The Spider's Warning
The Spider’s Warning" is a horror micro-short about a woman fixated on killing a spider. She is met by a trio of supernatural warnings, each more urgent than the last. Bound by obsession, she steps blindly toward her fate. With no monologue and a haunting stillness, the script explores compulsion, obsession, and the eerie wisdom hidden in nature’s smallest messengers.
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Staci MallettWriter
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Project Type:Short Script
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Number of Pages:3
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First-time Screenwriter:Yes
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Student Project:No
Staci Mallett is an screenwriter whose work in progress spans psychological horror, espionage, and character-driven stories about the human condition. Her writing is rooted in lived experiences, dreams, and everyday moments, often drawn from her work, travels, and conversations with strangers.
Originally from Metro Detroit, this Midwesterner is now based in California. She’s continuing to build a body of work and would genuinely enjoy connecting with industry professionals who are looking for fresh voices and stories.
As a child, I knew a rhyme that said, “If you want to live and thrive, let a spider run alive.” I’ve also had vivid dreams about spiders over the years, and eventually, those pieces turned into this short.
"The Spider’s Warning" is built without a monologue. There are only two characters-the woman and the spider. The performance depends entirely on the actress’s movement, stillness, and timing. The tension comes from what she does or doesn’t do, and how long we’re made to sit in it. That quiet gives space for the score to do real work. Nothing is filler.
The woman is intentionally left undefined. We don’t know her name, her job, or her backstory because none of it matters in the context of this moment. This story is about her psychological unraveling in real time. The horror isn’t in who she is, but in what she does when obsession overrides rational thinking.
The spider itself presents a unique challenge. Whether it’s done with practical effects, CGI, or a combination of both, it has to feel real without becoming flashy. It should support the tone, not compete with it.
I believe spiders are not always harbingers of doom, and some scientists believe they might even dream. Perhaps this script will be one of my dreams coming true.
