As promised, this week's columns will all center around the holiday best suited to ghouls and fools -- Halloween. According to one Internet research group, more non-professional sites and pages are dedicated to it than any other single subject.

In other words, I'm not alone in my fascination of creepy houses, ghostly games and eerie stories. Maybe it's the visual aspect, as pages feature great grotesque faces and oddly twisted figures. Maybe it's the wonderfully atmospheric audio clips that evoke memories of every horror flick you've ever seen. Maybe it's just that we like being scared (as long as we're safely sitting alone at our computers). Whatever the reason, the season (and sometimes even the dead) truly comes alive online. Here are a few of my favorites.

• http://123child.com/fall/hall.html. There was a time during my babysitting years when I would have killed to have this kind of a resource available for the days before Halloween. This site offers hundreds of extremely clever but simple ideas for keeping children (even your youngest) happily playing for hours. You'll find plays and projects and new words to sing with familiar melodies. There are crafts, costume suggestions and party ideas that range from traditional to slightly off the wall. This is a perfect site for teachers, parents, grandparents and, yes, even babysitters.

• http://canvaswerks.com. If I could draw the kinds of visions I see in my mind, my work would fit right into these pages. Not your typical type of Halloween page, this one from CanvasWerks offers artworks, poetry, photography and some of the best music and special-effects animations you'll find. Perhaps slightly too intense for very young ones, I was pleased to see the first poem offers advice on keeping kids safe while trick-or-treating. And adding to my delight with the page is the opening theme, a well-arranged version of the "x-Files" theme.

• www.alwayshalloween.com. The true name of this site is Doomsday 24-7. The creative force behind it is Doomsday Jay and, although I'm not sure if this is a continuing project or just the hopeful beginnings of one that will never be completed, it's worth mentioning. You can quickly pop into all the categories listed on the left, but the best section is the last. Explore the "Projects" pages to find not only neat suggestions but also great specific "how-tos" on everything from creating stage blood to carving a pumpkin. (He's even included 40 face patterns to print out for inspiration.)

• http://geocities.com/dreamyemmy16/enterhalloween.html. This is another personal page that I thought was kinda cool. It was created by a twenty-something gal with a mind that twists in tandem to my own. It's not for kids, although there's nothing even mildly "adult" except one section of jokes. I guess I just like it because I like her style. Be sure to visit her home page and check out her live journal.

• www.acplace.com/holiday/halloween.htm. This one's from Abigail, of Al and Abigail's Country Place, which you should also explore some day when you have a little extra time. It's another well-written collection of suggestions for families that like to celebrate the day together.

• www.angelfire.com/nj2/Spooky. Although Spooky (no relation to Fox "Spooky" Mulder I assume) is no longer updating her site, there is one section that still rates a mention. She's collected more than 40 animated "zombies" for you to adopt for your own Halloween site. Check out the list and her instructions on how you can take one home.

• www.themoonlitroad.com. In the mood for some tall tales (and small tales) all about haunt-ings and hunt-ings and scare-ings and beware-ings? The Moonlit Road is just the spot you're looking for. If you like what you read, you'll want to sign up. It's fast and it's free and it's full of great stories told by great tellers.

Jan Perry invites you to write to her at SiteSeer2K@aol.com. If the creepy people and horrific hordes haven't gotten her, she promises a prompt reply.