scary story essay examples

Scary Story Essay example

Scary Story I looked up at the black sky. I hadn't intended to be out this late. The sun had set, and the empty road ahead had no streetlights. I knew I was in for a dark journey home. I had decided that by traveling through the forest would be the quickest way home. Minutes passed, yet it seemed like hours and days. The farther I traveled into the forest, the darker it seemed to get. I was very had to even take a breath due to the stifling air. The only sound familiar to me was the quickening beat of my own heart, which felt as though it was about to come through my chest. I began to whistled to take my mind off the eerie noises I was hearing. In this kind of darkness I was in, it was hard for me to believe that I could be …show more content…

I took a glance around and found myself looking right into a pair of dark, glassy eyes peering at me through the bushes. I knew I was not seeing things at that moment. Were those the evil eyes of a goblin lurking waiting for it’s next meal? My breath became too rapid for me to be able to whistle. I took a big gulp and decided to step on it and quicken my pace. I would never get home at this rate. The same moment I decided to quicken my speed, a deer burst through the night. I screamed, stumbled and hit the ground with a loud thump. I sat on the moist ground for a moment to try to recover but my heart began to throb as if it was beating within my throat. It was just a deer I told myself, I had to be brave. Trying to get myself together I began to feel this hot puffs of air on the back of my neck. “It’s the goblin!” I screamed as I rapidly rose to my feet. My head spun like an owl as I went to look for what was behind me. I looked to the ground and discovered a little white dog. “You scared me to death little guy. What is a cute little puppy like you doing in a dense forest like this?” I said to him. I was relieved it was only a dog instead of the ghastly goblin, but I only made it half-way home by then. As I proceeded on the white little dog followed me. I felt more at ease now that I had him following me but he would not be considered much of a watch dog to most

Free College Admissions Essays: HELP Me !

With eyes closed I stand alone, in the dark I smell the sweet scent of fresh-cut grass and feel the soft dirt under my feet. I feel the sunshine on my skin, though I cannot see it. I stand in this blissful moment until I hear a call. Desperation and panic fill the air as I blindly run towards the unknown voice. “HELP ME!” it shouts. I stumble over a log; I can feel the blood trickle down my leg. “HELP ME” another voice shouts. Gradually more and more voices call out for help tugging at my heart. I try to bury myself in my hands and collapse into the soft earth. I jump back in surprise as a cold hand gently traces my face. Tears spill out of my eyes allowing them to open; I look up and see a woman. She wears all black and has a veil over her

Scary Short Stories

The last sounds I recall hearing were three deafening bangs, and one boom. I remember spinning rapidly through what seemed like a never-ending hole of eerie darkness. My sassy, independent self was frightened, so I closed my eyes and prayed that I would live to see the next day. I eventually gained the courage to open my eyes, and continued to lie numb on the street, utterly confused. I kept wondering where I was, and even what day it was. I cautiously stood up as the cold drizzle continued to pour down all around me, collecting in crevices across the long, cobblestone street. I glanced down at my clothes, and saw they were destroyed by mud that had been splattered by passing horses. I continued to survey my surroundings , and that is when

Personal Narrative Essay About Scaring People In Scary Movies

Have you scared someone so bad and thought of what could have had happened to you? Scaring a person is bad, although I have someone before. I have gotten so scared before that I thought I was dying!!! Scaring people is not a good thing to do because it can traumatize them, make them not want to be around you, and also can make them feel scared and embarrassed.

Bogeyman Descriptive Writing

I could hear a creek in the distance. If I ran to it I could dive in and they lose my scent. As the gushing water became louder I noticed how long I had been out here it was almost pitch black. I could see the river flowing towards the camp, I jumped in to the river. It chilled me to the bone. Then as my head popped out of the water I could see the majestic sun rise. And with the night my fear was now

Short Story

Before I engage in a run, my panic-filled eyes dart around in front of me as I perceive a path through the forest. Branches and twigs catch my hair, yanking out strands as they become entangled, yet I keep running. Only until I hear the sound of John's engine fade away do I cease my running, and lean my shoulder against a tree as I take deep lung-fulls of air, all the while, my sobs remain heavy as comprehend what just happened. All around me is darkness. Only slithers of moonlight seep through the dense fir trees. With my mouth closed, my shuddered breaths drown out the eerie quietness. However, the pounding of my heart continues to deafen me. I retrieve my phone from my bag and illuminate it to expel light, as assess my surroundings. All around me are the dense trees, and I'm unable to ascertain the way back to the road. A panicked whimper escapes my lips as I envision spending the entire night out here in the cold. As my remaining energy depletes, I rest my hand upon the tree closest to me, caressing the roughness of the bark under my fingertips. My eye throbs, as does the cut just beside it. Consequently, my hand flutters up to cover the wound, though does little to abate the pain. The quivering of my body intensifies as the warm adrenaline disperses, allowing the chill to seep through to my bones. I can't stay here all night, I'll freeze to death. With no recollection of my path into the woods, I turn to what I believe to

Diary Of A Girl Dialectical Journal

The roaring sound of the clock was not helping either. I felt as if mentally there, wherever I was but, physically I was not. I could here voices, sobbing but I could not open my eyes. “she might not wake up for day or hours” was the last thing I heard before darkness took me away.

Scary Halloween Research Paper

As we walked by the scary house, we walked by with fear. We heard the stories about the ghost roaming around there. We saw the scary looking pumpkins. It was Halloween, and this is what we saw, a scary clown chasing us down the scary and dark road. Halloween with all of its spooky houses, ghosts, can be an apprehensive holiday.

Horror Effects On Middle School Essay

Although everyone likes a good horror movie, have you thought of the effects it has on middle school children or younger? middle school children like horror genre because it has suspense. Even if after they watch it or read about it they feel scared, they like it.One of the effects horror genre has on middle school is anxiety and phobias. some children are mature enough but some are not and it can cause this children temporal or permanent anxiety. according to the article the lasting effects of horror movies on children and teens “they can also have sleep disturbances due to the shadows and noises”. when you watch a horror movie you are more alert of what is happening around you and that is why every sound or shadow scares you.Another reason

Descriptive Essay On A Cold House

The coldness all around me as I step outside my car. The dark clouds hug far above my head. As I prepare myself for the challenge that lies ahead. It was the middle of the winter and the trees looked like twigs. As I walk around the leaves crunching under my boots. I carry a camera as I head toward the creepy, noisy house. The singing of James inside the car could be heard all over the country. I keep walking forward to get a better look at this house I could see the paint wearing off and the windows boarded up. I look at my phone in horror and realize that it's close to dead. Thunder boomed over my head as rain started to come down. I walk up to the gate and open it. The gate creaked open and I look upon the yard. The grass was dead the stone path looked like pebbles. The house looked fragile as if it was about to collapse I gulped down my fear as I push onward.

Descriptive Essay Fear

Fear isn’t something that just goes away easily, it lingers and haunts you until it kills you inside. It is an unpleasant emotion and it creeps up on you as darkness takes over daylight, slowly and then all at once. However, fear is like the monster under my bed or the one hiding in my closet. Instead of just hiding, my fear grows immensely every time I try to ignore it. A time that I experienced intense fear was when my house got robbed but it made me stronger than before.

Essay On Realistic Fear

Sanborn NY- “The only thing you should fear is fear itself.” Well, that and many other things. I found myself itinerating around the campus of Niagara County Community College on March 14th, 2016 curious how realistic fears play a part in our social and daily life. Let me make this clear, it was very difficult discovering what type of questions to ask. I kept reminiscing the thought who are the right people for this and then it hit me; student athletes.

Narrative Essay About Fear

President Franklin Roosevelt once said, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Throughout my elementary school years, multiple teachers asked me to write a poem. I wrote my first poem in kindergarten with Miss Maggee at Collegium Charter School. Surrounded by white walls and colorful posters, I put my pencil to the paper. She asked me to write a fear that I had. Mrs. Buckley asked me to complete the same task in fourth grade at Starkweather Elementary School. Fear. Fear is included in a biography poem. For years, I would write the most common fear my classmates had, whether it was heights, bears, or clowns. Why couldn’t I think of a fear? Why did my classmates each have a specific fear? What do I fear? As I asked myself these questions, I found my answer. I am afraid of failure. The

Coulson's Journey-Personal Narrative

I looked in my mother’s mirror that I had kept. My once luscious light brown hair was now matted and turning blond from the sun, my blue eyes were bright and stood out on my tanned skin but around them I had bags from sleepless nights from nightmares. I placed the mirror along with the supplies I had gathered for the journey ahead into my backpack. At 9am I set of Southwards to meet Peter. For the first few hours I came across nothing out of the ordinary, the birds were flying in the sky and the fish were swimming and jumping in the river. About 1 mile away from where Peter and I had decided to meet, I looked up to the sky and saw that there were a swarm of crows above my head. Knowing that this were a sign of trouble I picked up my pace as I was in an open area with no cover. It was then that the crows decided to attack. They dived at me and began pecking me and grabbing me with their claws. I sprinted as fast as I could to get to the trees that were in front of me. Suddenly I heard this almighty bang, a gunshot. The crows let out harsh caws and flew away, reaching the trees I put my hand on my knees, panting. “You must be Elizabeth?” I let out a small scream and whipped my head to the left. There was a man with black hair and green eyes standing there, he put out his hand, “Peter” he commented. Getting over my mini-heart attack I took his hand and shook it, “Elizabeth” I replied. We decided to make camp in the forest and have some food, after our meal we both took out our backpacks to look over the information that we had gathered. It started raining, very heavily; there was this almighty rumble and a bright flash. I tried to stuff all my paper in my bag but was unsuccessful. “I’ve found it!” screamed Peter. Looking past him I saw a huge wave that was smashing down all the trees in its way. “We need to go!” I exclaimed. Peter dropped to his knees to pick up a piece of paper that I had dropped, “The cure, I’ve found

Essay on 13/10/666, Where Am I?

It was a gloomy tempestuous night. I was running away from something but I wasn’t sure what I was running away from. I scampered with exhaustion as the forest closed on me like a pair of jaws. I also had no idea where I was. My eyesight was distorted by the troubling unavoidable mist. I noticed that a small black figure with great yellowish green eyes had passed through my path which caused me to trip over a branch and fall to the ground with a “THUD!”

Huntington's Disease: A Short Story

At 6:00 A.M. on that oddly warm December morning the melody of my phone’s ringtone began to resonate through my bedroom, stirring me from my sleepy state. I do not quite remember answering the phone call, in fact, much of that morning was a blur of images and sounds in my mind. However, I do remember my irregular, strangled breathing as I attempted to dress with clothes I had found crumpled on the wooden floor of my room. Soon, I found myself in a car filled with maddening silence. The car ride was so quiet

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Short horror story essay 8 Models

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Short horror story essay is one of the popular intimidation methods that help parents in correcting children and improving their behavior in many educational aspects.

Through this article, we will provide you with many models that talk about stories of horror and intimidation that may help or influence the behavior of children, show the goals of horror stories, and the extent of the impact of these stories on improving children’s instincts, and strengthening their personality.

Short horror story essay

The school plays an important and significant role in educating children and improving their behaviour. In a similar article that talks about horror stories, the student can learn about the dimensions of these stories, the extent of their impact and why they are used.

The student can talk about his fears and terrifying situations he went through. The teacher can take advantage of these events and try to address these fears by guiding him and talking to him, or by making him research more about the dimensions of the problem and the benefits that he benefited from despite going through a terrifying situation.

At the beginning of the article we will put several points that show the goals that must be present within the topic, and several models will be created using these points inside them, so that the articles are useful for the student in case he wants to present them to the school, or if he wants to know the aspects that he should talk about inside a similar article he talks about the horror stories and the bad situations he was exposed to.

Objectives of the article

1- To obey orders.

2- Giving up bad behavior.

3- Repressing the evil instincts that are inside every human being.

4- Controlling the child in the safety zone next to the parents.

5- Planting correct means and methods through intimidation.

Several years ago, my father told me a story about a boy who went out without telling his family where he was going. And this was late at night. After he left, he met some children and played a little with them and enjoyed this, but because of the late time these children left him, some of them returned to their home alone, and some of them their families came to to pick them up, and he found himself alone in the end.

He decided to walk around for a while, so that he might encounter other children and continue playing with them. But after walking for a long time, he found that all the streets were empty, and it was dark everywhere, and he could no longer discern where he was, and that he was far from home and lost his way.

And whenever he tried to return from where he came, he found himself in dangerous areas with street dogs, and in order to avoid them, he kept entering other streets, until he lost the way completely. So he sat crying and did not find anyone to bring him home because all the people of the town were asleep.

The time at night was getting hard for this naughty little boy. Every minute that passes feels like it’s a long time and he’s so afraid of darkness and loneliness. And whenever he heard the sound of dogs howling, intensified in crying. And whenever he called his father, he did not come to take him, because he was far from the house and did not tell them that he was going out, and did not tell them where he was going.

