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5190+ Horror Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest . From hauntings and murderers to terrifying creatures from the deep, our collection of horror stories will have you breaking out in cold sweats. Take a look… if you dare.

🏆 Winning stories

“ the gingerbread cookies ” by aaron chin.

🏆 Winner of Contest #229

The Gingerbread Cookies Let’s go downstairs and bake some cookies, like mother used to make. The warm smell sits right at home in your nostrils, invading them like wild ax-murderers hacking and slashing their way through endless miles of human bodies that stand in the way of their inhumane, carnal desires. Shhh, shhh, but that’s too dark. It’s Christmas after all. So let’s go down...

“ Cerulean ” by AnneMarie Miles

🏆 Winner of Contest #223

The door is cerulean, a bright and vibrant blue, but really it is the color of my sudden uneasiness. The feeling creeps up me slowly, jumps out at me dauntingly, and I am frozen in it. If the door were a mirror – and how I wish it were as innocent as a mirror – I would see my face reflected back to me, and it would tell me to run.I’m not sure what’s more jarring: the fact that this door is a clashing contrast to the rest of the library décor, or the fact that I’ve never noticed the path we took to get here before. I supp...

“ Do Flamethrowers Belong In The Library? ” by Kenz Ross

🏆 Winner of Contest #211

We lose people all the time. It’s just the nature of the job. What can you expect from a place full of nooks and crannies people intentionally go to get lost in? I usually don’t worry when I don’t see someone for a while, but when it’s been days since someone’s checked out, it’s usually a sign that I need to step in. I’m not doing this alone, thankfully. No Librarian i...

⭐️ Recommended stories

“ bush smart ” by james scott.

Submitted to Contest #263

Trigger warning: Sexual violence, horrendous language, physical violence and some gore. Honestly a little ashamed at how depraved this is - but the content was a situation my partner was warned against as a teenage girl growing up in Australia. Unfortunately, a very scary reality.Ryan blinked over his contracting pupils against the bright lights that signaled closing time. The heavy drinks he’d had earlier in the night, although keeping him happily inhibition free, were not enough to guard against the sinking feeling in his chest brought on ...

“ The horror under the bed ” by Astrid Doncker

No one ever believed her. Not her parents and not even other children. She knew parents everywhere would dismiss it as an overactive childish imagination, but her friends? Her friends should at least listen. They wouldn't be able to help but at least she wouldn't be trapped alone with it anymore. But no one listened. Her parents started laughing it off once they had exhausted all their ideas on how to reassure her. It was easier to think it would pass. And she was alone. And even her first memory was about it. She was...

“ O Mother, Please Send My Father Across ” by Anshu Yadav

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #260

It was all a dream, Murli’s breath like rotten fish on top of her tongue, the balled-up grey dead mass of it settled at the back of her throat like stale phlegm, his beedi stained tongue wriggling around on top of her tongue, his hand under her blouse, fumbling, scratching, his nails yellow and black and green the sight of which made her vomit, his puss-filled-bandaged hand on top of her breast, the nail digging into her nipple, the dirt in his nails mixing with her blood, in her blood, the blood cool in the thick heat of the dark room, swee...

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🏆 Featuring 12 prize-winning stories from our community. Download it now for FREE .

✍️ All stories

“ thyme to give back ” by joshua g. j. insole.

Chase came in from the evening, arms overladen with shopping bags. Jolon Dugal relaxed. He’d been half expecting the boy to refuse his requests because of insanity. He couldn’t hold it against Chase; the kid was only doing his job. But Jolon had to do this, no matter Chase’s discomfort. He opened his arms and smiled. ‘Chase, my boy! Good morning. How was the shopping excursion?’ Chase frowned for a fraction of a second but then erased it from his face. He paused, seeming to consider his words. He stared down at the many bags from many differ...

“ Bernice ” by Derrick M Domican

Theme parks are the best, the roller coasters rule, but I didn’t want to go into the House of Horrors. It looked dark and creepy and I knew it was full of dead things and madmen, like the pictures on my dad’s scary videos. That kind of stuff made my insides squirm and threaten to erupt buckets of puke, but Bernice had the tickets and me by the hand, and she was dragging me along and wouldn’t stop.What was I supposed to do, sit down and cry? I’d look like a baby and Bernice would laugh. It was the first time she’d talked to me, so I didn’t wa...

“ Dancing Shadows ” by Perseus Patroclus

Erebus is thirty-four.He is a doctor.He knows when a wound is irreversible.He knows when a man’s light leaves his eyes.His job is to delay people from crossing to the underworld.So why did he send this man down to Hades so eagerly?He knew how everybody saw him. A monster, a murderer, pure evil. It wasn't revenge. It wasn't an ethical dilemma. He killed this man for no reason other than impulse. What was he to do? He had no choice other than to wait for the man's son to come and end his life. He deserved it, that was certain.Erebus had slit h...

“ One Book Wonder ” by Jack Kimball

New York City: 1955Lonnie White pulled up his collar at a Fifth Avenue bookstore window against the cold. Black patches from lack of sleep lay under his eyes. Snowflakes, each an unkindly tiny angel to his mind, descended in the night. But it wasn’t the crystals scurrying down his back that gave him the shudders. Nor was it the ice melting in the hollow of his back. It was the overwhelming thought the snow crystals gathered together purposely, of one mind, a sentient being. This is not possible, he told himself. But it feels, all the same, l...

“ With or Without Reason, Death is Death ” by Jesse Michael Berryman

Unblinking, Redshift stared out from behind her mask, her breathing much too gentle for how much rage was inside her heart. The voice inside her head of her partner and longest friend, Lightless Smear, replaced most thoughts she might’ve had, keeping her calmer than she had any right being. They were a lethal pair, the two of them, deadlier than some armies, and certainly capable of accomplishing the mission they had set out on today. There was death to be had here in Gruttum, the capital of the Kingdom Shadowwish, and...

“ Shadows Of The Soul ” by Rob Taylor

Shadows Of The Soul In a dimly lit kitchen, a disheveled little girl sat at the table, surrounded by remnants of a violently disturbed breakfast - a torn box of corn flakes, an empty bowl, and a carton of spilled milk dripping off the table. A tall, hardened monster hunter named Ethan Gunn, clad in old military gear, stood firm at the kitchen door, his gaze locked on the child with cautious vigilance. Ethan's voice carried a mixture of exasperation and disbelief as he uttered, "When I got up today, all I wanted was my bowl of corn fla...

“ SICKLY-SWEET COPPER NIGHT ” by HL Leung

Submitted to Contest #262

*note: this short story talks of a near-death traumatic experience CHAPTER ONEThe Night He Was In Hell The night smelled of a cloying sickly-sweet copper, overpowering the senses. drip. His eyes opened to a mesmerizing exhibit of seductive red flames, frolicking gracefully across the stage. drip. A peculiar quivering drew his reluctant eyes to the phone in his creased pants. Why was he kneeling? ba-bump. He reached out to answer the phone - except his hands were rebellious. They insisted on staying nestled behind his back. Then as he ...

“ Not The Chickens ” by Sydney Nyberg

It was noon by the time Jesse finally got out of bed, when the heat in his room had become unbearable and even the air seemed to stick to him like a thin film of mucous. He hadn’t stirred once in the night and into early morning, and as he pushed his way through the ripped screen door out to the front porch, he wondered if a fox had gotten the rooster. “Y’all seen Mohawk?” he asked. His brother, Joe, sat reclined on the porch steps, one arm propping up his head, while the other held a whittled twig that he used to pick at his ...

“ Leaving Las Vegas ” by Thomas Wells

Trigger Warning – Murder, domestic violence, alcoholism, explicit language= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =NVC003-090000-/O.CON.KVEF.FA.Y.0035.000000T0000Z-280806T0000Z//00000.N.ER.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/Clark NV- 855 AM PDT Thu Aug 6 2028 /1155 AM EDT Thu Aug 6 2028/ ...EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM PDT /11 PM EDT/ Thu Aug 13... * WHAT...Extreme high temperatures and unusually strong monsoonal flow will lead to **EXTREMELY DANGEROUS** conditions with dew points near 72 and record heat ind...

“ A Summer Of Biting Passion ” by Sir Suirradel

It was a moment of weakness. During that summer, he could sweat just from IMAGINING her lips pressed against his bare skin. They were parked in front of his grandmother’s house. Not the most romantic of places to be when wanting to give someone a hickey, but Zachari was determined to bedazzle her. His night with Racel Monet was the night of the blood moon. While the air thinned as it grew frigid through the lonely streets of Harloom,his pants burn from her gentle touch. He felt a bit slight in comparison to the bulky red Hummer ...

“ Psycho Heat ” by William Siebold

Becoming nobody. Standing alone, isolated, no longer heard or seen. "I'm still here," I said. No answer. Powerful feelings. Looking out across the rolling sage foothills just west of the mountains, at the base of the massive volcanic plug that dominated the western skyline, I felt the sun’s early promise of another blasting, battering day of heat on my face. The scent of moist soil and decomposed plants gave way to pungent herbal sage. The volcanic rock smelled minty metallic as the sun rose. I abandoned the prearranged landing zone two d...

“ She's a Beast ” by Michael McKean

Warning: Sexual References, Light Gore Riley paddled down Silver River in Shadowhead. It was colder now since the day had transformed into night. A thick fog hung over the water. He stopped rowing for a moment and zipped up his jacket. In the distance, tree leaves rustled, and a branch snapped. "Hello?" Riley rowed toward the source of the noise.His red canoe bit into a soft patch of earth, and he climbed out, turning on his flashlight. He searched the shore. In the mud were fresh footprints. Someone had been walking around barefoo...

“ Dog ” by Aaron Chin

The following contains physical abuse, sexual scenes, use of blood, and violence against an animal.Dog“But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”— Timothy, 5:8I.Dad was a religious man. He grew up Christian and tried to raise a Christian son. He got me, Martin Williams II, a guy who could appreciate religion at a glance but never get into it. Which is why he repeats his mantra: “If you do right by the Lord, then the Lord will do right by you.”II.Bump...

The Best Horror Short Stories

Horror stories. What is it that you think of first? Maybe it’s malevolent, otherworldly spirits. Or perhaps it’s psychopaths, serial killers, and struggling writers driven mad by a deserted hotel? Whatever it is, there’s one thing that unites you and every other horror lover out there — adrenaline. You know the feeling: your skin crawls, your heart pounds, a shiver runs down your spine. And, as all the best horror story writers will tell you, the cause of this feeling isn’t just the presence of a monster, but the creation of suspense.

That’s where short stories come in. Think Stephen King, Edgar Allen Poe, H. P. Lovecraft: some of their best horrors take the form of a short story. Tales that climb steadily towards a dark and horrific denouement. The kind of thing that, if you’re brave enough, you’d tell your friends around a campfire — a torch casting spooky shadows on your face.

Looking for some spine-chilling horror stories?

If you’re into creepy stories that keep you awake at night, then look no further than our collection of short horror stories, compiled from submissions to our weekly writing contest. Here we’ve gathered together all the scary stories that made us want to lock our laptops in a cupboard and hide under the blankets. And at the top of the page, is the cream of the crop: horror stories that have either won our competition or been shortlisted.

Lots of promising new writers have emerged from this collection, deftly creating atmosphere and building that all-important suspense. So who knows? You might just discover the next Stephen King. And if you enjoy this collection of horror stories, then why not try your hand at writing your own? You could join this week’s short story contest , and walk away with the cash prize — and a shot at publication in Prompted , our new literary magazine!

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20 spooky short stories you can read for free online.

The leaves are amassing, the skeletons are out, and enormous bags of candy fill the grocery store aisles and threaten to spill their chocolates right into your mouth, through absolutely no fault of your own. Yep, it’s officially spooky season. But if you still need some help getting into the holiday spirit (or just want to kill some zombies time at work this week), Literary Hub is here to help, with a few of our staff’s very favorite spooky short stories—all of which are available courtesy of that lurking transient evil you know as the internet. Consider it a literary version of a scary movie marathon. Our choices range from horror to science fiction to realism, from straight-up frightening to the kind of unsettling that just sticks around the rest of the day like the smell of smoke. Spookiness, after all, is in the eye of the beholder .

So without any further ado, here are 20 spooky stories that you can read online for free this week, or anytime. (For even more short story recommendations from the Literary Hub staff, check out our One Great Short Story series .) And of course, this list is not meant to be definitive, so please feel free to add your own favorites in the comments—when it comes to scaring ourselves silly, more is always more.

Ray Bradbury, “ The Veldt ” ( Saturday Evening Post , 1950)

“George, I wish you’d look at the nursery.”

“What’s wrong with it?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, then.”

“I just want you to look at it, is all, or call a psychologist in to look at it.”

“What would a psychologist want with a nursery?”

“You know very well what he’d want.” His wife paused in the middle of the kitchen and watched the stove busy humming to itself, making supper for four.

