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Empowering Writers Since 1999

100 Haunted House Story Starters: Craft Your Scariest Tale Yet

October 5, 2024 by Richard Leave a Comment

Are you a writer looking to send shivers down your readers’ spines? Look no further than our comprehensive list of 100 Scary Haunted House Story Starters! These prompts are designed to ignite your imagination and help you craft bone-chilling tales that will keep your audience on the edge of their seats. Whether you’re a seasoned horror author or a novice exploring the genre, these story starters provide the perfect foundation for your next haunting masterpiece.

Haunted houses have long been a staple of horror literature, captivating readers with their mysterious atmospheres and supernatural occurrences. Our curated list of prompts covers a wide range of haunted house tropes and scenarios, from subtle psychological horror to more overt paranormal activities. You’ll find ideas involving eerie noises, unexplainable events, creepy objects, and unsettling atmospheres – all the elements needed to create a truly terrifying haunted house story.

Each story starter is crafted to spark your creativity and offer a jumping-off point for your narrative. Whether it’s a door that slams shut on its own, a whisper in an empty room, or a reflection that doesn’t quite match reality, these prompts provide the seeds for countless chilling tales. You can use them as-is or let them inspire your own unique twists on the haunted house genre.

For aspiring writers, these prompts offer an excellent opportunity to practice your craft and hone your skills in creating suspense, atmosphere, and memorable characters. Established authors can use them to break through writer’s block or explore new directions in their work. The versatility of these story starters makes them suitable for short stories, novels, or even screenplays.

So, are you ready to unlock the doors to a hundred haunted houses and unleash your creativity? Dive into our list of 100 Scary Haunted House Story Starters and let your imagination run wild. Whether you’re writing for personal enjoyment, looking to submit to horror magazines, or aiming to craft the next bestselling horror novel, these prompts will help you on your journey to creating unforgettable haunted house stories. Happy writing, and may your tales be delightfully disturbing!

The old mansion’s doors slam shut behind you, locking themselves…
You inherit a house from a relative you’ve never met, only to find…
The realtor nervously hands you the keys, warning you one last time…
Every night at 3 AM, you hear footsteps in the attic, but you live alone…
The previous owners left in a hurry, leaving everything behind, including…
You wake up to find all the furniture in your bedroom has been rearranged…
The house seemed perfect until you noticed the oddly-shaped stain on the living room floor…
Your child’s imaginary friend knows things about the house’s history that no one else does…
The walls seem to be closing in, and you realize it’s not just your imagination…
You find an old diary hidden in the walls, and as you read it, you notice…
The garden is overgrown with plants you’ve never seen before, and they seem to be moving…
Every mirror in the house shows a different reflection of yourself…
The basement door is always locked, but sometimes you hear singing coming from behind it…
You wake up every morning with strange bruises, and your partner swears you’ve been sleepwalking…
The house is freezing cold, even in the middle of summer, except for one room…
Your pets refuse to enter certain areas of the house, growling at empty corners…
The wallpaper in the nursery changes its pattern when no one is looking…
You find an old photograph album, and in every picture, there’s a shadowy figure in the background…
The lights flicker in a pattern that seems almost like Morse code…
Every time you try to leave the house, you find yourself back in the foyer…
The antique doll you found in the attic keeps appearing in different rooms…
You hear children laughing and playing, but your kids are at school…
The house seems to have more rooms than it did when you first moved in…
Your neighbor warns you about the house’s dark history, but it’s too late to back out now…
The old well in the backyard was supposed to be sealed, but one day you find it open…
Family portraits on the walls seem to follow you with their eyes…
You wake up to find messages written in the condensation on your bathroom mirror…
The clock in the hallway always shows 3:33, no matter what time it really is…
You start noticing that things in your house are subtly different each morning…
The creaky floorboard in the hallway sounds like it’s whispering your name…
Your housewarming party takes a dark turn when one of your guests vanishes without a trace…
The chandelier in the dining room sways gently, even when there’s no breeze…
You find a hidden room that doesn’t appear on any of the house plans…
The temperature drops dramatically whenever you enter the master bedroom…
Your child’s crayon drawings depict a sinister figure that you’ve started seeing out of the corner of your eye…
The old rocking chair in the corner moves on its own, keeping time with an unheard melody…
You wake up to find muddy footprints leading from your bed to the closet, but the closet is empty…
The house makes strange settling noises that sound eerily like words…
Every night, you dream about the same room in the house, but you can’t find it when you’re awake…
The old radio in the attic turns on by itself, playing music from decades ago…
You notice that shadows in the house don’t always match the objects casting them…
The smell of smoke permeates the house, but you can never find the source…
Your keys keep disappearing, only to reappear in places you’re sure you’ve already checked…
The old television set in the basement turns on by itself, showing nothing but static and occasional glimpses of… something…
You find a trapdoor under the carpet, but it’s sealed shut with dozens of rusted nails…
The trees surrounding the house seem to be growing closer, their branches reaching for the windows…
You wake up to find all the clocks in the house have stopped at exactly the same time…
The wind chimes on the porch play a melancholy tune, even on still nights…
Your roommate swears they keep seeing a figure standing at the foot of their bed at night…
You find an old key that doesn’t fit any lock in the house, until one day…
The house’s Victorian wallpaper seems to ripple and shift when you’re not looking directly at it…
You find an old music box in the attic, and when you wind it up…
The floorboards in the hallway creak in a pattern that sounds like footsteps following you…
Every morning, you wake up to find all the kitchen cabinets wide open…
The antique mirror in the guest room sometimes reflects a room you’ve never seen before…
Your housemate insists they keep hearing their name being whispered, but you hear nothing…
The old grandfather clock in the foyer chimes thirteen times at midnight…
You notice that family photos on the mantelpiece keep rearranging themselves…
The temperature in the nursery drops dramatically every night at the same time…
You find a hidden crawlspace behind your closet, and inside…
The chandelier’s crystals tinkle softly even when there’s no breeze in the house…
Your child’s drawings become increasingly disturbing, featuring a dark figure in the corner…
You wake up to find all the chairs in the dining room stacked in a perfect pyramid…
The old phonograph in the study plays by itself, but only when you’re alone in the house…
You notice that the shadows in your bedroom don’t always match your movements…
The antique dollhouse in the guest room is an exact miniature of your house, including…
Every night, you hear the sound of a ball bouncing down the stairs, but you never see it…
The old painting in the hallway seems to age rapidly, the subject’s expression changing…
You find a series of love letters in the attic, but the last one is a chilling threat…
The roses in the garden bloom black, despite being red when you planted them…
Your neighbors warn you about the house’s “bad days,” but won’t explain what they mean…
The old well in the backyard seems to whisper your deepest secrets when you walk past…
You wake up to find all the books in your library rearranged in a strange pattern…
The antique telephone in the study rings at 2:17 AM every night, but there’s no one on the line…
You notice that the house looks different in photographs than it does in real life…
The old rocking horse in the attic rocks by itself, faster and faster as you approach…
You find a hidden door behind the bookcase, but it leads to a brick wall… most of the time…
The chimney makes sounds like someone crying, even in the middle of summer…
Your houseplants wither and die within days, no matter how well you care for them…
You wake up to find strange symbols carved into your bedpost that weren’t there before…
The old piano in the parlor plays a haunting melody in the middle of the night…
You notice that your reflection in the bathroom mirror is always a few seconds behind your movements…
The attic door keeps opening on its own, no matter how many times you lock it…
You find an old photo album, but the faces in the pictures are all scratched out…
The cellar smells of damp earth and something else you can’t quite identify…
Your dog barks at a specific corner of the living room, but there’s nothing there…
You wake up every morning with a strange taste in your mouth and dirt under your fingernails…
The old grandfather clock runs backwards, but only on full moon nights…
You find a child’s diary from the 1920s hidden in the walls, and the last entry says…
The temperature in the house fluctuates wildly, with some rooms freezing and others sweltering…
You hear the sound of children playing in the abandoned playground behind the house…
The old mirror in the hallway sometimes shows a different room behind your reflection…
You wake up to find all the faucets in the house running at full blast…
The wind whistling through the eaves sounds eerily like your name…
You find a hidden compartment in the fireplace containing a collection of unusual objects…
The old armchair in the study seems to mold to the shape of an invisible sitter…
You notice that the house looks much larger from the inside than it does from the outside…
The antique camera you found in the attic takes pictures of things that aren’t there…
You wake up every morning to find a single black feather on your pillow…
The basement door slowly creaks open, revealing a staircase that seems to descend much further than it should…

As you’ve explored these 100 Scary Haunted House Story Starters, we hope your mind has been racing with possibilities. Each prompt is a doorway to a unique tale of terror, waiting for you to step through and bring it to life. Remember, these are just the beginning – your creativity and imagination will shape these seeds into full-fledged stories that will captivate and terrify your readers.

Don’t be afraid to mix and match these prompts or use them as springboards for entirely new ideas. The beauty of creative writing lies in its limitless potential. A creaky floorboard might lead to a tale of ancient curses, while a mysterious locked room could unveil a portal to another dimension. Let your imagination run wild and see where these story starters take you.

As you craft your haunted house tales, consider the rich history of the genre. From classic Gothic literature to modern psychological thrillers, haunted house stories have evolved and adapted over time. Your unique voice and perspective can contribute to this ever-growing tradition, adding new twists and fresh scares to keep readers up at night.

We encourage you to share your creations with the world. Whether through online writing communities, horror fiction magazines, or self-publishing platforms, there’s an audience out there eager for new, spine-tingling stories. Don’t forget to let us know if one of these prompts leads you to publish a story – we’d love to read it and celebrate your success!

Finally, remember that the true power of a haunted house story lies not just in the supernatural elements, but in the human experiences and emotions at its core. As you write, delve into the fears, hopes, and struggles of your characters. It’s this human element that will make your stories resonate with readers long after they’ve turned the last page. Now, pick a prompt, let your imagination loose, and start crafting your next great haunted house tale. Happy writing, and may your stories haunt your readers in the

About Richard

Richard Everywriter (pen name) has worked for literary magazines and literary websites for the last 25 years. He holds degrees in Writing, Journalism, Technology and Education. Richard has headed many writing workshops and courses, and he has taught writing and literature for the last 20 years.

In writing and publishing he has worked with independent, small, medium and large publishers for years connecting publishers to authors. He has also worked as a journalist and editor in both magazine, newspaper and trade publications as well as in the medical publishing industry. Follow him on Twitter, and check out our Submissions page .

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50 Spooky Writing Prompts and Horror Story Ideas

If you’re looking for scary story prompts or horror writing ideas, you’ve come to the right place! These are great Halloween writing prompts, and some of these could also be used as suspense story prompts or dark fantasy story ideas.

These are all from my book 5 ,000 Writing Prompts: A Master List of Plot Ideas, Creative Exercises, and More . The book has 100 additional spooky writing prompts and horror story ideas, as well as master plots and idea starters for all kinds of writing.

If you are easily scared and have an over-active imagination, just skip this one. And anyway, just remember it’s all nonsense that I made up while I was exercising on the treadmill or sitting in bed.

Some of these are skeletal (ha) plot ideas, while others are images or suggestions. And if you’d like a spooky soundtrack to inspire you, be sure to check out my scary music playlist for writers ! Be sure to pin or bookmark the post for future reference. After all, when autumn rolls around, you might find yourself looking for Halloween writing prompts!

A musician practices. When she finishes a piece, she hears someone clapping for her, although she lives alone.
Frightening events in a small town lead its citizens to dig up the grave of a deceased inhabitant.
Someone gets on the elevator by himself and is never seen by his friends or family again.
The Furies—the vengeance deities of classic mythology—are back in business again.
A collector buys an unpublished manuscript by an obscure writer that describes a terrible historical event a year before it occurred. The collector learns the writer wrote many unpublished stories…
Creating a hybrid of a human and this particular animal turns out to be a bad idea.
A person has the ability to make other people very ill.
The dead walk out of the sea.
An individual begins seeing and hearing from someone who looks just like her – and learns she had a twin who died at birth.
A killer places an advertisement for a willing victim and finds one.
A basement contains jars filled with unusual specimens.
A person finds new photos of herself on her cell phone that she didn’t take.
The spirit of a brutalized slave or prisoner of war wants revenge on his tormentor’s descendants.
A couple vacationing in a remote area begins having the same nightmares.
All of the circus performers were killed in the train wreck.
The television switches to another station of its own accord and plays footage of something horrible that happened long before the technology existed to record it.
A spouse or sibling dies. He or she begins to take over the body of the surviving spouse or sibling.
Weekend adventurers explore a cave and can’t find their way out again. Then they encounter something terrible…
Authorities go through the cluttered apartment of a deceased man who lived alone with no known friends or relatives for decades and find something disturbing.
A group of teenagers trolls everyone else in an online group by telling made-up stories about terrible things they’ve done. Things then get out of hand.
It’s bad luck in the theatre to call the Shakespeare play Macbeth by name, but someone in the company keeps doing it anyway… and the superstition proves true.
Every exhibit in this carnival sideshow is fake. Except this one thing.
An individual develops a terror of water – drinking it, touching it, or even being near it. There’s actually a good reason why.
The grandfather clock starts running backwards.
People in this neighborhood begin having freak accidents that involve normal appliances and machinery, such as blenders, weed whackers, and garage doors.
The cure for a new deadly epidemic is almost scarier than the disease.
He locked the doors and shuttered the windows; it came in through the roof.
A woman is happy when her dead loved one comes back to life… but he’s changed.
This centuries-old beauty secret is effective but horrifying.
A killer toys with his victims by orchestrating a series of false hopes for them.
She wakes up in the middle of the night and runs out to a certain tree.
Tourists on a ghost tour, along with their guide, fall into the hands of an evil presence.
A young woman is impregnated by her handsome new boyfriend, who turns out to be something other than human.
The empty swing is swinging.
A bride on her honeymoon discovers she’s not her new husband’s first wife… not even close.
Long ago, when he was a baby, a man’s parents made an unwise deal in order to bring him back from the dead.
Members of a family or people in a town begin sleepwalking and doing strange things in their sleep.
A young man confesses to a killing that hasn’t happened. The murder he describes takes place while he’s in custody.
Grisly events happen after the arrival of a hypnotist in Victorian London.
An author’s fictional villain stalks him.
Fraternity hazing goes way too far.
It always happens when he’s alone in the car.
A patient in a mental hospital encounters a malevolent ghost, but nobody believes her.
A mother’s young child may or may not be a changeling.
Swarms of insects appear in various places in a town, always followed by an untimely death.
The ghost at the movie theater wants everyone to watch one particular snippet of film.
A child’s imaginary friend starts to cause real trouble.
When putting together a slide show for a wedding or funeral, someone notices that for decades, the same man, dressed in the same fashion, has been appearing in the background of photographs taken in public places.
A politician, religious leader, or celebrity exerts mind control over the will of his or her followers.
The fairy godmother isn’t the good kind of fairy.

