12 Steps to Write a Horror Story + Get FREE Examples

I was never a fan of horror stories, but as I grew up, I discovered the thrill of terror. I have realized that horror stories allow us to face the challenges or fears we are terrified of.

In terms of Western culture, tales of horror began to appear throughout the eighteenth century in the form of the Gothic novel.

Horror stories are not easy; this genre is all about the writer's motif, which requires the audience to be on the edge of their seats. My love of this genre inspired me to write a horror story.

It is not an easy task for me to strike a balance between thriller scenes involving emotions, fear, and suspense while also leading your reader down a twisted path.

Before discovering the 12 steps of writing horror stories, we will first read the things we are going to learn in this article:

What makes a good horror story?

When I think about what makes a story scary, several key elements of story writing come to mind. First, it's all about creating a sense of fear or dread in the reader. This can be done through a creepy setting, like an old haunted house or a dark forest.

The characters are also crucial. They need to feel real so we care about what happens to them. A good horror story often has a villain or monster that's truly terrifying. Think about the scariest creature you have read. you'll face the same terror and fear which the writer tries to face the reader.

Tension and suspense also increase the credibility of your narration. When I wrote the stories, I always built them by slowly revealing bits of information, keeping the reader guessing. Unexpected twists and shocking moments can make a story even scarier.

Lastly, a horror story should tap into common fears or anxieties. This helps readers connect with the story on a deeper level, making it truly frightening.

12 steps to write a horror story more creatively

Writing a horror story can be a thrilling and creative process. But the thing is, how to write a novel? It's about exploring the darkest corners of our imagination and bringing our deepest fears to life. Whether you're writing a ghostly tale, a psychological thriller, or a monster-filled adventure, these steps will help you make a captivating horror narrative.

1. Brainstorm about your fear factor

I always start by exploring what truly terrifies me. This could be personal phobias, childhood fears, or even societal anxieties. I ask myself:

• What makes my heart terrified?

• What scenarios make me uncomfortable?

I write down these ideas, no matter how silly or extreme they might seem.

Once R.L. Stine said:

“When I write, I try to think back to what I was afraid of or what was scary to me and try to put those feelings into books.”

After remembering this thought, I started thinking about the moments around me when I felt scared. Sometimes, the most unusual fears can lead to the most unique horror concepts.

I also consider universal fears like death, the unknown, or loss of control. By tapping into these primal fears, I can create horror elements that connect with a wider audience.

2. Add subgenre for more suspense

Whenever I wanted to add variety to my narration, I would always include a subgenre in my writing to add suspense. Writing different things improves my story writing and allows me to write differently. To give my story more depth and intrigue, I like to mix elements from different horror subgenres.

The right atmosphere for your horror writing depends on what type of horror you want to write. For example, do you want something like The Shining or Get Out? The tone and mood of your story will depend on its subgenre.

• Psychological horror: Focuses on the characters' mental and emotional state, creating fear through their thoughts and feelings.
• Gore horror: Emphasizes more violent and gruesome scenes, filled with graphic depictions of blood and mutilation (broken bones).
• Gothic horror: Centers around dark and mysterious settings with supernatural elements, often featuring haunted houses and old curses.
• Dread-filled horror: Maintains a constant feeling of imminent death, keeping the tension high and making the audience feel uneasy throughout the tale.

Combining subgenres is also possible, especially as the story develops. You might start your story with psychological thriller elements and gradually add gothic twists.

3. Develop your main character

Creating a believable and relatable protagonist is crucial in horror writing. I spend time explaining my main character's background, personality, strengths, and weaknesses.

The things I put my major focus while writing characters:

• What are their fears?
• What's their typical reaction to stress?
• How do they deal with a scary situation?
• What are the ultimate consequences of their actions?

These questions help to create a basic outline of my tale. I try to make them feel like real people with complex emotions and motivations. This depth helps readers connect with the character, making their horrifying experiences more impactful.

