One Year Later: A Reflection

The muses are ghosts, and sometimes they come uninvited. – Stephen King, Bag of Bones

One year ago today, I wrote my first post for Notebook of Ghosts. People always ask where the name of the blog came from. I have always kept commonplace books about the occult and wanted to translate this very personal activity to a rather public blog. I am so glad I did. I have been introduced to so many online communities: the folklorists, the death positive advocates, and young adult horror writers. My writing has appeared on sites I admire: Dirge Magazine and Death and The Maiden. Twitter has also been supportive and welcoming. Thank you so much for a wonderful, spooky year.

Before I start 2017 with a new post, I wanted to look back on some of my favorite posts!

Favorite Posts

• Dolls to the Wall: A History of Haunted Dolls
• The House of Blue Lights
• The Curse of James Dean’s Car
• The Famous Screaming Skulls Of England 
• The 5 Scariest Mausoleums in America
• A Cemetery Stroll with the Wabash Paranormal Research Society
• Starved Spirits: Dr. Linda Hazzard’s Deadly Fasting Method

Favorite Cemetery Visits (Indiana)

• Crown Hill Cemetery 
• Buswell and Justus Cemetery
• Mound Cemetery
• Spring Vale Cemetery

What’s Next?

This year, I have several blog-related (and personal) goals, including:

• Sharing more images from my commonplace book (on the blog and Instagram)
• Writing more substantial (and maybe less frequent) blog posts
• Visiting more cemeteries (and hopefully Salem, MA)
• Reading as many ghost stories in literature as possible
• (Maybe) Bringing back my Pinterest page

This blog, and the communities attached to it, will keep me going in the frightening political climate of America (to be frank). When I write, I hide; this year won’t be any different. I will savor the moments when I’m in my office with candles lit and a blank notebook page, ready for a new ghostly adventure.