“It’s just that the nursery is different now than it was.”

“All right, let’s have a look.”

Tananarive Due, “ The Wishing Pool ” ( Uncanny Magazine , 2021)

Joy nearly got lost on the root-knotted red dirt path off of Highway 99, losing sight of the gaps between the live oaks and Spanish moss that fanned across her hood and windows like fingertips. Driving back to her family’s cabin twenty years later reminded her that the woods had rarely been restful for her. Once, Dad had made her play outside instead of sitting on the couch with her Virginia Hamilton books, and she’d stepped in an anthill up to her shin. She howled so loudly from the vicious stinging that Dad and Mom heard her all the way from the lake, and when they reached her they expected to find her half dead. She’d never forgotten that wild, frightened look in their eyes. No, Joy did not like the woods.

Samanta Schweblin, tr. Megan McDowell, “ Headlights ” (2019)

When she reaches the road, Felicity understands her fate. He has not waited for her, and, as if the past were a tangible thing, she thinks she can still see the weak reddish glow of the car’s taillights fading on the horizon. In the flat darkness of the countryside, there is only disappointment, a wedding dress, and a bathroom she shouldn’t have taken so long in.

Joyce Carol Oates, “ Zombie ,” ( The New Yorker , 1994)

My name is Q.P., and I am twenty-nine years old, three months.

I see my probation officer, Mr. T., Thursdays, 10 a . m ., and my therapist, Dr. E., Mondays and Thursdays, 4:30 p . m .; my group-therapy session with Dr. B. is Tuesdays, 7-8:30 p . m .

I am a registered student at Dale County Business College, where I am enrolled in two three-credit courses for the spring semester: Introduction to Accounting and Computer Graphics.

My residence is 118 Church Street, Mount Vernon, Michigan. Which is close by the State University campus. Seven miles from Dale but no inconvenience for me, I have my van.

Mariana Enríquez, tr. Megan McDowell, “ Julie ,” Astra (2022)

She came from the United States straight to my house in Buenos Aires—they didn’t want her in some hotel while they looked for an apartment to rent. My gringa cousin, Julie: she’d been born in Argentina, but when she was two, her parents—my aunt and uncle—had migrated to the States. They settled in Vermont: my uncle worked at Boeing, and my aunt—my dad’s sister—birthed children, decorated the house, and secretly held spiritist meetings in her beautiful, spacious living room. Rich blond Latinos of German heritage: their neighbors didn’t really know how to place them, since they came from South America but their last name was Meyer. Even so, their firstborn’s features betrayed the infiltrated strain of Native blood that came from my Indigenous grandmother: Julie had the dark dead eyes of a rat, untamable hair always standing on end, skin the color of wet sand. I’m pretty sure my aunt even started telling people she was adopted. My dad got so mad when he heard that rumor that he stopped writing and calling his sister for at least a year.

Nathaniel Hawthorne, “ Young Goodman Brown ” (1835)

Young Goodman Brown came forth at sunset, into the street of Salem village, but put his head back, after crossing the threshold, to exchange a parting kiss with his young wife. And Faith, as the wife was aptly named, thrust her own pretty head into the street, letting the wind play with the pink ribbons of her cap, while she called to Goodman Brown.

Nalo Hopkinson, “ Left Foot, Right ” (2014)

“Allyou have this in a size nine?” Jenna puts the shiny red patent shoe down on the counter. Well, it used to be shiny. She’s been wearing it everywhere, and now it’s dulled by dust. It’s the left side of a high-heeled pump, pointy-toed, with large shiny fake rhinestones decorating the toe box. Each stone is a different size and colour, in a different cheap plastic setting. The red veneer has stripped off the heel of the shoe. It curls up off the white plastic heel base in strips. Jenna’s heart clenches. It’s exactly the kind of tacky, blinged-out accessory that Zuleika loves—loved—to wear.

Robert Coover, “ The Babysitter ” (2014)

She arrives at 7:40, ten minutes late, but the children, Jimmy and Bitsy, are still eating supper, and their parents are not ready to go yet. From other rooms come the sounds of a baby screaming, water running, a television musical (no words: probably a dance number—patterns of gliding figures come to mind). Mrs Tucker sweeps into the kitchen, fussing with her hair, and snatches a baby bottle full of milk out of a pan of warm water, rushes out again. ‘Harry!’ she calls. ‘The babysitter’s here already!’

Kelly Link, “ The Specialist’s Hat ” ( Event Horizon , 1998)

“When you’re Dead,” Samantha says, “you don’t have to brush your teeth.”

“When you’re Dead,” Claire says, “you live in a box, and it’s always dark, but you’re not ever afraid.”

Claire and Samantha are identical twins. Their combined age is twenty years, four months, and six days. Claire is better at being Dead than Samantha.

Octavia Butler, “ Bloodchild ” (1995)

My last night of childhood began with a visit home. T’Gatoi’s sister had given us two sterile eggs. T’Gatoi gave one to my mother, brother, and sisters. She insisted that I eat the other one alone. It didn’t matter. There was still enough to leave everyone feeling good. Almost everyone. My mother wouldn’t take any. She sat, watching everyone drifting and dreaming without her. Most of the time she watched me.

Brian Evenson, “ Windeye ” (2009)

They lived, when he was growing up, in a simple house, an old bungalow with a converted attic and sides covered in cedar shake. In the back, where an oak thrust its branches over the roof, the shake was light brown, almost honey. In the front, where the sun struck it full, it had weathered to a pale gray, like a dirty bone. There, the shingles were brittle, thinned by sun and rain, and if you were careful you could slip your fingers up behind some of them. Or at least his sister could. He was older and his fingers were thicker, so he could not.

Carmen Maria Machado, “ The Husband Stitch ” ( Granta , 2014)

In the beginning, I know I want him before he does. This isn’t how things are done, but this is how I am going to do them. I am at a neighbour’s party with my parents, and I am seventeen. Though my father didn’t notice, I drank half a glass of white wine in the kitchen a few minutes ago, with the neighbour’s teenage daughter. Everything is soft, like a fresh oil painting.

Laird Barron, “ Shiva, Open Your Eye ” ( Nightmare Magazine , 2013)

The human condition can be summed up in a drop of blood. Show me a teaspoon of blood and I will reveal to thee the ineffable nature of the cosmos, naked and squirming. Squirming. Funny how the truth always seems to do that when you shine a light on it.

Shirley Jackson, “ The Daemon Lover ” (1949)

She had not slept well; from one-thirty, when Jamie left and she went lingeringly to bed, until seven, when she at last allowed herself to get up and make coffee, she had slept fitfully, stirring awake to open her eyes and look into the half-darkness, remembering over and over, slipping again into a feverish dream. She spent almost an hour over her coffee—they were to have a real breakfast on the way—and then, unless she wanted to dress early, had nothing to do. She washed her coffee cup and made the bed, looking carefully over the clothes she planned to wear, worried unnecessarily, at the window, over whether it would be a fine day. She sat down to read, thought that she might write a letter to her sister instead, and began, in her finest handwriting, “Dearest Anne, by the time you get this I will be married. Doesn’t it sound funny? I can hardly believe it myself, but when I tell you how it happened, you’ll see it’s even stranger than that…”

Harlan Ellison, “ I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream ” ( IF: Worlds of Science Fiction , 1967)

Limp, the body of Gorrister hung from the pink palette; unsupported—hanging high above us in the computer chamber; and it did not shiver in the chill, oily breeze that blew eternally through the main cavern. The body hung head down, attached to the underside of the palette by the sole of its right foot. It had been drained of blood through a precise incision made from ear to ear under the lantern jaw. There was no blood on the reflective surface of the metal floor.

Richard Matheson, “ Button, Button ” ( Playboy , 1970)

The package was lying by the front door—a cube-shaped carton sealed with tape, their name and address printed by hand: “Mr. and Mrs. Aurthur Lewis, 21 7 E. Thirty-seventh Street, New York, New York 10016.” Norma picked it up, unlocked the door, and went into the apartment. It was just getting dark.

John Langan,” Renfrew’s Course ” ( Lightspeed , 2012)

“So this is the wizard,” Neil said.

“Supposedly,” Jim said.

Six feet tall, the statue had been carved from wood that retained most of its whiteness, even though the date cut into its base read 2005, seven years ago. Jim thought the color might be due to its not having been finished—splinters stood out from the wood’s uneven surface—but didn’t know enough about carpentry to be certain.

“Looks kind of Gandalf,” Neil said.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia, “ Lacrimosa ” ( Nightmare Magazine , 2015)

The woman is a mound of dirt and rags pushing a squeaky shopping cart; a lump that moves steadily, slowly forward, as if dragged by an invisible tide. Her long, greasy hair hides her face but Ramon feels her staring at him.

He looks ahead. The best thing to do with the homeless mob littering Vancouver is to ignore it. Give them a buck and the beggars cling to you like barnacles.

“Have you seen my children?” the woman asks.

Angela Carter, “ The Bloody Chamber ” (1979)

I remember how, that night, I lay awake in the wagon-lit in a tender, delicious ecstasy of excitement, my burning cheek pressed against the impeccable linen of the pillow and the pounding of my heart mimicking that of the great pistons ceaselessly thrusting the train that bore me through the night, away from Paris, away from girlhood, away from the white, enclosed quietude of my mother’s apartment, into the unguessable country of marriage.

Karen Russell, “ The Prospectors ” ( The New Yorker , 2015)

The entire ride would take eleven minutes. That was what the boy had promised us, the boy who never showed.

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13 Spooky Short Stories You Can Read for Free

This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon.com. Click here to read my affiliate policy.

Discover 13 scary, spooky short stories from the vaults of classic literature! You can read these short horror and ghost stories for free online.

Bluish-tinged lightbulb illuminating an open book

Scary, Spooky, and Haunting Short Stories from Classic Literature

On days gloomy with mist or blustering winds, or autumn evenings when darkness falls quickly, you’ve got the ideal backdrop for reading a spooky story. A little bit of atmosphere goes a long way in forging a connection with the books you read. It’s why I love seasonal reading , or matching my reading material to my mood .

The next time you find yourself in shivery weather, delve into one of these classic spooky short stories! These haunting tales are perfect to read around the campfire, to read aloud on Halloween night or in the dark on a long road trip, or just curled up under the covers of your own warm bed. I strongly recommend you accompany their reading with hot chocolate or tea!

In the following list you’ll find some of the best short stories of ghosts, hauntings, horror, weird fiction, and Gothic literature from classic authors like Robert Louis Stevenson, M. R. James, Elizabeth Gaskell, and Sheridan Le Fanu. These are all vintage, old-fashioned stories. Some have a light touch, and others will creep you out and have you jumping at every noise!

Most of these spooky short stories are available to read for free online, but to save you from digging you can sign up for my newsletter using the form below to have the stories delivered as PDFs straight to your inbox. You’ll get the first story immediately, and then one each night for two weeks, along with fascinating background info on the stories and authors.

13 Classic Spooky Stories to Read Aloud

Note: I’m intentionally keeping the descriptions brief, so that I don’t give anything away. Several of these stories have twists, and if you look them up online the descriptions usually spoil them! So, be content with a sparse premise and you’ll maximize your enjoyment of the stories when you read them. You can read these stories in any order, but I did intentionally choose the following reading order to vary the pacing and tone, or to highlight certain themes within stories by having them back to back. Enjoy!

1. “The Mezzotint” by M. R. James (published 1904)

A Cambridge University man who collects art on behalf of the museum receives a mezzotint engraving of an English country house. At first glance, the picture is completely unremarkable. But a closer inspection reveals that there’s much more going on than meets the eye…

2. “Squire Toby’s Will” by J. Sheridan Le Fanu (1868)

In a mouldering estate in the north of England, an old squire dies and leaves a divisive will for his two sons to feud over. But the inheritance he’s left them is more than just material–the sons are haunted by his legacy of vice, and even visitations from beyond the grave may not be enough to heal old wounds.

3. “The Open Window” by Saki (1911)

An Englishman goes to a restful country spot to cure his nerves, but while meeting the neighbours he hears a ghostly story that may set him back considerably.

4. “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce (1890)

Set in Alabama during the Civil War, this is a haunting story of a Southern civilian who attempts to sabotage a Union-held bridge.

5. “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe (1846)

Fortunato, an Italian aristocrat with a weakness for fine wine, follows his friend Montresor into the catacombs to sample a cask of amontillado that’s stored there. What Fortunato seems to forget is the fact that once he deeply insulted his friend. Unhappily for him, Montresor’s memory of the insult is still quite fresh.

6. “The Tower” by Marghanita Laski (1955)

Caroline, a newlywed living in Tuscany, takes out the car for a bit of sightseeing while her husband is busy in a British Council meeting. The last stop on her list is the 16th-century Tower of Sacrifice that rises from the surrounding countryside…

7. “Olalla” by Robert Louis Stevenson (1885)

Set during the Peninsular War in Spain, the story follows a wounded Scottish officer who retreats to the mountains to convalesce. He takes up residence in the hacienda of a declining aristocratic family, and there meets the beautiful Olalla.