When I write horror, I also consider how the character's past might influence their actions in the novel. It is necessary for you to lead them into dangerous situations or affect how they handle the thrills they receive.

4. Think about horrifying and suspenseful setting

The setting and atmosphere of the tale play an important role in making the story more suspenseful and horrifying. It's often a character in itself that has a significant impact on the writing.

I carefully designed my environment to create an atmosphere of dread and unease. This could be an old mansion with creaking floorboards and strange portraits, a forest where shadows seem to move, a graveyard, or even a bright, cheerful neighborhood hiding dark secrets.

I think about how the setting can add fear in my writing. I started thinking about the questions that arose in my mind.

• How can the environment isolate my characters?
• What strange features can I add to make even familiar places feel threatening?

When I work on these thoughts, it helps me make my writing more excellent and horrifying for the readers. I also think about how the setting might change or reveal new horrors as the novel progresses.

5. Let readers experience the stakes

To truly grab readers attention, I need to make them aware of the stakes in my horror short story. Clearly establishing what's at risk makes the horror more intense. These stakes can involve survival, protecting loved ones, or uncovering dark secrets.

• Survival: The main goal is often to stay alive, but there are added challenges. Maybe the character must defeat a murderous enemy, whether it's another person or an evil spirit.
• Protecting loved ones: The more people the protagonist needs to keep safe, the higher the stakes. Many horror stories peak with threats not to the main character but to their loved ones to add emotional depth and tension.
• Uncovering dark secrets: Some horror stories focus on solving mysteries from the past, like in cosmic horror, which deals with ancient terrors and the unknown.

By establishing these stakes early and raising them throughout the writing, I can keep readers on the edge of their seats.

6. Consider plot twists to surprise your audience

Unexpected twists can make a horror narration much scarier and more exciting. I think of several possible twists that can surprise readers and change the direction of the story.

To create a compelling plot, use an AI tale generator to write exciting narrations. This AI tool enables you to write in an engaging manner. The algorithms in this tool make writers' lives easier and more peaceful by generating various types of stories. The twists could be:

• The character who seemed to help is actually the main antagonist.
• An enemy turns out to be an ally against a greater hidden threat.
• The true monster is human, like a trusted friend or family member.
• The protagonist wakes up from a nightmare to find their "reality" is the true nightmare.

These twists might reveal a character's true nature, introduce a new threat, or change what readers thought they knew about the story's world.

When planning these twists, I make sure they make sense within the novella. A good twist should surprise readers and make them realize the clues provided by the author from the beginning of the writing. This way, the surprise feels natural and satisfying.

7. Outline your opening paragraph

I always pay special attention to my story's opening. This is where I need to grab the reader's attention and set the tone for the entire narrative. I aim to create an atmosphere of unease right from the start.

Sometimes, I begin with a shocking event or a mysterious situation that raises questions. Other times, I write a normal scene but add small hints that something's not quite right. The key is to engage the reader and make them want to keep reading.

I might describe an unusual setting, introduce a character in distress, or present a chilling piece of dialogue. Whatever approach I choose, I make sure it sets the stage for the horror to come.

8. Put your characters in compelling danger

To keep readers invested, I continuously put my characters in dangerous situations. This doesn't always mean physical danger; it could be psychological torture, moral dilemmas, or threats to their loved ones.

I try to increase the danger as the narrative progresses, raising the stakes and intensifying the horror. It's important to make these dangerous situations feel real, which helps you make your novel more memorable and intense for the readers.

I consider my characters' strengths and weaknesses when designing these scenarios:

• How would they realistically react?
• What would push them to their limits?

By putting characters in compelling danger, I create tension that keeps readers engaged throughout the tale.

9. Plan the unexpected climax

The climax is where all the tension and horror come to a head. I always aim to make this moment surprising yet satisfying. It should be the scariest and most intense part of the novel. But it should also feel like a natural finishing touch to everything that's happened.

I brainstorm several possible endings, looking for one that will shock readers while still making sense within the story's logic. Sometimes, this means breaking stereotypes or revealing a twist that rewrites past events.