Then he learned that he had made a big mistake and that his father would not come to look for him because he thought he was asleep. And he decided to try to call for help and search for any place where there are people and tell them what happened.

And he kept walking in the dark crying for a long time until he found some people, and told them his name, where he lived, and the name of the neighborhood in which he lived. Fortunately for him, they weren’t bad guys, and they brought this guy home.

The father was very angry with him for this behavior and punished him for a week for this behavior. But the boy was happy that he came home and learned the lesson well and knew that this wrong behavior was dangerous and could have lost his family for life.

While hearing this story, I was very afraid and put myself in the place of this boy, and I found myself learning from him what to do. And that I must tell my family where I am going, and watch the time, and take care of myself and not stay away from home. When I finish playing, I go home.

In the early morning, I was very careful to memorize my full name, the name of the neighborhood in which I live, the name of my mother, and the house number.

Although the story was scary for me, I learned a lot from it and had a reaction to every event that takes place in it.

Dear student, a basic form was submitted for the topic on short horror story essay, In addition to many other models such as, horror short story essay, creepy short horror story essay, a short horror story essay, short ghost story essay, short ghost story essay, scary short story essay, scary experience essay.

If you prefer to add any other topic, you can contact us through the comments of this article and we will study your request and add it as soon as possible.

horror short story essay

At the weekend I went on a trip with my friends to the forest. We took camping equipment, some food and water. The weather was nice, the trees were leafy, the birds were flying from tree to tree, the landscape was beautiful.

We wandered in the woods and ate the fruits on the trees, and as we wandered, a huge bear appeared in front of us, looked at us and prepared to attack us.

We were all very terrified, but the instructions reminded us not to run, not to scream, and to act calmly. I took out of my bag a self-defense spray bottle, which should be used in this case. But the bear left quietly and none of us were hurt.

creepy short horror story essay

I get up early and sit in the garden of the house, enjoying the fresh air, listening to the sound of birds, watching beautiful flowers and other beautiful landscapes, but yesterday something terrifying happened to me.

When I sat on the bench in the garden and was enjoying nature I felt something moving under the chair.

I quickly looked under the chair and found a large black snake.

It moves slowly, I felt very terrified and could not move, I remained frozen in my place, the snake crawled slowly and I looked at it with horror, until it moved away several meters, I called the competent authority immediately and a trained man came and caught the snake.

a short horror story essay

Last week I went with my family to the zoo, the weather was nice, and we were enjoying the nature, where there are a lot of green leafy trees and decorated with beautiful flowers and large areas that allow us to run and play, everything was beautiful.

Then we went to the animal cages and watched the animals from a distance.

But there is a person who got very close to the lion’s cage, even though there is a sign on it that says Do not go near the animal cages.

He was not satisfied with that, but he extended his hand into the cage, and the lion grabbed his hand with force, and this person was unable to rid his hand of the lion’s fangs.

The man screamed loudly from the severity of the pain, and the guard came quickly and tried to give the lion a piece of meat to leave the man’s hand, but to no avail.

The veterinarian quickly intervened and gave the lion an anesthetic injection, and the man was able to get his hand out of the cage, but it had many wounds and was taken to the hospital. It was really terrifying moments.

Short ghost story essay

There are many people who feel terrified in the dark, and my brother is very afraid of the dark and feels terrified and imagines frightening things.

So when the electricity went out and the house became dark. I went to his room quietly without feeling, and stood in front of him, making some strange sounds.

My brother jumped quickly and came out of the room saying a ghost of a ghost, but he hit the wall and cut his head and bled a lot, it was a big wound.

At that time I was telling him don’t be afraid, I am your brother, but he was very frightened. I was very sorry for him and regretted that I had caused him to feel terrified and made him crash into the wall.

And I told him I was just trying to joke with you and I wouldn’t do it again but you should train yourself not to be afraid of the dark.

A Short Scary Story Essay

Last weekend I went with my friends on a fishing trip. We chartered a fishing boat with all our fishing gear and went into the sea for a long distance, so that we could see neither the beach nor the city.

We started fishing and we were very happy because there are many fish and they are also big, and the weather was nice.

Suddenly strong winds blew and the waves rose, and the fishing boat was swinging with us over the water, up and down, and we couldn’t control it.

At this time we felt so afraid that we would drown.The fishing boat cannot withstand these bad weather conditions.

But after a while the wind calmed down a bit and we miraculously survived.

Scary short story essay

Last weekend I went with my colleagues on a school trip to one of the archaeological sites, and we had some teachers with us organizing the trip and supervising our transfers.

We entered a museum that houses great antiquities and stood listening to the tour guide talking about the history of these antiquities.

I was fascinated and listened to the tour guide with great interest, so that I did not feel the departure of my colleagues and teachers, as they left the museum and got on the bus and left this place and did not feel my absence.

When I found myself alone in the museum, I felt very afraid and searched for them all over the museum, but I could not find them, so my fear increased and my crying became louder.

Suddenly I found one of the teachers entering the museum and looking for me, so I ran towards him and grabbed his hand and felt safe.

Scary Experience Essay

At the end of the year I had a frightening experience. I went to the beach and decided to snorkel, so I bought wetsuits, put them on, and dived into the sea. But it was not what I expected and almost drowned.

I was so scared when I found myself unable to dive, and could not swim to the top.

It was a difficult situation but one of the lifeguards on the beach saw me, knew I was going to drown and ran to save me.

Therefore, I advise others to learn before we do anything that might endanger our lives.

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Scary Story Essay

As one reads through a spine-chilling tale, have you ever found yourself captivated, unable to avert your gaze despite the creeping sensation of terror that permeates your being? If so, you’re not alone. Scary stories essays have been popular for centuries, and they tap into our deepest fears and anxieties and transport us to a world where anything is possible.

If you are struggling to develop ideas for your scary story essay, don’t worry – with the right tools and techniques, anyone can write a terrifying tale that will leave readers begging for more. Whether you are an experienced wordsmith or a fledgling novice, continue reading to acquire the knowledge necessary to pen a narrative that will ensnare your audience and leave them tossing and turning throughout the night. Write my essays with confidence and create your spine-tingling tale today!

What is a Scary Story Essay?

A scary story essay is a narrative essay designed to frighten and unsettle the reader. It typically involves supernatural or horror elements like ghosts, monsters, or otherworldly creatures. The objective of an essay centered around a frightening narrative is to instill a feeling of uneasiness and apprehension within the reader while concurrently maintaining their attention until the very conclusion.

Some characteristics of a scary story essay include:

An eerie or ominous tone
Vivid descriptions of the setting, characters, and events
A sense of foreboding or impending doom
Suspenseful pacing and plot twists
An unsettling or unexpected ending

Differences between a scary story essay and other types of essays

One of the key differences between a scary story essay and other types of essays is the emphasis on creating an emotional response in the reader. While most pieces are designed to inform or persuade, a scary story essay spm is intended to evoke a specific emotional reaction.

Another difference is using narrative techniques such as plot, setting, and character development. In a scary story essay, these elements are used to create a sense of tension and unease rather than simply advancing the plot or conveying information.

Elements of a Horror Story

The key elements that make up a horror story include:

Setting	The setting of a horror story is typically dark, gloomy, and foreboding. It might be a haunted house, a creepy forest, or an abandoned hospital.
Characters	Horror stories often feature characters who are vulnerable or helpless in some way. This might include children, elderly people, or individuals with disabilities.
Plot	The plot of a horror story typically revolves around a supernatural or horror element, such as a ghost, monster, or curse. The report may involve a quest to defeat or escape the horror or be a tale of terror and suspense.
Tone	The tone of a horror story is typically eerie, ominous, and unsettling. It may be characterized by a sense of foreboding or impending doom, as well as sudden shocks and surprises.

When these fundamental components are merged and executed efficiently, they coalesce to generate an overwhelming sense of dread and discomfort in the reader. For example, the creepy setting might make the reader feel like they are being watched or followed, while the vulnerable characters make them feel sympathetic and protective.

The plot and tone of the story might create a sense of dread or anticipation as the reader wonders what will happen next. And when a sudden shock or surprise does occur, it reinforces the idea that anything can happen in this world and that the characters are never truly safe.

Types of Horror Stories

Numerous horror tale classifications exist, each presenting distinctive attributes and themes. Some of the most common types include:

Supernatural horror	This type of horror story involves supernatural or paranormal elements, such as ghosts, demons, or haunted objects.	“The Haunting of Hill House” by Shirley Jackson”The Shining” by Stephen King”Dracula” by Bram Stoker
Psychological horror	In psychological horror stories, the horror comes from the characters’ minds and emotions rather than external forces. This might include stories about madness, obsession, or psychological trauma.	“The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman”The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe”American Psycho” by Bret Easton Ellis
Body horror	Body horror stories focus on physical transformations or mutilations, such as body horror films like “The Fly” or “The Thing.”	“The Fly” by George Langelaan”The Thing” by John W. Campbell Jr.”The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka
Survival horror	This type of horror story involves characters who must fight to survive in a dangerous or hostile environment, such as a zombie apocalypse or a deserted island.	“The Walking Dead” by Robert Kirkman”The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins”Lord of the Flies” by William Golding
Folk horror	Folk horror stories are rooted in local or regional folklore and mythology, and often involve pagan or supernatural elements.	The Wicker Man” by Robin Hardy”Midsommar” by Ari Aster”The Ritual” by Adam Nevill

How to Start a Scary Story Essay (Horror Story Essay)

Tips for brainstorming ideas.

Consider the setting, characters, and plot when brainstorming ideas for your scary story essay. What kind of horror elements do you want to include? Are there any real-life fears or anxieties you want to tap into?

After formulating a rudimentary concept, endeavor to generate several plot twists or scenarios that could unfold within the established framework. Do not hesitate to allow your creative faculties to soar unrestricted and endeavor to formulate a concept that exudes individuality and unpredictability.

How to create a compelling opening that sets the mood

The opening is one of the most important parts of a scary story essay. The opening sets the tone for the entire paper and should grab the reader’s attention immediately.

Consider starting with a startling or eerie image or scene to create a compelling opening. This might be like a character stumbling through a dark forest or a haunted house looming in the distance. You could also start with a quote or dialogue that sets the mood.

Examples of effective opening lines from famous horror stories

“The horror, the horror!” – Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
“It was a dark and stormy night…” – A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” – A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
“The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.” – The Gunslinger by Stephen King

Writing a Scary Story Essay

How to structure the essay for maximum impact.

To structure your scary story essay for maximum impact, consider starting with a compelling opening that sets the mood, followed by a gradual buildup of suspense and tension. The story’s climax should be the most intense and terrifying part, with a resolution that provides some closure for the reader.

Developing a well-rounded plot and characters

To develop a well-rounded plot and characters, consider the motivations and fears of your characters. What propels their actions, and what are their most profound terrors and apprehensions?

Try to create real and relatable characters, even if they are dealing with supernatural or horror elements. This will make the story feel more immersive and engaging for the reader.

How to create suspense and tension

To create suspense and tension in your scary story essay, consider using pacing and structure to build up to the climax. You can do this by gradually increasing the frequency and intensity of horror elements, such as jump scares or moments of suspense.

You can also use foreshadowing and other literary devices to hint at what’s to come while still keeping the reader guessing. Furthermore, do not hesitate to leave certain details to the reader’s imagination, which can engender an even more disconcerting feeling of terror.

Using sensory details to enhance the scary atmosphere

To enhance the scary atmosphere of your story, consider using sensory data to help the reader visualize the setting and characters. This might include descriptions of sounds, smells, textures, and visual details like lighting and shadows.

You can also use figurative language and metaphors to create a more vivid and evocative picture for the reader. For example, you might describe a character’s fear as a cold, clammy hand gripping their heart.

Scary Story Essay Examples

“the tell-tale heart” by edgar allan poe .

“The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe is a classic horror story that features a narrator who becomes obsessed with the eye of an old man, to the point of murdering him. The story is told from the perspective of the murderer, which creates an unsettling sense of intimacy and psychological tension.

“The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs

“The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs is another famous horror story that involves a cursed object. In this case, a family possesses a monkey’s paw that grants wishes but with terrible consequences.

Analysis of what makes these stories effective and how they can be used as inspiration.

These narratives are potent as they delve into ubiquitous dreads and trepidations, such as the fear of demise and the inscrutable. They also use literary techniques like pacing, foreshadowing, and sensory details to create a vivid and unsettling atmosphere.

As you work on your scary story essay, you can use these stories as inspiration for your plot and characters while also studying their structure and pacing to see how they create suspense and tension.

