Adult Horror Writing Contest Winners 2025

Published on November 14, 2025

Adult Horror Writing Contest Winners

Our first Adult Horror Writing Contest was a spine-chilling success, with 37 entries. Thank you to all who submitted!

These were our rules: 

1. Open to adults 18 and older
2. Stories must be rated no higher than PG-13
3. 1000 words or less
4. Must be horror or horror-adjacent
5. Stories must be original, without any form of plagiarism or use of A.I.

Submissions were scored based on:

1. Plot
2. Characters
3. Use of language
4. Grammar/syntax
5. Adherence to rules

And the top stories...

🏆First Place: "The Red" by Desiree Rohrbach

🏆Second Place: "Leftovers" by Sarah J. Sonnenschein

🏆Third Place: "Night Swim" by Emily Andersen

 

Look for our Scary on the Prairie program series next October. Here are some Horror Staff Picks to tide you over till then!