Check Out Leah Stalker’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah Stalker

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My true appreciation for Michigan began when I moved to another state. I had lived in Michigan since I was five, but as I grew older I became restless and more curious about what other states might have to offer. I eventually gave in and moved to Georgia at the beginning of 2022. While there’s nothing wrong with Georgia and it had plenty of new experiences I enjoyed, I became terribly homesick. I only lasted a year and I arrived back in Michigan in early 2023. Once I was back in Michigan, I wasted no time seeking out events, artists, restaurants, retailers, local lore, and all the things that had been within arm’s reach to me throughout my life that I didn’t value the way I should have.

My personal tastes tend to lean towards the alternative side or anything that could be considered counterculture, so these are the things I looked for in particular. Time after time, I would attend one of the many amazing events that the spooky community of Michigan has to offer and so often, after sharing my experience with my friends, they would say, “I didn’t even know anything like that existed in Michigan.” This is how Pure MIcabre was born.

There is a thriving spooky community in Michigan that most people aren’t even aware of. When you really shine a light on what the alternative crowd in Michigan is doing, it’s so impressive! My goal is to help amplify the voices of those who keep the spooky community of Michigan growing year after year. That includes artists, vendors, haunted attractions, hearse car clubs, scare actors, musicians, retailers, and more! The list goes on and on. We can all agree that Halloween is extremely popular these days, with a lot of talk about Code Orange and when Spirit Halloween will open each year. Those are very seasonal events embraced by the public. What people don’t realize is that there is an entire community in Michigan who embraces the strangeness of life every single day of the year and I want everyone to know about them.

Pure MIcabre is now just a little over a year old. That first year consisted of a lot of learning curves and trying to figure out the best way to promote the delightfully eerie things happening in Michigan. It also consisted of a lot of networking. I made my way to event after event, passing out Pure MIcabre pins to people and telling them about my goals to promote them. I can say, without any hesitation, that the spooky community consists of some of the kindest people around. They were always happy to chat with me and delighted to share their personal stories or goals for their businesses, art, or whatever they had going on. Their excitement has always been infectious and reminds me time and time again why I am so proud of this community and why I love showing off what Michigan has to offer to those that might not be aware.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The concept of Pure MIcabre is a rather simple one, promote spooky things in Michigan. It feels like that should be easy, but it has come with some hiccups along the way. The Pure MIcabre that people see today is very different compared to how it looked a year ago, in my opinion. Originally I wanted to create posts that resembled autopsy reports to relay information about whatever I was promoting. In theory, it was neat, but it was hard to execute that idea because it took so much time to piece together a post. My output wasn’t fast enough and I had to simplify how I was conveying information to my audience. A big goal with Pure MIcabre is to not try to force it into a box. I let it evolve and change without clinging too hard to my vision of it.

The main struggle with Pure MIcabre is that it’s social media based. I think many of us can agree that social media has a lot of pros, but also comes with a long list of cons. You want to get out there and share all the cool stuff happening, but it feels like you’re in a heated battle with the algorithm, who has a chokehold on your posts and won’t show them off to anyone. That is why going to events is so important to me. That’s when I can be face to face with people, talking about what’s happening, sharing our different inputs. And I really love that face to face reminder about why I put so much work into social media, even if I sometimes feel I have a love/hate relationship with it.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
If you scroll through TikTok or Instagram, you’re going to come across a lot of people promoting the different sites and sounds of Michigan. Michigan is a great place to live, or a travel destination, and there are so many hidden treasures throughout our great state. As cliché as it sounds, there is something for everyone. I believe what sets me apart from those other creators, who all absolutely deserve their flowers, is that I focus entirely on promoting the darker side of Michigan and everything that entails.

I have friends, family, and members of my audience who have lived in Michigan for the entirety of majority of their lives. When I share something with them about Michigan and it gets that, “I didn’t know that was a thing” reaction from them, I know I’m doing something right!

Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
My goal with Pure MIcabre will always be growth. I would love to continue growing my audience, so I can continue to act as a megaphone for the hard working leaders and creatives in the spooky community in Michigan. I’d also like to continue perfecting my craft and how I get the word out for people. Everyday is a learning experience with Pure MIcabre and it has grown so much in only a year. I can’t even imagine what it will be like in five to ten years, but I’m really looking forward to see where it can go from here.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/puremicabre/
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/puremicabre
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@puremicabre