A Ghost Story Without a Ghost

I want to experiment with the idea of writing a ghost story without a ghost.

I previously wrote a flash fiction story titled, “The Ghost Beyond the Attic Door,” which deals with the overactive imagination of an eight year-old boy. That story neither confirms nor denies the existence of a real ghost in the story, just that the boy believes there is a ghost.

The concept of a ghost story without a ghost is an odd concept, I realize, but it is not an original idea. Both Sherlock Holmes and Scooby-Doo use the formula of a supernatural mystery, which results in a natural resolution. While I must admit that I have neither read nor watched many Sherlock Holmes stories I have watched a lot of Scooby-Doo episodes.

Scooby-Doo Ghost-Less Mysteries

Most Scooby-Doo episodes portray a mystery about a ghost, goblin, or monster which rarely turns out to be a real ghost, goblin, or monster. It is usually a couple of crooks trying to trick local town folks for personal gain.

The crooks masquerade as a ghost, goblin, or monster to scare people away from a location that the crooks plan to rob. In some episodes the crooks have stolen loot hidden in a location they want to keep secret.

The idea of writing a ghost story without the ghost may seem like a peanut butter sandwich without the peanut butter but it is more like having a peanut butter sandwich with wheat bread. White bread is tastier to most people. Using wheat bread makes it more challenging to have a tasty peanut butter sandwich.

The Challenge of Writing a Ghost-Less Story is Fun

The fun in writing a ghost-less story is the challenge of making the story interesting. Scooby-Doo episodes manage to be entertaining without supernatural foes.

The challenge is to persuade the reader to believe that the ghost is possibly real. Then near the end, reveal the truth of there being no ghost to the reader. It was all just a hoax played by the villain in the story.

A Haunted House Story Without a Haunted House

Even more challenging would be to write a story about a haunted house without a haunted house. Again the fun in writing the story will be the challenge of making the story interesting. A story with a real haunted house, dare I say, would be easier writing than writing about a supposedly haunted house that is later revealed to not be haunted.

While someone may argue that it defies the expectation of the reader to start a story about something supernatural then near the end of the story reveal that there was nothing supernatural. I would have to answer with, “so what?”

Most ghost stories are mysteries. What does the ghost want? Why is the house haunted? The ghost-less mystery is about determining what the villain will gain by generating a ghost hoax?

Therefore, the ghost-less story is a mystery about the living. There are living good guys and there are living bad guys. Yet in this mystery the bad guys are generating a ghost story to gain something of value. The good guys have to solve the mystery and stop the bad guys.