Oh, I'm so glad to see you. It's been a while.

I've had quite some time on my hands...and the spirits really seemed to like this one.

Join me as we map uncharted waters, but be warned: they might be uncharted for a reason.

Thank you for tuning in and supporting this podcast!

A special thanks to all the amazing voice actors in this piece:

Sam Johnson

Ian Irvine

Marcus Ross

Max Schalo

This story was written and created by Danni Petrilak.

Have and questions or ideas for further stories? Shoot us an email at [email protected], or visit the website!

Editors note: This piece took a long time to create--the written piece was 50 pages long! Thank you for everyone's patience while I tackled this massive project <3

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Music and sound effect attributions can be found here. All are licensed under the Creative Commons, or with specific permission from the creators.

Music by: Kevin MacLeod on incompetech.com, RPG Music Maker on YouTube, and the creators over at Pixabay.

Sound effects provided by Freesound.org

Lost your way? Here, I'll help you... but first... have you heard of The Christmas Witch?

Gryla The Christmas Witch is Iceland's equivalent of the bogeyman, an old troll giant with one goal: find naughty children to eat.

The written article for this podcast can be found on our website, as well as the companion piece, Yuletide Carols.

Thank you for tuning in and supporting this podcast!

This research was written and conducted by Danni Petrilak. You can find a written copy with MLA citation here.

Have any questions or ideas for future stories? Did I pronounce something wrong, or get information mixed up? Let me know by emailing [email protected], or dropping a comment on our socials.

--

Attributions for this episode can be found here.

Music provided by Kevin MacLeod on incompetech.com and Bragi Olafsson on YouTube

Sound Effects provided by freesound.com under Attribution 0.

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Research Sources:

7, STPL Reference Slidell. “Origins of the Yule Log Traditions.” St Tammany Parish Library, 7 Dec. 2021, www.sttammanylibrary.org/blogs/post/origins-of-the-yule-log-tradition/#:~:text=Origins%20of%20Yule%20log%20tradition,from%20Germanic%20or%20Scandinavian%20paganism.

Eldridge, Alsion. “Yule.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 18 Dec. 2023, www.britannica.com/topic/Yule-festival.

Hrodvitnir, Yamuna. “Gryla: The Yuletide Monster of Iceland.” Medium, Medium, 14 Sept. 2020, yamunahrodvitnir.medium.com/gryla-the-yuletide-monster-of-iceland-a0a5d8f0d6ab.

Iceland, Mystic. “Every Child’s Nightmare in One Obscene and Frightening Christmas Story.” Mystic Iceland, 25 Feb. 2022, mysticiceland.com/frightening-christmas-story/.

Pasick, Adam. “These Icelandic Lullabies Are Absolutely Terrifying.” Quartz, Quartz, 5 Aug. 2015, qz.com/470760/these-icelandic-lullabies-are-absolutely-terrifying.

Ragnarsdóttir, Regína Hrönn. “The Icelandic Yule Lads Live at Dimmuborgir in North-Iceland!” Guide to Iceland, guidetoiceland.is/connect-with-locals/regina/the-icelandic-yulelads-at-dimmuborgir. Accessed 3 Jan. 2024.

Shahin, Ingólfur. “A Complete History of Iceland.” Guide to Iceland, guidetoiceland.is/history-culture/history-of-iceland. Accessed 3 Jan. 2024.

Sturluson, Snorri, and Arthur Gilchrist Brodeur. “THE BEGUILING OF GYLFI.” The Prose Edda, The American-Scandinavian Foundation, New York, 1916, pp. 24–24.

Unknown. “Grýla Og Leppalúði.” Þjóðminjasafn Íslands, www.thjodminjasafn.is/jol/jolasveinar-og-adrir-vaettir/gryla-og-leppaludi#. Accessed 3 Jan. 2024.

Unknown. “How the Vikings Gave Us Christmas.” Sky HISTORY TV Channel, www.history.co.uk/articles/how-the-vikings-gave-us-christmas#:~:text=The%20Christmas%20Elf&text=Again%2C%20we%20have%20another%20myth,with%20a%20red%20pointy%20hat. Accessed 3 Jan. 2024.

Happy holidays, dear friends.

Do you have any family traditions or legends you believe in? Sylvi sure does, but it's not in good ol' St. Nick...

