Every place has one. The road nobody drives on at night. The thing somebody's uncle swore he saw in 1974. The building everybody calls haunted, whether anyone can say why or not.

I live in central Kentucky, about an hour from Hopkinsville, where in 1955 a farm family unloaded a couple of shotguns at what they described as small silver men with enormous ears. State police showed up. Nobody ever explained it. That story has been floating around here my whole life, and I still don't know what to make of it.

I want everybody in this swap trading stories like that.

What you'll do:

You'll be assigned one partner. Write that person a handwritten letter about a legend, a cryptid, a ghost story, a haunting, an unsolved oddity, or a piece of genuinely weird history from within about an hour of where you live. Not the encyclopedia version, but the version you actually heard. Tell your partner who told it to you, how old you were, whether the details shifted depending on who was telling it, and whether you believe a word of it.

If your corner of the world is stubbornly normal, that counts. Write about the strangest thing that ever happened there and why it stuck with you.

What to send your partner:

One handwritten letter, at least two pages. Longer is welcome. Include a return address if you want your partner to reply, but that is optional for both of you.

Optional and encouraged: one flat extra tied to your story. A postcard of the place, a brochure, a photocopy of an old newspaper clipping, a hand-drawn map with an X on it. Nothing that costs you money, and nothing that won't survive a mail sorter.

Rules:

Handwritten. Typed is fine if handwriting is genuinely difficult for you; just mention it to your partner.

If life falls apart, message me before the deadline, and I'll work with you. Silence is the only thing that earns a 1.

Rate your partner honestly and promptly once their letter arrives.

Minimum 4.5 rating to join, and please have at least five ratings under your belt. Nothing personal; I'd just rather everyone's first experience of this be a good one. If you want in and don't meet that, message me, and we will see.

Deadline to sign up: September 30th Mail by: October 12th

I'm swapping in this one myself, so somebody is getting the goblins. If it goes well, I'd like to run it monthly with a different angle each time.

I'll angel if needed.