Horror Writing Prompts & Story Ideas

16 horror writing prompts to start with

Every one can go straight into the AI story generator: tap "Write it" to see one way the story could go, then write your own version.

1. Write about a night-shift security guard who hears their own voice on the baby monitor.Write it
2. Write about a new mother in an old house who is the only person who can see the extra guest at dinner.Write it
3. Write about a hospice nurse who discovers the house is keeping a diary.Write it
4. Write about a teenager babysitting for strangers who keeps waking up one minute later than they fell asleep.Write it
5. Write about a lighthouse keeper who finds a door in the basement that was not there yesterday.Write it
6. Write about a podcast host chasing a local legend who realises the town's welcome sign keeps updating its population.Write it
7. Write about a gravedigger who is told by every neighbour not to go out on the third night.Write it
8. Write about a widower who still sets two places and notices the family photos are changing.Write it
9. Write about a child who never sleeps and receives a voicemail from tomorrow.Write it
10. Write about an estate agent selling a house nobody will buy who answers a knock that comes from inside the wardrobe.Write it

What-if ideas

• What if your reflection started blinking a second too late?Write it
• What if the dead could only speak through houseplants?Write it
• What if every town had one night a year when the doors would not lock?Write it
• What if you could hear the thoughts of anyone sleeping near you?Write it
• What if a lullaby was the only thing keeping something asleep?Write it
• What if the missing posters all showed your face?Write it

Tips for horror writers

Delay the monster

What readers imagine is scarier than what you show. Keep the threat partly off-page as long as you can.

Make it personal

Fear lands harder when it attacks what the character loves or values most.

Ground it in the ordinary

A familiar setting such as a kitchen or a school bus makes the wrong detail stand out.