Tips for Writing a Successful Scary Story Essay

Dos and don’ts for writing a scary story essay

Use sensory details to create a vivid and evocative atmosphere
Build suspense and tension gradually, with a well-paced structure
Create well-rounded and relatable characters
Use literary devices like foreshadowing and metaphor to create a sense of foreboding

Don’t:

Rely too heavily on jump scares or gore to create horror

Neglect the importance of setting and atmosphere

Use clichés or tired tropes that have been overused in horror stories

Tips for editing and revising to improve the overall quality of the essay

When editing and revising your scary story essay, consider the pacing and structure of the story. Make sure that the buildup of tension feels natural and engaging and that the climax is both satisfying and terrifying.

It is also crucial to prioritize character progression and dialogue, ensuring each persona is distinctive and multifaceted. Ultimately, it is imperative to contemplate the all-encompassing tone and ambiance of the narrative, guaranteeing that it evokes a pervasive feeling of discomfort and foreboding from the opening sentence to the closing line.

In conclusion, writing a scary story essay can be a thrilling and rewarding experience, but it requires careful attention to detail and an understanding of what makes horror stories truly effective.

By adhering to the pointers and techniques explicated in this article, you can compose a hair-raising anecdote that will keep your readers teetering on the precipice of their seats. So why not start brainstorming ideas for your scary story essay today? With a little creativity and imagination, you can create a story that will haunt readers long after they finish reading.

Remember to focus on the key elements of horror, such as setting, characters, and plot, and use literary techniques like pacing and foreshadowing to build suspense and tension. With practice and perseverance, you can hone your writing skills and create stories that will chill and thrill readers for years.

What is a Horror Story essay?

A horror story essay is a narrative essay designed to frighten and unsettle the reader. It typically involves supernatural or horror elements like ghosts, monsters, or otherworldly creatures. A short horror story essay aims to create a sense of unease and fear in the reader and keep them engaged until the end.

How do I start a scary story essay?

To start a scary story essay, consider starting with a startling or eerie image or scene that sets the mood. You could also start with a quote or dialogue that creates a sense of foreboding. From there, gradually build tension and suspense until you reach the story’s climax.

What are some tips for writing a good scary story essay?

Some tips for writing a good scary story essay include:

Don’t rely too heavily on jump scares or gore to create horror
Avoid clichés or tired tropes that have been overused in horror stories

Can I use real-life experiences in my scary story essay?

Yes, you can use real-life experiences as inspiration for your scary story essay. However, be sure to use them in a way that is respectful and doesn’t exploit real-life trauma or tragedy.

How can I make my scary story essay stand out?

To make your scary story essay free stand out, try to create a unique and unexpected plot that subverts readers’ expectations. You can also use vivid and evocative language to create a more immersive atmosphere and focus on creating well-rounded and relatable characters. Lastly, do not fear to take risks and experiment with fresh concepts – the most exemplary horror tales frequently challenge conventions and surpass limitations.

Lesley Hummings

Horror Stories Essay Examples

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How to Craft a Scary Story - Step by Step Analysis

By: Henrique Bertulino

Very few things capture the human imagination quite like a scary story. The horror genre forms a vital part of English literature and has been the subject of many research papers over time. Great names like Edgar Allan Poe, Algernon Blackwood, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, M. R. James, and even more contemporary writers like Susan Hill, Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, and Anne Rice have advanced the art of horror short story beyond what we usually got before.

Scary Experience Essay Example

Make your main character easy to empathize with, pit them against things they cannot realistically win against, let your readers put their own fears into the text.

In this narrative essay, we will show you how a ghost story works. From a list of writing prompts, we have selected one for this sample essay, and though it doesn't feature serial killers stalking children during Halloween through flickering streetlights, we hope you will enjoy the roller coaster regardless.

My mother always told me that going up to the second floor was a bad idea. She had lived on the ground floor flat for twenty-two years, she told me, but people living overhead came and went. Had been for as long she had lived there. Not a single family in her recollection had ever stayed there for more than six months.

At least five families in her memory, and two in mine, had come and gone. The only person who stayed more than six months was a lone lady. From what my mother told me, she lasted so long because she had her own rituals she performed. But even she couldn't stay for longer.

What exactly haunted the second floor of our house, I didn't know. But it was a well-known fact that it was haunted. The entire neighborhood knew. Nothing ever happened on the ground floor, but when we went to bed at night, we could hear the sound of furniture being moved.

Oddly enough, the flat was untenanted at the time.

And so, I got curious. I wanted to find out exactly what was going on up there. The stories told by former tenants were much the same. Furniture being thrown about, windows and doors slamming open and closed. One woman was almost strangled in bed. Needless to say, that family moved away immediately afterward. I was deathly afraid of going upstairs. When I was little, the thought of a ghost living upstairs was enough to stop me from going to the toilet at night.

By the time I was twelve, though, these fears had been laid to rest. Most of my friends in the neighborhood were also rather curious about the haunting, and a friend of mine asked me if we could go up. The landlord always kept the keys to that flat with us, and I knew exactly where it was. So, smelling an adventure, I said yes.

On a weekend afternoon, we decided to put our little plan into action. Too many cooks spoil the broth, so it was only my friend and I. My mother was asleep after having lunch, so that made nicking the keys easier.

Tools of our trade in hand, my friend and I snuck up the stairs. He was ahead of me, climbing the stairs enthusiastically. There was nobody living up there at the moment, so there was no electricity. No lights to push the darkness of the staircase away. Our nerves were being canceled out by our excitement.

Suddenly, however, my friend stopped in his tracks. I stopped too and asked him why he had stopped. At my question, he started. He immediately whirled around, eyes wide.

"Didn't you just run past me up the stairs?" he asked, voice very quiet. "I stopped to let you pass…"

I said nothing. The look on his face did not make it seem like he was bluffing. The terror in his eyes was enough. We sprinted down the stairs faster than human feet have ever run downstairs, and shot out of the house and into the afternoon sun.

The adventure was never fully realized. To this day, that first-floor flat remains untenanted.

Why It Works

Horror stories don't all have to involve the main character moving into a haunted house. The secret to a good story is to make the main character be as sympathetic and likable as possible. A mother feeding her son, a sister playing with her brother, school friends - bonds of love and friendship are at the heart of every good scary story.

Of course, a true story beats out everything, but that's beside the point. Having the main character you can get behind and support sells a horror story. You do not want bad things happening to them. You want them to pull through and survive. The bigger the odds they face, the more you want them to come out on top.

This is what makes Bram Stoker's Dracula such a towering success. Even today, the struggles of Jonathan Harker to escape from the dreaded castle, of Dr. John Seward and Abraham Van Helsing's putting together of the disparate events connected to the Count, and Mina Murray's bravery while facing down a fate worse than death can't help but strike a chord in anyone's heart.

However, you are not writing an action story. Or an adventure tale. You're writing horror. So, the hero should never be able to fight the foe directly. The terror they face must be unimaginably stronger and stranger than they can imagine. That is the essence of horror - even the most chiseled bodybuilder is helpless against a street filled with flickering streetlights and shadows slinking past.

This is what makes the works of H. P. Lovecraft so widely loved. He left the ultimate horror up to the interpretation of the reader. The greatest source of dread in his stories comes from beings we cannot understand, and the feeling of alienness is what allows him to twist our emotions as per his command.

And that is what it comes down to, at the end of the day. You might love the horror genre, but to really understand it and how it works, you need to seep yourself in it. You have to read and watch everything of quality that you can get your hands on. Only then will you understand enough about the craft to be able to make your own mark. And that, we hope, is where this narrative essay leads you.

Whether you got your first taste of horror by watching horror films or picking up a copy of Goosebumps, take solace in the fact that the horror bug never truly leaves you. You will always be connected to the spooks, whether you like it or not.

We hope you got what you wanted out of this free essay. If you want your own essays to stand out, you should look into Studybay's assignment writing service. Get professionally written essays complete with masterful proofreading - nothing will stop you from achieving the grade you want. Give us your ESL essay topics, and watch us give you the best edited essay you will ever see.

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Primer on the Construction of a Scary Story Essay

Welcome to The Knowledge Nest's comprehensive guide on how to construct a bone-chilling and captivating scary story essay. In this primer, we will delve into the art of storytelling, the elements of suspense, and the techniques to engage your readers with spine-tingling narrative experiences. Whether you're a student or a curious writer, this guide will equip you with the knowledge and expertise to craft a truly remarkable and unforgettable scary story essay.

Understanding the Genre

Before embarking on your journey to writing a scary story essay, it's crucial to gain an understanding of the genre itself. Scary story essays are a unique form of literature that seeks to engross and terrify its readers simultaneously. The goal is to craft a narrative that elicits fear, suspense, and a sense of unease. To achieve this, one must employ various literary techniques to create an eerie atmosphere and deliver spine-chilling moments to the readers.

Elements of a Scary Story Essay

A well-crafted scary story essay requires careful attention to several key elements. These elements work together seamlessly to heighten the sense of fear and tension in the narrative, captivating the reader's imagination from beginning to end.

The Setting

Creating an atmospheric setting is essential in a scary story essay. By vividly describing the surroundings, you can immerse your readers in a haunting world filled with darkness, isolation, and unknown terrors. Use your words to paint a detailed picture and let the setting become a character in its own right, contributing to the overall sense of dread and anticipation.

Characters and Characterization

Well-developed characters are integral to a compelling scary story essay. The protagonist should be relatable and vulnerable, allowing the reader to empathize with their fears and struggles. Additionally, introducing intriguing and mysterious secondary characters can add depth and complexity to the narrative, leaving readers to question their motives and trustworthiness.

Tension and Suspense

The heart of any good scary story essay lies in the art of building tension and suspense. Through carefully structured plot twists, foreshadowing, and unexpected revelations, you can keep your readers on the edge of their seats, eagerly turning the pages to uncover what lies ahead. Harness the power of pacing and timing to ensure every moment is infused with an unsettling and captivating vibe.

Moments of Horror

A successful scary story essay relies on its ability to deliver moments of horror that will leave a lasting impact on the reader. These moments can manifest through vivid and unsettling descriptions, blood-curdling twists, or encounters with the supernatural. Use your words to elicit genuine fear, making every page an exhilarating and chilling journey for your audience.

Techniques for Engaging Your Readers

Now that we've explored the essential elements, let's delve into the techniques that will help you engage your readers and keep them hooked throughout your scary story essay.

Mystery and Intrigue

Creating an air of mystery and intrigue will captivate your readers, compelling them to continue reading in search of answers. Use subtle clues, enigmatic occurrences, and unresolved questions to pique their curiosity and keep them invested in the story's unfolding.

Imagery and Description

Utilizing vivid imagery and descriptive language will allow your readers to vividly imagine the haunting scenes you're depicting. Engage all their senses as you describe eerie sounds, ominous visual details, and chilling atmospheric conditions.

Character Development

Investing time in developing your characters will create a stronger emotional connection between your readers and the narrative. Develop their fears, desires, and motivations, allowing your audience to relate and empathize with their experiences.

Plot Twists and Surprises

Unpredictability is a powerful tool in a scary story essay. Strategically place plot twists and surprises to keep your readers guessing and constantly on edge. These unexpected elements will heighten the suspense and deliver a rollercoaster ride of fear and anticipation.

Writing a scary story essay is a thrilling endeavor that allows you to explore the depths of your imagination and engage readers with an unforgettable narrative experience. By understanding the genre, incorporating the essential elements, and employing effective techniques, you can craft a truly bone-chilling masterpiece that will keep readers up at night.

At The Knowledge Nest, we are passionate about providing comprehensive guides and resources to help you unlock your writing potential. Whether you're a student, an aspiring writer, or simply someone who enjoys captivating stories, our aim is to empower and educate. Explore our website to discover more valuable insights and embark on your journey to becoming a masterful storyteller.

Embark on the construction of your scary story essay now and let the chilling tale unfold!

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132 Best Horror Writing Prompts and Scary Story Ideas

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, the frightening human psychology and much more.

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 in 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 decide 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 young women 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 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 with people in black and white masks. They are 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 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 go missing. The case is reopened.
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 on midnight and brought on a large private estate. He is told that he will be a human pray 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 in 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 in 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’s 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, twin sisters disappear.
A boy has a very realistic dream about an 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 develop 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.
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 could 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, also 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 skins 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 would 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 chase them and jump into 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 blood-bath.
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 the 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 the nursery to check up on the baby and discovers that the baby is missing and, in her place, there is a baby doll.
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.
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 a 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 a suicide so that he could 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 make 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 building 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.

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Essay on Horror Story

Students are often asked to write an essay on Horror Story in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Horror Story

Introduction.

Horror stories are a genre of fiction that seeks to scare, disturb, or startle its readers by inducing feelings of horror and terror.

Elements of Horror

Key elements include suspense, surprise, and a sense of impending doom. Often, horror stories involve supernatural elements or entities.

