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WEEKLY WRITING PROMPTS

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Locked away, write a story that hides something from the reader until the end..

LIVE – Dramatic

Your character is invited to a secret meeting. Who invited them, and what do they encounter?

LIVE – Short Story

Write a story with the line “Don’t tell anyone.”

LIVE – Angst

Begin your story with someone either being followed or following someone else.

Write a story in the form of diary/journal entries about a secret or confession..

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Write a story in which the narrator or a character says "Did you hear that?"

Center your story around someone trying to resist their darker impulses — and they’ll either succeed or fail., write a story from the point of view of a ghost, vampire, or werewolf., start or end your story with someone running away from something, literally or metaphorically., write a story with the aim of scaring your reader., subscribe to our prompts newsletter.

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A character finds a clue or object linking them to a stranger.

Two strangers discover they have a hidden connection that alters their understanding of each other and themselves., write a story that includes the line “have we met before”, a chance encounter brings together two old friends who have changed in surprising or strange ways., a character crosses paths with a stranger who looks eerily familiar., write a story about someone searching for a missing ingredient, literally or metaphorically., set your story in a kitchen, either early in the day or late at night., write a story inspired by the saying “revenge is a dish best served cold.”, start or end your story with two people discussing an important matter over a meal., write a story in the form of a recipe., win $250 in our short story competition 🏆.

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Creative Writing Prompts

When the idea to start a weekly newsletter with writing inspiration first came to us, we decided that we wanted to do more than provide people with topics to write about. We wanted to try and help authors form a regular writing habit and also give them a place to proudly display their work. So we started the weekly Creative Writing Prompts newsletter. Since then, Prompts has grown to a community of more than 450,000 authors, complete with its own literary magazine, Prompted .  

Here's how our contest works: every Friday, we send out a newsletter containing five creative writing prompts. Each week, the story ideas center around a different theme. Authors then have one week — until the following Friday — to submit a short story based on one of our prompts. A winner is picked each week to win $250 and is highlighted on our Reedsy Prompts page.

Interested in participating in our short story contest? Sign up here for more information! Or you can check out our full Terms of Use and our FAQ page .

Why we love creative writing prompts

If you've ever sat in front of a computer or notebook and felt the urge to start creating worlds, characters, and storylines — all the while finding yourself unable to do so — then you've met the author's age-old foe: writer's block. There's nothing more frustrating than finding the time but not the words to be creative. Enter our directory! If you're ready to kick writer's block to the curb and finally get started on your short story or novel, these unique story ideas might just be your ticket.

This list of 1800+ creative writing prompts has been created by the Reedsy team to help you develop a rock-solid writing routine. As all aspiring authors know, this is the #1 challenge — and solution! — for reaching your literary goals. Feel free to filter through different genres, which include...

Dramatic — If you want to make people laugh and cry within the same story, this might be your genre.

Funny — Whether satire or slapstick, this is an opportunity to write with your funny bone.

Romance — One of the most popular commercial genres out there. Check out these story ideas out if you love writing about love.

Fantasy — The beauty of this genre is that the possibilities are as endless as your imagination.

Dystopian – Explore the shadowy side of human nature and contemporary technology in dark speculative fiction.

Mystery — From whodunnits to cozy mysteries, it's time to bring out your inner detective.

Thriller and Suspense — There's nothing like a page-turner that elicits a gasp of surprise at the end.

High School — Encourage teens to let their imaginations run free.

Want to submit your own story ideas to help inspire fellow writers? Send them to us here.

After you find the perfect story idea

Finding inspiration is just one piece of the puzzle. Next, you need to refine your craft skills — and then display them to the world. We've worked hard to create resources that help you do just that! Check them out:

  • How to Write a Short Story That Gets Published — a free, ten-day course by Laura Mae Isaacman, a full-time editor who runs a book editing company in Brooklyn.
  • Best Literary Magazines of 2023 — a directory of 100+ reputable magazines that accept unsolicited submissions.
  • Writing Contests in 2023 — the finest contests of 2021 for fiction and non-fiction authors of short stories, poetry, essays, and more.

Beyond creative writing prompts: how to build a writing routine

While writing prompts are a great tactic to spark your creative sessions, a writer generally needs a couple more tools in their toolbelt when it comes to developing a rock-solid writing routine . To that end, here are a few more additional tips for incorporating your craft into your everyday life.

  • NNWT. Or, as book coach Kevin Johns calls it , “Non-Negotiable Writing Time.” This time should be scheduled into your routine, whether that’s once a day or once a week. Treat it as a serious commitment, and don’t schedule anything else during your NNWT unless it’s absolutely necessary.
  • Set word count goals. And make them realistic! Don’t start out with lofty goals you’re unlikely to achieve. Give some thought to how many words you think you can write a week, and start there. If you find you’re hitting your weekly or daily goals easily, keep upping the stakes as your craft time becomes more ingrained in your routine.
  • Talk to friends and family about the project you’re working on. Doing so means that those close to you are likely to check in about the status of your piece — which in turn keeps you more accountable.

Arm yourself against writer’s block. Writer’s block will inevitably come, no matter how much story ideas initially inspire you. So it’s best to be prepared with tips and tricks you can use to keep yourself on track before the block hits. You can find 20 solid tips here — including how to establish a relationship with your inner critic and apps that can help you defeat procrastination or lack of motivation.

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Explore more writing prompt ideas:

Adults Writing Prompts â­˘

Adventure Writing Prompts â­˘

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Dramatic Writing Prompts â­˘

Dystopian Writing Prompts â­˘

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Fiction Writing Prompts â­˘

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Winter Writing Prompts â­˘

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Gatekeeper Press

100 Creative Plot Ideas Organized by Genre

by GetPublished | Sep 17, 2019 | Blog , Writing

creative plot ideas

Table of Contents

Here are one-hundred plot ideas for when your mind is feeling frazzled and the noggin empty. Some of the plot ideas here are completely out of this world while others are down to earth. From dystopia to romance, to the clichĂŠ and outlandish, this list is sure to kickstart your imagination!

Overcome Writer’s Block With Some Fresh New Plot Ideas for Your Genre

Fantasy plot ideas.

First off, we have some fantasy plot ideas for all your magical needs!

fantasy plot ideas

  • A mortal has been accidentally placed onto Olympus.
  • Everyone is born with three wishes in life that they are not allowed to use until (input age here).
  • A contest for the queen after the sudden death of said queen from a magical realm.
  • The bridge between the realm of the fae and mortal shrinks with each day while tensions run high.
  • You are the first and last person to discover the fountain of youth.
  • You have lived for (insert time) but have run into the option to finally be set to rest, but (blank) makes you question what you truly want.
  • You have lived many lifetimes, always in an endless cycle of birth and death, you finally find someone the same though.
  • Each night you are woken by the shouts of sailors and deckhands, the ringing of bells, and the light. But no one else has seen or heard such things.
  • Luck has become a hereditary trait.
  • Imaginary friends have gone too far, now that friend is real… but something is totally off.
  • “Familiars” play pivotal roles in society, the strength of said creature determines your fate.

Live your fantasy writing dream, or find a genre that you should write for !

Romance Plot Ideas

Maybe love will always find a way with these romance plot ideas. Or will everything go down in flames?

romance plot ideas

  • She’s a world-class thief, he’s the lead investigator. At each crime scene, there’s a note left just for him.
  • He’s rich beyond anyone’s wildest dreams and no one has ever been able to get close to him. All he cares about in life is perfection which he always is looking for in artwork and whatnot. But then an unruly, perfectly imperfect girl bumps into him, ruining the vase he’s bought while at a show.
  • She has no care for love, all she cares about is ruling with an iron fist, making her the fearsome but prosperous boss nationwide. Her newest hire has all the skills needed and perfect in every aspect, but then she’s discovered to be sent by her rival… what will she do?
  • She’s motivated by blood and money and will take nearly any contract if there’s enough cash involved; he is to be the victim. But when one contract killer is trying to kill the other, what will occur?
  • In his kingdom, it is to be a queen that always rules. However, when both his parents are murdered, to keep some unpleasant relatives off the throne he must change his entire identity to be the new queen. This includes marrying the prince of another kingdom…
  • He ensures that everyone finds their soulmate, sometimes through much trial and error. All he’s ever done is watch idly by, but when he falls in love with a mortal meant for someone else, what is he to do?
  • She’s a writer, one that writes about love and death. One night she gets a call from someone who says and acts exactly as one of her characters did… alarmed she continues to contact this person. Soon enough she finds herself in love with the character…
  • She expects and wants everything to go exactly like all the fairytale stories she heard when she was younger, always with expectations high whilst being often the laughingstock. But then, she meets him…
  • Everyone knows their fate, hers is quite bleak. She has no motivation and low expectations because of it, but then she is mistaken for someone else. And when she is mistaken to be who she’s not, he comes into her life and finds herself with everything she was never supposed to have.
  • His father is quite literally (some well-known character that would cause problems, ex: the devil, Frankenstein/ doctor Frankenstein, Vampire/Werewolf, etc.), making him a total outcast. When a new girl who heeds no warnings approaches him, what will he do?
  • Their relationship was fake or at least supposed to be anyhow.
  • She began getting strange letters in her mail, they were yellowed and very old looking, but somehow well preserved all the same even though appearing to be from centuries ago. She eventually decides to write one back, and he receives it. They’re centuries apart but sure they’re soul mates.

Mystery Plot Ideas

What’s been stolen, who’s dead, what’s the motive? So much to ask for these mystery plot ideas.

mystery plot ideas

  • You can’t figure out whether you’re awake or asleep.
  • You have woken up after a terrible accident, at least that’s what everyone has told you. No one seems to be willing to give any details and you can’t remember the last year of your life…
  • You could’ve sworn that someone tapped you on the shoulder, but no one was there. As well you feel watched, and then you receive a letter.
  • A few months ago, you began to sleepwalk, but it’s not only you, but it also seems the entire town is as well.
  • As you’re restoring a painting you notice something strange, an engraving and the details seem to be changing.
  • A crime has occurred, more specifically a murder. The victim was found poisoned at the scene and as if they were sleeping, next to a bitten apple… and they were dressed as snow white. Will more follow?
  • A picture is worth a thousand words, or at least that’s what they say. This one was certainly worth more than that.
  • A box of pictures fell onto you as you bumped a shelf, it showed a person in each and seemed to go back quite a long time… but in each, the same cat sat.
  • People believed to be dead or lost for years have started to show up as if they never left with no recollection of where they went either.

Pro Tip: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook—don’t let distractions keep you from writing your first novel! Use different online writing tools to get the most out of your writing sessions.

Dystopian Plot Ideas

Suffering and injustice, the bread and butter of dystopian society, plenty of that in these dystopian plot ideas!

dystopian plot ideas

  • People are now able to quite literally bet their lives when gambling now.
  • In a desperate hope to cut down on crime and population, those convicted are now entered into a lottery of sorts, the prize? Death. Those with more convictions or worse crimes have a higher likelihood of being chosen.
  • No one remembers why the walls were built, no one wishes to leave either though.
  • Black Friday has turned into a “game” for the rich. They throw trinkets and cash to the crowds of those poorer to watch the bloodbath that ensues.
  • Due to the high-cost and overcrowding of prisons, the government has sent prisoners to man-made islands of which there is no escape. Each island is for a certain level of prisoner, they are left to create their own society or kill each other, whichever works, I guess.
  • It is now rare for twins to be born, and when they are born it most often is due to one that is meant to stop the other.
  • A very rare few are born without emotions; it is possible though for others to donate emotions for a time.
  • Physical traits are achieved through personality. Over time good deeds will create beauty.
  • Reincarnation is a real thing, and there are bounty hunters to track down these people. They may have been lovers, criminals, etc.
  • The ability to see color is a privilege of the aristocratic.
  • Only the smart, strong, and stunningly gorgeous survive. Everyone else is put to death to control the population.
  • Sometimes news stations find themselves lacking, that’s why you were born. You’re what they call a Joker, your entire purpose is to do all that will make for a great story.
  • It is now possible to entirely swap bodies with someone else. Of course, this always results in the death of who you’re swapping with.
  • It is illegal to look outside from the time 11:07 pm to 6:07 am. Each person is required to enter a windowless room for those times in which the government has the ability to lock and unlock the door.
  • The earth turns out to be a sanctuary for an endangered species, humans. Today is the first day they are to be introduced back into the wild.

Hunger Games, Divergent, The Maze Runner—what do all of these books have in common? They are dystopian novels turned blockbuster movies! Read more about the best—and worst— movie adaptations of all time .

Horror Story Plot Ideas

Clowns with red balloons and masked killers, don’t go into the haunted house! Here are some horror story plot ideas!

Horror plot ideas

  • As an assassin with a sixth sense, you seek vengeance for the restless souls.
  • You’re a sleepwalking murderer, but when you wake up, you’re a well-known and renowned detective. You’re hunting yourself and others.
  • In the future virtual reality is more prevalent and even realistic than it’s ever been, an entirely new world and life. It’s often used on high profile criminals to make them live what they did from the victim’s view or their worst nightmare.
  • You’re finally meeting your “soulmate’s” parents, thrilled and full of glee. But as they close the door behind you, they lean in to whisper, “I’m sorry” / “Forgive me”.
  • You’ve been noticing strange things when you awake, new marks or stains, objects moved, new, or even missing. So, you set up a camera. After a few weeks of going over the footage, there’s something strange and unnerving.

~Idea to further this: You wake up, get out of bed, and look into the camera… and then you die. (You kill yourself, duplicate comes in, etc.), Then someone who looks like they could be an exact clone comes in and drags out the body, cleans up, and slips back into bed.

  • She never seems to be able to get it right. She can’t seem to find “the one”, or someone even close to that. Little does she know it’s been the same… creature, a shapeshifter who at all costs will have her.
  • Each night you heard a tapping on the glass or shrill noise. One night it was too loud to ignore and persisted… soon you realized it was coming from the…
  • It’s 3:33 am, a blaring siren comes from your phone with an official notification: Do not look at the moon, do not even glance at it. As well there’s an unbelievable amount of texts and posts on social media saying in some way that it’s a must-see, stunningly beautiful, once in a lifetime view.
  • “The human mind is truly the most horrifying and gruesome thing of all.”
  • The crow counting rhyme: One for sorrow / Two for mirth / Three for a wedding / and Four for a birth / Five for silver / Six for gold / and Seven for a secret not to be told. There are also many variations of this rhyme that you could use instead, sets up for an interesting and creepy story though.
  • The last thing I saw was the glow of my alarm clock, 3:00 am, and then (something scary, death, creature, etc.) ex: its long and sharp rotting nails slowly tore through my neck, its other “hand” muffling my screams. I then woke up in a cold sweat and glanced at the clock, 2:59 am… and that’s when I heard a creaking and smelled of rot.
  • It is now possible to know some details of your past lives, how many, how long you lived, etc. As well it’s been linked that some of your phobias are how you died…
  • You’re on edge, a few weeks ago you there would be some weird occurrence. Then it was a note with messy and illegible writing. Now you can hear shrill noises, screams, shouting, indistinct. Now at seemingly the source of a scratching noise etched is a clear warning.
  • An anonymous admirer letter was slipped under your door at your college. It would seem cute and sweet if it hadn’t been from your closet.
  • I found a dead body in my trunk today… I could’ve sworn that I had more than that in there just yesterday.
  • Every night you visit me, sometimes in a dream, sometimes in my nightmares.
  • I kissed my wife and darling daughter goodnight… and then I awoke in a white padded room with a straight jacket on. They told me it was all just a dream.

Plot Twist Ideas

There are some real turnarounds in this list of plot twist ideas!

plot twist plot ideas

  • The princess saves the prince.
  • Write a story where one of your characters either from the start or at some point in the book are dead or presumed dead. Then have it be that they never were to shake up the story.
  • A character that keeps telling outlandish things, but it turns out they’re right.
  • A main character or “essential” character killed out of nowhere.
  • Have a very guilty and easy to hate a character in your story, have it be a double-cross or frame job.
  • A character who is mistaken for someone else but goes along with it.
  • A character is revealed to not be what they or the audience had thought.
  • An important character throughout the plot is revealed to never have truly existed.
  • Some devastating occurrence is caused by those whose entire goal was to fix it or keep it from occurring.
  • A character believed to be unimportant to quite bland turns out to be essential and far from.
  • Something the character has been searching for or desperately needed was right in front of their eyes the entire time.
  • Have it turn out to be that the entire time some blackmail has been the cause for nearly all of a character’s actions.
  • A character who is absolutely in love/ obsessed/ or infatuated with another learns it’s for the wrong reasons/ that they’re not at all what they seemed/ etc.
  • It turns out the character or group of characters have been led to helping the enemy.

Other Creative Plot Ideas

Here are the last fifteen plot ideas, hopefully you’ll find some other creative plot ideas as well here!

  • Make a hero or protagonist that most will hate, vice versa for an antagonist or villain.
  • Truth or Dare, your character has a secret, or a truth. What are they willing to say or do to keep said truth secret.
  • “I love you.”, “Lying isn’t a good look for you.”
  • A bunch of short stories that end on major cliffhangers, but a final one. Once you’re done writing those maybe have them somehow all connect or give the ending to each.
  • Everyone ages up until a certain age (ex: 18, 21, etc.) and will remain that age until they meet their soulmate. (Could be used as someone avoiding finding theirs to reign forever, or accidentally aging, or finding you aren’t aging even when with someone.)
  • A high school group can’t agree on the meaning and interpretation of Romeo and Juliet , so of course they split into two groups. But then, one person from one group falls in love with the other. Even though it seems nearly every Shakespeare is going on in the group at the same time.
  • The retelling of Snow White, if she truly had lips red as a rose, hair black as ebony, and skin white as snow.
  • A world where everyone is born with a unique tattoo that gives a hint to fate, personality, each person they love their tattoos will begin to form somewhere on them. These tattoos cannot be removed and will not go away, though they can be hidden and covered. They will receive a tattoo or mark for each love they have, it does not matter if they no longer do or what happens.
  • A customer-service worker (retail, support, etc.) who quits their day job to deal with demons, ghosts, and whatnot.
  • A story on vampires, but not all are the usual sophisticated, well mannered, well spoken, and so on. Instead, they do their best to not seem outdated, may mercilessly mix multiple slang from way to many different eras, or talking in laughable applications of slang and references, etc.
  • Vampires, but for once there are those who’ve been turned other than around nineteen or twenty. With some being turned as a child or while elderly.
  • A world where all the mythical creatures or monsters, etc., exist and try to coexist. Each with their own job, talent, and so on. Trying to live “normally”.
  • Cinderella went to the ball to murder the prince. Retellings of well-known fairy tales.
  • A “superhero” and “villain” who are roommates and nemesis. (Could be they don’t know about the other so both are lying, they both know but don’t want to give away themselves, so on)
  • A twist on the changeling stories. A mother caught a fair attempting to switch the child with a changeling soon after the arrival of her child. So she is unable to tell them apart, raises both. Both twins are exactly identical in voice and appearance.

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essay plot ideas

50 Fiction Writing Prompts and Ideas to Inspire You to Write

Hannah Yang headshot

By Hannah Yang

fiction writing prompts

Table of Contents

How fiction writing prompts can help writers, top 50 fiction writing prompts, how prowritingaid can help with fiction writing, conclusion on fiction writing prompts and ideas.

Have you ever wanted to write a story but had no idea what to write about?

If you’re familiar with that feeling, you’re not alone. At some point in their lives, every writer has sat down in front of a blank page with no idea what to write next.

When you’re in that situation, it might be helpful to look at a list of potential story ideas. A great prompt can help kick-start your creativity and get you in the mood for writing again.

In this article, we’ll give you all our favorite fiction writing prompts to inspire you to write.

There are countless ways fiction writing prompts can benefit you. Here are a few reasons you might want to use a writing prompt:

To start a new short story or novel

To practice writing in a new genre or writing style so you can expand your skill set and try something new

To warm up at the beginning of each writing session

To make sure you’re in a creative state of mind when you tackle your existing writing projects

So, pick up a pen and a notebook, and let’s get started!

why use fiction writing prompts

Here are 50 fantastic fiction writing prompts that will help you start your next story. To help you choose a prompt that excites you, we’ve split them into several categories: fantasy, sci-fi, mystery, romance, and contemporary.

Fantasy Prompts

You’ve inherited your grandfather’s antique shop, and you’re surprised to find strange objects with magical powers inside.

You set out to break the curse that’s followed your family for generations.

You can see visions of the future, but you learned long ago to keep them to yourself. Now, you have to speak up or risk losing everything you love.

You work for a zoo filled with magical creatures.

You’re a lawyer in a fantasy world, and your job is to negotiate contracts between the humans and the gods.

A company harvests dragon scales, unicorn hair, and other magical items to sell for profit.

You find a portal to a fantasy world in your backyard.

You find a magical item that will make all your wishes come true—but it’s extremely literal in its interpretations.

A supernatural monster kidnaps your best friend. You set out to rescue her.

Your parents gave different aspects of their magical powers to each of their children. Compared to your siblings, you definitely got the short end of the stick.

Sci-fi Prompts

Write an adaptation of your favorite classic tale—in space.

Aliens come to Earth, but they’re here for reasons no one expected.

Scientists have found ways to transfer memories between different people. You're the first person to sell all of yours.

Write about an entire world where people can buy and sell years of their lives.

What would happen if you woke up in someone else’s body and they woke up in yours?

You live in a moon colony surrounded by high walls. One day, someone breaches the walls.

Your parents send you to a summer camp filled with time travelers.

You accidentally stumble through a portal to a parallel universe where everything is the same as our universe, except for one key difference.

In a world where everyone’s DNA is genetically engineered to best suit their roles in the community, you have to hide that your DNA doesn’t match your chosen career.

You land on a new planet and realize the plants there are more intelligent than humans.

essay plot ideas

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Mystery Prompts

You wake up with no memory of who you are, except for a single name.

Every day, a strange drawing appears in your mailbox, and they get more and more disturbing.

You receive a letter inviting you to a free weekend getaway, and you have no idea who the host is.

Your father is keeping something strange in the attic.

A man throws an elaborate party in an attempt to conceal a crime.

You realize you’ve been sleepwalking every night, and you have no idea what your sleeping self has been up to.

You thought your husband was dead. So why is he still writing you letters?

Your brother was murdered years ago. The police have stopped investigating, but you’re still looking for the killer.

Two friends discover a serial killer's secret hideout.

A young woman discovers a frightening secret while she's on her first hunting trip with her husband's family.

Romance Prompts

Two soldiers on different sides of a war develop feelings for each other.

A member of the royal family falls in love with her bodyguard.

You’ve resigned yourself to a loveless arranged marriage, but fate has other plans.

You’ve had a crush on your best friend your entire life. Now, he’s about to get married to someone else.

You go on a first date and find yourself stuck in a time loop, so you have to keep going on that date over and over.

Two rivals have to pretend to be in a relationship—and end up accidentally falling for each other.

After a bad breakup, you move to a new town—and find yourself attracted to your next-door neighbor.

When two exes are forced to work together, they rekindle old feelings.

You fall in love with someone from a different dimension, so you can only see each other once a year when the portal opens.

After your plane crash-lands on a deserted island, you develop a bond with one of the other survivors.

Contemporary Prompts

Write an adaptation of your favorite classic tale set in the town you grew up in.

Two best friends go on a road trip and encounter a problem they never expected.

An adopted orphan goes on a journey to reconnect with her birth family.

You’re told a family secret that changes everything you think you know about your life.

A group of friends takes a practical joke too far, leading to disaster.

A college student creates an invention for a technology class and accidentally goes viral.

A painter in her early eighties struggles with her slow descent into blindness.

A couple breaks up, but the ramifications of their breakup follow them for decades.

A carefree playboy is forced to adopt a child, which changes his whole life.

You’re framed for a crime you didn’t commit, and nobody believes you’re innocent—except for your estranged sister.

No matter what type of story you’re writing, ProWritingAid is a great tool to help you make your writing shine.

ProWritingAid will suggest ways to improve various weaknesses in your writing, such as grammar mistakes, repetitive words, passive voice, unnecessary dialogue tags, and more.

You can even tell ProWritingAid what type of fiction you’re writing, such as fantasy or historical fiction, to get customized suggestions that match your genre.

There you have it—our complete list of the best fiction writing prompts to inspire you to write.

Try out your favorite one, and see if you can turn it into a unique story. 

Good luck, and happy writing!

Hannah Yang

Hannah is a speculative fiction writer who loves all things strange and surreal. She holds a BA from Yale University and lives in Colorado. When she’s not busy writing, you can find her painting watercolors, playing her ukulele, or hiking in the Rockies. Follow her work on hannahyang.com or on Twitter at @hannahxyang.

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500 Writing Prompts to Help Beat Writer’s Block

Looking to get your story started with a writing prompt? You’ve come to the right place. In this post we detail everything you need to know about writing prompts and give you 500 writing prompts broken down by genre. Enjoy!

I want to be a writer… but what if I have nothing to write about?

Ever feel like you’d love to write but you’re fresh out of ideas? Like there’s nothing else that you could possibly write about, or you have no idea where to even get started? We get it. One of the hardest steps in writing a book is often knowing where to get started. Coming up with content, getting your pen (or pencil) to paper, and letting your creativity flow is a challenge that many writers struggle with. As we know, facing writer’s block and fighting personal writing doubt is common. An overwhelming number of professional authors admit to getting stuck well before they get to the point of selling books on Amazon . Thankfully, there’s an answer to the question of where to turn when you feel like you’ve hit that proverbial wall: the writing prompt.

What is a writing prompt?

How often do writers use writing prompts?

There’s no right answer to this question because using writing prompts can often be a personal choice. Some authors find it greatly benefits their ability to turn out creative results. Some authors know that they already have the right ideas for a book in their heads. With using writing prompts, you need to decide on what’s best for you . Whatever method helps you generate ideas is what’s best for your writing!

Is there a writing prompt that’s best for me?

You might be wondering if there’s one type of writing prompt that’s best for you. It’s easy to find selections of prompts that are filtered by specific genres (romance, mystery, and so on). However, we recommend sticking to genre-specific prompts if you want your writing to be more focused. With that being said, you never know when inspiration will strike. If your writing needs are less genre-restricted, reading as many writing prompts ideas as possible may be the best option for you! Whenever I write for fun, I love to read as many prompts as I can across all genres. Hey, you can get some pretty fun ideas for a thriller story from sci-fi writing prompts.

Where can I find writing prompts?

Easy – the Internet! And books, too. We recommend checking out our collection of prompts first, but there are numerous great sources throughout the web with writing prompts ideas (blogs, social media, and even AI tools like ChatGPT ). Through combing the Internet for great websites and blogs like Reedsy , Screencraft , The Write Practice , Bryn Donovan’s resources , and the @writing.prompt.s Instagram page, we’ve written and gathered 500 writing prompts to help you kickstart your brain into writing mode. Categorized into ten popular genres, we encourage you to grab your mug of coffee or tea, read through our prompts, and get ready to catch the writing bug.

Have any particular writing prompts that help you get focused? Want to tell us about a great website for writing prompts? Feel free to share those in the comments below. Happy writing!

  • Mystery / Thriller
  • Science Fiction
  • Fantasy / Paranormal
  • General Fiction
  • Religion / Spirituality
  • Travel / Adventure
  • Young Adult

What are some mystery and thriller writing prompts?

  • You find strange, muddy footprints leading up to your front door.
  • A stranger sits down next to you on a train and gets up, leaving a package behind. Do you investigate the package?
  • You hear news of your next-door neighbor vanishing without a trace.
  • One day the national news channel shuts off. And the next day after that, too.
  • One day at work, you look across the street to see a hooded figure in a black coat pointing directly at you. What do they want?
  • You stumble upon a strange house you’ve never seen before on your morning run.
  • You get a text message from an unknown number saying, “Meet me outside. Now.”
  • Your parents tell you that they actually don’t know whose child you are.
  • Someone puts a large black box on your doorstep. A note on the front reads, “Caution: may bite.”
  • You wake up to discover a completely different, unknown face staring back at you from the mirror.
  • The protagonist of your story discovers that there is a person who looks exactly like him.
  • An international spy group recruits you to be their latest member.
  • You begin to realize that your reflection is no longer appearing in mirrors.
  • You aunt passes away, leaving you $500,000 in her will under the condition that you resume care for your hundred-year-old home.
  • Your best friend tells you that she feels like someone’s been watching her. The next day she goes missing.
  • Three words: Long lost brother.
  • The day of your wedding, you wake up to find every person in your wedding party has been brutally murdered.
  • The FBI begs you to come back to work on a special case. Your former partner has turned and is now wanted for the murders of three co-workers.
  • Local gravestones begin disappearing.
  • You can solve murders simply by stepping foot at the crime scene. Problem is, no one believes you.
  • Write a short story where the protagonist has a doppelganger. (Reedsy)
  • Your fingers tensed around the object in your pocket, ready to pull it out at a moment’s notice. (Reedsy)
  • You’re sitting by a window watching the flakes slowly and silently fall. Suddenly, you see something outside that snaps you out of your reverie. (Reedsy)
  • You’re at a huge store scouting out Black Friday deals. You start to notice that all the security cameras in the store seem to be following your each and every move. (Reedsy)
  • You work for the CIA who send you undercover in the FBI, who send you undercover in M16, who send you undercover in the CIA, who are very confused that you are back after only two weeks. (Reedsy)
  • A terrorist group has been infiltrated by so many agencies that it is now run by spies, unbeknownst to the spies themselves. This fact becomes apparent to an actual extremist who joins their ranks. (Reedsy)
  • Ever since childhood, a dark figure no one else can see has been following you around, whispering in your ear. Today you see it lying a few feet away, screaming and asking you to run. (Reedsy)
  • You’ve lived an average life up until today, your 20th birthday. You just found out that your dad is the runaway son of a doting criminal warlord, and your mom is the daughter of an equally doting secret agent. Both family businesses are looking to make you the next heir. (Reedsy)
  • She has been walking for hours. Her feet are starting to bleed. But she can’t stop moving… she can’t let him find her again. (Reedsy)
  • The morning after a blizzard you make your way outside and slowly start to realize everyone has disappeared. (Reedsy)
  • You find a hand-written note on your windshield that says, “Drive west for 100 miles.” (Reedsy)
  • You wake up in a jail cell, crusted blood covering your hands. You have no idea how you got there. The cell door clangs open, and an officer walks you to interrogation room where two detectives wait to question you. (Reedsy)
  • You walk into your job and find a secret, coded note pinned to your desk. What do you do next? (Reedsy)
  • Guard this with your life. (Reedsy)
  • A loved one confides in you, but the secret could damage someone else you care about. What do you do? (Reedsy)
  • As you’re browsing through a rack of sweaters, someone approaches you and says, “I need you to listen to me very carefully.” (Reedsy)
  • Write a short dark comedy in which a long-unsolved mystery is finally cracked. (Reedsy)
  • They say a picture is worth a thousand words but you knew the one you’d just taken was worth a million. (Reedsy)
  • You were the oldest person still living in the town and you remembered things no one else did. (Reedsy)
  • Looking through old family photos, multiple generations back, you notice there is a cat in almost every group photo. The same cat – color, pattern, one docked ear – that is currently purring on your lap. (Reedsy)
  • “… and that’s why dividing by three is illegal.” (Reedsy)
  • You’re a serial killer who murders anyone you see hitchhiking up your mountain. One day, you pick up a hitchhiker who kills anyone who picks them up.
  • You are legally allowed to commit murder once, but you must fill out the proper paperwork and your proposed victim will be notified of your intentions. (Reedsy)
  • You hire two private investigators to investigate each other. One month later both come to you to present their findings. (Reedsy)
  • 20 years after your daughter was abducted, a detective finds you to reopen the case. The detective turns out to be your daughter. (Reedsy)
  • You’re shaking hands with a stranger at a networking event when you ask for their name. “I have no name,” they reply. (Reedsy)
  • As you’re paying for your groceries, you mention to the clerk, “There’s a mess in aisle 16.” They give you a puzzled look and reply, “There is no aisle 16.” (Reedsy)
  • The detective didn’t realize they were being foiled by a competing detective. (Reedsy)
  • The first day you opened your own office as a private investigator, you didn’t expect it to be busy. You were wrong. (Reedsy)
  • You are the world’s greatest detective. With your near superhuman intellect, you have never failed to solve a case before. One day, you finally meet your match: a criminal so unbelievably stupid that you cannot possibly comprehend and predict what he’s going to do next. (Reedsy)

What are some romance writing prompts?

