Ghost stories remain eternally fascinating to readers, offering a tantalising glimpse into the world of the supernatural and serving up a dark atmosphere loaded with quiet chills – what MR James called ‘a pleasing terror’. With a long tradition harking back to Le Fanu, Dickens, James and more, as well as fantastic modern fiction in the field, the present and future of the form are as bright as ever. And this year the UK Ghost Story Festival will be returning to celebrate the form with three packed days of readings, panels, interviews, talks, workshops and more.

Taking place in Derby – often considered the UK’s most haunted city – the event runs on Friday 26th and Saturday 27th November at the city’s popular QUAD venue before moving to the newly-opened Museum of Making on Sunday 28th November. The event offers weekend passes – offering access to the full range of activities over the three days – as well as tickets to individual events throughout, giving attendees the chance to personalise their festival experience.

Among the headline speakers for the event are:

• Anita Frank, writer of the acclaimed The Lost Ones and The Return
• Eli John, renowned artist and illustrator specialising in the work of MR James
• Peter Laws, creator of the Creepy Cove podcast and author of The Frighteners
• Caroline Lea, author of the popular The Glass Woman and The Metal Heart
• Neil Spring, author of The Ghost Hunters (adapted for ITV as Harry Price: Ghost Hunter)
• Rhiannon Ward, writer of the gothic novels The Quickening and The Shadowing
• AJ West, writer of The Spirit Engineer

With plenty for aspiring writers in the form – taking in workshop topics like The Language of Ghost Stories, The Many Adaptations of A Christmas Carol, Killer Openings, Engineering a Twist, Writing the Uncanny and more – as well as readers of ghost stories through the blend of readings (including our popular Late Night Readings to close Friday and Saturday), interviews and discussion panels, this promises to be an unmissable weekend for anyone who loves supernatural fiction and folk horror.

The festival will also have some fantastic booksellers and stalls throughout the weekend, with titles available from all our participating authors.

Event organiser Alex Davis said: ‘I’m delighted to be bringing the UK Ghost Story Festival back as an in-person event after a year off, and the line-up for this year looks very exciting, with a huge range of choice for anyone attending! Whatever your interest in the ghost story, you’re bound to find something over the three days of the Festival.’

For more information, visit the event webpage, where you can check out the full and ‘at-a-glance’ schedules, as well as booking your passes or tickets. For any telephone bookings, you can call QUAD Box Office on 01332 290606. For any queries, email alexd@derbyquad.co.uk. You can also come and join us on Twitter at @UKGSFestival, where as well as event news and updates we run a range of competitions, as well as our regular, free to read ‘Ghost Story of the Day’.

Many thanks to the organisers for getting in touch.