meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
The Grave Talks | Haunted, Paranormal & Supernatural

The Grave Talks Best of 2025šŸ¦‡| Writing with Ghosts: These Walls Still Talk, Part Two

The Grave Talks | Haunted, Paranormal & Supernatural

Ghost Stores, Haunted, Paranormal & Supernatural Stories

Religion & Spirituality, Science, Personal Journals, Spirituality, Natural Sciences, Society & Culture

4.6 • 2.2K Ratings

šŸ—“ļø 24 December 2025

ā±ļø 35 minutes

šŸ§¾ļø Download transcript

Summary

What happens when a writer doesn’t just imagine a haunted place—but chooses to work inside one?

Author Brian Paone spent eight weeks writing his novel These Walls Still Talk inside the Missouri State Penitentiary, one of the most notoriously haunted prisons in America. Working alone at night, surrounded by abandoned cellblocks, execution chambers, and decades of unresolved history, Brian immersed himself completely in a place where silence never feels empty.

As fiction took shape, reality pressed closer. The prison has its own rhythm, its own presence—and its own way of reminding visitors they’re not alone. Writing in a place like this doesn’t just inspire a story. It tests it. This is Part Two of our conversation.

Today on The Grave Talks: Writing with Ghosts, a conversation with author Brian Paone.

You can buy his books wherever books are sold, and you can get more information at his website, brianpaone.com.

#TheGraveTalks #HauntedPrison #MissouriStatePenitentiary #WritingWithGhosts #ParanormalPodcast #HauntedLocations #GhostStories #TrueHauntings #ParanormalResearch #HauntedHistory

Love real ghost stories? Don’t just listen—join us on YouTube and be part of the largest community of real paranormal encounters anywhere. Subscribe now and never miss a chilling new story:
šŸ‘‰ https://www.youtube.com/@realghoststoriesonline

Want even more? Become a supporter and unlock exclusive extras, ad-free episodes, and advanced access:
šŸ Apple Premium: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ad-free-advance-a-ghostly-playlist/id880791662?i=1000723754502
šŸ¤ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/realghoststories

Stay connected with us on social:
šŸ“ø Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ghostpodcast/
šŸŽ¶ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@realghoststoriesonline
šŸ“˜ Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/RealGhostStoriesOnline/Ā 

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Today on the Grave Talks, part two of writing with ghosts.

0:05.1

These walls still talk.

0:07.0

A conversation with author Brian Payone.

0:10.6

When I started reading the book and you were talking about the get haunted investigation,

0:16.7

I was like, well, that's a real company.

0:20.0

That's really interesting to me. And then as I'm reading the well, that's a real company. That's really interesting to me.

0:21.9

And then as I'm reading the book, all of the things that you mentioned,

0:27.1

because I have done a deep dive into the penitentiary,

0:30.1

and we did an episode a couple years ago,

0:32.9

what you're saying in the book is accurate.

0:35.9

And so I really appreciated that because you really do feel

0:39.4

like this is what the paranormal investigation at the Missouri State Penitentiary would be like.

0:48.8

Right. And then some. Yeah. Yeah. And the other thing that I did too, if you, in the Kindle version, I'm sure it's in the Kindle version, but in the paperback, it absolutely is. But before page one, before chapter one, is a map of MSP. And the, in the buildings are numbered. So as you're reading, you can flip back and you know where the characters are at

1:11.5

that point in the book. And something that I did in Reese, she's one of the tour guides at MSP.

1:18.6

When she read the book, one of her first things she texted me and she thanked me for

1:25.5

keeping MSP looking exactly like it does in real life. I didn't add or take

1:32.8

away anything from it. I didn't, I didn't like add a scary, you know, um, hole somewhere that

1:40.9

doesn't really exist. I didn't, I didn't add a staircase, uh, somewhere that doesn't exist. I didn't, I didn't take exist. I didn't add a staircase somewhere that doesn't exist.

1:46.3

I didn't take away a floor because it didn't work for the plot.

1:50.9

I, you know, Reese was very impressed with the fact that it's described exactly how it exists

2:00.1

in real life.

2:01.0

Everything. And Reese is in the book. You have her exists in real life. Everything.

...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 24 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Ghost Stores, Haunted, Paranormal & Supernatural Stories, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Ghost Stores, Haunted, Paranormal & Supernatural Stories and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright Ā© Tapesearch 2025.