Grab that hot coco and settle in...it's going to be a long night.

Thank you for tuning into the next episode! A special thanks to Sam Johnson for the voice-acting assistance, once again.

Thank you to Bragi Olafsson on YouTube for allowing me to use his arrangement of Sofðu unga ástin mín throughout this piece.

This story was written and created by Danni Petrilak. Find a written copy of the story on her website.

Have any questions or ideas for future stories? Shoot us an email at [email protected], or visit the website.

Editors note: I'm enjoying creating these! I've already seen an improvement in my audio editing knowledge; it's only going to get better from here!

~~~

Music and sound effect attributions can be found here. All are licensed under the Creative Commons.

Music by: Kevin MacLeod on incompetech.com and Bragi Olafsson on Youtube.

Sound effects provided by Freesound.org

Oh, you scared me. How did you get in?

The next story isn't quite ready yet, but I think I have something to hold you over in the meantime.

The Bubak is a bogeyman in Slovakian folklore, commonly depicted as a scarecrow but historically described as a goblin-type supernatural creature.

The written article for this podcast can be found on our website, as well as the companion story, A Shadow in the Field.

Thank you for tuning in and supporting this podcast! If you like this format of episode, please let me know on social media, or in the poll below.

This research was written and conducted by Danni Petrilak. You can find a written copy with MLA citation here.

Have any questions or ideas for future stories? Did I pronounce something wrong, or get information mixed up? Let me know by emailing [email protected], or drop a comment on our socials.

---

Attributions for this episode can be found here.

Music:

Music provided by Kevin MacLeod on incompetech.com

Sound Effects:

Sound Effects provided by freesound.com and pixabay.org under Attribution 0.

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Research Sources:

Bane, Theresa. “Encyclopedia.” Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, Jefferson, NC, 2016.

C, Narendran. “Bubak.” Horror, 2022, vocal.media/horror/bubak.

Editors, Britannica. “Wend.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 7 June 2015, www.britannica.com/topic/Wend.

Eldridge, Alison. “Bogeyman.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 2 Nov. 2023, www.britannica.com/topic/bogeyman.

Shepard, Traci. “Bubák.” The Compendium of Arcane Beasts and Critters, 18 May 2018, arcanebeastsandcritters.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/bubak/.

Unknown. “Bubák.” The Catalogue Of Creatures, 26 Mar. 2017, www.mythicalcreaturescatalogue.com/post/2018/03/12/bub%C3%A1k.

Wolff, Henry W. “V-The Remnants of a Great Race.” Odd Bits of History, Good Press, 2019.

Welcome back, dear friends. I'm glad you've made it.

What do you get when you combine a missing mom, an unnerving cornfield, and a main character who promises to keep his little brother safe?

Settle in next to the fire, it's going to be a long and windy night...

Thank you for tuning in and supporting this podcast!

A special thanks to Sam Johnson for the voice-acting assistance.

This story was written and created by Danni Petrilak. Find a written copy of the story on her website.

Have any questions or ideas for future stories? Shoot us an email at [email protected], or visit the website.

Editor's note: My experience with audio editing has been a single intro class I took on audio and video editing in college...expect the episodes to get better and better as I learn!! I appreciate the support <3

~~~

Music and sound effect attributions can be found here. All are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0, 0, and 4.

Sound Effects provided by freesound.org and pixabay.com.

Music by: Kevin MacLeod on incompetech.com

Welcome to my library; don’t forget your candle. 

Darkfire Chronicles combines a love for all things spooky and an exploration into the origins of where these ideas surfaced. These haunting narratives are inspired by the macabre, the supernatural, the deepest corners of human fears…and are sometimes based on true events. 

Journey through the hallowed archives of my library as we venture into the web of mysteries and navigate our twisted histories, as we discover the tall tales that kept our ancestors up all night, wondering what was lurking just beyond the darkness. 

With each new release, listeners are treated to a captivating audio drama, a tall tale crafted by your host, Danni Petrilak. They can test their knowledge and guess the inspiration behind each story before delving deeper into the episode’s background and origins in a companion piece. 

Be warned, dear friends, and gather around the fireplace. These books are your gateway to the eerie and the unexplained, where each episode will leave you craving more…or wondering what’s just beyond the dark.