  • Left at the altar, you decide to seek revenge on your ex.
  • You got ditched at the last minute before prom – who will your date be?
  • A stranger texts the wrong number, and accidentally sends you a declaration of love. The message is so sweet and heartfelt that you know you can’t let it go.
  • A divorced former couple find each other on the same flight to Paris… Sitting next to each other.
  • After joining an adult swim league, you realize that your coach is irresistibly cute.
  • Your husband accidentally sends you a text meant for his mistress.
  • You and a hot stranger get trapped in an elevator.
  • Write a love story set at the zoo.
  • A college professor and their teaching assistant hit it off a little too well.
  • You get to make one wish to create your dream romantic partner. What is it?
  • Two strangers on an online chat room hit it off. Turns out they’re childhood sweethearts.
  • A parole officer falls in love with his parolee.
  • After their catamaran crashes, a husband and wife on their anniversary trip are left marooned on an island in the tropics.
  • She’s a burgeoning lingerie model who needs her cute neighbor to take portfolio shots of her.
  • An alien falls in love with a forbidden human.
  • Desperate for cash, a med student signs up to be a nude model for a retired women’s art club.
  • A cutthroat business woman swore she’d never find love until her best friend sets her up on a blind date.
  • Two widowed people meet at a community garden.
  • A chef decides to embark on an international culinary tour for inspiration and falls in love with their tour guide.
  • A daughter tries to set her widowed father up on an online dating app – without him knowing.
  • A Republican presidential candidate and Democratic presidential candidate fall in love.
  • You are a popular book heroine’s love interest. You now have 60 seconds to convince them that saving the city is more important than saving you. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • The love of your life is your brother’s nemesis.
  • You fall in love with every person you make eye contact with.
  • You’re a mail order bride arriving at her new home for the first time.
  • After you move to a new city, you fall in love with your realtor while buying a new house.
  • You realize that you’ve fallen out of love with your new wife while you’re on your honeymoon.
  • You and your best friends decide to try a new dating app for the first time.
  • At your friend’s urging, you begrudgingly attend a Valentine’s Day speed dating event. (Reedsy)
  • Every day, you return to your apartment and say, “Honey, I’m home. Oh wait, that’s right… I live alone.” But then one day, a voice replies, “I picked up some pizza.” (Reedsy)
  • Cupid offers to shoot an arrow into the person you love. He warns you that if the person already has a pre-existing affection towards you, it will disappear when the arrow strikes. (Reedsy)
  • You meet your doppelganger of the opposite sex and find you are strangely attracted to each other. (Reedsy)
  • Write a romantic comedy. Difficulty: both lovers are emotionally mature and have excellent communication skills. (Reedsy)
  • In the future, romantic attraction is literal: each person is fitted with an electromagnetic bracelet which, they claim, will pull you to your soulmate. It’s the day they turn the magnets on, and you’re waiting. (Reedsy)
  • A fortune teller falls in love with their client who has their palm read every month. (Reedsy)
  • It wasn’t love at first sight. But now you were starting to see them in a new light… (Reedsy)
  • Someone with anxiety falls in love with someone extremely adventurous. (Reedsy)
  • The lives of two people are changed forever when they coincidentally meet and engage in a weekend-long affair. (Reedsy)
  • They lived in a world where PDA is forbidden. One day, they slipped up and held hands on the street. (Reedsy)
  • Two characters who are perfect for one another are foiled by bad timing. (Reedsy)
  • Two mortal enemies fall in love when they’re trapped in an elevator together and begin to see the other person’s perspective. (Reedsy)
  • Valentine’s Day at a retirement home. (Reedsy)
  • Well, that was a New Year’s Eve kiss you won’t forget any time soon. (Reedsy)
  • You have the ability to make anyone fall in love with you. You’ve just fallen in love for the first time. Do you use your power? (Reedsy)
  • You and your partner finally have the most romantic vacation planned. Problem is, your in-laws decided to tag along at the last minute.
  • You never would have guessed that in 48 hours you’d be married. (Reedsy)
  • A dog lover and cat lover fall in love… and must find a way to get their animals to fall in love, too.
  • You’ve been bumping into the same stranger for months. Finally, you decide to say hello. (Reedsy)
  • They might have aged 50 years, but when they held you, those hands felt exactly like they did the first time. (Reedsy)
  • An avalanche strands two mortal enemies together… and they start to fall in love.

What are some science fiction writing prompts?

  • You wake up one morning to find out that you get to move to any planet of your choosing.
  • Your wife is a droid.
  • Every day, you get one hour to revisit any moment from your life. What do you pick?
  • Gravity no longer exists.
  • You are chosen to go on the first ever recreational space journey.
  • After people die, their spirits can be brought back from death but at the cost of one random human life. Is it worth it?
  • Everyone in the world has the ability to read thoughts. Except for one person.
  • You have to power to build one separate planet. How do you build it? Who gets to live there?
  • What team do you gather to fight the largest alien and terrorist threat on Earth?
  • The world is dying. In order to save it, you’ve been commanded to sacrifice yourself to an invading alien group.
  • You are the first person able to breathe in outer space.
  • A rare form of cancer is the newest superbug. With a team of scientists, you all must find a cure before the population is wiped out.
  • Human beings begin to find themselves growing extra limbs as global warming amps up.
  • It turns out humans have been the aliens all along.
  • You are in charge of a secretive government agency that aligns people’s fates. Their livelihood is entirely up to you and what you want to do with it.
  • Technology becomes illegal.
  • All plant life on the planet is wiped out, except for in Florida.
  • You are one of the mechanics on the first ever self-flying airplane.
  • Walking through the woods one day, you come across a small animal that has the ability to instantaneously clone itself.
  • Your whole family has fought in the space military, but you’ve decided to no longer take part in it.
  • In an alternate universe where global warming has ruined the planet, you’ve spent your entire life living in an airplane on autopilot.
  • You’re a 15-year-old in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. However, a cure has been found that not only rids the infected person of the virus before they turn but prevents it altogether. Only one problem… Your parents are anti-vaxxers. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • Nasa engineers monitor the curiosity rover’s actions. All seems normal until the robot suddenly changes its course. The scientists attempt to correct it over and over until they suddenly receive a transmission from the rover: “Will Save Oppy” (@writing.prompt.s)
  • What if a nuclear submarine was ordered to launch their nuclear arsenal onto the world? (Screencraft)
  • What if the world we live in is actually a computer simulation? (Screencraft)
  • What if the past and present timelines began to merge? (Screencraft)
  • What if your stepfather or stepmother is actually your future self? (Screencraft)
  • What if the sun began to die? (Screencraft)
  • What if the universe as we know it is actually someone’s imagination? (Screencraft)
  • Everyone on earth begins to experience universal amnesia.
  • The year is 2200. What does the world look like to you?
  • In the future, we no longer require water, air, or food. We are a super efficient team of robots.
  • What do you think happens when the grid goes down?
  • Describe your perfect utopian world.
  • Your penpal lives on the opposite side of the universe.
  • Aliens who only communicate with sign language invade. To avoid war, our governments must engage a vastly marginalized portion of the human population: the hearing-impaired. (The Write Practice)
  • A rogue planet with strange properties collides with our sun, and after it’s all over, worldwide temperature falls forty degrees. Write from the perspective of a someone trying to keep his tropical fruit trees alive. (The Write Practice)
  • Ever read about the world’s loneliest whale? Write a story in which he’s actually the survivor of an aquatic alien species which crashed here eons ago, and he’s trying very hard to learn the “local” whale language so he can fit in. Write from his perspective the first time he makes contact. (The Write Practice)
  • An alien planet starts receiving bizarre audio transmissions from another world (spoiler: they’re from Earth). What does it mean? Are they under attack? Some think so…until classic rock ‘n’ roll hits the airwaves, and these aliens discover dancing. Write from the perspective of the teenaged alien who first figures it out. (The Write Practice)
  • Take anything we find normal today (shopping malls, infomercials, products to remove facial hair, etc.) and write a story from the perspective of an archeologist five thousand years in the future who just unearthed this stuff, has NO idea what any of it was for, and has to give a speech in an hour explaining the historical/religious/sociological significance. (The Write Practice)
  • House cats are aliens who have succeeded in their plan to rule the world. Discuss.
  • A high schooler from fifteen hundred years in our future is assigned a one-page writing project on a twenty-first century person’s life based entirely on TV commercials. Write the beginning of the essay. (The Write Practice)
  • Time travel works, but only once in a person’s life. Write from the perspective of someone who chooses to go back in time, knowing they can never return. Where do they go and why? (The Write Practice)
  • So yeah, ancient Egypt really was “all that” after all, and the pyramids turn out to be fully functional spaceships (the limestone was to preserve the electronics hidden inside). Write from the perspective of the tourist who accidentally turns one on. (The Write Practice)
  • Ten years from now, scientists figure out how to stop human aging and extend life indefinitely—but every time someone qualifies for that boost, someone else has to die to keep the surplus population in check. Oh, it’s all very humane; one’s descendants get a huge paycheck. Write from the perspective of someone who just got a letter in the mail saying they’re the one who has to die. (The Write Practice)
  • In the future, neural implants translate music into physical pleasure, and earphones (“jacking in”) are now the drug of choice. Write either from the perspective of a music addict, OR the Sonforce agent (sonance + enforcer) who has the job of cracking down. (The Write Practice)
  • It’s the year 5000. Our planet was wrecked in the great Crisis of 3500, and remaining human civilization survives only in a half dozen giant domed cities. There are two unbreakable rules: strict adherence to Life Quality (recycling doesn’t even begin to cover these laws), and a complete ban on reproduction (only the “worthy” are permitted to create new humans). Write from the perspective of a young woman who just discovered she’s been chosen to reproduce—but she has no interest in being a mother. (The Write Practice)
  • In the nineteenth century, there’s a thriving trade in stolen archeological artifacts. Write a story from the perspective of an annoyed, minimum-wage employee whose job is traveling back in time to obtain otherwise unobtainable artifacts, then has to bring them back to the present (the 1800s, that is) and artificially age them before they will sell. (The Write Practice)
  • Steampunk! Write a story from the perspective of a hot air balloon operator who caters to folks who like a little thrill… which means she spends half her time in the air shooting down pterodactyls before the paying customers get TOO scared. (The Write Practice)
  • Creation myth! Write from the perspective of a crazy scientist in the year 28,000 who, determined to discover how the universe began, rigs up a malfunctioning time machine, goes to the “beginning” of the universe, and ends up being the reason for the Big Bang. (Logic? Causal effect? Pfft. Hush, it’s time-travel, and that was never logical.) (The Write Practice)

What are some fantasy and paranormal writing prompts?

  • A mysterious creature speaks to you in your dreams and tells you that when you awake, you will have the ability to see into another realm.
  • Your pet dragon transforms into a person.
  • You are gifted with the strongest, most elusive sword in the kingdom, but if you use it you will never be able to speak again.
  • A magical world exists underground. To get there, you’ll need to start digging.
  • You wake up and find out that you’re the only living person left on the planet.
  • On her deathbed, your grandmother tells you that there’s a hidden treasure buried in her backyard. The family has been trying to locate it for decades. It’s up to you to finally find it.
  • The ocean becomes the sky.
  • You must save your kingdom from ruin by learning how to breathe fire.
  • You have the power to read the lost language, making you the only person to decipher the scroll.
  • Fairies are tired of being used for free labor.
  • Your favorite fairy tale is now set in 2019.
  • You are kidnapped by a knight who demands your assistance in sleighing the city’s most dangerous dragon.
  • A man and his wife own the largest potion store in town. Little do the townspeople know, but they’re all being slowly poisoned by the potions.
  • A magical toad begins talking to you, but you’re the only person who can hear him.
  • You come into possession of a ring that can change the weather to whatever you decide.
  • You’re selected to take part in a secretive, underground magic university… but you have to kill someone to go.
  • You wake up to find yourself a member of King Arthur’s Round Table.
  • An underwater society decides to overtake the world.
  • Regular person by day, a shape shifter by night.
  • Satan puts you in charge of Hell.
  • You are the king. After your daughter was kidnapped by a dragon, you offered the standard reward to whoever rescued her. You weren’t expecting a different dragon to rescue her. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • A woman has been dating guy after guy, but it never seems to work out. She’s unaware that she’s actually been dating the same guy over and over; a shapeshifter who’s fallen for her and is certain he’s going to get it right this time.  (@writing.prompt.s)
  • The cocky main character of a popular book is sent to the real world. He is shocked to find that the fans of his book not only like the villain more but favor his side kick over him. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • You’re an immortal who lives at a beach resort. You have many summer flings with mortals on getaways. One day you see someone you had a hot romantic night with 50 years ago. They look exactly the same. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • The stars have been watching you your whole life, as you laughed and cried, loved and suffered. Today, you’re finally going to do something that none of them can bear to watch. They blink out, the whole night sky turning dark, just as you’re about to do it. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • A lord takes a fancy to a peasant girl and kidnaps her for his own. Little does he know that she’s a trained assassin who has been preparing to take his life for years. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • You are the last person on Earth, and you are able to make one wish. What do you wish for?
  • You and your family are on a hike when you stumble upon a group of witches in the forest, in the midst of casting spells.
  • You have the power to transform into whatever mystical creature you choose.
  • You and your ghost best friend are an infamous crime-solving team.
  • No, there’s absolutely no way that ghosts are real. Sure, you just saw a mysterious fuzzy figure you appear before you in your house, but that had to be your imagination… right?
  • You’re the one human who is capable of seeing ghosts. It’s up to you to save them from being removed from the human world for good.
  • You were born to be a villain, but you find yourself leaning more and more towards the good as you get older.
  • Spend some time working on world building. How can you create a believable fantasy world that readers can picture clearly? What types of characters does your world include?
  • Dream up your own, one-of-a-kind mythical race.
  • You and your adventurous crew on a quest for the old King’s hidden gold. Just one problem – so is the rest of your village.
  • 10 cm of snow had fallen overnight, just as the weatherman predicted. The only thing is… the snow isn’t white. (Reedsy)
  • You start realizing that at least one aspect of every dream you have comes true the next day. (Reedsy)
  • You can buy a pill that lets you decide exactly what you will dream about while you sleep. (Reedsy)
  • You find a polaroid camera that seems to predict the future: its pictures show what will happen exactly 5 minutes from the moment you take them. (Reedsy)
  • You were on your way to see a doctor who promised to know the secret to making yourself fall out of love with someone. (Reedsy)
  • Write a story that includes a character hearing their fate by a fortune teller. (Reedsy)
  • As a joke, you put on a tinfoil hat. Suddenly your mind goes completely silent. (Reedsy)
  • Silence is now literally golden. For every day of total silence a person completes, they receive a piece of gold. (Reedsy)
  • A new candy had been invented that allowed the person who ate it to relive any memory they wanted. There was a lineup outside the shop. (Reedsy)
  • It’s 1AM at night. But the sun is out. (Reedsy)
  • You wake up 10 years younger. What do you do? (Reedsy)
  • I wish I could skip next week, you think as you get into bed that night. In the morning, you wake up 100 years in the future. (Reesy)
  • They found out about us. They’re coming. They were the words the kingdom had feared hearing for thousands of years. (Reedsy)
  • A group of scientists on a submarine are alarmed when they spot what looks like a functioning lighthouse at the bottom of the ocean. (Reedsy)

What are some general fiction writing prompts?

  • You’re chasing your dream of being the first person to fly.
  • Coffee is illegal and you have to single handedly smuggle it into the country.
  • You have to get to the bottom of your family’s deepest secret.
  • What was the strangest thing you’ve ever seen in public?
  • Detail the life of the person who inspires you the most.
  • Imagine what would happen if you woke up one morning unable to see, speak, or hear.
  • Think about what you are most proud of. Follow the story of how you got to that point.
  • By way of a lottery system, the king chooses you to be his queen.
  • Use five points of view to describe one situation.
  • Describe the life of a struggling author attempting to make it “big.”
  • Tell the story of one woman on the mission to find her lost biological daughter.
  • Your dream is to open a restaurant and be a top chef, but how can you do that when you were born without taste buds?
  • You’ve just returned home from war only to find your family missing without a trace.
  • A famous shoe designer asks you to quit your job and be his latest model.
  • You have the power to create, and star in, your own reality show. What does it look like?
  • The dark family secret that’s always been hidden comes to light.
  • As an 80-year-old, you decide to finally learn how to swim so you can participate in a triathlon.
  • Write a scene detailing your greatest fear. Now imagine that has come true for your character.
  • What’s the greatest advice you’ve ever been given? What if you lived solely according to it?
  • You live in a world with no stress and fear.
  • Death has been flirting with you for a long time, but they’ve become a bit annoying. After another attempting to hang out with you again, you jokingly tell them, “If I was the last person on Earth, I’d maybe give you a chance.” Death believes you and will double their efforts.
  • When people are born, they are assigned a soulmate. They have a song in their head that only them and their soulmate know. How do you find your soulmate? (@writing.prompt.s)
  • Write a story about a character waking up to something absurd. (Reedsy)
  • Write a story about a character waking up to the best news of their life. (Reedsy)
  • Write a short story with an unreliable narrator that readers can never quite trust. (Reedsy)
  • Write a short story in which the main “character” is the setting: for example, a house. (Reedsy)
  • Write a story about someone who would be described, above all else, as honest. Or kind. Or intelligent. (Reedsy)
  • Using only dialogue, write a short story about a first date, a reunion between old friends, an argument that gets heated, an adult explaining something to a child, or the reveal of a long-hidden secret. (Reedsy)
  • Imagine telling the story of a professional hypnotizer. (Reedsy)
  • Tell a story through text messages.
  • Tell the story of what you would do if you won the lottery.
  • Write your own obituary.
  • Tell a story from your favorite era.
  • Imagine how you would help solve the greatest challenges that the world faces. What would your plan be?
  • What would a world be like with no poverty? What would change? What would stay the same?
  • Tell the story of the first time that you learned to do something really well.
  • Imagine what it would be like to be a pop star.
  • Tell a story through song.
  • Write from the perspective of your worst enemy.
  • Tell a story using only one sense – seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, or touching.
  • After years on the job search, you’ve finally gotten your dream job – but it changes you for the worst.
  • You own a tiny mom and pops-type store that you run with your family.
  • The worst thing that you could imagine happening happens.
  • You’re the judge of the annual pie contest in your hometown but, unbeknownst to you, one of the pies is poisoned.
  • You go on a road trip to visit your late father’s grave.
  • Tell the story of seeing the ocean for the first time. Or the last.
  • You’re allergic to oxygen.
  • Imagine what would happen if every person in the world woke up in a good mood every day.
  • You’re put in charge of taking care of your elderly grandmother towards the end of her life.
  • You get one chance to talk to any person in the world. Who do you choose?

What are some religion and spirituality writing prompts?

  • What makes you believe in God?
  • God speaks directly to you – what does He say?
  • What do you find to be most beautiful in the world?
  • You get to build a religion of your own. What do you make it into?
  • You must live every single day according to a holy text of your choice. What happens?
  • Explore what it means to be religious versus spiritual.
  • What helps you meditate?
  • What is the greatest wisdom that you would like to impart on the world?
  • Who is one religious figure you would like to have dinner with? What do you talk to them about?
  • Describe your idea of heaven.
  • Detail your favorite story in the holy text of your choosing.
  • You live in a world where no Gods exist.
  • What does karma mean to you?
  • What would your ideal world look like?
  • You have the power to make every single person in the world ether religious or nonreligious. What do you do? What changes about the world?
  • What makes you a religious or spiritual person?
  • Describe what a church means to you. Have you had positive or negative experiences in a church?
  • Write a poem about your religious path in life.
  • Write a religious comedy.
  • What happens when a priest decides he doesn’t want to be a priest anymore?
  • Think about what morality means to you.
  • What is the difference in good versus evil? How do you know?
  • How does one know what is innately good?
  • What makes you religious?
  • What makes you non religious?
  • Put yourself in the shoes of someone who has completely opposite spiritual or religious views from you. Why do they think a certain way?
  • Describe what your childhood views in spirituality or religion were.
  • What do you hope your religious or spirituality path to look like as you age?
  • How would you advise someone to strengthen their faith?
  • If you could talk to God, what would you want to say?
  • The Southern Baptist Convention elects its first woman president, though she is subsequently removed from the position due to an obscure rule. In protest, every woman leaves the Southern Baptist denomination to form an independent, women-only sect of Baptists.
  • God needs a vacation from heaven, so he comes to earth to experience life as a dog. He is captured by animal control and is impounded, and you adopt god-the-dog after a tragedy that makes you question your faith.
  • An opiate addict going through severe withdrawal symptoms has a conversation with the Buddha – what did they talk about, and was it the result of a fever dream, or a spiritual awakening?
  • You record a video that seemingly shows a woman walking on water at a small rural pond. The video goes viral as proof that Jesus has returned, and Christians begin to wonder if Christ was the Daughter, not the Son, of God.
  • A secular Jew and a devout Muslim debate food and faith on a train from Quebec to Montreal.
  • What are your personal ten commandments?
  • When was a specific moment where you felt a “divine presence” in your life?
  • Have you ever felt like you’ve experienced a glimpse into the afterlife?
  • What form do you think the afterlife will take, if you believe that it exists?
  • Have you ever had an out of body experience?
  • William Blake, famous British poet, thought that to love was to be in tune with the divine. Do you think this is true? How have you experienced divine love?
  • How have you experienced the divine through love?
  • Emanuel Swedenborg believed that there was a soulmate for every person, and that you couldn’t get into heaven until your soul mate had also passed away. Do you believe in the concept of soul mates?
  • Do you believe in reincarnation?
  • What would reincarnation look like to you?
  • Some religions believe that animals and plants have souls. Do you agree with this? Why or why not?
  • Describe a particularly spiritual moment in your life. What were you doing? Were you by yourself or with someone else?
  • What is your most taboo religious belief?
  • Some religions believe that human beings could never truly represent a higher power in art. Do you agree with this? What is an example of art or words that you feel represent the higher power?
  • What are your thoughts on love languages?

What are some travel and adventure writing prompts?

  • Write about your favorite vacation.
  • What culture interests you the most?
  • You get lost in a foreign city with no cell phone and no money. What do you do?
  • Your favorite chef asks you to join them on a culinary tour of the world.
  • What country have you always dreamt of traveling to?
  • What’s your dream vacation?
  • Tell the story of the worst traveling experience of your life.
  • A country of your choosing fuses with North America.
  • You and your best friends go on a road trip across America, with no budget and for however long you want.
  • You are asked to review a luxury hotel on the beach.
  • You are forced to leave your home and move to a remote foreign country. What do you pack with you?
  • What about traveling excites you?
  • Go back in time to the era of your choosing and describe how you live.
  • Rate your top five favorite places in the world. What do you like about each place? What do you dislike?
  • If you could have any travel-related job in the world, what would it be?
  • You and your partner are kidnapped on your honeymoon.
  • Describe a 100-day walking journey around your state.
  • Imagine if you had never left your home in your entire life and then were forced to go outside and never come back to your house.
  • What do you say to your family in a postcard from a new location?
  • Describe what it’s like to sit in rush hour traffic in one of the busiest cities in the world.
  • A journey to a new location is disrupted by natural disaster.
  • Describe what it’s like to travel with a crippling fear of airplanes.
  • What is it that you love about traveling? Explore that feeling.
  • What is frightening about traveling? Explore that feeling.
  • What stories would you most like to share about the town that you’re from?
  • You have the opportunity to move anywhere in the world. Where do you choose?
  • Explore what your travels in Asia have been like.
  • Explore what your travels in Europe have been like.
  • Explore what your travels in South America have been like.
  • Explore what your travels in North America have been like.
  • Explore what your travels in Africa have been like.
  • What is the most unusual place you’d like to travel?
  • What do you think is most misunderstood about the culture of your home country?
  • What cultural norms are you most interested in exploring from foreign countries?
  • Describe the foreign foods that you most want to try.
  • Imagine that you are a successful chef in a foreign city.
  • Describe a time when you have been excited to explore a new place.
  • What is the most beautiful image that you have ever seen while traveling?
  • You get to go to any museum in the world. Which one do you choose?
  • What is your greatest horror story from traveling?
  • What is your happiest story from traveling?
  • Picture yourself on a foreign vacation with a person of your choosing. What do you do?
  • If you had to move to a foreign country tomorrow, what five items would you pack with you?
  • Set the scene for a beautiful beach that you have never traveled to.
  • Set the scene for a gorgeous castle that you have never traveled to.
  • A three day visit to Budapest becomes a maritime adventure down the Danube River to the Black Sea.
  • You are a sales representative for a roulette table manufacturer. While visiting the Harrah’s Cherokee Casino for work, you decide to discard all your possessions, cash out your minimal savings, and hike the Mountains-to-Sea trail from Clingmans Dome to the Ocracoke Lighthouse.
  • While en route to visit your college roommate in Kyoto, Japan you meet a stranger at Tan Son Nhat International Airport who needs your help finding a prophetic monk hiding from persecution in Saigon.
  • You have to make it from Cairo to Alexandria (Egypt). You have no money. Your only mode of transport is a temperamental camel.
  • In a high-stakes game of poker in the French Quarter, you wagered your soul to a voodoo doctor on a pretty bad hand. The only way to null the bet is to find a woman in Port-au-Prince, Haiti who has an item – the only  item – the man is willing to trade for.

What are some horror writing prompts?

  • You wake up to a world in which all prisons are shut down, releasing dangerous prisoners into your neighborhood.
  • A masked stranger appears at your front door with a knife.
  • A random number texts you saying, “Don’t forget, you’re next.”
  • Someone knocks at your door. You open it to find your deceased grandfather who has come back from the dead to pay you a visit. What does he want?
  • Animals take over the world.
  • Strange murmuring sounds being to come from the door that leads to your basement.
  • While watching the evening news, the anchor looks directly at the camera and begins screaming before the camera cuts to black.
  • A polar vortex freezes the entire planet.
  • Whatever building you enter, you can see all of the people who died there.
  • You wake up in a strange room, tied to a chair, with a single knife on the floor pointed at you.
  • A chilling voice appears in your head. It won’t go away. One day, it tells you that you have to run.
  • The old cuckoo clock at your grandmother’s home is haunted.
  • You’re driving at night when you can’t help but shake the feeling that there’s a person in your back seat.
  • One day, while you’re in the shower, you hear your front door open and close. “Hey, roomie, I’m home!” Someone shouts. You don’t have a roommate.
  • A strange man living down the street begins leaving presents at your doorstep.
  • The cruise ship is haunted.
  • While working at a clothing store, you’re closing up the shop for the night when you see five men walk in through the front door and lock it behind them.
  • You’re in the middle of a bank robbery – hiding in the bathroom.
  • Your dog won’t stop barking at a sunken spot in your living room floor.
  • For the last few days, you’ve been getting ominous messages written in blood on your bathroom mirror. Turns out, they’re from an awkward ghost with a serious crush on you. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • The reason no one has ever seen the real Santa Claus is because everyone who sees him dies. You just saw him and now you need to survive. (@writing.prompt.s)
  • You wake up bound to an electric chair, moments before your imminent death.
  • A woman afraid of clowns is forced to work in a travelling circus. (Screencraft)
  • A treasure hunter finds a tomb buried beneath the dirt. (Screencraft)
  • A bartender serves last call to the only remaining patron who is the Devil himself. (Screencraft)
  • A boy’s stepfather is actually a murderous werewolf. (Screencraft)
  • A man wakes up with no mouth. (Screencraft)
  • Deceased soldiers return to their Civil War-era homes. (Screencraft)
  • Suburbia is actually purgatory. (Screencraft)
  • A man suffers from sleep paralysis at the worst possible time. (Screencraft)
  • A man murders his wife while sleepwalking.
  • What appears to be a ghost approaches your car while you’re waiting at a stoplight.
  • It’s late at night, and you hear footsteps in the cellar—but you’re definitely home alone… or so you thought. (The Write Practice)
  • You’ve put that doll in the cabinet, in the closet, in the attic, but no matter where you tuck it, it always shows back up on the sofa. On Halloween night, you come out to find it watching you… (The Write Practice)
  • A bad-tempered businessman is driving home after a long day of work. He thinks he sees his kids trick-or-treating and stops to pick them up—but those aren’t costumes. (The Write Practice)
  • A young woman goes to her grandmother’s house for tea on Halloween night. They have a wonderful time together, sharing stories, joy, and the best times of family. The next day, the woman learns her grandmother has been dead for a week and no one could get ahold of her to tell her. (The Write Practice)
  • Aliens have just landed on Earth—and boy, did they pick a weird day to come. How do they respond to Halloween, supernatural or otherwise? Do they decide this place is just too bizarre and get the heck out . . . or do they stick around and join in the fun? (The Write Practice)
  • On Halloween night, lovers get to come back and spend the evening together one more time. One couple from the Roaring Twenties decides to come back from the grave to help their extreme nerd great-grandchild or the kid will never get married. (The Practice)
  • A little boy’s lost in the woods, but at least his faithful dog is with him. As they look for the way out, the dog defends his master against terrifying monsters and animals. Finally, the boy arrives safely on the other side, beautiful green field, no more fog or night. Then the dog goes home . . . where his owner, the little boy, has died. The good doggy guarded him all the way to his final rest. (The Write Practice)
  • You wake up in the middle of the night to see a dark figure crawling across your floor.
  • Moments after taking off for a flight, the entire plane begins to shake dramatically. The pilot comes on the speaker and says, “This is very bad.”
  • You awake in a dark, small box and can hear strange noises outside.
  • Several weeks after buying your dream house, you start getting strange letters delivered in the mail warning you to move out.
  • Your dog has been acting very strangely recently. Some would say… almost human.
  • You stumble across a website that contains clues to some very disturbing crimes.
  • As you’re settling in to bed for the night, you hear an unusual scratching sound at your bedroom window.
  • You’re on vacation in a new city for the first time. As you walk down a busy boulevard, you suddenly look up to realize you have no idea where you are or how you got there. Come to think of it, you don’t even know who you are.
  • On your way to work, you notice that no one is driving on roads. The busy rush hour traffic is nonexistent, and there are no people walking around, either. It’s just you. What’s going on?
  • You discover, much too late, that your downstairs neighbor is a cannibal.
  • During a renovation of your home, you and your spouse find human remains underneath your back porch – a crime that you are now being charged with.

