After Words Paranormal

Send us Fan Mail This week tree conservation takes a twisted turn for the worse in David Longhorn’s story, “Old Growth.”  A young man wants to help preserve a growth of old oaks from a construction company, but his involvement goes a bit farther than he planned. Oak trees have been considered sacred for thousands of years. We'll take a look at where and why. Music Fesliyan Studios: "Ghos...

Send us Fan Mail Our story for this episode is “Grotesque,” by Ian Fortey. A young man moves into an apartment with a gargoyle right outside his window. After some strange incidents, he begins to wonder if the gargoyle is just for show, or some more sinister. Have you ever looked up at a building only to see something staring back? Gargoyles have decorated churches and other buildings for centurie...

Send us Fan Mail This week’s episode will give you something to chew on or rather chew with. Silas Grimm’s story, “The Room that Grows Teeth,” is a weird and disturbing story about a family that discovers teeth growing in their home. Not all tooth encounters are bad. We'll look at some teeth rituals from around the world. Music" Fesliyan Studios: "Ghost," "Halloween"...

Send us Fan Mail Which witch is which? In our story, “The Watcher at the Door,” by Henry Kuttner, a man is besieged by a witch’s ghost, who beckons him to a hellish realm with glowing eyes. Are there other places haunted by a witch’s ghost?  Of course there are! We'll highlight a few. Music Fesliyan Studios: "Ghost," "Halloween" "Scary Music,"  Audio Jungle: &quo...

Send us Fan Mail This week we present a story by author Quincey Lee, “The Baby’s Pram.”  It’s always delightful to see a sweet baby’s face smiling up from its carrier.  However, in this story one glimpse inside the pram sends everyone running away, screaming their heads off. The “evil child” trope is one of the most successful in literature and film. We'll look at an excellent article on the...

Send us Fan Mail This episode features the story, “Lucy Comes to Stay,” by Robert Bloch. A young woman is being held for insanity against her will. Her dear friend Lucy is willing to help her. But what kind of friend is Lucy, really. Can she be trusted? This week we dive into the horror sub-genre of psychological horror. We'll take a look at how this sub-genre differs from just regular "...

Send us Fan Mail Our story for this week is, “The Last Three Ships,” by Margaret St. Clair. Scavengers and treasure hunters avoid the last three ships in a line of wrecked ships set aside as junk. The last three ships are full of treasures for those who know where to look. Unfortunately, something more deadly lurks there as well. What treasures can be found on derelict ships? There are huge salvag...

Send us Fan Mail Our story, “The Best Teacher at Pleasant Hill Oak Elementary,” by Anica Mrose Rissi, is a tale of an unusual teacher. One who inspires her students but has a dark secret. The teacher in the story is indeed unusual, and I wondered if there were any tales about ghostly teachers out there.…apparently not. At least I couldn’t find any stories.  However, haunted elementary schools are...

Send us Fan Mail Our story, by author Gary Raisor, is perfect for this time of year. “The Old Black Hat” is a different take on a Christmas Icon. It’s a delightful “what if “story that offers up some dark holiday humor. Not so humorous are some of the beasties that make their appearance around the world during winter. We'll look at a few. Very carefully... Music Fesliyan Studios: "Ghost,...

Send us Fan Mail Our story for this episode is, “Twilight Play,” by August Derleth. In the story, a young boy has an unusual friend that meets him each day at twilight. When other boys bully him, the friend becomes something more than a playmate. Something deadly. This story touches on the importance of the Hawk in native cultures. We'll also look at some native lore about these beautiful bir...

Send us Fan Mail Our story for this episode is, “Passenger,” by John Beardify. To pay off a gambling debt, a man takes the job of chauffeuring a mysterious passenger to different locales. What the passenger does once dropped off is the stuff of nightmares.  Are there any Uber, Lyft or taxi drivers out there with tales of ghostly passengers? The answer is, yes, and we have a couple of stories. Musi...

Send us Fan Mail Our story for this episode is, “The House on 5th Avenue,” by Durbin Lee Horner. A young man goes to a family gathering to meet the relatives of his beloved. Unfortunately, there is a surprise in store even worse than Aunt Agnes’s lime-Jello-salmon truffle. As this is the week of Thanksgiving, many of you will be attending family gatherings. Some of you may be meeting a loved one’s...

Send us Fan Mail This week’s tale is one of true love. A love that has lasted for centuries, literally. The couple are vampires. E. Everett Evans’s story, “The Undead Die,” tells of their meeting, their transformation and their undying love. In the vein of “Interview with the Vampire,” by Anne Rice, our story raises the same question— “How much humanity do vampires retain after transformation?” If...

