Set your story in a Gothic manor house.

Posted in Horror on Nov 1, 2022

Submissions are closed

Sorry, we are not accepting submissions for this prompt as it is not part of an active contest. Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy Prompts account.

Or create a new Reedsy account:

Why not check out our active contest?

✍️ 133 stories

“Double Double Toil and Trouble” by Susan Hudson

Submitted to Contest #64

Double Double Toil and Trouble Susan W. Hudson Pia Damman loved to walk out to her back yard every morning and stretch her body towards the heavens. No matter if there was rain or sunlight, she did it on a daily basis. It was Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, so many of the days were cold and rainy or at least misty. She lived in a remnant of a Gothic-style manor, so she relished the few and far between sunny days. She had inherited the mansion from her German ancestors of years past. It had been added to and rearranged many times over the...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Night Owl” by Ronin Pig

Submitted to Contest #64

The overcast night brings a gloomier mood to the dark, dingy streets of downtown San Diego. On the corner of Fourth and Market, David Zuniga, a short, slender young man with black shaggy hair, takes a look at his watch before panning his head back and forth down both streets. His foot’s incessant tapping is cut off as a black car pulls up. Through the windshield, the glowing sign lights up the driver’s over-enthusiastic expression. He sighs before taking the bag from off the ground and jumps into the back seat of the car. “Hey! David, Right?...

0 comments 0

Read story

“fate favors the mad” by S. K.

Submitted to Contest #64

He entered the house through the servants’ door. It stood half-open, moonlight slipping through the crack on cat’s feet. The old mahogany stairs stretched up to nowhere. He cupped a hand over the candle and struck a match. The smell of sulfur permeated the air. Flickering, the candle cast its firefly glow into the passageway. He left the door open and crept up the stairs. A wild night wind followed him, teasing at the flame and trickling cold into his skin. Fate was favoring him tonight. The young man paused at the top, hesitant. He put his ...

3 comments 3

Read story

“Incubus” by J Smith

Submitted to Contest #64

The house that I lived in was old. Constructed in the late nineteenth century, it was one of the last neogothic houses built in the area. I had inherited the property from my late aunt, who had restored the building from a dilapidated state at great personal expense. It was unclear to all relations why she had labored so furiously to preserve what ought to have been a condemned building, but an oxymoronic sense of stubbornness coupled with flights of fancy made her victim to such endeavors. I was not one to be too critical. In the end, I re...

0 comments 0

Read story

“The Lord and my Lady” by Rachel Rozelle

Submitted to Contest #64

Woods all around. They stretched as far as any eye could see. Nothing existed beyond or within these woods, nothing good that is. Deep within the heart of the woods lived a Lord of sorts. He once commanded the little village that lay surrounding his manoir. These days the Lord had little to command but his home. For a time he paced along his dark dusty hallways leaving only a trail, where his feet shuffled passed. Ghost-like, he made no noise walking from room to room as if to check on his guests, of course there was none to be found. &...

8 comments 8

Read story

“Fall of Sorrow part one” by Caitlin Woitt

Submitted to Contest #64

The branches of the trees creaked and whined as the wind swept across the moor. Twisters of leaves flung wildly about. Upon a hill stood a man gazing absently over the valley. The man’s clothing was ill fitting on his thinning frame. His face was gaunt and his hair fell unkempt. His body trembled with weakness and exhaustion. His once bright blue eyes were now clouded and bleary. It was his first time in the outside world from his manor in as any months. His home had fallen silent. The floor was littered with leaves, dust coated every surfac...

1 comment 1

Read story

“I know who committed the murder.” by Mek R

Submitted to Contest #64

"I know who committed the murder," the detective announced with as much gravitas as he could muster. He held his head high and a smug expression crossed his face. The steady pour of the rain hammered at the windows of the manor house, and the lightning illuminated the stone gargoyles on the outside balustrade. It was the perfect atmosphere for a murder mystery revelation. The final scenes of all the best detective novels occurred in a gothic manor amidst a downpour, and his revelation would truly be one for the storybooks. He h...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Floating Pumpkins” by J.B. Dixon

Submitted to Contest #64

It was the only structure for miles on the otherwise undisturbed country green. The dirt road leading to it curved widely in front of the manor then lead back to the main road. The dirt had well-worn ruts from horse-drawn carriages, along with sparse evidence of auto tires, most likely from whomever took care of the old place. As the group of four couples drew closer, they could discern discolorations in the brick façade, the partially rusted downspouts, and several boarded windows. The two end partitions of the house sat further out than th...

