Set your story in a house of mirrors and make the atmosphere increasingly eerie.

Posted in Horror on Nov 17, 2023

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✍️ 30 stories

“Galerie des Glaces” by Marty B

**** themes of violence *****1681, Versaille, France.Maestro La Motta saw his dead father walking toward him through the arched alcove, and pure terror washed through him. Had his Father has come across the world to haunt him, to torment him for destroying his legacy? Workmen’s voices shouted in French and in German outside the open windows of the long hallway. When he heard the vibrant tones of his own language, Venetian, La Motta looked out to see his two apprentices, the only people ...

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“Gertrude Inn” by Hazel Ide

The span of my childhood could be separated into two categories: Knowing and Not-knowing.In fact, everyone in my family, even the adults, could split similarly: those who knew and those who didn’t.Regardless of which category you fell into, everyone knew Grandma had certain… proclivities. It was an unspoken thing, yet you felt how heavily it threaded into every conversation and side-comment at family gatherings. No one really talked about it, not outright, but it was always there, lingering between the lines. <...

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“Reflections of Motherhood” by Hannah Lynn

“Happy Birthday, Mommy!” Startled out of a deep sleep, Julia woke to the twins jumping on the bed like two little monkeys. “Get over here.” She smiled, reaching out for the children. As they tumbled on top of her with their hugs and kisses, she had to laugh. It was a good way to start her birthday. “Are we going to the carnival, Mommy?” “Did you th...

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“The Man in the Mirrors” by Nic Azad

**Trigger warning: this story contains depictions of mental health and physical violence that some readers may find unsettling. Reader discretion is advised. Detective Harley spun around, right hand moving instinctively to his hip. He could have sworn the sound of footfalls had come from just over his shoulder. His 180 complete, the Detective's eyes alighted on nothing save for his reflection, which seeme...

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“The World Inside” by Amanda Sessions

Tink, tink, tink.The tin can Addy had just kicked skittered down the broken pavement in front of her. Broken, just like everything else in what was left of her hometown. As she walked toward the old fairgrounds, she passed houses in different stages of disrepair. They all had a common theme though; it looked as if whoever had lived there had left in a hurry. There were old drink cans tipped over on the front lawns, a garage door was left open with children's toys rusting in the elements, and a sweet Raggedy Ann doll slum...

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“The Edge of Reality” by Tyler Porter

Leo’s footsteps echoed faintly as he approached the old carnival, the sounds mingling with distant laughter and the creaking of rusted rides swaying in the gentle night breeze. The place had an air of forgotten joy, like a melody from an era that had long since gone. It was the first weekend of October, and the carnival had sprung up on the outskirts of town, a temporary world of wonder in the midst of mundane life. ...

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“Glass House” by Jed Cope

John’s mum used to say that you ended up with the house that was meant for you. When he was younger, he was uncharitable towards his mother’s sayings. He found them to be twee and ultimately irrelevant, but as he calmed down and relaxed into his life, he found merit in what she said understanding that she’d done a fair amount of living, mostly before he came along and changed her into a parent and mother. She’d been more...

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“reflected.” by Lara Deppe

Paisley screamed Alder’s name but it was drowned out by the whine of the ambulance as it rushed her down the mountainside. The EMT was trying to calm her but she was desperate to know what was happening to her husband. The last time she had seen him conscious was only a reflection behind a thick pane of glass. They should never have come here. She wished they had never taken this job.“No way!” Paisley exclaimed as she pulled the blanket off her legs where she was snuggled on the couch. The couch creaked with age as she s...

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“Mirror..mirror on the war, all I see is my robot staring at me… ” by Perla Horn

Hmm….and I thought you said you love me. I do but not the way you think I should - I said and rest my hand on his shoulder. I don’t understand. Why are you even questioning my motives. I did everything I could to take you home with me, but I was told you had to stay in the lab. You said, you will take me home, Ian cried and covered his face so I couldn’t see his dry eyes. I leaned closer and put m...