Okay, I creeped myself out a little with these spooky writing prompts! If you’re writing a novel and want a step-by-step guide to planning, writing, and editing, be sure to check out my book 5,000 Writing Prompts .

5,000 WRITING PROMPTS: A Master List of Plot Ideas, Creative Exercises, and More | BRYN DONOVAN |

Do you have questions or suggestions about horror story ideas? We’d love to hear them in the comments section! And don’t miss future posts about writing. Follow my blog, if you aren’t already — there’s a place you can sign up below. Thanks so much for reading, and happy writing!

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1001 Writing Prompts About Haunted Houses

March 15, 2021

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Haunted house stories have been around for a long time, but there is something about this trope that makes horror authors want to keep writing about them. Maybe, it is because there’s something very twisted in stories about places that were supposed to give shelter turning against the main characters.

One of the scariest stories about haunted houses is Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher—a Gothic fiction about an unnamed person who visits his ill friend Roderick Usher in his house. Another is Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of the Hill House—1959 horror novel that follows an occult scholar, his assistant, a fragile young woman well acquainted with poltergeists, and an heir during their stay at a haunted mansion located between many hills.

If you want to be known for your haunted house stories, like Edgar Allan Poe and Shirley Jackson, here are some writing prompts to give you inspiration:

I’d never stop hearing the booing coming from the abandoned haunted house next to me.
A lion that was kept in the haunted house woke up screaming.
I never walk alone in the dark because the haunted house near my house would always scare me.
I stepped into a haunted house. My life was never the same after that.
Many visitors claim to have seen ghosts in that house.
I would find blood on my closet floor.
I like to go to haunted houses.
I have walked into the scariest haunted house around the block.
The police find the body of a child in a haunted house.
A haunting made headlines.
The vampire attacks babies in the haunted house.
The zombies came out of the haunted house and came after the kids playing in the street.
Steps went up to the porch of the haunted house.
The ghost of a horrible monster can be found in the haunted house.
I went into the haunted house by myself to study.
There was heavy breathing coming from the haunted house but no one was there.
A family was completely sucked dry by flying objects in a haunted house.
One of the most famous haunted houses is about to be torn down.
Ghostly happenings have occurred in this house.
A bad dream about the girl who died in a haunted house.
The ghost that haunts the house was seen in my room.
The house on the hill has been abandoned for ten years. No one knows why.
The ghost is really scary.
A garage in the neighborhood is haunted. People say that spirits yell in the middle of the night.
They say the devil lived in this haunted house at one point.
I tried to visit the scariest house in town, but was last seen running away.
Every holiday weekend, there are haunted houses all over town.
A woman died from the haunted house upstairs…no one knew why.
New ghosts need to be built for a haunted house.
My cousin claims she saw a ghost in the haunted house by the train tracks.
I broke into the haunted house and it was full of rats.
burglars have broken into the haunted house down the street.
I always wondered why there is no neighborhood behind the haunted house.
The best parlor for séances was in a haunted house.
I hate my haunted house.
She who went inside the haunted house never returned.
A girl was killed in a haunted house where her murderer buried her body in the basement floor.
My father said ghosts lurk in the dark corners of the haunted house.
A man tried to debunk all the haunted houses in his city, but he was haunted daily.
I have always been afraid of that spooky haunted house down the block from me.
My uncle’s paranormal journalism led him into a haunted house.
The ghosts living in a haunted house look ordinary.
A scientist has tried to pick apart a haunted house.
The wind howled outside the haunted house.
It was said that the dead horses are now haunting the haunted house.
A newly married couple moved into a haunted house and learned the truth the hard way.
My parents hate ghosts, which is why my bedroom might be haunted.
There is a story on this street about an old lady killed in that old house.
I have been hearing about a ghost in a haunted house. He has been haunting there for many years. He is dressed all in white and has a white mask on his face. He is a scary sight to see.
The neighbors who lived in that haunted house next door were a weird bunch.
The lights always flicker in the abandoned haunted house.
A child was seen going into a haunted house. He never returned.
The haunted house challenged me by offering a blue key instead of gold.
What has happened in haunted houses all over the world.
A baby’s cry was heard coming from a haunted house on Halloween night.
A murder was committed in the house next door and the killer had been held in the attic.
No one dares to come near the haunted house.
Three teens were lured into a haunted house.
A ghost could be seen in the mirror.
What if you lived in a haunted house?
The man from the haunted house wouldn’t stay in prison.
A ghost was seen in a haunted house several times.
While visiting a haunted house, a little girl was seen disappearing into the darkness. Her parents cried, but they could not find her. It was only a matter of time before they discovered the truth must be far more frightening than they could ever imagine.
Write about a house that seems to be haunted.
A girl went into a haunted house looking for her lost dog. Twenty-four hours later, they found her in a different haunted house. She had been horribly mutilated.
The haunted house next door had always been full of strange things.
The ghost of the old man who owns the haunted house is reported to have been seen.
My sister texted me from inside the haunted house. She’s never coming back.
The old man that lived there last year said that his house was haunted.
The famous Haunted House was torn down to make a microwave spaghetti factory.
A ghost was seen across the street from the haunted house.
A horrible smell comes from a nearby haunted house.
A real ghost was captured in a haunted house and is now on public display.
The ghost can be seen every night running around the haunted house.
There is the ghost of a man in my house.
Write about a ghost in a haunted house.
There have been claims that every member of a family had died in the haunted house across the street.
A haunted house full of weird noises, furniture moving by itself, and creepy voices.
Little do they know, the spirit of a former occupant still haunts the inner rooms of the house they’re watching.
Little red riding hood was haunted by her granny’s ghost.
There is a creepy man that has a house of many rooms. There may be more than one man!
Yes, in my house there are ghosts. They speak through everything, but not to me.
The smell of decay coming from the haunted house is overwhelming.
I saved a girl from the haunted house down the street.
A girl died in a haunted house, her ghost still haunts it.
I can still hear the babies’ screams from the haunted house.
There’s a graveyard right near the haunted house.
A grisly, gory ghost was spotted inside the haunted house.
I have always wanted to visit a haunted house.
A stone was found in front of my door of a haunted house.
There is a haunting taking place in the haunted house at the edge of town.
The haunted house is not the only one to be haunted.
People have claimed to see black shadow come out from the haunted house next to mine.
I used to live near a haunted house.
Someone looked up haunted houses in the yellow pages. The page was all black and when they turned the page, blood came pouring out.
I took my dog inside that haunted house and he never came back.
My girlfriend went missing. She might be in the haunted house.
I heard screaming coming from a nearby haunted house and ran to help.
A famous painting titled “The Haunted House” appears to include a ghostly figure.
I could see lightning flash around a haunted house in the distance.
When you think of the scariest place ever, the place that always comes to your mind is a haunted house.
Write about your visit to the most haunted house you have ever been in.
Haunted boy having a difficult life.
Spooky things happened to me in the haunted house.
A woman found a mirror in a haunted house. She looked into the mirror and saw a ghost.
People say there is a ghost living in a haunted house in town.
Help! A ghost is in my closet! Help!
I have that same haunted house just down the road from me.
What happened to the man in the haunted house across the street?
My house is haunted.
Construction workers found a bent metal cage in a boarded up house.
My father said that the ghosts in that haunted house looked like monsters to him.
I never went inside the haunted house down the street. No one ever came out.
I saw the devil in the haunted house myself!
Once a haunted house was remodeled into a new house.
Spooky keyholes.
I swear, that house used to be haunted. Everything was so much better once it got exorcised though.
Write about a specific haunted house in your neighborhood or town.
The kids couldn’t sleep because of the haunted house.
My best ghost friend died in a haunted house.
Dream of a haunted house that follows you.
Nobody knows why that house gained its reputation as being haunted.
Kids say that they saw something strange in the haunted house.
Somebody died in that house.
I have heard stories of the haunted houses not too far from here.
I woke up from a dream where the scary goblin jumped out of the closet.
The rain is not a natural phenomenon, the rain is from a haunted house.
Shadows seemed to come to my window and talk to me.
A haunted house is an illusion or,
After haunting several houses for years, the ghost’s soul finally found a permanent home.
You should have seen the ghosts flying out of that haunted house!
The evil in the haunted house was getting stronger by the day.
People say that it is haunted…
A haunted house is haunted because of its terrible history.
Reflect on the scariest haunted house movie you have ever seen.
I’ve heard many strange noises coming from the haunted house next door to my house.
Ghosts are real! One was living in the house next door which used to be an old abandoned place..
Write about a haunted house in a suburban neighbourhood.
A friend of mine rented out a haunted house to make some fast cash.
I looked up the haunted house and found a journal telling me everything.
I love my mom, but she is scaring my friends away by sharing ghost stories with them.
The haunted house in the neighborhood was really creepy.
Guests found out the hard way we’re renting a haunted house.
Four people went into the haunted house and only one came out.
What is the most mysterious ghost story in the world?
Charles always hated the haunted house next door.
I went into a haunted house and came back out alive.
A relative is really or says they are being attacked by a ghost.
Angering a former occupant of a haunted house can be very hard.
There was something in the attic, whispering my name.
I saw a ghost inside my own home.
True stories of a haunted house.
I saw something waving to me from the window of a haunted house.
There are weird noises coming from the haunted house next door.
Two girls went on a school trip to a haunted house.
A haunted house is said to have protective powers.
People feel something is amiss in the haunted house, but they still decide to stay there.
My friends dare me to see what goes on in the haunted house nearby.
People go in and never come out of the haunted house.
There are evil things that only haunted houses can contain.
People have always refused to live in my house.
The mother’s ghost haunts her daughter.
A couple was murdered in a haunted house.
A group ghost hunt is held at a haunted house.
A haunted house was found in the middle of nowhere.
My grandpa once got into a fight in a Haunted House.
History behind a haunted house.
A confusing message about haunted houses stopped being transmitted.
What could be making that noise? It could not be human. Express completely to us with these five sets of Story Starter. Using these story starters, You can keep us within your company and Inspire us to write many topics for you. Match Your Birthday to these 20 Powerful, Creative Blog Post Ideas.
After her death, the boy’s stepmother moved into the haunted house.
People have died in the most haunted house there is.
We could hear strange screams coming all the way from the haunted house.
Some people living in this haunted house decided to hold a seance but it went wrong and they ended up dead.
Ghost was seen in the house of death.
A middle aged man had several different puzzles and riddles throughout his haunted house.
Ghosts trapped in the house require three spirits to kill them.
A ghost once lived in the haunted house.
I used to live in the haunted house down the street.
I read a book about haunted houses. It was scary.
There were screams and horrible sounds coming from the haunted house.
Tales from a real life haunted house.
I once saw a haunted house on fire.
A newlywed couple spent a night in a haunted house.Who came out alive?
We have been spending the night in a haunted house!
Imagine the loud bangs that appear from the haunted house.
Two friends went into a haunted house nearby. Both went missing.
Everyone agreed that the house was haunted but no one saw anything.
I went to the haunted house next door.
A girl died in a haunted house.
I heard there was an escapee from the asylum across the street.
A group of tourists were kicked out of a haunted house for acting inappropriately, even for ghosts.
If you were to go into a haunted house, what would you take with you?
My great-grandmother’s house is haunted too.
No one has ever actually been inside of the haunted house.
Two teenagers got the wrong directions and were stuck at a haunted house.
What secrets does that haunted house hold?
The haunted house was said to be evil.
The ghosts are coming out of the walls.
A girl dying by hauntings went to a haunted house to meet her fate.
My uncle was murdered in the haunted house down the block.
One day at school, we heard that there was a haunted house nearby.
I was once inside a haunted house that refused to give me to death.
The location of pure evil was discovered in the haunted house down the street.
Haunted houses are creepy.
No one who comes near it is safe. It is the house that kills.
The police found human remains buried beneath the haunted house.
List five ways you could protect the house you live in now from becoming haunted.
A member of my family was killed in a haunted house the other day.
My haunted house is more terrifying than anything you have ever seen.
A haunted house? Really? My cousin told that story.
Two people come across a haunted house in a small, remote town.
I feel as though certain people will disappear if they enter that house. Don’t go there…
A fisherman runs his ship right into a haunted house. His body was found later. Write about his ghost.
According to one ghost story, a little girl can be heard crying inside the haunted house.
A girl was spending the night in the haunted house and was never seen again.
A man bought a building in the town. He used to leave odd messages.
People hear strange noises in that abandoned haunted house.
The local witches and ghosts came out to play.
The haunted house down the street is somehow connected to a string of strange animal deaths in the area.
There was a murder in a haunted house.
Did you hear about the haunted house where the old woman died years later and her ghost still haunts the house?
The ghost in the haunted house is supposed to be an actor.
A woman and wife tells a story about her safety at a haunted house.
The residents of the haunted house say they just wanted to live in a peaceful neighborhood.
Séances are held in most homes, but they’re mainly in haunted houses.
There is a story of a woman being found in the walls of a haunted house.
One of my friends lived inside a haunted house and some of the strange activity happened to her.
I could hear the screams coming from the haunted house at night.
The old house scares me because it is rumored that a mysterious man was killed there, and no one knows what he looks like.
A person once died inside the haunted house.
How could anyone survive in a haunted house?
There is something weird in a neighbor’s haunted house.
A man was found injured in a doorway of a haunted house.
A mysterious ladder spontaneously appeared on the second floor of a haunted house.
The most haunted house in the world.
Ghosts aren’t real. They don’t exist. Do you want to die?
I heard the dogs and children in the haunted house next door.
