The book
One Halloween night. A vanished Joplin. A parade that will not end.
The Midnight Parade is a family-friendly dark fantasy adventure by Joplin writer and community advocate Joshua Shackles.
When Joplin invests its entire annual event grant in an enormous Halloween celebration, Tess Mercer wants to create a spectacle the city will never forget. Then Vesper’s Grand Traveling Jubilee arrives, vanished landmarks return, and festivalgoers begin disappearing into a show that is bigger on the inside.
- Author
- Joshua Shackles
- Setting
- Joplin, Missouri
- Format
- Paperback
- Length
- 322 pages
- Audience
- Readers 13+ and adults
- Genre
- Halloween dark fantasy adventure
Potential story angles
- A Joplin author brings vanished local landmarks back for one fictional Halloween night.
- The Connor Hotel, Midway Park, Crystal Cave, Union Depot, and Murphysburg become part of a family-friendly supernatural adventure.
- A Halloween novel asks what preservation means when a city is changing.
- Local history becomes an invitation for teen readers rather than background scenery.
- The work behind public festivals becomes part of the adventure.
Interview questions
- Why did Joplin need to be more than a backdrop for this story?
- How did you choose which real and vanished landmarks would return?
- Where did you draw the line between documented history, folklore, and fiction?
- Why did you choose a family-friendly tone for a story with ghosts and supernatural danger?
- What does the parade offer Tess and Owen that makes it difficult to leave?
- How does your community work influence the people at the edges of the festival?
- Which vanished Joplin location would you most want to visit for one safe evening?
Programs and appearances
Lost Joplin After Dark
A local-history and fiction program about the real places behind the novel, followed by a reading, questions, and signing.
Fact, Folklore, and Fiction
A discussion for libraries, schools, and community groups about researching local history while writing supernatural fiction.
Building the Parade
A creative program for teen readers about characters, atmosphere, place, props, and the hidden labor behind spectacle.
Contact and requests
For interviews, readings, school or library programs, community events, and review inquiries, contact Joshua Shackles through an established professional or community channel. Include the organization, proposed date, audience, format, location, and the best way to reply.