--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I loved ghost stories, creaky staircases…" description: "\"I loved ghost stories, creaky staircases, stormy nights. If it guaranteed nightmares I read it by flashlight, after midnight.\" — Lisa Gardner" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af6/lisa-gardner-7497_flashlights_i-loved-ghost-stories-creaky-staircases_2070618.jpg" --- # I loved ghost stories, creaky staircases, stormy nights… ![“I loved ghost stories, creaky staircases, stormy nights. If it guaranteed nightmares I read it by flashlight, after midnight.” quote by Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af6/lisa-gardner-7497_flashlights_i-loved-ghost-stories-creaky-staircases_2070618.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af6/lisa-gardner-7497_flashlights_i-loved-ghost-stories-creaky-staircases_2070618.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af6/lisa-gardner-7497_flashlights_i-loved-ghost-stories-creaky-staircases_2070618.jpg) > “I loved ghost stories, creaky staircases, stormy nights. If it guaranteed nightmares I read it by flashlight, after midnight.” [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Enjoying spooky settings enhances the thrill of reading horror stories **In simple terms:** Loving scary atmospheres makes horror more exciting Key Takeaway Seek out eerie settings for immersive reading Themes horror atmosphere creativity Mood eerie curious Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - book clubs - creative writing - media production Key Concepts Gothic literature psychological fear nighttime rituals Questions to Reflect On - What new settings can revitalize horror? - How does personal fear shape story choice? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on clichés can dull impact ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ghost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ghost/) [Ghost stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ghost-stories/) [Midnight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/midnight/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Nightmare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nightmare/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stormy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stormy/) [Stormy nights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stormy-nights/) ## Related quotes > [“The worst things always happen at night, and oftener than one would think on stormy nights. ("The Compensation House")”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-collins/the-worst-things-always-happen-at-night-and-oftener-than-one-would/) Charles Collins > [Now are the days, of humblest prayer, When consciences to God lie bare, And mercy most delights to spare. Oh hearken when we cry.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-william-faber/now-are-the-days-of-humblest-prayer-when-consciences-to-god-lie-bare/) [Frederick William Faber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-william-faber/) > [Worshippers aren't made when they see the enemy on the run, put to flight. The truth is, worshippers of God are made during dark,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wilkerson/worshippers-aren-t-made-when-they-see-the-enemy-on-the-run-put-to/) [David Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wilkerson/) > [My Friend: Art thou abroad on this stormy night on thy journey of love, my friend? The sky groans like one in despair. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/my-friend-art-thou-abroad-on-this-stormy-night-on-thy-journey-of-love/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [It was a dark and stormy night. Suddenly a scream pierced the air'. . . . Good writing takes enormous concentration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-schulz/it-was-a-dark-and-stormy-night-suddenly-a-scream-pierced-the-air-good/) [Charles M. Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-schulz/) > [It began as most thing begin. Not on a dark and stormy night. Not foreshadowed by ominous here comes the villain music, dire warning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/it-began-as-most-thing-begin-not-on-a-dark-and-stormy-night-not/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [An infant prodigy of nine is shoved upon the stage in white. She starts off in a dismal whine about a dark and stormy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-coward/an-infant-prodigy-of-nine-is-shoved-upon-the-stage-in-white-she/) [Noel Coward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-coward/) > [No one is in charge of this process, this is what makes history so interesting, it's a runaway freight train on a dark and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/no-one-is-in-charge-of-this-process-this-is-what-makes-history-so/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [New Orleans is 5 feet below sea level, which means that holes dug in the ground immediately fill with water. Coffins were punctured and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cagney/new-orleans-is-5-feet-below-sea-level-which-means-that-holes-dug-in/) [James Cagney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cagney/) > [I got so good at writing to a budget, my brain was restricting myself. I'd write, "It's a stormy night." Then I'd cross out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-brooks/i-got-so-good-at-writing-to-a-budget-my-brain-was-restricting-myself/) [Albert Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-brooks/) > [“It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents, except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-was-a-dark-and-stormy-night-the-rain-fell-in-torrents-except-at/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For humans as well as for ships, dark stormy nights are better teachers than tranquil sunny days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/for-humans-as-well-as-for-ships-dark-stormy-nights-are-better/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [It was a dark and stormy night. Suddenly, a shot rang out! A door slammed. The maid screamed. Suddenly, a pirate ship appeared on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-schulz/it-was-a-dark-and-stormy-night-suddenly-a-shot-rang-out-a-door/) [Charles M. Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-schulz/) > [Day appears again. This time he leans in close enough for his hair to brush, light as silk, against my cheeks. He pulls me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-lu/day-appears-again-this-time-he-leans-in-close-enough-for-his-hair-to/) [Marie Lu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-lu/) > [It was a dark and stormy night. - Snoopy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-schulz/it-was-a-dark-and-stormy-night-snoopy/) [Charles M. Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-schulz/) ## More by Lisa Gardner > [It's kind of the yin and yang that fascinate me. That for all the evil men do, there are also people who work obnoxiously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/it-s-kind-of-the-yin-and-yang-that-fascinate-me-that-for-all-the-evil/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [Everyone should say what they wanted. It saved time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/everyone-should-say-what-they-wanted-it-saved-time/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [You try as a parent. You love beyond reason. You fight beyond endurance. You hope beyond despair. You never think, until the very last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/you-try-as-a-parent-you-love-beyond-reason-you-fight-beyond-endurance/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“The results are about as meaningful as a sixth toe - gives you something to look at, but doesn't do a damn thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/the-results-are-about-as-meaningful-as-a-sixth-toe-gives-you/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [Post-apocalyptic novels tell you that in the future there is some great war. I would tell you that most cops say that it's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/post-apocalyptic-novels-tell-you-that-in-the-future-there-is-some/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“Not the cute kind of cuckoo, or the lights-on-but-nobody's-home loony. She's really, genuinely, sold my-soul-to-the-devil crazy. She don't care about me or anyone else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/not-the-cute-kind-of-cuckoo-or-the-lights-on-but-nobody-s-home-loony/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“God give me the strength to change the things I can change, the courage to let go of the things I need to let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/god-give-me-the-strength-to-change-the-things-i-can-change-the/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [If you choose to do something, do it with your utmost. And remember, expect nothing and life will be velvet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/if-you-choose-to-do-something-do-it-with-your-utmost-and-remember/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [I still read romance, and I read suspense. I read them both. And part of it is, I like stories with strong characters, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/i-still-read-romance-and-i-read-suspense-i-read-them-both-and-part-of/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“MY PAIN IS NAMED”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/my-pain-is-named/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [You can be the hunter, or you can be the hunted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/you-can-be-the-hunter-or-you-can-be-the-hunted/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“Alex said, his voice subdued, tense. “So it would seem,” D.D.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/alex-said-his-voice-subdued-tense-so-it-would-seem-d-d/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [All I've really ever done is write since I was 17, so I don't know anything about anything. For me to do a novel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/all-i-ve-really-ever-done-is-write-since-i-was-17-so-i-don-t-know/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [My secret vice is Sudoku puzzles. Can't stop playing them. My parents are accountants. I blame them entirely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/my-secret-vice-is-sudoku-puzzles-can-t-stop-playing-them-my-parents/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“For a bit, he picked up the paperbacks, thumbed the worn edges. Military thrillers. Books with clear right and wrong where the good guys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/for-a-bit-he-picked-up-the-paperbacks-thumbed-the-worn-edges-military/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) [Explore all 86 Lisa Gardner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) ## More Flashlights quotes > [Where did that flashlight come from?" Chloe asked. "My purse." Chloe looked at Tara. "She carries a flashlight in her purse." "For emergencies," Maddie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-shalvis/where-did-that-flashlight-come-from-chloe-asked-my-purse-chloe-looked/) [Jill Shalvis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-shalvis/) > [Carry with you maps and string, flashlights, friends who make you sing, and stars to help you find your place, music, hope, and amazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-chapin-carpenter/carry-with-you-maps-and-string-flashlights-friends-who-make-you-sing/) [Mary Chapin Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-chapin-carpenter/) > [By constantly moving the flashlight of your attention to the perimeter of your understanding, you enlarge your sense of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-pariser/by-constantly-moving-the-flashlight-of-your-attention-to-the/) [Eli Pariser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-pariser/) > [You can't drop concepts. You can only shine a little flashlight on them as you do inquiry, an you see that what you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byron-katie/you-can-t-drop-concepts-you-can-only-shine-a-little-flashlight-on/) [Byron Katie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byron-katie/) > [Ever hold your hand over a torch (sorry, a flashlight for you Americans).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/ever-hold-your-hand-over-a-torch-sorry-a-flashlight-for-you-americans/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [“I have realized that part of being Dauntless is being willing to make things more difficult for yourself in order to be self-sufficient. There's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-have-realized-that-part-of-being-dauntless-is-being-willing-to-make/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [Brits and Americans have hundreds of different phrases for the same thing. Luckily, it's usually a source of amusement rather than frustration. A flashlight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sloane-crosley/brits-and-americans-have-hundreds-of-different-phrases-for-the-same/) [Sloane Crosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sloane-crosley/) > [Ever since we crawled out of that primordial slime, that's been our unifying cry, 'More light.' Sunlight. Torchlight. Candlelight. Neon, incandescent lights that banish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-frolov/ever-since-we-crawled-out-of-that-primordial-slime-that-s-been-our/) [Diane Frolov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-frolov/) > [Everywhere in a day there is light. Look around. Everywhere. Look at your smart phone. It has a flashlight, an LED flashlight. These are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harald-haas/everywhere-in-a-day-there-is-light-look-around-everywhere-look-at/) Harald Haas > [Only man is a narcissistic enough species to think that a highly evolved alien life force would travel across billions and billions of light-years-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/only-man-is-a-narcissistic-enough-species-to-think-that-a-highly/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [If you’re handing out flashlights in the dark, start handing out stars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-gibson/if-you-re-handing-out-flashlights-in-the-dark-start-handing-out-stars/) [Andrea Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-gibson/) > [She wants to know if I love her, that's all anyone wants from anyone else, not love itself but the knowledge that love is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/she-wants-to-know-if-i-love-her-that-s-all-anyone-wants-from-anyone/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [Reading is performance. The reader--the child under the blanket with a flashlight, the woman at the kitchen table, the man at the library desk--performs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/reading-is-performance-the-reader-the-child-under-the-blanket-with-a/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Reflectors need to be placed on trees every 50 feet so people can hike at night with flashlights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/reflectors-need-to-be-placed-on-trees-every-50-feet-so-people-can/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [“I am a reader, a flashlight-under-the-covers, carries-a-book-everywhere-I-go​, don't-look-at-my-Amazon-bill. I choose purses based on whether I can cram a paperback into them, and my books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donalyn-miller/i-am-a-reader-a-flashlight-under-the-covers-carries-a-book-everywhere/) [Donalyn Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donalyn-miller/) Browse all 74 Flashlights quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I loved ghost stories, creaky staircases, stormy nights. 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