The key is to leave readers feeling unsettled long after they've finished the writing. Here’s an example of what a potential climax scene sounds like in a horror story:

The sound of footsteps is heard coming down the stairs. The footsteps are too heavy, and they seem to be coming from the basement. The door to the basement creaks open. Then a face is seen in the door frame. It’s a face with large, red eyes, and it’s full of hate.

10. Your writing style must be scary

In horror writing, how you tell the writing is just as important as what you're saying. I focus on using language that evokes fear and unease. For this, the following points matter:

• Use short, punchy sentences during tense moments
• Increase pacing and use more descriptive passages to build a creepy atmosphere
• Pay attention to sensory details—the sounds, smells, and textures
• Metaphors and similes are powerful tools for describing the unknown perks
• Focus on rhythm of prose to build tension and create shocking moments of fear

11. Edit and proofread your draft

After finishing my first draft, I take a break before editing it with fresh eyes. When I edit, I focus on the following:

• Focus on making the scary parts scarier and keeping the novella moving smoothly.
• Check if any scenes are slow and need to be faster. I also look at whether I can make the scary moments even scarier.
• Make sure the narrative makes sense by checking that the plot and how the characters behave are consistent.
• In horror stories, it's crucial that characters act in believable ways, or it can ruin the novella.
• Pay attention to how tension builds up, making sure it gets more intense as the tale goes on.
• Finally, I read through carefully to catch any mistakes, because even small errors can ruin the creepy atmosphere.

12. Select the scary and captivating title

The last step of this process is to decide the title. The title is often a reader's first introduction to my story, so I put a lot of thought into it. A good horror title should fascinate readers and force them to read the story.

When I come up with a title, I think about words that sound terrifying or phrases that make people curious. I might get ideas from important parts of the tale, like a weird place, a strange object, or a scary idea.

If we look at some popular horror book titles, we can see that most of them are quite descriptive:

• The Woman in Black
• Bram Stoker’s Dracula
• The Haunting of Hill House
• The Graveyard Book

6 great examples of horror stories

Whether you’re new to the genre or a seasoned writer, it’s always helpful to study successful horror stories to learn what makes them work. Here are some notable examples of classic, modern, and short horror stories to inspire you.

1. Classic short stories

• The Turn of the Screw by Henry James: A psychological thriller about a governess who believes the children she cares for are possessed by evil spirits at a remote estate.
• The Call of Cthulhu by H.P. Lovecraft: A cosmic horror tale where an investigator uncovers ancient, malevolent entities that threaten humanity's sanity and existence.

2. Modern short stories

• It by Stephen King: Set in Derry, Maine, this novel follows a group of friends confronting a shape-shifting entity that preys on their deepest fears, resurfacing years later to finish what was started.
• House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski: A mind-bending narrative about a family whose new home reveals disturbing secrets, told through a complex structure of footnotes, appendices, and multiple narrators.

3. Horror short stories

• The Lottery by Shirley Jackson: This unsettling tale explores the dark side of human nature and the power of tradition as a small town carries out a brutal and shocking annual ritual.
• The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe: A macabre tale of guilt and madness, where a murderer is haunted by the sound of his victim's beating heart beneath the floorboards.

Final remarks

Writing a horror story involves creating fear and suspense through careful plotting, character development, and atmosphere. By following the steps discussed above and taking guidance from examples, you can create a captivating narrative that leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

Frequently asked questions

How graphic should I make my horror story? Is less sometimes more?

It depends on your target audience. Often, implied horror and psychological fear are more effective than explicit gore.

How do I create a truly terrifying antagonist or monster?

Focus on psychological depth, unpredictability, and exploiting common fears. Make it powerful yet believable within your story's context.

What techniques can I use to build suspense and tension throughout my story?

Use foreshadowing, create a sense of isolation, employ red herrings, and gradually escalate the threat.

Additional resources

• Difference between Gothic vs Horror
• On Writing Horror: A Handbook by the Horror Writers Association