Ghost Stories
A call for legends
Shaina here, currently writing this Macabre post from a Hawaiian island I fled to. No it’s not what you think. I’m just escaping the cold for a week with my family. But while I’ve been down here I have had the opportunity to learn of a Hawaiian legend known as The Nightmarchers, the spirits of fallen warriors said to march the paths they followed in life, bearing torches and ready for battle. Any mortal who looks upon them falls to a violent end.
Of course this got me thinking about other legends, traditions and beliefs from across the world. Dia de los Muertos and The Wild Hunt came to mind, and it got me curious. What are the most terrifying ghost legends, myths, and beliefs you have ever heard of, and do you know of any fiction that depicts it?
And now, the weekly digest…
In which we share some of our favorite Macabre Monday contributions from last week.
- shared a flash fiction horror story, “JEREMY NEVER MADE IT TO THE GROCERY STORE”
- gave us a deliciously dark drabble, “elegance.”
I don't know about most terrifying but there's a French (or French Canadian) superstition that the dead return home on All Soul's Day, and families would leave out meals for them on the dining room table. I heard a folktale of a traveler who accidentally ate with the dead on such a night. I wrote a story that was a bit of a twist on that: https://theforgottenlibrary.substack.com/p/trick-or-treat
Awesome! Thanks for the shout out. I always look forward to macabre Mondays