A Year Spent in Horror

By Radar DeBoard

It's time to let horror back into your daily life.

Imagine a year spent in fear. A full year looking over your shoulder because you have the constant sensation that you're being watched. An entire year filled with sleepless nights wondering if there is something monstrous lurking in the dark. A year of desperately hoping the things that you've read never become reality.

With 365 mini-stories, that's exactly what this book aims to do. One story for each day of the year so that you can spend every season in the wonderful grips of horror's icy embrace.

And here you probably thought October was the only time you could enjoy something spooky.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Radar DeBoard
• Release date: Apr 21, 2024
• ISBN: 9798989152315

Book preview

A Year Spent in Horror

365 Mini Horror Stories Created from One Word Prompts

Radar DeBoard

Copyright © 2024 by Radar DeBoard

Cover art by Gemma Amor

Formatting by Cat Voleur

All rights reserved.

No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

Prompt: Prison

Thomas had never thought much about prison, but as the pulsating walls of flesh crafted from the enraged spirits of his victims encircled him, he identified the situation for what it was.

A prison of his own making.

Prompt: Mage

The mage gave a simple flick of the wrist and the intruder's insides liquefied, spilling from his every orifice onto the floor, creating quite a mess.

That was okay, though; he had a spell for easy cleanup.

Prompt: Diamond

Preston had always been told that to make a diamond you just needed enough pressure.

So, he was very disappointed when his industrial press lowered onto yet another body, and all that came from it was viscera and blood being squirted across his workstation.

Prompt: Tension

The room was filled with tension, thanks in large part to two factors.

1. The vicious argument that had erupted between the dinner guests.

And 2. The reason for the argument, which was none of them knowing which of the champagne glasses had been poisoned.

Prompt: Barrier

The villagers screamed in terror as the acidic slime that covered the creature easily ate away the poorly constructed barrier.

With a grotesque squelching noise, the monstrosity poured itself into the village ready to feast.

Prompt: Sign

There had been more than one sign that Sheldon shouldn't take the job.

Between the high turnover, the strange rumbling, or the screams, he had ignored the warnings.

Now, he was about to be the latest victim of the creature that had made its home in the office walls.

Prompt: Parallel

The creature was always parallel to Robert.

No matter what he did, or where he went, it was there.

It was always watching, keeping the same amount of distance between them.

Patiently waiting, as it drove him further toward insanity.

Prompt: Imagination

Jennifer had always been told that imagination was a good thing, but hers had brought the terrible thing that sat at the foot of her bed into existence.

And based on the massive globs of drool that poured from its mouth, she was in big trouble.

Prompt: Awestruck

The ancient ones had finally arrived, and their disciples on earth were awestruck.

Sheer light radiated from the cosmic beings, melting the flesh from their followers’ bones.

They had not come to provide deliverance, only destruction.

The desolation had arrived.

Prompt: Break

The tendrils didn't stop at the first crack.

They continued to squeeze until the break occurred, rendering its prey motionless.

Then, it pulled the latest victim toward the trees and into its gaping maw.

Prompt: Surrender

Christina closed her eyes, finally deciding to surrender to the sinister fog.

It quickly swirled into her nostrils, taking control of her body.

All the while, Christina told herself, Better to be the demon delivering misery than to be caught in its wake.

Prompt: Anxiety

Arnie felt his anxiety tug at his gut as blood poured from the walls of his cubicle, distracting him from finishing his report.

The crimson liquid quickly rose to his knees, but Arnie didn't flee.

He couldn't.

He had a deadline to make.

Prompt: Isolated

Number 60 screamed at the grey walls of the room meant to keep him isolated with nothing else besides Number 7.

He glanced at the warped and twisted pile of flesh that had once been human.

He shuddered, realizing the same fate awaited him if he couldn't escape.

Prompt: Flicker

His hands fumbled in the dark for a match, before striking it to have a flicker of light.

The illumination only lasted for a second, but he easily spotted the grotesque creature, just as it easily spotted him.

Prompt: Aspen

Aspen was her name, and Rick had spent the past three months searching for her.

So, as he stared down at the skeletal forearm protruding from the dirt, he was overcome by a whirlwind of emotion.

He had finally found her.

Prompt: Invade

He was sent to Earth with a single objective: invade.

A task he found extremely easy, thanks to the humans’ animalistic nature.

He simply blended in with the crowd, then turned them against each other by convincing the majority that the minority were the invaders.

Prompt: Limit

Teresa enjoyed pushing things to the limit.

To her, finding the threshold of what was possible was just too enticing to ignore.

Of course, her favorite part was hearing the bone snap, followed closely by the wails of agony.