LitReading - Classic Short Stories

A Survey. A Dream. A Better Ad?

Somewhere out there is an ad you won’t hate.

And this brief, slightly soul-sucking survey might help me find it.

It’s optional. But I’d be forever grateful. Or at least for like, a...

Every October, we creep into the scary season on Litreading, digging deep into the trove of classic horror tales from around the world. Some of the most frightening stories of all time were penned more than 100 years ago by authors like Mary Shelly and Edgar Allen Poe. One of the greats of the early 20th century was H.P. Lovecraft, and this is one of his earliest tales.

In a distant land where shadows stretch long and justice is...

Ghost stories have been told around the world and are often based on mythical creatures or spirits. Those living in the cold, snowy regions of Japan created the legend of a winter spirit called Yuki-Onna (or snow woman) whose beauty allows her to prey on those lost in brutal winter storms.

A Survey. A Dream. A Better Ad?

Somewhere out there is an ad you won’t hate.

And this brief, slightly soul-sucking survey might help me f...

Please note: "Murder of Crows" is one of the early episodes of my new podcast, New Tales Told. I published it here to share it with my large Litreading audience. However, it will eventually only be available on New Tales Told. If you haven't yet done so, please search for New Tales Told on this podcast service or visit shortstoryverses.com to listen to this and my other original stories.

There’s a reason crows gather in...

We reprise another classic thriller from Litreading's archives for this year's scary season,

In this episode, we go on an adventure off the coast of South America, as a famous big game hunter finds himself stranded on an island where hunting has been elevated to a new and frightening level. It’s time to play “The Most Dangerous Game.”

"The Most Dangerous Game" has been called "the most popular story ever written in English" and w...

Here is one of the greatest gothic horror stories of all time, originally produced for Litreading in 2019.

As Halloween approaches, our tales of horror grow more grisly with a classic scary story, The Black Cat by one of America’s greatest devisers of dread, Edgar Allen Poe

A Survey. A Dream. A Better Ad?

Somewhere out there is an ad you won’t hate.

And this brief, slightly soul-sucking survey might help me find it.

It’s o...

This dark, thriller deserves to be included in our reprise of classic stories for the scary season. Written by one of America’s greatest writers, Sinclair Lewis, "The Willow Walk" features some fascinating characters, shocking twists, and powerful imagery. It is also one of our longest stories clocking in at over one hour.

In addition to winning a Pulitzer Prize, Sinclair Lewis was the first American to win the Nobel Prize for L...

What is the scary season without a classic monster story? Like the campy creature features of the 50s and 60s, this story features a tiny annoyance turned into a killing machine. First published in 2020, this story returns to send chills down your spine.

Late 19th and early 20th-century science fiction writers were fascinated with the wild and relatively unknown regions of the world, from which they imagined all manner of invade...

Everyone in town has a story about Luella Miller. She never seems to lift a hand, yet somehow, help is always at her side. And those who give it—well, they never quite look the same afterward. Some tales of horror are loud and bloody. This one is quiet, gentle… and suffocating. Mary E. Wilkins Freeman spins a ghostly puzzle where the most dangerous thing may be a smile too sweet to resist.

Mary E. Wilkins Freeman wasn’t known fo...

What led a man to live an isolated life at his ramshackle cabin, with a boarded up window, in the former American wilderness? What is the tragic story that led him to this doleful existence? Here is his traumatic tale.

A Survey. A Dream. A Better Ad?

Somewhere out there is an ad you won’t hate.

And this brief, slightly soul-sucking survey might help me find it.

It’s optional. But I’d be forever grateful. Or at least for like,...

As the owner of a 19th-century home, I often think about those lives lived here before us and what they must have been like. As our homes are so much a part of us, those who have gone before us leave traces of their lives and loves behind. Here is a very short, yet poignant tale of just such an old house.

It seems that the author experienced the feeling of something lurking at the edge of human senses, feelings, and powerful emotion...

Humans are rarely content with their lot in life. We long for something more and, all too often, believe that, given the right opportunity, our lives can be made better in an instant through some fortunate event, like winning a lottery.

A Survey. A Dream. A Better Ad?

Somewhere out there is an ad you won’t hate.

And this brief, slightly soul-sucking survey might help me find it.

It’s optional. But I’d be forever grateful. Or ...

Here is a relatively obscure tale of suspense for the scary season.

After checking into a small hotel to convalesce for the summer, a man becomes curious about an enigmatic guest who has taken up residence and the other end of the hall.

About the story:

As I can only read stories in the public domain, you might wonder about the reference to a Hitler mustache. That’s because this story was published in 1934 and the copyright was not r...

When a young man seeks the perfect place to study for his universitymathematics exams, he finds an isolated house that seems ideal—too ideal. The locals whisper about the Judge's House and about the cruel magistrate who once lived there. But he is a man of science, dismissive of superstition. He believes in mathematical theorems, not ghost stories. As rats scurry through the ancient walls and something enormous watches from the sha...

As Halloween approaches, here is the story of a mysterious death in the 19th-century American wilderness.

A Survey. A Dream. A Better Ad?

Somewhere out there is an ad you won’t hate.

And this brief, slightly soul-sucking survey might help me find it.

It’s optional. But I’d be forever grateful. Or at least for like, a week.

http://bit.ly/litreadingclassicshortstories-survey

Thanks.

H...

As Halloween approaches we begin a time for scarier stories. For this short tale with a chilling twist we turn to prolific 19th century stories Ambrose Bierce for "A Wireless Message."

Ambrose Bierce is considered one of the 19th Century finest authors of shockingly realistic short stories. His most famous tale “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is one of our favorites and can be heard at Litreading.

A Survey. A Dream. A Better...

Rather than your typical October horror story, This chilling tale is a unique variation on your run-of-the-mill ghost story with a wicked twist at the end from the master of narrative misdirection, O. Henry.

O. Henry, whose real name was William Sydney Porter, is considered one of the all-time masters of the short story. Known for his inventive twists, his work spanned many genres from comedy to horror. His short variegated life as ...

While Halloween is the season for scary stories, their popularity is timeless. That is why this dark tale of revenge still send chills down listeners spines after almost two centuries.

The Cask of Amontillado was first published in the November 1946 issue “Godey’s Lady’s Book” which demonstrates the universal fascination with scary stories. Poe understood humanity’s greatest fears and exploited them masterfully, making him the all-t...