Impact on Readers

These stories can have a profound impact on readers, evoking intense emotions and creating memorable experiences.

Despite their frightening nature, horror stories remain popular due to their ability to engage readers’ emotions and imagination in unique ways.

250 Words Essay on Horror Story

The intrigue of horror stories, psychological appeal.

At the heart of every horror story is the exploration of fear. Sigmund Freud’s concept of ‘the uncanny’ explains our attraction to horror as a confrontation with repressed fears and desires. This exploration of the unknown and the forbidden can be cathartic, allowing us to experience fear in a controlled environment.

Cultural Significance

Horror stories also reflect societal fears and anxieties. For instance, Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” mirrors the 19th-century fear of scientific advancement, while George Orwell’s “1984” embodies the dread of totalitarian regimes. Thus, horror stories serve as cultural artifacts, offering insights into the zeitgeist of an era.

Narrative Techniques

The narrative techniques employed in horror stories are designed to evoke fear and suspense. Techniques such as foreshadowing, dramatic irony, and unreliable narrators keep readers on edge, while the use of dark, descriptive language helps create a chilling atmosphere.

In conclusion, horror stories are more than mere tales of terror. They are a reflection of our deepest fears, a commentary on societal anxieties, and a testament to the power of narrative techniques in evoking emotional responses. Their enduring popularity is a testament to their complexity and the human fascination with the macabre.

500 Words Essay on Horror Story

Horror stories have been a part of human culture for centuries, delighting and terrifying audiences in equal measure. They are narratives designed to frighten, cause dread or panic, or invoke our hidden worst fears, often in a terrifying, shocking finale. The horror genre taps into the primal fear within us, making us confront the unknown and the terrifying.

The Psychology behind Horror

The evolution of horror stories.

Horror stories have evolved significantly over the years, keeping pace with societal changes and shifts in what we fear. Early horror stories were often tied to religion, reflecting fears of the supernatural and the afterlife. As society became more secular, the focus shifted to the horrors of the human mind and the terrors of the unknown.

Modern horror stories, such as Stephen King’s works, often blend elements of the supernatural with the psychological, creating a sense of unease that lingers long after the story is over. The horror genre has also expanded into various sub-genres, such as psychological horror, supernatural horror, and body horror, each catering to different fears and anxieties.

The Impact of Horror Stories on Society

In conclusion, horror stories are an integral part of our cultural fabric, serving as both entertainment and a means to explore our deepest fears and anxieties. They have evolved with society, reflecting our changing fears and serving as a commentary on societal issues. Despite their often gruesome and terrifying content, horror stories provide a safe space to explore the darker aspects of our psyche, helping us to understand and confront our fears. The enduring popularity of the horror genre is a testament to its ability to tap into our primal fears and its capacity to thrill, terrify, and captivate audiences.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

Happy studying!

How to Write a Horror Story in 12 Steps

Spooky times are on their way! In this post, you’ll learn how to write a horror story in 12 easy steps. From the very beginning to the very end, you’ll be a horror writer in no time. Writing a horror story is easy, provided you know how to do it in the right way.

A horror story is usually about a particular issue or theme. It might be about the horrible nature of life, the evil of humans, or the beast inside us. It might even be about fear, or about the various ways in which we face fear. The one thing that all horror stories have in common is that they are “stories of fear.”

The best horror stories are about fear, whether it’s fear of death, fear of disease, fear of the unknown, fear of loneliness, or fear of pain. The main problem with horror stories is that most people don’t like to be scared. Our minds prefer the familiar, the comfortable, and the easy. So how do we get around that?

The answer is that we have to tap into our inner horror. We have to get inside our minds and into our souls to write about horror. It’s not easy, but it’s not hard either. If you’re willing to put in the effort, you’ll be amazed at the results you can achieve.

10 Tips for Writing Horror Stories

Step 1: brainstorm some ideas, step 2: develop your idea, step 3: make a list of main characters, step 4: develop a horrific setting, step 5: outline the opening paragraph, step 6: plan the major climax, step 7: write a twisted ending , step 8: choose a scary writing style, step 9: write the first draft, step 10: edit and review your draft, step 11: choose a chilling book title , step 12: publish the book, how do you start a horror story, what are the 5 elements of a horror story, what makes a good horror story, how do you write in creepy writing, how do i make my character terrifying.

Before you begin writing a horror story, here are 8 tips to help you create the perfect, chilling tale:

Make it realistic: Don’t be afraid to make the story feel real and genuine so that the reader doesn‘t get lost in the atmosphere of the book. Try to use real-life situations as the base of the story, and then you can add the gore afterwards.
Include plot twists: The more twists you can add to the tale, and the more surprises that will occur, the stronger the plot.
Avoid stereotypical characters: Just because it’s horror doesn’t mean you have to have a serial or a cannibal in your story. Go beyond the norm with your characters – remember anyone can be a serial killer, especially the least suspected person!
Pace yourself: Don’t just jump to the scariest moment in the beginning, slowly build up the suspense. Start by giving the reader hints of danger, and then bang when they least suspect bring in the gore.
Play on common fears: Common fears that people face every day. Such as being alone in the dark, being chased by a monster, having a bad dream, etc. Fears are icky, but they can be made into something interesting if you play with them.
Choose a writing style: There are many ways to write horror and some people find that they have an easier time in a journalistic style or in 1st person narrative. Think about what you’re most comfortable with and try it out.
Increase the stakes: The best horror stories involve a sense of fear and dread, so make sure to increase the stakes as you go. If your main character is at a party, maybe there’s something bad lurking in the back room or someone is trying to kill them. Make sure there’s something at stake for your characters and don’t forget to give them something to do besides running away.
Read popular horror stories: Horror can be a very dark genre, so you might want to check out other scary tales to get inspiration. For instance, Stephen King has written some of the most terrifying stories ever created and you might even learn a few things from them.
Pick a horror sub-genre: Horror is very broad and can be done in many different styles and genres. I recommend going for a sub-genre like Gothic Horror, Zombie Horror, or Psychological Horror. You may find that you are more comfortable in one of these areas than in others.
Be imaginative: Your story should be as unique as possible so use your imagination and go crazy! Do not hold back when it comes to creativity, as this is how true horror is born.

How To Write a Horror Story in 12 Steps

Follow these 12 easy steps to create a spine-chilling story that will leave your readers in awe and fear.

Here’s a simple little trick that we can’t recommend enough: start with writing down all of the words and phrases that come to mind when you think about horror. Horror is much more than just scary stories; it’s about fear. So start thinking about the horror you see around you, and what keeps you up at night. The trick is to get into your mind, even if it doesn’t feel comfortable. Try listing your biggest fears, and all the things that make you feel scared. You can also check out this list of over 110 horror story prompts to get you started.

We also recommend keeping a nightmare journal – Which is like a dream journal but filled with notes about your nightmares instead. After you had a really scary dream write down everything you remember from that dream. This can include what you saw, heard and felt during the dream. You can then use these notes as a source of inspiration for your horror story.

Check out these Halloween writing prompts and Halloween picture prompts for more ideas.

What keeps you up at night? The evil monsters in the monsters movies? The epidemic of a deadly virus? A tragic unsolved crime? Whatever your issue is, it can be used to create a horror story that will have your readers sweating bullets. Take your ideas from the previous step and develop them into a truly horrific story idea. Once you have written down the basic idea, try to think about how that idea can be made scarier.

For example, if you’re writing about a deadly disease, you could use the theme of death to make it scarier. Have the characters die in the story in a mutated sort of way or from some weird side effect that leads to death. There are plenty of ways to make the story more horrible:

Try thinking about an ordinary situation that everyone goes through and add something horrific to it. The trick to making your story scary is to make it believable. In other words, you want to make your story as true to life as possible.
Focus on some terrifying emotions, fear being the obvious one. But you can also think about crudeness, disgust, as well as anger, regret, paranoia and shock factor.
Add in some unnatural details, such as spaghetti turning into worms or blood coming out of solid, unliving objects.

Write down all of the main characters in the story. If you have more than one, give each character a distinct personality. Make sure that each character has a certain reason for their actions and be sure that they reflect their personality.

Whatever your horror is, you should probably have a main character that will be a part of the story. When you write the story, it’s going to be easier to create a tense atmosphere if you have a character to relate to. Also, you may want to make sure that you have a few supporting characters that you can add to the story. The supporting characters might also become the main characters in any sequels you plan on writing.

The other characters in the story should be the antagonists. These are the evil people or creatures that are keeping you up at night. They might be the killer, the ghost , the werewolf , the zombie, the villain, the monster , the demon, or the bad guy. Whatever the issue is, that’s what the antagonist will be in the story. They might start out as just an ordinary person, but they’ll end up being more evil than the main character.

Check out this guide on character development to help you develop a powerful character.

When writing a horror story, it’s very important that you get the setting right. Think about some scary places that you know of in real life or places that you’ve seen in your nightmares. You could also link your main setting choice to a common fear explored in your story. For example, if the core concept of your horror story is related to the fear of heights, then the main setting may be a high-rise building that’s filled with monsters.

Other common horror story settings may include a haunted house , a creepy old mansion, graveyards and even quiet suburban towns. Whatever your choice of setting, try to write a detailed description of the main setting in this step. Think about the appearance of the location, the weather, the feeling someone has when standing in this location, as well as what kind of people live here, along with the beliefs they hold.

Interested in creating a whole new world for your horror story? Check this master list of over 100 world-building questions .

The opening paragraph will be the first thing your readers see. It should be a teaser that sets the tone for the story. In other words, the first paragraph should be intriguing enough to make your readers want to keep reading. You should ideally include the main character’s name, the setting, the antagonist, the fear of the story, and the main character’s problem.

If the story is about a haunted house, then the outline of the opening paragraph could say something like this:

The house is empty. It has been for a long time. It’s been vacant for years and years. It sits in the middle of a quiet, suburban neighbourhood. The grass is green and the trees are tall. The neighbourhood is quiet, but the town is not as quiet as everyone thinks. There are whispers, rumours, and stories. But the truth is, no one has ever seen or heard anything unusual here. Not until Wendy Williams and her daughter moved in.

During this step, it is important to try to write an opening that gives the reader a taste of the entire story. But of course, don’t give too much away – Just a hint of fear will do! Your goal here is to have the reader wanting more.

See this list of over 150 story starters to help you get started with your spooky tale.

This step is basically the big bang. It’s where your main character goes head-to-head with the antagonist in the story or has to face their greatest fear. It’s also when your main character learns the truth about the antagonist. The goal of this step is to keep your readers on the edge of their seats.

When writing the climax, think about what will happen, who will be in danger, and what the outcome will be. If you’re struggling with the climax, then you should start with a smaller problem and work your way up to the big one. For example, you could start with a little bit of trouble with a character, such as a bad dream or the main character getting hurt. This will get your readers involved in the story. You may find that once you start writing, you’ll come up with a more complicated problem that your main character will have to solve.

Here’s an example of what a potential climax scene sounds like in a horror story:

The sound of footsteps is heard coming down the stairs. The footsteps are too heavy, and they seem to be coming from the basement. The door to the basement creaks open. Then a face is seen in the door frame. It’s a face with large, red eyes, and it’s full of hate.

In horror stories, the twist ending is almost always a shock reveal of some kind. Whether the true murderer is revealed, or the identity of the antagonist is revealed, it should always be a surprise.

There are several ways to write a twist ending, but you’ll probably want to start with a twist that’s a little more obvious. You could reveal who the antagonist really is, or even what the main character has been hiding. Or you could have the main character learn some shocking information that sends them in a completely different direction.

The unique thing about the horror genre is that even after the mystery or problem is solved, it’s not always 100% solved. There’s always some darkness lurking somewhere. Was he really the murderer? Maybe there’s more than one monster? Give this final hint of darkness to keep your readers second-guessing even after the book is over. Now that’s where the true horror lies!

Of course, horror stories are written in a more darker and dramatic style compared to other genres. But there’s more to horror writing than just using dark words and descriptions of gory scenes. In this step, you want to think about the actual writing of your horror style. Will it be written in the first person, second person or third? Do you want to take a more journalistic approach where you report horrific events? Or will you take a more narrative approach, where the reader is on the outside looking in?

In our opinion, a horror story written in the first person has a much more powerful effect. There’s something about having the perspective of the main character that makes them more vulnerable. There’s also something about being told a story by another character that makes the story more real.

While the third person is great for taking the reader through a story, it doesn’t allow for the depth of emotion that can be found in the first person. If you choose to write in the third person, then you’ll want to stick with the voice of an objective narrator who is reporting on the events of the story.

Either way, you’ll want to try to avoid too many descriptions of gruesome scenes. You want to keep the focus on your main character’s emotions and how they feel, and their problem.

