You are a lovely writer. I think you have a clear way of getting your personality across. Very nice. So, when a person tells a ghost story, and uses it the way I would, I would want to put the person IN the SCENE so they can experience the fear. I mean I am assuming that you are talking about scary ghost stories. So those who tell a good yarn orally, are sharpening their skill. Or not. I don't think everyone is striving for perfection, but we like to share our feelings and, in this case, bonding over a vulnerability is something we can connect with. Like sharing a meal, but more toxic. (hee hee)
The other kind of ghost stories, though far more interesting, are not the stuff of stories for just anybody. There are stories told by people who have seen a spirit of a dead person they loved, that kind of thing. Not scary at all.
I have never seen a ghost, but I have heard more than one. There is no way it was anything else. Footsteps above your head on a ceiling where no one was home to walk about on, is not mistaken for anything else. That one did scare me. I didn't know the ghost. The person lived in the house before I came around. So, maybe I just told you a ghost story unintentionally. WOW.
But the scary ones we can all relate to, because even if you don't believe, you can put yourself there just by imagining.
As far as why we want to scare each other? Fear sells, what can I say?
ME ! ....a lovely writer ,you must be kidding... I failed miserably at school in English and spelling......it all only improved when I found AB and had to learn to type to comunicate with others on their.... My parents still think I'm as daft as a brush.....I tend to agree with them and I'm getting worse as I'm getting older and more sassy... Can you read my question again and reavaluate your answer....it's quite amusing i think ....but you might just need to think out of the box for a moment to see the funny side of it..
I tried to find the clues in the words, sly punctuation, specific word spellings -- - the closest I came up with was Peter Straub's "Ghost Story" (both novel and movie) and Stephen King's "The Mist." The "four" years? I don't know. And I know I am not even close to answering anything close ot your intended question. :)
tom jackson 