Maybe you could use some good news to buoy your spirits on these chilly winter days. If that’s the case, I’ve got you covered.

On January 11, our sold out Winter Hauntings event raised $900 to support EPIC Carteret guest Amanda McCall in the purchase of new books for the Title Wave Book Mobile’s Summer Tour 2024.

If you listened to Episode Two of EPIC Carteret, you know how hard Amanda worked to make summertime library services accessible to kids across the county. She saw an unmet need, she rallied her community, and together, they’re creating lifelong readers, writers, and thinkers. If you weren’t able to attend Winter Hauntings, but you still want to give, I’ve linked to the book mobile’s website here.

I’ve also got a digital program with the top five ghost stories from our 2023 Ghost Story Contest for you because you need to read it and tell all your friends about these talented local writers.

• Newport teacher and pianist Meganne Smith hit all the right notes with her modern horror “The Autopsy.”
• Down East artist Sabra Mason will cause you to reconsider your next fishing trip with her eco-terror “Bloody Red Tide.”
• Our winner Melissa Kelley, a Cedar Point-based Marine aviator, wrote a chilling tale that’ll give you pause the next time you cross “The Causeway.”
• Willow Redd, New Bern filmmaker and paranormal investigator, brought the heat with her cautionary tale “A Fireside Chat.”
• Finalist Jessi Waugh, Bogue Banks poet bringing Poetry in Plain Sight to Carteret County, put a devilish new spin on a classic beach story in “Heaven or Hell.”

In the program, you’ll also find the poem “How to be Haunted” by Pamlico Poet Laureate Malaika King Albrecht and American Songwriter award winners Emily and John Carter’s haunting piece “Breaking Old Ground.”

Catch up with the Carters towards the end of the month at The Green Room in Beaufort. Emily has been organizing an open mic event for all the local creatives. We’ve established how much fun she is in Season 1, so you don’t want to miss it.

There’s one thing I couldn’t capture in the digital program, and that’s the spectacular performances by Kimberly Murdoch, Matt Brooks, Alex Russell, and Doug Miron of the Carteret Community Theater. They brought those stories to life, and the theater manager Rebekah Brooks was pivotal in making it happen. Be sure to check out the theater site, Instagram, and/or Facebook to stay abreast of upcoming plays, musicals, and workshops!