Skeleton Woman, reprised

I was going over my recordings and I found this one from 2016. It was recorded during a show called Blood and Bones that I performed with Natasha Clery, but we also had several friends share the stage with us that night in Ottawa at the Origin Studio.

I originally posted the Skeleton woman story back in 2010, but I lost the recording somewhere along the way. It is such a great story; definitely worth repeating.

I make a slight mistake in this story, but recovered quickly. But this probably why I haven't shared it before. However, Jason Sonier's haunting melodies make this story totally worth listening to.

Have a listen. I hope you enjoy it.

Clarella's Devils

The 10 gold sovereigns disappeared quickly into the witch’s pouch, but these were desperate times. Horace and Matilde craved a child to chase away their despair, which hung from their shoe leather as they dragged themselves through life.

The witch offered them the potion, which simmered in a stained brass cup. Closing her eyes, Matilde whispered a dark promise and drank the bitter liquid, while Horace clung to her and wept.

Nine months to the day, as the crows darkened the sky and filled the night’s silence with their broken songs, Clarella took her first breath and screamed.

As her parents doted on her, Clarella’s eyes were always darting, staring, and then looking away in alarm. Horace always dismissed it and insisted that she would eventually settle down, but he would never truly know how wrong he was.

Clarella knew they were nearby, always watching with those piercing white eyes, so she gave them names. “Hello Griff,” she waved as the demon rounded the corner, dragging its claws along the wall. Griff growled, its grin glinting in the sunlight, and sank into the carpet with a light hiss.
 
-- JD Hickey, November 2012

The Dead Don't Pay, with SFX!

Halloween is only a few days away, but unfortunately, I don't have a new ghosty story to share with you. Instead, I was contacted by my friend Rikki who has been adding sound effects to one of my previous postings The Dead Don't Pay.

The original recording was done before a live student audience somewhere in Montreal back in early 2009.

UPDATE: This track is currently featured on my new CD called "Did You Hear That?"

So I invite you to rediscover this story with the SFX that Rikki has added. Enjoy!

November Story: The Man with No Story

I was pleased to have the privilege of spending my All Hallows Eve in a pub telling tales. Thanks be to Mike who trusted me with this sacred task! I was also honored to share the stage with Sarah, Jack, and Ruthanne Edward from Ottawa who regaled us with a couple of ghostly and ghastly tales herself.

As mentioned in the recording, this is a story that Mike Burns often tells at this time of year, but that he also published in a collection of tales called Ghostwise. This link allows you to read this story as well.

I also talk about my latest CD in this recording and have included it as a shameless plug. If you don't have the CD, why do you continue to deny yourself such pleasures? You can download the tracks from the CD for cheap by visiting CDBaby.

So, without further ado, here's the story:

October Story: Skeleton Woman

Sorry for the long silence, but I've been away to France for 10 days. We had a wonderful time, took loads of pictures, drank wine and champagne, and ate too much cheese and sausage. I can't wait to go back.

This month's story was told during the 92 Degrees of Love show back in February 2010. Uncharacteristically, Shayne is not playing music with this story. Instead, I'll be playing the drum! I think this is the second time I play the drum while telling at it really is tricky to get it right.

I find the Skeleton Woman story to be an odd mix of creepy and endearing. With the coming of Halloween, the end of summer, and the beginning of winter, I find this story contains many themes. I hope you enjoy it.

UPDATE: The version below is not from the February 2010 show, but from about 6 years later in Ottawa during a show called Blood and Bones, as recorded at the Origin Studio.

Ghost Story for October: The Dead Don't Pay

I've been sitting on this recording for soooooo long! This recording was done when I visited Our Lady of Pompei elementary school way back in February of 2009.

Within every story, there are a few kernels of truth. In this story, I decided to use my old school chum Ted as the protaganist. I made this decision many years ago when I started learning this story, but I recently reconnected with Ted and was pleased to have the chance to share this story with him.

Update: I found the nice thing Ted said!

The fascinating thing about the story, for me, is the marvelous mix of fact, fiction, and perspective I find in it. The tale is so compelling that I could think it was true, or that my actual memories of that time in my life were somehow wrong, FSM knows they're foggy enough. I might even believe that "Ted" was the name I was Christened with--and it isn't, lest the Avid Fans (all five of them) wonder.

October is usually quite a busy month for me as a storyteller, and so far, I've got about 4 gigs starting to take shape. When I figure out the wheres and whens, I'll be posting them here and in my various other spots on the web. Stay tuned!

Before we begin, I want to give a shout-out to fellow storyteller Marie B. who just started her own storytelling podcast. I would love to say I inspired her to do this, but that would be lying, and I never lie. Never, never, ever.

The Dead Don't Pay (10 minutes)

Birthday Story: The Hall of Wonders

Today is my birthday: I'm 40 years young today on International Star Wars day. May the 4th be with you!

So to mark this special day, I've decided to post one of my favorite stories. I first heard this tale on The Moonlit Road as told by its author Thomas E. Fuller. I'm very excited to say that I received official permission from the late Mr. Fuller's press agent to retell this story as much as I like as long as I give credit to the author (which I do already).

Serendipitously, the permission letter is dated May 4th 2009. I love it when a plan comes together.

I recorded this story in studio today; when I visited Gerald McShane Elementary school in April, I had told this story as well, but the recording was corrupted slightly. I would rather record a live story with an audience, but this studio recording came out not too badly. Special audio effects were provided by Rikki Lacoste.

A Ghost Story for Children

This story is written and told for a much younger audience than previous stories presented on this storyblog. I first heard this story from Priscilla Howe on one of her storytelling CDs.

Telling to very young children (3 to 6 years) has always been very challenging for me. The stories are simple, repetitive, and very short, which is very different from the stories I tell to adults or older children. I only have three stories I tell to this age group and I have difficulty finding more stories that appeal to my telling style and suits their needs.

But all kids love a good ghost story and this tale is entertaining and not scary at all. I love how the kids get to jump in with this tale and it takes almost no time for them to recognize the pattern.

This is a simple story that you can tell to your kids over and over again. Enjoy!