Twenty-Four Doors: Advent of Shadow

A collaborative daily story for December.

Whistle Ghost by James McBryde. Artists for an Antiquary: M.R. James and his Illustrators - Dark Lane Creative

The general vibe I get is that no one wants to talk about Christmas at the beginning of November. So, I apologize for this…

I love the tradition of sharing ghost stories on Christmas Eve, whether it's Dickens, James, Benson, or all the strange little tales in between. Thinking about this, my first idea was to create a December Advent Calendar-style series of ghost stories. I planned to post them daily on Substack throughout December. Each piece would be titled with its release date (December 1, December 2, and so on).

Then I thought maybe this is something other people would want to contribute to. There could be a series of authors posting a story/poem/dialogue/illustration/audio piece, etc., on their assigned day, and each piece could link to the last. Building a community to read/share/comment. I’ll also restack and share in notes + manage a masterlist post where everything will be linked.

The general theme would be wide open, and so would the length. Essentially, the only real guidelines would be:

1. The story takes place during winter in cold weather.

2. The story has elements of the paranormal/ghost/hauntings.

3. The title of the piece would have to be the assigned date. (The piece can take place whenever the creator desires)

The pieces could be funny, spicy, serious, scary, dramatic…so on…so on…

Public Domain Advent Calendar

Depending on the number of people involved, each person would only be asked to complete a single short piece, and I could post a full link list of the 24 days on December 25, along with a recap and gratitudes. Any gaps would be filled in either by me, someone else who wants to contribute an additional piece, or a traditional public domain winter ghost story( as a failsafe)

Although it draws heavily from Protestant/Anglican/Church of England traditions, the focus is more on the historical storytelling that unfolds as the winter solstice approaches and the nights grow longer. There’s no need for Christmas or Christianity to play a role.

I hope a diverse range of traditions and perspectives will be included.

If you are interested in contributing

• Send me a dm

• Let me know in the comments section

Additionally, if you have a specific date in mind, let me know too. I’ll mock up a calendar and make sure everyone is clear on their specific date. Feel free to reach out for questions, comments, or concerns. I’ll get back to you.

I can fine-tune details and talk about posting times/time zones/pictures and all the other minutiae if I get any interest.

Thanks for reading this.