Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Slush
The Submission: There was a terrible smell in the kitchen.
Mother wouldn’t like that, but then she was hardly in a position to complain any more.
And thank-fuckin’-God for that!
Thirty years I’ve had to deal with her chipping away at me. Condescending me here, criticising me there.
Nothing was ever good enough, not for Mother.
I just couldn’t take it anymore. When she told me I wasn’t cutting the cucumbers the “right way”, I just snapped!
I plop the putrid mess of her brains into the blender, turning them to slush, and lick my fingers, satisfied that I’ll never have to hear her voice again.
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Drain
The Submission: Paula stood in the bathroom combing her long, flowing locks before the mirror. Beyond the door, lounging on her bed, Bruce waited; she yearned for him, but she giggled as she made him wait. She squeezed her breasts together in her tight corset and enjoyed the ripples of lust that danced across her skin like tickling fingertips.
As she finished dousing herself with perfume, a skittering centipede dashed up out the plughole; its slimy body was coated in gunk from the drain and its antenna twitched curiously as it took in its surroundings.
Disgusted, horrified, Paula instinctively slapped her palm down to squash it and yelped with surprise as fangs bit into her skin. She withdrew her hand and desperately tried to shake the bug off, but the centipede clung to her flesh and nibbled furiously. She shrieked as she felt it wriggle its way under her skin and crawl its way inside of her.
When Bruce looked up from the bed, ready and raring to go, he was surprised to see Paula standing there hunched over, her head lolling to the side, her eyes rolled back so only the whites were showing and her body jerking ungainly as she was compelled to approach him by the parasite in her brain…
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Promise
The Submission: The knife slid in like better.
The man, whatever his name was, clutched at my shoulder weakly; his eyes were wide, stunned.
His putrid breath filled my nostrils as he asked, “Why?” in a weak, gurgling whisper.
He didn’t even recognise me.
I stabbed again, driving the blade into his face, gouging open his cheek and spilling his eyeball down his troll-like face with glee.
“I made a promise,” I growled, and stabbed again.
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Neck
The Submission: Roger couldn’t believe his luck; just one day in a new town and he’d already caught the eye of the perky girl behind the counter at the local Teamos.
She was a vision; big, bright grey eyes, long curly blonde hair, pouty pinky-red lips, and beautiful, lush breasts that bulged beneath her blouse. He got a thrill just looking at her, drinking in her beauty and scent – a faint hint of citrus.
Roger delighted in the way she would flash him a bright, cheery smile and wish him a good day. He fantasised about her constantly; the feel of her creamy smooth skin, the taste of her flesh, the sensation of taking her, ravishing her, chewing at her neck like a man possessed.
Roger was poised, waiting in the drizzle for the girl to finish her shift.
Then he would have her, one way or another.
Tonight was the night.
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Blizzard
The Submission: “When can we go out again, Momma?”
Taylor was tucked under a big, heavy duvet. He was dressed in thick, wool pyjamas. Like all the windows in their house, his bedroom windows were barricaded and the outside world was forever shut out.
“Shh, Little Man,” his momma soothed, stroking his cheek. “You know you can’t go out. The blizzard is still going. Now, be a good boy and go to sleep, okay?”
Taylor nodded and waited for his momma to leave. He lay there, staring at the ceiling and listening as she finished her bedtime routine and went to bed. Hours ticked past as he waited, patiently, until he heard the low murmur of her snoring.
Quietly, he slipped out of bed; in the darkness, he almost tripped over the electric heater his momma insisted on keeping in his room to keep the cold out. He gingerly made his way downstairs and pulled on his thick winter coat.
Two years he’d been told he couldn’t go outside because of the cold. One day, Momma had said a big storm had come and snowed them in. Only she could go out in it for supplies, but he had to stay inside, where it was safe and warm.
She brought him food and they played games. Sometimes they played late at night, strange games that she said would keep him warm and make him a big boy, but he wasn’t allowed outside.
Taylor loved his momma. He trusted his momma. But he’d heard things; cars, sounds of laughter. When he’d mentioned it, Momma had gotten very upset. She’d raged, saying he didn’t love her, didn’t trust her. She’d insisted on playing their games differently that night and Taylor had learned not to question his momma.
But he had to see.
The door was locked; dead-bolted and padlocked, and he had no idea where Momma kept the key, but he’d been working on one of the wooden planks nailed over the window out the back. It was soft, soggy, and wearing thin and he was sure he could force it open and maybe slip out to see what’d happened to his friends and the world outside.
As he wrenched at the wood, hissing as splinters jabbed through his gloves, Taylor caught the faintest glimpse of light.
“What are you doing?!” Momma barked from behind him.
She was on him in a heartbeat, berating him, dragging from him the small gap he’d made. For the briefest of split seconds, Taylor had glimpsed the bright, bustling world outside, even seen the vague shape of someone walking past their house.
But now Momma was mad… and he had to play her game as punishment.
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Gold
The Submission: Jonah wiped the sweat from his brow and clutched one of the heavy gold bars to his chest.
He was sat huddled in the darkest corner of his bedroom, staring at the heavily barricaded door and muttering a prayer over and over through trembling, chapped lips.
When Jonah had heard about what happened to Kriss, found impaled on his banister through the anus, half his guts splattered all down the stairs, Jonah had worked frantically to turn his pokey little house into a fortress, hacking apart furniture and nailing it to every door and window.
Deep down, he knew it was a pointless endeavour. Even now, he could hear those heavy footsteps ascending the stairs; the jangling of iron chains; the low sea shanty drifting to his ears.
