Writing Prompts via Reedsy
Writing prompts are one of the best ways to travel to a planet far, far, away. These are some of our favorite writing prompts. We hope to see submissions that use them for future BSD magazine issues. And for more prompts like these and submit to a writing contest, check out what Reedsy is all about!
Comedy
- The dog ate my homework.
- A sudden BANG! and puff of smoke emerged from a garage in a quiet suburban neighbourhood.
- In the midst of writer’s block, an author goes to sit at a bus station looking for inspiration. They get more than they bargained for.
- It was the highest stakes game of rock-paper-scissors ever played.
- It was the kind of Friday that gave new meaning to the phrase TGIF.
- Make the absurd absolutely and completely normal.
- That night, the action backstage was even more dramatic than the story unfolding onstage.
Creative Nonfiction
- Write about someone (or something) you loved that you shouldn’t have.
- Write about a date that was so terrible you’ll never forget it.
- Write about your most unique experience at, or in, a wedding.
- Write about a time when a broken heart led to something you’d never have expected.
- Write about a secret that you’ve never told to the person you love.
Drama
- Had I known I was going to have guests at 4am, I would’ve tidied up.
- I’d like to buy a plane ticket to your furthest destination today, you told the airline employee.
- A double agent is assigned by both of the countries they work for to capture their alias.
- A group of travelers are exploring a deep, dark, remote cave when they find a computer and a lunchbox.
- A winter night in the city.
- A writer is fighting with writer’s block. They reminisce about the last time in their life they felt inspired.
- As they rode away from their old life, they knew they’d never look back.
Fantasy and Science Fiction
- I remember the last spring. It was 18 years ago.
- I wish I cold skip next week, you think as you get into bed that night. In the morning, you wake up 100 years in the future
- They found out about us. They’re coming. They were the words the kingdom had feared hearing for thousands of years.
- You’re early, said the Grim Reaper, with a hint of surprise.
- I suddenly realized my survival depended on…
- A child has befriended the monster that lives under her bed.
- A day in the life of a ghost.
For Kids
- Write about your favorite birthday present. Why is it your favorite?
- Imagine you owned a pet monkey for a day. What would you do with it?
- If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?
- Imagine you and your best friend hanging out ten years from now. What has changed? What hasn’t changed?
- Write a story about a person who is only one inch tall.
- You’re packing your bags to climb the tallest mountain in the world. What do you pack?
- Imagine you became in charge of your school for one full week. What would you do?
Fiction
- A character experiences deja vu so strong they almost fall over.
- Describe each day of the week as if it were a person. Give each one personality traits, a job, and a goal. Write a story about them.
- This was the weekend you’d been waiting for for the past three years.
- Write a short story that ONLY uses dialogue.
- Write a story about a 100th birthday party.
- Write a story about a misunderstanding.
- Write a story about a plane crash. Your main character is the sole survivor. What happens next?
Historical Fiction
- You had one job, he said to the young squire who had been tasked with delivering a scroll — and failed spectacularly.
- 1930. The traveling circus is in town. The first performance night would be rife with scandal.
- A bard falls in love with the monarch who employs them.
- A duo of time-traveling detectives.
- A family sit around their brand new radio for the first time after dinner.
- A famous historical person packs for a trip.
- A love story between the boy who delivered milk bottles to the neighborhood and the girl who delivered newspapers.
Mystery
- 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.
- Write a story about a character waking up to something completely absurd.
- Write a story about a character waking up to the best news of their life.
- The detective didn’t realize they were being foiled by a competiting detective.
- The first day you opened your own office as a private investigator, you didn’t expect it to be busy. You were wrong.
- You’re shaking hands with a stranger at a networking event when you ask for their name. I have no name, they reply.
- A genius serial killer has been killing successfully for a decade. His only weakness is that he can never, ever lie. He finally gets caught and is facing trial for all murders in court. Yet, he walks, acquitted of all charges.
Romance
- A fortuneteller falls in love with their client who has their palm read every month.
- It wasn’t love at first sight. But now you were starting to see them in a new light…
- Someone with anxiety falls in love with someone extremely adventurous.
- The lives of two people are changed forever when they coincidentally meet and enagge in a weekend-long affair.
- They lived in a world where PDA is forbidden. One day, they slipped up and held hands on the street.
- Two characters who are perfect for one another are foiled by bad timing.
- Two mortal enemies fall in love when they’re trapped in an elevator together and begin to see the other person’s perspective.
Thriller and Suspense
- Guard this with your life.
- A loved one confides in you, but the secret could damage someone else you care about. What do you do?
- As you’re browsing through a rack of sweaters, someone approaches you and says, I need you to listen to me very carefully.
- 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.
- The morning after a blizzard you make your way outside and slowly start to realize everyone has disappeared.
- You find a hand-written note on your windshield that says Drive west for 100 miles.
- 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 an interrogation room where two detectives wait to question you.
For more writing prompts, check out our Submittable page for the current theme of our monthly magazine. We look forward to reading your work!