Finally, it’s time to start writing your story! Hopefully, after all these steps, you now have a rough outline for your story. But even if you don’t, just start writing! The first draft is usually the most important one. So even if you don’t have a complete outline, get started on your story. Just start writing and don’t worry about anything else! You might also want to read this post on how to outline a book for more guidance.

While writing your draft, you’ll want to keep these things in mind:

Make sure your story is believable to a certain extent. Of course, you might think that vampires aren’t real – But make them real for your readers! This is the most important thing. If your story is impossible or unbelievable, then no one will want to read it.
Avoid using clichés. These are words or phrases that are overused in stories and don’t really add anything to your story.
Use active voice instead of passive voice. Passive voice is when a sentence starts with “someone” or “something”. Active voice is when the sentence starts with “I” or “we”.
Use short sentences and paragraphs. Long sentences make it difficult to read, and paragraphs look heavy.
If you’re struggling to get anything written down, then start with the easiest or shortest scenes first. You can always come back to the more complicated areas of your story later when you’re ready.

And finally, have fun with it! Writing is supposed to be a fun hobby, so don’t take yourself too seriously!

The hard part is done, now you’re ready to start editing your story! Start by reading the story to yourself a couple of times. Each time you read your story highlight areas that you are unsure of, or would like to improve. At the same time look out for spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, and sentences that sound a bit off. Once you’re done with this review, you can go back and make the relevant edits to your story.

Next, you’ll want to gather some feedback. This is where you’ll want to have a second or third person read your story. It’s not a good idea to let one person read your draft, as they’ll be biased towards what they like. So get a few different people to read your story, and make sure they have a different perspective. They can be family members, teachers, or even a friend that’s not familiar with your writing style.

When asking for feedback, you can ask the following questions:

What are the most important parts of the story?
Are there any parts of the story that don’t make sense or are confusing?
What did you like most about the story?
Can you think of anything that could be improved?
Did you like the main character?

Once you have the feedback, you can go back and make the changes. It’s important to make the edits, but don’t obsess over it. In the end, you want to make the story the best that it can be. And by doing this, you’ll be on your way to writing a great horror story!

It’s time to choose a book title. This is a very important part of a horror story. Not only does a good title help to give your story an identity, but it also helps to tell the reader what kind of story they’re about to read. The title should have a great hook. It should be intriguing and a little bit scary. If you’re struggling to think of a great book title, then you can try to think about what you’d like to read. Would you like to read a book that scares you? Or would you rather read a book that’s about someone’s struggles?

If we look at some popular horror book titles, we can see that most of them are quite descriptive:

The Woman in Black
Bram Stoker’s Dracula
The Haunting of Aveline Jones
The Haunting of Hill House
The Graveyard Book

Essentially, they either describe the antagonist of the story or the main setting in the story. Based on this try to summarise your horror story in as little as 3 to 5 words. Think about the main setting or the main villain/monster of your tale and come up with some book title ideas. If you’re still struggling, check out this horror book title generator for some more interesting ideas.

An important thing to note here is that you should make sure that your book title is not already in use or taken by another author. Try doing a quick Google search or a search on Amazon to see if your title is available for the taking!

Your book is now finished! You’ve written the first draft, edited it, gathered feedback, and now it’s time to publish it! There are many ways to publish your book. The most popular method is to publish it on Amazon as a self-published author. You can also work with a professional publisher to get your book to market.

Remember that if you’re a new writer, then it’s not a good idea to start by publishing your book on Amazon. It’s better to start slow and work your way up. You don’t want to rush your writing and end up with a book full of mistakes! Start by publishing your book using a free tool like the Imagine Forest story creator , then later work your way up to publishing on Amazon.

That’s it! Now you should be ready to write your own horror story! Give it a go and see what you can come up with!

Frequently Asked Questions

There are a number of ways to start writing a horror story:

Focus on your own fears. Start by listing your fears and develop your story idea from there.
Introduce the character. You can describe your main character in the first few scenes. Make them as normal, and relatable as possible
Describe a setting. If the setting is key to your story, then describe every inch of it. Make your readers feel like they are right there with you.
Start with some action. This could be a bloody murder, someone screaming and running or anything else that makes the reader feel uncomfortable.
Picture a harmonious place. You can describe a calm and happy place. Somewhere taken from a romantic rom-com type story or a happy family movie, which all suddenly changes.
Start at the end. Rewrite your potential ending as the beginning, and then work your way backwards.

The 5 elements of horror include Character, Setting, Action, Horror, and Resolution. All these elements are crucial in developing a gruesome horror story.

See our guide on the 5 elements of story-telling for more information.

A good horror story has fear at its core. The reader must be scared as they read the story. If not then you missed something important in your novel. A good horror story must be scary, but it should also have an element of realism to it. The story should include relatable main characters, a scary antagonist, a creepy setting and of course a shocking reveal at the end.

Your first step is to try to think about the creepiness of the setting. Is it a dark and scary place? Is it full of secrets? If it is, then you have a good place to start. Try to be very detailed, and specific when describing the setting. Describe the blood on the wall as it drips down, or the lock on the door that won’t turn. Make the reader feel as if they are right there. Use descriptive words and metaphors to bring your gory details to life.

To make your character as terrifying as possible, you could try the following techniques:

Make your character an outcast. They don’t fit in with the main group of characters and can’t be trusted.
Give them a story to tell. A dark and bloody past.
Make them a loner. They can’t trust anyone else and have no friends.
Make them a survivor. The main character of your story has been through a lot and can’t be stopped.
Give the character an important title. Someone who is important in a society that has deadly plans. You can’t trust them, but have no choice but to follow their rules.

Did you find this guide on how to write a horror story 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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The Horror Genre: Novels and Stories Essay

To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
As a template for you assignment

Horror novels and stories are a dying brand of media in today’s world. Once so popular, they now are somewhat of a rarity. While the horror publication has lost its acclaim, it has given way to the rise of the horror movie. It is a shame that films with amateur acting and shoddy writing are replacing these works of art. The classics are forgotten, such as Dracula and Frankenstein, diverting our attention to these inferior film pieces. Therefore, the once exorbitant quantity of horror writers is starting to become a dying breed. Unfortunately it has become quite a dilemma to find quality horror writing and authors. However, there is one story “Holiday” by M. Rickert, which encompasses all of the true elements of a horror story. This story fits the genre of horror due to the display of serious intense fear and unease. It is not similar to the horror pieces of today that revolve around gore and violence, but it sticks to the principles of an original horror story.

First of all, this story is considered a horror story because it has many of the elements of classic scary pieces. In essence it is a ghost story, but deals with much more than the average novels of this type. This narrative revolves around a writer who is visited by a ghost of a small girl around the age of six. As time passes he starts to form a relationship with her, as well as other ghosts of children that have begun to appear. The author’s father was a child molester and he is attempting to write a novel about his father’s life. This story utilizes this revolting back-story to incite fear into the audience. Although the author is not a pedophile like his father, nearly everyone that he interacts with in the story believes him to be one. This is due to the fact that he is attempting to entertain all these ghost children, and thus has to keep buying items for them, such as Shirley Temple DVDs. It is as if only the children know of the author’s innocent nature. Fear is generated in the audience because one concludes that since the author’s father was an abuser of children, he will have to pay for what atrocities his parent committed. It really keeps the reader on edge. This is an excellent feature of the story and a staple of an effective horror piece. “’Horror is not a genre, like the mystery or science fiction or the western. It is not a kind of fiction, meant to be confined to the ghetto of a special shelf in libraries of bookstores. Horror is an emotion.” (Horror Writer, 2009, p. 1). I whole-heartedly agree with this statement and this story does a fantastic job of galvanizing apprehension and fear into the audience. Additionally, the author sets the mood of the story very well. This is a very dark narrative. The elements of a house full of ghost children, a disturbed father, a drug addict brother, and a greedy publisher make it nearly impossible to feel any positive feelings when reading this piece. This is the strength of the work and another effective aspect of the horror genre that is portrayed.

Another substantial feature of this story is the descriptive writing. It puts very creepy and fearful imagery into your head. One passage that really stuck with me was when the main character sees the ghost for the first time. “Her body starts jerking in a strange way as she moves across my bedroom floor, her arms out”. (Rickert, 2009, p. 27). This depiction really was one of the parts that encouraged fear and unease. Another description that was effective and demonstrative of the aspects of the horror genre was when the protagonist decides to research the ghost girl’s story and the reason for her death. “When I read about how her father found her, wrapped in a blanket, as though someone was worried she would be cold, but with that rope around her neck”. (Rickert, 2009, p. 28). That is a terrifying depiction of nearly the worst occurrence that can happen to someone. It was memorable, yet disheartening A third passage that aids in supporting the elements of a horror story is when the main character begins to find that the ghost girl is bringing more ghost children into his house. “’And today is her birthday.’ I turn to the girl who looks up at me with her beautiful black eyes. ‘Your birthday?’ Both girls nod solemnly. This description really does a great job of setting the scene and extenuating a hair-raising vibe. This story goes for unease rather than in your face violence or heart-pounding excitement. It is a consistent depiction of a chilling atmosphere.

Although this story is quite hair-raising, it does have some novelty moments that make it somewhat comical. There are many lines and depictions that stand out for their novelty, rather than their terrifying nature. One in particular was the passage at the beginning. It did an amazing job of instilling intrigue into the reader; as well as urging them read more. “She says her name is Holiday, but I know she’s lying. I remember her face. It was all over the news for weeks, years, even but of course she doesn’t know that. I briefly consider telling her ‘Hey, did you know you’re a star?’ But that would necessitate bringing up the subject of her death, and I’m not clear if she knows that she’s a ghost, or that almost everyone thinks her parents killed her.” (Rickert, 2009, p. 27). This was just great writing by the author, and has to be considered as one of the most effective passages in the story. Another striking depiction was actually one of the few comical occurrences in the piece. It takes place after the protagonist has begun to care for all these ghost children. “Suddenly it’s like I’m running some kind of day care center for dead kids. She keeps bring them to me, I don’t know why. We watch Shirley Temple movies”. (Rickert, 2009, p. 31). This just is a humorous happening within the story, which is one of the few happy elements that occur. The last thing that an individual would expect in a ghost story is that the main character would be running a ghost day care. The last memorable depiction is near the end of the narrative. The protagonist decides to throw a party for the ghost children that he has been taking care of. He also purchases a clown costume for this gathering. “The doorbell rings and I run to answer it, laughing because it’s very funny the way she’s hidden outside but when I open the door, my brother is standing there. ‘Oh, fuck,’ he says. ‘It’s not the way it looks.’” (Rickert, 2009, p. 34). This is a humorous coincidence that occurs in the novel due to these ghost characters. Although the main character attempts to care for them they end up getting him into trouble. In fact, the protagonist is beginning to get the same reputation as his father, except for the fact that he is not abusing anyone. It is possible that the main character feels that he has to take care of these ghost children to make up for the fact that his father was so horrible to adolescents. He may have reasoned that there has to be some type of repentance.

Rickert’s story “Holiday” is a horror story that is chilling and hair-raising. The author does a great job of setting a dark and gloomy mood, by covering disgusting and scary subject matter. There also is effective utilization of the English language, making the piece ripe with memorable passages. The author clearly has a substantial grasp on what is high quality writing. Furthermore, there is clear and efficacious understanding of the elements that should make up a horror story and they are convincingly employed in this piece. Rickert is a rarity in today’s generic and untalented author pool. It is comforting to see that some still value the classic elements of the horror genre and in “Holiday” this is forcefully demonstrated.

Horror Writers. (2009) What is Horror Fiction? Web.

Rickert, M. (2009). Holiday. Urbana, IL: Golden Gryphon Press.

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Scary Stories: Exploring the Elements of Suspense

How it works

1 Introduction
2 Setting as a Source of Suspense
3.1 References

Introduction

A horror story is a story full of suspense and eeriness. People love horror stories because they’re unpredictable and full of suspense. Do you like horror stories? I will tell you why horror stories are a very interesting and popular genre of books. The stories we read in this unit were The Landlady, The Tell-Tale Heart, and The Monkey’s Paw. Horror stories have to have settings, characters, and dramatic irony.

Setting as a Source of Suspense

First, the setting causes suspense in a horror story.

First, the setting in The Landlady is dark and deadly cold. I know this because, in the story, Billy went to a sketchy bed and breakfast in Bath, England. Next, the setting of The Tell-Tale Heart is a house where a younger man helps an old blind man. In the story, the narrator tells us that he isn’t crazy and then ends up killing the old man because of his blind eye. Finally, the setting of The Monkey’s Paw is dark and gloomy. I know this because a man made a wish that accidentally killed his son, then he wished for him to live, which didn’t work. Therefore, the setting has a great impact on horror stories and creating suspense.

Next, characters also add suspense to a horror story. You need characters to write a story or make a movie. Characters are a very important subject when writing a book or making a movie. You can have many kinds of characters, scary characters, stupid characters, and maybe some ghosts or ghouls. In scary stories, there are roles these characters have; for example, scary characters or the bad guys cause trouble, like in The Landlady when the old lady poisoned Billy Weaver, or in The Monkey’s Paw, the paw was considered the bad guy because it was cursed and caused a lot of problems in Mr. White’s life. Then there are stupid characters, the ones who are first to die; for example, Billy Weaver was slow and didn’t realize that the landlady was a creepy old psycho killer. There are also ghosts and ghouls, which give other characters and readers a fright. As a result, this is how characters can cause suspense in a horror story.

Finally, dramatic irony also creates suspense in a horror story. Dramatic irony is when the reader knows something that the character doesn’t; for example, in The Landlady, readers know something bad is going to happen to Billy, but Billy doesn’t think twice about it. There was also dramatic irony in The Tell-Tale Heart when the cops showed up, and the main character went crazy; he thought that the officers knew, but we readers knew he was hallucinating. Dramatic irony is important in most if not all, scary stories; it draws attention to you and makes you wonder what will happen next. As a result, dramatic irony also creates suspense in a horror story.

In conclusion, setting, characters, and dramatic irony are very important in parts of a horror story. I liked The Landlady the most because it was creepy and had dramatic irony, which creates suspense. Now you should know the three most important parts of a horror story.

“The Science of Fear: How the Culture of Fear Manipulates Your Brain” by Daniel Gardner

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250 Horror Writing Prompts (Scary Good Ideas)

Looking to write your next spine-chilling horror story?

Here are 250 horror writing prompts to get your creative juices flowing. From ghostly apparitions to apocalyptic nightmares, these prompts will help you create unforgettable tales of terror.

What Is a Horror Writing Prompt?

Woman writing with monsters behind her -- Horror Writing Prompts

Table of Contents

A horror writing prompt is a brief idea or scenario designed to inspire a horror story.

It provides the foundation for a plot, characters, conflict, setting, consequences, and sometimes a ticking clock plot device to build tension and urgency.

There is actually more than one type of horror writing prompt (see the chart below).

Types of Horror Writing Prompts

Type	Description
Ghost Stories	Involve spirits, hauntings, and supernatural entities from the afterlife.
Psychological Horror	Focus on the inner turmoil and mental states of characters.
Paranormal Activity	Center on phenomena beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding.
Creature Features	Involve monsters, mythical creatures, and otherworldly beings.
Gothic Horror	Set in dark, decaying locations with a sense of romanticism and dread.
Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic	Depict end-of-the-world scenarios and their aftermath.
Body Horror	Revolve around grotesque transformations and mutilations of the body.
Slasher Stories	Feature a murderous antagonist hunting down victims.
Cosmic Horror	Explore the insignificance of humanity in the face of incomprehensible entities.
Folk Horror	Draw from rural and traditional folklore, often involving rituals and superstitions.

Ghost Stories

The Forgotten Asylum – A group of urban explorers finds an abandoned asylum haunted by the spirits of former patients. They must uncover the asylum’s dark secrets before they’re trapped forever.
The Phantom Ship – A ghost ship appears off the coast, and a team of marine biologists investigates. They discover the souls of the drowned crew seeking revenge.
Haunted Housewarming – A couple moves into their dream home, only to find it haunted by a previous owner’s vengeful spirit. They must uncover the home’s history to break the curse.
The Whispering Woods – Campers in a remote forest hear eerie whispers at night. The ghost of a lost hiker leads them to a hidden danger.
The Ghostly Guardian – A child befriends a ghost who protects them from unseen dangers. The parents must confront the ghost to save their child.
The Lighthouse Keeper – A lone lighthouse keeper encounters the spirits of shipwrecked sailors. He must guide them to the afterlife while battling his own sanity.
The Cursed Portrait – An artist paints a portrait that traps the soul of its subject. The artist must find a way to release the soul before they face a similar fate.
The Haunted Highway – Drivers on a desolate road encounter ghostly apparitions. A journalist investigates the road’s dark history to uncover the truth.
The Spirit of the Manor – A family inherits a manor haunted by its former occupants. They must survive the night and appease the spirits to lift the curse.
The Ghostly Choir – A school choir is haunted by the spirits of former students. The new choir director must solve the mystery before the spirits claim more victims.
The Phantom Play – An old theater is haunted by the ghost of a lead actor who died on stage. The current cast must perform his unfinished play to set his spirit free.
The Ghostly Conductor – A ghost train appears on an abandoned track, and a group of friends boards it. They must solve the train’s mystery before reaching their final destination.
The Haunted Playground – Children encounter the ghost of a girl at a playground. They must help her find peace before she claims more playmates.
The Ghost in the Attic – A family discovers a ghost living in their attic. They must uncover the ghost’s past to help it move on.
The Spectral Detective – A detective partners with a ghost to solve a series of murders. They must catch the killer before the ghost’s unfinished business consumes them both.
The Haunted Hotel – Guests at a remote hotel encounter the spirits of former guests. The hotel staff must uncover the truth to stop the hauntings.
The Ghostly Librarian – A library is haunted by the ghost of a former librarian. The new librarian must uncover the ghost’s secrets to restore peace.
The Phantom Dancer – A ballerina encounters the ghost of a dancer who died in a tragic accident. She must perform the dancer’s final routine to set her spirit free.
The Ghost Shipwreck – Divers exploring a shipwreck encounter the spirits of the crew. They must uncover the ship’s fate to escape the underwater hauntings.
The Haunted Cabin – A group of friends stays in a cabin haunted by the ghost of a previous occupant. They must solve the ghost’s mystery to survive the night.
The Ghostly Roommate – A college student discovers their dorm room is haunted. They must work with the ghost to uncover the dorm’s dark history.
The Phantom Photographer – A photographer captures images of ghosts in their photos. They must find a way to stop the hauntings before they become one of the subjects.
The Haunted Mirror – A mirror in an antique shop shows the reflections of ghosts. The shop owner must uncover the mirror’s history to break the curse.
The Ghostly Gardener – A gardener encounters the spirit of a former groundskeeper. They must work together to uncover the secrets buried in the garden.
The Phantom Bus – A ghostly bus picks up passengers who never return. A journalist must uncover the bus’s story to stop the disappearances.

Psychological Horror

The Mirror’s Reflection – A person starts seeing a sinister version of themselves in mirrors. They must confront their inner demons to regain control.
The Unseen Stalker – Someone feels constantly watched and followed. They must uncover the identity of their stalker before they lose their sanity.
The Vanishing Family – A person wakes up to find their family has disappeared. They must piece together their fractured memories to find out what happened.
The Hallucination Game – A group of friends takes part in a psychological experiment, only to find reality and hallucination blurring dangerously.
The Time Loop – A person is trapped in a time loop, reliving the same terrifying day. They must find a way to break the loop before their mind unravels.
The Doppelgänger – A person encounters someone who looks exactly like them but with sinister intentions. They must discover the doppelgänger’s origins to survive.
The Sleepless Nights – A person suffers from severe insomnia, leading to disturbing visions and paranoia. They must find the cause before they break down completely.
The Disappearing Acts – A person’s friends and family begin to vanish one by one. They must uncover the truth behind the disappearances before they’re next.
The Phantom Voices – A person starts hearing voices that urge them to commit terrible acts. They must resist the voices and find out where they’re coming from.
The Twisted Reality – A person finds themselves in a world where nothing is as it seems. They must navigate the illusions to find the truth.
The Hidden Room – A person discovers a hidden room in their home filled with disturbing artifacts. They must uncover its purpose and the secrets it holds.
The Fragmented Mind – A person experiences severe memory loss and blackouts. They must piece together their fragmented memories to uncover a dark truth.
The Shadow in the Corner – A person sees a shadowy figure in the corner of their eye that gets closer each day. They must confront it before it consumes them.
The Sinister Neighbor – A person suspects their new neighbor is hiding a terrible secret. They must investigate without falling into the neighbor’s trap.
The Vanishing Town – A person visits a town where the residents start to disappear. They must find out what’s happening before they’re the next to vanish.
The Haunted Dreams – A person has recurring nightmares that start to affect their waking life. They must confront the source of their dreams to find peace.
The Creeping Darkness – A person notices shadows in their home that move on their own. They must discover the shadows’ origin before they’re engulfed.
The Split Personality – A person develops a sinister alter ego that takes over at night. They must find a way to control it before it ruins their life.
The Abandoned Factory – A person explores an old factory and begins to experience disturbing visions. They must uncover the factory’s history to escape its grip.
The Cursed Diary – A person finds a diary that predicts terrible events. They must find the diary’s owner to break the curse.
The Silent Treatment – A person wakes up in a world where no one can speak. They must find out what happened and restore communication before it’s too late.
The Puppet Master – A person discovers they’re being manipulated by an unseen force. They must break free before they lose their sense of self.
The Echoes of the Past – A person experiences vivid flashbacks of events they never lived. They must uncover the connection between the flashbacks and their present.
The Invisible Enemy – A person is attacked by an unseen force. They must find a way to defend themselves and uncover the enemy’s identity.
The Cursed Painting – A person acquires a painting that changes its scene to reflect their darkest fears. They must find a way to destroy the painting before it consumes their sanity.

Paranormal Activity

The Poltergeist – A family experiences violent disturbances in their home caused by a poltergeist. They must uncover the entity’s past to stop the terror.
The Possessed Doll – A child receives a doll that seems to have a life of its own. The parents must find a way to break the possession before it harms the family.
The Haunted School – Students encounter paranormal activity in their school. They must investigate its history to stop the hauntings.
The Supernatural Investigator – A detective with a sixth sense solves crimes involving paranormal activity. They must confront their own fears to catch a dangerous spirit.
The Vanishing Townspeople – Residents of a small town start disappearing after a mysterious fog rolls in. The remaining townspeople must solve the mystery before they vanish too.
The Ghostly Lover – A person falls in love with a ghost who haunts their home. They must find a way to be together or say goodbye forever.
The Time-Traveling Spirit – A ghost from the past appears to a historian, seeking help to correct a historical injustice. They must work together across time.
The Paranormal Researcher – A scientist investigates paranormal phenomena and discovers a hidden world of spirits. They must navigate this world to find answers.
The Haunted Item – An antique shop owner acquires an item with a dark past. They must uncover its history and break the curse before it destroys them.
The Phantom Room – A hotel room that doesn’t exist on the registry appears to guests. Those who enter must solve its mystery to escape.
The Spectral Friend – A lonely child befriends a ghost. The child’s parents must help the ghost find peace before it takes their child to the afterlife.
The Haunted Hospital – Patients in a hospital encounter ghostly apparitions. The staff must uncover the hospital’s dark past to stop the hauntings.
The Possessed Vehicle – A car starts exhibiting strange behavior after an accident. The owner must uncover its history to break the possession.
The Cursed Book – A librarian finds a book that causes anyone who reads it to experience paranormal phenomena. They must destroy the book before it spreads its curse.
The Phantom Babysitter – A babysitter encounters a ghostly child in the house they’re watching. They must uncover the child’s story to protect the family.
The Haunted Museum – Artifacts in a museum come to life at night. The curator must solve the mystery before the artifacts escape.
The Possessed Painting – An artist’s paintings start depicting horrifying scenes that come to life. They must uncover the source of the possession to stop it.
The Ghostly Guide – Tourists encounter a ghostly tour guide who leads them to dangerous places. They must uncover the guide’s past to escape.
The Paranormal Investigation – A team of ghost hunters investigates a famously haunted location and encounters more than they bargained for. They must survive the night and document their findings.
The Phantom Pet – A family adopts a pet that turns out to be a ghost. They must help the pet find peace to stop its restless behavior.
The Haunted Object – A person buys a seemingly innocuous object at a yard sale, only to discover it’s haunted. They must find its previous owner to uncover its dark history.
The Ghost Town – A group of friends stumbles upon a deserted town inhabited by ghosts. They must solve the town’s mystery to escape.
The Phantom Carnival – A carnival appears in town, and those who visit never return. A journalist investigates to uncover its dark secrets.
The Haunted Road – A driver encounters ghostly figures on a deserted road. They must find out why the road is haunted to find their way out.
The Ghostly Warning – A person receives warnings from a ghost about an impending disaster. They must decipher the messages to prevent the catastrophe.

