Writing prompts

Story prompts for any genre

1. A translator for a dying language has to deliver bad news to someone they love. It turns out to be a gift, not a threat.
2. A retired magician has to deliver bad news to someone they love. Write it as a series of text messages.
3. A man who has never told a lie has to deliver bad news to someone they love. The catch: they can only tell the truth until sunrise.
4. A night-shift nurse returns a lost wallet and gets far more than a thank-you. Nobody else seems to notice anything is wrong.
5. A night-shift nurse returns a lost wallet and gets far more than a thank-you. The whole story takes place in one room.
6. A delivery driver on her last route agrees to swap lives with a stranger for a day. Nobody else seems to notice anything is wrong.
7. A man who has never told a lie is the only guest who shows up to a party. The catch: they can only tell the truth until sunrise.
8. A man who has never told a lie hears their own name announced at a station they have never visited. By the last line, the reader should distrust the narrator.
9. A piano tuner who is going deaf is the only guest who shows up to a party. Write it as a series of text messages.
10. Two estranged sisters hears their own name announced at a station they have never visited. Write it as a series of text messages.
11. A night-shift nurse is asked to keep a secret for exactly one week. The ending must be happy, but earned.
12. A piano tuner who is going deaf agrees to swap lives with a stranger for a day. It turns out to be a gift, not a threat.
13. A wedding photographer finds a voicemail from someone who died last spring. It turns out to be a gift, not a threat.
14. A retired magician agrees to swap lives with a stranger for a day. It turns out to be a gift, not a threat.
15. A delivery driver on her last route finds a voicemail from someone who died last spring. The whole story takes place in one room.

Horror writing prompts

1. A real-estate agent selling a "charming fixer-upper" notices the house has one more window outside than inside. The final line reframes the first.
2. A hospice volunteer finds a photo of themselves sleeping, taken last night. The narrator has been the threat all along.
3. A real-estate agent selling a "charming fixer-upper" hears scratching from inside a wall that has nothing behind it. Tell it through a found journal with pages missing.
4. A deep-sea diver hears scratching from inside a wall that has nothing behind it. The narrator has been the threat all along.
5. A farmer during a dry summer realises the neighbours all smile at exactly the same moment. It is daytime for the entire story.
6. A lonely man who talks to his reflection finds a photo of themselves sleeping, taken last night. The scariest thing is never fully shown.
7. A deep-sea diver realises the neighbours all smile at exactly the same moment. It is daytime for the entire story.
8. A podcaster investigating a cold case is told by a stranger, "Don't let it know your name". Nothing supernatural happens, and it is still terrifying.
9. A real-estate agent selling a "charming fixer-upper" receives a call from their own phone number. The comfort object is the source of the dread.
10. A lonely man who talks to his reflection finds a photo of themselves sleeping, taken last night. The monster follows rules, and the reader learns them slowly.
11. A real-estate agent selling a "charming fixer-upper" notices the house has one more window outside than inside. Help arrives, and that is when the real horror starts.
12. A radio host taking late-night calls keeps waking up one minute earlier each night. Everyone else already knows, and is relieved it is not them.
13. A deep-sea diver notices the house has one more window outside than inside. The protagonist makes the brave choice and it makes things worse.
14. A radio host taking late-night calls notices the house has one more window outside than inside. The scariest thing is never fully shown.
15. A child who draws what will happen hears the baby monitor pick up a second voice. Nothing supernatural happens, and it is still terrifying.

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Mystery writing prompts

1. A locksmith finds a key in a birthday cake. Two separate crimes turn out to be one.
2. A hotel housekeeper finds a key in a birthday cake. The motive is kindness.
3. An insurance investigator finds a key in a birthday cake. The culprit confesses in chapter one; the mystery is why.
4. A retired detective in a care home sees a missing woman on a live traffic camera. The detective is wrong, and the reader sees it first.
5. A retired detective in a care home sees a missing woman on a live traffic camera. Solve it using only one overlooked everyday object.
6. A crossword setter is the only witness, but was asleep. The detective is wrong, and the reader sees it first.
7. An insurance investigator must solve a theft before the train reaches the next station. The culprit confesses in chapter one; the mystery is why.
8. An insurance investigator finds the same stranger in three old family photos. The victim is not dead.
9. A ship's cook must solve a theft before the train reaches the next station. The motive is kindness.
10. A court stenographer finds the same stranger in three old family photos. The motive is kindness.
11. A retired detective in a care home realises every victim once stayed in the same hotel room. The answer was in the title.
12. A ship's cook is the only witness, but was asleep. Two separate crimes turn out to be one.
13. A twelve-year-old with a notebook notices a regular customer has stopped coming. Two separate crimes turn out to be one.
14. A hotel housekeeper is the only witness, but was asleep. Two separate crimes turn out to be one.
15. A crossword setter notices a regular customer has stopped coming. Solve it using only one overlooked everyday object.

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