill by Kyle Mewburn

The House on the Hill is Kyle’s homage to Edgar Allen Poe and is written in rhyming stanzas, a little like The Raven. A natural performer, Kyle has a youtube channel which is great fun. Scholastic have produced some helpful teacher notes here.

Here’s a link to Kyle’s youtube Storytime Channel

Hope you enjoy.

3 Ghostly Facts Behind My Ghost Story

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Do You Believe in Ghosts?

Spooky Image - From Deposit Photos
Image from Deposit Photos. Used under license.

My new book, The Prankster and The Ghost, is a fun-filled story about ghosts and practical jokes and friendship. While Prankster is totally made up, it does include some actual ghost stories…

Ghost Story One:

In Prankster, Jamie remembers seeing a strange lady in Edinburgh castle. This is based an actual encounter. My friend was on a tour through Edinburgh Castle and was creeped out by a strange lady in an old-fashioned dress. No one else could see this woman, but the tour guide was not surprised. ‘Oh yes,’ she said, ‘she’s often seen.’

Ghost Story Two:

I’ve worked in hospitals all my working life and thirty years ago there were still many Victorian buildings. There were plenty of tales of figures in white, or unexplained drafts, or a feeling of clutching hands. These old hospitals were the spookiest places; they had long echoing corridors and high dusty ceilings.  We didn’t like being called out at night in those wards! But even in modern facilities there are rooms with histories of unexplained figures being seen by patients, and there are still places where staff prefer not to go – especially at night, when the hospital is quiet. I’ve never heard a story of hospital ghosts being violent; it’s more like ghosts are part of the hospital, rather like the furniture.

Ghost Story Three:

In Prankster, Tayla floats out of his body. This is based on something a patient told me – when he’d had a heart attack; he’d floated free his body. He had returned when he was resuscitated. He said it was quite peaceful, and that he’d had no fear or pain (until returning to his body. He didn’t like the resuscitation so much!) I took this idea a little further in Prankster, though – I thought a kid might find floating around intensive care kind of boring. Surely, a floating, invisible boy would do exactly what Tayla did – go straight for the computers!

And now you’ve read this – do you believe in ghosts?