It was the since discontinued 7chan imageboard that coined the term ‘Creepypasta’ for the first time back in the late 2000s, specifically around 2007. ‘Creepypasta’ is a portmanteau of ‘creepy’ and ‘copypasta,’ the latter meaning viral copied and pasted text, as coined by 7chan’s predecessor 4chan. In short, a Creepypasta is a viral, horror-inspired legend, but in later years, it’s become a catch-all term for any horror-related content on the internet. Commonly, Creepypasta are user-generated stories — often dabbling in the paranormal — intended to scare readers. There are thousands of such tales in circulation, but some are much more famous than others. Several Creepypasta scribes have earned themselves a reputation among the fanbase, even more so after their creations took the internet by storm to become the most-read Creepypasta of all time.
10. Squidward’s Suicide
Trigger warning: Mature themes and mentions of suicide.
Posted by Anonymous, who has since identified themselves as u/SuicideSquidward on Reddit, Squidward’s Suicide was an introduction to Creepypasta for many, emerging on 7chan in 2006. The author claims to have wanted to try their hand at a “lost episode” Creepypasta inspired by other memorable, like-minded stories such as Suicide Mouse and Dead Bart. Essentially, the Creepypasta details how the author (from a first-person perspective) started an internship for Nickelodeon in 2005, working closely with the writers and animators behind Spongebob Squarepants. They gather around to preview “Fear of the Krabby Patty,” which was given the mock title “Squidward’s Suicide” as something of an inside joke. Thinking nothing of it, OP watches on, but after Squidward’s failed concert has the entirety of Bikini Bottom booing him, he resorts to uncontrollable sobbing before eventually taking a handgun to his head. Meanwhile, disturbing images flash on the screen, such as the mangled bodies of dead children. Simultaneously, realistic blood trickles from Squidward’s eyes, which are bloodshot and bulging. They never found the culprit behind the footage, nor the identities of the children involved.
9. Psychosis
Often considered one of the higher-quality Creepypasta, Matt Dymerski’s Psychosis — a collection of short stories — first emerged in 2013, following a man named John who suffers from extreme paranoia. John barricades himself in his basement, convinced that an extraterrestrial is coming to abduct him, but he can’t believe his delusions. Eventually, he begins to wonder if these fears are justified. Countless readers have dished heaps of praise for Dymerski’s seamless storytelling and innate ability to build a narrative around minimal characters, one restrictive setting and an abstract concept. Psychosis capitalizes on one irrational fear, feasting on the narrator’s hyperactive imagination to craft an environment that’s beyond exciting for a reader and utterly terrifying for a main character. Although the implication of aliens is far-fetched, many readers also found John to be relatable, especially as mental health (psychosis, mania, and depression — in particular) has become less of a taboo subject nowadays.
8. The Rake
We’re not too certain how The Rake came to be, but several sources credit Bryan Somerville with its creation. The Rake appears to be an unusually tall, hairless and humanoid entity that stalks its victims on all-fours. Think about a Wendigo, which is uncannily similar. The Creepypasta reads identically to a retelling of Big Foot or the Loch Ness Monster, as media interest skyrocketed in the summer of 2003 following reports of a pale-skinned creature attracting unsuspecting tourists in the northeastern United States. Primarily in rural New York, eye witnesses describe encounters with The Rake, ranging from sheer terror to almost childlike curiosity. The Creepypasta essentially reads as if paraphrasing documents that were recovered in 2006, three years after the first sightings were reported, these including a suicide note, several journal entries, a Mariner’s log and witness accounts. Interestingly, when images of The Rake began swarming the internet, mainstream media outlets actually took it seriously.
7. Laughing Jack
Trigger warning: Mature themes ahead.
Written by ‘Snuffbomb,’ Laughing Jack focuses on a sadistic killer clown who was thought to be the imaginary friend of the author’s fictional five-year-old son, James. Originally, Laughing Jack appears to James as a friendly and mischievous figment of his imagination, but eventually, Laughing Jack begins misplacing toys and offering James some candy, luring him into a false sense of security. Then, one night, Laughing Jack infiltrates the house and attacks James, removing his eyes, tongue, teeth and internal organs, then nailing his body to the bedroom wall. Miraculously, James is still alive when the author finds him, but not before Laughing Jack — as his name suggests — does indeed get the last laugh. It might be a bit too graphic for some readers, but Snuffbomb creates tension magnificently here, building small inconveniences (Annabelle-style) to a grand climax that’s too much to bare. Unfortunately, the internet hasn’t seen hide nor hair of Snuffbomb for some time, but we’ll assume they’re preoccupied with a well-deserved book tour.