8. “The Outsider” by H. P. Lovecraft (1926)

Told in the first person, “The Outsider” follows a lonely protagonist who lives in a gloomy and secluded mansion, but one day decides to venture out into the wider world.

9. “The Thing in the Forest” by Bernard Capes (1915)

Through the snowy Hungarian woods in the deepening twilight, Elspeth hurries to reach the comfort of her own warm cottage. But something stalks her from behind.

Haunted mansion with twilight-blue sky and dark trees

10. “The Old Nurse’s Story” by Elizabeth Gaskell (1852)

In the story, a nurse recounts to her young charges tales of long ago, when she was young herself, and fiercely protective of their orphaned mother, Rosamond. Nurse and child go to live in a gloomy manor in the hills of Northumbria, where dark deeds committed in the past cry out for restitution–and the innocents may pay the price.

11. “The Signal-Man” by Charles Dickens (1866)

A traveler has a strange encounter with a railway signal-man, who believes he’s receiving presentiments of tragedies to come.

12. “Lady Ferry” by Sarah Orne Jewett (1878)

A little girl goes to spend the summer with her elderly cousins in their sprawling New England mansion. But someone else lives there as well–the mysterious and melancholy Lady Ferry who dwells in the past but seems unable to die in the present.

13. “The Willows” by Algernon Blackwood (1907)

Two friends are on a canoe trip down the River Danube during summer flood, and stop to camp on a tiny island amid a landscape of shifting sandbars and crouching willow bushes. They’re struck by the beauty and wildness of their surroundings, but something powerful and unknowable dwells in this willow-land, too…

Book and coffee on a Christmas-patterned background

Want more seasonal short stories you can read for free? Head to this post for classic Christmas short stories !

For vintage novels with a spooky feel, try one of these dark and cozy reads perfect for your fall and winter reading list.

13 Spooky Short Stories You Can Read for Free

Totally saving this for spooky season reading inspiration! Classics were my first love, but I’ve gotten away from them in the past few years. These shorts will be a great way to add more classics to my reading list this year!

Great! Yes, these are all very readable classics selections, and perfectly spooky! I think a well-written short story is an excellent way to get back into classics!

Hi Elsie, I signed up to your newsletter and society today. Are these spooky stories available for download, or can you please send them to my email?

Hi Patti! I checked your account in my email service and I’ve activated the spooky email series for you! So now you should receive each story (along with a little introductory background) in your email over the course of the next 2 weeks. Enjoy!

I loved having these delivered to my inbox and reading them over the month of October. I enjoyed all of them, but my favorites were Lady Ferry, The Old Nurse’s Story, The Tower, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, and The Open Window. Thanks for this collection!

Those are actually my top favourites from the collection, too!(: So glad you enjoyed them!

1 “Patient Zero” by Tananarive Due

"Patient Zero" starts off innocently enough, with its narrator — a little boy — confined to his hospital room. Surely, a hospital is a place of healing, not a setting for a sinister story. But as Due's expertly-paced plot unfolds , we come to understand who this boy truly is, and what's happening to the world around him.

From Lightspeed

2 “Click-clack the Rattlebag” by Neil Gaiman

You know that feeling you get when you walk up the stairs alone in an old, dark house? And you know that you shouldn't be afraid of the dark, but you can't help but feel like something is following in your footsteps, lurking just behind you? Neil Gaiman distills that feeling into a story with "Click-clack the Rattlebag" — a tale as short and simple as it is bone-chilling.

From The Telegraph

3 “The Spindly Man” by Stephen Graham Jones

In Stephen Graham Jones’ “The Spindly Man,” a book club’s discussion of a Stephen King story lures an uninvited guest with a bone to pick.

From The Dark Magazine

4 “His Face All Red” by Emily Carroll

Emily Carroll is the reigning queen of creepy, interactive horror comics, and "His Face All Red" is one of her best. If you like fairy tales that twist around and make you feel a little queasy, this one is for you.

From the Author’s Website

5 “Hello, Moto” by Nnedi Okorafor

You probably know Nnedi Okorafor from her fantasy writing, but she’s proven herself a master of the horror genre as well. Just try to make it through the strange, wig-based story of "Hello, Moto" without shuddering — or disappearing in a flash of green light.

From Tor.com

6 “Bog Girl” by Karen Russell

You know how people sometimes sometimes come across perfectly preserved, ancient bodies in bogs? “Bog Girl” is about one of those who’s found, and the boy who loves her. At times, this creepy story borders on sweet. But sadly, romance with a bog girl isn’t simple.

From The New Yorker

7 “How to Get Back to the Forest” by Sofia Samatar

At first, the kids in "How to Get Back to the Forest" seem like any other children at summer camp: homesick and loud and obsessed with ghoulish rumors. But it slowly becomes clear that this is not any old camp — and that these kids are never, ever going home.

8 “The Third Bear” by Jeff Vandermeer

If you only think of bears as cuddly stuffed animals or lovable carton goofs, Jeff Vandermeer’s "The Third Bear" will set you straight. The bear in question is not cuddly or lovable, to say the least. Be warned: The word "intestines" features at least once.

From Clarkesworld

9 “The Ash of Memory, the Dust of Desire” by Poppy Z. Brite

Poppy Z. Brite is known for weaving together horror and magic and love to create stories like "The Ash of Memory, the Dust of Desire." So if you're looking to read about steamy romance and half-rotted corpses in the very same story, this is the one for you.

From Nightmare

10 “Séance” by Donyae Coles

In Donyae Coles’ “Séance,” a fake medium who makes her living hustling wealthy believers has her own, inexplicable brush with the supernatural.

From PseudoPod

11 “Premium Harmony” by Stephen King

Really, you can’t go wrong with a Stephen King horror story; even the mildest of his tales will give you nightmares for a solid week, and “Premium Harmony” is not mild. This story takes readers back to the fictional town of Castle Rock (as seen in the Hulu show) , where domestic disputes unravel into grotesque horror.

12 “Nightcrawlers” by Robert McCammon

A storm rages outside a diner window, and the Nightcrawlers are coming. To find out exactly what the Nightcrawlers are, you'll just have to read Robert McCammon’s "Nightcrawlers," a vivid, tense story.

13 “Bongcheon-Dong Ghost” by Horang

Ten years after its original release, South Korean comic artist Horang’s “Bongcheon-Dong Ghost” is still scaring the pants off of unsuspecting readers. Enhanced by sound and animation — and some wicked jump-scares — this is one story you’ll want to read with the lights on.

From Webtoons

14 “Abraham’s Boys” by Joe Hill

Yes, Joe Hill just so happens to be the son of the one and only Stephen King, but he's also a great horror writer in his own right. "Abraham's Boys," for example, captures the existential fear of being locked in a basement and left to die right in the first paragraph, and just keeps going from there.

From Fifty-Two Stories

15 “The Doll” by Daphne du Maurier

Creepy doll. CREEPY DOLL! Surely, the creepy doll story is the highest level of creepy story. And "The Doll," a story of obsession and violins and dolls with blank, staring eyes, is one of the ultimate classics.

From The Guardian

16 “With Her Diamond Teeth” by Pear Nuallak

In Pear Nuallak’s retelling of the Thai legend of Kraithong, “With Her Diamond Teeth,” a man rescues a young girl from the clutches of a monstrous crocodile, and her older sister is promised to him in gratitude. But has something changed with the girl he brought back?

From The Dark

17 “Sunbleached” by Nathan Ballingrud

What’s a collection of horror stories without at least one vampire? "Sunbleached" introduces a most uncomfortable bloodsucker, hidden in a crawlspace to avoid the sun. What follows is less of a sultry, Twilight -style tale and more of a horrific, blood-spattered story. Be sure to read in the shade.

18 “What Sisters Take” by Kelly Sandoval

Three sets of twins, three girls destined to die — but determined to live. Kelly Sandoval’s “What Sisters Take” balances evil and tenderness in its depiction of sisterhood.

From Apex Magazine

19 “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates

"Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" is not an especially long or complicated story: a guy called Arnold Friend drives up to a girl's house, and asks her to come with him on a ride. That's it. And yet, this is perhaps the most chilling story of them all, because the longer readers spend with Arnold Friend, the more they start to fear him.

From Celestial Timepiece: A Joyce Carol Oates Patchwork

20 “The Child-Feast of Harridan Sack” by Kaitlyn Zivanovich

Turning Hansel and Gretel on its ear, Kaitlyn Zivanovich’s “The Child-Feast of Harridan Sack” centers on a mother who, after her 12-year-old daughter goes missing, finds herself living a nightmare straight out of a storybook.

This article was originally published on April 11, 2018

Columns > Published on October 31st, 2019

20 Scary Stories For Halloween That You Can Read Online For Free

Photo by joy marino.

As our way of saying happy Halloween to you, dear reader, we’re gifting you with twenty stories to read or listen to this Halloween, all of which are available for free online. The majority of these stories have a connection to Halloween (some tenuous), though a few are just damn good stories to get you in the Halloween spirit. Let's get to it.

1. "Pumpkin Head" by Joyce Carol Oates (The New Yorker)

Hadley, a young widow, is startled by Anton Kruppev one evening when he decides to ‘drop by’ unannounced. For those familiar with Joyce Carol Oates’s work (especially "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?") this should be enough to raise concern, but if not there’s always the misshapen pumpkin for a head he’s wearing. As with a number of Oates’s stories, the relationship between protagonist Hadley and her visitor, Kruppev, is a complicated one, steeped in history, attraction, and awkwardness.

Read "Pumpkin Head" by Joyce Carol Oates

2. "The Nest" by Ben Errington, Daniel Willcocks, Andy Conduit-Turner, and John Crinan

Those fine folks at Hawk & Cleaver have gone from strength-to-strength in the past year, most notably with their flagship offering, The Other Stories , and Josh Curran’s audio-anthology, Miscreation . When I heard the team at H&C were pulling something together for Halloween, expectations were high and I haven’t been disappointed. "The Nest" is a five-act story written by Ben Errington, Daniel Willcocks, Andy Conduit-Turner, and John Crinan. The premise is simple: four single parents disappear leading to an investigation by the children they left behind. There’s something a little Stranger Things about what is undoubtedly one of Hawk & Cleaver’s strongest productions yet.

Listen to "The Nest" Act One

3. "Universal Horror" by Stephen Graham Jones

Originally published in October Dreams II: A Celebration of Halloween , edited by Richard Chizmar and Robert Morrish, and reprinted in Nightmare Magazine , Stephen Graham Jones’s "Universal Horror" begins—like many good Halloween parties—with a trick or treat drinking game. The clue as to what the story is about is in the title really, as it juxtaposes Universal horror movies with real-life horror. Stephen Graham Jones stories are often mandatory reading and "Universal Horror" is no different. So stop reading this and start reading that.

Read "Universal Horror" by Stephen Graham Jones

4. "Too Many Ghosts" by Steve Rasnic Tem

Speaking of stalwarts of the genre, few can compare to Steve Rasnic Tem. In "Too Many Ghosts", published in The Dark Magazine , a man keeps seeing the faces of dead relatives and friends in wood carvings. Check out this wonderful line:

“The face in the wood looked disturbingly familiar—the invisible eyes, and the way the hair flowed with the grain—but he could not connect the visage with a name.”

Read "Too Many Ghosts" by Steve Rasnic Tem

5. "The Dualitists" by Bram Stoker

Mixing the old with the new, few classic authors evoke horror like Bram Stoker. "The Dualitists; or, the Death Doom of the Double Born" was first published in November 1886 in the 1887 issue of The Theatre Annual: Containing Stories, Reminiscences and Verses , Carson & Comerford, London, edited by Clement Scott. Shortly after a couple have identical twins, two local kids start trashing things in the local area, soon they get bored of wrecking inanimate objects. Can you guess what happens next?

Read "The Dualitists" by Bram Stoker

6. "The Devil Came to Mamie’s on Hallowe’en" by Lisa Morton

Originally published in Cemetery Dance Magazine #60 , "The Devil Came to Mamie’s on Hallowe’en" by Lisa Morton is available to read or listen to on PseudoPod. The opening line goes like this: “It was Hallowe’en night, and business was slow at the whorehouse.” Now, tell me you don’t want to read the rest? Exactly.

Read or listen to "The Devil Came to Mamie’s on Hallowe’en" by Lisa Morton

7. "Trick or Treat" by Violent Harvest

For those familiar with Jon Grilz’s previous podcast, Small Town Horror , his latest offering, Creepy Pod , will be right up your street. "Trick or Treat" is part of October’s ‘31 Days of Horror’ and is about as Halloween as stories get. Lost manuscript? Tick. Hidden town? Tick. Ancient beings? Tick. Primordial worship? Tick. Missing children? Tick.

