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50 Writing Prompts to Transform Your Creative Process at Work

Sudarshan Somanathan

Head of Content

June 15, 2024

Ever feel like your brain’s gone on vacation, leaving you staring at a blank page (or screen) in pure panic? We’ve all been there—alone in a room with a blank screen, the cursor blinking like a judgmental eye. 

Today, we’re cracking open a treasure chest of inspiration: 50 thought-provoking prompts designed to increase your workplace creativity and transform your work process from ‘meh’ to ‘magnificent!’ 

Whether you’re crafting formal emails, brainstorming out-of-the-box marketing campaigns, or wrestling with a stubborn report, these prompts will get your creative juices flowing quickly. 

We’re talking fresh ideas, unexpected angles, and a whole lot of ‘aha!’ moments. 

Let’s also explore the diverse benefits of writing prompts in various professional contexts. And learn how to master the art of crafting your own prompts with some clever, cutting-edge tools. 

Igniting your creativity at work

Building a routine of excellence, structuring successful narratives, tracking progress and staying accountable, reflecting, growing, and excelling, self-assessment and development writing prompt examples, industry and company knowledge writing prompt examples, communication and teamwork writing prompt examples, overall performance and impact writing prompt examples, decision-making and problem-solving writing prompt examples, be clear and concise, encourage critical thinking .

• Relate to the audience’s interests 

Use open-ended questions

Leverage technology , lending more impact to your words with writing prompts.

The Benefits of Using Writing Prompts

Writing prompts do more than fill a page—they spark innovation, build solid writing habits, organize jumbled ideas into coherent sentences, uphold goals, and inspire deeper thinking. 

Here’s how they make a meaningful positive impact:

Good writing prompts help break through the dreaded writer’s block or offer a new perspective on routine tasks. 

For instance, a prompt like ‘Describe how an everyday object in your office could be improved’ can encourage team members to think innovatively and identify opportunities for enhancement that might otherwise be overlooked.

With regular use, prompts encourage cultivating a writing habit that can significantly improve communication skills and analytical thinking.

In a classroom setting, a teacher might use daily prompts such as ‘What is the most important thing you learned yesterday in school?’ or ‘Describe your favorite childhood memory or a funny story from your childhood’ to encourage students to start writing regularly, reinforcing valuable lessons, and ensuring continual improvement.

Journal writing prompts can serve as a framework for writers to build complete narratives, starting with a few words. 

This is particularly beneficial in professional environments where structured thinking aids clarity and productivity. 

For instance, prompts like ‘compare, explain, and contrast two characters from the novel you are reading’ help writers and students organize their thoughts systematically, leading to clearer and more detailed essays.

For individuals and teams, prompts can be a part of scheduled writing tasks that help keep participants accountable for their learning or professional goals. 

They can be used as tools in performance evaluations or as part of professional development exercises. 

A prompt like ‘draft a weekly progress update on your main project’ requires employees to regularly document and reflect on their achievements and challenges, maintaining responsibility and visibility within the team.

Reflection prompts encourage deeper thinking about personal experiences and work processes. 

This can enhance self-awareness and professional growth, leading to better decision-making and more effective workplace interactions. 

Prompts such as ‘reflect on a recent decision that did not go as planned and how you handled it’ can provide insights into personal and organizational resilience and adaptability, which are crucial for professional development.

50 Writing Prompts to Spark Creativity at Work

Here’s a list of diverse writing prompt examples to help you get started. You can use them as is, customize them, or take inspiration from them to build or expand your own prompts.

• Describe a project you’re working on and how you could improve it
• Write about a professional challenge you overcame recently
• What new skill would you like to learn at work and why?
• Reflect on the best piece of advice you’ve received in your career
• Imagine your ideal work day. What would it look like?
• How do you motivate yourself on challenging days?
• Write about how you handle feedback and criticism at work
• Reflect on a time when you learned from a mistake
• How do you prioritize tasks when everything seems urgent?
• Describe how you approach learning new skills or information
• Describe a hobby that improves your work performance
• What are your long-term career goals?
• Write about a time you had to adapt to a significant change at work
• How do you manage stress in high-pressure situations?
• What lessons have you learned from working in diverse teams?
• Describe your process for setting professional boundaries
• How has your industry changed in the past five years?
• Write about a leader you admire and why
• What are the emerging trends in your field?
• What are the biggest challenges facing your field today?
• How do you stay informed about industry developments?
• Reflect on a team project that didn’t go as planned
• What makes a good mentor or leader?
• What are the essential skills someone should have in your industry?
• Describe the culture of your workplace
• If you could change one thing about your work environment, what would it be?
• Imagine a new product or service that could revolutionize your industry
• What role does innovation play in your job?
• Write about a policy you would implement at work and why
• What are the ethical considerations in your profession?
• Write about a time you contributed to a major decision at work
• How do you ensure your work aligns with your values?
• Describe how you would mentor a new colleague
• Write about how you approach conflict resolution
• What are the key elements of an effective team?
• How do you balance work and personal life?
• What strategies do you use for effective communication?
• Reflect on a time when you went above and beyond in your role
• How do you foster creativity and innovation in your team?
• What does success look like in your role?
• Describe a successful project and the steps you took to achieve success
• Evaluate success in your projects
• Describe how technology impacts your daily work
• Write about a moment you felt proud at work
• How do you approach making difficult decisions? 
• Reflect on how your role contributes to the overall goals of your organization
• What impact do you hope to have in your career?
• Write about a book or article that has influenced your professional life
• Describe a time when you had to think on your feet

