Here's another: 'The old mirror in the attic showed a face not my own. I smashed it, but the face still haunts me.' This is a classic type of two - sentence horror. It quickly sets a spooky scene with the strange face in the mirror and then adds a twist with the face still being a problem even after the mirror is broken.
One: I woke up to a cold hand on my shoulder. When I turned, no one was there. Two: The old doll in the attic blinked at me. I ran, but it's laughter followed.
One good opener could be 'In the dead of night, a strange noise echoed through the empty house.' This immediately sets a spooky mood as the 'dead of night' implies a time when things are usually quiet and the 'strange noise' makes the reader wonder what it could be. Also, the 'empty house' gives a sense of isolation which is often associated with horror.
I looked out of the window. A faceless man was looking right back at me. It sent shivers down my spine immediately. Horror often lies in the unknown, and a faceless figure is the epitome of that. It made me question my safety even in my own home.
One example could be 'I woke up in the middle of the night and saw a figure at the foot of my bed. When I turned on the light, it was still there.'
The clock stopped at midnight. Then, I saw a shadow figure pass in front of it.
Walking in the forest, I saw a pair of glowing eyes. Before I could run, a growl echoed around me.
One example could be 'The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door.' It creates horror through the sudden and unexpected event in a seemingly desolate situation.
One could be: 'I woke up to a noise. It was coming from inside the closet.'
How about this: 'I heard footsteps behind me. When I turned around, there was no one there, but the footsteps grew louder.'
Of course. Here are two. 'The phone rang in the dead of night. A raspy voice said my name.' and 'I opened the closet. A pair of glowing eyes peered out.' This type of two - sentence horror stories are effective because they create a sense of immediate dread. In the first one, a late - night phone call with an unknown voice saying your name is a classic horror trope. It makes you wonder who is on the other end and what they want. In the second, the idea of something lurking in a closet, which is a common, seemingly safe place in a home, is suddenly made terrifying by the presence of those glowing eyes. It plays on our sense of safety being violated in a very familiar environment.