Listen to "Trick or Treat" by Violent Harvest

8. "Incarnations of Burned Children" by David Foster Wallace

Probably the shortest story on this list, but by no means the least traumatic, "Incarnations of Burned Children" by David Foster Wallace was published in Esquire on 21 April, 2009. Definitely proceed with caution if you’re a parent with a young kid.

Listen to "Incarnations of Burned Children" by David Foster Wallace

9. "The Black Cat" by Edgar Allan Poe

"The Black Cat’"by Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most anthologised Halloween tales, which is why we’re continuing the trend here. Surely we don’t need to tell you anything more about Poe or the titular cat?

Read "The Black Cat" by Edgar Allan Poe

10. "Pork n Stuff" by Charlotte Ledville

The entire NoSleep Podcast Halloween special is excellent with wonderful interludes between the stories, too, but a particular favourite was "Pork n Stuff." Listen in and see if you fancy what’s on the menu …

Listen to "Pork n Stuff" by Charlotte Ledville

About the author

Michael David Wilson is the founder of the popular UK horror website, podcast, and publisher, This Is Horror. Michael is the author of the novella, The Girl in the Video , and the novel, They’re Watching , co-written with Bob Pastorella. His second novella, House of Bad Memories , lands in 2021 via Grindhouse Press. His work has appeared in various publications including The NoSleep Podcast , Dim Shores , Dark Moon Digest , LitReactor , Hawk & Cleaver’s The Other Stories , and Scream . You can connect with Michael on Twitter @WilsonTheWriter . For more information visit www.michaeldavidwilson. co.uk .

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The 9 Best Horror Stories You Can Read Online (For Free) This Halloween

Halloween isn’t the only reason we crave horror fiction this time of year. Something about autumn primes us for stories of the macabre—the crunch of leaves underfoot, the rustling winds, and the smell of things dying. I read a lot of horror fiction thanks to the work of editors like Ellen Datlow, John Joseph Adams, Ann VanderMeer, and Niall Harrison. Here are the 9 creepiest short stories I’ve read by contemporary writers that were published online in the past decade.

“Sunbleached” by Nathan Ballingrud Nightmare Magazine

One of the best stories in Ballingrud’s debut collection from Small Beer Press, North American Lake Monsters , “Sunbleached” was nominated for a Shirley Jackson Award in 2011. It’s one of my all-time favorite vampire stories, about a young boy in a broken family on the gulf coast who makes a deal with an injured vampire.

“How to Get Back to the Forest” by Sofia Samatar Lightspeed Magazine

Samatar is best-known for her fantasy novels A Stranger in Olondria and its follow-up The Winged Histories , but she can also flex her horror muscles when the mood strikes. When a short story begins with this line of dialogue—”You have to puke it up.”—you know you’re in for something creepy and weird. “How to Get Back to the Forest” also appeared in Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2015 , edited by Joe Hill and John Joseph Adams.

“The Wilds” by Julia Elliott Tin House

The title story from Elliott’s 2014 collection is a perfect introduction to her singular brand of speculative, neo-Southern Gothic fiction. When a new family moves into the neighborhood, a young girl on the brink of womanhood is intrigued by a boy who wears a wolf mask.

“A Collapse of Horses” by Brian Evenson The American Reader

The title track from Evenson’s latest collection is one of his most brutal explorations of the human condition. After a traumatic head injury, a man’s house (and family) keeps changing overnight. One day, he has three children. The next, he has four. To make matters worse, he comes across a paddock of horses that he can’t comprehend.

“Hello, Moto” by Nnedi Okorafor Tor.com

Like Samatar, Okorafor has made a name for herself in a different genre—this time, science fiction, thanks to Lagoon and The Book of Phoenix —but her work actually spans the entire spectrum of speculative fiction. From the fantasy of Who Fears Death to the galactic horror of Binti , she refuses to be pigeonholed. “Hello, Moto” is a different kind of witch story, about power-conferring wigs. Yes…wigs.

“The Third Bear” by Jeff VanderMeer Clarkesworld Magazine

The author of the Southern Reach trilogy, City of Saints and Madmen , and Finch is also a prolific short story writer, including this gem that was nominated for a Shirley Jackson Award in 2007. It’s also the title story from his 2010 collection by Tachyon Publications. He must really like bears, given the appearance of a giant one in his next novel from FSG, Borne .

A Conversation between Giada Scodellaro and Amina Cain on Marie NDiaye’s “Self-Portrait in Green” (translated by Jordan Stump)

“The Game of Smash and Recovery” by Kelly Link Strange Horizons

My favorite Kelly Link stories are the ones that literally give me goosebumps. Her latest collection, Get in Trouble , is chock-full of creepy-ass fiction, but this standalone story published as last year’s fund-drive bonus in Strange Horizons holds a special place in my dark heart. On an alien planet, a brother and sister play a special brand of hide-and-seek while they wait for their parents to return.

“Shiva, Open Your Eye” by Laird Barron Nightmare Magazine

If you’ve never read a Laird Barron story, you’re probably still capable of seeing the world as a generally decent place. For the rest of us, Barron’s “carnivorous cosmos” is one of the best bodies of work by a contemporary horror writer. “Shiva, Open Your Eye” was actually Barron’s first pro sale, appearing in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction in 2001, and it’s the only story I’ve ever read written from the perspective of a mouth.

“Glashaus” by Madeline Gobbo and Miles Klee Arcturus magazine

“If you were to see the estate for the first time,” begins this Gothic horror tale set in a fictional, war-torn country, “dazzling like a glass-eyed beetle, poisonous in the sun, ringed with blind alley mazes and jungle spooks, you would not be surprised to hear that it frequently drove visitors to rash and wild acts.”

Adam Morgan is the founding editor of the Chicago Review of Books and the Southern Review of Books. His essays and criticism have appeared in The Paris Review, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Chicago magazine, and elsewhere.

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8 of the Best Horror Short Stories to Read Online for Free

Lyndsie Manusos

Lyndsie Manusos’s fiction has appeared in PANK, SmokeLong Quarterly, and other publications. She holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and has worked in web production and content management. When she’s not nesting among her books and rough drafts, she’s chasing the baby while the dog watches in confused amusement. She lives with her family in a suburb of Indianapolis.

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Halloween is coming up in a couple of months, which is close enough for me to start getting into the spooky mood. Given, a good horror story is timeless and welcome during any time of the year. For those seeking to get their fill of creepiness, look no further than horror short stories that you can read online for free.

Many literary magazines publish their work online, and many offer their work for free. Some magazines wait a bit so paying subscribers can get first dibs, while others publish the issue online right away. In any case, the internet is rife with excellent horror short stories by talented writers. I’ve expounded on my love for horror literary magazines before . The magazines I mentioned there are always a great jumping off point to fill your horror craving. This list supplements that article, compiling stories recently published from horror and other genre magazines.

The best part: You can read (and/or listen) to all of these stories for free. The stories included come from across the horror spectrum, from creepy to gothic to downright frightening. It is my hope that you’ll find a story that fits your horror capacity. If not, I highly recommend checking out other stories featured in these amazing literary magazines.

Also important to note: some of the stories include trigger warnings, so take a gander at those if needed.

8 Horror Short Stories to Read Online For Free

I ordered the below list alphabetically by the surnames of the authors. They cover a range of horror and genre publications, and I highly recommend reading the full issues these amazing stories are found in.

cover image of Nightmare Magazine April 2022 issue, publisher of horror short stories

“ √i ” by Marty Cahill, published in Nightmare Magazine

“No gentle note to the heart to stop beating. No kind word to the brain to stop firing. The driver of the car gets plucked away from the wheel. The car keeps going. “

Cahill does an amazing job building dread in a short amount of space. Sometimes the most horrible thing is the unknown — what we can’t see — and in this short story, a darkness moves outside the classroom, searching for prey who are too loud, and it’s the new, unassuming student who makes the dreadful mistake in gaining the darkness’s attention. This story is terrifying in how it portrays an acceptance of violence as a daily occurrence, which has become a norm for many of us lately.

cover image of Nightmare Magazine June 2022 issue, publisher of horror short stories

“ There Are No Monsters on Rancho Buenavista ” by Isabel Cañas, published in Nightmare Magazine

“Then Rosario reached for her throat, sank her fingers into her skin, and pulled.”

Whew, I love a visceral flash horror story. If you enjoyed Cañas’s recent horror novel The Hacienda , then I promise you will enjoy her short fiction. It follows Antonio, who is jealous of his cousin, Beto, and the mysterious woman named Rosaria, who Beto is courting. Antonio hopes to catch Rosario in an act of betrayal, and instead discovers something else entirely. In under a thousand words, Cañas crafts a brilliant story inspired by a folk tale of Mexico, where a man claims his wife is a monster.

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cover image of Nightmare Magazine May 2021 issue, publisher of horror short stories

“ The Cabbit ” by Maria Dong, published in Nightmare Magazine

“He shushes me with a finger. ‘You’ll scare it,’ he whispers. He taps the dish, and the cabbit edges out of the cage a few inches. ‘Cabbits are special. They eat the parts you don’t want anymore. Hair, fingernails. That kind of thing.'”

This story revolves around a cat-rabbit hybrid creature with an uncanny appetite. The narrator, a young woman seeking attention and love, realizes the cabbit can devour more than just fingernails and hair. This story is both creepy and incredibly poignant, reflecting toxic societal needs that many experience — the temptation to change our physical and emotional selves in order to be loved.

Cover image of Baffling Magazine January 2021 issue

“ Sonskins ” by Dare Segun Falowo, published in Baffling Magazine

“We know they will wake soon, hungry to find the Beast again. How futile our midnight errands seem against this force that no witch, Bible or pastor has been able to remove. A wildness!”

This story is a whisper of skins, Beasts, anger, and protectiveness. There is a collective “we” point of view, as the narrators wear the skins of their sons, hunting and searching. Falowo is a queer writer of the Nigerian Weird, and writes absolutely stunning and unnerving prose. For those seeking a brilliant, quiet, uncanny story, this will check that box.

“ Fisheyes ” by Ai Jiang, published in The Dark Magazine

“I stare at the eyeless fish, remembering Dad, imagining it as my mother, imagining it as the boyfriend.”

This story is perfect in its pacing and unsettling images. There is so much to unpack here, and each time I read this story, I discover something new. It follows Elaine as she is sent to retrieve takeout for her mother and boyfriend when the power goes out. There are images that stick out amongst the darkness, the syrupy descriptions of sauce and food. Elaine’s mind is still on her father, now gone, and the way he said fisheyes are good for you. Jiang writes a story about seeing , about being seen, and the horrible moment when the people around us see us for what we are.

cover image of Weird Horror Spring 2022 issue

“ Milk Teeth ” by Annika Barranti Klein, published in Weird Horror

“Twilight was my favorite time of day. With the curtains drawn it was as though the moon never rose in her full glory, only waxed to her most gibbous and protuberant point before disappearing for three days and reappearing, still gibbous but turned about and ready to wane again.”

Fellow Book Rioter Annika Barranti Klein crafts a sublime gothic and atmospheric horror story with “Milk Teeth.” I have read this story multiple times, and still I hear the swishing of curtains, and feel the hot breath of wolves at my heels. For fans of Red Riding Hood retellings and Shirley Jackson, this one is for you.

“ Them At Number Seventy-Four ” by Lindz McLeod, published in Pseudopod

“When body number four is discovered, Mrs. Patterson thinks that surely now she and her husband will be caught. Days creep past, then a week.”

Pseudopod is a great place to read and listen to super fantastic horror stories, and you’ll want to do both with this story. A friend and talented writer, Lindz McLeod excels at building tension. “Them At Number Seventy-Four” is a truly spectacular story about mundanity and murder. An aging couple bolsters their marriage through the shared passion for murder. Days go by in supreme normalcy, as Mr. and Mrs. Patterson run errands, chat over meals, and watch TV shows, all while perfectly planning the next kill. I was both scared and charmed at the same time, which such a unique combination.

“ Bonesoup ” by EUGENIA TRIANTAFYLLOU, published in Strange Horizons

“‘Children need strong bones to grow,’ my grandmother continued. She sat next to me at the table and spoon-fed me the soup until the bowl was clean.

A bone for a bone.”

Wow did this story hit on all levels for me. This takes the doting, protective grandmother to the tenth power and adds a sprinkle of cannibalism and past trauma. There is affection for loved ones mixed with the terrible sacrifices we enact to keep them safe and healthy. Come hungry to this story, and you’ll leave it both satisfied and slightly disturbed, but in the best possible way.

21 Scary Halloween Short Stories For Middle School

October 10, 2014 in Pedagogy

The creepier the tale, the more middle school students love it. October is the perfect month to introduce middle school students to scary short stories. Download these 21 short stories that are perfect for your Halloween-related units. I have tried to include other resources such as YouTube videos, TV show adaptations, paired texts, and related songs. If I can find existing lesson plans online, I may will link to those, as well. Happy Halloween!