What lurks inside the haunted house? Google might help you. Try googling “Free Haunted House Essays” and see what you get. Good luck and enjoy!
A scream was heard from the depths of the haunted house.
A famous ghost hunter was murdered in a haunted house.
Janice believes that the house is haunted, where Chuck thinks there’s a logical explanation for everything. What do they find?
A skeleton was found in the haunted house next to my school.
A priest was found dead in a haunted house.
The old woman grew younger and younger in the haunted house every day.
The legend says that the girl will come back from the dead to find her true love.
I like to visit the haunted house. Nothing ever happens.
What if my body never returned from the haunting house?
Superstitious locals said it was haunted.
A man said his house was haunted but everyone thought he was merely crazy.
I heard that a famous singer was seen going into that haunted house.
Phantom cats are seen frequently at the haunted house on Miller Road.
A relative from Iowa told us about the hauntings of my family’s house.
How would you survive in a haunted house?
People claim a ghostly figure walks the halls of Rookwood Manor.
Find out what happens when lights go out in the haunted house.
Experiences that happened to people inside a haunted house.
I felt…a presence. It was behind me! It was in the…
A ghost walked out of a haunted house into another haunted house.
I once saw a ghost in a haunted house. It had a white face with two white glowing eyes.
Three ghosts had been seen in the haunted house, or so they said.
Something as cold as ice brushed my hand in the haunted house.
The ghost in the haunted house resembles a famous actor.
Ten years later, the owner of the haunted house died.
And that is my list of writing prompts about haunted houses!
I heard someone screaming in the haunted house on the corner.
There are strange scratch marks on graves next to a haunted house.
My parents are convinced a house is haunted, even though it’s only a rumor.
I went into that old haunted house. It was dirty and dark.
I saw a ghost in my haunted house.
No one knows much about the old house on top of the hill.
The remains of a body were found in a haunted house nearby.
I go on online roleplays as a ghost and hang in haunted houses.
Where could we go to see a real haunted house?
The haunted house has a long history. Many people have said that they have been there before.
Write about the setting in a haunted house. A long time ago, there used to be a haunted house in the neighborhood. When my parents bought their house, the seller said it was not haunted.
I was once chased by a little girl out of a haunted house.
A girl was murdered in a haunted house.
The headless ghost haunts a haunted house.
If you believe in ghosts, then maybe you believe in haunted houses.
No one went inside the haunted house before the authorities placed a warning sign.
The police found bodies inside the haunted house.
A girl thought she saw a boy enter a haunted house one night.
My neighbors moved out of their house for unexplained reasons.
A little girl who disappeared overnight was reported to be seen in a haunted house.
I felt a presence in my room.
Physical contact can be made with a ghost.
The boy who lived next door to the haunted house died mysteriously.
I heard the haunted house was built on an ancient burial ground.
Two ghosts dance in the haunted house at midnight every night.
Lisa went to check out the knocked down haunted house. It was supposedly haunted.
A man bought a haunted house. He thinks that he has made a deal with the devil.
Before we entered the haunted house, Officer Johns gave us a safety lecture.
It appeared my house was now haunted.
Someone claimed to see a ghost in the haunted house.
A chance for redemption
I saw a vampire/zombie/witch stirring a pot of vampiric/zombifying/witchy potion.
The haunted house could be a good business venture.
Mystery hands were seen emerging from the window.
I fear that the dead could rise again and haunt the world.
I once lived in a haunted house.
A girl’s family moved into a haunted house and she stopped talking…
Red eyes, jumping, spitting, things came out of the walls.
I was dreaming that a ghost had eaten my soul, and my neighbor started pounding on my door with a flathead screwdriver.
My brother disappeared from the haunted house.
The haunted house is more than a century old.
Children in the neighborhood would teasingly scare each other by saying, “Someone’s in that haunted house!”
I heard that ghosts will haunt anyone that enters a haunted house.
I went to a haunted house with a trick-or-treat bag for the first time.
Winslow Homer’s 1871 painting “Ghost Story” was inspired by a reported sighting of a monster of the Dover cliffs.
A family put a mattress up in the attic of their haunted house.
A mysterious creature haunted that house.
A real ghost was found in a haunted house nearby. It was about five feet long and smelled horrible.
I heard strange noises from the haunted house next door. No one lives there.
What kind of spirits haunt the house?
A haunted house was abandoned after the mayor drank a potion.
What becomes of the ones who die within a haunted house?
Films inspired by haunted houses
There is a demonic mansion nearby that is extremely haunted.
The ghost was seen greeting the brother of the house owner.
Your best friend invites you to sneak into the abandoned haunted house down the street.
A new family moved in and the house burnt down with everyone in it. The one member who escaped left with no traces of their things and the house frozen in time before the fire.
We saw a haunted house nearby, but entered the spooky doors anyway, just to see what’s there.
My life was destroyed because of a man who died in a haunted house.
Throw a party at a haunted house nearby.
There was a real ghost in the haunted house.
There was a psycho killer lurking nearby.
I have a dream of a haunted house.
A family was running towards the haunted house. They were almost there until the house came to life and caused them to flee in the opposite direction
Describe the scariest haunted house you had ever been to.
What mysteries lie in the haunted houses nearby?
I had a friend who broke into a haunted house and never broke out.
A ghost has been sighted on a mountain in Tennessee where thousands of Confederate soldiers lost their lives while fighting alongside other soldiers in blue.
I don’t think the house is haunted. My dog does.
A shadow was seen in the window of the haunted house across the street.
A horny girlfriend went into a haunted house
Ghosts surround me when I’m in a haunted house.
The haunted house creaks every night.
If you visited a haunted house, and never left the house, what would you do?
After a recent murder in a small town, a family moved into an “haunted” house, unaware that murder victims had also been found there.
A killer used to stay in a haunted house on a lonely street.
I saw strange lights coming from a haunted house.
The door of the haunted house on the hill is unlocked.
Ghosts once haunted the corner house two doors away.
A house might be haunted because someone died there.
A haunted house is said to be very haunted in the old days. Continue writing about it.
A haunted house is more than it seems.
An abandoned and foreboding old mansion with a blackened building is rumored to be the most haunted house in the country. It is patrolled by college students for ghost hunters, but all that ever comes of it are hushed whispers of poltergeist activity and strange occurrences before turning tail and running for home.
I saw a ghost in the haunted house.
I drove past a haunted house and could see someone hiding in the front door.
There was a man with black and white eyes living in the haunted house
The ghosts were attracted to the lights at night.
I hear tapping all night in my attic.
A ghost was found in the mannequin factory.
People heard screams coming from the haunted house. They went to see what was happening.
Dead people haunt the rooms of this old haunted house.
A strange looking man dressed as a corpse was found dead in a haunted house.
An old man was found dead in his haunted house.
I saw a ghost in a haunted house recently.
A brother and cousin went into a haunted house. They were never seen again.
Many children have been known to play on the swings at the haunted house.
The cries from the haunted house deep in the woods are making all the teenagers run around like zombies.
Someone said the boy had tried to enter the haunted house, but he had been dragged inside.
The ghost of a little girl was caught on camera in a haunted house.
Ghosts haunt an abandoned house.
What was seen in the haunted house next door?
I saw something moving in the house across the street from mine.
How would you define the scariest haunted house?
It was the scariest haunted house. How can such a horrendous place exist?
An amusement park is full of haunted houses.
There was a man in the cupboard.
Someone saw a ghost in a haunted house nearby.
The haunted house is where the dead bodies of children are found.
Tales have been told of a haunted house.
The news talks about a mysterious haunted house with no story.
My kind grandmas hated school trips so much because they were always going to haunted houses for exhibition purposes.
Have you ever been inside a haunted house before?
Write about a ghost that appears in a haunted house.
Tales of ghosts and monsters have been heard at the haunted house.
I’ve never been inside a haunted house before.
An unusually high fatality rate occurred in the haunted house.
The ghosts chased us away from the haunted house.
A family lived there for many years. They finally had to move because they found the house just unbearable.
I told my friends we would play hide and seek inside the haunted house.
My father had a very strange relationship with the haunted house across the street.
A boy went into a haunted house, and never returned.
My little brother went inside a creepy haunted house.
A haunted house is built in your neighborhood.
The most haunted house in the country lies here.
My parents made me stay at a haunted house after they died.
A man wandered alone into a haunted house. It was still night.
A disgusting house was abandoned three years ago.
Witnesses claim to have seen the ghosts of insects haunting a house.
The only thing left from the haunted house is a mysterious hole in the garage wall.
He thinks he hears noises from the haunted house across the street.
There was something about a little girl skinned alive in this haunted house.
A man was killed by the ghosts in a haunted house.
An old abandoned house reeks of rotting flesh.
The haunted house was next to the
A woman has an old dresser in her haunted room. She should throw it away.
The haunted house is always playing tricks on me.
A haunted house was found nearby. No one enters it. whispers telling strange details
We heard these voices coming from a haunted house.
A girl went into the haunted house and vowed she would never come out.
The couple living at the haunted house tried several ways to rid it of its ghosts from non-violent means to very violent means.
A teenager was summoned inside the haunted house to do the bidding of the resident spirits.
The very last person to know the inhabitant of the Haunted House has died.
People have a funeral for the house of horrors.
People who have been to haunted houses always seem to have nightmares every night.
The haunted house is now less scary. Its story is known.
Someone opened the door to the haunted house and went in.
check People have been shopping and sleeping at a haunted house. No one knows about it.
For Halloween, we decided to have a haunted house in the backyard.
There is a haunted house on my street.
My grandmother disappeared after going into that haunted house.
Have you ever visited a haunted house?
There seems to be a strange ghost in my haunted house.
Children were heard talking at night from inside the haunted house.
One family ended up getting killed in a haunted house while they were asleep.
The policeman told us not to enter the haunted house at all costs.
There’s a secret room in the haunted house where the ghosts hang out to wait
A boy was carted off by police after he claimed that he will be going into the haunted house to prove himself.
Have you ever walked into a haunted house?
You hear a scratching of what sounds like a dog against a door from a haunted house.
What’s the scariest haunted house you’ve ever been to?
Something odd happened inside the haunted house
I think my house is haunted.
I have to check my hall closet every night before bed to make sure no monster will come out.
A knock was heard on the door of a haunted house.
Do you want to come with me to check out the supposedly haunted house?
A ghost in the air.
Blood was observed in the haunted house.
This old abandoned family house is haunted by ghosts.
Whispers were heard coming from the haunted house a few blocks away.
My girlfriend refuses to go into my haunted house.
An ancient haunted house with a grim history.
A man bought a haunted house to see the ghosts inside.
I don’t think they should have put a haunted house here.
Children were treated terribly in a haunted house.
I saw a floating ghost near the haunted house.
I need to treat my daughter’s “hallucinations” so she will not go to that haunted house alone.
A woman saw a ghost lurking inside a haunted house.
Being inside the haunted house was too scary for the researcher.
My father’s collection of dolls is haunting.
The child saw the ghosts in the haunted house on Halloween.
Something supernatural happened in the haunted house.
A team of scientists were sent to investigate the paranormal activity in a haunted house in Grimshaw Row.
My friend wouldn’t return home because she saw a ghost in a haunted house.
A person had claimed they encountered a zombie in a haunted house.
Ghosts haunt people coming near the haunted house.
A woman was found dead in the kitchen of a haunted house.
My hometown was built over a haunted house.
There was a terrible accident in the haunted house.
A boy and his friend were playing hide and seek in a haunted house. After a while he started shouting “I will find you!” and nobody was able to find him.
I visited the haunted house where Death hung from the tree.
The giant pumpkin in the haunted house started to come alive
A woman once went into a haunted house looking for her lost cat.
Beware when staying in a haunted house.
He looks like a horror movie villain.
Times Square is really haunted.
After going into the haunted house, strange things began to happen.
The new kid moved into a haunted house but no one knows that.
A group of teenagers were dared to go into a haunted house. Now you can fund the experiment of whether or not these teenagers are alive.
A lonely boy wrote a fictional book about a haunted house.
It’s probably best not to visit a haunted house on Halloween night.
There was a ghost in my sister’s haunted house.
The ghost in the haunted house still appears to this day at the stroke of midnight.
More than one family has left the haunted house across from me.
A woman had recurring nightmares about a haunted house.
The neighbors told me that there was a haunted house next to the graveyard.
I was woken up last night by sounds of a crying girl from the haunted house.
An abandoned haunted house.
Everybody in town knows about that haunted house.
My vampire boyfriend took pity on me and gave me a peaceful sleep one night in this haunted castle.
The haunted house came to my school and brought nightmares with…
No one who enters that haunted house ever comes out alive.
There was once a haunted house that was built by the residents who had to leave the world due to paranormal activities. That is why it was named “Haunted House”.
What if everyone suddenly disappeared from your neighborhood?
A monster was crouching outside a haunted house for a long time.
The famous haunted house is said to be haunted because a little girl ghost is found there.
This house isn’t haunted, there is just a man upstairs who hasn’t left his room in the past forty years.
The police investigated an incident at the haunted house two streets over.
An abandoned haunted house contains old furniture from hundreds of years ago.
My neighbors are bad. They were even reported for child abuse.
I’ve never believed in ghosts before until my visit to this house.
No one is allowed to go inside the haunted house.
A famous treasure was found in a haunted house, but then stolen again.
A child drowned in a pond by a haunted house.
I was scared to go into that haunted house.
A man named Tom has been murdered inside a haunted house. They say he was the neighbor of a young writer.
Someone got lost and had to find their way out of a haunted house.
Dad was a ghost hunter for haunted houses. When he died, no one knew where to look.
Someone said that they saw a ghost peeking into the girls’ shower.
People say that children disappear near haunted houses.
My home is probably haunted, because it has so many uneven floors.
I often feel like someone is following me in my haunted house at night.
I have always been afraid of the haunted house on my street.
