best haunted house short stories

Another is 'The Yellow Wallpaper' by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. While it might not seem like a traditional haunted house story at first, the room with the yellow wallpaper in the old house takes on a very haunting quality as the narrator descends into madness, and the house becomes a prison of sorts.

The Amityville Horror is also a well - known haunted house story. The Lutz family claimed to experience all sorts of terrifying phenomena after moving into the house, like strange noises, slime oozing from the walls, and seeing apparitions. Their story was so disturbing that it became famous worldwide and inspired numerous movies.

Well, in haunted house fiction short stories, the setting is crucial. A haunted house might be isolated in a desolate area, adding to the sense of dread. These stories often play on our primal fears. For example, a character might hear strange noises at night, and as they explore, they discover dark secrets about the house's past, like a tragic event that left restless spirits.

These stories might also comment on human nature or society through the lens of the haunted house and related elements. The settings and symbols play crucial roles in conveying the intended messages.

Another great one is 'House of Leaves' by Mark Z. Danielewski. This novel plays with the layout of the text to add to the sense of unease and mystery, and the haunted house in it is filled with all sorts of strange and terrifying things. It's a complex and immersive read.

Well, mystery is a big theme. The haunted house always has secrets that the characters are trying to uncover. Take 'The Canterville Ghost', the family has to figure out why the ghost is there and what it wants. Fear is also a common theme. The characters experience intense fear in these haunted houses, like in 'The Shunned House' where the very presence of the house instills dread. And then there's the theme of decay, both physical, as in the crumbling mansions in stories like 'The Fall of the House of Usher', and moral decay that often seems to be associated with the haunted houses.

A typical plot could be a family moving into a new house that turns out to be haunted. They start experiencing strange phenomena, and they either try to flee or face the spirits.

You might also consider 'The Little Stranger' by Sarah Waters. It has a slow - burning sense of horror that builds around a large, dilapidated house. The characters are well - drawn and the mystery of the haunted house unfolds in a way that is not too overwhelming for those new to the genre.

A great haunted house novel is 'Hell House' by Richard Matheson. It's filled with terrifying scenes and a sense of dread. The characters' experiences in the haunted house are vividly described, and Matheson does an excellent job of building suspense throughout the story.

I would recommend 'The Tell - Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe. It's relatively short and easy to understand. It has all the elements of a haunted house story in a sense, with the old man's house being the setting for the narrator's descent into madness and the presence of an 'unseen' horror, which is the old man's 'vulture - like' eye. It gives a great introduction to the spooky and psychological aspects of haunted house tales.