My cousin had an encounter in the woods. She was walking alone and suddenly felt like she was being watched. She turned around but saw nothing. Then she heard a whisper in her ear, but there was no one there. She ran out of the woods as fast as she could. Later, she found out that there were rumors of an old hermit who had died in those woods long ago and his spirit was said to haunt the place.
The scariest elements are often the unknown. For example, in some stories, strange noises without a clear source can be terrifying. It makes people feel vulnerable in their own spaces.
The unexpected presence is really scary. For example, in many stories, people suddenly see a figure when they least expect it, like when they are alone in a quiet place at night.
I once had a client who seemed really nice at first. But during a property viewing, he started acting really strange. He was asking me really personal questions that made me uncomfortable. And then he started following me a bit too closely as we walked through the house. I got really scared and ended the viewing early. I was so relieved when he left.
Supernatural elements are also quite scary. Ghosts, curses, and things that defy the laws of nature. If there are stories about ghosts that can pass through walls or objects that bring misfortune just by being in the same room, it really amps up the scariness factor.
Encountering a supernatural being. For example, a ghostly figure that haunts the woods. The hunter might see it out of the corner of his eye at first, thinking it's just his imagination. But as it gets closer and he realizes it defies all logic, like floating above the ground or having no face, it would send chills down his spine. This is something that goes beyond his understanding of the natural world.
The scariest one I know is from a mental asylum that had been abandoned for years. A group of urban explorers went in and they said they saw patients' apparitions wandering the halls. One of them even felt like they were being pushed by an unseen force. Another really scary story is from a ship. Sailors on a particular ship reported seeing a ghostly figure on the deck at night. It was always in the same spot and seemed to be looking out to sea as if waiting for something.
There was a story of a logger in the Pacific Northwest. One day, while working deep in the forest, he heard a loud crashing sound. At first, he thought it was just a falling tree, but then he noticed a foul smell. As he turned around, he saw a large, hairy figure standing about 50 feet away. It was at least 8 feet tall. The Sasquatch stared at him for a moment and then disappeared into the thick bushes. The logger was so scared that he immediately left the area and refused to go back alone.
The unknown is often the scariest element. For example, not knowing what is making that strange noise in the dark. It could be a wild animal or something else entirely.
Isolation can be a really scary part. Take the camping story, for example. When the man was alone in the woods with no one to help him if something bad happened, it made the situation much scarier. The feeling of being alone with a potential threat is very frightening.
The sense of being haunted or constantly watched is extremely scary in real voodoo stories. Victims often describe a feeling that there are unseen forces around them, influencing their lives in negative ways. And the fact that voodoo is often linked to spiritual powers that seem to operate outside the normal rules of the physical world makes it all the more frightening. It's like there's an invisible enemy that can strike at any time without warning.