I have seen the ghost of an old lady haunt my bathroom mirror.
My parents are afraid to visit this haunted house.
Something tells me not to go into this particular haunted house.
Write about a haunted house that a local writes about.
Three kids set out in search of a haunted house.
A group of teenagers went into the haunted house and were never seen again.
A strange sound echoed from the ghost occupied house.
Years ago, one man went into the most haunted house. He never came out.
Describe the scariest thing you have ever encountered.
I saw the ghost of my mother haunting the house.
Spooky went to her school haunted house for Halloween. She ran out a couple thunder screams later.
Look out for ghouls near that haunted house.
The house across from mine has curtains that cover each window, therefore, it is always quiet and dark.
A haunted house nearby was built over a burial ground.
People report seeing the lights in the haunted house even when no one is there.
There was a haunted house in the woods nearby. They called it The Darkness.
I didn’t think my friend would go into the haunted house, but he did. And then what he saw scared him to death.
I saw a dog jump out of a haunted house’s reflection.
A man decided to buy a haunted house. It was better for his business.
Ghosts were seen in the windows of a haunted house.
There are reports that a haunted house in town is crawling with rats.
Ancient ghosts haunt happily-married couple Eddie and wifey in their new house by the lake.
People say they’ve seen ghosts in that old haunted house.
The babysitter disappeared in the middle of the night. When my parents went to look for her, they found that she was frozen.
A haunted castle full of spirits is believed to exist on this hill.
Kids dare each other to go into a haunted house.
My friend lives in a haunted house and films it.
There’s a secret room underneath the haunted house.
Some of the oldest houses can be quite spooky.
You had a creepy feeling about this haunted house.
Two men bought the haunted house next door.
I had to turn my lights on all night after spending the night in a haunted house.
The ghosts in the haunted house have the faces of the children that go missing.
There’s a story of witches who used to live in a haunted house far away.
The girl across from the haunted house is freezing cold, even under the sun.
A terrible murder happened in the haunted house to my right.
Our neighbourhood is as quiet as the neighborhood of a haunted house.
A girl had seen two ghosts standing in front of the haunted house.
A haunted house appeared overnight. No one knew where it came from.
The screams were coming from the house next door.
An abandoned haunted house was found on an isolated island.
An old woman saw a ghost haunting the houses nearby.
Seeing two kids standing around the house across the street is strange. There are no children living in that house.
There was a murder in that haunted house.
I can hear the strange sounds from inside those haunted houses.
Ghosts were sighted dancing in the streets at night.
For many generations, curses have been told if one enters a haunted house.
I would never go inside a haunted house.
A man waiting for a bus saw a spooky ghost at the bus stop.
Everyone knows there was a ghost in that old house.
A man who worked in a haunted house was actually killed.
Sometimes the ghosts from the haunted house across the street come over.
Colors have faded from the old haunted house.
After experiencing a haunting no one will live in the haunted house.
An almost-dead ghost was found in the haunted house.
A mysterious house in the woods was where they held the sacrifices over the years.
A story where the main character moves into a haunted house and renovates it.
In a haunted house, you will still find a remote control.
A UFO was seen landing near an abandoned house.
Noises are heard in a nearby haunted house.
A paranormal investigator went to a haunted house and discovered creepy voices and more.
A monster was found walking around my house.
Crazy haunted house keeper sells tickets to go inside.
I had heard the most terrifying screams coming from the haunted house across the street.
Some weird things have been going on in that house lately.
My neighbor said he was buried in the haunted house behind his house.
Dead bodies were discovered in the haunted house.
I saw a crumbling house and thought it was completely haunted. It wasn’t.
The man who lives next door to the haunted house wouldn’t come outside, even when we tried to convince him.
An 8-year-old boy vanished suddenly while walking to a haunted house.
There is a ghost in the cookies.
A few unknowingly purchased a haunted house to live in.
The door to the haunted house was left open by the previous occupants.
The spirits in the haunted house lived with an insanely abusive mother.
I heard from my neighbor that the house next door to mine is haunted…
An unidentified figure was found dead after having entered a haunted house.
I found out which part of the house was the most haunted.
Pride and peon are antagonists to pride and prejudice.
The old lady who lived in the haunted house across the street died.
I was locked in a haunted house and couldn’t get out.
A ghost came to visit a girl.
A woman living in a haunted house committed suicide.
A supernatural entity from the haunted house down the street is causing harm to the villagers.
We heard a strange noise coming from that haunted house.
Sheriff County Paranormal Society has had the honor to explore the haunted Merkins Old Place near Del Fort’s Bridge.
There was a zombie guarding the front door.
I dare you to spend the night in the haunted house by the woods!
The old house’s door swung open on its own.
There has been a rumor of the haunted house nearby. Many people went to it, but all of them vanished, and nobody knows why they did so.
Could the haunted house be using a child for their evil plans?
Something is terribly wrong at that haunted house where people are being killed and vanishing away.
A woman was murdered in a haunted house. She haunts the home today.
Someone came up to the haunted house and asked for help.
The front door of the haunted house creaked open.
I was never the same after the Halloween party last year.
I couldn’t sleep well one night because a haunted house was nearby.
My brother always got scared going past that haunted house.
I have visited a haunted house.
I heard strange noises from the haunted house next door.
Tell the true story about the haunted house.
There have been sightings of ghosts near my house.
He thought his house was haunted by a clown until he realized the man with the sad eyes in the mirror was real.
Everyone hears about haunted houses in this town.
Einstein thought that ghosts aren’t real until he went into a haunted house.
I heard a scream coming from the haunted house one day.
My roommates talk weirdly about a haunted house.
Write about the scariest situation ever.
A girl drowned in a ghost house’s lake.
Write about the scariest indoor haunted house ever.
A ghost girl peeks out from behind the curtain.
A haunted house nearby is abandoned by its inhabitants.
One hundred dollars is waiting for somebody who will explore the most haunted house in the town.
Everything about the haunted house across the street freaks me out.
Someone was found alive after an abandoned haunted house fire.
There is a painting of a haunted house hanging in the attic.
A girl had a terrible dream that a ghost haunted her home. She accused her parents. Five people died the next month.
Many claim it to be the scariest haunted house ever.
A haunted house was moved to the corner of my street. It’s not that bad.
Someone saw a ghost standing in one of the windows of a haunted house.
I saw a ghost standing in the doorway of the haunted house.
A group of teenagers went into the haunted house for fun and turned up missing.
Write about the scariest haunted house in your neighborhood.
I live in a haunted house.
Could M. Night Shyamalan admit that something is wrong with his haunted house?
I don’t go to haunted houses for fun, but that’s what everyone else seems to do.
A woman was murdered inside a haunted house nearby. The police are baffled by the mystery.
Someone murdered their best friend in a dark, haunted house.
I’ve tried going into a haunted house but was spooked out.
The people that live in the haunted house across the street from us are starting to disappear.
A family had the scariest experience in a haunted house nearby.
A tourist visited every haunted house in California. She encountered the scariest one in all of California.
An evil spirit roams my town and it must be inside the haunted house.
The Clowns are killing everybody, and we have to get out of here.
I dare you to stay in the next haunted house you see.
I refuse to die in a haunted house.
I stayed there for hours but suddenly ran out of the haunted house as if drawn by a force.
A boy goes into a haunted house and is never seen again.
I heard a man begging for his life from a haunted house.
Several people said they saw a ghost in the haunted house.
They said a haunted house was coming to the neighborhood. When it arrived, it was nothing like the stories I’d heard.
There’s a haunted house at the foot of the hill. It’s too dark in there.
If you were in a haunted house that had some ghosts, what action would you take?
Why are some haunted houses so much more scary than others?
Once on Halloween at midnight different ghostly events take place in a haunted house.
Nobody knows who the skull is…
I went to a haunted house that was supposedly haunted by a child ghost.
The young girl decided to investigate the haunted house around the clock, day in and out.
The haunted house was so hideous it needed to be kept in total darkness.
The streets nearby resemble a blood bath after the haunted house’s last outing.
A woman was found murdered in a haunted house. Police never had a clue.
Many people died in this haunted house.
It’s been a year and the boy from the haunted house is still missing.
They didn’t say anything when they saw the ghostly figure lurking in my house.
A janitor works at a haunted house.
Haunted House Interview
A neighbor of mine spends a lot of time on their rooftop staring at the house behind mine.
I saw the ghost of my dead friend at a haunted house.
Our town had its own haunted house.
A girl saw a real piece of human skin hanging on the wall of an abandoned
The inside of a haunted house wasn’t scary.
I saw an apparition outside the old haunted house across from my street.
A disgruntled resident died in my haunted house leaving a note behind.
The haunted house door opened all by itself.
By far, the most haunted house was the spooky Victorian mansion.
Skeletons were found in a haunted house near me. It was called The Bone Vault.
Two superheroes go into the haunted house to save the people trapped there.
A girl escaped from the Haunted House.
A man got lost in a haunted house.
A woman and her little girl moved into the haunted house next door.
A girl was feeling really creepy as she walked to a haunted house for a dare.
Haunted house living doesn’t seem very enticing until a person tried living in one.
I heard about the haunted house walking slowly.
Ghosts have been spotted in the haunted house at midnight.
I heard somebody say they saw a ghost in the haunted house on the hill.
A haunted house is for sale on the block. The owners are forced to live far away from it for the night.
A crew of paranormal researchers set up equipment around the haunted house.
A family got lost in the oldest haunted house in the world.
The haunted house next door is an old relic with a gruesome past.
You could see a pale face right above your bed.
The Haunted House
A man bought a haunted house from an old woman. He heard her cries
A real ghost haunts a family’s home.
A family moved into a haunted house by their new home.
We could hear a family screaming coming from the haunted house next door.
Read about haunted houses.
Our home was once a haunted house.
The stone gargoyle on my front porch made a noise every night.
The dad who lived in a haunted mansion was the personification of terror.
A war criminal was found hiding in a room in a haunted house.
I dare you to visit the haunted house on the corner.
A man’s brother disappeared when they were kids. The man grew up to be a famous sleuth. He investigated the haunted house and found his brother.
Write about a haunted house in Las Vegas.
I was awoken by screams and crashes from the haunted house next door.
I could smell the blood from a freshly killed animal in the haunted house down the street.
The ghost of a woman in labor was seen. This haunted house is not recommended for expectant mothers!
I wouldn’t go into a haunted house for fear that a ghost would get me.
A boy planned to cross the evil house of horror.
A lot of rattling doors and windows from that haunted house.
My grandma went into the haunted house at the end of the street. She hasn’t come out since.
I saw the ghost of a young girl standing at the door of an old house.
A boy moved into a haunted house. His parents heard strange noises the first night.
I saw a ghost outside from my window, it ran into the haunted house.
There was something moving in there.
Ghosts haunt the house every night. It’s too late. Everything is dark.
I went to the haunted house over my friend’s house.
The house was found abandoned.
A girl was found dead, and a day before she was laughing inside a haunted house.
Two people go into a nearby haunted house. One doesn’t come out!
There was a woman who got lost in a haunted house. Now her children are missing.
People get hungry and thirsty in haunted houses but they cannot eat anything or drink anything.
Someone broke into the haunted house that was just sold.
The house next door has a strange letter by the doorbell.
I saw a ghost in my living room.
A young girl was found while walking home late at night. She was dead.
I always avoided that haunted house that was on the side of a cliff.
I heard a story on the radio about the haunted house down the street.
Disturbing footsteps were heard coming from a haunted house.
A house suddenly caught fire and burnt to the ground. The ghosts still haunt the remains.
I heard rumors of a haunted house.
An old woman lived in a haunted house by the woods.
A haunted house was found in a construction site.
The haunted house where a hundred or maybe a thousand people died.
Something terrible is about to happen in the haunted house down the street.
The old man across the way told me that there was a monster in his haunted house.
There was a funeral held in a haunted house next door.
A haunted house appeared in my dreams.
What haunts this house?
There have been no signs of paranormal activity lately.
Everyone feared to enter a haunted house in the neighborhood.
A shared dream began at a haunted house.
The haunted house was built on top of an old cemetery.
A friend went into a haunted house.
A suspicious looking man has been hanging around the front door of the haunted house up the street.
I don’t know anyone brave enough to go in there. It’s just too scary to go in there.
My friend shared an unbelievable story with me about a haunted house.
Me and my friends went for a sleepover at a haunted house.
Phantom at a huge abandoned haunted house.
A ghost was seen in the house next door.
Inside the haunted house, there was a strange fog.
A group of explorers went into a haunted mansion looking for the ghost. They found him.
The lady of the haunted house was found dead in her bathroom.
An author went into a haunted house to experience the strange spirits there.
A vampire was annihilated in a haunted house nearby.
A haunted house might be the place where the writer dwells.
Children go into the haunted house of their own free will.
I know the exact location of a haunted house in my neighborhood.
The haunting knocked down the walls of the haunted house.
They say ghosts haunt that haunted house, let’s go and prove it.
My friend went into a haunted house and did not come out.
Once in my neighborhood there was a haunted house. It was seen sparking at night, and angry groans could be heard coming out of the windows of the house.
I’ve always wondered why that house was deserted.
Police were called to a haunted house. They never returned.
The family that lived there was murdered in the haunted house.
I went to the Haunted House and came out alive.
A group of children went into a house that was supposed to be haunted.
There were so many paranormal things happening in the house, my daughter never came home again.
A crazy person claims to hear the whispers. Which ones are on fire? If a regular person is hit by a bus, the bus wins. On the other hand, if a ghost is hit by a bus, the ghost wins. Both spectra and spectra are acceptable plural forms of the word “spectre”. Its use depended entirely on how spooky or scary the writer wanted the activity to be. There. No a bit spookier or scarier now, is it? Another example of the use of the word “spook” in reference to ghosts comes from the state of Maine, USA. It is apparently a local colloquialism for “ghost” or “spirit”, and is derived from the word “spook”.
It all started with a visit to an old mansion, now a haunted house.