Send us Fan Mail Dollhouses…hobby, plaything or creep fest? Do dollhouse figures live their own lives separately and invisibly to those who play with them? Well, we'll look at a real dollhouse with its own ghost story. And, in our story, “Desecrated Dollhouse,” by Edgar Carmine, a dollhouse turns deadly for an obsessed collector. Music Fesliyan Studios: "Ghost," "Halloween&quot...

Send us Fan Mail Our story for this episode is, “The Empty Drawer,” found in Chilling Morgue Stories, edited by Eve S. Evans. Ghost hunters explore an abandoned morgue, or at least they think it is abandoned. If you visited a non-abandoned morgue, you would probably county coroner. Being a coroner, at least according to the CSI TV shows, looks like a very interesting job. What is it really like? W...

Send us Fan Mail Our story for this episode is, “Dead Man’s Fingers,” by Patrick Winters. In the story a Halloween dare turns deadly for some trick or treaters. A great story for the week of my high-holy day, Halloween. Like our tale, scary stories are full of the bad results of taking on a graveyard dare. We'll take a look at two “real” creepy graveyard dares. Music Fesliyan Studios: "G...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, we have a story by one of my favorite authors, Paul Ernst. “The Face at Death Corner” tells the tale of a strange and terrifying face that appears at an intersection just before a deadly auto accident. The mystery is solved by one brave soul who nearly dies himself. Are there real places in the world where mysterious or ghostly faces appear repeatedly? Indeed, yes...

Send us Fan Mail This episode was previously #197, but the file only loaded halfway. So, here it is again, as episode #199, in its entirety.  Our story is "The Buzzing in My Wife's Head," by Nathaniel Lewis. A young wife and mother is being driven mad by a persistent buzzing sound that only she can hear. Her husband is concerned and should be. The buzzing is in her head, but from a...

Send us Fan Mail Music Fesliyan Studios: "Ghost," "Scary Atmosphere" Audio Jungle: "Halloween Waltzes"  Hello, and welcome to episode #199 of After Words Paranormal. I’m your host, Shelby. Our story for this week is, “The Monkey Spoons,” by Mary Elizabeth Counselman. In the story a purchase is made at an antique store of three delightful spoons, each one topped with a...

Send us Fan Mail On this week's episode, we tag along with a new ER doctor on his first night at a new job. The story, by Blair Daniels is entitled, “There is Something Wrong With this Hospital,” and that might give you a clue as to the kind of night the doctor has. We’ve had some “haunted hospital stories” in past episodes…but what the heck, let’s read some more!! Music Fesliyan Studios: &qu...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, we’ll dive deep (literally) into the graves in an old cemetery. In “Grave Danger,” by Devin Cabrera, a bullied boy is trapped in a grave and finds something much more sinister than worms and dirt clods. We’ve explored burial practices and haunted cemeteries, so let's find something new. What about those who take care of a cemetery? I wonder what it would be l...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we will climb the steps to the top of a great tower. The main character thinks he’s going to get a good night’s sleep, but what resides in the tower has other ideas. The mere thought of a tower seems to invoke ghostly images whirling around it. Perhaps there is a ghostly maiden waiting for a rescuer that never came. A good old creepy tower is a great setting for ha...

Send us Fan Mail Our story for this episode is, “Me and My Shadow,” by Sandra Cook. A kind schoolteacher reaches out to a lonely girl with an imaginary friend. At first passed off as a childhood fantasy, she discovers that the friend is very real and very deadly. Are there other stories of imaginary friends who turned out to be not so imaginary? Oh, yeah. And they’re creepy. We'll share a few...

Send us Fan Mail Ouija boards, a good way to communicate with the dead, or an open portal to evil? In our story, a curious young lady finds out it’s the latter.  Ouija boards are a hot topic of debate in the paranormal investigation community. Some say that only bad things come of using one; that a door is opened to the dark side, and nothing good can come of it. Join us for this ghoulish story an...

Send us Fan Mail This is the time of year for planting. Small gardens are cropping up all over my neighborhood. One of my favorite things to plant is pumpkins. I love the beautiful pumpkin blossoms and having a Halloween Jack-o-lantern that was grown in my own yard. In our story, “The World’s Biggest Pumpkin,” by Nathaniel Lewis, a man from the Guinness Book of World Records is out on a farm to me...