Halloween is almost here, so here are some of our favourite resources to make your stories this month even more spooktacular. Put on your creepiest masks and costumes, draw the curtains against any lurking ghosts and ghouls, and pen us a petrifying tale or two using the ideas below…
Spooky Story Starters
Get a brilliant beginning from the Story Starts website. Just choose your favourite fear-inspiring words from the options given, and you’ll end up with three spine-chilling sentences to start your story. Here’s one we concocted that you can use, or have a go at making your own!
“Late one night, just as the moon began to sink beyond the horizon, a strange sound was heard in the distance. Could this be the return of the friendly ghost that had haunted the village many years ago? I decided to investigate.”
Make a Monster
What foul and fearsome beasts will you terrify your readers with? Try using an online monster generator to come up with a hair-raising horror to unleash on your made-up world. There are lots, but we like Chaotic Shiny’s Monster Generator because it describe your monster, its prey and where it lives as well other attributes. Use ours or make your own:
“This bear-sized undead beast lairs in places touched by otherworldly power. It lures its prey, which includes small creatures and large creatures, and magical beasts. It attacks with fangs and blinding light. They live in flocks of 2-9.”
Trick or Treat
What’s your favourite part of trick or treating? Describe what might happen when going out to trick or treat. Start with the costume your character is wearing. What about their friends? Where are they going to go? What treats do they get, and what tricks do they play? What else might they see on Halloween? Is there anywhere they’re too scared to go?
Haunted House
Who lives in that creepy old house on the edge of town? Why does everyone tell such spooky stories about it? Invent your own explanation, or write a description of a haunted house in as much detail as you can. Need somewhere to start? Here’s an online generator which might help. Use ours or create your own:
“This enormous house looks fairly modern and is in average condition. The exterior is done in colours that remind you of old bones. The yard is moderately-sized and is full of dead plants. People claim to hear strange noises coming from it at night.”
Finally, here’s five tips for writing scary stories from Shadowsmith author Ross MacKenzie. Top of the list? Write what frightens YOU. We’re sure it’ll scare us too. Show us what you come up with by email, or share your stories with us on Facebook or Twitter. Happy Halloween!