A girl and her friends were abducted from a haunted house.
From the ghoulish things inside the cedar grove, a ghostly, wolf howl rose.
She was afraid of horror films but she finally got the courage to watch one. It was about a haunted house.
Who wants to live in a haunted house?
I heard screams in the haunted house on Halloween.
What manifestation did you encounter in your house?
A dark figure’s lurking in the depths of the haunted house.
I encountered what some might call a poltergeist in a haunted house in another country.
The neighbors were worried a strange man was living in the old haunted house.
People have seen ghosts in their nightmares after sleeping in a haunted house.
The dog wouldn’t stop barking. The police were called. They found…
An old, abandoned, haunted house.
I will never go into that haunted house.
Once one of my friend’s younger sisters played with an ouija board. She got spooked and said that she was going to stay at a haunted house to scare her friends who left her alone.
My traveling companion was kidnapped by the family ghosts in a haunted house.
A person was chased out of a haunted house by ghosts.
Don’t go into the haunted house!
There was a ghost in the mirror every night.
A group of teens go on a scavenger hunt and one of them sees a ghost in a haunted house.
“Anita, do not go to bed right now!” my mother insisted.
I saw a vision of a ghost in my haunted house.
A person saw an evil-looking spirit flying out from the top of the haunted house.
A light appeared from the haunted house.
A girl wanted to visit a haunted house on Halloween. The owner stopped her at the door and told her that it wasn’t safe.
The moonlight couldn’t even get into the haunted house.
Ghost feet were seen running past from a haunted house.
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A shadowy figure was seen walking into a Halloween haunted house after everyone was gone.
All kinds of mythology materialized after the ghost was seen.
She heard a dog crying in the haunted house next door.
I used to watch a haunted house on TV. It was amazing.
A local amateur ghost hunting group is having a convention about a haunted house nearby.
A group of friends accidentally opened the door of the haunted house.
Two friends went to a house on a dare and never returned to describe what they saw.
I saw what looked like a ghost in my neighbor’s house.
I hear screams coming from the haunted house at night.
A girl told me a ghost is coming after me.
My neighbor has a haunted house.
No one knows why the house is haunted.
A dead body was found in the house across the street. It turned out it was the murderer who committed the crime in the house.
Something from the haunted house flew out of the windows and settled on my car.
Write about a person who is forced to spend time in a haunted house.
A priest died in a completely haunted house.
A girl merely believed that a house was haunted. Nothing particularly happened, until…
A necromancer moved in nearby and brought ghosts with him to live in the haunted house.
There was a young woman who lived in a haunted house. One night, she died in her sleep. Now she haunts the house.
The spirits of those who once lived in this house returned.
A private detective organizes ghost hunts in haunted houses.
The strange howls coming from that haunted house make my dog run away.
There is a lost diary of a ghost hidden in a haunted house somewhere.
Neighbors say that the vacant lot was once a cemetery. They heard strange noises at night. One man thinks he saw something move in the shadows.
There are ghosts that have been spotted in this house.
No one knows why the ghost has chosen to haunt this particular house.
A police report suggests that an innocent couple lived in a haunted house. A researcher on a television show investigated the case. The house was unmoved and undetectable.
A white lady came and scared all the children in a haunted house.
Haunted houses make for great Halloween decor.
The haunted house is on fire…
The lights in the haunted house flickered on and off.
A group of friends decided to nuke a haunted house for fun.
Describe the last time you stayed at a haunted house.
I saw dozens of people go into the haunted house and never come back out again. What happened to them?
The people who live in that house are real evil.
Shortly before the murder the family saw a strange person in the backyard of their haunted house.
I heard they live in a haunted house near here.
My house is haunted, what’s going on?
My first date with my now love interest was at a haunted house on a dare from my friends. We went into the house five minutes after dark. There was a figure- it turned out to be my love interest- and we both screamed. We liked each other more after that.
I saw a ghostly figure in the woods around the haunted house.
Can you tell me about the haunted house?
A new family bought the haunted house on the corner.
I live in a haunted house that my neighbors think is haunted.
My friend said that he would be willing to have his blood drained after entering a haunted house.
Someone heard a scream from the haunted house.
I was told it would be my settlement if my family owned the land that the haunted house sits on.
I was told to look for the ghosts in the haunted house.
A creature was found in a haunted house. Nobody knows what it is.
An exorcism was going on in a haunted house across the street. There were horrible noises everywhere.
Two police officers went into the haunted house. Nothing was heard from them since.
A ghost is caught on a security camera in a haunted house.
A girl was trapped inside the haunted house. Who rescued her?
Ghosts of children were found in a haunted house nearby.
A broken doll with a torn cloak.
A real ghost was found in the haunted house at midnight.
My house is haunted by this old woman ghost, she’s not harmful and never bothers anyone.
It took several attempts to get the courage to go into the haunted house.
At night, when everyone is sleeping, you can hear a man screaming from the scariest haunted house in town.
A really cool place you just stumbled upon that is haunted.
The haunted house next door has killed a lot of cats.
My brother was kidnapped when he went into a haunted house to prove there were no ghosts.
My love is locked in a haunted house.
The haunted house author Robert E. Howard lived in.
An empty house is actually a haunted house.
He didn’t believe in ghosts, but after visiting the haunted house…
I could hear the screams from the haunted house just a few feet away.
People believe this house is haunted.
I dream of a haunted house by the bay.
My neighbor moved into this haunted house last year.
A haunted house with a pool inside.
The house was haunted, we found out because we saw a strange face in the window.
The old haunted house story was told by the kids back at school today.
The doll they found up in an abandoned haunted house looks just like my daughter.
My best friend claims there’s a haunted house where the spooky screams come from.
Someone has seen a ghostly lady in the haunted house.
Ghosts haunt post-apocalyptic worlds, too. Write about them.
I didn’t want to go into the haunted house.
What would you do if you had to live near a haunted house?
I dare you to go into the haunted house.
A haunted house in the city hides secrets.
A girl went into a haunted house. A week later, the girl arrived at home one day unharmed.
That is my neighbor, a 30-year-old woman who is confined to a wheelchair.
Are ghosts real?
Young boys break into the haunted house to try to solve the mystery as to why it’s haunted.
I heard a terrible scream coming from the haunted house.
The scary man lives in the haunted house year round.
All you can hear in the haunted house across the street is a little girl’s voice, saying, “Let me out! Let me out!”
The spirit in the haunted house is returning to haunt us! We must be careful not to wake it up.
So many people went into the haunted house and never returned.
I went into the haunted house to find everyone inside dead.
A skeleton was found inside a haunted house.
I heard that the heroine in the movie was screamed at by a ghost while inside a haunted house.
I heard they were keeping an old zombie in a haunted house down the street.
Tell them about the oddest childhood experience you or someone you know had.
An unsolved mystery happened at the haunted house.
A man had a doll that he claimed could move by itself. It would do a task and then it liked sitting in a rocking chair in the corner
Something sprang out of the haunted house, running down the street.
Someone died in a mysterious fashion that happened in the haunted house nearby. The police suspect that it was murder.
My dog John found an old bone on the haunted house lawn. He started barking at it and wouldn’t come to me. What was he barking at?
But what’s truly interesting about haunted houses are the cultures that surround them. Take Japan’s ghost cultures, for example, which started years and years ago. Way back during Japan’s dying days of the samurai era, Japanese diarists were documenting strange encounters with ghostly creatures. The result manifested itself throughout Japanese culture and society, with various cultures and societal practices revolved around spirits.
Deep in the woods there’s a haunted house.
Spooky trees grew around the haunted house. What’s in there?
A story of a boy who lived in a haunted house.
A girl was walking past a library when she heard crying. It was haunting.
A girl saw someone with white skin in the haunted house.
We found a note in the haunted house telling us to run.
I heard that there is a real ghost in this haunted house!
A police officer once investigated a haunted house and saw weird things inside.
My parents would not let me visit the haunted house across from us.
A group of school children saw a ghost-man in a haunted house far away from the town.
I was awakened by shrills that seemed to be from the haunted house next door.
My teacher looks like a monster.
The ghosts must have returned from the haunted house.
A famous horror writer lived in a haunted house.
A destructive ghost haunts the house.
There was a strange feeling in a haunted house that no one could ignore.
A guy went on a fishing trip to a haunted house.
The stairs in my house were not safe to walk anymore.
My father worked in a haunted house but he never told us what happened.
My city is infested with haunted houses.
My haunted house does not allow pets, but it is haunted by the ghosts of animals.
A girl visiting a haunted house had a vision of someone trying to kill her and left. Soon, she found a murdered body that was later the work of the killer she saw.
A crazed man in a haunted house murdered a family of four before disappearing.
Close by there is an old deserted house. People say it is haunted.
A ghost threw darts toward kids entering a haunted house.
The postman saw a ghost – right outside my haunted house.
An accident in a haunted house left me permanently disabled.
A myth about a ghost started in a haunted house at camp.
I stayed in a haunted house last night. The experience was fun.
A man dressed in all black is the owner of a haunted house.
The haunted house stands tall, silhouetted by the moon.
A house is haunted because of the mysterious deaths that have occurred within the walls of the home.
Write about what happened at the deserted haunted house.
I just saw a real ghost!
Someone paid to have a haunted house built for Halloween.
One of the ghosts just floated out of the haunted house.
A little girl knew someone lived in the Haunted House across the street.
Most people avoid talking about the haunted house next door.
Two girls were quite startled seeing a real ghost from a haunted house nearby.
The ghost child could be seen here.
A boy goes into a haunted house and appears on the news the next day.
A group of people went into a haunted house. They never came out.
Nobody would go near the haunted house at night.
What is the most terrifying haunted house scene you can think of?
The police are always called because this haunted house has a ghost following around the kids.
What if you were attacked by a ghost?
I heard there was a serial killer living in the haunted house across the street.
Ghosts were seen running out of the haunted house.
I went into a haunted house and never left.
Someone dared me to go into the haunted house so my friends went. We didn’t come back.
A haunted house that appears in Limbo Town every one hundred years during the month of Halloween.
Why is the place next door so frightening?
I sneaked into the house and tried to investigate, but something evil started chasing me.
My neighbors moved out of their haunted house.
A man found something in his attic from the haunted house down the street.
Do you believe in ghosts? It’s hard not to after what I’ve experienced in a haunted house.
I heard your voice from the haunted house.
If you don’t write a story about a haunted house, bad luck will befall you!
I think the house across the street from mine might be haunted.
The ghost of a little girl was sighted in a haunted house.
I wonder what they heard that caused them to flee from the eerie cabin in the woods.
I found my name written in the haunted house guestbook.
I needed to see if the haunted house labeled ‘do not enter’ was really haunted.
In the Spring, there was a girl’s head found in the haunted house.
There was a sign outside the haunted house that read, “Out of Business”
A girl has strange impressions in her old and haunted house.
When you walk in the haunted house, only your screams remain.
I will never forget the time that a real ghost attacked me in the haunted house.
A strange man wearing a top hat always stands outside the haunted house.
People can hear organ music coming from a haunted house.
A town was haunted by a haunted house for centuries.
I heard strange noises coming from the haunted house.
A ghost was seen to sneak out of a haunted house before sunrise.
A demon has carried away my girlfriend into a haunted house.
My mother used to live in a haunted house when she was young.
The haunted house was the scene of the final stand of the American revolution.
A girl who got lost in a haunted house never came out.
I went to an abandoned house once and heard voices inside.
A haunted house is rumored to have robbers.
A famous radio host was tortured and killed in a haunted house.
People are too afraid to live in the house across the street.
Write about the haunted house that you and your friend visited a few weeks ago.
A woman opens up a store in a most haunted place.
The people who once inhabited this house were very peculiar.
The haunted house reappears when the moon is full.
“We can move in until you get a new job!” he said.
The ghost of a woman was seen wandering the hallways of a haunted house.
I saw a ghost by a haunted house once.
Someone claimed to have seen ghosts in a haunted house.
An hour after your stay at the haunted house, you are seen in a dilapidated condition with clear burn marks and scratches on your body and become mute.
A girl was walking home alone in the dark when she saw a ghost on the other side of the street staring at her.
Someone drove into the haunted house in the fog.
Many people have complained about loud noises from a haunted house.
I love cheesy haunted houses. They’re a lot of fun.
I heard the scream from inside the haunted house.
A boy ran away from a haunted house. He returned days later, only he was the one screaming, not the occupants of the haunted house.
A girl felt a hand on her shoulder in a haunted house nearby.
The next door neighbour always puts up Halloween decorations and leaves out treats and stuff for the children in the neighborhood. They consider him a Grade A Halloween nut and a few rumors have surfaced, like he may be a vampire who likes stealing children.
A puff of smoke escaped from the old abandoned house across the street.
Ghosts who kill have haunted my house for a year.
The scary things you heard/saw in the haunted house in your neighborhood when you were seven.
I could no longer see the house. It must be haunted.
Something weird happened at the haunted house over the weekend.
A man throws a party in a haunted house.
The best haunted house is always the one we don’t go inside.
Write about a monster that lives in a haunted house.
A child saw the ghost of a dead man’s face in a window in a haunted house.
I need to show courage and face the Green Monster…a haunted house.
The people who live in this house are not from this Earth.
If you could live in a haunted house, would you? Why?
A group of people got together to tell ghost stories in a haunted house. What happened?
The haunted house in the town at the hill.
Describe the most haunted house.
My friend went to the haunted house down the road and never returned.
A wife is convinced that she sees ghosts from a famous haunted house.
The chained up door leads to one of the scariest haunted houses.
Want to suffer a sleepless night? Try staying in a haunted house for the night.
You are in a haunted house… alone.
I was running down the street when all of a sudden a ghost popped out from the haunted house.
Someone dared me to enter the old haunted house.