What are some children’s writing prompts?

  • Your dog begins speaking in a human voice one morning.
  • The sky turns purple.
  • Your best friend’s head turns into a mushroom.
  • Dinosaurs come back to earth.
  • You and your family rescue a turtle who was hit by a car and nurse him back to health.
  • You turn into a goldfish.
  • What would happen if you could turn any food into cotton candy?
  • Rain turns into soda.
  • Your family adopts a pet monkey.
  • The new kid at school wants to be your friend, but you’re very shy.
  • You and your boy scout troop get lost in the middle of the forest.
  • Your parents tell you they’ll give you $20 if you eat your vegetables with every dinner. Do you do it?
  • Write about a special memory from your childhood.
  • What parent were you closest do? What are some of your favorite memories of spending time with them?
  • Write about yourself at age five.
  • Write about yourself at age ten.
  • What was your greatest dream when you were a child?
  • Write about your favorite childhood pet.
  • Get inspiration for your writing by thinking about a vacation you took as a child.
  • What would happen if you woke up one day and kids ruled the world?
  • Tell the story of a child who has just transferred to a new school.
  • Tell the story of a platypus.
  • Imagine running away with a group of your childhood best friends – where would you go?
  • Dream up your own imaginary world.
  • Children’s books are known for their fun and creativity. What’s the craziest, kookiest new breed of animal you can imagine?
  • Give advice to new parents.
  • Give advice to your younger self.
  • Imagine what it would be like to live in a world where instead of taking the school bus, you ride a dragon to classes!
  • Write about your favorite childhood game.
  • Tell the story of a family who decides to hire a new babysitter or nanny.
  • Your parents tell you one day that you’re going to be a big sister – but you really like being the only child!
  • If the world could be any color, what would you want it to be?
  • If you could taste a specific flavor any time you ate something, what would you want it to be?
  • Describe a trip to the zoo with your class.
  • You and your best friends get to leave school to have lunch anywhere in town. Pizza, candy – anything! Tell the story of where you go.
  • Tell the story of your first time at summer camp.
  • Tell the story of your first time away from home.
  • What if we lived in a world where kids were treated like adults? And adults were treated like kids?
  • Take a spin at your very own Dr. Suess-esque book and use rhymes to tell a kooky, crazy story!
  • You’re in charge of babysitting your little sibling for the first time.
  • You decide to run away from home – what are some of the challenges that you face?
  • Picture a world where everything is upside down! What’s life like for you?
  • Write a book advising children on how to overcome adversity.
  • Write a book advising children on how to be a good friend.
  • Write a book advising children on how to be a kind sibling.
  • Bobby the Bunny wants to make friends with a fox pup who recently lost its family.
  • A giraffe and an ostrich live together in a zoo, where they bond over similar neck characteristics and learn how to play one another’s games.
  • A dragon wants to be loved and befriended, but every time he farts, fire erupts from his rear end.
  • Bruce the German Shepherd loves to run through the woods with his human. When he and his human get separated from one another, Bruce has to learn from his forest friends how to get back home.
  • Tell the story of the tooth fairy… Imagine that she just started her job and has to be trained.

What are some young adult writing prompts?

  • It’s your first day of middle school. But when you’re half human, half dragon, that makes things a little tough.
  • What happens when you begin working at the same yogurt shop as your crush?
  • Both of your parents die in a car accident, leaving you an orphan who gets shipped off to your mysterious aunt’s house in Europe.
  • One day you find out that you never have to return to high school. What do you decide to do instead?
  • You’re chosen to go on a school trip to Africa where you’ll be helping to build wells. You’ve never been out of the country, though, and are worried.
  • Your mom disappears one day, and you never see her again.
  • Tell the story of the best high school summer of your life.
  • Your boyfriend gets in a horrible car accident and ends up in the ICU. Another girl is found in the car with him, too – but she died. Who is she?
  • You find out that your brother is adopted.
  • During her freshman year of college, she found out that people in her dorm started to disappear. Almost from thin air.
  • A group of high school freshmen learn that the teachers and administrators at their boarding school are actually human like AI working towards the Singularity and human enslavement. If they don’t act fast, the robots win.
  • A group of at-risk teenagers are on an overnight camping trip with a wilderness counseling group in Badlands National Park when an arctic blast forces them out of a blizzard and into a cave. On day three, their counselors go out in search for help – and never return.
  • Your high school sweetheart dumps you suddenly because of something you posted on social media. But you didn’t post it, and you have to figure out just how different – and difficult – your life is now that you’ve been hacked.
  • Imagine that the world is run amok with vampires. Or zombies. Or authoritarian dictatorships in a dystopian future.
  • In the near future, climate change has led to the extinction of butterfly and bee pollinators. A small group of teen geniuses band together to develop autonomous, robotic insects to replicate the functions of insect pollination before the global food shortage turns from disastrous to extinction-level.
  • You find out that your best friend’s dad is responsible for the growing number of missing people in your hometown. How do you get everyone to believe you?
  • You did it – after years of hard work and try outs, you finally won the coveted spot on the football team. But here’s the thing – you’re the first girl to ever play.
  • One night you wake up to find yourself levitating over your bed. The next morning, strange wings start to grow from your shoulders. Are you turning into some sort of mystical bird?
  • It was pretty freaky to wake up for school one morning, only to see that my parents were literally frozen into blocks of ice in the kitchen. Even freakier? Every adult in town is frozen solid, too.
  • A boy pursues his list of wildly ambitious New Year’s resolutions, with hilarious and touching results. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A girl on the swim team transforms into a part-time mermaid. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A group of “outsiders” become a clique that eventually excludes others. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A girl’s favorite author plagiarizes her fanfiction. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A boy learns who believed his sister died finds out she’s very much alive. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A teenager’s best friend goes missing—and is widely believed to be the murderer of a family member. (Bryn Donovan)
  • Two teens begin to write a fantasy novel together and then cross over into the world they’ve created. (Bryn Donovan)
  • In a dystopian future, college admissions boards have access to video footage of students’ entire lives. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A girl always hangs out at a particular little nook at the library. Then the same boy starts taking the space every day. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A boy learns something terrible about his parents.(Bryn Donovan)
  • In a modern-day Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, three girls ditch class for a day filled with adventures. (Bryn Donovan)
  • 35. A girl who wants to be a virgin until she gets married faces social pressure about her decision. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A teen gains the ability to take the form of any other person she chooses. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A girl’s science fair project yields results that attract the government’s attention. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A teen’s suspicions about a teacher lead him to conduct a private investigation. (Bryn Donovan)
  • A girl struggles with the decision to tell authorities about what the star quarterback did. (Bryn Donovan)
  • Soon after a boy was born, his father went missing. Now, a skeleton has been discovered in the basement of their former home. (Bryn Donovan)
  • You check out a book from the library and discover that it’s telling the story of your life. Do you decide to read ahead and find out what happens, or let it be a surprise?
  • Your beloved dog goes missing, resulting in a cross-country chase to reunite her with your family.
  • Put yourself in your favorite anime or manga series. What type of character would you play?
  • You and your best friends have been playing in a band in your mom’s garage for years. Now you’ve gotten discovered by a major Hollywood scout, but they only want you to go on to fame.
  • Some friends go to an escape room only to discover it’s being run by one of the most elusive serial killers in history.
  • After going to see the circus with your parents, you decide to run away to join the troupe. What act do you take on?
  • What would you tell your younger self as a teenager? What do you wish you had done differently, or not done at all?
  • What would your younger self tell you now? What would they think about your life?
  • Tell the story of someone who switches places with themself as a 14-year-old.
  • Think Princess Diaries – you’ve just found out you’re part royal with a massive inheritance to look forward to. What changes about your life?
  • A small spaceship crash lands in your backyard with nothing inside but an instruction manual on how to rebuild the aircraft. Do you take it back into space?
  • You have the power to shift into whatever creature you want – bear, wolf, etc. When do you choose to utilize your powers?
  • What would happen if you changed places with a rockstar?
  • Your big brother has always been the more successful, studious one of the family. You’ve finally got a chance to prove yourself and one up him – how do you do it?

How to use AI for writing prompts?

While that list was extensive, we understand that authors might need more specific prompts. For example, maybe your prompt needs to include exact examples and a more tailored answer specifically for your characters and story. That’s where Artificial Intelligence tools like ChatGPT can be useful.

By engaging with ChatGPT in a conversation, users can specify their preferences and receive prompts that align with their interests. Whether you’re seeking prompts for fiction, non-fiction, or even poetry, ChatGPT can inspire and spark ideas that you may not have considered otherwise.

With its ability to understand context and generate coherent text, ChatGPT writing prompts can be a valuable tool for writers of all levels.

Some example questions authors can use in ChatGPT to create specific writing prompts include: “I’m looking for a fantasy prompt set in a magical forest with a protagonist on a quest for a lost artifact.” or “I need a mystery prompt set in a small town where a series of strange occurrences unravel a dark secret. Can you provide a compelling scenario?” You could even use some of the 500 prompts above and add them to ChatGPT and ask it to create some similar variations. The possibilities are endless!

There you have it, we hope these 500 writing prompts help you on your way to publishing your next book . For more resources on self-publishing, book marketing, and general indie author trends, make sure you check out these resources . You can also sign up for our free author newsletter to stay up to date on the latest news.

Note: This blog post was updated on 4/25/2024

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49 comments on “ 500 writing prompts to help beat writer’s block ”.

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Thanks for sharing the prompt ideas! I am thinking to start writing a book since a long time. But I wasn’t getting any good heads. Your article has helped to understand my area of interest, especially in which I can write a book successfully.

very nice story I like it

Writer’s doubts never end here is a way to solve this issue with 500 writing prompts. It is such a research based and praiseworthy blog, it is a must read. Thank you for this article! This is really very informative for us.

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With all 500 of these, I should have no trouble finding something to write about. Thanks so much for these prompts.

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My friends and I are doing a competition to see who is the best FANTASY writer. Here’s the catch, you need to include twins, homeless people and abused animals in your story. Plz help???

Hi Ebony! Maybe try a slightly post-apocalyptic slant? I know that subgenre can veer on Science Fiction (instead of Fantasy) but you could definitely apply those required themes to a post-apoc story.

Urban fantasy set in a modern day. The protagonist is a homeless person who has a pet dove-griffin (also called winged rats). One day, he is assaulted and they take his companion, leaving him for dead. He survives, and uses his background as a hunter to track down the people who wronged him, stumbling in the process upon a ring of fantasy animal traffickers called the Chain of Cerberus, which is ruled by three brothers, triplets. He has to fight against all odds using his skills and save his only friend and companion.

The secret motivation for the protagonist is atonement for his past as a hunter, since he helped rich people (like the Triplets) to capture the fantastic animals they were after.

I call it ‘Fantasy John Wick’

Thank you for sharing such a wealth of prompts! These are fantastic. What a tough job to choose 500! If you’re interested in more open-ended prompts (just to switch it up), check out my instagram for (almost) daily writing prompts as well: @sharp.writer .

This is the complete list of writing prompts over the internet. Thanks for sharing.

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SoI made like a short script bit of a prompt like the one bout you looking in a mirror to see something that does not look like you.

Its 5 o’clock in the morning. As I came out of my cream sheets with speckles of generally grey all around, I fixed my bed. From patting down pillows to rearranging my duvet for the most part placing my silk pretty black blanket to definitely finish it off. I basically was heading for the fridge to get the creamer for coffee when I stared into the actually metal fridge looking for my reflection but instead kind of found that something looking back at me and it was not my reflection, which really is quite weird. Its kind of looked nothing like me, or so I thought. I really tried to really come up with excuses; I am in a daze, I am still half-asleep, I for the most part am asleep. IT CAN’T BE. I said, until I saw that it can. But that thing in the mirror particularly was scaring me because it stared back at me and it was waving now in a kind of like I AM WATCHING YOU kind of way. but before I could do anything it….

I found your blog very helpful in my writing project someday. Thank you for sharing your wonderful article.

I’m so glad this was helpful to you, Monique. You’re very welcome!

I have been reading posts regarding this topic and this post is one of the most interesting and informative one I have read. Thank you for this!

You’re very welcome, Patricia!

i need to do a story in which the main character is a demigod (as in percy jackson yknow) and i don’t know what to write.

Here’s one you might enjoy , Anika! Found on the #demigod prompts Tumblr page.

This is an excellent list of prompts! For me, though, I don’t lack story ideas or character scenarios. After plotting out my story, I tend to get stalled after a few chapters or in a particular scene, even when I have a good conflict for the characters to work through. ****** I found this great little book on Amazon called “What Would Your Character Do?” It really helped me because the prompts are designed to get you brainstorming about your character’s next actions when you’re stuck in a scene. I can always find a prompt in the book to get me unstuck! I’ll definitely share this particular list with my writer friends though!

Great recommendation, Jackie! Thanks for sharing

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thank you for these prompts. they really helped with my writer’s block

these are so helpful! I’ve been trying to figure out how to continue my dystopian story for weeks then I found this website! I can’t wait to continue working!

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Thank you so much for compiling such an array of prompts. Reading through these and of course changing them up in my head has me scrambling to write again. Have a Blessed Day!

Was looking for some takes regarding this topic and I found your article quite informative. It has given me a fresh perspective on the topic tackled. Thanks!

What a great list of writing prompts. I have saved this page to share with my writing partner. I am sure we will use some of these.

Hello! I wanted to ask you, if I am allowed to use some of you prompts. (of course I will give credits to you and add a link to this site). I am leader for a community on an app called Amino, it’s quite similar to Instagram, where the member can post some stuff. I wanted to post some writing prompts, since everyone there likes to write. So I wantet do aks, if i can use some of your prompts. (And sorry for my bad english, I have a german community there, since I speak german…)

Absolutely, please feel free to share and we would appreciate linking back!

Of course I do, thank you!

This was so helpful! Every prompt in this article was amazing You’ve really outdone yourself Kelsey!!!!!<3

This is extremely helpful. I am in 2nd year of high school and struggle with writers-block. I decided to do number three in the ‘horror’ section, and the options written in this article are extremely ‘flexible’ — there is a prompt for everyone. Thank you.

These writing prompts are fun! Thanks for putting it all together.

I’ve started several books. None completed, Although a few stories were published in a small town newspaper. A couple of years ago I began a book when the work came to an abrupt end. My husband fell off the roof. Now, after 2 years, I find myself wanting to write, but stymied as how to pick up where I left off. I’ve read your prompts. Some of the fiction, thriller, mystery and prompts in other areas have been true life experiences for me. Now, as I stand in the aftermath of the train that hit me, in need of a battery jump to restart, I have hopefully found a way forward.

I absolutely loved these! Thanks so much! Writing prompts really help me keep the wheels turning.

Thanks so much for these amazing prompts! I had nailed down a genre and topic but needed some help getting down to the nitty gritty specifics. You saved the day (and my essay). Thank you!

I am impressed with your sharing. Helpful for new writers. Thanks for your share.

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Unbeatable listing. A lot of quality and tremendous compilation.

I love these prompts! They help me get started when I’m feeling stuck.

I have all the actual writing material I need, but I am using writing prompts to get myself in the zone for writing. This list is outstanding. It’s a bit of a struggle to stop perusing because there are so many that entice me. I’m pretty sure that many of these will little warm-ups will end up in my Ideas file. Thanks so much for this.

To the prompt about scientists figuring out how to extend life but someone has to die:

The mail held a few worthless ads, nothing to be worried about. But then my heart stopped at the sight of a letter. My hands trembled as I took it out of the box. I wracked my brain for ways to escape. If I never read it, could I claim ignorance? No, it would never work. Shakily I tore open the envelope and unfolded the paper inside. When it began with “We sorrowfully regret to inform you,” I recognized the words from my sister’s letter and the grief came flooding back. Half for her and half for myself. I wasn’t ready to let go of the wonderful life I had. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye. But it didn’t matter. Getting this letter meant I was going to die, and it also meant that I had no choice.

Just a blurb. Thoughts?

These gave me some great ideas!

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The Write Practice

Top 150 Short Story Ideas

by Joe Bunting | 133 comments

Do you want to write but just need a great story idea? Or perhaps you have too many ideas and can’t choose the best one? Well, good news. We’ve got you covered.

Below are 150 short story ideas for all your favorite genres. You can use them as a book idea, as writing prompts for writing contests , for stories to publish in literary magazines , or just for fun!

Top 150 Short Story Ideas

Editor’s note: This is a recurring guide, regularly updated with ideas, new story prompts, and information.

If you're in a hurry, here's my 10 best story ideas in brief, or scroll down for the full version.

Top 10 Story Ideas

  • Tell the story of a scar.
  • A group of children discover a dead body.
  • A young prodigy becomes orphaned.
  • A middle-aged woman discovers a ghost.
  • A woman who is deeply in love is crushed when her fiancĂŠ breaks up with her.
  • A talented young man's deepest fear is holding his life back. 
  • A poor person comes into an unexpected fortune.
  • A shy, young woman unexpectedly bumps into her soulmate.
  • A long journey is interrupted by a disaster.
  • A young couple stumble into the path of a psychopath.

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Table of Contents

Why Creative Writing Prompts Are Helpful How to Write a Story General Story Ideas Thriller Story Ideas Mystery Story Ideas Romance Story Prompts Sci-fi Story Ideas Fantasy Story Ideas Horror Story Prompts

Why Creative Writing Prompts Are Helpful

Below, you'll find our best creative writing prompts and plot ideas for every genre, but first, why do we use prompts? Is it just a waste of time, or can they actually help you? Here are three reasons we  love writing prompts at The Write Practice:

1. Practice the language!

Even for those of us who are native English speakers, we're all working to improve how we use our language. To make progress, you have to practice, and at The Write Practice, believe it or not, we're really into practice! Creative writing prompts are easy, fun ways to practice.

2. When you have no ideas and are stuck.

Sometimes, you want to write, but you can't think up any ideas. You could either just sit there, staring at a blank page, or you could find a few ideas to help you get started. Even better if the list of ideas is curated from our best plot ideas over the last decade that we've been publishing lessons, writing exercises, and prompts.

Use the story ideas below to get your writing started. Then when your creativity is warmed up, you'll start to come up with your own ideas!

3. To develop your own ideas.

Maybe you do have an idea already, but you're not sure it's good. Or maybe you feel like it's just missing some small piece to make it better. By reading other ideas, and incorporating your favorites into your   story, you can fill your plot holes and generate creative ideas of your own.

Use the story ideas below to develop your own ideas.

4. They're fun!

Thousands of writers use the prompts below every month, some at home, some in classrooms, and even a few pros at their writing “office.” Why? Because writing prompts can be fun. They get your creativity started, help you come up with new ideas of your own, and often take your writing in new, unexpected directions.

Use the plot ideas to have more fun with writing!

How to Write a Story

One last thing before we get to the 100 story ideas, let’s talk about how to write a great short story . (Already know how to write a great story? No problem. Just skip down to the ideas below.)

  • First, read stories. If you’ve never read a story, you’re going to have a hard time writing one. Where do you find great stories? There are a lot of places, but check out our list of  46 Literary Magazines  we’ve curated over here .
  • Write your story in a single sitting. Write the first draft of your story in as short a time as possible, and if you’re writing a short story , try to write it in one sitting. Trust me, this works. Everyone hates being interrupted when they’re telling compelling stories. Use that to your advantage and don’t stop writing until you’ve finished telling yours.
  • Read your draft. Read your story through once, without changing anything. This will give you a sense of what work it needs going forward.
  • Write a premise. After reading your first draft, get your head around the main idea behind your story by summarizing your story in a one sentence premise. Your premise should contain four things: a character, a goal, a situation, and a special sauce. Not sure what that means or how to actually do that? Here’s a full premise writing guide .
  • Write, edit, write, and edit. Good writing is rewriting. Use your second draft to fill in the plot holes and cut out the extraneous scenes and characters you discovered when you read the first draft in step #2. Then, polish up your final draft on the next round of edits.
  • Submit! Real writers don’t keep their writing all to themselves. They share it. Submit your story to a literary magazine , an anthology series , enter it into a writing contest , or even share it with a small group of friends. And if it gets rejected, don’t feel bad. You’ll be in good company.

Want to know more? Learn more about how to write a great short story here .

Our 150 Best Short Story Ideas, Plot Ideas, and Creative Writing Prompts

Ready to get writing? Here are our 100 best short story ideas to kickstart your writing. Enjoy!

10 Best General Short Story Ideas

Our first batch of plot ideas are for any kind of story, whether a spy thriller or a memoir of your personal life story. Here are the best story ideas:

  • Tell the story of a scar, whether a physical scar or emotional one. To be a writer, said Stephen King, “The only requirement is the ability to  remember every scar .”
  • A group of children discover a dead body. Good writers don’t turn away from death, which is, after all, the  universal human experience. Instead, they look it directly into its dark face and describe what they see on the page.
  • A young prodigy becomes orphaned. Orphans are uniquely vulnerable, and as such, they have the most potential for growth.
  • A middle-aged woman discovers a ghost. What do Edgar Allen Poe, Ron Weasley, King Saul from the Bible, Odysseus, and Ebenezer Scrooge have in common? They all encountered ghosts!
  • A woman who is deeply in love is crushed when her fiancĂŠ breaks up with her. â€œIn life every ending is just a new beginning,” says Dakota Fanning’s character in Uptown Girls.
  • A talented young man’s deepest fear is holding his life back. Your character’s biggest fear is your story’s secret weapon. Don’t run from it, write about it.
  • A poor young boy or girl comes into an unexpected fortune. Not all fortunes are good. Sometimes discovering a fortune will destroy your life.
  • A shy, young woman unexpectedly bumps into her soulmate (literally bumps into him). In film, this is called the “meet cute,” when the hero bumps into the heroine in the coffee shop or the department store or the hallway, knocking her books to the floor, and forcing them into conversation.
  • A long journey is interrupted by a disaster. Who hasn’t been longing to get to a destination only to be delayed by something unexpected? This is the plot of  Gravity ,  The Odyssey , and even  Lord of the Rings .
  • A young couple run into the path of a psychopath. Monsters, whether people who do monstrous things like serial killers or scaly beasts or a monster of a natural disaster, reveal what’s really inside a person. Let your character fall into the path of a monster and see how they handle themselves.

Now that you have an idea, learn exactly what to do with it.  Check out my new book The Write Structure which helps writers take their ideas and write books readers love. Click to check out  The Write Structure  here.

More Short Story Ideas Based on Genre

Need more ideas? Here are ideas based on whichever literary genre you write. Use them as character inspiration, to start your own story, or borrow pieces to generate your own ideas. The only rule is, have fun writing!

By the way,  for more story writing tips for each these plot types, check out our full guide to the 9 types of stories here .

20 Thriller Story Ideas

Thriller story ideas with picture of hand reaching through mail slot in door

A thriller is any story that “thrills” the reader—i.e., gets adrenaline pumping, the heart racing, and the emotions piqued.

Thrillers come in all shapes and forms, dipping freely into other genres. In other words, expect the unexpected!

Here are ten of my favorite thriller story ideas :

  • She just started a new job when a cryptic message comes across her desk that she can't ignore.
  • An undercover agent is in a race against time to find out who is behind a pate of disappearances.
  • A stuntman realizes the star is a target of a conspiracy theorist on set and their life is in danger.
  • A government agent arrests the wrong man and he begs his wife to find evidence before he becomes the scapegoat for a coverup.
  • Murder victims keep appearing at a popular tourist destination. She must find out who's behind it in this action thriller.
  • A new neighbor seems friendly enough until a series of unsettling events rattles the neighborhood.
  • A thriller writer's compelling characters begin showing up in real life crime scenes, and they become the prime suspect.
  • Mysterious circumstances always surrounded the sudden retirement of a megastar, until a nosy investigative journalist uncovers a clue that would unravel everything.
  • Artificial intelligence took his job after he created the very code that launched the company into eye-popping profitability. And now he's out for revenge.
  • A criminal mastermind has shut down essential services in the city, and only a retired recluse of a hacker can stop him. If they can convince him to take the case.

Click for ten more thriller short story ideas

25 Mystery Story Ideas

essay plot ideas

Enjoy a good whodunit? Then you’ll love these mystery story ideas .

Here are a few of my favorites, but find the rest here :

  • A librarian happens across a crime scene when they clean the basement archives.
  • A murder mystery party goes wrong and potential suspects point at each other to avoid arrest. (Especially effective if set in an enclosed location.
  • A secret society of mystery readers realizes that there is a real killer still on the loose and the clues are hidden in a dead author's books.
  • A murder scene on a movie set becomes reality when the star is found dead, and the prime suspect discovered missing.
  • A new restaurant owner in a small town uncovers a long-forgotten mystery from the town's past but the mysterious circumstances unearth a real killer.

Click for the mystery story ideas

30 Romance Story Ideas

30 Romance Story Ideas title against wood grain table with pink flowers

Ready to write a love story? Or perhaps you want to create a subplot with a secondary character? We've got ideas for you!

Hint: When it comes to romance, a sense of humor is always a good idea. Have fun! Here are a few of my favorite, but find twenty more love story ideas here :

  • A character's high school sweetheart shows up and it turns out the school crush feelings haven't gone away.
  • Two characters find an unexpected connection during a key scene that confuses one of them.
  • He gets a letter from a secret admirer and goes on a quest to uncover the identity of the sender.
  • They work together and a secret romance would be a terrible idea, putting both their jobs at risk, but the pull to each other is hard to resist.
  • She returns home when her family's had a tough time after the death of a parent. He's been helping them sort through the mess, and while she disagrees with how he's helping, she can't stop thinking about him.
  • At their large ten year high school reunion, he asks her to dance and she slowly realizes he's the brother of someone she doesn't want to ever see again, but there's an instant connection.
  • A romance writer can't find her own happily ever after until she meets…
  • It's conference season and he has to present all over the country. It's usually a boring string of business trips, but when he's put on a panel with a fiesty and brilliant woman who the night before had kissed him in a bar, he knows this conference season is going to be very different.
  •  It's her first road trip after a bad breakup and she's determined not to depend on anyone else until…
  • A pop star and an astronaut in training meet at a benefit dinner and can't avoid each other's orbits.

Click for romance story ideas

20 Sci-Fi Story Ideas

sci-fi story ideas

From the minimum-wage-earning, ancient-artifact-hunting time traveller to the space-exploring, sentient dinosaurs, these sci-fi writing prompts will get you set loose your inner nerd.

Here are a few of my favorite sci-fi ideas :

  • In a future society, neural implants translate music into physical pleasure, and earphones (“jacking in”) are now the drug of choice. Write either from the perspective of a music addict, OR the Sonforce agent (sonance + enforcer) who has the job of cracking down.
  • It’s the year 5000. Our planet was wrecked in the great Crisis of 3500, and remaining human civilization survives only in a half dozen giant domed cities. There are two unbreakable rules: strict adherence to Life Quality (recycling doesn’t even begin to cover these laws), and a complete ban on reproduction (only the “worthy” are permitted to create new humans). Write from the perspective of a young woman who just discovered she’s been chosen to reproduce—but she has no interest in being a mother.
  • So yeah, ancient Egypt really was “all that” after all, and the pyramids turn out to be fully functional spaceships (the limestone was to preserve the electronics hidden inside). Write from the perspective of the tourist exploring the ancient society who accidentally turns one on.

Click for the other seventeen sci-fi story ideas

20 Fantasy Story Ideas

essay plot ideas

Need a dose of sword-in-the-stone, hero and/or heroine packed coming-of-age glory?  We love fantasy stories!

Just try to not have fun writing (or even just reading!) these fantasy writing prompts. Here are a few of my favorite fantasy story ideas:

  • Bored high school wizards decide to throw a party to celebrate tomorrow's graduation. Nothing could possibly go wrong.
  • Weddings are stressful. They're especially tricky when one family is magical and the other hates spells, and both mothers want to control the celebration.
  • A bored housewife wakes one day to find all her dishes are singing Hey, Jude . (Alternatively, if you want to make this a darker story, have them sing  The Sound of Silence. )
  • A witch living secretly in suburbia casts a spell to speed up the laundry, but it backfires—just in time for trick-or-treaters to deal with dancing underwear.
  • Capitol Hill wakes one day to find thousands of fairies protesting for better media representation. Unfortunately, no one can understand what they're saying.
  • A fed-up genie, sick of being over-sexualized and paid in wishes, throws a magical tantrum which turns everyone in the world into the opposite gender.
  • One bright morning in May, all domestic pets start talking.
  • Eating food turns one's skin the same color as one's last ingested item, which makes cheating on diets a challenge of strategy as well as taste.
  • Giants are REALLY into reality TV, and one day stomp down from their hidden mountain homes to convince Hollywood to create a show about them.
  • Mythological creatures, tired of being portrayed as gym rats, confront their creators on a popular combative talk show.

