Introducing our spooky sister podcast: MONSTERS AMONG US JUNIOR

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Introducing our spooky sister podcast: MONSTERS AMONG US JUNIOR"

Monsters Among Us | Host: Derek Hayes | Audioboom Studios
Guest/Co-host: Delaney Bowers
Release Date: October 20, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this special episode, Derek Hayes announces the launch of Monsters Among Us Junior, a new companion podcast aimed at younger audiences and families fascinated by the paranormal. The focus is on firsthand supernatural stories as experienced and recounted by children themselves, capturing the nostalgia, magic, and imagination that comes with youthful brushes with the unexplained. Co-hosted by recurring MAU contributor and “folklore expert” Delaney Bowers, the episode offers a sample of MAU Junior, featuring chilling kid-called stories and some atmospheric folklore connections.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Childhood Wonder & The Lack of Outlets for the Paranormal

[00:36] Derek Hayes:

• Derek reflects on his own childhood fascination with all things mysterious—books, TV specials like Unsolved Mysteries—noting how few resources existed for kids on paranormal topics.
  • “If you were anything like me, you were a little weirdo, but in the best way possible. I absorbed every scrap of paranormal information I could get my little hands on” [00:36].
• The motivation behind MAU Junior: creating a safe and fun place for young enthusiasts to share and hear stories, filling a void for “little monsters.”

2. Introducing Delaney Bowers and the Child’s Perspective

[02:25] Delaney Bowers:

• Delaney jokes about the “folklore expert” title, adding warmth and personality with her “Meemaw” persona.
• Highlights the idea that kids are more sensitive to the paranormal because of their innocence and openness:
  • “There's a prevailing theory that children are somehow more attuned to the realm of the paranormal…less cynicism, more openness.” [02:38]
• Stresses the fun, goofy, and spooky energy brought by child narrators and how this project feels “fresh and inviting” [03:49].

3. MAU Junior Preview—Showcasing Firsthand Kid Encounters

A. Wyatt’s Bigfoot Sighting - Oklahoma

[04:54] Wyatt:

• Wyatt, age five, describes seeing a huge (8.5–9ft), red-eyed creature walking through his mom’s garden shortly after moving to a country home.
• Vivid sensory details highlight how alarming the experience was (“I felt like I crap myself… ran to my parents room” [06:30]) and how he tried to investigate the following morning.
• Wyatt connects his sighting with local folklore and shared stories, referencing a Bigfoot festival’s talk about glowing red eyes.

[07:14] Derek Hayes:

• Derek contextualizes Wyatt’s story, noting that Oklahoma is a Bigfoot hotspot and drawing parallels to another local legend (shared via a Beavers Bend cabin tale):
  • “Peeking in a cabin, then slowly walking away when it was caught. Awfully similar to Wyatt's entry.” [08:32]

B. Libby’s Haunted Coat Encounter - North Carolina

[09:24] Libby:

• Libby retells her 2024 scare after moving into her sister’s room: a coat on a closet door grows into a 7ft “black entity” with sunken, angular features. The figure slowly approaches her in the middle of the night, prompting her to flee.
  • “A black entity was growing into the coat and it was like 7ft tall. And then it slowly got out of the coat and took two steps toward me… I looked at it for a second and… booked it out of that room” [09:34–10:10].
• Libby distinguishes the figure from typical “shadow men” by noting its visible, detailed body.

[10:51] Delaney/Libby:

• Delaney affirms Libby’s storytelling and connects it to a folktale about a haunted coat in New York in the late 1800s, highlighting the universal fear and folklore of haunted garments.
  • “Strangely enough, Libby, your experience brought to mind that of Mr. Shea's secondhand shop…” [10:54]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Derek Hayes [00:36]: “If you were anything like me, you were a little weirdo, but in the best way possible.”
• Delaney Bowers [02:38]: “There's a prevailing theory that children are somehow more attuned to the realm of the paranormal. And it stems from the belief that their innocence makes them the perfect little antennae…”
• Wyatt [06:20]: “It had glowing red eyes… and this thing looks at me and I felt like I crap myself. Like I jump out of bed and just run to my parents room.”
• Libby [09:34]: “A black entity was growing into the coat… it slowly got out of the coat and took two steps toward me… booked it out of that room and ran into my bedroom.”
• Delaney Bowers [10:54]: “Strangely enough, Libby, your experience brought to mind that of Mr. Shea's secondhand shop…”
• Delaney Bowers [12:53]: “While I have to get Dracula to his orthodontist appointment, I hope to see you around these parts again soon. Until then, happy hauntings, Hooligans.”

