Ghost Conference, Anyone?

Some years ago, and for quite a while, I was lucky enough to be involved in the organizing and running of a mystery readers/writers conference called Love is Murder. The conference happened every February in the Chicago area, and included panels and workshops all having to do with the creating of mysteries and thrillers, although we weren’t genre exclusive and also invited sci-fi, fantasy, supernatural, YA, and even non-fiction writers to come and participate. There were agents and editors so writers could pitch their manuscripts (quite a few book contracts came out of LIM). There were experts in related fields like forensics, polygraph tests, weapons both modern and historical, and the FBI. And through it all, I got to meet and greet so many authors including such big names as David Morrell, Anne Perry, Barry Eisler, J.K. Konrath, Charlotte Haines, William Kent Kruger, Walter Mosley, Steve Berry, and Lee Child. And that was just some of them (all of whom, by the way, are very lovely people). I’ll always be grateful for that opportunity.

So I was thinking, if I could design a ghost/paranormal conference, how would it look? Like the writing conferences, we’d need speakers. So there would be whatever big names in the field that we could get. Ghost hunters (actual Ghost Hunters if we could pull it off), paranormal investigators, researchers, anyone and everyone dealing with documentation, verification, and problem solving in the world of the supernatural.

We’d need panel discussions. I could see topics starting with the basic haunted house and ranging all the way through monster sightings and cryptids, demonology, tools of the trade, history and cross-cultural information on the paranormal, Spiritualism as a religion, haunted items, and supernatural legends, for starters.

We could even have experts on hand to talk to people having paranormal problems.

Of course we’d have to have some demonstrations. A room for people to learn about the Oculus, the ghost box, EMF detectors, infrared cameras, Mel meters, and the best recorders possible for capturing EVP’s.

And vendors? How can you have a conference without the people who sell tee-shirts and souvenirs? And in this case, probably also candles, sage, salt, iron, holy water (is it okay to sell that?). reference books, fiction books, guide books, maps of haunted and supernatural sites, related movies and documentaries, and probably all of the equipment being demonstrated as listed above.

Love is Murder provided meals. We could maybe provide dinners and let everyone handle breakfast and lunch on their own, with either food vendors on site, or by picking a conference location close to local eateries.

For me, though, the highlight would be the room, or rooms, where there could be round-table discussions and sharing of experiences and personal ghost stories among those who would just like to talk to other like-minded people. I think that is where I would spend the majority of my time. I’m curious enough about ghost-hunting equipment, but don’t feel the need to do investigations myself. I’d attend lectures and panel discussion that were interesting to me and not so likely to freak me out, especially when I got back home. I’d probably buy a tee-shirt, or maybe a candle. But stories are what fascinate me the most and I think I would be content and happy just to sit in a room and listen to others share their stories.

What do you think? If someone threw a ghost conference, would you go?

(By the way, the Midwest’s Biggest Paranormal Convention is held every August in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and it does indeed have all of the above. Well, it has the names and the celebrities and things like that. I should attend and see if they have a room for people to share their ghost stories. I’d be thrilled with that…)