By reflecting on these prompts and crafting thoughtful responses, you can gain valuable insights into your strengths, weaknesses, and career and life aspirations. Overall, these prompts are a great resource for anyone who wants to live, learn, and work more intentionally.

Tips for Crafting Effective Writing Prompts

Crafting creative writing prompts isn’t just about generating questions but sparking a conversation and inspiring self-reflection. 

Here’s how to make sure your prompts not only engage but also transform your audience’s thinking:

Your prompts should cut through the noise. Clarity wins over complexity every time. 

Craft your prompts to be straightforward, eliminating any ambiguity that might cloud the purpose or confuse your audience.

Go beyond the basics. Design prompts that provoke thought, invite debate and inspire deep analysis. 

Instead of simple yes or no answers, your prompts should encourage a detailed exploration of ideas and perspectives. 

Relate to the audience’s interests  

Connect with your audience on a personal level. Make your prompts resonate by aligning them with your audience’s interests, daily realities, and current life. 

Whether they’re CEOs or interns, tailor your questions to reflect the challenges and aspirations specific to each person and their professional world.

Open-ended questions encourage diverse responses, allowing respondents to take their answers in unexpected and creatively rich directions. They also prevent bias or preconceived ideas from the prompter from seeping into the questions or prompts . 

Use smart tools like ClickUp to elevate your prompt game. ClickUp is a comprehensive platform tailored to writers aiming to refine their workflows and enhance their creativity.

With ClickUp Docs and ClickUp Brain , you can gain access to advanced features that can help optimize your writing tasks. 

These features enable you to:

1. Draft, edit, and organize your work

ClickUp Docs is a writing tool and document management platform that lets you create a wide variety of written material, ranging from lecture notes and research summaries to full-fledged articles, blog posts, social media posts and captions, business memos, policies and SOPs, detailed wikis, and more. 

Using Docs’ rich formatting options, you can capture ideas in bulleted or numbered lists, generate paragraphs , change fonts and font sizes, demarcate headings from body copy, apply templates with callouts and highlighted sections, and so much more.

This space serves as an all-in-one workspace for drafting, editing, and organizing documents and is ideal for writers who structure their creative writing around specific prompts.

For more refined project management, ClickUp Docs double as a collaborative writing tool that supports features like comment reactions, subtasks, multiple assignees, simultaneous editing with your colleagues, and prioritization. These are all designed to improve the efficiency and tracking of your content-related projects and workflows.

2. Generate and structure new ideas

ClickUp Brain is a supportive AI-powered writing aide that offers you innovative ways to break through writer’s block. 

It can craft outlines, summaries, and writing prompts, propelling the writing process forward for any project.

It has two features that can help with writing prompts and generating content:

• AI Knowledge Manager: It can analyze the context of your workspace to provide insights that can enrich your writing prompts. It also offers quick access to information that you can use to support or expand upon a writing prompt
• AI Writer for Work: This tool assists in creating content and replying quickly with an assistant tailored for work. It can suggest ideas or themes based on the context of your workspace or previous documents you’ve worked on. Use it to brainstorm ideas, generate first drafts, check (and fix) your writing for obvious spelling and grammar errors, and polish your rough ideas into fleshed-out narratives.

These features help you structure your ideas, develop a coherent flow for your documents, and quickly generate content such as essays , blog posts, short stories, and more. 

3. Save time with knowledge management features

Discover how easy it is to organize your data with ClickUp’s Knowledge Graph Generator with ClickUp Brain. This tool uses artificial intelligence to connect and organize your information quickly. Just enter your data, such as facts, relationships, and entities, and watch the AI sort and link it all into a clear, visual network.

This tool is great for spotting hidden patterns, brainstorming ideas , and pulling out key insights, helping you make sense of complex data. It’s convenient for writers and researchers who create a lot of content. Give it a try and see how it simplifies your data management.

4. Reduce time from the first draft to publish-ready pieces with ready-made templates

ClickUp’s Content Writing Template simplifies the process of note-taking and creation of various types of content, from blog posts and press releases to technical documentation. 