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Haunted House Writing Prompt: Explore Themes of Mystery

My name is Debbie, and I am passionate about developing a love for the written word and planting a seed that will grow into a powerful voice that can inspire many.

Haunted House Writing Prompt: Explore Themes of Mystery

1. Discover the allure of haunted houses: Unraveling the captivating mystery⁣ behind ‌spooky abodes

1.⁢ set the scene:, 2. develop intriguing characters:, 3. setting ⁤the scene: ‌crafting a vivid and⁤ spooky atmosphere to enhance your haunted house⁤ narrative, 4. unveiling the secrets: building suspense and intrigue in your haunted house ⁣story, 1. character⁣ development is ⁤key, 2.⁤ perfect pacing for maximum impact, 5. digging deeper: using symbolism and foreshadowing to enhance the mystery in your haunted house tale, 6. unraveling the enigma: crafting a compelling plot twist in⁤ your haunted house narrative, 7.⁢ the power of character development: how to create memorable and ‌authentic personalities in your haunted house story, 8. concluding with a ‌chilling effect: crafting a satisfying resolution that leaves readers haunted by your ‍story, concluding with a ‌chilling effect, frequently asked questions, future outlook.

Haunted houses⁢ have long been‍ a source of fascination for thrill-seekers and mystery enthusiasts⁣ alike. These eerie abodes exude an undeniable allure, captivating even the most skeptical‌ minds. What is it about these⁤ spooky dwellings that draws us in?

One of the key factors⁤ that make haunted houses‌ so intriguing is the element of mystery. These spectral abodes often ‍have a rich history and a past cloaked in secrecy. ⁣From⁤ tales of gruesome murders‌ to unsolved mysteries, the stories behind haunted houses have a way of captivating our imaginations. Each creaking floorboard and flickering light bulb adds to the enigma, leaving⁣ us wondering about the unseen forces ‍that linger within.

Thrilling Spectral Encounters: Visitors⁣ to haunted houses often report⁤ spine-chilling encounters with apparitions and unexplained phenomena. These encounters provide a tantalizing glimpse into the supernatural and leave a lasting impact on‌ those who experience them.
Cultural and Historical Significance: Many haunted houses have ties to⁢ significant historical events, making them a window ⁣into the ‌past. Exploring these spooky abodes allows us to connect with history and gain a deeper understanding of the culture and traditions of the time.
Psychological⁣ Thrill: Stepping⁢ into a haunted⁤ house evokes a range of emotions, ‌from fear to excitement. The⁣ adrenaline rush that accompanies these ‍emotions is a powerful allure that keeps us coming back for more.

So, whether you ⁢are a‌ believer in the supernatural or simply‍ enjoy a good scare, exploring the captivating ⁢mystery behind haunted houses‌ is an adventure that should not be missed. Prepare to unlock the secrets of these spooky ⁢abodes, and be ⁢ready to embrace the thrill of the unknown.

2. Unleash your creativity:⁤ How⁣ to use a haunted house as‌ a writing prompt to explore themes of mystery

Want to immerse yourself in a world⁣ of mystery and⁣ suspense to spark your creative writing? Look no⁤ further‌ than a haunted house!‌ This eerie setting is the perfect writing prompt , allowing you to⁢ unleash your creativity as you ⁢explore themes of mystery ‌and the unknown. ⁢Here are some tips on how to ⁤effectively use a haunted‍ house as a writing prompt to ⁢bring your imagination to life:

Describe‌ the haunted house in ⁢vivid detail, using sensory language to create a spine-chilling atmosphere.
Highlight the creepy elements: creaking floors, shadowy corners, and flickering lights.
Engage multiple senses to make the reader ‍feel as if they are experiencing the ⁤eerie presence themselves.
Create a cast of⁢ diverse characters who are drawn to the haunted house for various reasons.
Include a mix of skeptics, believers, paranormal experts, and ordinary individuals.
Breathe life into your ⁤characters by giving them distinct personalities and backstories.
Contrast their reactions and motivations as they explore the mysteries within the haunted house.

By using a haunted house as ‌a writing prompt, you can delve into ⁤themes of‍ mystery and the ‌supernatural in a way that captivates readers. Embrace the unease and suspense that surrounds the haunted house,‌ and allow your imagination to run wild. Whether you’re writing a short ‌story, a novel, or a thrilling screenplay, the haunted house serves as a catalyst for exploring the depths of the unknown. So, grab⁤ your pen or fire up your⁤ keyboard, step⁤ into that haunted house, and let your ⁢creativity soar!

3. Setting the scene: Crafting⁢ a vivid‌ and spooky atmosphere to enhance⁣ your haunted house narrative

In ⁢order to create ⁤the perfect haunted house narrative, it is ‍essential to ‍set a vivid and spooky atmosphere that will captivate your audience. Here are some ⁣tips to help you craft an immersive experience:

1. Lighting: Opt ‌for dim, eerie lighting throughout your haunted house to create an otherworldly ambiance. Utilize flickering candlelight or strategically placed ⁢spotlights to highlight ⁤important scenes or props.

2. Sound effects: Sound is a powerful tool in setting the scene. Incorporate creepy and eerie sound effects like creaking doors, howling winds, or⁣ distant screams. This ‌will add an⁤ extra layer of fear and realism to your haunted house.

3. Fog and mist: Adding a touch of fog or mist⁢ in certain areas ⁢of your haunted house can ⁤create ⁣an unsettling atmosphere. Use fog⁤ machines or dry ice to create an ethereal and spooky effect.

4. Decorations: Pay attention to the ⁣details when it comes to decorating your haunted⁢ house.⁢ From cobwebs to fake spiders, skeletons, and eerie portraits, every element should contribute to the spooky ‍ambiance you’re ‌creating. Don’t forget to incorporate ‍props like gravestones,⁤ old furniture, and ⁣scattered, decrepit objects to enhance ‍the authenticity.

5. Actors and costumes: Your ⁣haunted house‍ would not ⁤be complete without the‌ presence of skilled actors dressed in eerie costumes. Encourage your actors to embody their characters and interact with visitors to enhance the narrative. Their presence will add an element of surprise and fear that will truly bring your haunted house to ‍life.

4.‍ Unveiling the secrets:⁤ Building suspense‍ and intrigue in your haunted ⁢house story

Creating a captivating haunted house story requires more than just jump scares and eerie settings. ⁢To truly captivate your readers⁣ and keep them on the edge of their seats, you need to master the art of building suspense‍ and intrigue. This post will delve into some effective techniques‍ and elements that you can incorporate into your narrative,⁢ ensuring an unforgettable and chilling⁢ experience for your audience.

In⁢ order⁣ to keep‍ readers engaged,‌ it is crucial to⁣ create⁢ well-defined and relatable characters. Take the time to flesh ‍out their backgrounds,⁤ motivations, and fears. Unveil their pasts gradually, allowing⁣ readers to connect with‌ them emotionally. ‌By making your characters distinct and relatable, you will heighten the sense of fear and suspense when they face the ghostly encounters⁣ in your ⁣haunted ⁢house story.

Pacing is everything in a haunted house story. It’s important to create a rhythm that alternates between‍ moments of calm and intense terror. Slow down the pace during quieter moments to build ⁤anticipation. This will make the ⁤readers’ ⁢hearts ‌race as they ‌eagerly await the next frightful event. Utilize short, ⁢fast-paced sentences and paragraphs to intensify the sense of danger when the characters ‍are ⁣faced with supernatural ‍occurrences.

5. Digging deeper:‌ Using symbolism and foreshadowing to enhance the mystery in your haunted house tale

When it comes to crafting a spine-chilling haunted house tale, symbolism and foreshadowing can be powerful⁤ techniques to amplify the mystery and intrigue within your story. These literary devices not only add depth and⁤ complexity but also engage your readers on a subconscious level, intensifying ‌their⁣ experience.

Symbolism ⁣enables you to imbue everyday objects or elements with deeper meaning, elevating the overall atmosphere of your haunted house tale. Consider incorporating recurring motifs ⁢such as clocks ticking, mirrors reflecting distorted images,⁤ or doors creaking open ⁣on their own. These symbols can represent the passage of time, hidden truths, or⁣ the blurred ⁤boundaries between ⁢the living‌ and the supernatural. Symbolism not only serves ⁣as⁤ a narrative device but also creates a sense of ⁢continuity⁣ and unity, adding layers of richness to your hauntingly atmospheric world.

Foreshadowing, on the other hand, allows you to tease your ⁢readers with subtle, yet ominous hints of what lies ahead. By foreshadowing key events or revelations in‌ your haunted house tale, you build anticipation and suspense. Consider employing foreshadowing⁣ techniques such as ambiguous dialogues, recurring nightmares, or unexplained phenomena in ⁣the initial ⁤stages ⁣of ⁤your⁣ story. ‌By ⁢cleverly planting these breadcrumbs, you create a sense of unease and curiosity within your readers,⁣ ensuring they are hooked throughout the unraveling of your⁣ hauntingly mysterious narrative. Remember, effective foreshadowing is a‍ delicate balance between opacity and ⁤clarity – provide enough hints to intrigue your⁤ readers, but not so many that you give away the story’s secrets.

6. Unraveling the enigma: Crafting a ‍compelling plot twist in ⁢your haunted house narrative

Plot twists are the key to keeping readers on the edge of their seats, and when it‍ comes to haunted house narratives, they can be the secret ingredient ⁣that takes your story from⁤ good to unforgettable. Injecting a well -crafted plot twist into your haunted house tale can leave readers shocked, astounded, and craving more. Here‌ are some valuable tips ‍to help you master the art of creating a captivating plot⁤ twist in your haunted house narrative:

1. ⁢Establish a Solid Foundation

Begin by setting the stage, carefully constructing a believable and eerie atmosphere within⁣ your haunted⁢ house. The foundation of your story must ⁤be strong, with well-developed characters and a haunting backdrop that captivates from the first page.
Introduce subtle clues throughout the narrative, foreshadowing the upcoming twist without giving too much away. These breadcrumbs ⁣will pique ‍readers’ curiosity and keep them⁢ engaged.

2. Challenge Reader Expectations

Avoid⁢ clichés and familiar tropes. Surprise⁢ your⁤ readers by subverting their expectations and defying‍ traditional haunted house narrative elements.
Introduce unconventional and ‍unexpected characters or motives. Convey their intentions in a way that challenges ⁣the readers’ preconceived notions and assumptions.
Layer the ⁤narrative with subtle inconsistencies, contradictions, and misdirection. This builds suspense and keeps readers guessing, making the final‍ plot twist all the more impactful.

By carefully⁢ weaving these elements together, you’ll create a haunted house narrative that‌ will‍ leave readers breathless. Remember, the⁣ best plot twists are the ⁢ones that catch ⁢readers completely off guard, making them question everything they thought they knew about your story. So go⁤ ahead, unleash your creativity, and embark on the thrilling journey of crafting a compelling plot twist for your haunted house narrative.

7. The power ‍of character ⁤development: How to create memorable and ⁤authentic‍ personalities in ⁢your haunted house story

In a haunted house story, one of the most crucial elements for engaging readers is the creation of compelling and authentic characters. Characters that are well-developed can breathe life into your narrative, making it more immersive and memorable for your audience.⁣ Here are some tips on how⁣ to create personalities that will stay with your readers long after they finish your spooky tale:

Give your characters depth: A great ‌haunted house ⁢story is not just about scaring your readers; it’s about evoking ⁣emotions and creating a connection. Develop well-rounded characters with unique backstories, dreams, ‍and fears. ⁤Think about their ⁢hobbies, quirks, and personal struggles. By giving ⁢your characters depth, you allow readers to relate to them⁣ and become invested ‌in their journey⁣ within the haunted house.
Create internal conflicts: Haunted houses often serve as a backdrop for characters’ internal struggles.⁢ Explore the conflicts your characters experience, whether it be overcoming⁤ a past trauma, battling their own demons, or facing their deepest fears. These internal conflicts add another layer to ‌your characters and make them more relatable.⁣ By delving into their emotional journeys, you create opportunities for personal growth and transformation, making your characters more dynamic.

