Are you afraid of the dark?  Do you want to learn what are those things that go bump in the night?  In this workshop we will explore what makes a good ghost story.  What are the elements of terror?  Participants will learn the differences between telling scary stories to little kids, young children, teens, and adults.  We will talk about story structure with regards to jump tales, audience participation, the building of suspense, the use of humor to allow the tale to breath to increase the terror.  We will briefly go over some of the more common story archetypes such as the urban legend, the vanishing hitchhiker, and the cautionary tale.  We will examine ghost stories from different cultures, viewing them within their cultural context.  We will then explore how such stories need to be shaped when they are told outside of their cultural context.  Participants will learn where to look for odd and scary stories and how to find stories that fit them.  Many of the scariest stories are true stories of strange events which occurred to people we know or friends of friends.  We will discuss basic interview techniques for collecting strange stories, conducting basic research, and writing personal stories.   Participants are encourage to bring a short spooky story which they would like to tell.  We will briefly go over guidelines for giving and receiving feedback for group work.  Participants will then be given the opportunity to tell their short story in a small group, and give, and receive feedback.