Suspense. A good modern scary short story builds suspense. For example, it might start with a normal situation and gradually introduce strange elements that make the reader wonder what will happen next. Like in 'The Lottery', at first it seems like a normal small - town gathering, but as the lottery process unfolds, the sense of dread builds.
One common theme is the fear of the unknown. In many modern scary short stories, like 'The Babadook', the horror comes from something that is not fully understood or explained. Another theme is isolation. For example, in 'The Yellow Wallpaper', the main character is isolated and this isolation leads to her psychological breakdown. Guilt is also a frequent theme, as seen in 'The Tell - Tale Heart' where the narrator's guilt over his actions drives him mad.
One night, I was walking alone in the forest. The moon was hidden by the thick clouds, and the only sound was the wind whistling through the trees. Suddenly, I heard a low growl behind me. I turned around, but saw nothing. As I quickened my pace, the growling grew louder. I started to run, my heart pounding in my chest. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a pair of red eyes following me. I knew I had to get out of the forest alive.
Once upon a time, in a small, isolated town, there was an old, abandoned house at the end of a dark alley. One night, a young girl named Lily was dared by her friends to go inside. As she entered, the door slammed shut behind her. The air was cold and stale. She heard strange whispers and the creaking of floorboards as if something was slowly approaching. In a panic, she tried to find a way out, but every door she opened led to a darker, more terrifying room filled with shadows that seemed to move on their own. Finally, she found a small window and managed to squeeze through just as a cold hand brushed her ankle.
A girl finds an old, mysterious diary in the attic of her new home. As she starts reading it, she discovers that it was written by a girl who lived in the house decades ago. The diary reveals that the girl was into some dark magic and made a deal with an evil entity. Now, as the current girl reads the diary, she starts experiencing strange events. Things in her room move on their own, and she has nightmares of the entity from the diary coming to get her.
Late at night, I was driving on a lonely road. Fog was starting to roll in. My radio started to act up, making strange noises. Up ahead, I saw a figure standing in the middle of the road. I slammed on the brakes. As the fog cleared a bit, I could see it was a woman in a white dress, but she had no face. She started walking towards my car and I quickly reversed and sped away, my heart pounding in my chest.
One idea could be a story about an old, abandoned house at the end of a dark lane. A young girl, curious about the rumors surrounding it, decides to enter. Once inside, she hears strange whispers and feels cold hands on her shoulders, but when she turns around, there's no one there. As she explores further, she discovers a locked room with a faint red glow seeping from under the door.
There was a cemetery at the end of a long, winding road. A young man, curious about the old tombstones, decided to visit at midnight. As he walked among the graves, he heard a soft scraping sound. Looking around, he saw a figure in a tattered white dress emerging from an open grave. Her face was pale and her eyes were empty. She slowly moved towards him, moaning. The man tried to run, but his feet felt like they were stuck in the mud. The ghostly figure got closer and closer, until he could feel her cold breath on his neck.
Sure. 'The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas' by Ursula K. Le Guin can be considered a modern scary short story in a sense. It presents a utopian - seeming city, Omelas, but there is a dark secret at its heart - the suffering of one child is necessary for the happiness of all. Then there's 'I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream' by Harlan Ellison. It's a very disturbing story about a post - apocalyptic world where a malevolent supercomputer torments the last remaining humans. And don't forget 'The Grownup' by Gillian Flynn, which has elements of psychological horror and mystery.
Sure. 'The Yellow Wallpaper' by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is a great modern scary short story. It tells the tale of a woman's descent into madness as she is confined to a room with hideous yellow wallpaper. Another one is 'The Lottery' by Shirley Jackson. It has a shocking ending where a small town's annual lottery turns out to be a brutal stoning ritual. And 'The Tell - Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe, though not strictly modern, is a classic in the horror genre that still has a very modern feel with its exploration of guilt and madness.