104 Of The Best Short Story Ideas And Prompts To Grab Your Readers

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best short story ideas

So, you want to write a short story — and not just a mildly entertaining short story but one your readers can’t put down until they’ve finished it.

You want a story that gets reactions like “Wow!” and “How did you do that?” and “Do you have more like this?”

What writer doesn’t want that kind of reaction, right?

And since short stories are short, you have less time to wait for your readers’ reactions — but you also have less time to grab their attention.

That’s why a great topic is worth its weight in gold when it comes to writing these little gems.

Even with the challenges inherent to short story writing, you’ll most likely finish a short story in far less time than you would a novel.

So, you’ll get to explore more story topics in less time than if you were writing longer works.

But how do you generate short story ideas that are worth the time you’ll invest in crafting a short story your readers will love?

If you’ve been writing for long enough, you already know good story ideas are everywhere, and you might even have some in mind as you read this.

But which of those ideas should be on your shortlist for story writing projects?

And if you don’t have any great ideas at the moment, where do you get some?

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55 Of The Best Young Adult Creative Writing Prompts

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young adults standing together ya writing prompts

You’re looking for some creative story ideas for teenagers, maybe because you want to write YA fiction, or maybe because you know someone else who does.

Welcome to our inspired collection of 55 writing prompts for young adults. 

You’ll find a variety of characters and scenarios to play with. Choose from different themed groups to find your next story idea more quickly. 

Start with one that feels personal to you. Then make it familiar to your reader. 

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Going Incognito: How to Choose A Pen Name

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woman covering her face how to choose a pen name

Every time you publish a book, you’re putting your name out into the world.

People will look for you on Amazon and other bookselling sites, they’ll look on social media sites, and they’ll look for an author website.

Being a well-known writer and having your name instantly recognized might be the ideal for most self-published authors.

But, do you really want all that attention focused on your true identity?

What if you’re a member of the PTA at your child’s school, yet you want to write a bodice-ripper?

What if you are known for writing business books, but you want to write in an entirely different genre?

Or maybe your name is Ishcabbible Humperdink, and it just doesn’t seem to fit with the romance novels you want to write.

Using your own name in any of the above instances could cause problems, either for promoting the book you wish to write, your day job, or even the safety of you and your family.

What’s a writer to do? Choosing to write under a pen name (a.k.a. writing under a pseudonym, a.k.a. nom de plume) is an option writers use for many reasons.

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How To Write Blackout Poetry To Restore Your Creative Energy

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What on earth is blackout poetry?

And how can it stoke the creative fire within you?

And what if you’re not really “the poetic type”?

Good news! Even if you’ve never met a poetry assignment that didn’t fill you with dread, you’re about to learn something that will change the way you think of poetry.

This is something you can do to de-stress and restore your energy, even while you’re tricking yourself into doing something creative.

And all you need are someone else’s words and something to write with.

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Can You Start A Sentence with And or Other Conjunctions?

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You’re starting a sentence with and, and your detail-oriented friend suddenly erupts with “Pssh! You can’t start a sentence with a conjunction!” 

Strange. You weren’t aware starting sentences with conjunctions was verboten.

Even your English teacher did it. So, it must be okay, you argue. 

“Nope. It’s not correct,” your friend insists. Except your friend is WRONG! 

Okay, that was a sweeping generalization (much like what your friend said).

But there are plenty of situations where it’s completely fine to start a sentence with and. 

You’ve heard the expression, “Pause for effect”?

Read on to see how that applies.

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