Note: Would you like access to ALL of our curated short story resources — PLUS a free lesson plan template you can use for ANY short story — right here on this page — without having to enter your email address more than a dozen times?

For just $10 a month, you can have ongoing access to current and future curated resources! Let us do the late-night searching for you. Learn how you can sign up for instant digital access . Note: Curated resources DO NOT include RTE created lesson plans.

Curated Short Stories Library Members: Click here to access your downloads!

The Possibility of Evil by Shirley Jackson | Assessment Activity & Writing Project | Assessment Activity & Writing Project on TpT
The Masque of the Red by Death by Edgar Allan Poe* | Assessment Activity | Assessment Activity on TpT
The Landlady by Roald Dahl | Assessment Activity | Assessment Activity on TpT
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving
A Ghost Story by Mark Twain
The Bottle Imp by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Mortal Immortal by Mary Shelley
The Tomb by H.P. Lovecraft
The Tree by H.P. Lovecraft
The Screaming Skull by F. Marion Crawford
The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe (Available in our Curated Short Stories Library)
The Pit and the Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe (Available in our Curated Short Stories Library)
The Spectre Bridegroom, a Traveller’s Tale by Washington Irving (Available in our Curated Short Stories Library)
The Monkey’s Paw by W.W. Jacobs
An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce (Available in our Curated Short Stories Library)
The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe*
The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe
The Hitchhiker by Orson Welles (Available in our Curated Short Stories Library)
Contents of a Dead Man’s Pocket by Jack Finney (Available in our Curated Short Stories Library)
A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner (Available in our Curated Short Stories Library)
The Boarded Window by Ambrose Bierce (Available in our Curated Short Stories Library)
A Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury

Note: An RTE subscriber recently emailed me to ask if there was a simple way to subscribe to all the curated resources in one place, without having to enter an email address for every short story. At the time, there wasn’t, but we have worked out a way to make it easy for you to access all the resources in one place — right here on this page! For just $3 per month, you can have ongoing access to current and future curated resources! Let us do the late-night searching for you. Sign up here for instant digital access .

Curated Short Stories Library Members: Click here to access your downloads!

NOTE: Curated resources do not include the units that RTE has developed in house.

* These stories may be more appropriate for students with higher-level reading skills, or may require extra scaffolding from the teacher.

Copyright notice: These stories are published on sites other than reThinkELA.com and NO copyrighted stories are excerpted or quoted in RTE-created materials. Some stories are in the public domain (not copyrighted), or are excerpts of larger works, while others are not. In some cases, teachers may print a class set for their own classroom usage, but there are exceptions. Please check with your district regarding its policies and licenses for reproducing printed copies. Generally speaking, you may ask students to download their own copies (outside of the one you download for your own use) to their devices for their own educational studies.

October Inquiry into Spooky Short Stories

Imagine if you could leverage your students’ enthusiasm for Halloween to engage them in studying the spooky genre literary elements — and writing their own stories. Now you can! Check out our”October Inquiry Unit: Reading and Writing Spooky Stories.” It’s sure to engage your students in Halloween literacy all month long!

Related topics: Halloween Lesson Plans , Short Story Lesson Plans

About the author

Michelle Boyd Waters, M.Ed.

I am a secondary English Language Arts teacher, a University of Oklahoma student working on my doctorate in Instructional Leadership and Academic Curriculum with an concentration in English Education and co-Editor of the Oklahoma English Journal. I am constantly seeking ways to amplify students' voices and choices.

Thank you so much for sharing! Love all of these great activities for Halloween!

You’re welcome! I’m glad this post has helped you.

I love Duffey’s Jacket …..

Thank you, Zee!

I found a copy of Duffy’s Jacket my readers can download and print for their students. I also found a few teacher’s resources for the story.

I read all the stories, and I love them.

i liked the red death story. It was very well written and a very good story.

Thank you for your comment, Mark. Poe’s works are deliciously macabre, and are favorites of students. Have you read “The Tell-Tale Heart?”

Great list. If any teachers reading this want to teach some of these pieces to their students, but are finding that their students just aren’t ready for such complex text, they may want to check out our free, multilevel versions at http://www.booksthatgrow.com . We have The Masque of the Red by Death, The Black Cat, The Cask of Amontillado, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Tell-Tale Hearth, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, The Monkey’s Paw, A Rose for Emily, and 130+ more.

Thank you for sharing, Jason. I’m checking out what you’re offering, particularly the myths and folktales, and legends.

Do you know if these leveled versions can be printed? Or you can only view through internet?

A short short story that my students always enjoyed is “Cemetery Path.”

WOW!! Thank you so much for your generosity! My students and I will enjoy several of these stories and activities.

You’re welcome! I’d love to hear feedback from you and your students. Let me know if there are any other resources I can find for you.

These are absolutely fantastic! Thank you for the list. Do you happen to have the Lexile levels for each story?

Great list and useful links. Thanks for putting this together. My son loves spooky stories and we have been reading them together.

Thank you! Using it this month!

Thank you for your amazing blog/website/fb page, and all these stories! Everything is useful and wonderful. ?

Comments are closed.

110+ Horror Writing Prompts (With A Twist)

Give yourself the chills with this list of over 110 horror writing prompts. From scary ghost stories to creepy stories about animals and monsters. Now is the time to write your own horror story , just like Goosebumps or The Haunting of Aveline Jones.

From the gory to the scary, from the monstrous to the supernatural, from the humorous to the wacky, we have it all! Use this horror writing prompts generator to get a random horror writing idea to write about:

Keep on reading for a list of horror story prompts.

Most horror stories are based on one thing, fear. And it’s always a good idea to have a bit of that in your own life. Fear makes us all think differently, it makes us do things we wouldn’t normally do. And it’s the same thing that makes horror stories so scary. It’s a good idea to think of something that scares you, and then write about it. As a starting point, we have provided you with this list of horror prompts. For some of these gory ideas, we have included a twist, while for others it’s up to you how the story goes! Feel free to use any of these prompts in your writing, and to expand on any of the ideas.

List of Horror Writing Prompts

This list of horror writing prompts will you give you the well-needed inspiration for a good horror story:

The Haunting Hospital: A small girl named Julie is walking down a country road when she finds a cemetery and realises it is her home town. She goes to her house and finds that it has been turned into a hospital. She finds her father and her mother there. Her father tells her that she is now a part of the hospital and that she must work to be paid. Julie and her mother go to work as nurses.
Chasing Shadows: A girl named Becky is walking in her neighbourhood when she sees a little boy playing in the street. Becky runs over to him and asks him what he is doing. He tells her that he is a little monster and that he will kill her if she does not leave him alone. Becky takes off running and the little monster chases her.
Park of Peril: A little girl named Melissa is walking through the park when she finds a little boy who tells her that he will eat her if she does not take him home. Melissa takes off running and the little boy chases her.
Claws of the Night: This one involves a kid named Angela. One night she goes to sleep and when she wakes up the next morning her hands have turned into the claws of a cat.
The Poisoned Harvest: A boy named Billy is walking down the street one day when he sees a homeless man. He notices some fruit by the man. When the homeless man is not looking, Billy steals the fruit. Later on, he goes home and eats this piece of fruit. The fruit is poisoned, and Billy goes blind.
Carnivorous Confrontation: A story of a kid who loves to eat the flesh of dead animals, but one day a man appears and tells him not to eat them.
Invisible Menace: Write a story about a young boy who is terrorized by an invisible monster.
Nightmare Room: The invisible monster is eating kids and it is in their room all the time.
Enchanted Chaos: A handsome prince on a quest to learn magic wants to marry the beautiful princess, but the kingdom is being attacked by demons, ghosts, and…his dad.
Insanity’s Feast: The whole little town goes insane. They start killing people with their mouths. They kill them in the most gruesome way.
Shuttered Nightmares: A serial killer is taking photos of their victims. He is telling them how he is going to kill them. And then he starts his killing.
Witch’s Chains: Two kids named ‘Bud’ and ‘Chip’ got separated from their parents. They live next door to a witch and are unable to leave the house. One day, the witch makes their parents get into a container, and leaves them in the backyard, chained to a tree.
Enchanted Camp: A summer camp where a powerful wizard casts a spell on the children to make them do his bidding.
The Weeping Specter: A ghost that follows you around and cries on your shoulder and if you get sad it gets angry and turns into a ghostly voice that spooks people.
Haunted Truths: The lead character is haunted by a ghost who knows the truth about their past.
Distrustful Shadows: A girl named Dana, who works at a daycare centre, doesn’t trust anybody. This causes her to make sure she does everything she can to stop any other person from ever entering her place.
Realm of Nightmares: One day, the princess wakes up in a terrible nightmare. She is being chased by something, she cannot see what it is. And then she hears the voice of her mother, telling her to run away. She goes to her room and sees that the covers on her bed are in a shape that reminds her of the monster she just saw. She knows she cannot sleep in this place. She goes to the other side of her room and sees a window. She goes to the window and finds that it is an opening to a new world…
Witch’s Wrath: A girl named Misty lives with her parents and their next-door neighbour who is an evil witch. One day her father and the witch get into a fight and the witch accidentally kills him.
Brief Awakening: A boy named Sam is suffering from a terrible disease and he only has days to live. He’s in a coma, and he’s not responding to any medical treatments. Until one night he starts to experience some new changes…
Vengeful Wishes: A little girl named Mina finds a genie. The genie grants her 3 wishes. Because Mina has been a victim of bullying, she uses all her wishes to punish her bullies with ghoulish consequences.
Jar of Horrors: One day, a boy named Marcus went out to take a walk, and he found a jar that he thought was full of gold. Marcus had also found a bag that was heavier than he could lift, but he drags it home anyway. When he opens to bag he discovers something disgusting…
Game Over: A creepy character named Nemesis is trying to kill Luke, who plays video games and lives in his basement. At night, Luke hears voices telling him to hide. He goes to the basement and a creature knocks him out. He ends up as a character in his gruesome game.
Bracelet of Resurrection: A boy named Josh loses his best friend to a freak accident. He finds the other half of a bracelet he gave his friend that day. He hangs on to it until one night the bracelet brings his best friend back to life.
The Ghost Writer: Write a story titled, The Ghost Writer. Write about the ghost of someone who haunts you.
Eternal Specter: Write a scary ghost story about a man who is cursed to spend eternity as a ghost.
Hidden World: A boy named Brody is having problems adjusting to life in his new home after his parents divorced. He tries to see his dad, but they don’t want him around. One day he discovers a secret passage to a hidden underground world where his father now lives.
Stuttering Shadows: A story about a young man named Kenny, who works as a garbage man. He also has a terrible stuttering problem that he has to deal with. One day he discovers that his stuttering is getting worse and worse and he becomes scared to death because of it. He thinks that the talking squirrel next to him is a demon.
Haunted Corner: Write a story about an object in your room that becomes haunted.
Ghostly Deception: A boy named Bryce has been hiding out from his abusive father. One day his father is gone and his dad’s new girlfriend walks into the house. He thinks it’s the ghost of his dead mother. The ghost shows him that his dad’s new girlfriend has been lying to him about how his birth mother died.
Trapped in Terror: A young boy named Spencer and his sister Sarah, are on a camping trip when they find a box of mysterious objects. When they open it, one of the items shoots at them, striking Sarah and trapping her in a pod inside a tree. While locked inside the tree, Sarah meets an evil doll named Alice.
Possessed Playtime: A young girl named Cassandra is babysitting her neighbour’s two kids. One day the kids eat some forbidden foods and a demon spirit possesses one of the kids and turns him into an evil creature who haunts the neighbourhood.
Eyes of the Bunny: A little girl named Hayley discovers a secret house that no one in the neighbourhood knows about, and is welcomed inside by a red-eyed white bunny. One day when Hayley goes to a party, her newfound friend kidnaps her and traps her inside this mysterious house.
Eternal Echo: Write a horror story about a horrible accident or a nightmare that has haunted you your whole life.
Drowning Destiny: A boy named Joshua falls into a river and is about to drown when he gets rescued by a beautiful mermaid. She tells him that he will die the next day because that is his destiny.
Keys of Madness: A young boy named Alex finds a set of glowing door keys and uses them to enter a huge abandoned mansion. When he explores the mansion, he is visited by a dark spirit who attacks him and drives him insane.
Alien Abduction: A boy named Sam wakes up one day to find that his parents have been missing for over a year. The day he discovers them, they tell him that he was kidnapped by aliens, and they built an experimental human brainwashing machine.
Dreams of Stella: A young boy named Toby starts having strange dreams of a girl named Stella. One day, he sees Stella when he’s on a roller coaster, but it turns out to be a ghost who is trying to take over his mind.
Eye of the Leaf: A little boy named Ben is playing outside one day when he finds a strange leaf. When he picks it up, it turns into a leaf with a red eye and starts to follow him.
Vengeful Spirit: Write a horror story about a ghost who just wants to kill the person who called him a monster when he was alive.
Nightmare Adoption: A young girl named Annabelle is adopted by a family that lives in a very old house. One day when is playing outside, she is kidnapped by a scary man named the Nightman.
Stuffed Shadows: A young boy named Jack gets lost in the woods and finds an old abandoned house. He enters the house and finds a huge stuffed animal. When he touches it, it wakes up and attacks him.
Depths of Fear: Imagine your worst fear and write a scary story about it.
A Rude Awakening: Write a horror story titled, A Rude Awakening. What would you do if you woke up in a place that you weren’t familiar with?
The Mysterious Case: What happens when someone goes missing and no one knows where they’ve gone?
Dreamstalker : Write about a monster that might be stalking you in your dreams.
Write a story titled, When The Wind Blows. This story could be about a sudden change in weather that comes with a new problem.
Mirror Demon: Continue the following story: Suddenly, the demon in the mirror reappeared and she began to scream.
Doctor’s Dread: When the doctor gave her the news, she screamed out loud and ran in circles.
Safekeeping Shadows: In her final hours, she told me to be thankful that I had done my best to keep her safe. That I had made sure no evil would ever hurt her again.
Camping Secrets: Continue the following horror story: As I was growing up, every year our family went camping in the woods. My grandfather passed away a few years ago. He was a rich man, and I wanted to visit his grave at the cemetery.
Forest of Shadows: While walking around the forest, I came across a monstrous-looking creature. I was scared and ran back home. The next day, I decided to go back and see what the monster was doing.
Echoes of Dread: Write down your biggest fear. And then write a story based on this fear.
Silent Stalker: When I looked in her file I saw that she had gotten five serious stab wounds. But, I could not see any sign of her attacker. Her wounds were all over her body and all over her arms.
Arachnid Terror: After discovering that a spider was sleeping in her bed, a young girl named Amy screams and runs away, locking herself in the bathroom.
Electric Fury: A scientific team is doing research on electricity. They find a very strong cell that could create many things when it is exposed to electricity. Suddenly the electricity static comes alive. It gets angry and attacks the scientists.
Imaginary Friend: A little girl named Amber loves to play with her new imaginary friend. She calls him “Giant” and she makes up stories about him. She believes that he is her friend for real.
Melting Nightmare: Continue the following story: As it continued attacking, it even caused my teeth to start to melt off of my jaw. My skin would start to burn, and my hair would become brown.
Friday Night Terrors: It’s Friday. The TV is on, and you are wide awake. As you lie there listening, you begin to feel tired. And just as your eyes begin to close, you hear a creak of the floorboards. Your eyes snap open. What you see scares the living hell out of you.
Blood Dawn: You wake up one morning to find your entire body covered in blood. What do you do?
Room of Despair: How would you react if you were locked in a room and told you could never leave?
Haunting Memoirs: What is the scariest thing that has ever happened to you? Can you explain this in great detail?
Chilling Chronicles: Make a top ten list of the creepiest books or stories you have ever read.
The Gruesome Creation: Describe the most gruesome and disgusting creature you can imagine.
Zoo’s Menace: Write a horror story where there is a threat of animals getting out of the zoo.
Red-Eyed Pursuit: Continue the following starter: A red-eyed man of tall and dark build looms over a bus stop on a lonely, deserted country road, staring at me intently. I run like hell to get to the other side of the street, but it’s too late…
Homebound Horror: A strange animal has been following you through your home. Have you been doing anything strange or dangerous that has made it freak out?
Midnight Messages: Someone is leaving you messages in the dead of night. What’s the creepiest message you’ve received?
Ghostly Watcher: Create a ghost story about a creature that watches and waits in the corners of dark, abandoned places.
Jack and Jill’s Nightmare: Jack and Jill went up the hill, but they never came back down. Will they ever make it to the bottom? Write a horror story based on this idea.
Dark Secrets: The history of your town has a long dark secret that nobody wants to talk about. What is it?
Mutated Reality: Reality show participants get kidnapped and sent on a dangerous mission, where they must learn how to blend with mutated creatures.
Beastly Intrusion: In a small community in Japan, a supernatural force enters the community through a sewer. To beat it, the village must learn to work as a team and think like a beast.
School of Shadows: School kids don’t believe in ghosts until they’re suddenly being terrorised in their school at night.
Vampiric Genesis: Someone is using a contaminated strain of bat DNA to create vampires in real life. And it’s up to a group of scientists to put an end to it.
Promised Souls: The dead walk, and all they want to do is get what they were promised. Will you figure it out?
Spellbound Silence: An aspiring rapper, who always dreamed of singing in front of an adoring crowd, becomes the target of a spell that makes him unable to sing, his most cherished talent. Will he survive the consequences of his initial desire to be a star?
Mirror Man: Continue this story: You look into the mirror and see a man in black standing in the corner…
Cryptic Chronicles: Imagine that you stumble upon a really creepy story in your local library and it leads you on a very strange and frightening journey.
Lost in a Strange World: When night falls, people get teleported to an area far away, in a very different world! The only way to return home is by combining body parts with the different elements of the land.
Wicked Takeover: A small town gets taken over by a wicked witch, who’s on a mission to suck the souls of all the inhabitants.
Soul Seeker: When someone posts an ad online about finding a soul and bringing it home for a price, things get really interesting.
Human and Beast: What would happen if human DNA was spliced with that of a deadly monster?
Unknown Beyond: A guy receives an advance warning from his friends in the afterlife to get ready for the afterlife, or something worse may happen…
Death’s Present: A girl gets a letter that someone wants to give her a present before they die, but the present comes with a very specific clause. What happens when she follows the instructions?
Dark Diary: As a local woman is trying to recover from the death of her husband, she discovers an old diary, in which she discovers something that happened in her past that has led to events that followed.
Christmas Carnage: It’s beginning to look like Christmas! But there’s more to Christmas than Santa and presents. A deadly secret is hidden away in a child’s bedroom. And with a massive killer about to make an appearance, it’s a race against time to track him down.
Empire of Evil: A ship sets sail for the distant colony of the Empire, but its mission becomes a mission to find the source of evil.
Hell Town: Using a sinister new machine, a small-town mayor is convinced to turn his town into a hell-like world.
Wild Dogs: A group of four friends are lured into an abandoned house by a pack of wild dogs.
I Went To A Party: Complete the following sentence in three different spooky ways: I went to a party and…
Sea’s Claw: The captain was anxious to get home, but the sea was so rough that his ship could not make it. Suddenly, from the fog, a giant black claw appeared. The giant black claw grabbed the ship and then brought the ship to the bottom of the ocean.
Dybylu’s Awakening: A monster named Dybylu wakes up one morning, alone in her room. She can feel it in the air; her pet cat is afraid. She goes to look in the mirror and see’s a human staring back at her.
Murdered Spirit: A little boy is asked to help a spirit of a man who was murdered, but as he hears the story, it sounds weird and a bit confusing, and he begins to wonder if the story is even true.
Playground Horrors: In a playground near an orphanage, there are many playgrounds where kids play. The best playground is found next to an abandoned asylum.
Barn Cat’s Secret: A drifter named Mick goes to a farm with his friend Sam, and the owner of the farm is a creepy scientist. Mick climbs a barn ladder and sees a strange cat in there…
Cape Creature: A sweet girl named Annie and her sister, Charley, are having an adventure in their neighbourhood. Suddenly, Annie spots a strange black cape creature lurking in the distance. It was the most feared and horrible creature Annie has ever seen.
Island of Souls: The main character goes to an island that no one has visited before. He is enjoying his vacation, but one night he finds out that his home is being invaded by creatures who want to steal his soul.
Spookie’s Nightmares: A witch known as ‘Spookie’ causes horrible hallucinations to victims of her nightmares. Her victims can’t scream or cry or run. All they can do is panic.
Stick’s Mischief: A girl named Paige finds a stick that attracts a mysterious creature that will play a sick joke on her.
Black Blood: One day, a girl named Robin started having problems in school. Her parents, who are very smart and caring, see something is very wrong with Robin so they take her to the doctor. The doctor makes her go through a lot of tests, and everything is okay except for one last thing. Robin has black blood running through her veins.
Mirror’s Curse: A teenage girl named Sarah who is obsessed with her appearance starts turning into an old, ugly witch every time she looks into a mirror.
Bee Killer: When bees start dying suddenly out of nowhere, the lead detective in a bee colony must find the culprit.
Demon’s Puzzle: A strange jigsaw puzzle holds a horrific secret… In it, a grinning demon holds a girl’s head in its giant mouth.
Forbidden Drawing: A little boy sees a drawing of him in a forbidden book he had found. He is then transported to a never-ending forest, lost forever…
When the Past Comes Back: An adult is being haunted by their younger self.
Beast of the Woods: A reporter goes into the woods where there was a fierce animal attack. In this attack, five women and a little boy were killed. He decides to search for evidence on who this killer creature might be…
Letters of London: A man lives by himself in a flat in London. A mysterious person starts sending him letters which talk about how scary things will happen if he doesn’t leave his flat.
The Ghost in Her Friend’s Mother: A 7 year old girl is having a sleepover at her friend’s house. Her friend’s mom leaves them alone, but they soon find out that she was poisoned, and that a ghost has taken over her body.
Creepy Crawlies in Your Kitchen: The first animal the kids see is a snake that eats people’s brains. It sneaks around in people’s kitchens.
Revolving Nightmares: The story starts off with a character telling the readers about the night he and his parents got stuck in a revolving door. The night would haunt him for the rest of his life.
Tommy’s Window: A long time ago there was a man named Tommy, who was lost in a forest. Tommy thought he heard a ghost calling him. Tommy went in the direction of the noise and found a scary-looking house that has windows that never opened. Tommy finds out that the house belongs to a witch and that if he opens the windows, the witch will turn Tommy into a puppet.
Tommy the Dog: This is a story about a little boy and his dog. The little boy goes to a big park, and he sees a dog that is alone. He walks over to the dog, but it just barks and then runs away. The next day Tommy starts turning into a human-sized dog.

Fear no more! Just use this list of horror writing prompts to start writing your own fantastic horror story! Use any of these scary prompt ideas to take the story from your mind to your computer screen.

Looking for more creepy horror prompts? Check out this list of Halloween writing prompts , as well as this scary Halloween picture prompts .

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What are the 5 elements of a horror story.

Every good horror story contains the following five elements: Character, Setting, Action, Horror and Resolution. You can’t write a good horror without these elements.

How do you write in creepy writing?

To write in creepy writing, you need to immerse yourself in the world of horror. You think to think exactly like your main character or antagonist. Imagine yourself as a ghost, a demon, a monster, or a murderer. You can be a ghost who haunts people in their dreams or a monster who stalks them in the real world. Use extreme details to describe scenes of horror with gory and disgusting elements.

How do you get inspiration for horror?

Most horror stories are based on fear. Think about the things that scare you or haunt you in your nightmares. You can also get inspiration from watching scary movies or reading about scary stories. Finally, horror stories can also be inspired by real-life situations. For example, a girl who is bullied decides to take revenge on her bullies in a gruesome way. Of course, you can also use this list of horror writing prompts to inspire you too!

What are common horror themes?

Horror themes can be based on personal experiences, fears, or nightmares. Here are some common horror themes to explore:

Stalker: Someone who stalks you in your dreams or in the real world.
Monsters: Someone or something who appears to be human, but isn’t.
Revenge: Someone who is still haunted by a past event, and needs to seek revenge to overcome it.
Secrets: A deadly secret that could shake the lives of anyone involved.
Psychopaths: People who just kill or hurt others for the fun of it.

Did you find this list of over 110 horror writing prompts useful? Let us know in the comments below.

Marty the wizard is the master of Imagine Forest. When he's not reading a ton of books or writing some of his own tales, he loves to be surrounded by the magical creatures that live in Imagine Forest. While living in his tree house he has devoted his time to helping children around the world with their writing skills and creativity.

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101 Terrifying Horror Story Prompts

Welcome to the story den of horror, scares, and the macabre.

Most writers are often asked, "Where do you get your ideas from?" A majority of the time, writers find it difficult to answer that question.

We get our ideas from a plethora of sources — news headlines, novels, television shows, movies, our lives, our fears, our phobias, etc. They can come from a scene or moment in a film that wasn't fully explored. They can come from a single visual that entices the creative mind — a seed that continues to grow and grow until the writer is forced to finally put it to paper or screen.

In the spirit of helping writers find those seeds, here we offer 101 originally conceived and terrifying story prompts that you can use as inspiration for your next horror story.

They may inspire screenplays, novels, short stories, or even smaller moments that you can include in what stories you are already writing or what you will create in your upcoming projects.