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [00:36] — Derek introduces MAU Junior and the motivation behind it
• [02:25] — Delaney’s reflections on why children’s paranormal encounters are special
• [04:54] — Wyatt’s Bigfoot call from Oklahoma
• [07:14] — Derek’s analysis, Oklahoma Bigfoot context, and related folklore story
• [09:24] — Libby’s chilling entity sighting in North Carolina
• [10:51] — Delaney connects Libby’s story to historic haunted garment folklore
• [12:18] — Episode wrap-up, how to find MAU Junior, sign-offs with signature warmth and silliness

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Tone & Style

The episode is infused with a friendly, nostalgia-rich, and slightly irreverent tone—balancing genuine spookiness with warmth, kid-friendly fun, and a sense of communal curiosity. Listeners new to the series are welcomed into a “campfire” of sorts, where both young story-sharers and adult hosts honor the magic and mystery of paranormal lore, threaded with affection and playful banter.

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Summary for New Listeners

Monsters Among Us Junior stands as a welcoming, creative extension of the original podcast—making space for kids' voices and perspectives on the paranormal. The episode offers a taste of the uniquely compelling atmosphere cultivated when children tell their own ghost, cryptid, or weird tales, and how Derek and Delaney serve as enthusiastic guides, treating even goosebump-raising accounts with empathy, imagination, and a well-timed folklore anecdote. If you're searching for a podcast the whole (brave) family can enjoy this spooky season, MAU Junior is the perfect haunt.

Transcript

[Wyatt]

Sam.

[Derek Hayes]

Good evening and welcome to Monsters Among Us. I am your guide, Derek Hayes. Now, think back to when you were a kid. If you were anything like me, you were a little weirdo, but in the best way possible. I absorbed every scrap of paranormal information I could get my little hands on. Books from the library, ghost stories from the old timers I knew, television programs like Unsolved Mysteries, In Search of, and of course, Sightings, and if we were lucky, a TV special of some sort around Halloween time. But outside of that, there really wasn't much of an outlet for this sort of thing, especially for the younger kids attracted to the field. Well, here at Monsters Among Us, we wanted to help bring that magic to a new generation. And tonight I'd like to formally introduce you to that effort. Monsters Among Us Junior Think Monsters Among Us, but told by children. In addition, the topics and overall vibe of the show is geared toward those little monsters out there. Just think about how many calls we get on the Monsters Among Us hotline that took place when the caller was a child. Wouldn't it have been cool to have somewhere to share those experiences back in those days? But now, luckily, there is, with Monsters Among Us junior Now, this time around, I'm not guiding you through these hair raising calls all alone. This time I have backup by way of our researcher and folklore expert, Delaney Bowers, who is here to help take us through these terrifically terrifying tales.

[Delaney Bowers]

Wow. Okay. Folklorexpert may be a bit of a stretch. Instead you can just call me the MAU Meemaw because much like your Mimi's and mamas, I too carry cinnamon candies in my purse and watch Wheel of Fortune at maximum volume. For the last two seasons, I've been fortunate enough to co host MAU junior With Derek. And one thing of the many things that I've come to enjoy about the podcast is how it encourages a sense of creativity. And there's a prevailing theory that children are somehow more attuned to the realm of the paranormal. And it stems from the belief that their innocence makes them the perfect little antennae for receiving whatever spiritual signal is being broadcast through the ether. Less cynicism, more openness. And I'd like to think these calls are proof of that. Listening to their stories can be a reminder of how fun and goofy and spooky things can be. And I don't say that in a way to downplay their experiences either. It's just that every time I listen to a phone call, I'm instantly transported back to being this oddball 10 year old with Braces. Reading library books about fairies and witches. Monsters Among Us junior Feels fresh and inviting. And I'm absolutely convinced that once you give it a listen, you'll feel the same.

[Derek Hayes]

Well said, Delaney. Now here's a short preview of Monsters Among Us junior, a sample created specifically for this official feed drop. Good evening and welcome to Monsters Among Us Junior. I am your guide, Derek Hayes. Your ghost host, Delaney Bowers will be with us shortly. But first, boy, am I glad that here, for a moment there, I thought I was gonna have to listen to all of these spooky stories by myself. And when I say spooky, I really mean it. It's gonna be a frightfully good time. And if you're wondering what a scary story sounds like, take Wyatt's call out of Oklahoma as.

[Wyatt]

Hey, Derek, I'm Wyatt from Oklahoma, and I was gonna share a Bigfoot story. I was five years old and I was out at my house. I live in the country with my dad and I live in town with my mom. And we had just moved in to our new house. At the time my parents were still together. And I was about to go to bed and I just felt like something was different and just moved in, like, had nothing there. And I went to sleep. And I woke up and at this time, I didn't have curtains for my windows. So I looked out my window and I saw this crazy thing. And it was maybe around eight and a half feet tall, maybe nine feet. And it's like walking through my mom's garden, and it was full of lava rocks. Like, it wasn't really a garden. We just had like a few things in there. And I was looking and it was like I said, eight and a half to maybe nine feet tall. And it was walking away from my house. See, if you look at my house, my bedroom's next to my front door. And so you would walk through my front door and then you would turn left to this hallway and then turn again left and you would see my bedroom. That's where my window was at that wall. Well, it was walking away from my door, and it was walking and then it stops and it looks right at me. And it had glowing red eyes. And I've heard that some people with encounters see it with glowing red eyes. I went to a Bigfoot festival a few years back, and they were talking about how they've seen glowing red eyes 2 and this thing looks at me and I felt like I crap myself. Like I jump out of bed and just run to my parents room. The next morning I Walked out to where I saw this thing and since there was lava rocks there, I couldn't see footprints at that time. If it would have been something else, I might have been able to see something, but I couldn't see anything there. But it was just a crazy encounter for me. Love your podcast, man. Keep up with a good podcast. Bye.

