Stephen King. With a chit-chatty tone and simple, everyday words, he’s able to horrify. A master of the craft.
How’s this for a first paragraph of a short story?
I’ve been having this bad dream for a week now, but it must be one of the lucid ones, because I’m always able to back out before it turns into a nightmare. Only this time it seems to have followed me, because Ellen and I aren’t alone. There’s something under the bed. I can hear it chewing.
I was fine, lying in bed, late at night, drowsy and with sleep imminent, until I got to the last sentence.
With that, I was wide awake.
Well played, Mr. King.
(‘Under the Weather’, Bazaar of Bad Dreams)