This template provides a structured starting point for your projects, ensuring consistency and quality. It allows you to create tasks with custom statuses to accurately monitor progress across different writing tasks. 

Additionally, custom fields let you categorize and add specific attributes to each content piece, making it easier to visualize progress. 

ClickUp’s Content Plan Template is another tool to help you master self-discipline and manage your writing workload efficiently.

The template is perfect for organizing your workdays and visualizing schedules effectively. 

• Use multiple views to visualize your workload
• Begin with the Content Plan List View to create tasks for each writing prompt , specifying details like priority, status, purpose, content type, audience, keywords, and assigned writers
• Customize the fields to track progress and other relevant data that aligns with your objectives
• Adjust tasks by their due dates in the Content Calendar View. Adjust the view to show daily or weekly, depending on your schedule’s intensity

Using these templates will help you eliminate the blank-page problem for good. With ClickUp templates and these powerful prompts, your writing process never needs to start from scratch.

Writing prompts are versatile tools that stimulate creativity and bring the gifts of structure, consistency, and reflection to your professional writing process. 

By following these tips for crafting effective prompts and using tools like ClickUp, you’ll be able to optimize your writing workflows, cultivate creativity, and keep your writing goals in sight. 

This combination of features solidifies the role of technology tools like ClickUp to meet the diverse needs of writers, educators, or individuals interested in using various writing prompts for self-reflection, creativity, and personal growth. 

It’s a free tool, so why wait to have your writing make a greater impact? Sign up for ClickUp today ! 

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31 Blog Writing Prompts to Break Your Writer's Block

Published: February 01, 2021

You've finally found time in your schedule to sit down and write a new blog post. But when you settle in, your hands hover over the keyboard. Nothing comes to mind. You stare at a blank screen in exasperation as the minutes slowly slip away.

Whether you write for a living or as a hobby, you'll experience writer's block at some point. The first thing to do is realize you're not alone. Everyone hits a wall that's tough to work around. Sometimes all it takes to get started is a few terrible sentences, inspiring blog writing prompts, or a blogging course .

The point is, you have to find a way to break the block and let the words flow again. As Maya Angelou said, "Nothing will work unless you do."

31 Blog Writing Prompts

Write about values that matter to you., explain a problem in your industry and offer a solution., describe a time you were challenged and how you faced it., write about the idea of self-care and what it means to you., recount a tough lesson you've learned lately., tell a story about one of the following words: success, fulfillment, growth, achievement., write about how a mentor has changed your perspective., describe an event you remember from childhood and how it shaped your career., share a relationship that impacted you., write about the goals you'd like to work toward in the next five years., reveal a superpower you'd love to have and what you'd do with it., describe your definition of happiness., write about your opinion of the world., share a list of your best career tips., discuss how flaws can be seen as strengths., write about a time when you were incredibly happy or sad., share the most recent thing you've learned about yourself., choose three of your beliefs and why they matter to you., dive into life lessons you believe everyone can benefit from learning., describe your daily routines and how they impact you., imagine your own secret lair and explain what's inside., tell a story about achievement., describe the trip of a lifetime., share your ideal way to spend a favorite holiday., choose three photos with different scenes and create a story to tie them together., write about the ups and down of your first job., select a cause you're passionate about and explain why it matters., pick one of your dreams, and describe how you'd bring it to life., write about a person you admire., explain what makes you feel fragile or strong., write about something intangible: faith, magic, energy, power, or creativity..

So when you draw a blank, grab a fresh cup of coffee or tea and try your hand at blog writing prompts below. Choose one or two that stand out to you. Then, spend 10-15 minutes writing down whatever comes to mind.

If you can't think of anything in the first 30 seconds, move onto another one. The goal is to find an idea that interests you enough to write about freely, without feeling pressured to be perfect.

Don't forget to share this post!

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100 Creative Writing Prompts to Inspire Your Writing

With this list, you’ll never run out of story ideas again!

By Natasha Khullar Relph

Starting a new project feels like stepping into a world of endless possibilities, yet it can also be like staring into the abyss of the unknown. While the battle between a writer and their blank page is well documented, you don’t have to go to war with your creative self just to get some words on a page.

Creative writing prompts can be the answer to a blocked writer’s prayers, offering story starters and writing ideas to jumpstart your creative thinking. To aid in your efforts, we’ve put together a curated collection of 100 creative writing prompts. From thought-provoking scenarios to whimsical adventures, these prompts are guaranteed to jumpstart your writing, transport you to new worlds, and breathe life into your stories.

What is a writing prompt?

A writing prompt is a specific, often short, phrase, question, or statement designed to stimulate and inspire creative writing. Writing prompts can help you overcome writer’s block , generate new ideas, or simply get your creative juices flowing. You can use them in various forms of writing, including fiction, poetry, journaling, and essay writing, and they vary widely in their content and purpose. Some prompts are open-ended, encouraging writers to explore their thoughts and emotions freely, while others may be more specific, asking you to write about a particular topic or scenario.

