Reece Carter's A Girl Called Corpse the subject of an international bidding war

Instead of unicorns, pixies and elves there would be sea monsters, zombies-skeletons and ghosts. There would still be witches, of course (because what fantasy is complete without a witch or three?) but they would not be the variety who had attended magic school, played sport on broomsticks or kept cute pets.

These witches would have eels writhing where their tongues should be. Eyes that glowed in red and violet. Barnacles crusting their skin.

I was, after all, setting out to write story about friendship and love.

At first, the idea might seem like a jarring one. How can a story filled with such sinister villains be about love? How can a book whose hero is dead from its very first page deliver the hopeful ending young readers deserve?

I'll admit, these questions played on my mind as I penned the first draft of what would become A Girl Called Corpse because, frankly, I was terrified nobody would want to publish it.

I was concerned that, as an aspiring novelist, I was making things harder for myself by writing a story about a kid ghost and her eight-legged friend (a spider named Simon, in case you're wondering) who goes searching for clues about her past.

And let's face it, pursuing a career as a writer is no stroll in the park to begin with. At the same time, I knew kids loved scary stories. I knew that I had loved them growing up. And I knew, deep down, that this story just made sense. That there was no other way to tell it.

It got me thinking about scary stories in general, what attracts us to them, and in particular about how kids interact with them. There's no doubt that a big part of the appeal is the surge of adrenaline.

MORE BOOKS NEWS:

Scary stories do, by their nature, feel more dangerous. They lend themselves to being page turners, filled with high-stakes moments and mysterious cliff-hangers. More than that, though, spooky books offer kids an opportunity to safely explore feelings of fear through the eyes of its characters, knowing that they as readers are protected. No matter how sharp its teeth, the monster stays trapped inside the book's pages.

Most importantly, it's the young reader who is in control.

It's because of this that books such as Coraline by Neil Gaiman and The Witches by Roald Dahl remain classics. It's why the Goosebumps series is now more than 200 books strong. Because when the reins are handed to the reader, the unsettling becomes entertaining.

Or at least, this is what I hoped to be true, as with little more than blind optimism I continued to write my story about Corpse the kid ghost and her spider friend Simon, who set off on an adventure through the magical town of Elston-Fright, based on Australia's south-west, searching for the treasure which would reunite Corpse with her real name, and with the family she had once had.

Thankfully it paid off, sparking a bidding war between publishers which resulted in me seeing my first ever novel being published both here and overseas. Still, the question remains: why was a ghost story the right way to tell it?

Universal themes, such as friendship and love, are hardly uncharted territory in children's literature. It was Philip Pullman who pointed out that kids' books are ideally suited to exploring such topics when he said: "There are some themes, some subjects, too large for adult fiction; they can only be dealt with adequately in a children's book". These subjects have been explored in countless children's books, of all genres, so why choose a ghost story?

In short, to illustrate that good will triumph over evil. Dark stories are riotous fun, there's no doubt about that, but they also offer an opportunity for a hero to overcome that darkness, and for young readers to watch it happen in real time.

Spooky books take kids on an adventure through that spookiness, then out the other side of it, to where the baddies are defeated, and hope has been restored. They show kids that even in the face of darkness, even when things feel scary, there is hope on the other side.

Against the backdrop of darkness, light sparkles that little bit brighter.

We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. See our moderation policy here.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: