Let’s be real. AI is here to stay, whether we like it or not, and while I don’t condone using AI to write a whole novel, I do think it can be a handy writing intern. 

Personally, I love reading horror, but I’ve never written anything more terrifying than an r/AmITheAsshole reddit post.

That’s why, I decided to use AI to try my hand at horror writing, and perhaps feel more comfortable doing it on my own after seeing the AI recommend me some writing prompts.

And from a whole weekend of trial and error, here are the three standout ChatGPT commands I discovered for writing horror fiction:

Command 1: “Generate a Creepy Setting”

Every good horror novel starts with a setting that seeps into the reader’s bones. With this command, you can prompt ChatGPT to brainstorm locations tailored to your story’s unique atmosphere—be it a fog-drenched forest, a desolate, echoing mansion, or an abandoned, dimly lit hospital. By feeding ChatGPT a few details about your story’s tone, era, and style, you can receive a range of eerie settings that you can use as basis for your own writing. 

Here’s how you might fill in the details about tone, era, and style, then get ChatGPT to generate something spine-chilling. Here are some examples with horror subgenres.

Example 1: Gothic Horror

Prompt: “Generate a setting for a gothic horror novel set in Victorian England. The tone is dark and oppressive, and the setting is meant to feel decayed and foreboding.”

Here’s what ChatGPT gave me:

Blackwood Manor sounds like little more than a placeholder name, being honest, and the part on “the few townsfolk nearby” could do some work, but I really liked the “Inside, time has left its marks…” section. With some editing, it could do for describing one of your story’s main locations.

Let’s do another go. 

Example 2: Psychological Thriller

Prompt: “Generate a setting for a modern psychological thriller. The story is set in an abandoned psychiatric hospital, and the tone should be eerie and unsettling, with a sense of lost time.”

Here’s what ChatGPT gave me:

Once more, the location names sound cliché’d, but the paragraph did give me some useful sentences to work with. What’s key to note here is your narrator’s point of view. Unless it’s a third person omniscient narrator in a short story, it’s likely that this description alone won’t work well.

What I’d do here is to highlight key sentences from the description and keep them for key scenes when the characters actually explore the asylum, if I were writing a novel. Instead of delivering all of it in one go, I’d use the “records room” sentence in a scene when a character actually visits it. 

Command 2: “Write a Character Backstory with a Dark Secret”

This one’s useful for both novels and short stories. A key of the horror genre is its combination of layered, flawed, or haunted characters, whether they’re heroic or not. A well-written backstory adds psychological depth and drives suspense, as readers are gradually clued into the character’s sinister past.

Here are some prompts:

Example 1: Gothic Mystery

Prompt: “Create a backstory for an elderly character named Eleanor, who lives alone in a decaying mansion. She is reserved, speaks little of her past, and avoids the subject of her late husband. The story should hint at a dark secret connected to his death.”

I was satisfied with this one. It almost reads like a writing prompt. I’d twist it even more by having Eleanor be eventually seduced by the occult magic Arthur kept practicing, but on it’s own, it stands strong.

Let’s see another example.

Example 2: Supernatural Thriller

Prompt: “Write a backstory for a teenage girl named Lucas, who is tormented by a dark secret involving her childhood imaginary friend, who may have been more than just a figment of her imagination. The backstory should explain her guilt and fear of the supernatural.”

I didn’t like this one that much. The beginning was strong, but the resolution felt a little forced. More details on Ink’s involvement and her relationship with Lucas would be better, but it’s a starting point.

Command 3: “List Unpredictable Plot Twists”

Now, before I get bashed, I know trusting an AI with generating your plot twist can seem like setting yourself up for failure. However, this prompt is, and should only be used for brainstorming ideas if you’re not super familiar with the diverse horror subgenres. While I do read a lot of horror fiction, I mostly stick with supernatural horror, and rarely branch off to other subgenres. Think of these plot twists as more a list of tropes than actual twists to implement in your story.

Here are the examples:

Example 1: Haunted House Thriller

Prompt: “Generate five plot twists for a horror story set in an abandoned house where a group of friends is being haunted by a ghost they accidentally summoned.”

Ok, let’s go one by one.

The first one can be a good midpoint-turning reveal, but definitely not a plot twist I’d see use of in a climax. The second one, on the other hand, would fit perfectly in a climax, if it wasn’t so cliché’d and likely easily predictable by the reader. Ditto for the third one.

However, I like the fourth one’s concept, although perhaps not its execution. Instead of physical changes, I’d like to see this mixed with some historical fiction, perhaps they start acting and thinking like people from the Victorian era at a certain hour of the night while inside the house. I also like the fifth one, which could make for an interesting mystery.

See? It wasn’t that terrible. I’d give it a three stars out of five.

Let’s try another example.

Example 2: Paranormal Investigator Mystery

Prompt: “Suggest five plot twists for a horror novel about a paranormal investigator being haunted by a spirit connected to an unsolved murder.”

Result:

1. The investigator realizes that the spirit haunting them is not the victim but the murderer, trying to prevent the truth from coming to light.
2. The investigator finds out they share a dark family secret with the ghost, suggesting that their family may have been involved in the original crime.
3. An ally helping the investigator turns out to be another spirit who has concealed their ghostly nature to manipulate the investigator into releasing them.
4. The ghost wants to possess the investigator’s body to relive their own life, even if it means pushing the investigator’s consciousness out completely.
5. The investigator learns that every case they’ve worked on was subtly influenced by this spirit, who has been guiding them toward a disturbing, hidden truth.

The first and third ones are an instant no. Anyone could see both of these coming from a mile away. The second one is a little better, and with great execution, could make for some emotionally poignant murders. Likewise for the fourth one.

The fifth one has less of an emotional factor, and more of a mysterious one. I think it could be interesting to explore, if skillfully done.

Likewise, I’d give this one a three out of five stars.

The Bottom Line

While I said these are specifically ChatGPT commands, I’m sure you can use these ones in the other writing AIs to obtain a similar degree of results.

While AI shouldn’t replace your unique voice or creativity, it can serve as a valuable partner in the writing process, offering fresh perspectives and sparking ideas you might not have considered. 

Sure, it won’t write your novel or short story for you, but it can give you enough inspiration to, maybe, with some work, become the next Stephen King.