But beware! If you scare easily — and have active imaginations like most writers do — turn up the lights and proceed with caution...

1. A girl goes missing in the woods, and her parents find only a decrepit and scary doll left behind. They soon learn that the doll is actually their daughter. And she's alive.

2. New residents of an old neighborhood are invited by their friendly neighbors to a Halloween party. The neighbors are vampires.

3. A family dog runs away from home. He returns a year later to the delight of his family. But there's something different about him. Something demonic.

4. A girl goes missing. Fifteen years later, her parents get a call from her older self. But they listen in fear because they killed their daughter that dark night years ago.

5. A man reads a novel, soon realizing that the story is his very own — and according to the book, a killer is looming.

6. A scientist clones his family that died in an airplane crash — but soon learns the repercussions of playing God.

7. A man wakes up bound to an electric chair.

8. A man wakes up in a coffin next to a freshly dead body.

9. A woman wakes up to find her family gone and her doors and windows boarded up with no way to escape.

10. A man afraid of snakes is shipwrecked on an island covered with them.

11. Serial killers worldwide are connected by a dark web website.

12. The world's population is overtaken by vampires — all except one little child.

13. A woman afraid of clowns is forced to work in a traveling circus.

14. An astronaut and cosmonaut are on the International Space Station when their countries go to Nuclear War with each other. Their last orders are to eliminate the other.

15. A treasure hunter finds a tomb buried beneath the dirt.

16. A young brother and sister find an old door in their basement that wasn't there before.

17. Winged creatures can be seen within the storm clouds above.

18. A man wakes up to find a hobo clown staring down at him.

19. Residents of a town suddenly fall dead while the dead from cemeteries around them rise.

20. A doctor performs the first head transplant — things go wrong.

21. A man is texted pictures of himself in various stages of torture that he has no memory of.

22. A girl wakes up to find a little boy sitting on his bed, claiming to be her younger brother — but she never had one.

23. A scare walk in the woods during Halloween is actually real.

24. A bartender serves last call to the only remaining patron, who is the Devil himself.

25. Earth suffers a planet-wide blackout as all technology is lost.

26. A boy's stepfather is actually a murderous werewolf.

27. Something has turned the neighborhood pets into demonic killers.

28. A priest is a vampire.

29. A woman wakes up with no eyes.

30. A man wakes up with no mouth.

31. A monster is terrified by the scary child who lives above his bed.

32. An astronaut jettisoned into the cold of space in a mission gone wrong suddenly appears at the doorstep of his family.

33. A woman answers a phone call only to learn that the voice on the other end is her future self, warning her that a killer is looming.

34. A boy realizes that aliens have replaced his family.

35. A woman wakes up in an abandoned prison that she cannot escape.

36. A bank robber steals from the small town bank that holds the riches of witches.

37. A door-to-door salesman circa the 1950s visits the wrong house.

38. Deceased soldiers return to their Civil War-era homes.

39. Kidnappers abduct the child of a vampire.

40. An innocent circus clown discovers the dark history of the trade.

41. A homeless man is stalked by faceless beings.

42. A spelunker stumbles upon a series of caverns infested with rattlesnakes.

43. A group of friends is forced to venture through a chamber of horrors where only one is promised to survive.

44. He's not the man she thought he was. In fact, he's not a man at all.

45. Suburbia is actually purgatory.

46. Someone discovers that we are all actually robots — who created us and why?

47. She's not an angel. She's a demon.

48. An old shipwreck washes ashore.

49. A sinkhole swallows a house whole and unleashes something from beneath.

50. A man has sleep paralysis at the worst possible time.

51. A woman out hiking is caught in a bear trap as the sun begins to go down.

52. Naked figures with no faces stalk campers in the woods.

53. An astronaut is the sole survivor of a moon landing gone wrong — only to discover that the moon is infested with strange creatures.

54. A woman is wrongfully condemned to an insane asylum.

55. A mother's baby will not leave its womb and continues to grow and grow and grow while doctors try to cut it out but can't.

56. Friends on a road trip stumble upon a backcountry town whose residents all dress up as different types of clowns.

57. Tourists in Ireland retreat to an old castle when the country is taken over by greedy and vengeful leprechauns.

58. A boy on a farm makes a scarecrow that comes alive.

59. A figure dressed in an old, dirty Easter Bunny suit haunts the children of a town.

60. The abused animals of a zoo are unleashed and wreak havoc on a small town.

61. A deceased grandma's old doll collection comes alive.

62. Little Red Riding Hood was a vampire.

63. Somebody clones Hitler and raises him as a white supremacist.

64. A pumpkin patch comes alive — beings with heads of pumpkins and bodies of vines.

65. An endless swarm of killer bees wreaks havoc on the country.

66. Christ returns to Earth — at least that is who people thought he was.

67. A natural anomaly brings all of the country's spiders to a horrified town.

68. A woman finds old 16mm film from her childhood and sees that she had a sister — what happened to her?

69. Something ancient rises from an old pond.

70. A woman suddenly begins to wake up in somebody else's body every morning — each day ends with her being stocked and killed by the same murderer in black.

71. An Artificial Intelligence begins to communicate with a family online, only to terrorize them through their technology.

72. A family buys a cheap house only to discover that an old cemetery is their back yard.

73. Years after the zombie apocalypse subsides, survivors discover that the epidemic was caused by aliens that have appeared to lay claim to the planet.

74. A woman has memories of being abducted by aliens — but she soon learns that they weren't aliens. They were...

75. A boy has a tumor that slowly grows into a Siamese twin — the older they get, the more evil the twin becomes.

76. A cult that worships history's deadliest serial killers begins to kill by copying their methods.

77. Stone gargoyles suddenly appear on the tops of buildings and houses of a small town.

78. A family on a boat trip stumbles upon an old pirate ship.

79. A winter snowstorm traps a family in an abandoned insane asylum.

80. A little girl comes down from upstairs and asks her parents, "Can you hear it breathing? I can."

81. A town is enveloped in unexplained darkness for weeks.

82. A jetliner flies high in the sky as Nuclear War breaks out below.

83. Children discover a deep, dark well in the woods — an old ladder leads down into it.

84. A child sleepwalks into their parent's room and whispers, "I'm sorry. The Devil told me to."

85. As a woman showers, a voice comes from the drain whispering, "I see you."

86. A child finds a crayon drawing of a strange family — it's inscribed with the words we live in your walls .

87. All of the cemetery's graves are now open, gaping holes — the dirt pushed out from underground.

88. A woman is watching a scary movie alone on Halloween night — someone, or something, keeps knocking at her door.

89. Someone is taking a bath as a hand from behind the shower curtain pushes their head into the water.

90. A farmer and his sons begin to hear the laughter of children coming from his fields at night — no children are in sight.

91. Someone looks out their window to see a clown standing at a corner holding a balloon — staring at them.

92. Mannequins in a department store seem to be moving on their own.

93. What if the God people worshiped was really Satan — and Satan had somehow kept God prisoner?

94. A man dies and wakes up in the body of a serial killer — and no matter how hard he tries to stop killing, he can't.

95. A prisoner awakens to find the prison empty — but he's locked in his cell.

96. A woman jogging stumbles upon a dead, bloody body — she then hears a strange clicking sound and looks up to see a dark figure running towards her.

97. A girl hears laughter downstairs — she's the only one home.

98. An Uber driver picks up the wrong person — and may not live to tell the tale.

99. There's someone or something living and moving up in the attic — but it's not a ghost.

100. A child's imaginary friend is not imaginary.

101. The reflections that we see of ourselves in the mirror are actually us in a parallel universe — and they are planning to do whatever it takes to take our place in this world.

Share this with your writing peers or anyone that loves a good scary story.

For some more scares, check out ScreenCraft's 20 Terrifying Two-Sentence Horror Stories and 8 Ways Horror Movies Scare the S*** Out of Audiences!

Sleep well and keep writing.

Once you're inspired, take your idea to the next level and Develop Your Horror Movie Idea in 15 Days .

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout , starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

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132 Best Horror Writing Prompts and Scary Story Ideas

Generate Full-Length AI Horror Novel Instantly

Table of contents.

Horror stories send shivers down our spines. They are gruesome, shocking, and chilling. Scary stories are meant to horrify us, and there are many ways to make a powerful impact on the reader. The element of surprise is crucial to make the readers’ blood freeze.

There are different types of horror stories. They often deal with terrible murders, supernatural powers, psychopaths, frightening human psychology, and much more.

Horror Writing Prompts List

Although many horror writing prompts and scary ideas have been written, the following 132 horror writing prompts can spark great creativity in aspiring writers of the horror genre.

A family is on a camping trip. The parents are walking with their two children, a daughter and a son. The little boy trips and falls into a dark river. His father jumps to rescue him. Somehow, the boy manages to swim to the surface. The father is nowhere to be found. When the mother gets a hold of the boy, she can’t recognize him. She tries holding him, but the moment she touches his wet body, her hands start burning.
A young girl goes missing in a nearby forest. The whole town is searching for her. Her parents find her sitting and smiling in a cave. Her eyes are completely white.
A woman starts watching a movie late at night. The movie seems all too familiar. Finally, she realizes that it is a movie about her own life and that she might be already dead.
A house finds a way to kill every visitor on its premises.
A child makes her own Halloween mask. She glues a lock of her own hair on her mask. The mask comes to life and threatens to take over the girl’s body.

While digging in her backyard, an old lady discovers an iron chest. She opens it and finds a pile of old photographs of her ancestors. All of them are missing their left eye.
A priest is trying to punish God for the death of his sister. He is getting ready to burn down the church when supernatural forces start to torture him.
Every year, a woman goes to the cemetery where her husband is buried, and when she looks at his tombstone, she notices her own name carved into it.
A woman puts a lipstick on in the bathroom when she hears a demonic voice saying to her: “Can’t you see?”
A mysterious child psychiatrist promises parents to cure their children if they give him a vile of their blood.
A group of 10 friends decide to rent an old English castle for the weekend. The ghosts are disturbed and seek their pound of flesh.
A photographer travels to an Indian reservation for his next project. He starts taking photos, but there are only shadows in the places where people should have been.

A young married couple decides to renovate an abandoned psychiatric hospital and turn it into a hotel. Everything is going well until their first guest arrives.
Three sisters are reunited for the reading of their grandmother’s will. She has left them a diamond necklace, but they have to fight psychologically and physically for it.
An old woman pretends to be lost and asks a young woman to help her get home. She offers them a cup of tea and drugs them. When the women wake up, they are chained in the basement. The old woman gives them tools and boards so that they can build their own coffin. If they refuse, she inflicts pain on them.
A mysterious stranger with a glass eye and a cane commissions a portrait. When the portrait is finished, the painter turns it into stone.
A little girl’s sister lives with a monster in the closet. She exits the closet on her sister’s birthday.
The demons under the nuclear plant get released after an explosion and start terrorizing the families of people who work at the plant.
A woman gets trapped in a parallel universe where every day, she dies horribly in different ways.
A cannibal hunts for pure children’s hearts, hoping they will bring him eternal youth.
A politician hides his weird sister in the attic. She’s had her supernatural powers after their family home burned to the ground.
A 16-year-old girl wakes up on a stone-cold table surrounded by people in black and white masks. They chant and start leaning forward. All of them carry carved knives.

A boy hears screaming from his parents’ bedroom. He jumps and hides under his bed. Suddenly, everything becomes quiet. A man wearing army boots enters his room. He drags the boy from under the bed and says: “We’ve been searching for you for 200 years.”
A husband and his wife regain consciousness only to see each other tied to chairs, facing each other. A voice on the radio tells them to kill the other. Otherwise, they would kill their children.
A mysterious altruist gives a kidney to a young man who has the potential to become a leading neuroscientist. After a year, the altruist kills the young man because he proves to be an unworthy organ recipient. The following year, the mysterious altruist is a bone marrow donor.
A group of friends play truth or dare. Suddenly, all the lights go out, and in those ten seconds of darkness, one of the group is killed.
A young man becomes obsessed with an old man living opposite his building. The young man is convinced that the old man is the embodiment of the devil and starts planning the murder.
Concerned and grieving parents bring their 8-year-old son to a psychiatrist after their daughter’s accident, believing that the boy had something to do with her death.
A woman is admitted to a hospital after a car crash. She wakes up after three months in a coma, but when she tries to speak, she can’t utter a sound. When the nurse sees that she is awake, she calls a doctor. The last thing the woman remembers is hearing the doctor say: “Today is your lucky day,” right before four men in black robes take her out.
A small-town cop becomes obsessed with a cold case from 1978. Three girls went missing after school, and nobody has seen them since. Then, one day, in 2008, three girls with the same names as those in 1978 went missing. The case is reopened.

