Free Creative Writing Prompts #66: Horror
I love horror books and novels. These freecreative writing promptsbased on the horror genre draw from my many experiences of staying up late and watching bad or worse horror films till the wee hours of the morning. Horror films are often the dumping ground of screenwriting as the cheaper and easier they are to make, the better. But as we've seen this season with Paranormal Activity (at the time of this article), a good concept can go a really long way. Use these prompts to come up with your original, gory, interesting horror story and hopefully your work will travel on the same trajectory. Enjoy!
Free Creative Writing Prompts: Horror
1. There is a glass scratching sound on your house's windows and you get up out of bed to check it out. You look toward the windows and don't see anything. All of the sudden the glass breaks and something jumps in! What is it and what do you do next?
2. You are a high schooler in between classes. You open up your locker to find a severed head! The head has a note on it that says, "you're next!" What do you do and how do you avoid being next?
3. The zombie apocalypse has begun! Several people you know have already become zombies and now it's a game of survival. What do you do to make sure that you are one of the people left at the end of the movie?
4. You are on vacation with your friends in a strange place. One night, one of your friends disappears and you have a strange suspicion that he's been captured by something. What do you think happened and how do you get out of this situation alive?
5. You have been possessed by the devil! How do you deal with this and how do you make every effort to keep your soul possible? Feel free to go in a different direction from other possession movies.
6. If you had your choice of becoming any kind of vampire, which one would it be? A Twilight vampire, Buffy vampire, True Blood vampire, etc.? Pick one and tell your story of how you were turned and what resulted from that situation.
7. Write a story in which something extremely un-scary is terrorizing a small town. Try to be original and avoid using things that have already been in other horror or horror comedy stories. Have fun with it!
8. A friend of yours has had an ancient curse levied upon him. What do you do to help and what happens to him throughout the curse?
9. Hell has been unleashed on earth and you are the key to stopping the horrible consequences. What do you do to reverse the problem and what was the reason that this hell descended upon the planet?
10. There are several evil spirits that have taken over your house and part of your neighborhood's block. How do you appease the spirits or get rid of them?
These free creative writing prompts about horror are perfect for writing late at night with the lights out during a thunderstorm :). The greatest attributes of the horror genre are that it plays on some very intense emotions and can paint some of the darkest parts of humanity, spirituality, and fantasy. Feel free to write the next low budget horror flick that can rival Saw and Paranormal Activity and throw it into the space below :). Happy writing!
Bonus Prompt - What is your favorite horror movie? What do you like about it and how would you survive till the end? Go into extreme detail and feel free to include yourself in sequel ideas as well.
Related Articles to Free Creative Writing Prompts about Horror
Free Creative Writing Prompts from the Heart, Part 1
Free Creative Writing Prompts #2: Love
Creative Writing Exercises #2: Relaxation
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Written by Bryan Cohen
Bryan Cohen is the author of more than 30 books, many of which focus on creative writing and blasting through that pesky writer's block. His books have sold more than 20,000 copies. You can find him on Google+ and Facebook.
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