March 6, 2018

Story Writing Prompts

One of the best creative exercises I have encountered is trying to figure out how things work together. These story writing prompts are based on that idea. Here are several random puzzle pieces: title, plot, theme, setting, and characters. Can you put them all together to create an original story?

Refresh the page to change the writing prompt… feel free to mix and match suggestions until you find something that strikes your fancy.

The Passion, the Moment, and the Move

A story that explores complications of nationalism through a disaster.

Setting:

The setting is the backdrop to your story. A lot of times you can find inspiration to break through writer’s block by doing a little research. Try looking up the time and place here to find more ideas to flesh out your story.

Bangor, ME - January 1979

Characters:

Characters are the usually the most interesting part of a story. You will proably want at least 2 or 3 main characters: the protagonist (the hero), a sidekick, and an antagonist (the villian). A few secondary characters can help bring depth to your story as well, so we decided to give you half a dozen to start with. Which one looks like the most likely protagonist? The most likely villian? How are they all related to each other? Do they work together? Are they family? Neighbors? As you answer these questions you are building your backstory.

Caleb Adkins is a electronics engineer who wants to find a purpose in life.. He is generally persuasive and open, but sometimes contemptuous	Elizabeth Ray is a prison guard who only wants what is rightfully hers/his.. She is generally considerate and respectful, but sometimes greedy
Isabel Butler is a continuing education instructor who wants to destroy the wicked people/government/organization etc.. She is generally tactful and determined, but sometimes arrogant	Jabari Conley is a animal caretaker who lives for the thrill of moment.. He is generally orderly and versatile, but sometimes arrogant
William Cohen is a stock clerk who wants to be more human.. He is generally observant and accurate, but sometimes pushy	Taylor Munoz is a concrete finisher who wants to be free.. She is generally independent and straight-forward, but sometimes impatient

Author: KAS

Filed Under: Ideas, Prompts

Plot Prompts

Character Prompts
Characters make a story more interesting. The more real they seem, the easier it is for readers to care about them. Caring about a character, and what will happen to them next is often the reason we keep turning pages or can’t put a […]
Setting Prompts
Setting is the time and place where your story takes place. The setting can create a mood, or add interesting facts to your story. These prompts give you a place with a map of the area. (hit refresh to get a new setting) Take a look at the […]
Title Prompts
These title prompts are randomly generated – hit refresh to get a new prompt. How to work with title prompts: Think of this title suggestion as a working title for your story. You can always choose a better title once the story is […]
Theme Prompts
The theme is the deeper meaning of your story. You might think of it as the “big idea” or the “moral” of the story. Keep in ming that no one likes stories that preach. In order to avoid that trap, try to pick a […]
Relationship Prompts
One of the things that can really fuel your story is the relationship between characters. This may be the protagonist and antagonist, but it can also be a relationship between one of your main characters and a minor character, or an […]