Regardless of how much you may love or hate writing, starting a new project is always the hardest part. Sometimes all you need is the perfect prompt to spark your inspiration. Creative writing, whether it be for a book or just a quick scene, is a great way to practice your skills, and these prompts are a great starting point for creating your next writing project.
Silly Prompts
Writing can be easiest when you don’t take it so seriously. Use one of these funny prompts to create a silly scene that makes you laugh.
- Write the emails between a hero and a villain as they try to reschedule their battle due to a scheduling conflict.
- Write a story about a great historical figure learning how to use the internet. What do they find online when they Google themselves?
- Write about a woman who promised her firstborn child to several different witches. Now that a baby is on the way, she has to deal with a custody battle.
- Write a slow-burn love story that is narrated by a very impatient narrator.
- Recall your most embarrassing memory, and write a funny story about it.
- Create an overly dramatic poem about a household item.
Dialogue Prompts
Focusing on a conversation as the centerpiece of your writing can be super fun and impactful. Try using one of these dialogue prompts to inspire your next written conversation between characters.
- “I know what you did.”
- “From the day we met, I knew you’d hurt me eventually.”
- “I’ll come back for you, I promise.”
- “I regret a lot of things. Having this conversation tops the list.”
- “What’s going on?”
- “How should I know?”
- “Now, don’t be mad, but…”
- “I know you don’t have any reason to trust me, but… you need to know something.”
- “Tuesday is always the worst day to rob a bank.”
- “A hero would sacrifice you to save the world. I’m not a hero.”
Fantasy Prompts
Fantasy writing gives you the opportunity to create new worlds and realities. Use one of these other-worldly prompts to create a compelling tale or fable that sends your readers to another world of your own creation.
- Your family is chosen for a year-long stay at an outpost on a new Earth-like planet, but the people in charge don’t tell you how the atmosphere there will change you.
- An ominous letter arrives — along with one offering magical guardianship for you and the shop you inherited. More worlds than one are at stake.
- Your best friend at college is a highly intuitive rune-caster, and people seek her out. One querent pays her with a magical pendant that changes both your lives.
- The trees surrounding your new home remind you of something — or rather someone. One touch of your hand on a trunk, and you’re face to face with him.
- Thanks to your quick thinking during a crisis at the village market, you’ve been appointed as the bodyguard for the princess. The job proves more difficult than any mission you’ve ever had — but also more rewarding.
Sad Prompts
Creating a heart wrenching story is a great way to push yourself to the limits of your emotional writing potential. Try out one of these tragic prompts to create a tale that makes your readers feel something from your words.
- You’re a ghost haunting your own funeral.
- Soulmates exist in your universe, and you are meant to meet your one true love when you turn 18, but your birthday was a week ago and your soulmate is nowhere to be found.
- The main character receives a devastating diagnosis and decides to track down and try to reconnect with their estranged daughter and son.
- Write from the perspective of a dog being returned to the shelter by their family.
- You have a wonderful life and a wonderful family. Then you wake up from your coma and learn to accept that none of it was real.
Sometimes it’s hard to get back into the habit of writing for fun, but it’s important to remember that inspiration is everywhere. Even if none of these prompts caught your interest, you can always find ideas in what you see, hear, and read every day. Just remember to keep your mind open for possible jumping off points for your next creation.
Natalie Edwards | 2023