Every October, the spirits of Halloween stories awaken once again to the delight of children who enjoy hearing a ghoulish tale. The challenge for authors writing for kids is balancing the scares, and offering narratives with just the right amount of squiggles, giggles and squirms for their readers – or in our case, listeners.
In an interview with Scholastic, R.L. Stine, the author of the wildly popular Goosebumps series, once said,
I didn’t really want to scare kids…the books are a tease, kind of a horror tease. I had to try and figure out how funny they would be…and any time [a scene] does get intense, I throw in something funny.
His formula worked! Since the release of the first Goosebumps in 1992, the series has sold over 400 million books worldwide in 32 languages. Dorktales podcast host, Jonathan Cormur, recalls how Goosebumps were an important part of his childhood,
I read and reread every Goosebump title over and over again, and I’d never leave the house without one of them in my hands. They were my security blanket when I needed something to escape into when the outside world was too overwhelming.
R.L. Stine is certainly one of our influences when we write the scripts for our special Dorktales Storytime Halloween episodes. And, we’d like to share our secret potion for a tale that will conjure some Halloween Magic:
Freaky + Funny + Familiar =
- Start with the Freaky: Pull from classic horror to set the scene and theme, then add in some eerie sound effects and evil laughter.
- Add in plenty of Funny: Make the scares very silly with over-the-top-characters, geeky plotlines, and lots (and lots) of puns.
- Bring in the Familiar: Add iconic pop culture references—for the kids AND for the grownups! Our favorites include Willy Wonka, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Tales from the Crypt, Arsenic and Old Lace—think audio cosplay!
Mix everything together in the creativity cauldron (incantations are optional) and you get:
Kooky Spooky Halloween Fun!
Ways to Listen
Where can you listen to these creepy (and geeky) Halloween stories? It’s not magic, because Dorktales Storytime is available practically everywhere. Find your favorite place to download and listen.
Hogenstein
This reimagining of “Frankenstein” is an over-the-top and not-so-terrifying tale about Hogenstein, an infamous warthog scientist, Lugo the bat, his loquacious lab assistant, and George, the creature with courage and heart.
FUN MOMENTS: Listen for the iconic Halloween sound effects and song reference. See if you can guess the character voices inspired by Arsenic and Old Lace, Young Frankenstein and The Goonies.
Find a story description on the Hogenstein episode page.
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Full Episode:
Sleepy Hallow’s Eve
Harkening back to Tales from the Crypt, our narrator, Jonathan, turns SCARE-ator for this retelling of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” He’ll send shivers up your quivers and make your teeth chatter with delight over the chilling tale of the bully Brom Bones, superstitious Ichabod Crane and the legend of the Headless Horseman.
FUN MOMENTS: There’s a Sonic the Hedgehog reference in the opening. Listen to see if you can spot a Sonic easter egg. You’ll also find Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings references in the beginning and at the end. Who do you agree with—Mr. Redge or Jonathan—about who’s the greatest literary wizard of all—Dumbledore or Gandalf?
Find a story description on the Sleepy Hallow’s Eve episode page.
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Full Episode:
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