Click for the fantasy story ideas

20 Horror Story Prompts

20 Horror Story Prompts

  • Three college students take a final road trip during spring break of their senior year, not knowing that each of them harbors a dark secret about one of their college professors who was murdered in the fall. As revelations begin to stack up, they each begin to suspect the other.
  • A quiet golf community is upended after a series of grisly murders begin happening on the greens, and a golf pro's seemingly perfect life begins to unravel with each body they find. She isn't the killer, but she has a terrifying idea of who might be.
  • A police officer on terminal leave before retirement finds himself in a bar where he suddenly realizes the art on the walls shifts and reveals pictures of serial killers from the last twenty years. And his best friend and former partner, who is still on active duty, is there on the wall too.
  • A grieving daughter revisits the libraries and locations where her famous horror writer mother penned her most famous works. And finds out her mother's stories weren't quite the fiction everyone believes.
  • A teacher returns to teach at the school where they attended to find that their entire class is made up of the children of every bully and enemy from their life. But no one claims to remember them.
  • A cursed siren hunts a fishing village looking for the boat and man that killed her true love.
  • A hoarder dies and the mother-daughter team hired to clean up the mess discover a dead body and the horror of how it all began might connect to a shape-shifting monster from their own family.
  • A yacht party veers off course during a summer squall and lands on an island. Their relief gives way to terror as they realize they aren’t alone and worse, they’re prey.
  • Radioactive scorpions escape from a lab and begin to attack a small desert town.
  • An experimental romance rehab resort goes into lockdown after a therapist and a participant are found dismembered and clawed to shreds on the beach. But the threat is inside the compound.

Ten more spine-tingling horror story prompts here . 

The Secret to Choosing the Best Story Idea

Stories, more than any other artistic expression, have the power to make people care. Stories have the ability to change people’s lives.

But to write a great story, a life-changing story, don’t just write about what your characters did, said, and saw. Ask yourself, “Where do I fit in to this story? What is my personal connection to this story?”

Robert Frost said this:

If you can connect your personal story to the story you’re writing, you will not only be more motivated to finish your story, you might just be able to change the lives of your readers.

Next Step: Write Your Best Story

No matter how good your idea, writing a story or a book can be a long difficult process. How do you create an outline, come up with a great plot, and then actually  finish  it?

My new book  The Write Structure  will help. You'll learn how to take your idea and structure a strong plot around it. Then you'll be guided through the exact process I've used to write dozens of short stories and over fifteen books.

You can learn more about   The Write Structure  and get your copy here.

Have a great short story idea?  We'd love to hear it. Share it in the comments !

Choose one of these ideas and write a short story in one sitting (aim for 1,000 words or less!). When you're finished, share your story in the Pro Practice Workshop (or our latest writing contest ) for feedback from the community. And if you share, please be sure to comment on a few stories by other writers.

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Joe Bunting

Joe Bunting is an author and the leader of The Write Practice community. He is also the author of the new book Crowdsourcing Paris , a real life adventure story set in France. It was a #1 New Release on Amazon. Follow him on Instagram (@jhbunting).

Want best-seller coaching? Book Joe here.

essay plot ideas

Work with Joe Bunting?

WSJ Bestselling author, founder of The Write Practice, and book coach with 14+ years experience. Joe Bunting specializes in working with Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, How To, Literary Fiction, Memoir, Mystery, Nonfiction, Science Fiction, and Self Help books. Sound like a good fit for you?

133 Comments

Bruno Coriolano

“No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise for the writer, no surprise for the reader.” —Robert Frost

Joe Bunting

Great quote, right?

Your site is just awesome!

ellery battle

asome i rily like that

Ayesha

I love this Quote!

EndlessExposition

My latest project has been working on a TV-format screenplay. In TV writing, there are B storylines, which are plot lines that span the course of a season (or several seasons). Each episode, however, has an A storyline, which is the plot of the events in that particular episode. Each A storyline is essentially a short story, and churning them out is surprisingly difficult! Lately I’ve been outlining episodes for my own story. I’ve just completed one that I particularly like, and would love to hear what you all think!

The Vampire Cat

The episode opens with Leiko telling the rest of the crew The Dream of Akinosuke. She finishes the story and they all head off to bed. Leiko walks Shannon to her room. On the way, Shannon asks Leiko if the events of the story were the main character’s dreams or if they were real. Leiko replies that for the Japanese the line between dreams and reality is very thin. They say goodnight and part ways.

The next day, the crew touches down on planet Lorraine. Their mission is to rob an auction house of a valuable piece of art if their client is not able to purchase it. They attend the auction. The client is outbid, so that night they return to the auction house to steal the sculpture. While looking for it, Leiko uncovers a dimension hopping machine, which she assumes to be a piece of junk. The crew is surprised by the auction house’s guards. Shannon is shot in the fight. Leiko tries to help her, but is intercepted by a guard. They fight, and Leiko falls inside the dimension hopping machine. She falls against a lever. The doors to the machine close and it begins spinning very fast. Leiko is thrown to the floor and the impact knocks her unconscious.

When she awakes, Leiko is no longer in the machine or the auction house. She is in a 16th century Japanese barracks, surrounded by soldiers. Furthermore, she is dressed like them and they address her as Soda. When she catches a glimpse of her reflection, she realizes to everyone else she looks like a Japanese man. Unsure if she is dreaming or not, Leiko decides to play along. She hears from the other soldiers that the prince of the region is seriously ill, and thinks maybe with her advanced medical knowledge she can help. She sneaks into the castle to see him. On the way, she passes a group of court ladies. The most beautiful of them smiles at Leiko and her eyes flash yellow. Leiko shakes it off, assuming she must be seeing things. She reaches the prince’s room and is shocked to find Shannon lying close to death, surrounded by attendants. She is discovered and thrown out, but she begs to be told what’s happened to the prince, and is informed he has a mystery sickness no doctor can diagnose. It is feared he will die. The prince’s attendants suggest that if she is so worried about her sovereign, she should pray for his health. Before she leaves, she uses to her dagger to look at Shannon’s reflection, and sees that her reflection is in fact that of the prince. Leiko feels the whole situation is somehow strangely familiar, but unable to put her finger on why, she decides there is nothing for it but to follow the attendants’ advice.

That night she goes to the holy quarter and bathes at the well before praying to the statue of Buddha for the prince’s/Shannon’s recovery. A voice calls to her, and she looks up to see a figure in a window above her. The figure asks her to come up. Leiko goes into the building and finds a priest who introduces himself as Ruiten and tells her he has been brought to the castle to find the source of the prince’s illness and asks for her help. Leiko finally realizes why this all seems familiar to her – she is in the story of The Vampire Cat of Nabeshima, playing the part of the young soldier Ito Soda. She makes a conjecture: the dimension hopping machine really worked and has brought her to the spirit world. Shannon, after being shot, is dying, and her spirit has taken the place of the prince in the story. If Leiko saves the prince, she saves Shannon. Ruiten agrees that this may be possible. Leiko agrees to help him. Knowing how the story goes, she now has a hunch as to what is causing the prince’s sickness.

Leiko goes back to the castle, and straight to the house of the court ladies. She digs under the verandah and finds exactly what she thought she would – the body of the beautiful lady, with puncture wounds in her throat.

The next day, Ruiten obtains permission for Leiko to keep watch over the prince with his attendants. That night, all the attendants fall asleep. Leiko keeps herself awake by stabbing herself in the leg. Later in the night, the beautiful lady comes to the room. She says her name is O Toyo, and she is the prince’s favorite companion. Under Leiko’s watchful eye, she cannot harm the prince, so she leaves.

The next morning, Leiko goes to confront the false O Toyo. They fight. Before Leiko can kill her, the false O Toyo shifts to her true form – a demonic black cat – and escapes the castle. Ruiten sends soldiers after her. Just then, there’s a scream from the prince’s room. Leiko and Ruiten rush from to the room and are told the prince is dead. Leiko pushes her way to the bed and, taking Shannon in her arms, pleads with her to wake up. In course of this, Leiko realizes she’s in love with her friend. Suddenly Shannon opens her eyes and says Leiko’s name.

Leiko wakes up in the med bay of the Perseus, surrounded by the crew. Shannon is in the bed next to her, weak but alive. Leiko gets up to tend to her. Shannon asks if one of the crew was holding her, because she could have sworn she felt like she was lying in someone’s arms. Kaya jokes that she must have been having a good dream. Leiko remarks that maybe it was something more.

This is great! Seriously, I really enjoyed it. Now you have to write it! 🙂

Chineomohhamad

Hey Sunny! Loving this website

Abaneish

Opps that was my grandma 🙂 But she right

Evolet Yvaine

Do you know of any Romance magazines that offer short story romances or literary magazines dedicated to just romance? Just curious.

I’m not familiar with any, but try googling “romance literary magazines” or “romance short stories” and I’m sure you’ll find some. Reply back if you find any that are particularly promising.

John Doe

I just want to say, there are so many good stories on this website. This show the amount that you have helped all these people, maybe one day I will add myself to those people, thank you.

Elle

http://www.writersdigest.com/writing-articles/by-writing-genre/romance-by-writing-genre/romance_markets

Nada ahmed

بدأت تمطر ورأيت الناس يسرعون للإختباء من قطراته فابتسمت لذكرى جميلة عبرت خاطرى ..تذكرت امى عندما كانت ترقص تحت المطر بفستانها الوردى..الهى كم كنت أعشق هذا الفستان عليها..كان يناسب بشرتها الفاتحة ونحولة جسدها .جذبتنى من يدى يومها واخذنا ندور فى حلقات لا تبدء ولا تنتهى. شعرت ببرودة يديها تصعق يداى وبرودة المطر تبلل وجهى أحسست وبالسعادة تغمرنى لانك اخيرا بجانبى واخيرا تبتسمين اشتقتك يا اماه ..أشتقت لتفاصيلك وابتسامتك. أشتقت لمعنى وجودك جانبى ..المطر يهطل، أعلم أنك لو كنت الأن معى لجذبتينى ورسمنا بأقدامنا دوائر حتى تبتل عظامنا ..سأرقص لك فقط وسأبتسم لك فقط. بدأت عيون الناس تتجه نحوى ..تستنكر فعلتى ولكنى لا أفعل شئ.انا فقط أخبر أمى إنى بخير وأنى أشتاقها..ولكن للمطر طعم غريب يا أمى. له طعم ألم فراقك ،طعم الحياة بدونك ؛هو المطر وهى الحياة ولكن طعمهما مؤلمين يا أمى

LaCresha Lawson

I’m writing a “Thriller.” I’m very excited. A short story. Thank you. Right on time as usual!

Fun! Good luck LaCresha.

rosie

I’m wondering about “the sagging middle” in story structure right now. I’m happy with my beginning and ending, but the middle isn’t as dynamic as I want it to be. Does anyone have any experiences or advice about this? (It’s a 25 000 word story that’s due for a competition in about four months.)

Hey Rosie. We have a few resources on that. First check out our structure and plot cheatsheet: https://thewritepractice.com/plot-structure . Then, a great guest post on story structure with a hole in it: https://thewritepractice.com/story-hole . And I always recommend Save the Cat, which is a book for screenwriters, but is also very helpful for story structure in general: http://amzn.to/1TNpv2F . Highly recommend it.

Eliese

The story grid is a good site and podcast for story structure. 🙂

Sarah

I would say have an extremely unexpected twist, with a character the audience trusts.

But longer than 15 min but here it is.

I rub my fingers into the soft fuzz on the big brown chair. I can make designs if I move my fingers up or down. A dot makes one eye. Then another. A line for a smile finishes my chair picture. ‘Why would Daddy take money and blow it into the wind?’ I wonder as I draw.

A wet spot lands by the mouth, making the brown turn dark. I try to wipe it away, but the face disappears instead. I lay back in the chair, bumping my twin brother and making the dim room spin. My pink and orange stripe shirt is soft as I wipe my eyes. James’s tears fall to the chair like rain, his mouth open like one of the squishy balls we play with. His cry is loud. I join the noise.

Mommy’s hair, as dark as the wet spot on our chair, poofs around her face. Her green eyes seem small with her eyebrows close together. Teeth and gums show as Mommy screams like a roaring lion. Daddy points a finger at her nose. He looks so big. He yells, trying to be louder than her. James and I try to cry louder than them. Maybe they will hear us. Maybe they will stop.

Mommy lets out one last angry scream and tries to push Daddy away. A long red line comes on his arm. Red water comes out of it. Daddy’s eyes widen. His face turns red. He grabs Mommy by her arms, lifts her, and pushes her to the door like a rhinoceros. The wood breaks as they go through.

The noise has stopped, except for sirens in the distance. I curl into a ball in the chair, James’s knee sticking into my back, and close my eyes.

James and I get to sleep in the same bed tonight. It’s strange having Daddy read and tuck us in by himself, but he tells us Mommy will be home soon. I still don’t understand why she went to jail. I thought jail was for bad guys, but Daddy says everything will be ok.

The lights go out bringing shadow monsters. I hug my brother.

Bit longer than 15 minutes, but here it is

‘Scars’

The noise has stopped, except for sirens in the distance. I curl into a ball in the chair, James’ knee sticking into my back, and close my eyes.

Ghost

This was so good! You have a really good writing style!

Tom

“The wall, he decided, will always be there”

He awoke, or at least it seemed he did, for he could not tell if he had been dreaming or if he were dreaming now. He pushed the woollen, scratchy blanket away from his body. There were no sheets, and his skin stuck to the plastic mattress that smelled of others sweat and urine. After prying his flesh from the tenacious bedding, he managed to sit up. He was more tired than he had remembered. He was still dirty and thirsty and his eyes hurt as they squinted in the dim hazy light. He drew his legs up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. For long moments, he sat that way fearing punishment for doing anything that might be wrong.

Eventually, however, his eyes grew accustomed to the shadowy light and he began to see things. Across from him he could see a wall. He wondered how long the wall had been there. The question struck him as absurd. The wall he decided would always be there. In this confusion, he meditated on the hardness before him until a thought of beauty entered his mind and the nakedness upset him. “There are no pictures…it has no pictures hanging from it.” Lacking the courage, or cowardice, to look away he continued staring blankly until his sight improved still further and he found something within the wall that excited him. “I forgot…about…colour…I can see the colour now!” He tried to give the colour a name. “Dirty…” he thought. “Filth.” he said out loud. “It is a filthy colour.” he whispered silently to himself.

Quickly, the excitement left him and he began to grow tired of looking at the wall, even the colour began to bore him. The boredom gave him a sense of courage and he became bold. He decided to explore. Cautiously he moved his eyes to the right where he saw…a corner, Then the head began to turn to follow the lead of the eyes. They continued past the corner until they gazed upon something he recognized.

He hated what he saw, the familiar object that hid in the shadows…the thing that kept him here. He glared at it, but the closed and bolted door remained unmoved. It was then that he turned back to the wall he had grown to know and the boredom…he had grown to love.

Justin

incredible first sentence!

Marie Ryan

Incredible first sentence and incredible last sentence. Shivers up my spine. Thank you.

jakey the snakey

3 words…. copy and paste

Camellia G

Omg how why are people so good at writing stuff?!?!?

abigail

idek!?!?!!! i’m a freshman in high school and i can’t even write a simple short story.

TerriblyTerrific

Give it time…

Brianna

This was a wonderful read ^_^ Short and enticingly written. Drew me in right away with that first bit, and especially the way it was all tied together by that first sentence. Lovely!

Mihau

I know it’s been two years but it’s still very good and still deserves praise. I like this trippy atmosphere, you managed to convey it very nicely.

Bridget at Now Novel

Some great story ideas here. You could even combine some of them in interesting, tenuous ways for a multi-location epic.

Thanks Bridget! Absolutely. And there’s nothing I love more than a good epic.

George McNeese

These are great ideas. I like the idea of prompts. Though sometimes, I get stuck when I write from a prompt. And sometimes, I’m not able to write a story in one sitting. I have to think about how I want the story to play out. I might have done it once, and they were pretty short. But most of the time, it takes a couple of sessions. That’s how I’m wired, I suppose.

Trinity

Ten years of therapy, about a million different types of pills and three psychiatrists have helped me enough to write this. I was eleven when it happened, my older sister, Quinn, was almost sixteen, and my best friend was ten. I’ll never forget it… I doubt anyone ever will.

It was a warm summer day, early June, my best friend, Harper was over and we were playing in the backyard. We were laughing and singing along to a song that I couldn’t tell you the name of now. It was the middle of a normal day, but that’s what they always think just before everything goes wrong. Well, anyways,Harper and I amused ourselves doing everything and nothing for a while before we decided that we wanted to go to upstairs and bug Quinn, who we thought was doing her online drivers ed. courses. We raced up to her room, giggling like the little girls we were. When we got to her room, Harper grabbed the doorknob and tried to fling the door open, but it was locked. That should have been my first sign that something was wrong, Quinn never locked her door, we weren’t allowed to. We yelled, laughing, “Let us in! Let us in!” We giggled and knocking on her door again and again. There was no response, so I remember grabbing the key my parents always had, it opened all of the doors to me and my sibling’s bedrooms… I wish I would’ve known what I know now. I wish I wouldn’t have opened that door.

That day was the last happy day for a long time. I remember everything clearly, the breeze ruffling my short hair, the sound of Harper screaming the lyrics to our favorite song at the top of her lungs. I especially remember the thing that has haunted me for the past ten years. I remember my sister’s lifeless body lying in a pool of her own blood on her bed. I remember the look on her face being more peaceful than I’ve ever seen it. I remember screaming as I stared at the image of Quinn, her wrists bleeding and her skin pale. I remember the sound of Harper frantically dialing 911 and I remember the ambulance arriving. I remember the paramedics calling my parents and hearing my mom’s piercing scream from the phone. I remember the paramedics forcing me out of Quinn’s room, while I kicked and screamed at them, begging them to let me stay with my sister. It was the last time I saw her face. I remember collapsing in my dad’s arms. That was the first time I heard him cry, it wouldn’t be the last.

She was already dead when the ambulance got there. Suicide, they said, she killed herself. It took a long time to convince myself that it wasn’t my fault. If I had only went to see her sooner I could’ve saved her. The funeral was closed casket and everyone cried. I didn’t. I couldn’t. I was too numb. I don’t remember much of the funeral, it was just a blur of black and navy blue, with the occasional apology thrown in there. I never got why everyone apologized, it wouldn’t bring her back.

I was just a little girl and there I was with my childhood torn away from me. I was a younger sister and then I was an only child. A piece of me has been missing from me ever since that die and I doubt I’ll ever get it back again.

Caleb Pratt

This was based on the boy or gets an unexpected fortune. I flushed out the typos, but its okay. Check it out! 😀 Caleb Pratt

Mistaken Divinity

My bar drinks of the wooded timberland were one of the most profound expeditions in my walk into becoming a god. I cupped the glass of cool bud light, and sipped it up at the mini bar table. I rested my hand on the wooden counter top, my fans and companions gambling each other on some high level daredevil match.

“Hey, Lexan, where you at,” I turned to see my friend Rodriguez. Fun man to have around with. He was had long grey hair, even for a guy. I pushed off the table and stood straight. I kept my hand in my pocket.

“You have a lot of realty in the new diversion your causing. Sherman hasn’t even sighted any more Divine Partakers, let alone, any Christian circumspect.”

“I know I know, but… we are, what they are… except the for the grace,” Rodriguez said.

“Right,” I narrow my eyes down towards the ground. I didn’t want to hear what he had to say about us Mormons being what the Christian Community isn’t. I mean, there almost all extinct, if not a hundred percent. We are the erected believers… who are in sure denial of the forthcoming of any later day saints.

“So where is your ceremonial magic been taking you,” Rodriguez said. “Anyhow I could help in the cemetery on Route 430?”

“Uhh… I mean… yeah unless you have a cloak and a specialized dagger. I’d have to get you one of those. You’ll be all dressed like a Celtic.”

We laughed.

Rodriguez was a good friend of mine. Much older though. I was in my teen years and he was in his fifties.

“Man, Lexan, you need to grow a beard. Your seventeen years old… yet you look like you’ve graduated college. What happened to your power to manipulate appearance? Funny… its a shame Christians don’t have this kind of power… even heathens can’t do anything we can.”

“Yeah I can tell Rodge. Tell me, why haven’t you been practicing your divinity? You seem a little out of shape to be wrestling with angles and demons….”

“Well I… yeah I mean, sure. Lets say I’m kind of in a predicament.”

“What…?”

I lay my back against the counter.

“Well, down on Armenia Rd. there was a cross fight between me and some other foe. Not sure what to suspect of him, but the “man-woman” was between two others working for her, or he… I don’t know.”

I rest my chin on my thumb and index finger. I realize and hear there are other phenomena of some other cultist group here in Sherman. Our cult is wacky on its own. Though I don’t know what to think of this “he-she man” thing….”

Escee Noah

BZZZZZ! BZZZZZ!

‘I heard you! Shut up!’

‘Enough, you asshole!’

WHACK! Pieces of metal and plastic shattered on the wall.

“I can’t do this anymore,” she muttered softly as she fights her every being not to shed a tear. Alas, she lost once again.

It’s been days since she last saw light. The shadows on the walls seemed permanently etched. Her sanctuary once filled with love, lust, and happiness, now wreaks with despair, anguish, and palpable desperation.

‘How did I get here?’ she thought. The same desperate thought she’s been clutching onto for days. Or maybe weeks? Months? Years?

It doesn’t matter. To Emma, time no longer exists with this unrelenting pain.

Once in a while, the light would sneak through the thick, heavy curtains. And Emma would almost succumb to a hint of a smile until it haunts her again.

His resilient hands on her supple breasts. His soft lips caressing her neck and slender sternum. His sturdy chest against her trembling body. His whole palpitating manhood devouring her salacious being. Every ridges of Paul haunt her. Now, it all has to be distant memories. Unshakeable, soul crushing memories.

After what seemed like a lifetime of horizontal desolation, she finally mustered some strength to sit at the edge of her bed. She slowly opened her bulging eyes, and finally saw the mess she was in. Rotting pieces of food in cardboard boxes, sea of crumpled tissue strewn with nauseating piles of laundry, and dismantled pieces of her once chirpy alarm clock scattered all over her dingy floor.

As she moved her gazed from the floor, she noticed the dent on her pristine white wall. She couldn’t help but stare. ‘That dent will be there for a long time,’ she thought.

With a throbbing grunt, Emma slowly stood up and shuffled towards her once chirpy alarm clock. She picked up the pieces and followed the faint light peeking through her bathroom door. As she turned the door knob, more tears rolled down her cheeks. It was excruciating, but this time it was different. The door closed and the room was dark once again.

Miss.Bridget

“His resilient hands on her supple breasts. His soft lips caressing her neck and slender sternum. His sturdy chest against her trembling body. His whole palpitating manhood devouring her salacious being. Every ridges of Paul haunt her. Now, it all has to be distant memories. Unshakeable, soul crushing memories.”

Stella

He had left his Gameboy behind. There was nothing to do without it, nothing to do but kick his feet and stare at the dull blank walls. Even annoying Di-Di had lost its colour. He didn’t care what Ma or Papa said. He had to get his Gameboy back.

He pushed into the room. Ah Boy, wait outside ah. Don’t come in! Papa had seemed firm, but he was old enough now to know how to get out of trouble. He would run to Ma, hide behind her legs, maybe tearfully declare that he would run away from home because Papa was so mean. Anyway, Papa seemed so busy with Ah Gong nowadays. He wouldn’t bother to cane a little boy like him.

Where had everyone gone? He couldn’t have been in the corridor for so long. The room that was once packed full of relatives was empty. It was only Ah Gong left in the hospital bed.

Immediately he noticed that the mask over Ah Gong’s nose and mouth was gone. Who had removed it? Without the strange alien-octopus-thing perched on his face, Ah Gong looked like the grandfather he remembered. He moved closer to get a better look.

As he approached the bed he realized the mask was lying on the chair. The inside was stained with a rustlike substance he did not recognize. He held up the mask to the light, and rubbed the stain with a cautious index finger. A powder came off in his hand. With a shiver of disgust he realized it was dried blood.

“Di-Di!” He didn’t know if he was terrified or excited. Where was his brother? Ma had always rushed to daub up any blood in their house – whether from Di-Di falling when learning to ride his bicycle, Di-Di scratching him during one of their many fights, Papa tripping over a wire and later needing stitches in his forehead. He couldn’t pass up this golden opportunity to share with his brother: the chance to investigate blood without an adult present.

The Gameboy lay in the room, forgotten.

Wrote on ‘a group of children discover a dead body’. In case it wasn’t obvious.

Dejon Dequonihjuan

“I do like llamas very much,” said Charleston, “In fact, they even have names.” “You are one freaky man, Charleston.” stated Larry

Aaroc

Very well said!!

Iflis Richenstar

Jeremy Reynolds had a party one day. He decided it would be a special theme. Deez Nutz, he decided would be a fitting title for a beach party.

rainbowcliffords

*I am only 14 so please, don’t mind me if there are any mistakes. I am still in the process of learning, but I tried really hard*

He could write. He could write and he knew it. No one else knew. He’d never show them his pieces; his collection of fantasies and mysteries. He wanted his friends to know. No, he wanted the world to know. But he was fearful. He was fearful of his stories failing, of him failing.

Abram had written many short stories and novels, all of them printed in manuscript and hidden in a black lock-box under his bed. He was unmarried, for he didn’t need any other love than that of his trusty typewriter and parchment. Writing was frowned upon, in his country. Books were burned. Even the classics. They were all burned in a pile on the streets.

He wouldn’t risk it. He didn’t want that fate for his books. He worked to hard. He spent too much time revising and perfecting the novel; there was no way he would let them die.

Sighing, Abram cracked his knuckles and stood. He yawned and walked over to his bed, where he bent down and grabbed the lock-box from beneath the bed. Abram had kept the key underneath the mattress, in case anyone were to find this box that contained all of his treasured secrets.

He opened the box he hadn’t opened in many years. Removing the pieces of parchment, he sat on floor, listening for the sounds of Nazi vehicles who somehow sensed the unpublished books. But none came. There was only silence, which, to Abram’s surprise, seemed to grow stronger as each second passed.

Before he knew it, Abram had been sitting on his hard floor for hours, thinking. Thinking about what he knew not. He just knew he was thinking.

Abram stood slowly; carefully as if he was trying not to disrupt the dust that covered the dark floor. Walking over to his desk, he left his lock-box open; something he’d never done in the years past. He sat and placed some more parchment into the typewriter and began writing, or typing, you could say. But this time, something was different. Abram wasn’t writing just for fun, he was writing for purpose. This time, he thought, this time, I will be published and my work may fuel the world. And with that, he revealed his talent to the world.

malberga

Thank you so much!!

Samurai

much thanks <3

LAIE AKANA

I’m sorry I’m late but I just wanted to say this story is fantastic! Soon enough this will become a book! I’m from Hawaii and all I do is write and draw all day… Keep up the work and never give up! God bless and aloha!

Pranaydiya Verma

Yours was the best story that I read on this page…

thank you!!!

Very empowering!!! I was also around your age when I started writing on this site.

Anyways, that short story was so full of meaning. We just happened to be doing an essay on the value of literature in English class so this really fit in nicely for me with that. Lovely! 🙂

oh thank you sooo much!! I greatly appreciate it!!

LilianGardner

I enjoyed your story. Thank you for sharing. I especially liked how Abram developed his talent, and despite the fear of having his manuscripts destroyed, he decided to publish his work. Well done and well told.

Jonathan

I have noticed some tiny grammatical mistakes in your Story and correct it for you as I know that this short Story has potential to go very far. Here is the corrected version: He could write. He could write, and he knew it. No one else knew. He’d never show them his pieces; his collection of fantasies and mysteries. He wanted his friends to know. No, he wanted the world to know. But he was fearful. He was fearful of his stories failing, of him failing.

Abram had written many short stories and novels, all of them printed in manuscript and hidden in a black lock-box under his bed. He was unmarried, for he didn’t need any other love than that of his trusty typewriter and parchment. Writing was frowned upon, in his country. Books were burnt. Even the classics. They were all burned in a pile on the streets.

He wouldn’t risk it. He didn’t want that fate for his books. He worked too hard. He spent too much time revising and perfecting the novel; there was no way he would let them die.

He opened the box he hadn’t opened in many years. Removing the pieces of parchment, he sat on the floor, listening for the sounds of Nazi vehicles who somehow sensed the unpublished books. But none came. There was only silence, which, to Abram’s surprise, seemed to grow stronger as each second passed.

Abram stood slowly; carefully as if he was trying not to disrupt the dust that covered the dark floor. Walking over to his desk, he left his lock-box open; something he’d never done in the years past. He sat and placed some more parchment into the typewriter and began writing, or typing, you could say. But this time, something was different. Abram wasn’t writing just for fun, he was writing for a purpose. This time, he thought, this time, I will be published, and my work may fuel the world. And with that, he revealed his talent to the world.

I hope my effort has helped!

Is it OK if I put this on a website I’m making. It will get me money I need to have. You said your only 14, 9 months ago, so you could be 15, well I’m only 12. I need to learn to save up and this will help me. Everything I said here is true, please help me. Also, this is a great story and that is why I chose your to be on my website.

3am_moon_and_stars

dude thats like literally directly stealing someone’s work for money that only goes to you. Just write your own story instead of stealing someone else’s.

Admit it. I am probably some dude who can’t even make a website, well I am, so don’t worry.

This is the story I am working on now. I wrote it a long time ago, but I am upgrading it now. Changing all the errors, making the vocabulary more sophisticated:

In a valley close to a river where melt-water splashed and where rhododendrons and roses bloomed, where linnets flew with doves above the clustered trees, lay a cave, mostly hidden by the immense pines and the crag. In the cave, out of reach from the sunlight, was a portal. The portal’s frame was the darkest shade of gold, with glowing orange lines carved into it. Glowing flecks of bright blue glow in the darkness of the cave. The portal lay un opened, but the frame still glowed in the shadows of the sombre cave.

In a desert of torturing, immense heat, where scorching light, too blistering to be called sunlight, burns the dehydrated ground, was a tunnel, buried under the sand. In the tunnel there was an ever-growing fortress of burnt leaves and sand with over-boiled water dripping the top. This is all that remained of the desert, nothing could survive in the world above, nothing except from the portal. The fortress was built around the portal; the portal was the darkest shade of black, with red around the rims of the frame.

