Guest Author - Samantha Grayson

Halloween can be excellent inspiration for children’s stories. It is a time when many people are in disguise and tricks are played. People can easily hide behind a mask and not everything maybe as they seem.

Magic is easily interwoven into stories and it is a night where just about anything can happen within a normal world. For one night the rules of the world can be broken without it seeming strange.

Halloween parties are great places to bring together different characters that might not ordinarily meet. They can be used to bring together younger and older characters or people from different walks of life.

Ghosts can be scary or helpful, they can be people the characters know or just random spooks out for a night of mischief. They can be wispy white shapes or appear as real people who vanish into the night.

The night is another aspect of Halloween stories. Again people can use it to hide who they really are as they blend into the night. Shadows can come to life or conceal things within them.

Animals are often an important part of Halloween with bats, spiders and black cats being the most common. Remember spiders can be the fast little creatures making a person nervous as they run around or they can be creators of the web of life. Black cats can be seen as lucky or unlucky depending which country you are in.

Halloween can also be seen as the pagan celebration of Samhain or as a time of harvest festivals. Apple harvests are often associated with this time of year and there is a lot of symbolism connected to this fruit that can be used in stories.

Pumpkins carved and made into jack o’lanterns are another part of this time of year. Strange lights that appear over bogs and led travellers astray inspire Jack o’lanterns and this is another idea that can be used in stories.
It is important to make sure you are aware of the age of the reader you are aiming for. Though it may be OK to scare children slightly you do not want to make them terrified.

It is also worth noting the religion of the children you are aiming your story at. Most religions do have strong views on the use of magic and communicating with spirits. Whilst a lot of people may see Halloween as just a bit of fun it also can cause offence.

Make use of all five senses when describing what is going on. Make your reader feel as though they are really there witnessing the event as it happens.