Organized by Linda Gould, author and founder of The Women’s English Writing Group of Japan, “Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai: 100 days, 100 supernatural stories” is a special online event counting down to Halloween. From August 1st, the Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai will feature one dramatic reading of a ghostly story each day. Two of my stories, The Hunter’s Wife and A Pilgrim’s Tale will be read during the event.
Originally a test of courage for samurai, Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai (百物語怪談会: A Gathering of One Hundred Supernatural Tales) was a popular scary storytelling game during the Edo period in Japan. The storytellers would gather at dusk and light one hundred candles. As each storyteller completed their story, they would blow out one candle. When the final candle was extinguished and the room plunged into darkness, a doorway to the supernatural realm would be opened. It was not uncommon for the storytellers to lose courage and stop the event after the 99th tale.
The first of my stories, The Hunter’s Wife, is available to hear now in a wonderful reading by Ghiselle Camacho.
If you have a story of your own, true or fictional, why don’t you submit it to Linda’s Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai.
(Featured photograph by Mike Labrum on Unsplash)
Andi Brooks 