The sound of water hitting the cold tiles that topped the floor brought a sense of entertainment to the girl sat in the small room covered in a mixture of scars and bruises, awaiting the next blow of the hammer upon her fragile body which shivered in the night air and soft breeze which entered via the half barricaded window. Again and again, almost as if it was a cruel rhythm the metal tool came down, never missing a hit, always landing upon her chest. The storm brewing outside was bad enough without the maniac and his hammer. These are soft blows for a man of his build, she thought, she was certain he intended to make this last all night long. She wanted to struggle, to scream! But the leather bindings made it impossible, who cares anyway, she thought, no one near this basement would care.

The sticky taste of iron filled her mouth, blood. Her body started to shudder, shock. By this point the inmate hitting had dropped the hammer and injected another load of hydrocodone, such a waste of such an effective pain killer. At last she tried to struggle, but even with the drugs numbing the sharp pain shooting trough her body she still couldn’t gain the strength to fuel her ineffective hope of escaping the inmate, after all, even if she did escape, in a mass breakout like this? She could die in a more demanding way.

With my free hand I felt the imperfections, holes, scratches, patches of long since dry blood that covered thee wooden operation table I lay on. How old was it? Thirty years? Forty? Who cares, it had to be old to be in the basement of Twin Rivers Asylum. This psychiatric institution had housed many atrocities, after all, Nazis built this asylum, catered the inmates…put them to work. We are only barely off the English channel; here in Channel Island’s Twin rivers asylum we have many an inmates. Young and old, French and British, they are all welcome here, hell, we have a Swedish inmate, talks to himself all day and night, his names Toby Buchman, we call him Toby-Talkative, how very fitting being his nurse I should die by his hand…

Ouch, be gentler Toby. Even through my drugged up husk of a body I felt that one. I and the staff thought you were joking when you said you were very strong, looks like you weren’t joking…

For such a shrivelled blotch of bones you have surprisingly good and when it comes to instrument of torture, your quite strong, why wouldn’t you be? Killing young women is why your here, Toby, you are one hell of a sociopath, brilliant mind, you’re like a more sadistic Hannibal Lecter minus eating his victims after all, I’m so helpless you could take a couple of bites out of me as I lie here, in the dark basement…

Fun fact, a goldfish’s attention span is three seconds, the average lunar eclipse takes 11 minutes to pass, and a wooden hospital bed from 19th century takes an average of 63 hits to break trough, 54 if you incorporate a body which weighs approximately 130lbs, and guess how much I weigh.

Suddenly I heard the wood buckle under the next hit a glorious hit as well as my straps loosening. Come on Toby, you brilliant old sociopath, you can do it, one more well made hit could send me free. What could go wrong? Toby stood motionless on the spot for a moment later Toby took another blow. I couldn’t breathe. The pain was so intense I felt every cell in my body explode in a chain reaction. The pain was so intense that it felt like a piece of heated iron had been pressed onto my skin. Despite that, a strange sort of calm fell over me: I was dying. I wasn’t coming back from this. Part of me thought, All right. Make it count. I wobbled on one foot about to run to the door, but unfortunately Toby kicked me at the wall. He was so strong, I thought All froze the leaves on the trees didn’t clatter, Toby didn’t stink anymore, Then it was gone all the memories of life returning to me. Then it all went away, my life was It was the end, nothing could stop that now…

I awoke in a bed, in a white room with a marble floor and a silver carpet at the foot of the bed; the wall behind her was a fancy, white wallpaper, decorated to look like a real wall. The wall on the left of the bed and in front of the bed were normal and white, on the right of the bed was a window, now covered, with a beige curtain. In the bed- where the girl lay were multiple cushions, all lay side by side at the top of the bed; the blanket covering her was soft and light. On the sides of the bed were two bed-side cabinets, one with a lamp and the other one with a vase, holding tulips and rhododendrons, on books by her favourite author, many she didn’t recognise. Promptly, she got up noticing there was a small, white table- shaped as a cylinder, with a transparent glass top; also noticing the chair behind it too. The chair was a traditional, leather armchair with four small metal legs holding it up. Then she turned to the door. It was white made, smooth and made out of oak, with a metal handle, a small, square keyhole under it.

As soon as I placed my hand on the door handle, it flew open with a tall, handsome man in the way with bright blue hair shaped as a fire and red eyes. “Welcome, Kayla to Valhalla. Where are you off so fast” he shouted with glee. “I was going out,” Kyla said trembling on the spot. “I didn’t think this is where I should be.” “In this hotel we are all dedicated to make you feel like home, for you will be staying here for the rest of your life. Sorry for my wrong vocabulary, you are already dead. For the rest of the time you need to practice.” “What !?” she yelled. “Are you saying I’m dead” “Yes I am,” the man asked confused.”May I introduce you to your new home”

So the two walked through what seemed to be a endless tour, but eventually came to an end. “And this is the dining room where you have dinner… Here is your breakfast room you can freely come here and invite friends if you are feeling lonely…” “So you are saying this is the place where all people go if they are an extremex and if they died they come here and become an extraextremex” “Yes,” said he.”And also that you are our leader because you can see what specie people are also take away their powers if needed.” “Can I take away the powers of sociopaths or weaken them with my mind beams whatever things.”

“Yes, you can but if you do that you will be weakened too. Also that is a high level trick, you are not high level- no offense” “Offense taken,” said Kayla, with her head down. So they continued on their tour and went walking through all the different floors and introducing Kyla to all the different people and members of staff. On they went about the limits of people and a lot of different stuff. After time, they started her training.

“Focus on me, ” Blaze was explaining to her how to see what specie he was.”Do not think of anything else. Not the colour of my nose, not what room we are in just on me the thoughts and memories of me. Now listen to the sound of my voice. You should be in a universe of darkness; are you?” “Yes I see black in the background and there are flying things in it.” “Yes those are my thoughts.” “I can also see images swirling around” “Those are memories” “I can also feel heat and cold environment when I move around. Are those your emotions” “Yes, the heat is happiness and the cold is anxiety or sadness. Now let’s focus on the specie part. To determine if I’m an Extraextremex, a normal Extremex or even an Oigreog. If I am an Extraextremex then you will not feel motion. If I was an Extremex then you would sense tingling and if I am an Oigreog then you’ll sense shaking. Which one do you sense?” “I sense tingling and shaking so you are one of the Oigreog in the times when Extremex where starting to populate the world. This that means you are an Exremog or an Exoiig” “I am an Exoiig. I have not died yet.” “But how are you here?” “Because I was the first Exoiig alive. I made this place” “But how?” “I used my powers to do it. That is why all the walls are shades of red, orange and yellow.” “Why didn’t you make mine a different colour.” “Because I need to keep track of what specie everyone is. I used Conjuration and Mysticism to make sure that every specie got the same shade of red or whatever.” They blabbered on about what it was like when Oigreog ruled the world, what Black Magic could do and how to control Extraextremex powers…

Kayla went to bed with the thoughts of how the world was made and how it transformed into this planet, when at the start it was billions of monsters – the Oigreog – fought and then somehow transformed into normal people who never fought in their lives. She also didn’t understand how there was only one person who had the power to see what specie one was… She woke with her hair curled up covering her face.

Once she tossed the hair off her face she noticed there was a book on her bed-side cabinet beside the lamp. When she picked it up, she noticed it was a book called “The Arts of Necromancy and Enchantments”. She soon noticed it was the book Blaze used to learn Black Magic. She was filled with a mixture of joy and shock. Then the door flew open. A small brown-haired boy was standing in the way. “Hi,” he said, holding a hand out to shake, “I am Logan, someone from you floor” “Hi,” Kayla said, shaking his hand, “I’m Kayla, an Extraextremex” “Do you want to go and have breakfast” “I guess so” said Kayla.

In the hallway, my neighbours were starting to emerge. Thomas Jefferson Jr looked about my age. He had short curly hair, a lanky frame and a rifle slung over one shoulder. His blue wool coat had brass buttons and chevrons on the sleeve – a U.S. Army Civil War uniform, I guessed. He nodded and smiled. ‘How you doing?’

‘Um, dead, apparently,’ I said. He laughed. ‘Yeah. You’ll get used to it. Call me T.J.’ ‘Kayla,’ I said. ‘Come on.’ Logan pulled me along.

We passed a girl who must’ve been Mallory Keen. She had frizzy red hair, green eyes and a serrated knife, which she was shaking in the face of a six-foot-seven guy outside the door marked X.

‘Again with the pig’s head?’ Mallory Keen spoke in a faint Irish brogue. ‘X, do you think I want to see a severed pig’s head every time I step out of my front door?’

‘I could not eat any more,’ X rumbled. ‘The pig head does not fit in my refrigerator.’ Personally, I would not have antagonized the guy. He was built like a bomb-containment chamber. If you happened to have a live grenade, I was pretty sure you could safely dispose of it simply by asking X to swallow it. His skin was the colour of a shark’s belly, rippling with muscles and stippled with warts. There were so many welts on his face it was hard to tell which one was his nose. We walked past, X and Mallory too busy arguing to pay us any attention.

We entered a small elevator and the doors closed, making the elevator sound. “One question: How does everyone get here.” “People called Collectors fly around the world collecting souls of dead Extremex. I am a Collectors.”

‘And you?’ I asked. ‘How did you become a Collector? Did you die a noble death?’ She laughed. ‘Not yet. I’m still among the living.’ ‘How does that work exactly?’ ‘Well, I live a double life. Tonight, I’ll escort you to dinner. Then I have to rush home and finish my calculus homework.’ ‘You’re not joking, are you?’ ‘I never joke about calculus homework.’ The elevator doors opened. We stepped into a room the size of a concert arena. My mouth dropped. ‘Holy –’ ‘Welcome,’ Logan said, ‘to the Feast Hall of the Slain.’

Rows of long tables, like a stadium, curved downward from the nosebleed section. In the center of the room, instead of a basketball court, a tree rose taller than the Statue of Liberty. Its lowest branches were maybe a hundred feet up. Its canopy spread over the entire hall, scraping against the domed ceiling and sprouting through a massive opening at the top. Above, stars glittered in the night sky.

Eh

What’s supposed to be your point? If you are receiving money from something YOU DO NOT OWN then it is obviously theft. YOU DO NOT PUT SOMEONE ELSES WORK ON YOUR OWN WEBSITE AND USE THAT MONEY FOR YOURSELF. That is just pathetic, really. I hope you honestly realise what your doing here, because its seriously stupid.

niggy

kys nigga my bitch loves the cocaine nigga gucci gang nigga iwill fuck your bith tongiht nigga, drose out nigga fag nigga

stupid

I am very disappointed that there is not 100 of the story idea selection

Marlene Samuels

I’m glad to see Joe’s book, Let’s Write a Short Story! is still availalbe and going strong! I purchased it as soon as it was published, still refer to it quite regularly to remind myself of some important but often over-looked elements of short story. Although my work has been published a number of times, we’re never too experienced to learn and to be reminded of what makes for a great story.

A short story idea: When I was very young, one of my best friends learned she had been adopted. We all know that people really can and do say some incredibly stupid things to children. Because my mother had very blond hair and blue eyes and both my hair and eyes are dark brown, strangers often said to me,”And just whose little girl are you?” I began to wonder whether I, too, was adopted and my parents simply weren’t telling me. What if, as an adult who never questioned your origins, you learned you had been adopted. Conversely, because I myself DO have an adopted child, what if you were told you were adopted but in fact, learned you were not. Write a short story!

Jayden

here’s my story

Uncle joe was talking to his 5 year old nephew jane about how he’s getting old and how she’s going to have to start doing all the chores in the house joe is a little challenged in his life because he was bullied and doesn’t know how to control his anger. he gets in an argument with jane and Joe felt anger go through his mind his temper over flows and he got so mad he started hitting her. 2 years later she was still helping around as Jane’s face would turn red and she would start throwing tempers and joe would hit her. Over the years her fachel expiration started to change form because of all the hitting. Joe heard a scream of dying devastating noise outside and went to go see what it was he lifted up a bucket and under it was the phone book. Since he had anger issues he decided to call the evil scientist and ask him to fix bullying once and for all after he went to the evil scientist house something went wrong he came back as the demon he unlocked his nephew’s room there she was. she was crying.Jane slowly turned around she was mad crazy. He ordered her to clean the dishes. Since she was so mad crazy she didn’t listen to him and she smacked him across the face the Demons face turned red he felt like someone pierced him with a needle he got so mad that he trapped her in the mirror. She was screaming for help but it just circulated around in the mirror as she was she was trapped there another duplicate appeared it was a boy. He said his name was michael. He was 7 years old the evil demon erased the kids memories and put them in a microchip. Then he put him on the streets. Someone had found him and brought him home and He had been with his new parents for years.He was great at figuring anything out a after a while he found out about his uncle Joe. Since he was so good at researching things he even found directions to his uncle’s house so he decided to go on an adventure to find his uncle joe/the Demon once he found uncle Joe he wasn’t at all happy.

Joe hit Michael and he fell to the ground and fainted .when he was just slightly awake he found a microchip it said Michael’s memories michael picked it up Joe was coming towards him with a knife

Michael woke up right away and put the microchip to his chest if he dies Jane will vanish for ever Joe stabbed Michael in the chest.luckily the microchip blocked the knife from stabbing him and the microchip went into his chest it felt like a rainbow bursting through his skin the light went into his eyes and he got his memories back. He knew everything he knew that his clone was abused and everything he was ready to sacrifice himself for his clone so he ran inside the house and did bloody jane spinning around in circles and said bloody jane bloody jane bloody jane.

He trapped himself in the mirror and Bloody Jane was back Jane through her self out of the house and went to Joe in and punched him on the floor and they had a sword fight and Joe died and bloody Jane turned into the evil bloody demon.

(I like to write with comic characters (Peter Parker, ect.) so here we go… Based on the scars short story idea)

“Where did these come from?” I flinched and hurried to cover my back and arms up. “They’re old… They don’t hurt anymore…” I frowned, remembering the pain from each one of the marks that stained my skin forever. “That’s not what I asked…” I flinched as he slid the thin jacket off my shoulders to get a better look at them. I didn’t meet his eyes as he traced over them. Long and thin lines from knives. Round ones from cigars or cigarettes. Jagged ones from glass. The giant one that curled from just below my neck, all the way around my body before stopping at my right hip. I remembered the pain from each one, the cause of each one, the people who caused each and every one of them… “Pete, It’s a really long story…” We had been dating for about a month and I didn’t want to scare him away with my sob story. “I want to know.” His voice was soft as he had me sit on the bed facing him. I looked at him for a while, trying to sort my thoughts out. We had been friends since we were six, but I had hidden everything from him. He had no clue, and I wish he still wouldn’t… I took a deep breath and began to tell the story. “I’ve kept this from everyone… Please let me tell the whole story before you ask questions or leave me. I wouldn’t blame you if you did…” “Go ahead, I’ll let you finish. But I promise, I won’t leave you.” He grabbed my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “We’ll see… It began when I was six. My parents weren’t the best as you know… They weren’t home much. Mom went out drinking until she was hammered, Dad went out on “business” calls. He would leave almost every night, coming home with perfume on him. Mom didn’t want to believe it. She was in denial, believed that he still loved her as he did in the past… She would come home smashed and would start sobbing. I tried to help as much as I could, but I didn’t know much. I would let her hug me, and would do my best to comfort her. I learned fast that I needed to take care of her. She would wake up with a hangover and the best I could do was give her one of my favorite juice pouches and a cookie. She would start crying again and tell me that I was such a good girl. Remember when I missed school for a week?” “Yeah, the teacher said you were really sick.” “Dad and mom got into a fight. They were screaming at each other, I didn’t know what to do… I ran away from home, I went to my cousin’s house. I got to stay there the week even though he called mom. When I got home, Dad was gone and mom was passed out on the couch surrounded by empty cans of alcohol. Dad never came back after that, and mom got increasingly depressed. I didn’t know what was happening, Dad wouldn’t come home, mom was sad, I learned how to do things for myself quick because I had to support myself and mom. When I turned seven the nice elderly woman from next door began to teach me how to cook, and clean. I would make her little crafts to sell in her shop as a “payment” for the lessons. Mom barely noticed I was gone for an hour afterschool. She tried to be there for me, she would ask me how my day was, and would constantly give me hugs. I thought life was going good, that everything would be okay. Then when I was eight, everything went downhill…” He squeezed my hand slightly. “Dad came back to the house. He… He said nasty things to mom. I didn’t understand that well back then but as I grew older I understood what he said to her. He.. broke her… She wouldn’t talk anymore, refused to eat, refused to drink… After I came home from the sleepover at your house, I saw her… She, She was hanging from the ceiling, tears running down her face.” Pete looked horrified, pulling me into a hug as I continued. “The elderly woman heard my scream, and rushed over to see me staring at my mother screaming and sobbing. She called the cops, quickly getting her to the ground, checking her pulse. I was taken to the woman’s home, the police announced her dead and found a letter…” “I knew she passed but didn’t know what happened exactly…” Pete’s voice was quiet. “Dad got custody over me. He didn’t like the fact that I looked like mom. He… He did things. He let his ‘friends’ do things. I was nine at the time, and he sold me to his ‘friend’ for the night. Gave him 10 bucks to have his way with me. I tried to fight back but…” Pete looked livid. “I felt sick, the bad thing is that I couldn’t feel anything. I was numb, emotionally and physically. You and the others were the only ones that made me feel something… It continued until I was twelve, I had tried to fight but it was pointless. One day, Dad had enough of it. He slapped me, kicked me, cut me, burned me… He let his ‘friends’ have their way with me. The reason I began to miss more and more school was because of him. I got lucky sometimes and was able to sneak out and see you. He would add a new mark to the collection each time. Then when I was fifteen, he got drunk. He.. Had his way with me, then threatened to kill me if I said anything. Aunt May was the one to notice, the one day I came over she saw a glimpse of them… I confided in her, I didn’t want you to know because you would look at me differently. Or give up on me and that would have killed me… Dad found out when May called the cops on him. He was not happy, the longest scar was his attempt to kill me. The police did a search, and the court plead him guilty. I was in the hospital that month I missed school… My cousin got custody of me, then the accident happened, and I got my abilities. That’s pretty much it… I guess you’ll be leaving then?” I lowered my head, waiting for the rejection. “I told you. I’ll never leave you. I love you too much to do that. I’m glad you told me…” He pulled me into a tight hug, kissing the top of my head. “Really?” I teared up a bit. “Really.” He held me as I cried. I really felt loved for once in my life… All I know is that it felt good to get that off my chest. “I don’t care about the marks. Because these scars make you look even more beautiful to me.”

Sharmi

( I have no idea if I did this right and I’m quite sure I might have made few mistakes but it’s worth a try)

Sometimes there are instances when you can see your own life flashing before your eyes and it gets you thinking ” Is this where I want to be? Is this the place I still want to be in another 5 years?”

I had a minor problem, a fault perhaps. I was surely and indefinitely addicted to Alcohol. Don’t get me wrong it was not that type of addiction where one would kill for a bottle of beer or something far more stronger that leaves that burning sensation down your throat and a sting behind your eyelids. It was a addiction where when I didn’t know what to do-how to react- specifically, I turned to my new found companion. It didn’t shout back at me, didn’t call me names, didn’t say that I was a worthless mistake.

Infact it welcomed me with open arms and I embraced the feeling of not caring. Sure it was a great weight off my shoulders just to forget everything for a moment and just…… be. But then I’d wake up regretting every single thing I did the night before. Trust me that plus having a blasting headache ? not the best hangover tonic.

Now here I am in front of my car trying to think yet failing since I can’t even think straight to even start thinking about thinking.

That’s when I feel it. something poking at the back of my head. A shadow looming behind me.

”Leave the keys on the ground and turn away without a second glance and you won’t get hurt.” His vice was rough and he reeked of old garbage and dried up voldka.

There I see it again. All The time I’ve spent wasting away drinking without actually doing what my 21 year old self was supposed to be doing.

I took my parents money for granted and had the time of my life. A Audi sports car, expensive designer clothes, latest IPhone, all the girls I could ever imagine. And yet I felt hollow. An empty nutshell disguised as a perfect fruit.

This is the moment I change that. This is the moment the fight back. I’m not going to whole away anymore. I won’t be that worthless mistake any more. I am Rane Alexander after all and I won’t let a label define me. I’m going to get past this hazy fog and I’ll see the horizon again.

So I turned back and grabbed the man by his arm and sling him over hard sending the gun skidding across the dim lit parking lot.

” Not today” I breathed.

Nice…well done. I thought the ending was empowering…

Emma Palmer

Standing Still

I would like to tell you a story about a girl. There was nothing special about her at all-she was simply a girl. Every day she lived in pain. She lived in her shared room feeling so alone. Everything was white: the walls, the beds, the furniture. There was no creativity in the room, no evidence of the girl’s individuality-no posters, no color, nothing. Although, she did have one orange throw pillow that she didn’t want nor like. She hated the bland, bland room. Until she was forced to live in this room she saw white as a symbol of purity, harmony, and peace. Now she saw white as a toxic color, something that wasn’t even really a color at all, something that was devoid of emotion. Every day the girl took a shower in an attempt to wash away her skin that had been tainted by the room, but that simple act of cleansing soon became tiresome and it eventually stopped working. The girl felt dirty, impure, and alone. She was afraid-so afraid. She was afraid of being alone in her shared room in a shared house of seven people. She was afraid of not being heard, of not being able to speak. She didn’t know how she felt and she didn’t know how to express it. One day, the girl stepped into her shower, and stared at the white walls and the white floors and the white curtain and the whiteness of it all and she felt numb. She felt as if the blandness of her room and of her life had finally driven her emotionless. She stood there, feeling every singular drop of water sting her skin as if she was on fire and she felt nothing. Nothing-the absence of anything-shouldn’t feel as if the world was being torn apart around her, it shouldn’t feel as though everyone and everything were pitted against her, and yet this is the way the girl felt. She forgot that she was in the shower, where she was supposed to feel refreshed and cleansed, and she forgot herself. She leaned her head against the shower wall she wondered why the walls looked as if they were in so much pain. It was as if the very walls around her were feeling just as she felt. She stood and she thought. She wondered how long she would be able to stand there, with her head resting on a cold, hard surface. She stood in the shower too long, she stood there until the hot water turned cold and even past that. She stood there until she felt as though the pain building up inside her couldn’t take it any longer. And then, she moved. She placed one hand against the tile wall and she pushed, testing her strength-the wall remained still. She thought about how meaningless her life was and how she couldn’t possibly do anything important or memorable and she felt selfish. She felt selfish for wanting to be important. She felt as though all of her thoughts were not her own and that society had simply conditioned her to think them and she felt nothing. She felt trapped. She had nowhere to go, nowhere to be, no friends to run to, nothing. She felt alone. Her worst fear was unfolding as she began to panic. She thrashed in the shower as she desperately gasped for air, feeling nothing. Maybe she should stop gasping for air, maybe she should just give up. But no, she had to keep fighting. She turned and she turned the dreaded water off and it stopped. Just like that, it stopped, and she felt nothing yet again. She stood there, water dripping down her body, and she thought. She thought about how many mistakes she made and how many lies she’d told. She regretted everything. She wanted to stop feeling. She wanted to undo all of her wrongdoings and she wished she could fix the people she’d broken. She wished so desperately to fix herself. She stopped, she told herself to snap out of it and she felt nothing. She turned and she pulled back the bland, white curtain. She slowly took a step and then another. She stood right outside the shower and let herself feel the cold, rigid air on her skin because feeling something was better than nothing, right? She grabbed a towel and wrapped it around herself to shield her small, fragile body from the cold. She stood there outside of the shower, and she felt vulnerable. She felt neglected. She felt as if nobody cared at all. She truly thought that she had no one. She sat down on the cold tile bathroom floor and she felt defeated. She felt as if she could no longer go one. She stared at the water dripping from the faucet and she thought about how easy it would be to corrupt these white walls with her own blood just as they had tainted her with pain and sorrow and misery. She sat for what felt like hours and she thought. She realized that she couldn’t do what she so desperately wanted to do because she was just too afraid. She thought about spilling her own blood, just to leave at least a little bit of herself in that lonely room that would never truly be hers. She came so close-oh so close-to giving up, but then she remembered. She remembered a person and how that person made her feel. She remembered a smile like no other. She remembered arms that held her so tight and close that she actually felt safe. She remembered a face, a gorgeous face, that lit up the moment its eyes layed on her. She remembered feeling loved, so she stood up, turned to the door, walked into the white room, and the girl lived on to see another day, another sunrise, and another beautiful moment.

And I have a secret-that girl, that terrible terrible girl, is me.

I have a blog and have uploaded 190 articles and short stories averaging 1000-1400 words. 70% were political. My writing is purely a hobby although I did send one story to a publisher and they wrote that they liked it but being an unknown author I would be required to contribute ÂŁ2,500 towards the cost of publishing this children’s picture book which was 800 words long. Is this normal?.

So far I have had 43,000 hits worldwide on my blog I am now writing fiction for girls aged between 12-17 and children’s picture books..

I have a blog and have uploaded 190 articles and short stories averaging 1000-1400 words. 70% were political. My writing is purely a hobby although I did send one story to a publisher and they wrote that they liked it but being an unknown author I would be required to contribute ÂŁ2,500 towards the cost of publishing this children’s picture book which was 800 words long.

IS THIS NORMAL?.

Miss.Bridgit

Is this normal ?

I will get up off the chair and head for the PC, I will type two lines. At this stage they are nothing but the release of vague reflections triggered by my imagination. I may not use them but they have to escape the clutter and disarray of my thoughts and be planted like a seedling. Those two lines on a blank screen when germinated can blossom into an article, a story or a book; the blank computer screen is not unlike the painter’s blank palette waiting for the first glimmer of his/her artistry. A line of text can do the same, although it need not even be a line of text, one word can suffice.

The first line read “It was the evening of the annual Concert and Dance at……….. ” I turned the Pee Cee off and I went to bed. The next day the story took root and blossomed… ….

I will get up off the chair and head for the PC, I will type two lines. At this stage they are nothing but the release of vague reflections triggered by my imagination. I may not use them but they have to escape the clutter and disarray of my thoughts and be planted like a seedling.

Those two lines on a blank screen when germinated can blossom into an article, a story or a book; the blank computer screen is not unlike the painter’s blank palette waiting for the first glimmer of his/her artistry. A line of text can do the same, although it need not even be a line of text, one word can suffice.

The first line read “It was the evening of the annual Concert and Dance at the Denham College” I turned the Pee Cee off and I went to bed. The next day the story took root and blossomed… ….

Those two lines on a blank screen when germinated can blossom into an article, a story or a book; the blank computer screen is not unlike the painter’s blank palette waiting for the first glimmer of his/her artistry. A line of text can do the same, although it need not even be a line of text, one word can suffice. The first line read “It was the evening of the annual Concert and Dance at the Denham College.

I turned the Pee Cee off and I went to bed. The next day the story took root and blossomed… ….

Dori Acuff

Here a poem…

Roses are red Violets are blue I love you Do you love me?

Times I sit and think of you In hope as you think of me Your smile just makes me melt As I know my makes you melt.

I know you think I’m silly But you love me for it.

I hope this puts a smile on your face As it does my as I wrote it.

The sky is blue, the grass is green and the sun is warm just like my heart that beats for you. You make me smile more then the beautiful flowers that bloom under the warmth of spring and you put a sparkle in my eyes more then the stars shine in the night sky. You light my path better then a full moon in a clear night sky.

You are beautiful and I love you too.

It lights up my heart to see the words I write to you. I never thought I would ever meet someone like you. I have told you things happen for a reason and so they do. I want spend every waking moment to show you how I feel. My heart belongs to the moat amazing woman I know. Baby, that is you. I know here lately I’ve been hard to love but I promise things will get better. You are my rock and sanitary you keep me going when I think I can’t. I love u with all my heart, mind, body and soul. You’re my FOREVER. Just one more thing to say.

Don’t give up on me because I will make all your dreams come true in one way or another. I will love you until I take my last breath. Just keep on loving me for I know I am you’re Forever Love…..

That is the biggest poem I’ve ever seen

Luzerne

That is so nice and romantic but the poem is too long

Arikateku

Merp, I like this

Chris Jones

Beware: Bad language. These are two dispicible people being told honestly.

————-

Stew bent down and grabbed the dead man’s feet. “Because they’re faggots, that’s why. Why you care?”

Phil bent over and grabbed the dead man’s shoulders. “I just don’t think we should generalize people like that. That’s all.”

“One. Two. Three. Up.” They lifted the dead man off the pavement and shuffled over to the trunk of their Volkswagen. “I don’t give a fuck what you don’t think, they’re still dick-suckers. On three again. One. Two. Three.” They tossed the man into the trunk. Stew grabbed the dead man’s legs and contorted them in such a way that his fat ass fit inside, then he tossed a sheet over the body and slammed the trunk shut. “Queers, Phil. God ain’t got no love for a man sucking off another man.”

Phil was wiping his hands with a kerchief. When he was done he stuffed it back in his back pocket. The left one. “Maybe God doesn’t care, neither? Maybe we’re the ones, as a society, making a bigger deal out of it than it really is.”

Stew licked his thumb and rubbed it on his left tail light, smearing a dot of blood and making it worse. “Gimme’ a rag, would ya’?” Phil fetched a rag out of the backseat of the VW and tossed it to Stew. He spit on the rag and then wiped the taillight raw. “It’s in the fuckin’ bible, man. God said a man and a woman, not a man and a man. Now, don’t get me wrong, I got no problem with women dating women. I mean, come on, it’s sexy as hell. But two guys wagging their weiner’s in each other’s faces? Fucking gross.”

Phil stuck a cigarette between his lips and lit it, closing his eyes and inhaling. He opened his eyes and exhaled. A kid on a bike rode by, tossing a newspaper wrapped in a blue bag on the edge of the driveway. Phil watched the boy as he pedaled away, dumping papers on every driveway down the street. “Maybe the bible does say that,” he said, turning back to Stew. “Why’s it our business, though? Long as they keep it between them, how’s it hurting you?”

“It’s the principle of the motherfuckin’ thing,” Stew said, tossing the rag to Phil.

Phil sidestepped out of the way and let the rag fall to the ground. “Fuck off, dude. I don’t want his fucking blood on my new suit.”

“Well at least put it in the trash.” Stew wiped his hands down his pants, at which Phil cringed, then walked over and opened the driver side door. “We gotta meet Don in half an hour and we’re runnin’ late. Let’s go.”