[Derek Hayes]

Thank you, Wyatt. Boy, was it a good call and well told as well. And I'll tell you what, Wyatt, if this was some sort of Bigfoot encounter, it would make perfect sense that it occurred in the Sooner State. Oklahoma is one of the top ranked states for Bigfoot sightings. In fact, I heard a story out of McCurtain County, Oklahoma just the other day that sounded awfully similar to the experience Wyatt just detailed. And it went a little something like this. Courtesy of Beavers Bend cabin country on YouTube.

[Beavers Bend Narrator]

There was a gentleman. They were staying in a cabin here in the Ho Chown area. Well, later that night they were hearing noises in the woods next to them, like hoots and hollers. And as the night went on, they'd hear something whistling and then they would hear another one off towards the other ridge. And it went on back and forth, back and forth they went. On the bed. Well, something was running around on the back porch. So we went to the back, flipped the light on and it turned and walked away from that cabin around the side, just like a man, but wearing fur coat.

[Derek Hayes]

Peeking in a cabin, then slowly walking away when it was caught. Awfully similar to Wyatt's entry. And I guess that's why they call parts of Oklahoma Bigfoot country, because there certainly seems to be something large and hairy roaming that area. So thank you again, Wyatt for sharing that awesome story. Now gang, it's time for me to make my exit. But fear not, I leave you in very capable hands. Delaney Bowers, the mic is yours.

[Libby]

Alright, giggle mugs, we've arrived at our final call and this one has given me nightmares for the past week. Libby from North Carolina. Scare our socks off.

Hey, I'm Libby from Lexington, North Carolina. My encounter took place in 2024 in the House I'm living in now after my sister left for college. So after she left for college, I started sleeping in her bed. And my bedroom is right across from hers. And in between our bedrooms there's a bathroom. But I started sleeping in her bed and there was a coat hanging up on her closet door. And I was laying in her bed and no joke, the coat was like wrinkling at first and I could hear it. And then a black entity was growing into the coat and it was like 7ft tall. And then it slowly got out of the coat and took two steps toward me and I looked at it for a second and I sleep with the.

[Wyatt]

Door open, but I booked it out.

[Libby]

Of that room and ran into my bedroom and I whipped around to slam my door.

[Wyatt]

So I was looking at it and.

[Libby]

It was about three feet away and I locked my door and started screaming, but nobody came up to my room. It looked like it was seven feet tall and you know how starved people look. Well, that's how it was. And it had very angular, sunken body features. I don't think it was a shadow man because like, I could see a lot of details, but I couldn't see a face. But I love your podcast. Keep up the great work. Thanks for having me and bye.

Libby, whatever emaciated entity you encountered that night, I'm glad you lived to tell the tale. An excellent storytelling skills, by the way. So descriptive. The detail about the humanoid creature growing into the coat is particularly goosebump inducing. Strangely enough, Libby, your experience brought to mind that of Mr. Shea's secondhand shop in Washington Heights, New York. Back in the late 1800s, a man purchased a gently used coat from Mr. Shea, but returned it a few weeks later. The man claims that every time he wore the coat, it felt as if someone were trying to snatch it off his body. One night as he was laying in bed, the customer watched as a translucent elderly gentleman with a white mustache entered his room and put on the coat. When the customer jumped out of bed, the old man vanished and the coat crumpled onto the floor. When he returned the coat, he was informed that it had previously belonged to a well known lawyer who had died in a railroad collision the month before. I guess even in the afterlife you gotta make sure you bring along a jacket. Spine tingling. Call Libby. Thank you.

[Delaney Bowers]

And that's a wrap, amigos.

[Libby]

We'll be back again soon with a.

[Delaney Bowers]

Whole buffet of bizarre Kongs just for you.

[Derek Hayes]

Now, if you like what you just heard or you think the show is perfect for a youngster in your life, you can listen to Monsters Among Us Junior right now on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts. Again, that's monsters among us Junior. Listen to 20 plus episodes now. Wherever you get your paranormal podcasts now, there's also a link in tonight's show notes if you're brave enough.

[Delaney Bowers]

And while I have to get Dracula to his orthodontist appointment, I hope to see you around these parts again soon. Until then, happy hauntings Hooligans.

[Derek Hayes]

And, of course, keep it spooky.