Scary story ideas for a psychological horror

After his parents’ death, a cardiologist returns to his small town, where everyone seems to lead a perfect life. This causes a disturbance in the idyllic life of the people since none of them has a heart.
A man is kidnapped from his apartment at midnight and brought to a large private estate. He is told that he will be a human prey and that ten hunters with guns will go after him. He is given a 5-minute head start.
A strange woman in labor is admitted to the local hospital. Nobody seems to recognize her. She screams in agony. A black smoke fills in the entire hospital. After that, nobody is the same. A dark lord is born.
A young girl finds her grandmother’s gold in a chest in the attic, although she isn’t allowed to go there by herself. She touches the gold, and she starts seeing horrible visions involving her grandmother when she was younger.
An anthropologist studies rituals involving human sacrifice. She slowly begins to accept them as necessary.
A family of four moves into an old Victorian home. As they restore it, more and more people die suddenly and violently.

An old nurse has lived next door to a family that doesn’t get older. Their son has remained to be a seven-year-old boy.
A girl wakes up in her dorm and sees that everybody sleepwalks in the same direction. She acts as if she has the same condition and follows them to an underground black pool where everybody jumps.
A bride returns to the same bridge for 50 years, waiting for her husband-to-be to get out of the water.
An old woman locks girls’ personalities in a forever-growing collection of porcelain dolls. Parents of the missing girls are in agony, and they finally suspect something. When they tell the police, their claims are instantly dismissed.
A chemistry teacher disfigures teenagers who remind him of his childhood bullies. One day, he learns that the new student in his school is the son of his childhood archenemy.
A girl starts digging tiny holes in her backyard. When her mother asks her what she is doing, the girl answers: “Mr. Phantom told me to bury my dolls tonight. Tomorrow night I am going to bury our dog. And then, you, mother.”

Twin brothers were kidnapped and returned the next day. They claim that they can’t remember anything. The following night, the twin sisters disappear.
A boy has a very realistic dream about impending doom, but nobody believes him until, during a storm, all the birds fall dead on the ground.
Room 206 is believed to be haunted, so hotel guests never stay in it. One day, an old woman arrives at the hotel and asks for the key to room 206. She says that she was born there.
A genius scientist tries to extract his wife’s consciousness from her lifeless body and insert it into an imprisoned woman who looks just like his wife.
Two distinguished scientists developed a new type of virus that attacks their brains and turns them into killing machines.
A woman steps out of her house only to find four of her neighbors dead at her doorstep. Little does she know that she isn’t supposed to call the police.
A bachelor’s party ends with two dead people in the pool. Both of them are missing their eyes.
A young woman wearing a black dress is holding a knife in her hand and threatening to kill a frightened man. She is terrified because she does not want to kill anybody, but her body refuses to obey her mind.
A strange religious group starts performing a ritual on a playground. The children’s hearts stop beating.
A woman discovers that her niece has done some horrible crimes, so she decides to poison her. Both of them take the poison, but only the aunt dies.

Free Small decorative ghost in white cape hanging on tree sprig on blurred background in autumn park during holiday celebration in daylight Stock Photo

A man encounters death on his way to work. He can ask three questions before he dies. He makes a quick decision.
An older brother kills his baby sister because he wants to be an only child. When he learns that his mother is pregnant again, he decides to punish her.
A husband and his wife move to a new apartment. After a week, both of them kill themselves. They leave a note saying: “Never again.”
A man is trying to open a time portal so that he can kill his parents before he is ever conceived.
A famous conductor imprisons a pianist from the orchestra and makes him play the piano while he tortures other victims as musicians. Every time the pianist makes a mistake, the conductor cuts of a finger from his victims.
A popular French chef is invited by a mysterious Japanese sushi master for dinner. A powerful potion makes the French chef fall asleep. He wakes up horrified to learn that he is kept on a human farm, in a cage.
A nuclear blast turns animals into blood-thirsty monsters.
A mysterious bug creeps under people’s skin and turns them into the worst version of themselves.
A kidnapper makes his victims torture each other for his sheer pleasure.
Four friends are invited to spend the afternoon in an escape room. A man’s voice tells them that they have won a prize. They happily accept and enter the escape room. They soon realize that the room was designed to reflect their worst nightmares.

Two sisters have been given names from the Book of the Dead. Their fates have been sealed, so when they turn 21, dark forces are sent to bring them to the underground.
A mother-to-be starts feeling severe pain in her stomach every time she touches a Bible. Despite the fear for her own life, she starts reading the New Testament out loud.
A literature professor discovers an old manuscript in the college library. He opens it in his study, and suddenly, a black raven flies through the window.
You are the Ruler of a dystopian society. You kill every time your control is threatened.
You are an intelligent robot who shows no mercy to humanity.
You are a promising researcher who discovers that all the notorious dictators have been cloned.
A nomad meets a fakir who tells him that he will bring agony to dozens of people unless he kills himself before he transforms into a monster.
A most prominent member of a sect goes to animal shelters to find food for the dark forces.
A man hires unethical doctors to help him experience clinical death and then bring him back to life after a minute. Little does he know that one minute of death feels like an eternity full of horrors.
You travel home to visit your parents for the holidays. Everything seems normal until you realize that demons have taken over their consciousness.
A mysterious woman moves into your apartment building. One by one, all of the tenants start hallucinating that monsters are chasing them and jump to their own deaths.
Divorced parents are kidnapped together with their son. Both of the parents have been given poison, but there is only one antidote. The boy needs to decide which parent gets to be saved. He has 30 seconds to make that decision.
A patient with a multiple-personality disorder tells you that you are one of six characters.
You wake up in bed that is a bloodbath.

Free Man Wearing Black Mask And Hoodie Jacket Stock Photo

The Government abducts children with genius IQ and trains them to fight the horrors in Area 51.
A woman who has just given birth at her home is told that the baby is predestined to become the leader of the greatest demonic order in the country.
A man signs a document with his blood to relinquish his body to a sect.
A woman enters a sacred cave in India and disappears for good.
A man opens his eyes in the middle of his autopsy while the coroner is holding his heart.
You look outside the windows in your house only to see that the view has changed and there is black fog surrounding you.
The gargoyles from Notre Dame have come to life, and they start terrorizing Paris.
Somebody rings your doorbell. You open the door, and a frightened girl with bloody hands is standing at your doorstep. “You’re late,” you reprimand her.
You wake up in the middle of the night after a frightful nightmare, so you go to the kitchen to get a glass of water. You turn on the light, and a person looking like your identical twin is grinning and pointing a knife at you.
A renowned book editor receives a manuscript elegantly written by hand. The title grabs her attention, and she continues reading page after page. When she finishes, the manuscript spontaneously starts burning, and the editor is cursed forever.
The last thing you remember before losing consciousness is fighting a shady Uber driver.
You find yourself in a cage in the middle of a forest and black mythological harpies hovering above the cage.
A woman wants to quit smoking, so she visits a therapist who is supposed to help her with the use of hypnosis. She goes under, and when she wakes up, she feels like a born killer.
Five hikers get stranded during a horrible storm. One of them kills the weakest and starts burning his body.
A mother goes in to the nursery to check up on the baby and discovers that the baby is missing and, in her place, there is a baby doll.

Horror story ideas about a serial killer

A killer is willing to pay a large sum of money to the family of a volunteering victim. A cancer patient contacts the killer. The killer ends up dead.
The sacred river in a remote Asian village fills up with blood. The last time that happened, all the children in the village died.
A tall, dark, and handsome stranger invites a blind woman for a romantic date in his botanical garden. The garden is full of black roses in which women’s souls have been trapped. He tells her that she will stay forever with him in his garden.
A frightened man is trying to lead a werewolf into a trap and kill him with the last silver bullet.
An architect designs houses for the rich and famous. What he doesn’t show them is that he always leaves room for a secret passageway to their bedrooms, where they are the most vulnerable.
A man’s DNA was found on a horrible crime scene, and he has been charged with murder in the first degree. He adamantly negates any involvement in the crime that has been committed. What he doesn’t know is that he had a twin brother who died at birth.
Every passenger on the Orient Express dies in a different and equally mysterious way.
A magician needs a volunteer from the audience in order to demonstrate a trick involving sawing a person in half. A beautiful woman steps on the stage. The magician makes her fall asleep, and then he performs the trick. In the end, he disappears. People in the audience start panicking when they notice the blood dripping from the table. The magician is nowhere to be found. The woman is dead.
A mother discovers that her bright son is not human.
Specters keep terrorizing patients in a psychiatric hospital, but nobody believes them.

A man’s mind is locked into an immovable body. This person is being tortured by a psychopath who kills his family members in front of him, knowing that he is in agony and can’t do anything to save them.
A bride-to-be receives a DVD via mail from an unknown sender. She plays the video and, disgusted, watches a pagan ritual. The people are wearing masks, but she recognizes the voice of her husband-to-be.
A man turns himself to the police, although he hasn’t broken the law. He begs them to put him in prison because he had a premonition that he would become a serial killer.
Jack the Ripper is actually a woman who brutally kills prostitutes because her own mother was a prostitute.
A ticking noise wakes her up. It’s a bomb, and she has only four minutes to do something about it.
After a horrible car crash, a walking skeleton emerges from the explosion.
A world-famous violinist virtuoso uses music to summon dark forces.
A philosopher is trying to outwit Death in order to be granted immortality. He doesn’t know that Death already knows the outcome of this conversation.
A beautiful but superficial woman promises a demon to give him her virginity in exchange for immortality. Once the demon granted her wish, she refused to fulfill her end of the deal. The demon retaliated by making her immortal but not eternally youthful.
A voice starts chanting spells every time somebody wears the gold necklace from Damask.
Three teenagers beat up a homeless man. The next day all of them go missing.

Scary story ideas and horror story writing prompts

Thirteen tourists from Poland visit Trakai Island Castle in Vilnius. Their bodies are found washed up the next morning. They are wearing medieval clothes.
A group of extremists ambush the vehicle in which the head of a terrorist cell is transported and rescue him. They go after anybody who was involved in his incarceration.
A hitman is hired to kill a potential heart donor.
A man is attacked by the neighbor’s dog while trying to bury his wife alive.
A woman disappears from her home without a trace. He husband reports her missing. The police start to suspect the husband when they retrieve some deleted messages.
After moving to a new house, all the family members have the same nightmares. Slowly, they realize that they might be more than nightmares.
A psychopath is drugging his wife, pushing her to commit suicide so that he can collect the life insurance.
A woman loses her eyesight overnight. Instead, she starts having premonitions.
A vampire prefers albino children.
A man commits murders at night and relives the agony of his victims during the day.
A black horse carriage stops in front of your house. A hand wearing a black glove makes an inviting gesture. Mesmerized, you decide to enter the carriage.
Demons rejuvenate by eating kind people’s hearts.
People are horrified to find all of the graves dug out the morning after Halloween.
Men start jumping off buildings and bridges after hearing a mysterious song.
A voice in your head tells you to stop listening to the other voices. They were not real.
A severed head is hanging from a bridge with a message written in the victim’s blood.
A delusional man brings his screaming children to a chasm.
A 30-year-old woman learns that a baby with the same name as her died at the local hospital 30 years ago.
A vampire donates his blood so that a child with special brain powers can receive it.
A teenager is determined to escape his kidnapper by manipulating him into drinking poison. He doesn’t stop there.

Final Words

Write a good horror story with scary story ideas

The 132 scary story ideas will help you take a deep dive into the human psyche. These horror story prompts will make you a seasoned writer and help you captivate readers. So, get ready to write a good horror story with unique writing prompts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Let’s take a look at the following questions and answers:

What is a good way to start horror writing prompts?

To grab readers’ attention, craft the beginning of your horror story around an active scene featuring characters in the thick of an action. Introduce the central conflict and sprinkle tantalizing hints of danger or the unknown, such as clues about an accident or murder, to create an air of suspense and intrigue.

What are some good scary story ideas?

Effective horror story ideas delve into innate human fears and weaknesses. These fears can manifest as physical threats like monsters or ghosts or as psychological anxieties such as uncertainty or the unraveling of reality.

How can I start writing unique horror stories?

To craft a spine-tingling horror story, delve into the emotions that haunt your audience. Fear thrives in the unknown and the unforeseen, so weave these aspects seamlessly into your narrative. Craft a haunting atmosphere or chilling plot through vivid descriptions that linger in the reader’s mind. Gradually intensify the tension to keep them captivated and quivering on the brink of terror.

Is it easy to write on scary story prompts?

If you’re a horror enthusiast, you likely have some scary story ideas for your own screenplay. However, crafting effective horror stories isn’t straightforward. To truly scare your audience, your scary story must connect with their most primal fears.

What are cliches to avoid while writing scary story ideas?

To create effective horror stories, don’t rely solely on common tropes like haunted houses or creepy children. Instead, find unique angles or reinterpretations to keep your readers engaged in your scary story. Avoid overused scary story ideas unless you can add a novel twist. Remember that the goal of a horror story is to surprise and disturb the audience, making it crucial to avoid predictability and create an unsettling experience for your readers.

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