Start your story with a character seeing something terrifying.

Posted in Horror on Jul 7, 2023

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✍️ 53 stories

“The Devil is in the Details” by Victoria Shellady

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #206

I was sixteen years old when they found the six bodies underneath our living room floor. I’m not one to share personal details – mostly because I have a tendency to run my mouth and say too much – but I think about that night often. Usually as I’m just crawling into bed, in that time between hazy wakefulness and deep rest. Which, if I’m being honest, I’ve never been the greatest sleeper anyway. I’m at my most productive at night. And as a result, I spend a lot of time staring up at the ceiling, contemplating if it will be the night I spill a...

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“Shimmering Silver” by Greydon Blight

Submitted to Contest #206

And lo, it rained from the sky; ripples of blue echoed through the air akin to the early morning, as if the sun rent the veil of night. Terror enveloped me, but in wonderment that fear fast diminished. The stars of the night sky dulled in its presence as the horizon was engulfed by billowy white clouds, tinged with fiery wisps at their fringes. As the light faded and the celestial gift plummeted to earth, its descent accompanied by a shrill and discordant whistle, the ephemeral day drew to a close and yielded once more to the night. The star...

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“Shadow Self” by Katharine Widdows

Submitted to Contest #206

Arthur Drake coughed a breath of acrid smoke from his lungs and took a few steps backwards, away from the heat and the stench and the shrieking. His stomach churned with bile and his eyes filled with tears. Tension dragged its way through his muscles, pulling his ribs tight around his lungs and his shoulders high up to his jaw. Might this happen to him one day?The jostling crowd shuffled backwards with him, expanding their circle away from the pyre as a wave of searing heat emanated from the burning wood. Evelyn Crow’s piercing screams scorc...

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“Fight, Flight, or Fright” by Greg Gillis

Submitted to Contest #206

Eight-year-old Nathan hid in the shadows of his parents’ living room as he watched a stranger dressed in a torn jean jacket brutally beat and murder his mother in front of him. Nathan’s father was out with his friends at the bar having more than a few drinks before coming home. This routine had been happening nearly every work night since Nathan was six. When and if he was able to find his way back home, he woul...

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“Monster” by Joan Fiddle-Ferder

Submitted to Contest #206

Monster Aroused from a deep sleep, seven-year-old Jimmy Daemon’s eyes popped open. He couldn’t tell if he was dreaming or not, but he sensed something was not right. Still under the covers, he inhaled deeply, and gagged. Something smelled bad in his bedroom. “Mom, that smell is back,” he yelled aloud from his bed. The smell reminded him of the time he found his turtle, dead, under his night table, days after he raced it against his best friend’s tree toad. The turtle had rotted, its shell smashed to pie...

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“The Dark” by Anthony Booker

Submitted to Contest #206

When we look into the darkness, our deepest selves understand that something looks back. Anthony looked out the window as midnight struck.... looked into a dark so crushing, that it felt tangible, encompassing..... stifling.... toxic. The thing looking back at him, its grotesque, teeth filled mouth, scowled more than smiled. Soon, it’s hunger would end. Anthony smiled back and thought “we’ll see whose hunger will be sated this night”. The thing of the darkness, whose very existence had struck a fear so primal into the hearts of such varied c...

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“Mother Monster ” by Samantha Jones

Submitted to Contest #206

Elyse Hardy couldn’t remember quite clearly the first time her mother had turned into the monster. After all, it had been happening long before she was born, and there were stories she had to hear second hand, from her much older siblings. Her siblings had described to her how she had been a tiny baby when her mother had turned into the monster while driving them to the store, and her siblings had jumped into action, pushing their mother to the side as she snarled and bit, and they managed to get the car to the side of the road, brother stee...

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“Blood & Water” by David King

Submitted to Contest #206

She let out an ear-stabbing screech and gripped the steering wheel with her soul. But she wasn’t strong enough. The tires of the car screamed as they veered left too sharp. Her leg was forced down onto the pedal even harder as her voice cracked mid-scream, unable to exert any more force. She was terrified, so scared that her life didn’t even flash before her eyes. She shot one last look into the passenger seat, catching a full glimpse of the cause of her tragic end. She had known all along. She knew she could have prevented this exact moment...

