There’s plenty of horror-related media out there for this time of year. Whether it’s slasher films, YouTube videos or video games, you can always count on a digital screen to whisk you into some haunting scene.
But not to be overlooked is literature, especially short stories. Whether you want a quick fright to give you chills before going out, or you like to devour them one after another while curled up in bed, they’re a great way to immerse yourself in a haunting reality. Here’s a list of a few to keep you company — and if you’re easily scared, keep you up at night too.
“The Black Cat” – Edgar Allen Poe
There’s a lot of short stories from Edgar Allen Poe to suggest here, but none of them scream Halloween quite like “The Black Cat.” Alcoholism drives the narrator to injure and eventually kill his beloved cat, and his mental disposition quickly becomes unstable. Things only worsen when a similar looking cat re-enters his life, overwhelming the man and driving him to even more extreme measures.
Poe’s moody narrator and macabre setting are especially fitting for this time of year. While his wordplay can be dense, it builds an unsettling atmosphere and evokes chills with the blunt exertion of violence.
“The Yellow Wallpaper” – Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s classic short story starts off unassumingly, with the female narrator enjoying a rented mansion with her husband during the summer. While they make the stay because of the husband diagnosing her with depression, it does not stop her from admiring the house’s beauty — that is, everything except the yellow wallpaper in her room.
What follows is a slow, hysterical descent into madness as the narrator gets consumed by the grotesque patterns she sees within her walls. The first-person perspective Gilman employs keeps the story immersive and riveting, something that’ll be sure to stick with you once you finish reading.
“The Colour Out of Space” – H.P. Lovecraft
“The Colour Out of Space” might not be H.P. Lovecraft’s most tangible work when it comes to horror. There are no demons, half-humanoids or tentacle monsters to make you question your sanity. Instead, the story recounts a strangely colored meteorite striking near a New England town and the effect it has on a local farm.
While the color’s initial impact is preferable, bringing the nearby family larger crop yields, the fallout soon takes a turn for the sinister. It certainly isn’t Lovecraft’s most dramatic premise, but the restraint allows his strength in building tension to shine, developing a mystery that’ll keep you hooked until the end.
“The Moving Finger” – Stephen King
Stephen King is a master of taking ordinary fears and experiences and turning them into page-turning nightmares. “The Moving Finger” exploits the simple worry of what kinds of nasty things might be lurking within our drains. What would you do if you saw a saw a human finger sticking out of your bathroom sink?
That is the conundrum faced by Howard Mitla, an otherwise ordinary man, in this story. The creepy finger seems to exist only to torment him, causing him harm and disappearing whenever someone else enters the room. As its presence drives him increasingly insane, he devises one escalating method after another to try and get rid of it in a suspenseful battle between man and finger.
“The Castle of Otranto” – Horace Walpole
Published in 1764, Horace Walpole’s “The Castle of Otranto,” is generally considered the first piece of gothic fiction. While more of a novella than a short story, the work can be finished within a couple hours of reading. The work centers around Manfred, a lord, who tries marrying his son’s fiancé, Isabella, after his son gets crushed by a mysterious floating knight’s helmet on the first page.
All things considered, the plot feels more goofy and Shakespearean than overtly scary. But the dark castle setting and supernatural elements, including ghostly figures and skeletons materializing along the fringes of this family drama, make it a more comfortable eerie read for those who don’t like overt thrills.