Call for Submissions: Go Ahead, writers, scare us

For the last two years, as Halloween approaches, we’ve asked you to try to scare us.

Well, scare us you have.

In response to our call for scary fictional stories, your responded with tales about ghosts, haunted houses, hellish detours and murderous pumpkins. Our editors chose our favorites, which were published in the Argus-Courier just before Halloween. This year, we’ve asked Ross Lockhart - an acclaimed Petaluma horror writer and the publisher of Word Horde Books - to judge the submitted stories and select the own that scare him the most. The selected tales of supernatural terror will be published on Halloween, Oct. 31, in the paper and online.

Of course, Lockhart doesn’t scare easily. But he also has a soft spot in his heart for ghosts and monsters and things that go bump in the cornfield.

So he’s right for the job.

Want to give it a shot?

Select one of the accompanying “visual prompts,” make up a story of 500 words or less, and email it to Community Editor David Templeton, at david.templeton@arguscourier.com, by Thursday, Oct. 24, 5 p.m. Please include the number and title of the photo you choose to inspire (it might seem obvious which one you chose, but help us out by telling us anyway). The stories can be funny and scary, or moving and scary, or exciting and scary, or just, you know, scary and scary.

Have fun.We look forward to being frightened by you.