“Stop for a taco?” Phil asked, bending over and grabbing the rag between two fingers.

“Sure. I’m starving.”

I Tried This is what i have so far…:

Isra Sonnet liked the quiet. Which was why she wished she were back home with her parents back in California, her cousin Eric was snoring very loud on the top bunk of the beds. She tried to block out the noise, but he seemed to be getting louder, and louder with each snort. Having enough of this, Isra grabbed her pillow and climbed up with it.

Holding steady onto the ledge of the bed, she smacked him with it. Hard.

Waking up with a start Eric looked at Isra annoyed.

“What is wrong with you? I was trying to sleep!” He flings the pillow on by his face,to the floor.

“You’re loud enough to wake the dead. Stop snoring like an old man.”

“If you’re so mad about it go sleep somewhere else…” Eric says drifting back to sleep, too tired to argue.

Sighing Isra climbed back down to her bunk bed. She knew it wouldn’t be long before Eric would start snoring again. Gathering her pillow from the floor and the blanket from her bed, she walked out of the room closing the door behind her.

Now, it was quite dark in the house. Though, Isra knew her way around the house from memory. She was careful to go down the stairs, and not to make too much noise to wake Eric’s parents.

In the living room Isra made herself comfortable on one of the couches. Placing her pillow down and wrapping herself in the warmth of her blanket comforted her. She sighed in relief. Now she could finally sleep.

Arianna

I really like it. It’s very detailed in my opinion. I’ve read a book like that called… “Wish”. I want to publish all six of my books when I get older. I’M ONLY NINE so maybe when i’m in my 20’s

isabelle

dont worry about your age. you can be just as good as any other writer. i am only twelve and i am almost finished writing my book that i am hoping to publish. go for your dreams, dont let your age stop you.

Erin J Scorgie

I’m 16 and have published my first book, best experience of my life, I am very close to publishing my 2nd book and sooo excited! Don’t worry about your age, the younger the better I say! You go girl and good luck with your writing career. You are a very gifted young lady! Xx

Kawiria

If you want to publish your books, why not now? There isn’t a law against young authors. I’m not much older than you, but my book is being published this year. All you need is the money to publish–that’s the REAL hard part for a younger writer.

DumDumDeeDoooo

Hey, don’t worry, I’m eleven and I deeply enjoy writing, and I’m looking to get a book published very soon. There’s no law forbading youngsters from getting books published… In fact, becoming a young author is one of the VERY BEST things you could do to benefit you in the future.

Quiet_Kitten

Yea I’m 11 and I’m gonna start writing stories on an app called Wattpad

Rachel Sanpaka

It’s a great way to get feed back and to start sharing your stories.

Arigato

The temperature was searing. Tara squinted her eyes as wavy lines of heat danced in the distance. Michael shuffled out of the taxi behind her and bent to drop 30 pesos in the driver’s expectant hand. “Why did we have to come all the way to Acapulco just to get our teeth cleaned?” Tara whined like a child dreading the dentist. “We’re not just getting our teeth cleaned”, Michael explained, “I need 4 crowns, you could use some fillings, and dental work is so much cheaper in Mexico. Plus, it’ll be like a vacation as soon as we’re finished. I have 3 days of the most romantic stuff planned for us, just wait.” Tara smiled at the thought of what Michael’s idea of “romantic stuff” could be. It was 9:15 am Thursday, if all went to plan, they would be partying on the beach Friday night. The shop they had been dropped off in front of was a modest, stucco covered building with one dark window bearing a small sign that read “Dentista”. They were 45 minutes early for their appointments but hopefully that meant they would be done sooner. 30 minutes and 16 pages of paperwork later, they were ushered down a brightly lit corridor to a room containing an x-ray machine. Once finished there, they were led to adjoining rooms. Each contained nothing more than a large, green dental chair, procedure light, and metal rolling cart filled with shiny, sharp instruments. “The dentist will be right in,” said the plump assistant in a thick Mexican accent. Since the office saw so many tourists, the staff all spoke in English, and this reassured Tara that it wasn’t so bad after all. She was looking up at a poster of an aquarium filled with fish that was taped to the ceiling when the dentist strode in. He was tall, about 6 feet, with dark hair, dark eyes, and a brilliantly white smile. While peering at her x-ray films, he rattled off a list of work that she needed, and she agreed, not really understanding just wanting to get it over with. The plump assistant appeared and placed a mask over Tara’s nose and mouth as she crooned, “To make you comfortable!” The last thing she noticed before she lost consciousness was the poodle print scrubs the assistant was wearing. Tara woke up being shaken by Michael. “Come on let’s go, I’ve been finished for an hour.” She groggily sat up and placed her hand to her warm, swollen cheek. The assistant was back, handing Michael prescriptions for pain killers and giving him instructions not to eat for 2 hours. They stepped outside into the bright sun and began walking slowly towards the nearest intersection where they could hail a cab. After a short taxi ride they arrived at Hotel Catedral, a quaint, boutique inn on the outskirts of the city. The room was cramped, but clean, and after a quick shower, they both laid down and quickly fell asleep. The next 2 days were spent drinking, lounging on the beach, and making love. Tara awoke late Sunday morning and started packing. While she would miss relaxing on the beach, she couldn’t wait to get back home to her apartment. Her stomach had been bothering her on and off throughout the trip and she thought it may have been the water she was drinking. They took a taxi to the airport and the trip home was uneventful except for a few severe stomach pains Tara had on the flight. She took a few more pain pills and they eased up enough for her to take a nap. They barely had time to walk through the door when Tara felt a sudden urge and bolted to the bathroom. “Are you okay?” Michael called from the hall. “Fine, just gimme a minute!” Tara snapped, and Michael went in to the living room and laid down on the couch. When Tara had finished in the bathroom, she stood up and saw something strange in the toilet. It looked like what appeared to be several small balloons floating in the water. “What the…” Tara stared confused, and called for Michael to come into the bathroom. He popped his head in the door and looked at her questioningly. She pointed to the toilet and he shook his head as if to say, “I’m not going in there.” Tara walked to the sink and grabbed a pair of tweezers sitting near the mirror. When she reached towards the toilet, Michael yelped, “What are you doing?!” “Shush, hold on!” she said. She pulled back the tweezers and pinched in the end was one of the balloons. She carried it to the sink and quickly rinsed it off. Michael came closer and said, “That came out of you?” ‘Yeah, gimme something to cut it open.” He produced his pocket knife and she proceeded to make a small slice down the center of the balloon. A white powdery substance spilled from the cut. “Oh my god, it looks like drugs! Tara exclaimed. “How did this get inside me? It must have been the dentist! I told you we shouldn’t have went down there for dental work! What are we gonna do?” “Maybe we should go to the emergency room and get checked out? Michael suggested. “Ok but we should just say our stomachs are hurting and not say anything about the drugs. We don’t want them thinking it’s ours and taking us to jail.” After spending 4 hours in the ER, a CAT scan and bloodwork, the couple was assured that they were in perfect health and probably ate something bad. They headed home, relieved there were no more foreign objects in their bodies but worried about what to do about the dentist. “He can’t get away with this, said Tara excitedly, he probably does this to tourists all the time!” “But if we call the police and tell them our story, they might think we’re involved somehow,” said Michael. They arrived back at their small Austin apartment and decided to eat some dinner and think the matter over some more without rushing to alert the police. After all they were safe at home and had no plans on leaving the country any time soon. Maybe they could just put this whole thing behind them like a bad dream. A crazy story to tell the grandkids. Once the dishes for dinner had been washed and Tara was settling down on the sofa next to Michael, a knock sounded at the door. “Who could that be? “Michael asked. He got up, slowly walked to the door, and peeped through the eyehole. On the other side of the door were 3 well-dressed Latino men. The one standing closest to door was dressed in black pants and jacket with a tucked-in turquoise shirt. He spoke first. “We know you’re in there and you have something that belongs to our boss.”

Crystal Fresneda

I wrote two stories so far Murderous Twins (Mystery) and Pregnant at 18 (Drama n Romance) total words for both 27000

Christine

THANK YOU FOR THIS. I LOVE TO WRITE AND I NEEDED INSPIRATION!!!

Husnain sheikh

My First Story.. I woke up late that morning, too excited to sleep at first and then I don’t remember when I dozed off to sleep early morning. Bright sunlight hit my half open eyes and I jumped off from the bed. It was 8:00 am already.

“Mama … why didn’t you wake me up? Has he left already?” Mother smiled “Its Sunday! Didn’t felt like waking you up from deep sleep you were in, besides you must have been dreaming, there was beautiful smile on your face. And don’t worry Papa won’t go without you.”

I was super relived and ran to hall, where my dad was ready, waiting for me. “We are going to City, right?” He simply nodded and smiled “Now get ready else we will miss the bus”

I ran to bathroom for shower and within seconds was out and in front of mirror combing my hairs. “Dry them properly, your hairs are wet, you’ll catch cold”

But here I was holding my dad’s hand and pulling him out of the door. We took bus from the bus stop and were on our way to City.

Finally the day had arrived when I was going to get my first Bicycle. It all started when my dad promised to get me Bicycle if I score good marks in final exam next year. All my friends had their own bicycle. Even my juniors had their own.

I patiently waited for one year to get my dream bike.

On the result day I was very nervous. When there was announcement that I stood first in 5th C, I jumped up in air and almost snatched my report card from our class Teachers hands.

I was telling everybody on my way back that I was going to get bicycle, since I stood first in class. After reaching home I told mom about the result and she was very happy. Then dad came back from work in the evening, he was very happy to hear about my results and patted on my back.

“So you are going to get me Bicycle” I said with glimmer in my eyes. “Let’s see” he simply said taking off his shoes

I was almost broken in tears to hear those words. He had not said no but neither did he say yes. I broke down “this is not fair, you promised”.

Next day, mom broke the news to me that finally I am going to get my Bike this Sunday.

Squeezing sound of halting break of bus brought me back to present. “We have reached, Lets go” said dad.

We reached the Big Bicycle store in Gol market. There were so many bikes, I just couldn’t take my eyes off. I picked the one with Marron color. Salesman explained the features to me. I looked at dad expectantly, he nodded and I hugged him.

Dad went in to meet the shop manager, I waited outside to see my bike being assembled by the worker. I saw dad having conversation with the shop owner. I don’t know what was wrong but dad came out.

“Let’s go now we will come next week, and take this Bike home” dad said with his fingers in my hairs. I couldn’t believe my ears. After waiting for almost a year I am getting my bike and now he is saying to wait for one more week.

I threw his hand away in disgust and ran away to hug my bike and started crying. Dad tried to convince me that He had assumed the Price of Bicycle to be lot less. And now he doesn’t have enough cash to buy this bike.

But I refused to budge down. I was so much carried away by anger, I couldn’t see the nervous face of my father. It must have been really awkward for him to face this situation.

“Okay. Let me see what can be done!” he went in. I waited outside partly sobbing and partly smiling.

Few moments later dad came out smiling. I knew he had bought the bike and we were going to be taking it home today. This was happiest day of my life.

It took me few years to understand that my dad had sold his ring that day to fulfill my wish!

Marsha McCroden

This is what I’ve got so far:

Capt. Lee asked for interrogation volunteers. The Interrogation Rooms were full and there weren’t enough interrogators. Lt. Jones volunteered. She told him thee was a suspect in Interrogation room D. Should be easy — a straight-up homicide. Just tape the confession.

Entering IR D, he saw an inconspicuous middle-aged man. Inconspicuous? Maybe 100 years ago.

Lt. Jones introduced himself and sat down. He sat down and said he was there to get the man’s side of the story. Then he turned on the recorder. The man looked at him with amusement. “Do you really want my confession” he asked. Jones said he needed the man’s name and address first. “All right. I am Daniel Alan James, address 132321 Atlantic Avenue, Plot D3.”

Jones looked up sharply. “That’s a cemetery. Your real address please.” I get the nuts, he thought.

“I am not ‘pulling your leg’ as you so quaintly think. That is my address.”

“As to my confession. In 1869 in Palm Beach, I burgled May Palmer’s house I got a sackful of jewelry. I also hacked off her head. Sternly he looked at Jones. “You kept that back. He acted like that fact should have been publusged,, like he wanted credit for it.

“In 1920, in Miami Beach, I attended a speakeasy. I abducted a somewhat plump girl, Cynthia Handel, and eventually disposed her of in the Dismal Swamp.” Chuckling, he continued. You could say the alligators had a fine meal that night.

In 1936, Cleveland, Ohio. I presume you’ve heard of the Torso Murders there? The Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run? It was never solved. Poor Eliot Ness — he wanted so badly to be Mayor of Cleveland and not just Safety Director. That case would have given him the Mayor’s office. I denied him that.””I

Above the gables of the orphanage roof, a tremulous, gentle sound began to keen. It began quietly, as oh so fragile a thing. I held my breath where I had awakened in my bed to keep from drowning it out- the sound of a human singing through a violin.

I knew exactly who it was that sang. She had come in just that day, eyes wide, mouth closed, and a violin case clutched to her chest like it was the only thing she had left in the world. I was older than her and so in a different dormitory, but still the sound found its way, sorrowfully, lovingly, through the still night air.

The sound of it made me want to cry, as it stirred in me a pain I’d long ago learned to shove away, the origin of which was the only thing that me and the little virtuoso child shared. It unfurled itself deep within me, reaching out for the sound as it grew, grew louder and more powerful as the beginning upset turned to something more violent, something filled with righteous indignation at what had happened to her… to… to me. Tears welled up in my eyes and I curled into my pillow as I fought the onslaught of emotions. The anger, the injustice, the harrowing *grief*. It all slashed and dove and resonated through the air- through my soul. I curled around the reopened wound, feeling the unreleased cry of pain inside of me. But the tears still fell. They were like rain.

Suddenly the vibrancy in the tone fell flat. The last ringing note was undulating through the air, twisting with fading passion, as a quieter, stiller strain took its place. Dispirited and exhausted, the muted notes struggled to find me, and I imagined them getting lost. It was both a relief and a loss as I felt the raw emotions drain away. It felt… hollow. It was like how I usually felt only much, much worse, the sheer weight of it making it a pain all its own, although it signified the absence of it. It was a rock I couldn’t push off my chest, or a vacuum inside of me. It *hurt*.

Still, my eyes dried as I listened to the dispassionate, lilting notes. They bumped into each other with pattern but no passion. The lack of colour in it compared to everything else the little violin girl had played almost made me want to cry again- for her this time, instead of me. I wanted to comfort her. To tell her that she could find a family here again… even if it wasn’t the same.

But then- then something magical happened. I heard something in a note shift. Just ever so slightly, regaining some of its lost fullness. My heart jumped against my rib cage at it, like a baby bird too eager to be out of the nest. The sound broadened and deepened, spinning and growing to an unimaginable size and intensity, filled with such thought and memory as one can only know inside themselves. I couldn’t imagine that something of such monumental size was coming from such a tiny person and her instrument- no, her partner. Her friend. It had to be her friend to join her in all this.

The graceful creature grew and grew on when I thought it could grow more. Time had lost all meaning to me as it tapered and streamlined itself into something lighter- losing its weight and despair- but not its memory. That stayed. I could feel it within me, too- the warmth that was spreading through the song. It touched at my fingers and toes, the tip of my nose, and the center of my belly. I let out a breath as the weight- the vacuum, whatever it was- released, no longer afraid of it or drowning out the soaring melody that cozied into the corners of the resting place of me and so many others that had experienced what this other child was experiencing right now.

But I knew, as the music carried on through the night, a peaceful balance between love and light and sorrow, that she was going to be just fine. We were all going to be just fine.

zainab

This inspired me so i tried it came up with this so far

Things have been difficult lately. Even breathing seems to take a lot of effort. But grief often shuts people down. And everything seems to blur out. You must be wondering what broke me? Nothing just the same old heartbreak that broke souls in every time period.

That night I made my way Aden’s house. We had been dating for almost four years. He had asked me to marry him a week ago and I had to ask my parents if they accepted they’re daughter to get married at 21. To my surprise my parents had said yes and I was on my way to blow Aden’s mind with the amazing news. I rang his doorbell several times even though I knew where they key to the door was kept but manners were still important. After fifteen minutes of standing out the door my mind started exploding with thoughts I shouldn’t be thinking about. Aden’s car was still parked in the garage which meant that he was still home. I rushed to get the keys from under a plant pot and opened the door. Aden’s house was a mess but Aden was a clean freak. I made my way to Aden’s room and gently opened the door to see my whole world crashing in front of me.

Aden lay in bed with another women pressed to his side as they slept. No words, no tears just an apology. Just two words “ I’m sorry “ and I ran down the stairs, across the street and away from the person I had given my everything.

You see every person leaves a mark behind. But Aden , Aden left behind the deepest scars.

Mark Robson

(please don’t judge, I’m only 12. And btw I’m a girl. I’m using my dad’s account)

It’s dark. My own shadows drown me. This is nothing new to me though, I’m not shocked or scared. Just lonely. Nothing to look forward to I’ll thing myself sitting and think, hoping. I don’t know how long this lasts, seconds, minutes, hours. I can’t sense the time passing, I don’t fully understand it. I don’t know how I got here or when I’ll leave. My life feels like it has no meaning. But yet, somehow I feel like I’m waiting for something, this longing for something to happen. But at this moment in time…I’m not really sure. I must have had more than this life, I must have lived in something different, color, happiness, friends, family….love…maybe, or is that me dreaming?

Have I lost my mind completely now. Maybe I’m not even here, In this darkness. Am I just mad? Why am I even asking…I’ll never get an answer. Sitting here hoping dreaming will do me no good! I must fight back. I’m not sure what I’m fighting for but if I do have a motive to fight then it must be worth it. Without thinking I lunge into the dark clouds. Fighting, not with any weapons but just by my longing for whatever is outside this lonely cage. The chains of my fear and uncertainty tug at my arms pulling me back but using all my force I shake them off and continue forward through the endless darkness…This place must end. There must be an ending for me, more than this dark realm. I jump forward, ready to scream as I hit the floor but I don’t have to. I didn’t fall…Am I..floating?

No, I don’t feel like I’m standing. I feel something on my hand but I can’t see what it is or even move to shake it off. Then I suddenly realize. The thought that I’ll no longer be lonely, this thing I feel, it’s a person. These thoughts, my feelings they allow me to take control. I slowly open my eyes. It all shoots my at once colour…light! I’m lying down on a bed, a hospital bed. My memories come soaring back. I look over to my right hand and see the lady holding it, in shock, but smiling brightly. It’s my mother! And in what seems like the longest time ever…I smile.

Courtnie

Clark stood at the window and watch as the first snow started to fall. He thought back to when he was a little boy and how he loved to go outside and play in the snow. The snowmen him and his sister would build, the snowball fights him and his friends would have. Then his smile changed to a sad face. He remember the last first snow fall that happen when he was a kid. That was the last time he was happy about seeing the snow. Clark’s father Ernest was at the local convenience store, when two mask men came in to rob the place. One of the robbers told Ernest to give him his wallet. He did but a long noise from the back of the store in scared the robber that he jumped and the gun he had pointed at Clark’s father went off and shot him in the chest.

Clark was home in the bed, but he jumped up out of his sleep, he felt that something was wrong. He got out the bed and went looking for his mother. When he got to the end of the hall he saw his mother at the door talking to some police. She turned when she heard the floor Creek. ” Clark honey, what are you doing up”? His mother asked with blood soaking red eyes . ” mother is everything alright? ” with every step he took closer to his mother he knew that what ever reason the police was at his house it wasn’t good. Every since that Dreadful night Clark, the night his dad was killed, he has hated the snow. It always seems to remind him of that night. It’s like all the good times he had in the snow was replace by the death of his dad, his hero, the man he wanted to grow up and be. They never did find the guys that robbed that convenience store.

Pradeep

Conceited Conflict

Simon did not die…

The inviting aroma of freshly brewed coffee had been enough to persuade him to walk straight into the little beach-side shack without as much as a second thought. He had made a mental note to thank Danny–his colleague and friend–for suggesting the place for a quick getaway.

People close to Simon knew that he savored these small pleasures of life: a peaceful evening relaxing at the beach, the blushing horizon as the sun set for the day, the scents of the tropical sea, the areca nut trees swaying to the music of the breeze, the waves at the shallow end lightly caressing his feet, the warm texture of the sand slipping away beneath his toes, children running around flying colorful kites… cocoa-rich dark chocolates, and fresh coffee.

And why not? After all, he thought, what was life without these? Nothing but a stressful grind, it was. To fight the distressing official battles day in and day out. To struggle to defeat the unethical schemes of the back-stabbing lot who lurked among colleagues and friends. To come back home to the nagging demands of a materialistic spouse. All that did nothing good for the soul.

It was late evening when Simon had walked toward the shack. When he got closer, he had noticed two men standing engulfed by the dark shadows behind the shack. Although he could not discern their features, and they were speaking only in whispers, their body language had betrayed the fact that they had been exchanging an agitated conversation.

As Simon was about to enter the shack, one of the men thrust a wad of money into the other’s hand. The other man briefly regarded the bundle before stuffing it into his trouser pocket.

A drug deal, likely–Simon had thought–or some other such shady business. How could these people come to such spectacular and peaceful places and engage in such disreputable and squalid acts? What a disgusting lot!

He had shaken his head to clear his thoughts, and inhaled deeply as he entered the shack. Freshly brewed coffee! He had smiled as he sat at a small, round, plastic table in a corner. All other concerns would have to wait for half an hour, at least.

Outside, unknown to Simon, the deal had been concluded. The men had followed up by exchanging a small vial of some sort. Then one of them had raised the hood of his jacket over his head and walked away swiftly without turning back, with his hands in his pockets. The other man had vanished into the darker shadows behind the shack.

The next afternoon…

Although–when it concerned professional life–Danny lacked severely in the department of moral and ethical values, he was regarded in their circles as a gem when it concerned friendship. He had rushed to the hospital at once when Simon’s wife had called. Dysentery–she had told him, repeating the doctor’s diagnosis–perhaps acute food poisoning. Very severe symptoms. Quite unbearable. Must have been something he ate yesterday.

Danny had stayed on at the hospital with Simon’s wife to lend her moral and emotional support. He wanted to make sure–he had said–that she got all the help she needed; he wanted to make sure that Simon recovered all right.

The third evening…

Simon rested motionless on a bed at St Sebastian Hospital. Motionless. Still. He wasn’t even breathing. He was finally free of all suffering.

Epilogue 1…

Normally, convincing a chemist and obtaining the required substance might have been the biggest challenge. On this occasion, however, a well-maintained friendship with a pharmaceutical assistant had proved quite rewarding.

The rest was simple to plan and execute. Simple did not mean without risk, but in this case the desired reward would be sufficient compensation for the risk.

The dosage would be just right. The doctor would have only the patient’s symptoms to go on, which would be easily mistaken for those of common diseases such as food poisoning or dysentery.

It would all be over even before anyone suspected foul play. Even if other signs did manifest afterwards, there was no incriminating evidence.

Epilogue 2…

Simon had felt the first signs of fatigue when he was almost half way back home from his getaway spot. He had believed that the nausea was caused by travel-sickness. Later that night his condition had become worse, and next morning he had tried home remedies for diarrhea. By afternoon, he had started discharging blood, and had to be hospitalized immediately.

Danny had stood by his bed in the hospital, looking in his weak eyes, holding his hand reassuringly. Behind those heavy eyelids, in those weak eyes about to close, Danny had seen a faint spark of realization. The reality of the deal he had witnessed behind the coffee shack had dawned on Simon. I wish you understood, my friend–Danny had thought–that it was nothing personal, that everything is fair in professional rivalry. In any case, it was too late now. There was no turning back.

Don’t strain yourself trying to talk–Danny had said–Just close your eyes, let go and relax.

— End —

(I’m only 12 so don’t judge me, I tried :D)

I’m alone. I’m surrounded by darkness. I’m lonely, I have no-one except silence to keep me company. I’m not sure how long I’ve been here…Minutes, hours….days? They mean nothing to me, I don’t know how time passes and why it matters. I’m too close to giving up. Surely my life must mean something. I can’t have been made to just be nothing, to exist only feeling, loneliness and fear. The fear of being forgotten, by this world, by myself. If I’m not already.

There must be meaning for me, something bugger, better. It’s all I want, all I ever dream about. A life with meaning, color, happiness…family. But that’s just a dream. That can’t be real, I have no memories out of this place why would I be suddenly be gifted such happiness. Is this it? I am going mad? Have I been here so long just lost my mind? No. That can’t be. I can’t give up, I must try….try escape this realm of darkness. I stand up, shaking slightly. No, I must be strong! I run forward, not sure where I’m going. Not sure if this place even ends.

I start hearing voices, they’re speaking to me… “stay…strong…everything’s going to be ok” I hear the voice saying. It was comforting, gentle and kind sounded. It sounds familiar….I run faster, using all of strength. I race through the darkness, wind smacking my face until I come to what looks like the edge. It was a drop, so deep I couldn’t see the bottom. Without thinking, using all my desire, the want to be somewhere with meaning and happiness I lunge forward and jump.

I…I didn’t fall. I’m alive, I think. I don’t feel like I’m standing. Wait, am I floating? No, don’t be silly. I’m…lying. I feel something touch my hand but I don’t have strength to even shake it off. I can’t see anything…Then suddenly reality hits me. I slowly open my eyes…It all hits me at once: Color, sound, people. I look over to my right hand to see who was holding it. She was crying but smiling at the same time. It was mother. And for the first time in what seemed like forever, I smiled.

Lykke

“I’m borrowing one of your geese.”

Asta jumped in her seat by the fireplace, woken from her accidental nap. She whirled in her seet to see Jeppa, the slightly unhinged neighbour, filling the doorframe. He looked like any regular farmer, brown coveralls and pipe dangling from the side of his mouth, but sported a permanent wide-eyed stare that made the children (and everyone else) wary of him. Asta had half a mind to go back to sleep and let Jeppa be Jeppa, but curiousity got the best of her.

“Pardon?” She asked, slowly getting up, her arthritis crackling in her knees. “You’re borrowing what?”

“I’m borrowing one of your geese,” He repeated, unblinking. Then he turned on the spot, as if the conversation was over and done with.

“But why?” Asta exclaimed, hopping after him on stiff legs into the front yard. Three of her large, snowy geese were drowsily waddling through the hole in her white fence as Jeppa marched over and seized one of them by the neck. The other two hurried into a nearby hedgerow, abandoning their brother to fate. Jeppa stood there for a moment and admired the view over Asta’s fields, completely obvious to the furious flapping and hissing of the goose.

“What are you doing? Let go of him!” Asta cried, but Jeppa remained blissfully ignorant to the chaos he created.

“Beautiful day, isn’t it?” Jeppa sighed happily, still unblinking. Then, remembering why he was strangling a goose, he heaved it up under one arm and took off towards his own rickety cottage a few hundred yards down the gravel road.

“Wait!” Asta cried, limping after him. When she finally caught up to him he was crawling up a worn ladder propped against his roof, hissing goose tucked into his armpit as if it was nothing more than the daily newspaper.

Finding her best old-angry-crone voice, she howled; “Jeppa! Get down this instant! What on earth are you doing with Herman?”

This seemed to reach the decision centre in Jeppa’s head, and he stopped on the topmost rung. He stared at the wobbly chimney for a moment, as if pondering its existence, before replying. “I can’t afford a chimney sweep,” he commented simply. Then, with both hands, he heaved the goose up in one fluent motion and dumped it into the chimney. The hissing and flapping increased in volume, projected into the open air by the narrow chimney, until it became unbearable to listen to. Then it stopped. The goose must have fallen into his fireplace.

Asta’s mouth fell open. She sat down on her bum like a baffled toddler.

“Are you alright there? You look like you saw a ghost!” Jeppa chuckled obliviously as he descended from the roof and moved to let the goose out of his kitchen. The moment the door opened, a great, fluffy black thing scuttled out and down the road, hisses and quacks flying about it like the soot covering it.

“That,” Asta said, her voice quivering, “was my prized competition goose, Herman.”

Jeppa finally seemed to realise the extent of his actions. Wringing his hands he inched towards the door, hoping to use it for protection when she exploded, which she was bound to do.

“Isn’t… isn’t there a competition for black geese, perhaps?” Jeppa asked, hopefully unblinking.

Sebastian Halifax

Most short story ideas I have are too big write in just one sitting. The first one I wrote took months. It’s why I can’t write flash fiction.

I’m trying to write Flash Fiction. I love the challenge. It’s amazing how you can cut out redundant word from each editing. Try it, Sebastian. It’s good practice.

Edlyn

Okay, here goes: Persephone, Persephone Akeldama. She was a beautiful girl, slender waist, flowing blonde locks, petite figure. This quiet girl was often referred to by her fellow students as the “perfect doll”, due to her stunning looks and the love she received from the teachers. In a the darker half of this world, her nickname was not much different. The flawless puppet, she was called. Flawless because of her swift assassinations, and puppet because of her emotionless features. No one in school knew her profession, and no one in the dark world knew her real age, or even what she looked like. She was a complete mystery to both sides, only this was known about her: She is a prodigy. Of course, “Prodigy” meaning different things in either sides of the world. There was a large gap between prodigy killer and prodigy student. Not many assassins are born into their jobs, Persephone being an exception. At three, she was already trained to fight, and at the early age of twelve, she was already a well known assassin. due to her quick learning, her parents payed even more attention to her, punishing her whenever her actions did not fit into the range of perfection, training her more than any twelve year old should ever have to endure. And of course, making her kill. One by one, Persephone’s emotions died, every person she killed, every order she received. She carried them out with swift and deadly accuracy, losing all her innocence. Her purity was lost long ago.

So she found nothing wrong with killing her parents.

Persephone never loved anyone, because she was a killing machine, exactly how her parents had designed her. Her mothers last words: I’m so proud. Her fathers? :I’ve trained you well. A now orphaned Persephone felt no remorse, no guilt, no grief. Only a small pang of loneliness.

And that was the last emotion she would ever feel.

Ummmm, I got the juices flowing, just need my writing to flow……in the right direction.

