Hey, y'all it's that time of year again! I partnered with April at PinkOddbird to assemble these prompts for this year's Oddtober!
There are two formats (a small and a larger size) and all the prompts in the text below for your use.
- You put the pedal to the metal to get as far away from the old house as you can. A few miles away, you hear funny noises from your car -- when it suddenly breaks down. As you get out to have a look around, you see a run-down, amusement park. What does the entry to the park look like?
- Leery, you take a few steps towards the entryway thinking the place to be abandoned. To your surprise, some lights are on, and the rides are moving! You see the sign for a phone through the gate but as soon as you near the ticket booth you realize you still need a ticket to enter. Make a ticket!
- After you purchase your ticket at the booth, you hand it to the ticket taker. It's getting dark and the park lights haven't turned on yet. But through the glare of the glass, you catch a glimpse of the ticket taker. You do a double take, something seems off. What do they look like?
- You are a little creeped out but shake it off. You haven't eaten all day; your eyes are playing tricks on you. You make your way over to the outdoor food court but notice something strange. All the food offerings and pairings are unusual -- which one stands out to you the most?
- These options are just not appealing to you, so you use your best judgment and opt to have a snack that is prepackaged. Because that is definitely more trustworthy right?! You lean over to grab a box of what you think is hard candy -- but instead, what falls out?
- You decide maybe you aren't that hungry, maybe a drink will suffice. You look up at the nearest food marquee and notice these drink names are just as sketchy as the food options. You think, maybe they are just quirky names and order anyway. What drink do you get and what's in it?
- You walk to the side so you can spit it out without offending anyone. At the same moment, the rest of the lights for the park turn on. It's dusk now and with the lights on you can see everything. From the corner of your eye, you see a man smiling at you, describe what this smile looks like.
- Entranced by his wicked smile, you are knocked back into reality by the feeling of someone tugging on your coat arm. You look questioningly down and see an older man in suspenders. He looks jovial and is urging you to walk toward a specific attraction. What is this attraction?
- You approach the ride, the operator smiling so widely it hurts, gestures to a seat. You look at the ride car, you notice the side panel has a message on it. It's exactly the same message that was carved in the door at the Haunted House you just escaped! What was that message?
- Stunned by what you see you say to the ride operator: "I am going to skip this ride, thanks!" You walk back down the ramp that leads you to the ride and when you get to the bottom you notice a game booth. What kind of game is this booth offering?
- You decide to play the game and as luck would have it -- you win! You look up at the wall of prizes -- what kinds of unusual prizes do you see? You are getting increasingly unsure about this park, why is everything so strange?
- You meander through the park, your prize in tow -- you smell a familiar smell. Popcorn! It's a popcorn booth. You make a B-line over to the cart, grab a bag, and begin to nosh. You are at the bottom of the bag, and you notice a message scribbled at the bottom. What does it say?
- You look back a the popcorn vendor who's now wheeling their cart away. Behind them stands the same creepy smiling man you saw earlier. He drops something on the ground as he turns to walk away -- what did he drop on the ground?
- That's two warnings now, you don't like the look of things. You remember your car is broken down, phoning for help seems like a good idea now. You start to look around for a phone booth. You find one and open the door, instead of a phone it's something else. What do you see?
- Turning away, you notice that you haven't seen any attendees at this park. It's only park employees. You then hear the sound of children laughing. You look around and see the silhouette of children by a ride. You walk closer and realize it wasn't children-- what was actually there?
- Unnerved, you stumble away and bump into another park employee -- it turns out he's the mechanic for the rides! You ask if he can help with your car troubles. Pausing for a moment he looks at you, smiles, and walks away. As he walks away, he drops a tool. Which tool did he drop?
- Feeling hopeless, you pocket the tool. Maybe you can fix the car yourself and get out of here. you try to run back to where your car is and . . . oh no. You have made a wrong turn; everything looks the same. You turned into the Funhouse of Mirrors! What does the mirrored room look like?
- Surrounded by mirrors you are at a loss. You are frantic to get out of here when you look up and also notice there is a reflection in the mirrors. Out of your wits, you use the mechanic's tool to shatter the mirrors and find the true exit point. What reflection did you see in the mirror?
- You're finally out of the mirror maze. You stop to catch your breath and regain composure. You realize the stand you're leaning on is a lost-and-found! You notice that the bin is filled with keys . . . car keys! One key stands out from the rest -- so you take it, what does it look like?
- With the key and tool in hand, you set off to find the exit. Wading through the sea of park rides is dizzying. You stop to gain your bearings when you notice a pale hand gesturing for you to get on a rollercoaster. Unsure, you can't resist, you take a chance and board the ride. What coaster is this?
- You are the only one on the ride. The coaster takes off slowly at first, this isn't so bad. Creak, clank, creak, about 45 seconds later the ride is over. You deboard and stop to look at the ride photos. You find yours and lo and behold you weren't on the ride alone! What was on the ride with you?
- Next to the photo wall display you notice a plaque that says this park was made by a generous Donor. Upon closer inspection, you realize the name on the plaque is the same as the relative who willed you that Haunted House! What does this plaque look like?
- Starting to put 2+2 together you know that the key you found is your way out. You decide to look for a door that matches the key. Making your way through the park you go behind the rides and find a door. What does the door look like and does the keyhole match your key?
- Alas, the key works but it turns out it is the dressing room of the Smiling Man. His picture is everywhere. You look around and see hats and coats and shoes but just ahead of you, there is also another door. Before leaving the room, you spot something that you think may help you. What is it?
- Armed with this new item, you make your way to the second door. Once you open this door, on the floor you see a display of bones giving you a message. . . a way to the exit. What does the message look like and say?
- You take the boney advice and continue down the winding hallway, looking up you see a portrait of the smiling man, but in this his smile is normal! This is from before he was Smiling Man! Its eyes seem to follow your every step down the hall.
- Finally, you're at the park exit and back on "normal grounds". Relieved, you dash towards your car and notice the hood to your car is up. Did the mechanic fix it after all? There is a note -- what does the note say? Feeling defeated, you slump down to the gravel.
- You shake it off and try your key in the ignition once more. And whoa! The car starts up! You close the hood and jump into the driver's seat. Ready to get far from this park. Looking back, you see the Smiling Man standing there. He is holding something, what is it?
- This reminds you that you also have something from his dressing room. You look at it briefly and see it has a map hidden inside. There's an address on it. You don't think much of it but tuck it away on the passenger seat for later. What does the map look like?
- You turn the car radio on as you start to drive away and the same song from the gramophone at the Haunted House starts booming through the speakers! What are the song lyrics or what song is it?
- You look in your rearview mirror and can no longer see the Smiling Man. The park looks dark behind you until you see the words: Happy Halloween appear in the distant amusement park lights.