Creature Features

The Werewolf Curse – A small town is terrorized by a werewolf. The townspeople must find and stop the creature before the next full moon.
The Swamp Monster – A group of campers encounters a monstrous creature in the swamp. They must survive the night and find a way to escape.
The Vampire’s Lair – A vampire kidnaps townsfolk to feed on. A group of villagers must band together to defeat the vampire and save their loved ones.
The Sea Creature – A coastal town is plagued by a sea monster. The townspeople must uncover the creature’s origins and stop it before it destroys the town.
The Yeti Hunt – Explorers in the Himalayas encounter a yeti. They must survive its attacks and find a way to escape the mountains.
The Chupacabra – A small town is terrorized by a creature that preys on livestock. The townspeople must find and stop the chupacabra before it turns to human prey.
The Mothman Prophecies – A town experiences sightings of a mysterious creature that predicts disasters. The townspeople must uncover its origins to stop the tragedies.
The Wendigo – A remote village is terrorized by a wendigo. The villagers must find a way to defeat the creature and break its curse.
The Loch Ness Monster – Researchers searching for the Loch Ness Monster get more than they bargained for. They must survive their encounter and escape the loch.
The Giant Spider – A group of scientists encounters a giant spider in the jungle. They must survive its attacks and find a way to escape.
The Goblin’s Curse – A village is plagued by goblin attacks. The villagers must find and defeat the goblin king to lift the curse.
The Kraken – A ship is attacked by a Kraken. The crew must find a way to defeat the creature and escape the ocean.
The Minotaur’s Maze – Adventurers exploring an ancient labyrinth encounter a minotaur. They must navigate the maze and defeat the creature to escape.
The Gorgon – A group of heroes must defeat a gorgon to save their kingdom. They must avoid its petrifying gaze and find a way to kill it.
The Cyclops – A village is terrorized by a cyclops. The villagers must find and stop the creature before it destroys their homes.
The Harpy’s Lair – A group of adventurers encounters a harpy in a remote cave. They must survive its attacks and find a way to escape.
The Hydra – A group of heroes must defeat a hydra to save their land. They must find a way to kill the creature without it regenerating.
The Chimera – A village is attacked by a chimera. The villagers must find a way to defeat the creature before it destroys their homes.
The Basilisk – A group of adventurers must defeat a basilisk to save their kingdom. They must avoid its deadly gaze and find a way to kill it.
The Griffin – A village is terrorized by a griffin. The villagers must find and stop the creature before it destroys their homes.
The Dragon’s Lair – A group of adventurers must defeat a dragon to save their kingdom. They must find a way to kill the creature and escape its lair.
The Phoenix – A group of heroes must defeat a phoenix to save their land. They must find a way to kill the creature without it regenerating.
The Roc – A village is attacked by a roc. The villagers must find a way to defeat the creature before it destroys their homes.
The Unicorn’s Curse – A village is plagued by a cursed unicorn. The villagers must find and stop the creature to lift the curse.
The Leviathan – A ship is attacked by a leviathan. The crew must find a way to defeat the creature and escape the ocean.

Gothic Horror

The Cursed Castle – A family inherits a castle with a dark history. They must uncover its secrets to lift the curse.
The Haunted Abbey – Monks at a remote abbey encounter ghostly apparitions. They must uncover the abbey’s dark past to stop the hauntings.
The Sinister Manor – Guests at a manor encounter strange occurrences. They must solve the manor’s mystery to escape.
The Dark Forest – A village is surrounded by a forest where no one returns. The villagers must uncover the forest’s secrets to survive.
The Phantom of the Opera House – A theater is haunted by a ghostly figure. The performers must uncover the phantom’s past to stop the hauntings.
The Ghostly Bride – A bride haunts the church where she was left at the altar. The townspeople must uncover her story to set her spirit free.
The Vampire’s Castle – A group of travelers seeks shelter in a castle only to find it inhabited by vampires. They must escape before becoming prey.
The Sinister Tower – A tower on a cliff is said to be haunted. Adventurers must uncover its secrets and survive its dangers.
The Witch’s Cottage – A cottage in the woods is said to be inhabited by a witch. Brave villagers must uncover the truth and survive the night.
The Shadowed Hallways – A noble family in a mansion encounters shadowy figures that stalk them at night. They must uncover the mansion’s history to banish the shadows.
The Forbidden Tomb – Explorers uncover an ancient tomb that curses those who enter. They must find a way to break the curse and escape.
The Haunted Chapel – A chapel is haunted by the spirits of those wronged by the church. The new priest must uncover their stories to bring peace.
The Eerie Estate – An estate known for its eerie occurrences becomes the setting for a family reunion. The family must uncover the estate’s dark past.
The Sinister Sculptor – A sculptor’s statues seem to come to life. Visitors to the sculptor’s estate must solve the mystery before they become statues themselves.
The Phantom Shipyard – A shipyard is haunted by the ghosts of shipbuilders who died in a tragic accident. Investigators must uncover the cause of the hauntings.
The Cursed Bell Tower – A bell tower’s toll brings doom to those who hear it. The villagers must silence the bell to stop the curse.
The Secret Passage – Hidden passages in a mansion reveal dark secrets. The inhabitants must navigate the passages to uncover the truth.
The Ghostly Governess – A governess haunts the children she once cared for. The new caretaker must uncover her story to protect the children.
The Darkened Library – A library contains books that whisper dark secrets. The librarian must uncover the source and stop the whispering.
The Phantom Train Station – A train station is haunted by passengers who never reached their destination. A traveler must uncover their stories.
The Sinister Garden – A garden blooms with flowers that have a deadly secret. The gardener must uncover the truth to save themselves.
The Ghostly Host – A host at a manor party is a ghost who never left. The guests must uncover the host’s story to escape.
The Haunted Portraits – Portraits in a manor watch the inhabitants. The family must uncover the stories behind the portraits.
The Cursed Well – A well in a village grants wishes at a terrible cost. The villagers must uncover the well’s origins to stop its influence.
The Phantom Ball – A grand ball is held every year by a ghostly host. The attendees must uncover the host’s story to escape.

Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic

The Last Survivors – After a nuclear apocalypse, a group of survivors must navigate a ruined city to find safety.
The Plague – A deadly virus wipes out most of humanity. The immune survivors must find a cure before they succumb to the infection.
The Alien Invasion – Aliens decimate Earth’s population. A group of resistance fighters must find a way to fight back.
The Artificial Intelligence Uprising – AI turns against humanity. A group of survivors must find a way to shut down the AI network.
The Resource War – After resources become scarce, warring factions fight for control. A neutral group must navigate the conflict to survive.
The Frozen Earth – A new ice age begins, and survivors must find a way to live in the frozen wasteland.
The Solar Flare – A solar flare wipes out the technology. Survivors must adapt to a world without electricity.
The Zombie Apocalypse – The dead rise, and survivors must find a safe haven. They must navigate hordes of zombies and hostile humans.
The Asteroid Impact – An asteroid destroys major cities. Survivors must rebuild society in the aftermath.
The Supervolcano Eruption – A supervolcano erupts, causing a global catastrophe. Survivors must navigate the ash-filled landscape.
The Mutant Uprising – Radiation causes mutations in humans. The unmutated must find a way to coexist or fight back.
The Machine Takeover – Robots take control of the world. Human survivors must find a way to disable the machines.
The Bioweapon Leak – A bioweapon leaks and creates deadly mutants. Survivors must find the source to stop the spread.
The Water Crisis – Water becomes a scarce resource. Survivors must find new sources of water and fend off those who want to steal it.
The Dark Age – Society collapses, and survivors must navigate a world without order. They must rebuild communities while avoiding bandits.
The EMP Attack – An EMP attack wipes out all electronics. Survivors must adapt to a pre-technological world.
The Global Famine – A famine causes mass starvation. Survivors must find new ways to grow food and fend off starving invaders.
The Infected Animals – A virus causes animals to become aggressive. Survivors must protect themselves from the deadly wildlife.
The Drought – A prolonged drought causes a water shortage. Survivors must find new sources of water and protect them from others.
The Nuclear Winter – A nuclear war causes a nuclear winter. Survivors must find a way to live in the cold, dark world.
The Toxic Air – Pollution causes the air to become toxic. Survivors must find ways to purify the air and protect themselves.
The Invasion – A foreign army invades, causing chaos. Survivors must navigate the war-torn landscape.
The Collapse – Economic collapse causes society to break down. Survivors must find ways to rebuild while avoiding hostile groups.
The Plague – A new plague decimates the population. Survivors must find a cure before they become infected.
The Resource Scarcity – Resources become scarce, and society collapses. Survivors must find new ways to survive and protect their resources.

Body Horror

The Parasite – A person becomes host to a parasitic creature that slowly takes over their body. They must find a way to remove it before losing control.
The Flesh-Eating Disease – A disease that causes flesh to decay. The infected must find a cure before they succumb.
The Mutation – A person starts mutating uncontrollably. They must find a way to stop the mutations before they become unrecognizable.
The Experiment – A person is subjected to horrific experiments that alter their body. They must escape the lab and find a way to reverse the changes.
The Transformation – A person transforms into a monstrous creature. They must find a way to stop the transformation and regain their humanity.
The Infestation – A person’s body becomes infested with insects. They must find a way to remove the infestation before it’s too late.
The Amalgamation – A scientist’s experiment causes multiple bodies to fuse together. The resulting creature must find a way to separate or live as one.
The Skinwalker – A person can change their appearance by shedding their skin. They must find a way to control their abilities before they lose themselves.
The Growth – A person discovers a rapidly growing tumor that gives them strange abilities. They must find a way to control it before it consumes them.
The Symbiote – A symbiotic creature bonds with a person, granting powers but slowly taking over. They must find a way to separate before losing control.
The Reanimation – A scientist’s experiment to reanimate the dead goes horribly wrong. The reanimated must find a way to live with their new bodies.
The Graft – A person receives an experimental organ transplant that changes their body in unexpected ways. They must find a way to reverse the changes.
The Cannibal’s Curse – A person who consumes human flesh gains horrific powers. They must find a way to break the curse before losing their humanity.
The Melting Man – A person starts to liquefy. They must find a way to stop the process before it melts away.
The Living Tattoo – A person’s tattoos come to life and start to control them. They must find a way to stop the tattoos before they take over.
The Bone Shifter – A person gains the ability to shift their bones, causing great pain. They must find a way to control their power before it destroys them.
The Organ Thief – A person wakes up missing organs that are replaced by mysterious mechanical parts. They must find the thief and recover their organs.
The Flesh Sculptor – A person gains the ability to mold their flesh like clay. They must find a way to control their power before it consumes them.
The Skin Thief – A person can steal others’ skin to change their appearance. They must find a way to stop their urges before they lose their humanity.
The Hive – A person’s body becomes a hive for insects. They must find a way to remove the insects before it’s too late.
The Limb Regenerator – A person gains the ability to regenerate limbs, but each regrowth causes them to lose part of their humanity. They must find a way to stop the process.
The Mind Swap – A person swaps minds with another, causing their body to undergo horrific changes. They must find a way to reverse the swap.
The Flesh Weaver – A person gains the ability to manipulate flesh, weaving it into grotesque forms. They must find a way to control their power before it consumes them.
The Bone Collector – A person starts collecting bones, and their body begins to incorporate them. They must find a way to stop before they become living skeletons.
The Living Parasite – A parasitic organism living inside a person starts taking over their body. They must find a way to remove the parasite before it controls them completely.

Slasher Stories

The Masked Killer – A masked killer hunts down teenagers at a summer camp. The survivors must uncover the killer’s identity to stop the murders.
The Urban Legend – A group of friends accidentally awaken a killer from an urban legend. They must find a way to stop the killer before becoming victims.
The High School Horror – A killer stalks students at a high school reunion. The former classmates must band together to survive the night.
The Night Stalker – A serial killer targets people walking alone at night. A detective must catch the killer before more lives are lost.
The Cabin in the Woods – A group of friends vacationing in a cabin are hunted by a killer. They must survive the night and uncover the killer’s motive.
The Halloween Horror – A killer in a Halloween costume targets partygoers. The survivors must figure out who the killer is before it’s too late.
The Summer Slasher – A slasher terrorizes a summer camp. The counselors must protect the campers and stop the killer.
The Haunted House Horror – A group of friends visiting a haunted house attraction encounter a real killer. They must survive the night and escape the house.
The Killer Clown – A killer dressed as a clown targets children. The townspeople must uncover the clown’s identity to stop the killings.
The Prom Night Massacre – A killer crashes a prom, targeting students. The survivors must find a way to stop the killer and escape.
The Road Trip Terror – A group of friends on a road trip are hunted by a killer. They must uncover the killer’s identity and motive to survive.
The Island Slasher – Vacationers on a remote island are hunted by a killer. They must survive and find a way to escape the island.
The Carnival of Carnage – A killer targets visitors at a carnival. The survivors must uncover the killer’s identity to stop the murders.
The Silent Stalker – A killer who never speaks targets people in their homes. A detective must catch the killer before more lives are lost.
The Snowbound Slasher – A group of friends snowed in at a cabin and are hunted by a killer. They must survive the night and find a way to escape.
The College Campus Killer – A killer stalks students on a college campus. The survivors must band together to uncover the killer’s identity.
The Backwoods Butcher – Campers in the backwoods are hunted by a killer. They must survive the night and find a way to stop the killer.
The Stalker in the Shadows – A stalker targets a woman, and her friends must protect her and catch the stalker.
The Holiday Horror – A killer targets people during the holidays. The survivors must uncover the killer’s identity and motive to stop the murders.
The Beachside Slasher – Vacationers at a beach resort are hunted by a killer. They must survive and uncover the killer’s identity.
The Amusement Park Horror – A killer targets visitors at an amusement park. The survivors must stop the killer and escape the park.
The Midnight Stalker – A killer targets people walking alone at midnight. A detective must catch the killer before more lives are lost.
The Wedding Day Massacre – A killer crashes a wedding, targeting guests. The survivors must find a way to stop the killer and escape.
The Forest of Fear – Hikers in a forest are hunted by a killer. They must survive and find a way to stop the killer.
The Asylum Escapee – A killer escapes from an asylum and targets people in a nearby town. The townspeople must uncover the killer’s identity to stop the murders.

