The Phantom Stagecoach (A Haiku)

By Joyce Jacobo [Author’s Note: The Butterfield Mail Trail used to run through my area, with its stagecoaches that ran between any number of stations to deliver mail and even people to various destinations. As such, a few stories related to them have popped up over the years, including that of a stagecoach once delayed

Woman in White (A Haiku)

By Joyce Jacobo [Author’s Note: I have heard quite a few versions of a ghost story where a “woman in white” will ask people for rides home, only for the drivers to realize it was directly to a cemetery. In certain retellings, the mysterious woman will have been known in some way to the driver,

The Ancient Lives of Storytellers (A Poem)

By Joyce Jacobo [Author’s Note: I remember reading how itinerant storytellers, such as bards, used to wander landscapes and actually helped to keep the histories of certain places alive by their recitation of various tales–especially during The Middle Ages. This poem is dedicated to them.] I have read that once upon a time    storytellers

Book Review: More Short & Shivery

More Short & Shivery, retold by Robert Sans Souci, features a collection of thirty folktales from around the world. It belongs to the same literary tradition as works like Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, aimed at drawing in younger audiences through spooky twists and turns. They offer clever ways to enchant children with

Mountain Tales (A Poem)

By Joyce Jacobo [Author’s Note: Mountains surround the place where I live, filled with interesting folktales and historical notes from the past.] Folks have talked about the trails        which weave like unraveled yarn   through the mountains yonder         …. just folks from around these parts                          like those grizzly old men who