Crafting a satisfying⁢ resolution that leaves readers ⁣haunted by ⁢your story requires careful consideration and ⁢attention to ‌detail. To create a lasting impact, you must immerse your audience in an eerie atmosphere that lingers long after they ‌have finished reading. Here are some tips to help you achieve a chilling effect:

Develop complex characters: Delve⁢ deep into the‍ minds of your characters, exposing their fears, desires, and weaknesses. Crafting multi-dimensional individuals allows readers to‍ form emotional connections and invest in their fates.
Build suspense: Slowly‍ tease ‌out the⁢ truth,‍ building‌ tension‍ with each passing ⁢page. ⁢Employing foreshadowing and withholding vital information will keep your readers on the edge ⁣of their seats, eagerly anticipating the final reveal.
Utilize sensory descriptions: Engage your readers by invoking their senses. Vividly‍ describe the eerie sound of‌ footsteps echoing in an abandoned hallway, the ⁣spine-tingling scent of decay wafting through the ⁣air, or⁢ the bone-chilling touch of a ghostly ⁣hand grazing the protagonist’s arm.

In addition, don’t be afraid to experiment with unconventional narrative structures. Shifting perspectives or incorporating non-linear timelines can add an extra⁢ layer of complexity to your story, intensifying the unsettling ⁢ambiance. Remember, the key to‌ leaving your ‌readers haunted is to ⁣strike a delicate balance between resolution and lingering unease. Leave just enough unanswered questions and unresolved mysteries ⁤to keep them pondering long into the night. By skillfully‌ crafting your story’s conclusion, you can ensure that your readers will be captivated and haunted by your narrative, even ⁣after they have reluctantly closed the book.

Q: What‍ is ⁤a haunted house writing prompt? A: A haunted ⁢house ⁢writing prompt is an exercise or a starting point ⁣that encourages writers ‍to delve into the theme⁢ of mystery within the context of ⁣a haunted house setting. It serves as inspiration to develop a⁤ unique story⁢ or explore compelling characters.

Q: Why is‌ the theme of mystery often associated ⁢with haunted houses? A: Haunted houses have long‌ been a popular symbol of mystery, mostly due to the eerie and spooky atmosphere they create. The unknown⁢ origins, strange occurrences, and potentially supernatural elements ⁣make haunted houses the perfect backdrop ⁢for mysterious narratives.

Q: How can writers explore themes of mystery in their haunted house stories? A: Writers can explore themes of mystery in their haunted house stories by incorporating elements of⁢ suspense, enigma, and strange⁣ phenomena. They ⁤can introduce puzzles, hidden secrets, or unexplained events that create⁤ an air ‍of intrigue and keep readers engaged.

Q: What are some⁤ tips for creating a compelling haunted house story? A: To create a compelling haunted house story, writers should focus on ⁣building a vivid and atmospheric setting. ⁤They⁤ can describe ⁢the details of‍ the house, its surroundings, and any paranormal occurrences to evoke a sense⁢ of unease. Additionally, developing complex and relatable characters, who are affected by the mysteries of the house, adds depth to the narrative.

Q: Can a haunted⁣ house writing prompt be used for different genres of writing? A:⁢ Absolutely! Although ⁣haunted⁢ houses are typically associated with ⁢horror or supernatural genres, the writing prompt can be adapted to⁤ various genres such as mystery, thriller, fantasy, or even romance. The haunted house setting can add ⁤an‌ intriguing twist to ⁣any genre, allowing writers to ⁤explore different avenues of storytelling.

Q: How can ⁣writers make their haunted house story unique and distinct? A: Writers ‍can make ‍their ‌haunted house story unique by incorporating ⁢their own personal touch. They can think outside the box⁣ and introduce unexpected plot ‍twists, complex characters,‌ or unusual explanations for the mysterious occurrences. Adding layers of depth,⁣ originality, and surprises will make the story⁤ stand out from ‌the rest.

Q: What are the benefits of using writing prompts like haunted houses? A: Writing prompts, such as the haunted house⁣ theme, ⁣provide writers with a starting point ⁤and can help overcome writer’s block. They offer boundaries that spark creativity and prevent aimless wandering ⁢ while writing. By exploring ⁤themes of‌ mystery within the context ‌of a haunted house, ⁤writers can develop ⁤their storytelling skills and create compelling narratives.

Q: Can a haunted house⁤ writing prompt be used by both‍ beginner and experienced writers? A: Absolutely! Haunted house writing ‍prompts are suitable for writers of all levels. Beginners can use them as a way to⁢ practice their storytelling techniques and experiment with different genres.⁢ Experienced writers can challenge themselves by delving into the complexities of mystery and further refining their craft.

Q: Are there any⁤ potential challenges writers may face when using a haunted‌ house writing prompt? A: Writers may face challenges when using a haunted house writing prompt such as avoiding clichés or predictability. It’s important to balance the elements of ‍mystery without relying too ⁢heavily on common tropes. Writers ‌should also strive to maintain the‍ suspense ⁣throughout‌ the story. Additionally, finding a unique perspective or an ⁣original twist can⁢ be challenging when working within a well-known theme.

Q: How can‌ writers overcome these ‌challenges and create a successful haunted house ‍story? A: To overcome challenges, writers ⁣can approach⁤ the‌ haunted house writing prompt with ⁤a fresh perspective. They can‍ brainstorm unique angles or settings, conduct research ‍for inspiration,⁣ or draw from⁢ personal experiences. Reading⁣ other successful haunted house stories or seeking ⁢feedback from ⁢fellow writers ‌can also provide‌ valuable insights to enhance their story.

In conclusion, delving into the world of haunted house⁤ writing prompts allows ⁣us to explore the captivating ⁣themes of ⁢mystery, suspense, and the supernatural. With endless possibilities, ‍it’s a thrilling journey that brings out our creativity and ⁢keeps readers on the edge of their seats. Explore the unknown and embrace the eerie allure of haunted house stories.

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15 Haunted Halloween Writing Prompts

by Abigail Perry and Ruthanne Reid | 10 comments

BOO! Halloween is right around the corner—what better day to write some spooky stories? Sharpen your pencil and take a stab at one of these Halloween writing prompts !

Scary Stories Connect With Readers in Big Ways

You write to get a reaction out of your readers. No matter the genre, you want your reader to feel something when they read your writing.

For horror writers, that feeling is fear. But it's also so much more.

Great horror stories take the everyday creepy and turn it into something even more creepy (and often become a condemnation of injustices in society). The great thing is, horror stories teach you that those creepy things can be beaten. That's what keeps bringing the readers back.

And that's why horror writers keep churning out the fear.

Maybe you love writing scary stories. Maybe you don't, but I hope you'll give it a try, just for practice (we're fans of that around here!).

Just like reading outside your genre is valuable to mastering the writing craft, so is writing a scary story .

This story doesn't have to be long, it could be a short story . Try for something you can write in one sitting, like 1,500 words.

To get you started, use one of the Halloween writing prompts suggested in this article. Then let loose, and have fun!

Creepy Story Writing Prompts

1. It's late at night, and you hear footsteps in the cellar, but you're definitely home alone…or so you thought.

2. You've put that doll in the cabinet, in the closet, in the attic, but no matter where you tuck it, it always shows back up on the sofa. On Halloween night, you find it watching you…

3. A bad-tempered businessman is driving home after a long day of work. He thinks he sees his kids trick-or-treating and stops to pick them up but those aren't costumes.

4. It's Halloween night and you and your friends think it would be fun to visit the local town's annual corn maze. But when you're inside it, someone inside the maze doesn't look like an actor in a costume. And shortly after, your friends start to disappear one by one.

5. You don't believe in the rumors that say a certain scary book is cursed—and that anyone who reads it will meet their maker by the end of the week. So naturally, you read it. And then things start going wrong…

Monster/Ghost Story Writing Prompts

6. A young woman goes to her grandmother's house for tea on Halloween night. They have a wonderful time together, sharing stories, joy, and the best times of family. The next day, the woman learns her grandmother has been dead for a week and no one could get ahold of her to tell her.

7. A little boy is lost in the woods, but at least his faithful dog is with him. As they look for the way out, the dog defends his master against terrifying monsters and animals. But the closer they get to the escaping the dark forest, the more apparent it is that they'll need to face the person, or thing, releasing these monsters in the first place.

8. A farmer who dreams of being a scientist experiments on this year's pumpkins, hoping to enlarge them. He has a lot of success, until one of his potions is tampered with, and the cute pumpkin in his patch morphs into a monster that eats anyone who stumbles over its vines.

9. Your girlfriend/boyfriend brings over your favorite treat on Halloween, but when you eat it, you transform into a giant, poisonous snake that kills anyone who touches you. What do you do next?

10. You wake up on Halloween night, look outside your window, and see your sister sleep walking away from the house. You chase after her but can't catch her until she plunges into a dark lake, where there's a mysterious song that starts to pull you deep below the surface.

Not-So-Spooky Story Writing Prompts

Not all people love scary stories. If this is you but you'd like to try to write a scary story—and have a fun time writing it—try tackling a (not-so) scary story prompt that could turn a potentially scary tale into something that is fun (even funny):

11. You hate clowns, which makes it even worse when your husband secretly decides to hire a clown for you son's birthday party—which just happens to be on Halloween.

12. Aliens have just landed on Earth and boy, did they pick a weird day to come. How do they respond to Halloween, supernatural or otherwise? Do they decide this place is just too bizarre and get the heck out, or do they stick around and join in the fun?

13. On Halloween night, lovers get to come back and spend the evening together one more time. One couple from the Roaring Twenties decides to come back from the grave to help their extreme nerd great-grandchild or the kid will never get married.

14. You decide that this year you're going to crash the ten top costume parties in town—and prank each one while you're at it.

15. A mad scientist determined to destroy the world falls hopelessly in love with a not-so-wicked witch. As hard as he tries, he can't impress her.

Write Your Spooky Stories

Writing a scary story can be a fun exercise to give your students (regardless of age, elementary students to college graduates) around this time of year. It also can stir some exciting writing ideas in any writer, whether or not they're part of an entire class or their personal writing group.

As mentioned above, writing scary stories can also push you to better your creative writing skills, even if it's not normally in your genre lane. Bestselling author Neil Gaiman has some great insight about why this is true:

Fairy tales are more than true: Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.

You don't have to love horror stories to write one, but you will learn about protagonists who face trialing, often life or death, situations when writing them. Challenge students or writers to become better at their writing craft by pushing them to write a short scary story with one of the writing prompts in this article.

Sit down with your favorite candy or flavor of candy corn and get ready to write. Pluck it from the list, and let your imagination free!

What is your favorite Halloween writing prompt from this list? Why did it stand out to you? Let us know in the comments .

Abigail Perry

Abigail Perry is a Certified Story Grid Editor with professional teaching, literary agency, and film production experience. In addition to writing Story Grid masterwork guides, she works as a freelance editor and is the Content Editor for The Write Practice. Abigail loves stories that put women and diverse groups at the center of the story—and others that include superpowers and magic. Her favorite genres include: Smart Book Club Fiction, Women's Fiction, YA Fantasy, Historical Fiction, and unique memoirs. She also has a B.S. in TV, Radio, and Film and loves working on screenplays that are emotionally driven and/or full of action. You can learn more about Abigail on her website.

Ruthanne Reid

Best-Selling author Ruthanne Reid has led a convention panel on world-building, taught courses on plot and character development, and was keynote speaker for The Write Practice 2021 Spring Retreat.

Author of two series with five books and fifty short stories, Ruthanne has lived in her head since childhood, when she wrote her first story about a pony princess and a genocidal snake-kingdom, using up her mom’s red typewriter ribbon.

When she isn’t reading, writing, or reading about writing, Ruthanne enjoys old cartoons with her husband and two cats, and dreams of living on an island beach far, far away.

P.S. Red is still her favorite color.

Work with Sarah Gribble?

Bestselling author with over five years of coaching experience. Sarah Gribble specializes in working with Dark Fantasy, Fantasy, Horror, Speculative Fiction, and Thriller books. Sound like a good fit for you?

10 Comments

“Damn, I hate those busy bodies. Auditors, they call themselves. Pains in the ass is what they are.” said Joe aloud to no one who could hear. The radio blasted the nightly news and told a grisly story about three kids poisoned by bad candy. Joe, shaking his head from side to side and mumbling,

“For crying-out-loud. They’re just kids. Who in their right mind would do that to kids?”

The traffic became lighter and Joe took the off ramp to his street. As he drove toward his house, he saw his children walking down the sidewalk trick or treating. After hearing the news about the poisoning, he wanted his kids to go home. He stopped the car and walked over to them.

“Jeremy, Julian, why are you out here alone. Your mother was supposed to wait until I got home?”

He stood over the children waiting for an answer. When none came, he grabbed an arm, one child in each hand, and marched them to the car. He opened the back door and demanded they get in.

“In the car. Don’t stand there, get in… I’ve had a rough day, keep this up and you’ll get a Halloween to remember.”

Jeremy, the cutest little goblin, turned to Joe, jumped on top of him, opened his enormous mouth, and swallowed Joe whole. Julian, danced around Jeremy singing

“Remember, remember, a Halloween to remember, A-tishoo! A-tishoo! We all fall down”

To the children passing by, the song sounded familiar. They started to sing,

“Ring-a-round the rosie, A pocket full of posies, Hush! Hush! Hush! Hush! We’ve all tumbled down.”

William – I enjoyed your story. Nicely developed in such a short span.

Great lead-in to the story as a way to introduce taking his kids home. One suggestion in the first paragraph … not sure you need “from side to side” after “shaking his head”, and you could modify it to ” Joe, shaking his head, mumbled, …” or “Joe shook his head and mumbled, …”

While it could be viewed as too abrupt (I didn’t think so), I love how Jeremy “the cutest little goblin” got right down to business and “jumped on top of [Joe], opened his enormous mouth, and swallowed Joe whole”, with Julian dancing and singing along. Those two lines plus Julian’s clever integration of “Remember, remember, a Halloween to remember” made for a ghoulishly delightful twist.

Thanks for the Halloween treat.

– Susan

Thanks Susan. I already made the change (Joe, shaking his head, mumbled). It reads much better. William

Hi thanks for writing this story it gave my students some ideas to write about since halloween is coming up

Thanks for the Halloween treat, Ruthanne. Great prompts.

I love prompt #4 with the grandma, I was devastated when my grammy died…. this will be good to write about.

Harold Saggerbob loves Halloween. Has his very own Pumpkin Club. But while the ‘pumpkins’ on his shelf, might be round, they are certainly not orange. And every Halloween, several kids disappear near his home…

It’s not really creepy but I tried it with my characters. English isn’t my first language so if you see any mistake, please let me know:

“Aymeric was eating alone in the kitchen. He didn’t have much appetite and spent more time looking at the dark sky through the window than eating. He sighed. He wished he had company. But that wouldn’t happen. Rose was back to his home and was probably already sleeping – flowers go to sleep with the sun, after all. The sky was covered in dark clouds so thick he couldn’t even see the Moon – and it was definitely up somewhere. He could feel it. It felt as if he had a knot in his throat. He covered his plate and put it in the fridge. He would eat it later, when he’d be hungrier. Suddenly, he stilled. He had heard footsteps. He closed the fridge slowly, careful not to make any noise. It wasn’t some kind of rodent. They were scared of lycanthropes. And Aymeric was able to recognize footsteps from rodents. With a hearing like his, no one could fool him. He put his fork and his knife in the sink, shrugging. It wasn’t as if the intruder could mess with his stuff unnoticed, anyway. What bothered him was that he didn’t heard the intruder enter. It was definitely strange. He didn’t know what or who it was but he’d better be careful. He grabbed a dagger and followed the noise. It definitely came from the cellar. He barged in there, determined to end all this quickly. The moon was rising and waxing, anyway, so he shouldn’t have any problem dealing with whoever it was. What he saw still surprised him. A tiny body in the middle of the room. Thick wavy blond hair, long ears, big grey eyes. Aymeric recognized the child immediately. When the little elf saw him, he rushed into his arms. “Hey, what’s wrong, champion?” He didn’t expect the kid to reply. The elf only hugged him tightly. Aymeric could feel his relief and his fear. The ability they had to travel between spaces and times was really something he couldn’t get used to…”

Noah was waking up. He had been knocked down while he was chased by a group of teens. It was Halloween. Noah left his home with Oscar his dog. He headed to park across the street where his friends were waiting for him for trick or treating around the neighborhood. As they got treats from the third house Noah and his friends headed for the next house. Suddenly a huge dark figure appeared and almost grabbed one of Noah’s friends. The group was actually chased by teenage boys who looked hideous beasts in their costumes. Noah and his friends were dispersed. Some managed to stick together, some made it back home. Noah lost the sense of direction and was running for a while now. Suddenly he stumbled and tripped over. He knocked his head hard on something and passed out. After he got up he could see dark figures with blazing eyes staring down at him. Noah jumped to his feet and fled into the woods that were the only easy hideout he could access fast. Oscar was behind him growling and barking at the dark figures that followed them into the woods. As he went farther it got more and more dark. The only thing that kept him going was Oscar who was right behind him keeping the dark figures at a distance. Noah saw bushes and managed to hide within. Oscar had stopped barking now and there was a deadly silence. Noah was panting and was trying to calm down. He was about to lie down when he saw a huge hand trying to grab him from within the bushes. Noah screamed in panic when Oscar jumped in between just in time to save him. Noah was running fast when suddenly he saw light piercing through the darkness. He ran towards the light fast. When he came near he couldn’t believe his eyes. The sun shone bright and there were beautiful flowers and trees. Far away he could see children playing. He quickly entered the garden as he had no better choice to escape the dark figures. Oscar slowly paced back and ran all the way home where Noah’s parents were mourning his death.

He wasn’t an unreasonable man or boss. He understood that there would be some excitement around the office, and he could deal with the morning meeting being fifteen minutes late so that they could put up even more decorations than they had already put up weeks before, decorations that he knew, despite their eagerness to put them up, would not be taken down until well into November. He could deal with his employees’ frequent trips to the break room to grab generous helpings of candy corn and sugar cookies shaped like bats and ghosts brought in by some of their more festive coworkers. He liked cookies too, after all, and though the bright orange color was a bit off-putting he enjoyed a splash of pumpkin flavored creamer in his morning coffee as much as the next guy. What really set him off was that no one seemed to remember that it was just a workday. Deadlines don’t cease to exist just because it’s October 31st. They were just starting work on the annual report, the most important presentation of the year, and everyone was so busy talking about costumes and parties that he might as well have given them the day off with the amount of work they got done.

Still his frustration was slowly subsiding as he turned onto the exit that led to his house. It was just past 5:30 and his wife was already out with the kids. It was their tradition. He was never home early enough to go trick or treating so he would take care of dinner. Once they got home the kids would change into Halloween Pj’s that changed every year, this time it was a jack-o-lantern patterned dress for Kate and matching flannel pants for Ethan. They would let the twins stay up an extra hour and all eat in front the tv and watch “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.” He allowed these thoughts to pull him in and his hands began working on auto pilot, driving the same route he did every day.

He didn’t even realize what he was doing when he slammed the breaks. Acting out of pure instinct it wasn’t until the tires stopped squealing and his heart was almost back to its normal rhythm that he fully processed the situation. About three feet from where the car had stopped were two children in costume. They continued to stand motionless and silent, completely reactionless to what they had just narrowly avoided. This at least allowed Will to get a good look at the kids. One wore a dark red cape with a hood that swallowed most of her face. In the dark only her bright gray eyes were visible. The other was a young boy with a pair of pointed perched on the top of his head. Will could just make out that his arms and legs had been covered in fur. These were the same costumes that had been laid out on his kitchen table that morning.

“Kids? What the hell are you doing in the middle of the road?” he yelled through a cracked window. He looked around for their mother, but the street was empty. After no answer from either twin, he demanded they get in so he could take them home. The children remained silent, but obediently piled into the backseat. As Will used the car’s Bluetooth to call his wife he was torn between anger and worry. He and Kelly had had a discussion just last night about if the kids, who had just turned nine, were old enough to go out on their own this year. The funny thing was that Will had been the one advocating for it. Their neighborhood consisted of a large cul-de-sac and was mostly families with elementary-aged children of their own, but with Kelly it was a non-starter. He had been driving slowly and cautiously keeping in mind other little trick or treaters who might be roaming the streets, but after his second call was declined, he pumped the gas, anxious to get home and figure out what had happened.

Ethan and Kate were uncharacteristically quiet. The two were known for constantly chattering to each other, there had even been a few notes sent home from school about it. But, Will’s mind was far too preoccupied to read into it and he assumed it was out of disappointment.

“Look I know it’s early and you guys were excited about trick or treating, but you scared me to death, and I need to talk to your mother. I’ll tell you what, we can order pizza tonight and I’ll let you watch that movie that your mom said was too scary.”

Just as he finished speaking, they hit a stop sign and he took his eyes off the road for a moment to look at his children. Both were staring straight forward with a completely blank look on their faces. Their baskets had been haphazardly dropped and the small amount of candy they had gotten before their father showed up was spilling onto the floor. Kate had wanted to add a little edge to her Little Red costume and had just heard the uncensored version of the story, where she slices the wolf open. Kelly had acquiesced and gotten her one of those big fake knives, which Kate now held in a death grip. Something about it put a knot in Will’s stomach, but they were only a block away from home and he turned all of his efforts to getting there as fast as possible. Though he continued to look out for children and parents out for Halloween he never saw one, the streets emptier than he had ever seen before. He continued to sneak glances at the twins in the rear-view mirror, but their unsettling expressions never changed. He felt some semblance of relief when he could finally see his street sign, but as he moved to turn Ethan’s hand grasped his forearm from the backseat. His “big bad wolf,” costume was accentuated by a pair of claws. They were plastic and flimsy, repurposed from an old Wolverine costume. At least they were, but now they dug into Will’s flesh, blood welling up around each razor-sharp talon. Meanwhile Kate’s knife had also become very real, and she plunged it into the back of the driver’s seat. Thankfully, the knife was only long enough to barely come out the other side and leave only a shallow gouge in his back.

Pain blinded him as he managed to rip his arm away from his son’s claws. He scrambled backwards and managed to undo his seatbelt and open the door, falling and landing hard on the cold pavement. He was still struggling to get to his feet with his one good arm when the twins appeared in front of him. Any notion of fighting back left him as he looked at their faces. They weren’t his kids anymore he knew that. He could see it in their eyes. But, he couldn’t bring himself to hurt them either. As he resigned himself to his fate and awaited the next attack a familiar tone interrupted. His phone had fallen with him and was lying face up only a few inches away. It was an alarm. The notification read,

Kids Home Soon Start Dinner

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Scary-good Tips on Writing Haunted House Stories

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Damyanti Biswas

Damyanti Biswas’s short fiction has been published at Smokelong, Ambit, Litro, Puerto del Sol, among others, and she's the co-editor of The Forge literary magazine. She's the author of YOU BENEATH YOUR SKIN, a bestselling crime novel, which has been optioned for screens by Endemol Shine. Her next #1 Amazon bestselling crime novel, THE BLUE BAR, was published by Thomas & Mercer. It received a starred review on Publishers Weekly, and was one of 2023's Most Anticipated Mysteries & Thrillers on Goodreads. Kirkus Reviews called its sequel, THE BLUE MONSOON, a compelling procedural awash in crosscurrents.

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22 Comments

The LINGER acronym seems like a great recipe for writing a spooky tale! Great guest post 👻🎃

Thanks Cristy. Looking forward to something you’ll write using the acronym

That’s a really useful mnemonic. It even got creepier as it went on!

Hi Jemima Thanks for connecting. Happy it gave you the creeps. Why not try the 10 classics and see how much creepier those are.

Thank you for sharing!!… I do not write ghost stories but as far as haunted houses, the first to come to mind is “The Fall of The House of Usher”.. of course, my favorite to read at Halloween is not about a haunted house, “The Hound of The Baskervilles”… with open mind, I will definitely check out The Ash House… 🙂

Until we meet again.. May love and laughter light your days, and warm your heart and home. May good and faithful friends be yours, wherever you may roam. May peace and plenty bless your world with joy that long endures. May all life’s passing seasons bring the best to you and yours! (Irish Saying)

Thank you Dutchil. May all life’s passing seasons bring the best to you and yours too. It’s a beautiful wish!

In the case of my novel The Ash House, it was a family secret – a snippet of conversation between a first wife and a third about removing their rival, an unknown middle wife. Who was she? Wow women are not to be messed around with.

HI Stephen. Yes, these old-time women didn’t have much except the domestic space. They did have to go at it nail and claw to keep what they had. Don’t know if its a good thing they’re all dead now. Might still be lingering in a corner of the attic somewhere. All best A

I’ve never written a scary story per se, but am intrigued at the idea. This whets my interest even more!

Hello Mitchell. Thanks for connecting. Why not start this weekend? Here’s a writing prompt – What’s your least favourite spot in a house? why?

Nothing better than a good haunted house story! Great post today with lots of good tips. Thanks.

Hi Lee. Do you write haunted house stories too? Would love to read it when you are done. All best

The haunted French Quarter mansion in my novel … No, I will not hawk my own wares here.:-) That mansion is all too real and the horrific murders have never been solved. I had fun “solving” them. And, yes, your characters have to be such that root for them to make it … but it is fun to throw in a character who survives when the reader very much wishes the survival did not happen! Great pointers.

HI rxena, I love the French Quarter. Can you private message me with the title? Thanks for the tip about leaving one of the ‘meanies’ surviving. That’s a great way to move on to a sequel! Cheers Audrey

I’m a huge fan of Rebecca and I think the ghost is actually in the minds of the characters. I agree, a haunted house is a character in itself.

HI JT Rebecca is really one of those that linger. I love the opening lines – Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again. Now that’s a place with a character! Thanks for checking in and hope the tips help with your writing.

What a wonderful acronym. Thank you both. Another big yes for the setting being an often underused character.

Hi Elephant’s Child Thanks for visiting. Do you write about elephants in the rooms with character? If so, hope the tips are helpful. Cheers Audrey

In the best haunted house stories, the house is indeed a character!

Thanks for visiting. What are your favourite haunted houses?

Best Audrey

Yikes! No wonder I am afraid of haunted stories! Love the idea that a haunted house is a character, not a setting. And, I was surprised to hear the best of this genre are stories that linger with the reader, not just during the reading. Yikes again!

Thanks for connecting. Lots of other non-genre stories linger too. I just read Emily Itami’s Faultines and that has been with me the last few days. And of course, Damyanti’s You Beneath Your Skin is unforgettable, even though it’s not really a haunted house story.

What non-scary stories can’t you forget?

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