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“A Request in C-Sharp Minor” by Kara Heisler

Submitted to Contest #206

Warning: Death and Supernatural ElementsMilo gulped, eyes fixated on a single point in the dark corner of his room. He blinked aggressively and rubbed his eyes with his tiny fists, hoping he was hallucinating. In all truth, the nature of what Milo saw was nothing new. But the shape of the horror in front of him was far too personal. Moonlight streamed in through a small window near Milo’s head, providing cold, distant illumination. The puppy shaped night light which should have been providing a comforting orange glow, was as dark as the...

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“Foul Play” by Robin Owens

Submitted to Contest #206

The knee of a disheveled Carl Pinkerton bounced a mile a minute. Carl pulled his dirty old BAMA cap over his grey-blue eyes with a shaking hand. His stomach growled. He checked his watch. The bus he was waiting for was late. He’d traveled two hundred miles from Alabama to South Louisiana, but it wasn’t far enough. He needed a thousand more. His grey hair poked from beneath his cap, and he cursed himself for not having shaved it. Sweat prickled his skin, cooling him down in the thick night air. He desperately needed sleep, but the adrenaline ...

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“My Father's Limbs” by Lauren Zemel

Submitted to Contest #206

Normally, it would have been locked shut. I had never once seen that be forgotten. The mistake reignited the lingering curiosity I’ve always had towards the white box. Anticipation for the unknown surged up into my chest as my fingers lingered. Finally, this was going to happen. My father’s warnings flew out of my memories as the lid opened. A confusing few seconds passed before my brain processed the sight. It was Horror. Cold and Chilled. Segmented yet Whole. This was a secret horde. At the top of this pile my eyes found a leg. It must hav...

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“The Sight” by Rena Aliston

Submitted to Contest #206

Her body trembled as she moved toward me, left leg limping, toes dragging along the tiled floor as she struggled to remain on her feet. Blue veins ran along her cheeks and forehead as her gray eyes stalked me.I backed away, attempting to move faster as she leaned in closer. Her mouth opened. Blood pooled out as her razor sharp teeth reflected off the overhead lights. Her jaws clamped together as she leaned into my neck.I held her back. She attempted to bite me again, opening her mouth wider. Placing my hand on her forehead, I pushed her away...

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“Legs” by Brian Adams

Submitted to Contest #206

My head pounds to the rhythm of my pulse and I see dark stars creeping in at the edges of my vision. I try to steady my breathing so that I don’t pass out. My clothes cling to cold sweat. Bile is finding its way up into my throat but I can’t swallow it down because of all the cotton inside of my mouth; I swear it’s lined with cobwebs. I feel the sticky strands pulling my throat closed. I don’t want to die like this…not now.The tangled ball of upturned legs laying in the middle of the bedroom appears motionless. I feel like I’ve been watching...

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“Cry for Wolf” by Allan Bernal

Submitted to Contest #206

[Content warning: language, verbal abuse] “Mommy! Mommy! Where are you?” Annie shot up in her bed, pulling her puffy pink blanket around her, waiting for her mother to come through the door. The nightlight beside her was redundant now that the morning sun was illuminating the room. Annie looked around for Queenie, the stuffed unicorn, her trusted steed, but saw her on the other side of her room. She was too scared to go rescue her from the corner, much less question how she ended up there in the night. The sound of Annie’s racing heart...

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“Dark Epiphany” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #206

I remember being terrified. I was the most frightened I’d ever been in my life. Forget the monster under the bed. This was real. Just the thought of it now, it makes my breath catch somewhere in my chest and my heart swells, threatening to burst in my chest, seeking a complete end to everything in preference to what I am yet again confronted with. There had been a build up to this moment, of course there had. It was a culmination of all the components of a life. There was a feeling of inevitability as all the strands led to this p...

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Start your story with a character seeing something terrifying.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 53 stories

“The Devil is in the Details” by Victoria Shellady

“Shimmering Silver” by Greydon Blight

“Shadow Self” by Katharine Widdows

“Fight, Flight, or Fright” by Greg Gillis

“Monster” by Joan Fiddle-Ferder

“The Dark” by Anthony Booker

“Mother Monster ” by Samantha Jones

“Blood & Water” by David King

“A Request in C-Sharp Minor” by Kara Heisler

“Foul Play” by Robin Owens

“My Father's Limbs” by Lauren Zemel

“The Sight” by Rena Aliston

“Legs” by Brian Adams

“Cry for Wolf” by Allan Bernal

“Dark Epiphany” by Jed Cope

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about someone facing their greatest fear.

Write a story that contains a flashback of a nightmare.

Write about a character in a situation where they have to be brave for someone else’s sake.

Set your story in an eerie, surreal setting.

Contest #206

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

373

Contest entries

130

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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