2 comments 2

Read story

“The Heishardt House” by Tucson Richelson

Submitted to Contest #64

There it was, at the corner of Linden and Mulberry, the Heishardt House, ripe for the selling. An 1839 mansion built in Gothic style. 6 bedrooms 1 bathroom, two floors, on a double lot. You can’t find beauties like this anymore. Just as I was about to get out of my car and walk the hundred feet or so to the house, I got a call from my boss. It was the usual thing: I’m $300,000 below quota for the quarter and If I didn’t make it... Hell, the house could be possessed by a demon for all I care, this has to be the one. As I got t...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Jokes on them” by Olivia Dance

Submitted to Contest #64

In West of Ontario there is a suburb most famous for the 200-year-old gothic manor that proudly stands out from the modest exteriors of the two-story houses alongside. It was owned by an elderly couple, but after their daughter took them to Spain to live with her, the manor went on sale for eight years, up until two months ago, when it was bought by a young family. It has been heard that the manor is in good condition, but the new owners wanted to make some adjustments before moving in. Since September they have been renting a house down the...

4 comments 4

Read story

“The Henderson Manor” by Robyn Fox

Submitted to Contest #64

It was a raw, cold afternoon and the wind was squally and unpredictable. The moors and woodland surrounding us were revealing autumn's swift approach. I watched through my carriage window as leaves of every shade of crimson swirled up and around the tall trees around us, casting invisible spirals stretching far up into the sky before retreating slowly to the ground, as if taking their final breath.We were moving fast. I cannot remember how long we'd been travelling, a number of days certainly, but the journey was so long and arduous tha...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Only When It Rains” by Kate Doerner

Submitted to Contest #64

Anna stepped out of the car and pushed the door shut. She turned and looked at the house on top of the hill, then turned back with the hope that there would at least be a friendly smile to wish her luck on this new journey. She knew that this was too much to hope for and such was confirmed as she saw the car pulling away, towards the horizon without so much as a second glance. The wrought iron gate stood in front of her looking cold and unfeeling as the wind blew lightly, pushing the wisps of her mousy brown hair into her face. Clouds gathe...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Paint Me Hell” by Christopher Cayen-Cyr

Submitted to Contest #64

According to the dusty archived book Otto had found in an obscure corner of the National Library while in Prague, Houska Castle had been built in the late 13th century under the instructions of a Bohemian king. No wonder the paintings in the chapel needed restoration work, he thought. After standing in disrepair for decades, the whole estate must have been in dire need of modernization. Truth be told, it might have been better to rebuild it from the ground up. This was of course very unlikely, given the other secrets of the manor revealed by...

0 comments 0

Read story

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a ghost story where there’s more going on than it first appears.

Mystery – 225 stories

Write about someone who’s been sent to boarding school.

Novel – 120 stories

Write about a family attempting to hide their secrets from someone new.

Dramatic – 121 stories

Write a romance that involves one partner saving the other from a fire.

Romance – 154 stories

Contest #64

Enter our weekly contest!

This week's theme: Out on the Moor

$50

Prize money

753

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 23, 2020 EST

Won by Mollie Rodgers 🏆

Title: The Girl in the Goethe House

View details

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

We'll send you 5 prompts each week. Respond with your short story and you could win $250!

Menu

CONNECT

BLOG

APPS

TOOLS

ABOUT

Set your story in a Gothic manor house.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 133 stories

“Double Double Toil and Trouble” by Susan Hudson

“Night Owl” by Ronin Pig

“fate favors the mad” by S. K.

“Incubus” by J Smith

“The Lord and my Lady” by Rachel Rozelle

“Fall of Sorrow part one” by Caitlin Woitt

“I know who committed the murder.” by Mek R

“Floating Pumpkins” by J.B. Dixon

“The Heishardt House” by Tucson Richelson

“Jokes on them” by Olivia Dance

“The Henderson Manor” by Robyn Fox

“Only When It Rains” by Kate Doerner

“Paint Me Hell” by Christopher Cayen-Cyr

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a ghost story where there’s more going on than it first appears.

Write about someone who’s been sent to boarding school.

Write about a family attempting to hide their secrets from someone new.

Write a romance that involves one partner saving the other from a fire.

Contest #64

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

753

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: