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WEEKLY WRITING PROMPTS
Join (probably?) the world's largest writing contest. Flex those creative muscles with weekly writing prompts.
Showing 2024 prompts
Snowed under, write about a character emerging from hibernation, whether literally or metaphorically..
LIVE – Winter
Your character hates the holidays, and jets out of town every year — but a historic snow storm means that this time, they can’t make their escape.
Write a story where someone shares a cup of hot chocolate with a friend..
LIVE – Holiday
Start your story with a description of the cold, using lots of sensory detail.
Start your story with someone looking out the window and seeing the first snowfall of the season..
Introducing Prompted , a new magazine written by you!
🏆 Featuring 12 prize-winning stories from our community. Download it now for FREE .
Black Friday is the one day of the year where the Devil makes selling your soul a good thing, although there are some bizarre T’s & C’s.
Write a story about somebody trying to rationalize giving into temptation, even though they know they shouldn’t., your character finally gives into a temptation they've been avoiding, and becomes better because of it., at some point in your story, a character says “you’re better than this…”., your family’s holiday dinners always end with everyone at each other’s throats. this year you’re determined to keep a low profile, but your patience is being put to the test., subscribe to our prompts newsletter.
Never miss a prompt! Get curated writing inspiration delivered to your inbox each week.
Set your story in a house of mirrors and make the atmosphere increasingly eerie.
Write a story about a character who one day notices that their reflection has taken on a life of its own., write a story about someone coming across their doppelganger., write a story about someone trying to paint (or otherwise create) a self-portrait., start your story with someone buying a cursed — or perhaps blessed —mirror from an antiques store., write about someone who can’t sleep due to jet lag, and decides to set out and explore their new city at night instead., write a story about someone pulling an all nighter., start your story with someone saying “i can’t sleep.”, write a story about two people living together who have opposing sleep cycles, and only cross paths at dawn and dusk., set your story before dawn. your character has woken up early for a particular reason., win $250 in our short story competition 🏆.
We'll send you 5 prompts each week. Respond with your short story and you could win $250!
Contest #227 LIVE
Enter our weekly contest.
This week's theme: Snowed Under
Prize money
Contest entries, closes at 23:59 - dec 08, 2023 est, recent contests ✍️.
#226 – Temptation Time
#225 – Mirror, Mirror on the Wall
#224 – Night Owls and Early Birds
#223 – Academia
Recent winners 🏆
Olivier Breuleux – read
Mallory Jones – read
AnneMarie Miles – read
Audrey McKenna – read
Leaderboard 🥇
#1 Zilla Babbitt
32288 points
#2 Deidra Whitt Lovegren
28346 points
#3 Abigail Airuedomwinya
22391 points
#4 Graham Kinross
13412 points
#5 Scout Tahoe
13182 points
#6 Thom Brodkin
10387 points
#7 Rayhan Hidayat
10197 points
#8 Deborah Mercer
9595 points
#9 Michał Przywara
8806 points
#10 Corey Melin
8478 points
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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 ⭢
Adventure Writing Prompts ⭢
Angst Writing Prompts ⭢
Character Writing Prompts ⭢
Christmas Writing Prompts ⭢
Dark Writing Prompts ⭢
Dialogue Writing Prompts ⭢
Dramatic Writing Prompts ⭢
Dystopian Writing Prompts ⭢
Fall Writing Prompts ⭢
Fantasy Writing Prompts ⭢
Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢
Fluff Writing Prompts ⭢
Funny Writing Prompts ⭢
Halloween Writing Prompts ⭢
High School Writing Prompts ⭢
Historical Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢
Holiday Writing Prompts ⭢
Horror Writing Prompts ⭢
Kids Writing Prompts ⭢
Middle School Writing Prompts ⭢
Mystery Writing Prompts ⭢
Narrative Writing Prompts ⭢
Nonfiction Writing Prompts ⭢
Novel Writing Prompts ⭢
Poetry Writing Prompts ⭢
Romance Writing Prompts ⭢
Sad Writing Prompts ⭢
Science Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢
Short Story Writing Prompts ⭢
Spring Writing Prompts ⭢
Summer Writing Prompts ⭢
Teens Writing Prompts ⭢
Thanksgiving Writing Prompts ⭢
Thriller and Suspense Writing Prompts ⭢
Valentine's Day Writing Prompts ⭢
Vampire Writing Prompts ⭢
Winter Writing Prompts ⭢
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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.