Prepare to Scareis a handbook edited by Circle of Excellence storyteller, Elizabeth Ellis, with contributions by the A-list of scary story writers and tellers on the American Storytelling Festival Circuit. It is a handbook for adults who tell stories to children or other adults in a variety of settings: storytelling events, schools, aftercare programs, camps, and homes.
 

Elizabeth Ellis is the Grand Dame of American Storytelling. A native of Appalachia, she moved to Dallas, Texas early in life and there became a mother, a grandmother, a public librarian, and eventually a professional storyteller. She now tours the nation telling stories and leading workshops to help other storytellers grow in their craft. This is her fifth book.

“Once Upon A Midnight Dreary”
---Edgar Allan Poe
Chapter One: Why Tell Scary Stories?
What is the underlying meaning of scary stories ?
Why tell them?
Even to children? Especially to children.
A List of Books to Challenge the Nay-Sayers
The Mad Scientist’s Laboratory
Chapter Two: What Current Brain Research Tells Us About Fear
This is your brain
This is your brain on scary stories
Some Books to Help You Understand How This Effects Storytelling
“And th’ Gobble-uns W’ll Get You Ef You Don’t Watch Out!”
---James Whitcomb Riley
Chapter Three: What Folks Fear
Major fears of young children
Major fears of older children
Major fears of teens
Major fears of adults
What fear looks like Or Observable Indicators of Fear
A Group of Books If You Want to Dig Deeper
“Something Wicked This Way Comes”
---William Shakespeare
Chapter Four: A Graveyard Full of Tales
Annotated bibliography of material to tell to young children
Annotated bibliography of material to tell to older children
Annotated bibliography of material to tell to teens
Annotated bibliography of material to tell to adults
“Double, Double, Toil and Trouble”
---William Shakespeare
Chapter Five: Stirring Up the Ingredients
Selecting stories to tell
Authenticity or what are you afraid of?
Learning stories
Creating a mood
Point of view
Anticipation
Building suspense
Language
Voice
Timing
The listeners’ response: HAHA, AHA, AHH, AMEN
Some Helpful Titles That Will Be Of Help
MASTERS OF MACABRE
Chapter Six: Tips from a Spectacularly Spooky Group of Tellers
Dan Keding
Tim Tingle
Janice Del Negro
Motoko
Joseph Bruchec
Loren Niemi
Milbre Burch
Lynn Ford
Sherry Norfolk
Baba Jamal Koram
“Did You Ever Think As the Hearse Goes By
You Might Be the Next To Die?"
---American children’s song
Chapter Seven: Creating Scary Stories
What you are afraid of-digging deeper
Re-visiting listener’s response to stories: HAHA, AHA, AHH, AMEN
What folklore tells us about why ghosts appear
Give us all the elements of a good story
Believable characters
Point of view
Fleshing out the story
Books That Will Help Stimulate Your Creativity
“From Ghoulies and Ghosties and
Long-leggedy Beasties
And Things That Go Bump In the Night,
Good Lord, Deliver Us.”
---Old Cornish Prayer
Chapter Eight: Conclusion
Protecting yourself
Protecting your listeners
Closing the Coffin
Acknowledgements