Menu

Prompts

Contests

Stories

Blog

Menu

✕

CONNECT

Editing Design Marketing Publicity Ghostwriting Websites

BLOG

Success Stories

APPS

TOOLS

Book Promotion Sites Book Review Blogs Booktube Channel Guide Book Title Generator Character Name Generator Independent Publishers Literary Agents Literary Magazines Pen Name Generator Plot Generator Publishers Directory Short Story Ideas Writing Contests Writing Exercises Writing Scholarships

ABOUT

About Reedsy Terms Privacy

CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#272: Fright Night

Don’t forget to use the hashtag #ReedsyFright to share your stories (and potentially be featured on our social accounts)!

Spooky season has arrived, and what better way to embrace this time of year than by diving into some spine-chilling writing? I’m constantly amazed by the variety of enthralling narratives we come across in this contest — from subtle, eerie stories with sinister undertones to tales that are outright macabre.

So, as one of the year's most popular holidays approaches, let’s get into the Halloween spirit and conjure up some creepy tales. Grab your coziest sweater and favorite hot drink, and let’s get writing!

This week's prompts

Write a story with the aim of scaring your reader.

Short Story – 112 stories

Start or end your story with someone running away from something, literally or metaphorically.

Dramatic – 85 stories

Write a story from the point of view of a ghost, vampire, or werewolf.

Short Story – 144 stories

Center your story around someone trying to resist their darker impulses — and they’ll either succeed or fail.

Angst – 63 stories

Write a story in which the narrator or a character says "Did you hear that?"

Short Story – 84 stories

Stories

“Bloodbath at the Beach” by Bob Faszczewski

Submitted to Contest #272

Ready for another typical Monday after a normal resort town weekend, Ocean City, Maryland chambermaid Rosa Gonzalez slowly unlocked the door of the luxury condominium unit and wheeled her equipment cart into the room. She had expected to make quick work of it–a minor dusting, picking up a few dozen discarded paper cups and booze bottles and a once-over with a vacuum. To her horror, she found pools of red bl...

Read story

“THE NIGHTMARE OF MALLORY” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #272

The story of Mallory begins as any other story. The story of innocence's. The story of beauty. The story of kindness. The story of love. But beneath that story lied a nightmare. A nightmare no one saw coming. Mallory only first name. No last name. No face to go with her name. Erased from the memory of those who knew her. Erased from the town she was born and raised in. A lovely girl. A girl of beauty and love with the heart of gold to those who knew her. On the outside that's the Mallory her town knew. On the inside was a heart of darkness. ...

Read story

“The Sun Is My Night Light” by Sive Rivers

Submitted to Contest #272

The Zoltar fortune card I held felt as though the machine was mocking me. Remember, yesterday, you could not wait for today to arrive. It went on about being content and happy, and looking forward to tomorrow. Once I left the park, I’d toss it. “That was so much fun! I’m glad you grew out of your fears. Weren’t those haunted houses cool?!” My sister was starting to stumble around. Her boyfriend wrapped an arm around her waist to keep her steady as we headed towards the exit gates and out to the parking lot. Since I could no longer drink...

Read story

“The Lost Soul” by Misti Silvers

Submitted to Contest #272

Victoria couldn’t believe that it was actually happening. She didn’t think it would actually work. She never imagined she would be able to muster enough strength to manifest herself. Practice really did make it perfect. She had been trying for such a long time to be normal again. Finally, she was able to do it.Not sure what she wanted to do, she sat on the couch to think about it. Smiling from ear to ear, she couldn’t recall the last time she had been that happy. Her sister was going to be so happy. Victoria couldn’t wait to tell her.Decidin...

Read story

“Chronicling the Ages : A Sanguivore's Reflection” by B. D. Bradshaw

Submitted to Contest #272

Chronicling the Ages : A Sanguivore's ReflectionA comprehensive account of the eras spanning the vivications of the esteemed Lady Lahmia Pavel.Era OneDawn of ImmortalityMy intimate era. This age marks my most profound transformation - the end of my mortal life, and rebirth as Sanguinis renatus, a creature of the endless night. My beloved, Demetrius, has bestowed his most precious gift, sharing his blood, that we may rule these lands together, immortal. The process was agonising, yet necessary, and Demetrius remained at my side through it all...

Read story

“Obsession in Darkness” by Cindy Calder

Submitted to Contest #272

Discreetly, in the shadow of the crescent moon’s light, he followed her, his footsteps cloaked in fine Italian leather as he moved silently over the walkways. So obscure was he even on a moonlight night, she had, as of yet, taken no notice even though he had followed her for well more than a month. He was undeniably drawn, like a moth to the flame, though she threatened to engulf him in her fire. The tantalizing scent she carried encompassed both his sleep infused days and voracious, hungry nights. He feared there would be no escaping the ar...

Read story

“The Predator” by Ariel Golia

Submitted to Contest #272

I sigh, a thin cloud hovering in front of my face before it vanishes.I've watched Jordan fall over his feet so many times today it's starting to rub. The urge to protect grows a little thin in the light of all the blunders my little brother manages to make. But it's not easy to protect with only hands you can see and feel anyway. I sigh again, my spectral form hovering a few inches above the hallway's floor, bubblegum and dirt lurking in dark corners where the janitor doesn't bother with.Jordan has managed to get through the doors of Harvill...

Read story

“Moon Monsters Like Me” by Robert Evans

Submitted to Contest #272

“Come on,” Hector calls from ahead of me. “We want to reach the top before sunset.” The trail—and Hector—disappear behind a strand of pine trees. I take a minute to catch my breath. The trail to the top of Mount Misery is only two and a half miles long, but it’s a steep and rocky climb. For two weeks now, Hector has been begging me to join him on a hike to the top to watch the sunset. I finally said yes, forgetting the moon would be full tonight. I really like Hector—a lot. It’s too bad I’m going to kill him. I glance at my watch before foll...

Read story

“The Cold Heart of Jarvis Turner” by Aaron Mayer

Submitted to Contest #272

People agreed, it was wise to watch your back around Jarvis Turner. He was the kind of man who could stab you in the back just as easy as picking a grape off the vines along Horse Creek Road. Eventually, word got around about his shady business dealings and folks kept their distance from him. Before the stories spread, he had duped, bamboozled, and cheated his way across three counties around the turn of the century.He scammed his way west from the big muddy river, leaving a trail of debt and heartache like the locals had never seen. He used...

Read story

“Spooky Goodies” by Emma Carey

Submitted to Contest #272

“Hello Spooky Goodies, you’re speaking with Goodie?”“Goodie, it’s me.” It’s Clarence, again. “I know you’re busy today, but I've got another mini on the way to you now. He’ll be with you within the hour.” I look at the clock and its two hands standing to attention, bang on noon.It's busy at Spooky Goodies alright. I’ve already received about nine minis today. It’s just non-stop.“Goodie, this one’s called Timmy. Seven years old. Car crash. Mum and Dad were taken, too.”Clarence brings me up to speed with the next ghost I’m about to welco...

Read story

“Gubbio the Wolf and the Saint” by Aaron Schuck

Submitted to Contest #272

The day I met him, the little man in the brown robes with the big eyes and an even bigger heart. They say Saint Francis of Assisi could charm the birds from the trees, turn wolves into vegetarians, and negotiate a peace deal with your darkest nature. Well, I can confirm at least part of that. Let me set the scene. Gubbio was my kingdom, well, our kingdom, if you asked the humans, but who was asking them? For months, I had been, shall we say, exploring my gastronomic options, which sometimes included livestock, and, yes, the oc...

Read story

“Just Passing Through.” by Christine LW

Submitted to Contest #272

JUST PASSING THROUGH. Leila Evans watched rain trickling down the window- pane, as a she lay in the hospice bed looking so frail. She looked at her arms she had become skin and bone the flesh-eating disease had taken its toll. Her once ...

Read story

“Silent Treatment” by Jessica Chandler

Submitted to Contest #272

Standing in the doorway, I watch my mother pace around the kitchen, a half-empty wine glass in hand and a furrow in her brow. She’s been drinking a lot more the past few nights. I keep thinking there must have been something I did to make everyone upset, which would explain her noticeable uptick in nightly glasses of vino. I just wish someone would break the silence and tell me what I did wrong. Passive-aggressive silent treatments are my family’s specialty. My sister and I learned from a young age how to dish out and deal with some wicked s...

Read story

“The Haunting of Alexandra Blackwood” by Dita Dow

Submitted to Contest #272

The moment I died, I knew something was wrong. It wasn't the fact of dying itself—though choking on a piece of brie at my own book launch party was hardly the exit I had imagined for Alexandra Blackwood, bestselling mystery author.No, it was the sudden eerie silence that engulfed Oakwood Manor, my beloved Victorian monstrosity of a home.Hovering near the ornate crystal chandelier in the grand foyer, I gazed down at my lifeless body sprawled rather gracelessly across the antique Persian rug. I felt an odd weightlessness, like I had been freed...

Read story

“The Way of the Vampire” by Ronald John MacLennan Jr

Submitted to Contest #272

16 June, London, 1821I pen these words by candlelight, my hand still trembling from the events of this eve. Alexander's first hunt has left me both exhilarated and deeply troubled. I fear I have unleashed upon this world a force I may not be able to control.As dusk fell, I roused Alexander from his death-like slumber. His eyes, now a preternatural green, opened with alarming speed."Antoine," he gasped, sitting up with inhuman grace. "The hunger... it consumes me."I placed a steadying hand on his shoulder. “We shall hunt soon enough. But firs...

Read story

Load more stories

$250

Prize money

488

Contest entries

175

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 18, 2024 EST

Won by Mortimer Ridgewood 🏆

Title: Drone

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

Explore more writing prompt ideas:

Adults Writing Prompts ⭢

Adventure Writing Prompts ⭢

Angst Writing Prompts ⭢

Character Writing Prompts ⭢

Christmas Writing Prompts ⭢

Dark Writing Prompts ⭢

Dialogue Writing Prompts ⭢

Dramatic Writing Prompts ⭢

Dystopian Writing Prompts ⭢

Fall Writing Prompts ⭢

Fantasy Writing Prompts ⭢

Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Fluff Writing Prompts ⭢

Funny Writing Prompts ⭢

Halloween Writing Prompts ⭢

High School Writing Prompts ⭢

Historical Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Holiday Writing Prompts ⭢

Horror Writing Prompts ⭢

Kids Writing Prompts ⭢

Middle School Writing Prompts ⭢

Mystery Writing Prompts ⭢

Narrative Writing Prompts ⭢

Nonfiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Novel Writing Prompts ⭢

Poetry Writing Prompts ⭢

Romance Writing Prompts ⭢

Sad Writing Prompts ⭢

Science Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Short Story Writing Prompts ⭢

Spring Writing Prompts ⭢

Summer Writing Prompts ⭢

Teens Writing Prompts ⭢

Thanksgiving Writing Prompts ⭢

Thriller and Suspense Writing Prompts ⭢

Valentine's Day Writing Prompts ⭢

Vampire Writing Prompts ⭢

Winter Writing Prompts ⭢