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“Parallel” by Sophie Irish

I awoke suddenly, jolting in the hard and creaky bed I had crashed the night before, in a wine fuelled haze, with a feeling like I had been plunged into darkness. I was unsure if my eyes were open or closed and my temple throbbed at last night’s poor decision to finish a bottle and a half. I fumbled for my phone under my pillow and groaned at the blinding brightness. It was only five in the morning but I had work to do, ...

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“Mirror Mirror” by Ralph Aldrich

I stumble out of “Pete’s Blue Bird Bar and Grill,” where I’ve had my usual nightly meal along with two pitchers of beer. Swaying slightly on the sidewalk, I light a cigarette. A cool wind whips around me. I shiver and flip up my collar. I exhale a stream of smoke into a starless sky, for they are hidden behind a wall of rain clouds. “I think I’d better hurry home to my empty apartment before it rains on my empty life.” I chuckle. Raising my finger, I pronounce, “But first, to the package store for my fa...

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“Blood and Lipstick ” by Alyssa Telgenhoff

My brother is dying. That's why we are here today. Vincent waited too long to choose what he wanted for his wish. He's too sick to go to Disney. The next best thing is a crappy fairground twenty minutes away from our house. My mom places her hand on my shoulder as her husband helps Vincent out of the car. Paul has been around for as long as I can remember. The night my parents came home from their honeymoon was the first...

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“Reflections Unbound” by Jennifer Farina Stewart

The wind howled through the twisted, gnarled branches of the ancient trees that encircled the abandoned mansion. As it blew, it whispered secrets of the past, casting eerie shadows on the crumbling facade of the once-grand estate. Alex, Maya, and Jake, united by their fascination with the macabre, stood before the mansion, their breaths visible in the chilly autumn air. They were drawn to the decaying mansion, rumored to be a place of unspeakable horror and secrets.With trepidation, the trio pushed the creaking front doo...

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“Metanoia” by Paisley Bird

Enter to Receive Your Wildest Dreams, these words etched in stone above the door frame. Stark and cold, the concrete house sat in the loneliest part of the desert. It was rather small for a traditional house, it was more like a large shed, only sheds do not typically have candles lit around their opening. It was known as Metanoia, the Greek term for a transformation of the heart. One could not s...

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“The Art of Lost Keys” by Jarrel Jefferson

I stare out the window at the overcast sky and the air looks like a prolonged orgasm. I haven’t left my apartment in thirty-seven hours, during which thoughts of me forgetting how to conversate with another human being fill me with a nameless dread. I need to break free from these walls. I reach for the car keys I sometimes leave on my writing desk, but my fingertips shuffle around medical bills, and I listen to ...

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Set your story in a house of mirrors and make the atmosphere increasingly eerie.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 30 stories

“Galerie des Glaces” by Marty B

“Gertrude Inn” by Hazel Ide

“Reflections of Motherhood” by Hannah Lynn

“The Man in the Mirrors” by Nic Azad

“The World Inside” by Amanda Sessions

“The Edge of Reality” by Tyler Porter

“Glass House” by Jed Cope

“reflected.” by Lara Deppe

“Mirror..mirror on the war, all I see is my robot staring at me… ” by Perla Horn

“Parallel” by Sophie Irish

“Mirror Mirror” by Ralph Aldrich

“Blood and Lipstick ” by Alyssa Telgenhoff

“Reflections Unbound” by Jennifer Farina Stewart

“Metanoia” by Paisley Bird

“The Art of Lost Keys” by Jarrel Jefferson

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with someone buying a cursed — or perhaps blessed —mirror from an antiques store.

Write a story about someone trying to paint (or otherwise create) a self-portrait.

Write a story about someone coming across their doppelganger.

Write a story about a character who one day notices that their reflection has taken on a life of its own.

Contest #225

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

298

Contest entries

112

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: