The 'The Yellow Wallpaper' is a great one. It's a psychological horror story about a woman's descent into madness. Another is 'The Tell - Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe. It's a classic that's really spooky.
One really good free scary story is 'The Masque of the Red Death' by Edgar Allan Poe. In this story, Prince Prospero tries to escape the Red Death by hiding in his abbey, but death still finds a way in. It has great descriptions of the settings and the atmosphere is very foreboding. Also, 'The Black Cat' by Poe is a disturbing tale of a man's relationship with his cat that takes a very dark turn. And then there's 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow' which tells the spooky story of Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman. You can find these stories for free on various literary websites or in e - book libraries.
There's 'The Monkey's Paw'. It's about a magical paw that grants wishes but with a terrifying cost. 'Carmilla' is also a good one. It's an early vampire story that has a very eerie atmosphere. These stories are available for free in many places like Project Gutenberg or on some horror - themed websites.
One really good scary story is 'The Tell - Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe. It's about a man who is driven mad by the old man's vulture - like eye and finally murders him. Another is 'The Monkey's Paw' which has a cursed object that grants wishes in the most horrifying ways. And 'The Yellow Wallpaper' is also great, where a woman's descent into madness in a room with hideous wallpaper is described in a truly spooky way.
There's also 'The Monkey's Paw'. This story is about a family who comes into possession of a magical monkey's paw that grants wishes but with terrible consequences. You can find free versions of it on various e - book platforms. It's a really creepy story as it plays on the idea of unintended consequences of getting what you want. The tension builds up gradually as the family makes their wishes and the horror unfolds.
There is also 'The Yellow Wallpaper' by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It's a psychological horror story about a woman who is confined to a room with yellow wallpaper while she is suffering from postpartum depression. As she becomes more and more obsessed with the wallpaper, the story takes a very disturbing turn.
A lesser - known but really scary free Halloween story is 'The Yellow Wallpaper'. It may not seem like a typical Halloween story at first, but it has a great sense of psychological horror. The woman's slow descent into madness as she is confined to a room with the strange yellow wallpaper is both disturbing and spooky. Another one is 'The Masque of the Red Death' by Edgar Allan Poe. The story's description of the plague - like Red Death and the prince's attempts to avoid it in his luxurious abbey, only to be met with the inevitable, is a great read for Halloween. You can often find these stories for free on websites that specialize in classic literature or horror anthologies.
A popular free scary story for kids is 'The Green Ribbon'. It's about a girl who always wears a green ribbon around her neck and when it finally comes off, there's a spooky surprise. These types of stories are good because they introduce a bit of fear in a controlled way, and kids can enjoy the thrill while not being overly frightened. You can find them on websites that curate children's horror - lite stories.
There's a great one called 'The Girl in the Window'. It tells of a traveler who sees a girl in an old, abandoned house's window every night. As he gets closer to the house to help her, strange things start to happen. Also, 'The Vanishing Hitchhiker' is quite spooky. A driver picks up a hitchhiker who then mysteriously disappears from the moving car.
Well, there's a 'awai scary story about a lost fisherman. He went out to sea one day and never came back. But on stormy nights, fishermen claim to see his boat floating eerily on the water, with a figure that looks like him standing on the deck. Then there's the story of a hidden cave in 'awai. It's said that inside the cave, there are voices that whisper warnings to those who enter. Also, a story about a witch who used to live in the mountains of 'awai and would cast spells on the villagers below.
The Tell - Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe is a classic. The narrator's descent into madness is really spooky. Another one is The Monkey's Paw. It has that element of the unknown and the consequences of wishes gone wrong. Then there's Carmilla, a vampire story that has a lot of atmosphere.
Well, there's a 'gloom scary story' set in a cemetery. It's said that a particular gravestone glows in the moonlight. If you touch it, a cold hand grabs yours from beneath the ground. There's also the story of a derelict asylum. Nurses who worked there long ago reported patients disappearing without a trace. Some say the patients' spirits still roam the hallways. Also, a story about a shipwreck where the ghosts of the drowned sailors haunt the remains of the ship.
On Creepypasta, there are many great and free scary Halloween stories. For instance, 'Jeff the Killer' which has become quite infamous. It's about a deranged killer with a very creepy appearance. The detailed descriptions in the story can send shivers down your spine. There are also other stories on Creepypasta that are set during Halloween or have elements related to it, like haunted houses, witches, and ghosts.