Otherworldly voices and whispers in the wind. Dancing light in the sky. Floorboards that creak...when no one is walking. There's no definitive word for the unexplained, but we know it when we see it.

We would like to announce the winners of our Spooky Story contest, hosted by Annie Wilder, author of House of Spirits and Whispers. Be sure to check out all the fantastically creepy stories submitted by readers!

Annie's Favorite Story:
Don't Go Through that Door

Annie's Top Five Stories:
My Two Grandmas
Great Aunt Lydia
Vision in the Orange Grove
Moon Shine
Uncle Eddie

A note to the writers:
I'd like to thank everyone who submitted a Spooky Story. It's been a lot of fun to get emails with new stories and I enjoyed reading each one. It was really tough to choose only five favorites, plus the top story.

Different as they are, my favorite stories share some common elements—colorful characters (both living AND dead) and details that make the story vivid and memorable. I loved reading that Great Aunt Lydia brought her purse to heaven!

The top story, Don't Go Through That Door, brought back many memories of similar experiences from my childhood. Since my girlfriends and I all had brothers and sisters at home (and not much private space) we often had to resort to holding seances in the bathroom. I can't count the number of times we tried to conjure up Bloody Mary in a bathroom mirror.

Thanks again to each person who shared their Spooky Story with us.

Happy Halloween!

Annie

Read all the Spooky Stories

Paranormal Update

Sign up here to receive free bi-monthly issues of Llewellyn's Paranormal Update, which features excertps, reviews, links to cool sites and stories, discounts on books, and more. Five of the first group of subscribers will be chosen at random to receive a free copy of Strange but True.

Sign up for Llewellyn's Paranormal Update