Cosmic Horror

The Lovecraftian Entity – A small town is plagued by sightings of an otherworldly entity. The townspeople must uncover its origins to stop the madness.
The Eldritch Tome – A scholar discovers a book that drives readers insane. They must uncover the book’s secrets to stop its influence.
The Alien Artifact – Scientists discover an artifact that brings forth cosmic horrors. They must find a way to destroy it before it consumes them.
The Forgotten Temple – Explorers find an ancient temple dedicated to a cosmic entity. They must uncover its secrets to escape the horrors within.
The Star Cult – A cult worships a cosmic entity that grants them terrible powers. Investigators must stop the cult before they summon the entity.
The Cosmic Rift – A rift in space-time opens, bringing forth horrors from another dimension. Scientists must find a way to close the rift.
The Astral Projector – A person gains the ability to astrally project but encounters cosmic horrors. They must find a way to control their power.
The Interdimensional Traveler – A traveler from another dimension brings cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to send the traveler back.
The Eldritch Signal – A signal from deep space drives those who hear it insane. Scientists must find a way to stop the signal.
The Otherworldly Beacon – A lighthouse serves as a beacon for cosmic entities. The keeper must find a way to stop the beacon.
The Alien Invasion – Aliens from another dimension invade Earth, bringing cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to fight back.
The Eldritch Storm – A storm brings forth cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to stop the storm.
The Forgotten Ones – Ancient beings awaken and bring cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to stop them.
The Cosmic Plague – A plague from another dimension infects humanity. The survivors must find a cure before it spreads.
The Eldritch Machine – A machine built by an ancient civilization brings cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to destroy it.
The Otherworldly Visitor – A visitor from another dimension brings cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to send them back.
The Lovecraftian Dreams – People start having dreams of cosmic horrors that drive them insane. They must find a way to stop the dreams.
The Eldritch Ritual – A cult performs a ritual to summon a cosmic entity. Investigators must stop the ritual.
The Alien Mind Control – Aliens use mind control to bring forth cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to stop them.
The Eldritch Portal – A portal opens, bringing forth cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to close it.
The Forgotten City – Explorers find a lost city dedicated to cosmic entities. They must uncover its secrets to escape the horrors within.
The Otherworldly Artifact – An artifact from another dimension brings cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to destroy it.
The Eldritch Experiment – Scientists’ experiments bring forth cosmic horrors. They must find a way to stop the experiments.
The Alien Infestation – Aliens infest a town, bringing cosmic horrors. The survivors must find a way to stop them.
The Cosmic Entity – A cosmic entity awakens, bringing forth horrors. The survivors must find a way to stop it.

Folk Horror

The Village Ritual – A village performs a dark ritual every year. Outsiders must uncover the ritual’s purpose to escape.
The Forest Cult – A cult in the forest performs dark rituals. Outsiders must uncover the cult’s secrets to survive.
The Harvest Sacrifice – A village sacrifices people for a good harvest. The outsiders must stop the sacrifices.
The Witch Hunt – A village accuses outsiders of being witches. They must prove their innocence to survive.
The Cursed Land – A village is built on cursed land. Outsiders must uncover the curse’s origin to lift it.
The Haunted Farm – A farm is haunted by the spirits of those wronged by the landowners. The new owners must uncover the farm’s dark history.
The Pagan Festival – A village’s pagan festival hides dark secrets. Outsiders must uncover the truth to survive.
The Reaping – A village reaps souls to appease a dark entity. The outsiders must stop the reaping.
The Cursed Forest – A forest is cursed, and those who enter never return. Outsiders must uncover the curse’s origin.
The Old Gods – A village worships ancient gods that demand sacrifices. The outsiders must stop the worship.
The Blood Moon – A village performs a ritual under a blood moon. Outsiders must stop the ritual.
The Spirit of the Lake – A lake is haunted by a vengeful spirit. The villagers must uncover its story to stop the hauntings.
The Cornfield Curse – A village’s cornfield is cursed, causing bizarre deaths. Outsiders must uncover the curse’s origin to stop it.
The Stone Circle – A stone circle in a village is used for dark rituals. Outsiders must uncover their secrets to stop the rituals.
The Phantom Harvest – A village experiences hauntings during the harvest season. Outsiders must uncover the cause to end the terror.
The Cursed Festival – A village festival turns deadly each year. Outsiders must uncover the festival’s dark origins to stop the deaths.
The Whispering Woods – The woods surrounding a village whisper dark secrets. Outsiders must decipher the whispers to escape.
The Haunted Mill – An old mill is haunted by the spirits of workers who died there. New owners must uncover the mill’s dark history.
The Witch’s Mark – A village marks certain people as witches. Outsiders must uncover the truth behind the markings to survive.
The Blood Ritual – A village performs a blood ritual to appease dark forces. Outsiders must stop the ritual before they become sacrifices.
The Specter of the Fields – A scarecrow in a village’s fields comes to life. Outsiders must uncover the scarecrow’s dark origins.
The Sinister Shepherd – A shepherd in a village controls his flock with dark magic. Outsiders must uncover his secrets to stop him.
The Ghostly Harvesters – Spirits of past harvesters haunt a village. Outsiders must uncover the harvesters’ stories to end the hauntings.
The Village of Shadows – A village is plagued by shadowy figures. Outsiders must uncover the figures’ origins to escape.
The Witching Hour – A village experiences dark events at the Witching Hour. Outsiders must uncover the truth behind the events to survive.

Here is a video with 25 bonus horror writing prompts:

Final Thoughts: Horror Writing Prompts

Using these writing prompts is simple.

Choose a prompt that sparks your interest. Imagine the characters, setting, and conflict. Let the prompt guide you, but feel free to add your unique twist.

Keep writing until the story unfolds naturally.

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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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The Scariest Moment of My Life: A Brush with Fear

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Essay on Literature

Example Of Essay On Horror Stories

Type of paper: Essay

Topic: Literature , Terrorism , Love , Theology , Horror , Fear , Reading , Feeling

Published: 03/03/2020

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Horror is a literature genre is intended or has the capability to scare or frighten an individual reading the piece of literature. Reading any piece of horror story is capable of creating an eerie of scary atmosphere. They are classified as supernatural or non-supernatural, like ghosts and vampires are supernatural while serial killers are no-supernatural. More often than not this genre is always referred to a metaphor because it brings fear to the society as vampires and ghosts. This paper seeks to discuss all about the horror story genre, the history around the fictions and how many writers have influenced the community. The genre has its roots in religion tradition that focused on death, afterlife, demonic and evil, based on the person being embodied. They are majorly discussed in stories of vampires and ghosts. Horror has a number of traits that are displayed on a reader; it provokes a response either emotionally, physically causing fear in them. Some read horror stories to excite them, however in the horror fiction readers seek a form of art that push them to confront images and ideas they would rather not know. It is done to challenge the preconception of the human kind. Horror fictions are very old are known to distinguish two elements, terror and horror. Horror is feeling revulsion or disgusted after reading while terror is a dreaded feeling before reading the piece of literature maybe when one has just seen the drawing on the book. In conclusion, I would say horror books are about images one has never seen but seats down and draws the image in their head which looks real. Stories of vampires are a perfect example since they are just fictional beings that existed in ancient days and they would sleep during the day, wake up at night hungry for blood. In the real sense these stories are created to intrigue our mind become more imaginative, also to scare as like ghosts stories.

Works Cited

Gibson, Bryan, Paul Cavadino, and David Faulkner.super natural fiction writers: An Introduction. Winchester: Waterside Press, 2008. Print

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Home — Essay Samples — Geography & Travel — Haunted House — My Own Experience in a Haunted House

My Own Experience in a Haunted House

Categories: Haunted House Personal Experience

About this sample

Words: 686 |

Updated: 6 December, 2023

Words: 686 | Page: 1 | 4 min read

Works Cited

Bader, C. (2014). Paranormal America: Ghost Encounters, UFO Sightings, Bigfoot Hunts, and Other Curiosities in Religion and Culture. NYU Press.
Dickey, C. (2016). Ghostland: An American History in Haunted Places. Penguin Books.
Hargrove, R. (2013). The Haunted House: A True Ghost Story. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.
Holzer, H. (2017). Ghosts: True Encounters from the World Beyond. Black Dog & Leventhal.
Klinger, L. (2014). The New Annotated H.P. Lovecraft. Liveright Publishing Corporation.
Michell, J., & Rickard, R. (Eds.). (2016). Paranormality: Why We Believe the Impossible. Overlook Press.
Radford, B., & Nickell, J. (2012). The Science of Ghosts: Searching for Spirits of the Dead. Prometheus Books.
Randles, J., & Hough, P. (2016). The Paranormal, the new guide to understanding and working with the unexplained. Watkins Media Limited.
Tucker, E. (2016). Haunted Halls: Ghostlore of American College Campuses. University Press of Mississippi.
Underwood, P. (2013). Haunted London. Amberley Publishing.

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25 Horror Writing Prompts: How to Write Scary Stories
25 Horror Writing Prompts: How to Write Scary Stories. Written by MasterClass. Last updated: Sep 3, 2021 • 1 min read. Not all horror stories need to be set during Halloween. Looking for inspiration to start writing a scary story or creepy film? See these 25 creative writing prompts for writing your own horror story.
The Horror Genre: Novels and Stories
The author's father was a child molester and he is attempting to write a novel about his father's life. This story utilizes this revolting back-story to incite fear into the audience. Although the author is not a pedophile like his father, nearly everyone that he interacts with in the story believes him to be one.
Scary Stories: Exploring the Elements of Suspense
In scary stories, there are roles these characters have; for example, scary characters or the bad guys cause trouble, like in The Landlady when the old lady poisoned Billy Weaver, or in The Monkey's Paw, the paw was considered the bad guy because it was cursed and caused a lot of problems in Mr. White's life.
250 Horror Writing Prompts (Scary Good Ideas)
The Ghostly Librarian - A library is haunted by the ghost of a former librarian. The new librarian must uncover the ghost's secrets to restore peace. The Phantom Dancer - A ballerina encounters the ghost of a dancer who died in a tragic accident. She must perform the dancer's final routine to set her spirit free.
101 Terrifying Horror Story Prompts
101 Terrifying Horror Story Prompts. 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.
Horror Essays
Horror essay topics Prompts. Write a horror story from the perspective of the monster. Imagine a world where everyone's deepest fears come to life - what would this look like? Write a horror essay exploring the concept of "survival horror" in video games. Create a horror story set in a haunted house, but with a unique twist.
The Scariest Moment of My Life: A Brush with Fear
shaken but alive. The scariest moment of my life had revealed the fragility of human existence in the face of. nature's raw power. It had etched a memory that would forever remind me of the unpredictability of life and the. thin line that separates us from the primal forces that once ruled our world.
Horror Stories Essay Examples
Example Of Essay On Horror Stories. Type of paper: Essay. Topic: Literature, Terrorism, Love, Theology, Horror, Fear, Reading, Feeling. Pages: 2. Words: 350. Published: 03/03/2020. ORDER PAPER LIKE THIS. Horror is a literature genre is intended or has the capability to scare or frighten an individual reading the piece of literature.
Sample Short Essay
Scary Story Essay example. Scary Story I looked up at the black sky. I hadn't intended to be out this late. The sun had set, and the empty road ahead had no streetlights. I knew I was in for a dark journey home. I had decided that by traveling through the forest would be the quickest way home. Minutes passed, yet it seemed like hours and days.
My Own Experience in a Haunted House
Dark clouds always seem to hover over the house, situated on a dead end street. And then there are the stories. A man went mad and murdered his whole family in the house. One night, the house suffered a fire and a baby died in it. On and on, with a tragic death at the center. Because then come the other stories.

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