Sapphire Emmaton

So I combined all 10 of the “general ideas” into one premise. I think this is more the premise of a collection now… Oh well. Here’s the premise (or the rough draft)

As a child, Kell, a painting prodigy, discovers her parents’ dead bodies, leaving her emotionally scarred. Later in life, she clings to her boyfriends for moral support, which leads to many failed relationships. Her Fiance and colleague breaks up with her because he needs to spend more time on his work, even though it crushes both of them. Kell doesn’t look when she’s walking down the street, sobbing, and she bumps into her rich soulmate, Neil. They have a whirlwind romance, which ends up with their marriage. On their honeymoon, though, Kell’s mother’s ghost confronts her and warns her to delay the journey. Kell and Neil go anyways. A hurricane strikes, and the couple is stranded with a phycopath who just so happen to be Kell’s parents’ murderer. The couple doesn’t make it out alive.

I know that’s pretty dark, especially for a 17-year-old. It’s also not that great. But hey, I hope it gave you an idea or two! Happy writing!

Emily Cummings

You should really think about turning this into a novel! You’ve got quite the imagination.

Maude Kate Potgieter Bester

The last laugh Kate Bester

“What? Oh heavens no! When?” Faye dragged the pink sweatband back from her forehead and shook her shoulder length blonde hair off her neck. She had just returned from the gym when the house phone rang.

“…sometime last night, peacefully. She had to go sometime, Faye.” Debbie’s longsuffering voice was irritating.

Faye sighed and shifted the weight from one shapely leg to the other. She crossed one ankle over the other and stared at her Reebok trainers. She bit her tongue before she could blurt out what came into her mind – why now? She had a very special and important occasion coming up and serious shopping to do!

“Mom was nearly eighty, you know Faye, but death is always unexpected, I know,” Debbie went on. Was she imagining it or was there a touch of accusation in Debbie’s voice? Deborah, her older sister, had never married. Instead, she stayed with Mom after Dad passed on ten years ago and took charge of the rambling old house in George. Come to think of it, when Debbie gave up nursing, moving in with Mom was the natural thing to do.

Faye had to muster all the self-control that she could to sound genuine and concerned. It was Mother after all…

“When is the funeral, then? Do you want me to come and help you with the arrangements?” she kept her voice low and even in case Debbie thought she was serious about the offer to help.

“No thanks, Faye, everything is fine. Mom had everything in place as usual. It will be a cremation of course…”

Debbie’s voice trailed off and Faye could just about suppress the groan that escaped from her chest before she said goodbye to her sister. She sank down in the closest, huge, overstuffed chair after she had put down the receiver. Of course. That is Mother. Well, was she corrected herself. Nothing ordinary or conventional. A cremation no less, so that all her old hippie friends could attend in their colourful rags and long hair and chant and blow their flutes and shake their tambourines. Faye had to admit to herself that a cremation at least would be better than embalmment. Her mother was quite capable of having them roll her in the scales of the boophone bulb like the Khoisan did with their dead.

Faye groaned again. She must be in shock otherwise why wasn’t she crying. Crying? No, she’d done enough crying after the second divorce in eight years. The last one was particularly messy but this time she stuck to her guns and got the house and a stiff alimony. Not that it’s about the money, which is never enough anyway, but one has to keep up appearances. She had spent a fortune on refurbishing the gazebo next to the pool. Oh gosh yes, and she must still pay for the embroidered voile curtains around the patio. And for the plant containers and cane furniture from Bali…

Faye sighed as she levered her challenged limbs from the chair. She will have a warm shower and then make her calls. Damn! Now she will have to drive all the way to George. She smiled. Yes, she will have to. Because of Mother’s pendant. She had to have it. Must be worth a small fortune by now…

That pendant was given to her mother by a very grateful Indian businessman. Mother had met him on a plane to Mumbai all those years ago when she travelled to India to see for herself what mysteries lay behind the lotus curtain. She ended up in his luxurious home and taught the whole family to speak English while she enjoyed every facet of that exquisite culture. If memory doesn’t fail her, the pendant has a top quality eleven carat flawless ruby, enhanced by… a shiver of delight passed through Faye’s body despite the warm gush of water.

At the garage to fill up and prepare the vehicle for the trip, she remembered how bored she was on weekends as a child. They travelled endless dusty roads, slept in tents, either sweating or freezing. Her botanist parents would be off in the veld , ooohing or aaahing, clicking their tongues and cameras. Deborah would be whooping somewhere in a shallow river. In her tent, her feet against the anchor pole, Faye swore she would never live this way. She would have money and everything it could buy. These bunny-hugging weirdo’s – her family – may enjoy the outdoors but she despised the smell of citronella candles, morning coffee and tinned food. Not to mention the squatting behind a bush when nature called. Ugh!

At nine o’clock the next morning, Faye was over the Overberg Pass and heading for Caledon. She would stop for tea at the Blue Crane and buy some of her mother’s favourite dried herbs. Yes, some buchu and lavender and rosemary. She’ll keep them on her lap during the cremation service and speeches to soothe her mind. Afterwards she will let them join her mother’s body to nirvana…

It was exactly twenty past one when she saw the huge pine trees and the red brick house behind it. The garden was a botanist’s dream. Like her mother exactly – colourful, mysterious, exciting and completely unusual. Faye’s eyes followed the garden path up to the porch. Handfuls of laurel tied with raffia or beads or leather thongs garnished the pathway from the gate to the porch and around the open door’s frame where fairy lights twinkled.

She opened the car door and slid off the seat. The manicured feet in the Blahnik sandals stepped together neatly on the tarmac as she automatically pressed the remote lock. Gingerly she approached the garden path and as daintily as possible made her way to the house.

Then it hit her. This wasn’t a welcome for her. The laurel symbolized Apollo’s way to remember his Daphne! Daphne didn’t want to marry Apollo and begged her father, Perenaeus, to hide her. He promptly turned her into a laurel tree. From then on Apollo worshipped the tree, hugged it, spoke to it and let all heroes and kings wear a laurel wreath on the head as adornment. This was for Mother.

Suddenly, there was her sister. Oh heavens, clad in a flowing caftan, pearls, beads, feathers and leather thong sandals, she could’ve been Mother!

Quickly Faye went over and folded her sister in her arms. While her sister was yoga-breathing against her shoulder, she took in the room behind. She smiled to herself . Ostrich feather boas were draped over the window frames, door frames and thrown over the backs of chairs. Huge black and white photographs of ostriches in all poses adorned the walls. Ostrich eggs and paraphernalia were displayed everywhere. This was a shrine to the ostrich as Nieuw-Bethesda was to the owl…

She let go of Debbie and cleared her throat. She took a deep breath, “Debs, what are we going to do with all this stuff ?” she hoped her chicanery would go undetected. Back in her mind there was an image of Mother’s ostrich leather handbags, shoes and purses she had collected before it became export posh. Her heart went on a gallop from excitement and anticipation.

At last they were alone. They cleared away the last few cups and plates. In the kitchen, Faye poured two large tumblers of Merlot for her and her sister.

“Sis, if you’re up to it, we can go through Mom’s things and decide what to do about some of it.”

“Of course, my dear.” Faye gulped.

Then the pendant was in the palm of her hand. This was a testing moment. She wanted to hang it around her neck immediately but thought it would seem callous. She let the heavy gold chain slide sensuously through her fingers while the ruby’s red eye winked at her.

“You have it, Faye, it’s too ostentatious for me. Mom also never wore it for that reason.”

“And these, Sis.” Debbie was on all fours in front of a deep drawer. She was pulling out ostrich leather gloves in every colour, handbags, clutch bags, more boas. They lay on the Kelim carpet like offerings to a queen. Faye stared and stared. “Oh yes!” her mind sang.

After breakfast the next day, Faye took her leave of Debbie who promised to visit as soon as everything was tied up and settled. When she was passing Mossel Bay, she started to relax and fingered the pendant at her throat. A warm glow filled her and she stretched to see it again in the rear mirror. It was an exquisite piece! She still felt surprised at how nonchalant Debbie was.

She decided to stop for refreshments outside Swellendam. She enjoyed stretching her legs in the shade of the old trees and watching the goats, chickens and ostriches they kept there for entertainment. She parked in the shade of a huge oak tree and went to the restaurant. She carried her fruit juice over to the enclosure on the lawn. A billy goat came towards her. Behind him a young ostrich craned its neck. A sheep, two lambs and a kid trotted up. Faye leaned forward.

She shrieked, jumped back and feverishly fumbling at her throat, she saw it

Ostriches also like jewellery.

Evangelin

I have not written a very long piece. It a quite short story. So…here it is…

Sydney woke up with a start, as beads of sweat adorned her furrowed brows. Next to her was her twin sister, Tanya, sleeping peaceful as Sydney had been a couple of moments before. She looked around as if searching for something or someone. Sydney almost dismissed the episode and went back to sleep when she heard it again, this time, even evident. The sound that had woken her up from her slumber. The sound that made her shiver and was even vexing than the sound of nails on chalkboard.

And then, it stopped. She looked around her for the source of what she heard. She decided to get some fresh air and walked out of the room she shared with her twin.

As she walked to the porch, she glanced at her reflection in the mirror. She couldn’t put her finger on what was wrong but she knew something was. She leaned in to get a closer look at her reflection when something hit her head and she fainted. When she regained her consciousness, she looked around her. She was in the porch and it was dawn. She went back into her house when she glanced at the mirror again. She could see her mother, her sister and her father. They all looked around as if searching for someone. What she couldn’t understand was why she couldn’t see her reflection in the mirror. Then, realization struck her like a ton of bricks. She was in the other side. Of the mirror.

Then the ending credits rolled in. Though it was just a trailer, it was well shot. Everyone couldn’t wait to see the full movie. We congratulated our friend, Mills, who had shot the film and went to hang out at her place.

Cortney Swar

Wonderful ideas. Thanks for inspiration.

Alia Moore

*I’ve been wanting to write for a long time but never really got the push until right now. Sorry if it’s bad, it’s my first short and I’m 14* “One, two, three. Perfect, now I can go…” I quietly say to myself. I have something called Pure-O. Some people think that it’s worse than “normal OCD”. The others think that it’s completely unreal and it’s made up. What people don’t know about me is that I have Pure-O and it’s completely real and my life revolves around it. I make sure that people don’t find out about it because I am considered “ popular and high-status” where I live. “ Happy, good thoughts. Nothing bad.” I think to myself. “They won’t find out….hopefully. I am Claire Williams who has the best makeup and the straightest hair. Not the Crazy Williams girl that broke down in front of everyone because her presentation wasn’t how she planned it.” I think. Then the flashbacks swoop in and fill my brain. “Hi my name is Claire Williams and I am doing my presentation on the Economic Downfall of 2008…” I pause and look around. I see people snicker and talking. The teacher is just looking at me and gesturing for me to continue. I get scared and forget everything that I worked so hard to memorize. “Umm. I’m sorry ma’am, I can’t finish.” I tell my Economics teacher. When I try to move and collect everything, I can’t move. “No no no no no this can’t be happening. I can’t be having a panic attack at school.” I think to myself. I feel tears well up into my eyes. They slowly fall down my face and I taste the warm salty fluid. I suddenly tense up and can’t breath. Because no one knows about my condition, no one can help me. “Look! Williams is going crazy! Crazy Williams.” I hear people snicker from the back and the attack gets worse. I hear something new in my flashback…. It sounds almost as a ringing. I realize the bell is ringing for the students to get to class. I come back to reality and hope for the best on my first day of Senior year. I mean after all, it’s just school. Nothing bad could happen right?

Helen Kudatsky

PEN-082a 694w Anne Frank, Bella and Me by Helen Kudatsky

At nine, I bought my mom, Bella, a birthday gift on June 12th, a magenta lipstick for 19c. I was so proud. First present I ever purchased. She made me return it; It was too extravagant, and besides, she said, “every day is my birthday.” I cried. I knew her secret though. although a proper Jewish woman, sometimes she longed to be a gypsy.

Now, 60 years later, I’m reading “The Diary of a Young Girl” by Anne Frank, here in the home where I live. Though nursed, I’m often blue that I can’t dance or paint anymore. But I love to read and write, and my friend, Julie, the librarian, kindly brought me Anne’s book, which I am now devouring.

Anne was an eloquent writer, describing her schoolmates and boyfriends. She began the diary at 13, disclosing her first period, having a special secret and becoming a woman. I too began to menstruate at 13, pondering the mystery. It’s horrid to imagine eight people in 1944, crammed into the Secret Annexe, handling eating, sleeping, hygiene and trying to stay alive, while whispering and tiptoeing to avoid discovery by the Gestapo.

To maintain normalcy, the adults set up a plan. The children continued their studies: Dutch, French, English, history, geography and art. Although Anne liked most subjects, she found algebra notably loathsome. I’m in that club too.

Her people have become my friends and family: Anne Frank herself, Edith, her Mummy, Otto, her beloved father, Margot, her sister, and the others hiding with them: the VanDaans, their son, Peter who was first, her friend, then later, her crush and confidant, Dr. Albert Dussel, the dentist and Moortjie, the cat. Four of Otto’s devoted employees provided food, supplies and world news, which kept them alive and boosted their morale.

After the war, Miep, a helper, found Anne’s diary in the demolished remains and rubble of the annexe. She gave it to Otto, the sole survivor of the group. He was stunned by Anne’s maturity and the breadth of her feelings. The Diary has been published in 67 languages, portrayed on stage and screen, and is considered one of the most moving accounts of the Holocaust.

For those of us beholding atrocity, Anne Frank is a beacon: humorous, inquisitive, forgiving, cheerful. Sometimes moody, though, she was nicknamed “the incurable chatterbox.” as she’d quarrel with others in the Secret Annexe they occupied for their 25 months in hiding.

My mom, Bella, shared a birthday with Anne Frank, June 12th, but didn’t know of it until years after Anne’s death. Bella lived to be 95. She loved reading as much as Anne did, and she wrote poetry and stories, but didn‘t start until middle-age. Anne, 15, died in March 1945, just two weeks before the war’s end, when she would have been liberated. In two years of hiding, Anne was devoted to writing in the diary, at times prosaic, sometimes distraught, frequently terrifying, but often funny, spiritual and uplifting.

If the war had only ended sooner, I imagine the writing that Anne could have produced and I envision Bella meeting her. Bella, born in 1913, Anne in 1929, 16 years her junior, they could have been aunt and niece; I see them sharing a Shabbat dinner, singing a Hanukah song; I picture them speaking one of their languages. They believed in the same things. Finally, I dream of them proudly sharing their writings, a mystery, a story of love and longing, a poem, and of course, on June 12th, their mutual birthday.

I dream of them walking hand in hand, pale wrinkled fingers holding a smooth teenaged palm. They come to a table set before them, on it matzoh brei with applesauce, a plate of potato latkes with sour cream. There are apples and honey, wine and rugalech. Bella and Anne eat heartily and shout for joy, no longer whispering or tiptoeing, no longer afraid to be Jewish women writers, no longer afraid at all.

PEN-082a-Anne Frank, Bella and Me.wps by Helen Kudatsky w:09/03/17 ei 09/19/17 694 wds 08 mn 99 Park St.#104 Brookline,MA 02446 C-617-939-3387 e-m: [email protected]

Luke Johnson

My story plot is of the fantasy/adventure type.

In the fictional town of Surron, Colorado (which is surrounded by high mountainsides from every angle, a tragedy occurs on September 5, 1963. Six-year old Robert “Bert” Aruson witnesses his drunken, abusive father murder his mother with a broken beer bottle. Advancing on him, the father sleeps on another discarded bottle and trips, impaling himself on the bottle with which he killed his wife. Robert runs off into the forest to escape his father to look of help, unaware of his father’s death. With his parents living far back into the woods, he ends becoming lost and spending the night in the forest. A mother bear, Dewa, with two cubs of her own, the boy Gemape and girl Biha, discover the young boy and adopt him into their family, christening him with the new name Nuun. Ten years later in 1973, Nuun has led a happy existence with his loving and supportive new family, having even made new friends like the crow Hai and the mouse Naeene. He even prevented unnecessary violence between his family and a wolf pack led by Dande and Gupa. Any hunters that come into the forest have their weapons stolen and permanently disposed of in the night by Nuun. By this time, Nuun and his actions have become something of an urban legend in Surron. Back in that town, the mayor Aaron Burdon (who resides upon a hill overlooking the town) runs the town, though he views it with contempt due to one incident. His younger brother, Reagan, was beaten by thugs hoping to steal money off of his rich person, leaving him with brain damage. Despite this, the townspeople started treating him and his brother differently afterwards, cruelly even. This has caused his hatred to ferment over the years until he comes up with a plan to destroy the town’s population with explosives at the upcoming July 4 picnic. His wealth and power make the workers unable to resist him, as they will become jobless should he imprisoned. “Nuun” comes across one of Burdon’s worksites and almost steals workers lunchbox, but is chased away. News soon spreads through the town and Nuun finds his happy life in danger of being shattered once again unless he can have assistance from friends both human and animal.

Luba

Nikita This is the story of me, Nikita, an orphaned girl, who didn’t know anything about her family. I was kept in the orphanage with a bunch of other girls. Ms.Keeper, the owner of the orphanage doesn’t tell anyone anything about themselves or their family. I didn’t know anything about myself, but everyone knew that in Ms.Keepers room there was a filing cabinet with documents of the real stories of our lives. Nobody ever dared to go in there though. Ms.Keeper looked like she was somewhere in the 30’s, she had grey hair, bags under her brown eyes, a slim body and a huge pimple on her long nose. She was not married. I have brown hair, brown eyes, freckles and a healthy, slim body.

I always thought of running away. I felt like I was in that orphanage forever. I remember growing up in there since I was a child and now that I’m 17 years old, I’m still here, hoping to find my family. But that, I thought was too unrealistic. I was sitting in an orphanage, hoping to find my family. No, I wanted to DO something to find my family. The only thing that held me back was Ms.Keeper and the thought that I really had no family. Ms.Keeper was always afraid of one of the girls running away, that’s why she made some workers put a stronger fence around the orphanage property. Ms.Keeper was also afraid of talking to the government. I thought so because the government will shut down her orphanage. One time, I overheard Ms.Keeper talking on the phone to the government and they said that it was illegal to not show the orphans their identity and who they are, but Ms.Keeper ignored them and kept talking about something else. Also, at 18 years old, you are free to leave the orphanage and become independent. I just turned 17. No one else was my age except another girl, aged 14 and all the rest were smaller than her. There was once a girl named Gabby who was the only person who was older than me. Just last year, she turned 18 and was supposed to go. On her birthday, Ms.Keeper made an announcement at the last moment that Gabby was leaving right now and is right by the door. Every girl ran out to give her hugs and goodbyes. Ms.Keeper didn’t even move. She didn’t even say bye. It was so cruel of her. We didn’t have a birthday cake with Gabby because Ms.Keeper threw her out the door on her birthday!

Everyday, Ms.Keeper lets us go outside for one hour, three times a day. We ate mostly sandwiches and drank water and sometimes juice. We also had some snacks, which were mostly fruits. We did school during the day too but this wasn’t real school. Ms.Keeper taught us everything. Ms.Keeper also bought us a TV, which was in the dining room. We mostly had everything we needed, except a family.

One day, when Ms.Keeper let us go outside, I was lying on the grass by myself at the farthest point from the orphanage. Then all of a sudden I heard someone coming. I looked up but saw no one. When I turned around, I saw a boy, looked like he was 15. He had brown hair, blue eyes and was tall. He said “hi” to me and I said “hi” back. We talked to each other for awhile until Ms.Keeper called us in. I really hoped that Ms.Keeper didn’t see me talk to that boy because she would punish me.

For the next three days, I talked to that boy over the fence every recess. He told me about his life and it really surprised me. He said he had a house as big as the whole orphanage (the orphanage is as big as a hotel). He said he had his mom and dad living with him, that he has money, any kind of drink, and lots of junk food. He played video games everyday and watched TV and also he quit school. His mom and dad don’t care about what he does as long as he’s home by midnight! When he told me this, I started thinking, is every life out there like his? What is everyone’s else’s life like? I couldn’t sleep that night or any other night after that day.

Soon, we became friends and he asked if the orphanage was boring. I didn’t even know what to say because it was alright living in the orphanage but compared to his life, it was nothing. I didn’t say anything and he asked if I wanted to run away to his house. I, of course, was surprised and didn’t say anything for awhile but then I said I would think about it. Ms.Keeper called us inside, and I don’t know why but she never caught me talking to him. Ms.Keeper usually stands by the door of the orphanage, looking into the field of how we are playing. I was farthest away from her so maybe she doesn’t see so well.

After those days, I couldn’t sleep because I kept thinking of running away. But how was I supposed to run away? If I got caught, I would be punished and I would have to be a slave to everyone, washing dishes, sweeping, and cleaning. Besides, I couldn’t run away because we all slept in rooms with four people to each room. Our room was the farthest away from the exit. I would have to tip-toe (at night?!?) through the whole orphanage just to get to the exit. No, I couldn’t do it. I was too scared. But that boy kept assuring me that everything will be okay.

I talked it over with the boy and I decided to run away with him at night, at 11pm because he had to be home by 12pm. By 8pm, all the girls in the orphanage would be sleeping, but Ms.Keeper stays up till 10pm, listening to classical music in her favourite rocking chair. As not to wake Ms.Keeper, the boy suggested that he would come to my window at night and I would climb over. Our room was on the lowest level – level one- so it was the closest to the ground. It was supposed to happen in two days from then. I was very nervous and scared, and I kept looking at Ms.Keeper if she had any suspicions, but it didn’t look like it.

It was the day of the run. I packed all my stuff, which wasn’t really much. I put all my clothes in my pockets (it fit perfectly). I was wide awake that night, listening till Ms.Keeper turned off her classical music and went to bed. It was perfectly silent. You could hear every single breath of the girls. My tummy had a trillion butterflies in it and I couldn’t stop my heavy breathing. At 11pm, there was a quiet knock at my window and I knocked back. That was our signal for letting each other know we were ready. I then looked at everyone in the room. They were sound asleep. I opened the window and it’s super squeaky. I waited a moment to see if anyone woke up, but no one moved. I climbed over the window to the boy. I closed the window with a loud squeak and started running with the boy to wherever my feet let me go. It was a dark night and only the half-lit moon was our source of light. The boy led me through streets and streets of houses until we came to a huge house. It was so pretty. It looked like the orphanage but it had no spiderwebs. It was clean and super nice. It looked like they were rich to have all those diamond stuff on the door.

They boy opened the door and the light hurt my eyes. It was so bright in there, so big. The stairs were curved, like I only saw in fairy tales, and there was his mom standing in the doorway. She first smiled, but when she saw me, she made a confused face and came closer. I was so scared. What would his mom do? Did he tell his mom about me? My brain threw me a thousand questions to answer of which I didn’t know the answers for. The lady came closer and asked the boy slowly who I was. He told his mom that I was a friend from the orphanage. His mom got angry, her face started to turn red and she started to talk louder. She started saying that I’m filthy and that she doesn’t want to see me ever again and to get out off this house. I looked at the boy. He started to cry. I tear went down his cheek. He begged his mom to let her stay for the night but his mom didn’t budge. The boy’s mom shut the door on me and I was outside in the cold.

All of this was for nothing. This meet we had. All the recesses we talked, all the nights I didn’t sleep, and I couldn’t go back to the orphanage now. I was alone. I didn’t even know where to go. I got off the boys lawn and I sat down on the sidewalk, crying and I realized I didn’t even know what the boy’s name was! Suddenly, I heard a door open. I looked back to see if it was the boy’s mom. No, it wasn’t. I looked around and saw that the boy’s neighbor has opened the door and was calling me. The person at the door was a grandma. She told me to come in. I stood up and came inside. She told me that she heard the neighbors talking loudly so she went to see what the commotion was about. She asked me if I wanted to eat but I refused. She sent me to bed, not knowing anything about me. She was so kind to me. She sent me upstairs where I had my own room. I fell asleep very fast, and I slept till lunch the next day. I forgot all about the orphanage and went downstairs to meet my hero. She was making breakfast for me. We sat down at the table and she told me her name ( Grandma Laura ) and I told her all about my life. Every single thing. When I came to the part about the orphanage, her eyes widened.

Grandma Laura told me that many many years ago, she was the owner of the orphanage! The government fired her because they thought she wasn’t suitable for the job. When she went away, she made photocopies of the documents of the girls and kept them because the girls were so precious to her that she couldn’t just leave them. Grandma Laura stood up and went upstairs to go get them. When she came back down, she had a whole ton of documents! She found one by the name of Nikita.

That morning changed my life. She let me read my own document. It figures out that my real mom died while having me. My dad was still alive. My dad’s name was Walter Eggons. The grandma’s eyes widened when I told her the name of my dad. She told me that that was her husband! So Grandma Laura was my mom? She didn’t die? But Grandma told me the whole story. My dad, Walter, first married a lady named Agnes, and they had a baby named Nikita ( that was me) and during childbirth, Agnes died, but I lived. Later, my dad could no longer care after me so he dropped me off at the orphanage when I was 1 year’s old. For my dad, that was a hard decision. He had to work but he couldn’t leave me at home and there was no one to look after me. After my dad’s wife died, he married Laura. Laura was sitting in front of me, tears in her eyes and on her cheeks. She then told me the saddest news- my dad died of cancer a couple months ago. I started choking back sobs, and then tears. Grandma Laura was the only family I had. She was my stepmother.

It has been seven years since that happened and right now I am sitting with tears in my eyes, telling you this. I live with my stepmom and my husband, Jeffrey. Turns out that after that day, I lived with my stepmom for a couple months but then the boy’s mom found out that I was still in this neighborhood. The boy was so happy to hear that, and he told me his name- Jeffrey Jones. We soon joined our friendship together and a couple months later, we were married. Also,he wasn’t 15 years old, like I thought, he was 17.

-Written by Nikita Eggons-Jones

Nora

I hope you like this so far tell me what to improve on.

Gunnvor is the daugter of a powerful samurai but that is only thing that they have in common. Her father is a ruthless man who fights for war, on the other hand Gunnvor fights for humanity, no one can see her true colors because they want to believe she wants bloodshed as well like her father. She hates their thoughts, imprisoned in her fathers hand, the only way to escape, is for some one, like her, to save her in the outside.

As she swoon her sword with grace she sliced the broom like heads off. Her father and mother were observing her progress as a warrior, when she was do she went to her parents and bowed. She left leaving them behind a cold chill settled on them, the mother knew why the father ignored. Gunnvor loved to walk in the town down below her house, all the people were Good-hearted and kind in every way. She sometimes is jealous of the children for having such free lives. But she does not listen to her selfish conscience, she walked across the flower bridge as a gentle men suddenly bumped into her. “Oh sorry about that I didn’t see you,” Gunnvor quickly got up embarrassed for fall. She looked up and saw man that was strong but kind, she then noticed that he didn’t recognized him, he look like he was from another country. She then suddenly pulled her sword pointed it near his neck. the man was taken aback, he looked shocked and then said ” Yes did I say some thing offensive.”

“your not from here are you,” She moved a little closer, her sword started to dig into skin. “Yea I’m just traveling, I came from the neighboring kingdom, I thought they were in good terms…..right?” He backed away a little from the sword cutting his neck. Gunnvor then lowered her sword slowly, The man rubbed his neck just to find that it is bleeding “by the way what is your name,” she sheathed her sword in it’s case. “My name is gunnvor,” He quickly whipped his head to her “What the, Gunnvor, the daugter of the samurai.”

“Yes.” she turned and started to walk away and stop slightly turned her head ” And you,”

“Uh my name is Cota.” he said then Gunnvor walked away, when she arrived at home she swept past her father to her bed room. That night she could not stop thinking of Cota, she thought how strange he was dressed and the way he looked. The next how ever her father again trained gunnvor, the train this time was diffrent, he was pushing her to far.

Many days have past and Gunnvor noticed that Cota was spotted many times near her house. Then when she training with her father which was basically torture, Cota came up to her father ” You will stop hurting her,” He said slowly and manically. However he was not moved “My wife has convinced you to protect her,”

“No I came In my own accord.” The father then spun and grabbed his sword and pointed to cota. “Well then can fight me,”

“We”l see,” cota grabbed his sword and the two fought, they fought for a few hours and the father was vanquished. Cota then went to Gunnvor and asked her hand in marriage.

