Ever since I can remember, during the time of Halloween, my mom would break out the scary story Cds, “Halloween party music”, and those with the random scary sounds on them. It might sound silly to may people but like I said before, we were always the house with the scary music playing while the fog machine was going off while treat-or-treaters were coming up to the door. I never thought much of it, but now I realize that all of these Halloween CDs are part of every Halloween memory I have. One CD in particular, the one with the “scary” stories narrated by one man trying to speak in different voices for all of the parts, recently had me thinking: What made stuff like this seem so scary to me years ago?
The answer is quite simple. Between the rise and falling of each voice and the occasional sounds effects, these digital stories swept me up and transported me into their creepy world. And isn’t that what makes stories so scary? If you can successfully adjust your voice to the mood and add in a few scary sound effects, you can easily scare anyone. I guess that’s way flashlights lightening up the storyteller’s face at a campfire while telling scary stories is so effective. When our minds hear certain words, tones of voice, or even certain sound effects, we are immediately pulled into the story being told. So if you happen to hear scary music, creepy voices, or frightfully intriguing stories this Halloween, pay attention to every element so you can see exactly how far you are drawn into the setting of that specific moment.
I love seeing the houses on Halloween with the fog machine and scary music playing. It shows that people are still celebrating Halloween for other ideas then just getting free candy. I agree with your idea that the more you take the time to analyze every element of a spooky situation, more you feel like you are actually there. This is how I feel when I watch scary movies especially. Usually the "victim" of the movie is trapped in a dark place or is surrounded by creepy or gruesome pictures or noises that foreshadows what will come next. Although I am only watching it from my house, my heart beats as fast and my eyes fill with horror as much as the actors and actresses in the actual film. Halloween is such a cool holiday and would be nothing without those scary noises, or other effects lingering around.
ReplyDeleteAw this was so cute! I think that definitely atmosphere plays a big part in effective storytelling (I almost wrote my blog on atmosphere in story). You know the old saying-- it's not just WHAT you say, it's HOW you say it. That's a good point too about the flashlight at the campfire-- that can be so creepy! A proper atmosphere is a perfect way to transport your audience.
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