Discover weekly, the best short stories

Looking for a steady supply of crime short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

4400+ Crime Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. Feed your fascination with the latest crime short stories. From thrilling accounts of lovable burglars to chilling tales of stone-cold murderers, these bite-sized pieces are so addictive, they should be illegal.

🏆 Winning stories

⭐️ Recommended stories

Introducing Prompted, a new magazine written by you!

🏆 Featuring 12 prize-winning stories from our community. Download it now for FREE.

✍️ All stories

The Best Crime Short Stories

A window shatters in the dead of the night. Somewhere on the streets, a suspect runs from the scene of a crime. Who could they be: a desperate parent stealing to support their family? Or a serial killer driven by their darkest, basest instincts?

The crime genre has consistently remained at the top of the publishing industry for over a hundred years. Authors ranging from Agatha Christie and Patricia Highsmith to James Patterson and Karin Slaughter continue to delight readers with thrilling tales of criminals and detectives.

Welcome to the bleeding edge of new crime stories

Created by a diverse group of writers from around the world, the crime stories here were written specifically for Reedsy’s weekly writing competition. At the top, you’ll find stories shortlisted by our panel of judges. We also compile winning stories from a range of genres in Prompted, our new literary magazine — make sure to claim your free copy!

Just as Edgar Allan Poe and Arthur Conan Doyle built their careers on a foundation of short stories — so might some of the writers you’ll find here. With that in mind, keep your eyes peeled for the next big name in crime fiction.

RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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