6. Smile Dog
Believed to have spawned from an image of the devil himself, Smile Dog originated from an image file known as smile.jpg, which is believed to incite insanity upon all those who view it without “spreading the world” as the Smile Dog instructs as a vision in one’s dreams. Legend has it that all those who view the smile.jpg file will wind up dead, but although there are copycat images in its likeness, the original smile.jpg no longer exists on the web. “Smile.dog” is the demonic being that smile.jpg is reputed to display, discovered by a journalist (the author) with burgeoning interest in web-based phenomena. Victims have described the image as containing a dog-like creature (compared to a Siberian husky) with a muzzle split into a wide grin, showing rows of very human-looking teeth. In the background, a human hand reaches from the darkness in what is considered a “beckoning.” The only way to save oneself is to spread the image, otherwise insanity will take its toll. The original author of the Creepypasta remains unknown.
5. Eyeless Jack
Similar to Laughing Jack (what’s with all the Jacks?), Eyeless Jack is a notorious serial killer in Creepypasta lore. Published in 2012, the Eyeless Jack story was penned by Azelf5000 (a.k.a. Thunder/Joey) and focuses on a humanoid entity who harvests and feeds on human organs. Jack’s moniker comes from his distinguishable appearance; a hoodie lifted over a blue face mask with the eye sockets missing, seemingly oozing black liquid. There’s an ekphrastic element to Eyeless Jack’s creation, as the character was conceived from a DeviantArt image that predated the backstory. Told from the perspective of ‘Mitch,’ Eyeless Jack’s origins detail a supernatural phenomena in which strange occurrences in a shared home arouse suspicion that a malevolent entity might be near. Dismissed as “a raccoon” or bouts of sleepwalking, Mitch knew something was terribly wrong when he awoke one morning to find his left kidney missing.
4. The Russian Sleep Experiment
No one knows from which mind The Russian Sleep Experiment came, and the author seems content in their anonymity. However, sources have traced the origins of the Creepypasta to the Creepypasta Wiki, uploaded under the guise OrangeSoda — whose real name is unknown. Rather than vice-versa, as is traditional, the Creepypasta formed the basis of an urban legend surrounding the Soviet era. As the story goes, five test subjects were chosen to participate in an experiment that exposed them to a sleep-inhibiting stimulant, forcing them to stay awake indefinitely. After nine days without rest, one test subject began screaming uncontrollably for hours on end, while the others remained unfazed. By the 15th day, the researchers were adamant in switching off the gas and opening the chamber, but by that time, the subjects had grown accustomed to a constant state of awake and refused. When the chamber opened, horrific sights of mutilation and cannibalism greeted the researchers, whom the subjects assaulted in fits of violent rage, having developed superhuman endurance. They eventually discovered that if they fell asleep again, they would die.
3. Jeff the Killer
Jeff the Killer‘s original creator was a user by the name of Sessuer, while the Creepypasta itself was written by GameFuelTv. Jeffrey Woods is an adolescent serial killer who was left horrifically disfigured after a gang of bullies set him on fire. It was this altercation that triggered Jeff’s descent into madness. When the doctors removed his bandages, Jeff’s face was seen to be ghostly pale with a leathery texture from the third-degree burns. He maniacally laughed and said he “preferred” his face this way, but the doctors foolishly believed his reaction to be a side-effect of the painkillers and discharged him. Later that night, Jeff murdered his parents in cold blood, as well as his brother Liu, whom he told to “go to sleep” before plunging a knife into his chest, thus birthing his catchphrase. From then on, Jeff went on a murderous rampage, renaming himself “Jeff the Killer” and preyed on those who refused to sleep.
2. BEN Drowned
Alex Hall (Jadusable) can be credited with the conception of Ben Drowned (also stylized as BEN Drowned). It goes by many names, including “Haunted Majora’s Mask Cartridge” based on the famous game Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, which was notorious for glitches. Ben Drowned supposedly haunts the game, tormenting Jadusable throughout the series. There’s several “Arcs” to the Creepypasta, namely the “Haunted Cartridge Arc” and the “Moon Children Arc.” Although no one knows for certain what Ben looked like before he drowned, there’s the assumption that he had a striking resemblance to Link, ironically. In the “Moon Children” Arc, it was revealed that Ben was sacrificed to a cult known as the Moon Children, which led to his premature death, but contrary to common belief, Ben was not killed by his biological father, but rather the cult’s leader, known as “The Father.” There’s even a belief that Ben can infiltrate online websites, including Cleverbot, to talk to users. Ben Drowned was praised for its use of multimodal storytelling as well as establishing tropes used in succeeding Creepypasta narratives.
1. Slender Man
Slender Man was created in 2009 by Eric Knudsen, who posted images of the character — then known as “Victor Surge” — in a thread called “create paranormal images” on SomethingAwful.com. The artwork portrayed Slender Man alongside several children, captioned by Knudsen with small snippets of texts pertaining to Slender Man’s origins. It was in those short descriptions that Slender Man’s non-linear backstory was born. Once the Slender Man design had gone viral, the character was picked up by several other users who implemented him into their own Creepypasta, further developing his purpose. Slender Man’s mythos has been widely accepted as a paranormal entity who lures children into the woods and warps their minds, convincing them to sacrifice either themselves or someone else to him, dooming them to live with him forever among the trees. There’s no doubt that Slender Man is Creepypasta’s most iconic figure, known to many who aren’t even familiar with his entire biography.