Luba Lishchenko

Nikita This is the story of me, Nikita, an orphaned girl, who didn’t know anything about her family. I was kept in the orphanage with a bunch of other girls. Ms.Keeper, the owner of the orphanage doesn’t tell anyone anything about themselves or their family. I didn’t know anything about myself, but everyone knew that in Ms.Keepers room there was a filing cabinet with documents of the real stories of our lives. Nobody ever dared to go in there though. Ms.Keeper looked like she was somewhere in the 30’s, she had grey hair, bags under her brown eyes, a slim body and a huge pimple on her long nose. She was not married. I have brown hair, brown eyes, freckles and a healthy, slim body. I always thought of running away. I felt like I was in that orphanage forever. I remember growing up in there since I was a child and now that I’m 17 years old, I’m still here, hoping to find my family. But that, I thought was too unrealistic. I was sitting in an orphanage, hoping to find my family. No, I wanted to DO something to find my family. The only thing that held me back was Ms.Keeper and the thought that I really had no family. Ms.Keeper was always afraid of one of the girls running away, that’s why she made some workers put a stronger fence around the orphanage property. Ms.Keeper was also afraid of talking to the government. I thought so because the government will shut down her orphanage. One time, I overheard Ms.Keeper talking on the phone to the government and they said that it was illegal to not show the orphans their identity and who they are, but Ms.Keeper ignored them and kept talking about something else. Also, at 18 years old, you are free to leave the orphanage and become independent. I just turned 17. No one else was my age except another girl, aged 14 and all the rest were smaller than her. There was once a girl named Gabby who was the only person who was older than me. Just last year, she turned 18 and was supposed to go. On her birthday, Ms.Keeper made an announcement at the last moment that Gabby was leaving right now and is right by the door. Every girl ran out to give her hugs and goodbyes. Ms.Keeper didn’t even move. She didn’t even say bye. It was so cruel of her. We didn’t have a birthday cake with Gabby because Ms.Keeper threw her out the door on her birthday! Everyday, Ms.Keeper lets us go outside for one hour, three times a day. We ate mostly sandwiches and drank water and sometimes juice. We also had some snacks, which were mostly fruits. We did school during the day too but this wasn’t real school. Ms.Keeper taught us everything. Ms.Keeper also bought us a TV, which was in the dining room. We mostly had everything we needed, except a family. One day, when Ms.Keeper let us go outside, I was lying on the grass by myself at the farthest point from the orphanage. Then all of a sudden I heard someone coming. I looked up but saw no one. When I turned around, I saw a boy, looked like he was 15. He had brown hair, blue eyes and was tall. He said “hi” to me and I said “hi” back. We talked to each other for awhile until Ms.Keeper called us in. I really hoped that Ms.Keeper didn’t see me talk to that boy because she would punish me. For the next three days, I talked to that boy over the fence every recess. He told me about his life and it really surprised me. He said he had a house as big as the whole orphanage (the orphanage is as big as a hotel). He said he had his mom and dad living with him, that he has money, any kind of drink, and lots of junk food. He played video games everyday and watched TV and also he quit school. His mom and dad don’t care about what he does as long as he’s home by midnight! When he told me this, I started thinking, is every life out there like his? What is everyone’s else’s life like? I couldn’t sleep that night or any other night after that day. Soon, we became friends and he asked if the orphanage was boring. I didn’t even know what to say because it was alright living in the orphanage but compared to his life, it was nothing. I didn’t say anything and he asked if I wanted to run away to his house. I, of course, was surprised and didn’t say anything for awhile but then I said I would think about it. Ms.Keeper called us inside, and I don’t know why but she never caught me talking to him. Ms.Keeper usually stands by the door of the orphanage, looking into the field of how we are playing. I was farthest away from her so maybe she doesn’t see so well. After those days, I couldn’t sleep because I kept thinking of running away. But how was I supposed to run away? If I got caught, I would be punished and I would have to be a slave to everyone, washing dishes, sweeping, and cleaning. Besides, I couldn’t run away because we all slept in rooms with four people to each room. Our room was the farthest away from the exit. I would have to tip-toe (at night?!?) through the whole orphanage just to get to the exit. No, I couldn’t do it. I was too scared. But that boy kept assuring me that everything will be okay. I talked it over with the boy and I decided to run away with him at night, at 11pm because he had to be home by 12pm. By 8pm, all the girls in the orphanage would be sleeping, but Ms.Keeper stays up till 10pm, listening to classical music in her favourite rocking chair. As not to wake Ms.Keeper, the boy suggested that he would come to my window at night and I would climb over. Our room was on the lowest level – level one- so it was the closest to the ground. It was supposed to happen in two days from then. I was very nervous and scared, and I kept looking at Ms.Keeper if she had any suspicions, but it didn’t look like it. It was the day of the run. I packed all my stuff, which wasn’t really much. I put all my clothes in my pockets (it fit perfectly). I was wide awake that night, listening till Ms.Keeper turned off her classical music and went to bed. It was perfectly silent. You could hear every single breath of the girls. My tummy had a trillion butterflies in it and I couldn’t stop my heavy breathing. At 11pm, there was a quiet knock at my window and I knocked back. That was our signal for letting each other know we were ready. I then looked at everyone in the room. They were sound asleep. I opened the window and it’s super squeaky. I waited a moment to see if anyone woke up, but no one moved. I climbed over the window to the boy. I closed the window with a loud squeak and started running with the boy to wherever my feet let me go. It was a dark night and only the half-lit moon was our source of light. The boy led me through streets and streets of houses until we came to a huge house. It was so pretty. It looked like the orphanage but it had no spiderwebs. It was clean and super nice. It looked like they were rich to have all those diamond stuff on the door. They boy opened the door and the light hurt my eyes. It was so bright in there, so big. The stairs were curved, like I only saw in fairy tales, and there was his mom standing in the doorway. She first smiled, but when she saw me, she made a confused face and came closer. I was so scared. What would his mom do? Did he tell his mom about me? My brain threw me a thousand questions to answer of which I didn’t know the answers for. The lady came closer and asked the boy slowly who I was. He told his mom that I was a friend from the orphanage. His mom got angry, her face started to turn red and she started to talk louder. She started saying that I’m filthy and that she doesn’t want to see me ever again and to get out off this house. I looked at the boy. He started to cry. I tear went down his cheek. He begged his mom to let her stay for the night but his mom didn’t budge. The boy’s mom shut the door on me and I was outside in the cold. All of this was for nothing. This meet we had. All the recesses we talked, all the nights I didn’t sleep, and I couldn’t go back to the orphanage now. I was alone. I didn’t even know where to go. I got off the boys lawn and I sat down on the sidewalk, crying and I realized I didn’t even know what the boy’s name was! Suddenly, I heard a door open. I looked back to see if it was the boy’s mom. No, it wasn’t. I looked around and saw that the boy’s neighbor has opened the door and was calling me. The person at the door was a grandma. She told me to come in. I stood up and came inside. She told me that she heard the neighbors talking loudly so she went to see what the commotion was about. She asked me if I wanted to eat but I refused. She sent me to bed, not knowing anything about me. She was so kind to me. She sent me upstairs where I had my own room. I fell asleep very fast, and I slept till lunch the next day. I forgot all about the orphanage and went downstairs to meet my hero. She was making breakfast for me. We sat down at the table and she told me her name ( Grandma Laura ) and I told her all about my life. Every single thing. When I came to the part about the orphanage, her eyes widened. Grandma Laura told me that many many years ago, she was the owner of the orphanage! The government fired her because they thought she wasn’t suitable for the job. When she went away, she made photocopies of the documents of the girls and kept them because the girls were so precious to her that she couldn’t just leave them. Grandma Laura stood up and went upstairs to go get them. When she came back down, she had a whole ton of documents! She found one by the name of Nikita. That morning changed my life. She let me read my own document. It figures out that my real mom died while having me. My dad was still alive. My dad’s name was Walter Eggons. The grandma’s eyes widened when I told her the name of my dad. She told me that that was her husband! So Grandma Laura was my mom? She didn’t die? But Grandma told me the whole story. My dad, Walter, first married a lady named Agnes, and they had a baby named Nikita ( that was me) and during childbirth, Agnes died, but I lived. Later, my dad could no longer care after me so he dropped me off at the orphanage when I was 1 year’s old. For my dad, that was a hard decision. He had to work but he couldn’t leave me at home and there was no one to look after me. After my dad’s wife died, he married Laura. Laura was sitting in front of me, tears in her eyes and on her cheeks. She then told me the saddest news- my dad died of cancer a couple months ago. I started choking back sobs, and then tears. Grandma Laura was the only family I had. She was my stepmother. It has been seven years since that happened and right now I am sitting with tears in my eyes, telling you this. I live with my stepmom and my husband, Jeffrey. Turns out that after that day, I lived with my stepmom for a couple months but then the boy’s mom found out that I was still in this neighborhood. The boy was so happy to hear that, and he told me his name- Jeffrey Jones. We soon joined our friendship together and a couple months later, we were married. Also,he wasn’t 15 years old, like I thought, he was 17. -Written by Nikita Eggons-Jones

Retarted Stuff

Yoyoyo its generikb here and today we are playing roller coaster tycoon

John Smith

Anyone got ideas for a short story titled as Leornard’s Fatal Oversight. In need of help asap.

Mary M

Ugh, this is getting do frustrating! I thought to myself as I struggled through the streets. My ankles kept twisting every time I slipped. Heels are so not comfy. I shouldn’t have worn them. As if my struggle wasn’t enough, people were pushing me as they passed me by. I was being shoved left and right amidst the bustling sidewalks of New York. Feeling fed up, I decided to lean onto a nearby store to regain my balance. What an awful idea it was. Unfortunately, I have miscalculated the distance between me and the store and I ended up leaning on thin air. I tried to right my footing before it was too late but I ended up tripping on my own feet. With a loud oomph I slammed into a passerby. Papers went flying around us as we both fell to the ground.

“Oh my gosh! I am so sorry.” I tried to hurriedly stand up but I ended flat on the ground again. “I didn’t mean to! I was just trying to lean on the wall to regain my balance since it’s the first time to wear heels, and oh my god, it is very hard and painful.”

The person nodded quietly and started gathering the papers. I got to my knees and tried to help. “I was supposed to be looking smart for today’s meeting, but I don’t think it’s been working out so well. I bet I look as smart as a baboon’s butt.” I heard the person chuckle but I went on with my rant, “I also bet that I am a total mess; I don’t how will I meet everyone at work this way. Oh man! They sure will give me an earful of criticism!” I didn’t realize I had been holding on to the few papers I collected while he tried to pull them from my grasp. “Oh, I am so sorry, once again,” I said still holding on to the papers while I got up, “I didn’t realize I was holding on to the documents…it’s not like I’ve read them; I’m just guessing they were documents as your suit looks neat and yeah.” I tugged gently on the lapel of the suit and finally raised my eyes to his face. My eyes probably widened as I saw him for the first time. To cut it short, he was hot! Like smoking salmon hot; or more like hot chili pepper that Indians eat hot! Now I’ll give all the details, I know you want them…I would want them if I was listening to one of my friends telling me such a story. Anyways, he stood a good foot or so taller than me. He had light brown hair styled backwards. His angular, defined jaw was covered with a five o’clock shadow. Bright hazel eyes shone with amusement as a slight smile covered his lips. “I don’t usually talk to strangers as much as I do. God! I’m coming off as talkative! I am not usually the talkative type; I seriously don’t know what is wrong with me today. And whoa, you look handsome,” my eyes widened in shock as he raised both eyebrows, “Did I say that out loud? Oh my god, I said that out loud. I didn’t mean to say that…I don’t mean you’re not handsome, because you’re one hell of a man; I just mean…Ugh! Now I’m coming off as a weird man-gazing half-crazed stalker. That is if I’m not fully crazed. I don’t think I’m making any sense…I should probably get going.” I went to turn around when I felt a tug onto something I’m holding to. With a confused look I looked to my hands and found the stack of papers. With a not so faint blush, I handed him the papers, “I’m sorry again.” I threw my hand behind my shoulder pointing in the opposite direction, “I should probably get going,” I said with a sheepish smile. I turned to leave again, but I was stopped…again. He cleared his throat, “I think you’re forgetting something.” “Um…no, I think I’m,” I turned his way to find him holding my bag. I awkwardly stepped to take it and said, “Thanks. I’ll see you around, not that I know where you are…I’ll just get going.” I took my bag and headed off in the opposite direction before I could embarrass myself any further. As I waited for the subway, I recalled what just happened and face palmed. I took the short ride to the office to compose myself. I was in for a surprise once I entered the meeting room, though. The man I bumped into was standing at the head of the table. “Good morning everyone, before starting today’s meeting, I would like to introduce you to the company’s new CEO…” Well, I wasn’t expecting this. I sat rigidly on the chair once we were told to. “Good morning everyone, I am Nathaniel and I am looking forwards to working with everyone on this team,” he said with a smile on his face. “Mr. Nathaniel, I would like you to meet our best employee, Ms. Felicity Brown.”My boss pointed my way and I wish he hadn’t. Nathaniel’s eyes found mine. They were filled with amusement. Oh this was going to be a long day.

And this, kids, is how I met your father.

Joseph West

A great (and family friendly) writing site is http://www.storybird.com

I might write a story about a girl who was born a princess but all her family died on a ship except her aunt and cousin…she gets taken to an orphanage and everyone else thinks she died too and she gets adopted a few Years later she goes to school and everyone is talking about her…one days she finds out that… oh u want to know well I’ll probs write a story about it on wattpad so u can look for it, it will be called…A princess???

Dianelwnz

Four new members have a look at couch on top of Crestwood center ship

high school graduation sports activitiestrail Softballand therefore Swimmingbeach ball Tennismales adolescent girls info Field HS HS WrestlingCollege Pro Submit ScoresSubmit

WRIGHT TWP. In all perhaps had to be the most significant reorganization matching presented among Luzerne regional 11 institutions zones, Crestwood school panel swore located in four sign ups compared to the ne member, repairing incumbents which are either of them missing in action unique reelection tenders belonging to the primary or elected to get not to research another phase.

wayne Brogna, Stacey Haddix, Kimberly Spath and thus Lauren McCurdy got been sworn appearing in thursday night. The four bought conducted completely considering that the to produce enhancement community. really earning incumbent from a big part that do survived habitual grievance in past times two very long time came anna Hollock Bibla, which will garnered your ex first four year terms the particular snowboard. you become a member of in 2017 because of profitable an exclusive two year sitting.

The aboard had been proven a good solid director in just cost Jones deleted the primary. He extended in the direction this quite get-together ahead departing the barrier. But contact considering his or place for year isn an exciting new face. really 5 4 election with all four rookies in opposition of, james Costello vice president in the past year came branded president.

following the meeting, Brogna documented can lone even talk to gain themselves even so that he fully Costello ran into finished loads of dubious ballots the actual game board during the last two growth cycles. he explained he’s talked containing Costello together n’ your own questions that can the pup, but admitted no sign ups may possibly well most try out the us president job, if he or she. so which he wasn safe voting for Costello.

barry Boone is unanimously specified as vice chairman, Maureen McGovern came chosen assistant, and after that Brogna been recently branded as treasurer.

all of the reconstituted block have their first finding for normal establishment votes arrange for Dec. 19, Five days right after the contract over curious law firms in order to post proposals on a structured feasibility study, sense my blackboard can have to be able to merit a legal contract.

Four newbies your day Crestwood their school panel accept the promise of health care office at some stage in thurs reorganization talking. right between lead are actually Stacy Haddix, Kimberly Spath, Lauren McCurdy and as a consequence randy Brogna. 17 public speaking.

while prompt wednesday authorities chairman paul Belusko should become aware of if will probably be at center arena this booked careers class a better or at site of the event thus more people beautiful vietnamese women may easily give priority to.

Belusko proclaimed she will be polling an additional four authorities musicians in email’s over the past weekend on recommendation mayor choose George light brown undertaken especially during tuesday night time seeing replace the to and time production for the.

looking to you can keep them respond back to me made by the following thursday, Belusko considered that Friday.

maybe authorities decides to transfer an appointment it provides a week in order to place and with seating rather than a unique fourth area chambers.

was regarded as thinking that it is recently doing open talking long before the performance visit someplace (home buyers and thus local authority or council) may questionthings just to associated with us transfer to the author’s your job session. which unfortunately whatever i thinking about, Belusko claims.

you will most likely plumbing service in sunday night-time show results demonstrations that when local authority or council could not vote on awaiting the law. comments together with inquires are allowed even though council monday date the general public get togethers. timetabled start.

village owner david Gazenski suggested it authorities call on which direction to start.

over council if that they move this approach to a different store, Gazenski alleged.

nearly as Belusko may reaching out to authorities, so too will white because of main receiving area for the mans professional recommendation.

E. A. Sisneros

I get distracted super easily, but I started writing down my most intrusive thoughts. 1, it helped me remember them, and 2, it helped me focus on the task at hand. From intriguing concepts to funny-sounding words. Some are quotes for funny dialog, some are character quirks. Now I have a list of really bad, really creative ideas that deserve to be told and deserve to die. Simultaneously.

For example, “Becoming so good at keyboard shortcuts that they do precognitive Googling” “A vegan who is transformed into a dog” “A math curriculum that hires voice actors from pop culture to voice the lessons ” “A character (probably lonely) makes a friend online and goes in for a fist bump with the monitor, only to break it.”

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  • Chess (Gr. 1-4)
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  • Seat Belts (Gr. 2-6)
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  • Wintertime (Gr. 2-6)
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  • Everybody gets afraid sometimes. If there were no fear, there would be no opportunity for bravery. Write about the scariest moment in your life.
  • Some people avoid challenges. Others see them as opportunities to grow. Write about a time when you overcame a great challenge.
  • One person’s trash is another person’s treasure. Write about a time when you discovered something valuable that others had discarded or ignored.
  • The golden rule states that you should treat others as you’d like to be treated. It’d be nice if everyone followed this rule, but its been broken more than once. Write about a time when you felt disrespected. How did you handle it and what did you learn?
  • Everybody has a special talent. Write about the time when you discovered one of your talents.
  • It’s no fun to be in pain, but it can be worse to watch someone you love suffer. Write about a time when one of your loved ones was hurt.
  • The world can be a cold place, but a little bit of kindness can make it a lot warmer. Write about a time when you made the world a better place for someone by being kind.
  • It’s a good thing that nobody’s perfect. Some of life’s greatest lessons are learned on accident. Write about a time when you learned an important lesson by making a mistake.
  • It can be hard to see ourselves for who we really are at times. Write about a time when someone else taught you something about yourself.
  • Doing the right thing isn’t always easy. Write about a time when you got in trouble or made someone angry by doing what you thought was right.
  • You don’t have to learn everything the hard way. Write about a time when you avoided trouble by taking someone’s advice.
  • You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Write about a time when you were underestimated or when you underestimated someone else.
  • Practice makes perfect. Write about a time when you got better at doing something by practicing.
  • Can’t we all just get along? Write about a time when you got into a disagreement with someone. How did you resolve it?
  • There’s a time for work and a time for play, but it’s a lot more fun to play. Write about a time when you put off doing something important to have fun. How did it work out for you in the end and what did you learn?
  • You never know until you try. Write about a time when you learned something about yourself by trying something new.
  • Hard work doesn’t always payoff. Write about a time when you worked hard on something but felt like your efforts weren’t appreciated.
  • You can’t trust everyone. Write about a time when someone betrayed your trust. How did you react? Did you ever forgive them?
  • You can’t make everybody happy. Write about a time when you made a decision that disappointed or hurt someone.
  • Nobody said that life would be fair. Write about a time when you witnessed someone taking advantage of a weaker person. How did it make you feel?
  • Sometimes two people just click. Write about a time when you formed a genuine connection with someone.
  • So much in life is about the choices that you make. Write about a time when you had to choose between two things that were important to you.
  • It’s the people we love that can hurt us the most. Write about a time when you had to confront a loved one over their decisions.
  • Accomplishments mean so much more when work for them. Write about a time when you worked hard to earn something. How did it make you feel to meet your goal?
  • Even the best of friends have the occasional argument. Write about a time when you got into a dispute with a friend. How did the situation get resolved?
  • Appearances are important. Sometimes your appearance can work for you. Other times it can work against. Write about a time when someone treated you differently because of your appearance. You can share a negative or positive experience.
  • You can’t always get what you want and sometimes that’s for the best. Write about a time when you were denied something that you wanted and it worked out alright in the end.
  • Once in a while everything just goes your way. Write about a time when you felt on top of the world.
  • Sometimes people drift apart. Other times they are torn apart. Write about a time when you were separated from someone with whom you were close.
  • It’s been said that every gray cloud has a silver lining. The hard part is looking for it. Write about a time when you made the best of a bad situation.
  • Faith is believing in something that you cannot prove. Write about a time when you had faith in someone or something that others doubted.
  • There’s a time to be creative and there’s a time to follow directions. Write about a time when you benefitted from following directions.
  • Some people are just looking for a reason to not like you. Write about a time when you got on someone’s bad side just by being yourself.
  • No matter how badly someone messes up, they always have the potential to redeem themselves. Write about a time when you or someone you know made a mistake and found redemption.
  • It’s good to play it safe, but sometimes you have to take chances. Write about a time when you took a risk. Did it work out for you?
  • Most people agree that honesty is a virtue, but sometimes being too honest can get you into hot water. Write about a time when you got in trouble or on someone’s bad side just by telling the truth.
  • Nothing sours an accomplishment like jealousy. Write about a time when you or someone you know was affected by the jealousy of another.
  • The older that you get, the more responsponsibilities you gain. It can be too much at times. Write about a time when you felt overwhelmed by your responsibilities. How did you handle it?
  • Part of growing up is facing your fears. Write about a time when you did something that you were afraid to do.
  • It’s hard to think about anything else when danger is approaching. Write about a time when you felt unsafe.
  • You wouldn’t be where you are today without the countless sacrifices of others. Once in a while you have to give back too. Write about a time when you gave up something that was important to you to help somebody else.
  • It’s been said that forgiveness is divine. Write about a time when you forgave someone for hurting or disappointing you.
  • Our first impressions aren’t always accurate. Write about a time when your first impression of someone or something proved to be wrong.
  • Everybody makes mistakes, even teachers. Write about a time when you were affected by one of your teachers’ mistakes.
  • With so many awesome things to learn and do in the world, nobody should ever be bored. Write about a time when you turned a boring day into an exciting one.
  • People change. That’s a part of life. Write about a time when you or someone you know changed in an important way.
  • When opportunity knocks, it’s up to you to answer the door. Write about a time when you took advantage of an interesting or exciting opportunity.
  • A kind word can go a long way. Write about a time when someone affected you by saying something nice or encouraging.
  • The world needs heroes and anyone can be one. Write about a time when you did something heroic. It doesn’t have to be as dramatic as saving someone’s life. It can be as simple as helping someone out when they needed it.
  • Your reputation is important. People will treat you differently based on how you are reputed to be. Write about a time when you did something that affected your reputation for better or worse.
  • Anger can blind. Write about a time when anger caused you to behave in a way that you later regretted.
  • Authority is when someone has the power to make decisions for you. Write about a time when you wanted to challenge someone’s authority. What were they doing to cause you to feel this way? How did you handle the situation?
  • Everybody has had someone awkward moments in life. Write about a time when you felt embarrassed. How did you deal with your embarrassment?
  • The process of growing up is a slow one. It takes your whole childhood. But some events cause us to grow quicker than others. Write about an experience that caused you to grow up quickly.
  • You can’t give everyone everything that they want. That would leave nothing for you. You have to set limits. Write about a time when someone wanted more from you than you had to give.
  • Your conscience is that little voice in your head that tells you when you are doing something wrong. Write about a time when your conscience stopped you from doing something.
  • Friendship can be found in unexpected places. Write about a time when you became friends or partners with an unlikely person.
  • It’s important to be persistent, but you have to know when to let go too. Write about a time when you quit pursuing something or let go of a dream.
  • Anyone can talk. Followsing through is the hard part. Write about a time when you proved yourself with your actions.
  • We are all tempted to do things that we shouldn’t at times. It takes integrity to do the right thing against your baser desires. Write about a time when you resisted the temptation to do something wrong.
  • Tact is the ability to phrase criticism in a sensitive way. It’s hard to be tactful all of the time. Write about a time when you blurted out something that you immediately regretted saying.
  • It’d be nice if there were a sure fire way to tell if someone were lying, but there isn’t. Write about a time when someone deceived you. How did you find out that they were lying to you? What did you do?
  • You can’t win all of the time. Some of life’s greatest lessons are learned in defeat. Write about a time when you lost or failed at something and learned a lesson.
  • You can predict the future, but you’re not alway going to get it right. Write about a time when you were surprised by the outcome of an event.
  • William Shakespeare said that “Parting is such sweet sorrow.” Write about a time when you had to say goodbye to someone or something that was important to you. How did you get over the loss?
  • Money can’t buy everything. Write about a time when you gained something valuable that can’t be bought or sold. Some examples might include a special skill, an important understanding, or a good relationship with someone.
  • Presentation is everything. Write about a time when you or someone else made a strong impression based on manners. It can be a good impression or a bad one.
  • A little bit of gratitude goes a long way. Write about a time when you felt unappreciated.
  • Bad habits are hard to kick. Write about a time when you gave up something that was bad for you.
  • A hypocrite is a person who tells you not to do something that he or she does. Write about a time when a person acted hypocritically toward you. You may want to write about a teacher, parent, or friend.
  • Not knowing your limits can be dangerous. Write about a time when you or someone you know took things too far.
  • Laws were put in place for a reason. Still, not everyone follows them. Write about an experience that you shared with someone who broke a law.
  • Sometimes we make decisions without fully considering the consequences. Write about a decision that you made which you later regretted.
  • The only constant is change. People can change in ways that we find disappointing. Write about a time when someone you know turned out to be different than you thought they were.
  • You never know what you’re capable of until you try. Write about a time when you succeed at something despite your doubts.
  • Technology is supposed to solve our problems, but sometimes it just complicates them. Write about a time when technology made your life more difficult.
  • The person you are today might not be the one you are tomorrow. People always have the potential to change, to improve. Write about an experience that changed you for the better.
  • Our actions can have far reaching consequences that can be difficult to predict. Write about a time when you unintentionally hurt someone as a result of your actions. Did you make it up to them?
  • Misunderstandings are the source of many conflicts. Write about a time when you solved a problem by talking about it.
  • It can be hard to fit in when you feel awkward. Write about a time when you felt out of place. How did you adapt to the situation?
  • Staying cool and calm helps you perform better, but this isn’t always easy. Some situations push you to the edge. Write about at time when you lost your patience.
  • Sometimes the greatest conflicts come from within. Write about a time when you were challenged by an inner conflict. How did you resolve the problem?
  • The world can be an overwhelming place. Write about a time when you just wanted to get away from everything.
  • The best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry. Write about a time when things did not work out the way that you planned.
  • Not everyone is a good leader, and even good leaders can make bad decisions. Write about a time when you disagreed with someone who was in charge of you.
  • Sometimes we think that we need help when all we really need to do is to put forth a decent effort. Write about a time when you learned to rely on yourself.
  • Your national identity is complicated. Sometimes we are proud to be citizens of our country. Other times things are done in our country’s name that we dislike. Write about a time when you were either proud or ashamed of your nationality.
  • You can’t always get what you want, but that doesn’t mean that you should stop trying. Write about a time when you fought for what you wanted and got your way.
  • The world would be a better place if everyone treated each other with love and respect, but people don’t always act like that. The world can be unfair. Write about a time when you witnessed or were the victim of an injustice.
  • Opinions can make or break you. Write about a time when someone misjudged you.
  • Boys and girls are treated differently at times. It’s not fair, but it happens. Write about a time when you were treated differently because of your gender. It can be in a way that benefited you or worked against you.
  • It’s been said that no good deed goes unpunished. Write about a time when you were trying to help someone and it backfired.
  • Sometimes its best to keep your mouth shut. Write about a time when you got in trouble for sharing your opinion.
  • The sense of smell is closely tied to memory. Think about scents that you have linked to experiences in your mind. Write about a time when an aroma became part of your memory.
  • People are social by nature. Being alone can be torturesome. Write about a time when you felt lonely or abandoned.
  • You can’t run from your past. It will always find a way to catch up with you. Write about a time when something from your past came back to haunt you.
  • Many people are resistant to change, even when it is good for them. Write about a time when you grew to appreciate something that you once resisted.
  • Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than talented. Write about a time when you benefitted just by being in the right place at the right time.
  • Everybody has perfect vision when they look into the past. Write about a time when you learned something a bit too late to help.
  • It’s been said that the thrill is in the chase. Write about a time when you worked hard to get something, only to find out that you didn’t really want it after all.
  • It’s a lot easier to go with the flow, but sometimes our hearts won’t let us. Write about a time when you supported an unpopular position because of your feelings or ideals.

28 Comments

Mishal raeel.

i really love the reading website .my mom twice a week tells me to do topics from here.i really like the fascinating topics in this website.thank u for making this website and this makes people helpful

Helped a lot thanks 100/10. This site is amazing

Whoever you are Mr. Morton, you are amazing! You’ve put in so much work on this site! Thank you!

!-Fire-Titian-!

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Where are answers?

Ugwu Raphael

It is so good to have a website that is packed with the sort of priceless materials as yours. You are making teaching a lot easy for many of us. God bless you in every way. Please ignore the haters and fault finders. Keep up the good work.

There is a typo on #59

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Samantha Nicole Stewart

I have read all of these and I can’t decide which one to use. So I will use all of them!!

Thank you for helping me open up my eyes to another world of words.

Sharonda Malone

I really enjoy this website, it offers me numerous options to give to my students. I can always depend upon this website to give me worksheets and test for my students. Keep up the good work.

unicorntears33

Omg love this website

DENITH KEVIN

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LaTanya Hall

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Nazareia Meadows

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-!-Mosquito-!

Good advice

Nazir Ahmad

why the page doesn’t work?

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sireen nasser

Thank you for these amazing topics for narrative writing that exist on this web.

I love how this is a website to help people write and #8 says, “on accident.” I kind of want to cry right now. BY accident.

This web is effectively support my English skills therefore, I really like it very much. Thank you all for your distribution.

lotfy shady

good advice

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COMMENTS

  1. 1800+ Creative Writing Prompts To Inspire You Right Now - Reedsy

    If you're ready to kick writer's block to the curb and finally get started on your short story or novel, these unique story ideas might just be your ticket. This list of 1800+ creative writing prompts has been created by the Reedsy team to help you develop a rock-solid writing routine.

  2. 100 Creative Plot Ideas Organized by Genre - Gatekeeper Press

    Some of the plot ideas here are completely out of this world while others are down to earth. From dystopia to romance, to the cliché and outlandish, this list is sure to kickstart your imagination! Overcome Writer’s Block With Some Fresh New Plot Ideas for Your Genre Fantasy Plot Ideas

  3. 101 Narrative Ideas To Beat Your Writer’s Block - Robin Piree

    Narrative ideas are the spark of imagination that can fuel a storyteller's creativity! Whether it's penning a narrative essay, constructing a thrilling love story, or recounting a personal narrative of a proudest moment, narrative ideas guide writers in crafting compelling tales.

  4. 50 Fiction Writing Prompts and Ideas to Inspire You to Write

    Here are 50 fantastic fiction writing prompts that will help you start your next story. To help you choose a prompt that excites you, we’ve split them into several categories: fantasy, sci-fi, mystery, romance, and contemporary.

  5. 365 Story ideas to help you brainstorm — E.M. Welsh

    Whether you're in a writing rut, need an idea for a new medium, or are tired of making excuses about finding the best story idea, this list of 365 story ideas makes it easy to find an idea that works for you and get inspired!

  6. 101 Narrative Writing Prompts to Break Free from Writer's Block

    Whether you're looking to write a short story, screenplay, or novel, these prompt ideas will help you write a story and develop compelling characters, create vivid settings, and build tension and conflict to engage your readers. So, grab your pen and paper, and let's dive in!

  7. 500 Writing Prompts to Help Beat Writer's Block - Written ...

    Looking to get your story started with a writing prompt? You’ve come to the right place. In this post we detail everything you need to know about writing prompts and give you 500 writing prompts broken down by genre.

  8. Top 150 Short Story Ideas - The Write Practice

    We've updated our list of 150 top short story ideas. Use them as writing prompts for contests, assignments, or just for fun!

  9. 121 Short Story Prompts to help You Write Unforgettable Stories

    From romance to horror, science fiction to thriller, these short story prompts are designed to inspire you to explore new characters, settings, and plots. So whether you're a seasoned writer or a beginner, read on and let your imagination run wild!

  10. Narrative Essay Topics and Story Ideas - Ereading Worksheets

    Here is a list of 101 narrative essay topics, prompts, and short story ideas to give students the practice that they need to become better writers: Everybody gets afraid sometimes. If there were no fear, there would be no opportunity for bravery.