Each of them had taken a stash of the gold for themselves, splitting it equally, and each had met a gruesome, unexplained end, just as had been foretold. How Jonah had scoffed at the so-called “curse”, even after Roody had killed himself out of sheer terror.
As the doorknob to his bedroom door turned rapidly and Jonah heard hands pounding against it, a ghastly mist flowing from under the door and enveloping the house, he couldn’t help but wish he’d followed Roody’s example before the spirits had come for him, too…
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Brash
The Submission: People told me what to expect when I fell in with Judy and her brash little teenager, Cody.
“He’s nothing but a troublemaker,” my mum said.
“He’ll be locked up before he’s eighteen,” my sister said.
And it was true; he was a rude little git. He always had his spotty face glued to his phone, swiped food from the fridge and alcohol from the cabinet, and stayed out late most nights at the skate park with his other shit-kicking friends.
Mostly, I didn’t really mind, even when he was obviously swiping cash from my wallet. The sex with Judy made it worthwhile and I knew that Cody wouldn’t be a problem for long.
He might see himself as a big man, in his loose-fitting clothes and his drawling rebelliousness, but he had a thing or two to learn about checking his food before he ate it… and questioning why bleach was always on the weekly shopping list.
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Professor
The Submission: The moment I met Professor Horton, I knew he’d be easy prey. He was a tall, thin man in rimless spectacles who shined when delivering lectures but was very shy and reserved in private.
He tried to tell me that my grades were suffering, that my projects were overdue and I needed to knuckle down and focus. No more late nights or parties.
But I could tell from the way his eyes lingered on me that he wanted me. He barely resisted when I ran my hand up the inside of his thigh and lay there, stunned, desperately trying to process how we’d gotten from his office to my dorm room.
He soon came to enjoy our trysts and, as I let him do unspeakable things to me, the last thing on his mind were my poor grades.
He delighted in typing my dissertation for me. He sat hunched over my desk, completely nude save for a ball gag in his mouth, tight leather straps digging into his flesh, and yelped with pleasure as I sauntered past, wedged into a skimpy red and black number and flaying him with a barbed cat-o-nine tails.
As he finished up, his eyes swam with tears and begged to be released from his bondage so he could have me once more. I favoured him with a sultry smile and gently ran a straight razor across his throat.
As he gagged and convulsed, dying with a hard-on, I printed the document and prepared for the next step in my life.
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Scrounge
The Submission: The rats had always been a problem. Everyone knew that. Entire administrations had been brought down due to their inability to keep them from scrounging food or spreading disease, and Mayor Zachary wasn’t going to let that happen to him.
When the solution to this ongoing problem was presented to him, he was overwhelmed by the chemical formulas and scientific terminology and simply asked for a summary.
A pathogen would be introduced into the water supply. Though nonlethal to the voters citizens, the rat population would be put down within six weeks and he would be heralded as a saviour.
That was the plan, anyway.
Then people started getting sick. The emergency wards filled up. The infection rate skyrocketed, and the death toll was so great that Mayor Zachary found himself signing off on death pits.
Then the rats changed. At first, they grew bigger. Then, more vicious and brazen, scurrying up toilet pipes and from sewer grates to attack small dogs and nip at your heels.
This did little to help with the infection rate but, soon, that didn’t matter.
Not when those mewling, grotesque variations appeared. They favoured clawing the face, the eyes, of their victims and nesting in the remains, spawning devilish offspring more mutant than rodent.
It was only after he’d found his beloved Marjorie laying disembowelled on the bathroom floor, her shredded stomach writhing as screeching rat-babies festered in her corpse, that Mayor Zachary began to wish he’d read the document more thoroughly…
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Horror Prompts’ Gillian Church is hosting a horror drabble challenge this January: 31 prompts for 31 creepy tales throughout January that clock in at around 100 words.
The Prompt: Frost
The Submission: Tommy was delighted to see the first frost glistening in the pale moonlight. It meant the town would be blanketed with snow by morning and, sure enough, a good eight inches greeted him when he woke.
Excitedly, he rushed through breakfast, yanking on his big winter coat and mittens and hat as his mama cautioned him: “Mind the ice! Stay covered up! Don’t be out too late.”
Each time he replied with an enthusiastic, “Yes, Mama!”
Tommy pelted from the house, sleigh in hand, and nearly went head over heels as he rounded the corner. He couldn’t wait to race down the hill, giggling with his friends without a care in the world.
He wasn’t thinking of anything else as he sauntered over the small stone bridge over the frozen stillness of the Brook.
“Who’s that up there?” a faint voice whispered, stopping Tommy in his tracks.
Curious, he peered over the frosted stone wall, seeing leaves, twigs, perhaps even a dead animal stuck in the ice. He called: “Hullo?”
A hand, gnarled and riddled with frostbite, shot up and clamped around his wrist. Tommy screamed, unable to break free, tears leaking from his eyes and freezing on his cheeks as he was pulled over, down into the wretched, freezing darkness under the bridge.
Jagged talons sliced at him from the shadows; breath, hot and rancid, choked his nostrils. And as fanged jaws ripped into the chubby flesh of his forearm, that whisper gurgled and mocked in his ear:
“Hullo”.
If you’re interested in reading more about this bridge and the ghouls that lurk beneath it, check out Here There Be, available digitally and physically on Amazon.
What did you think to the prompt for today’s drabble challenge? Did you submit anything for it? Have you ever written any flash fiction before? I’d love to know what you think to my snippets and writing prompts, so feel free to sign up and let me know what you think below or leave a comment on my Instagram page. You can also follow Gillian Church to take part in her Weekly Writing Prompt challenge.
Dr. K's Waiting Room 
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