Amanda Hocking

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Guest Post from J. L. Bryan
February 24th, 2011 by
This post currently has 72 comments

Today I have a guest post from J. L. Bryan – author of Jenny Pox and the newly released Haunted E-Book. He’s having a lot of really fun giveaways to go along with the release of his latest book, and he’s a great writer, as well as a terrifically swell guy. So enjoy his post, and check out his books.

Lesser-Known Ghosts of the Upper Midwest
For my Haunted E-book Tour stop today at Amanda’s blog, I thought it would be nice if I showed some research initiative and dug up some famous ghosts of the upper Midwest, which must have its share of them, with all those dark forests and desolate dairies.
But if they’re already famous, do they really need more press?  Instead, I decided to talk about some less well-known ghosts.  These ghosts are so little-known, in fact, that you probably won’t find much information about them, no matter how much time you spend researching them. 
So, here they are, in the order in which I invented them:
1.      The Polka Phantom.  Yes, he comes out at least once every Oktoberfest, playing his accordion and trying to lure the innocent out for a polka dance or two.  They say he’s the ghost of Johann Schnauzerhund, the worst accordion player in state history, who was driven from town to town and finally out into the arctic cold of a December night in Minnesota, because his accordion playing really was that annoying.  Late at night, when its more than twenty degrees below zero and you go out onto the frozen Minnesota tundra, if the wind dies down and the full moon comes out, you can still hear his ghost playing the accordion.  Badly.
2.       The Friday Fish Fry Fisherman.  He only comes on Fridays, and only if you’re having a fish fry.  They say the fisherman died on a cold winter night out, not because there was a storm or because he fell into the water and drowned, but because he was using a deep-fryer on the wooden deck of his ship, against the manufacturer’s warnings.  He became drunk and knocked over the vat of hot oil, and his ship caught on fire and sank beneath the water.  It remains there to this day, mainly because extracting it would be expensive and involve cranes.
Now, he wanders out on Friday nights in search of the deep-fried food he was denied in life.  To avoid being haunted by the fisherman, place a small piece of fried fish outside your front door every time you have a fish fry.  This will appease the fisherman’s ghost, but may attract cats.
3.       The Loonie Lumberjack.  This is alleged to be the ghost of Sven Thatguysson, a 19th-century lumberjack known for frequenting the rough “jack” bars in Minnesota and Wisconsin, where drunken shirtless wrestling fights often broke out.  Sven died rolling logs down a river to Lake Superior.  Sometimes he hurls logs at vacationers like that gorilla in Donkey Kong.  Sven’s body was never recovered, and they say that’s why the bottoms of the lakes in Minnesota stay cold all winter.  Because they’re haunted by his ghost.  Not because of the eternal lack of direct sunlight.
4.       The Mount Horeb Troll Ghost. The town of Mount Horeb, Wisconsin is full of trolls.  (I’m uncertain about its proximity to Förening.) Little-known story: one of these trolls allegedly tried to claim an interstate overpass as his own bridge, and got flattened by an eighteen-wheeler while attempting to shake it down for a toll.  Some nights, you can still see him on the overpass, still claiming that no one may cross the bridge without paying him.  If worse comes to worse, throw him a few coins and he’ll leave you alone.
I hope that this guide to very obscure ghosts has been educational.  However, I doubt it.
In the comments you below, you might mention some lesser-known ghosts in your area.  Or make some up.  I did.
Commenting on this post within seven days enters you for The Haunted E-book Tour Grand Prizes, including The Haunted Library and a Kindle (or two!).
It also enters you for the
***SPECIAL GIVEAWAY***
Today we’ll have a special triple paperback giveaway.  One person who comments within seven days will win three paperbacks: Jenny Pox, The Haunted E-book and Hollowland.
Be sure to leave an email address, blog URL or other way to get in touch with you in case you win. 
Thanks so much to Amanda for hosting today’s blog tour stop!

Leave a Reply

  • JL_Bryan says:
    8 March 2011 at 3:34 pm

    Hi Jennifer:

    I announced the winner on my blog & emailed her. It was Jessica (comment #48, I think).

    Thanks!

    Reply
  • jennifer b says:
    8 March 2011 at 12:26 am

    Were any winners announced?

    Reply
  • Anonymous says:
    2 March 2011 at 3:22 pm

    I am SO STOKED (OK, a bit passe perhaps but thrilled) to find you!
    There’s a book waiting for me to find the way to get it to the (admittedly) rare person who wants it and my sis sent me to check out what you are doing for encouragement.

    It’s working!

    Seeing someone who is doing their own own own thing and making a good go of it makes me skip around the house.
    And, yes, I would LOVE to get those copies of your work.

    Keep on keepin on,

    Thanks!
    MWadeWolfe

    mwadewolfe@earthlink.net

    Reply
  • Jason says:
    2 March 2011 at 1:35 pm

    I love ghost stories. I think we would all be really really surprised if we knew how many unseen spirits were around us at all times!
    skisix@att.net

    Reply
  • missniesa_am says:
    2 March 2011 at 2:49 am

    Just downloaded the Trylle series on my Kindle yesterday… So far they are the most addicting books I have read since The Mortal Instruments series. I love that the storyline is so original and the characters are readable, but not predictable. Even though I’m entering kinda late I would LOVE to win your give-away. You can reach me at missniesaam@gmail.com

    Reply
  • Lady Dragoness says:
    1 March 2011 at 11:47 pm

    Making up ghosts? Hmm well, I dunno about that, as my writing deals more with real world stuff, like book reviews and comments on posts like this. Hoping to get my review of The Haunted E-book up on my blog within the week. http://blogs.delphiforums.com/dragonviews

    Since I live in the southern state of Mississippi, I am sure there must be some ghosts here… they would likely date from the civil war era with all the fighting that went on back then. Unfortunately, I’m an import, not native to the area so rather unfamiliar with the stories.

    Reply
  • Anne says:
    1 March 2011 at 2:37 pm

    Illinois supposed to have several haunted sites. The one I hear about the most is Resurrection Cemetery. Resurrection Mary has been sighted in the cemetery since the 30’s. She was supposedly hit by a car walking home from a dance and she’s seen dancing in the cemetery. That’s not terribly spooky though.

    acm05atjuno.com

    Reply
  • Mischievous1 says:
    28 February 2011 at 10:50 pm

    Just finished your Trylle Trilogy-they were fabulous!!
    I also read Jenny Pox sample in the back of your book, she looks really good, I am going to have to buy that one next…I don’t have any ghost stories, i’ve never seen a ghost…that I know of! 🙂 author@rtpaul.com

    Reply
  • Melanie says:
    28 February 2011 at 10:41 am

    Jeff, there is a reason that you are a writer, and I am not. I could not come up with a ghost story, not even a short clever one like the ones you present here.
    Also, Jenny Pox should be made into a movie. Just sayin.

    Reply
  • JL_Bryan says:
    27 February 2011 at 9:25 am

    What a fantastic number of ghost stories! Thanks to everybody for sharing. 🙂 I also appreciate your kind comments about Jenny Pox! The sequel, Tommy Nightmare, comes out in April.

    Thanks again to Amanda for hosting the blog tour!

    Reply