Writing prompts serve as creative triggers, helping you to explore new story ideas , develop characters, or practice different writing styles. They can be a valuable tool for both beginners who need writing inspiration and more experienced writers looking to build a writing habit or become better writers through a regular writing practice .

100 creative writing prompts for writers

Fiction writing prompts.

Whether you’re writing adult novels or children’s books, these fiction and short story writing prompts will inspire new worlds and scenarios for your characters to play in as you write your first draft .

• Write a modern-day fairy tale set in a bustling metropolis . Your story should feature a main character who stumbles upon a hidden, magical world within the city. Explore how this discovery changes their life and the challenges they face as they navigate between the ordinary and the extraordinary in the heart of the urban jungle.
• Write a story in which the main character discovers a superpower , but it comes with a mysterious and unexpected side effect. Explore the challenges they face in harnessing their newfound ability while dealing with the consequences of the side effect. How do they adapt and ultimately use their power for good or ill?
• Imagine you stumble upon an ancient, dusty time traveler’s journal in an antique shop. As you flip through its pages, you realize it contains detailed accounts of the past, present, and future. Write a story about the discoveries you make within the journal and how they shape your life and decisions.
• In a post-apocalyptic society, a group of survivors discover a hidden library containing books from every era. Describe their journey to preserve knowledge, as they grapple not only with the challenge of safeguarding these precious texts but also with the moral dilemmas and conflicts that arise when they must decide who has access to this invaluable resource in a world defined by scarcity.
• In a world where people’s dreams become real, a person with chronic nightmares suddenly possesses unimaginable power , forcing them to confront the fine line between their inner demons and the extraordinary possibilities that now lie at their fingertips.
• Write a story set in a future where civilians can take vacations to outer space . Describe the adventures, challenges, and experiences of a family or group of friends as they embark on a journey beyond the earth’s atmosphere for the first time.
• Craft a science fiction tale set in a world where technology has reached unimaginable heights , but human emotions and relationships remain unchanged. Explore how advanced AI, virtual reality, and futuristic inventions impact the characters’ lives, love, and the essence of what it means to be human.
• Write a story that begins with a group of childhood friends building a secret treehouse in the woods. Years later, they reunite as adults to discover that their beloved hideaway holds a mysterious and enchanting secret that will change their lives forever.
• Write a story set in a small American town during the 1950s, capturing the essence of post-war America and the lives of its diverse residents as they navigate love, ambition, and the pursuit of the American Dream.
• Imagine a future where Earth faces an impending catastrophic event, and humanity has initiated a mission to colonize a distant planet . Write a story from the perspective of one astronaut on this interstellar journey, capturing the emotions, challenges, and sense of hope as they leave behind their home planet and embark on a journey into the unknown.
• Your favorite book has always been a cherished escape, but one day, as you open its pages, you find yourself transported into the world within . Write a story about your adventures in the world of your favorite book, exploring the characters, places, and challenges you encounter along the way.
• Imagine a world where everyone knows the exact date of their last day on Earth . Write a story about a person living through their last day, exploring how they choose to spend it and the emotions, reflections, and last moments they experience as they prepare to say their farewells.
• Set your story in a future where a society of advanced learners, equipped with a unique ability to acquire new skills and knowledge rapidly , faces a mysterious threat. Write about their quest to unravel the enigma, the extraordinary challenges they encounter, and how their insatiable thirst for learning becomes their greatest asset in this high-stakes adventure.
• Write a story in which each chapter shifts between the first-person point of view of two characters who have drastically different perspectives on the same events. Explore how their contrasting viewpoints shape the narrative and challenge the reader’s understanding of the story’s central conflict.
• Imagine a world where gods exist but are not all-powerful . Write a story about a god who, despite their divine status, faces a unique and formidable challenge that forces them to confront their limitations and question the very nature of godhood.
• Write a story set in a world where time travel is possible but limited to a single day . Describe the adventures and dilemmas of a character who can only revisit or change events in their life within the confines of that single day. What choices do they make, and how does it impact their future and the world around them?
• In a near-future world, video games have evolved to become the primary form of communication and competition . Write a story where a skilled gamer is recruited for a high-stakes mission within a virtual reality game, blurring the lines between the digital and physical worlds. Explore the challenges, alliances, and ethical dilemmas they face as they navigate this immersive and unpredictable gaming landscape.
• Imagine a writer who discovers an ancient, enchanted book that can bring its characters to life and grant them free will. Write a new story in which the writer and the characters they create must work together to navigate the challenges and consequences of their shared existence, blurring the lines between creator and creation.
• Imagine a character whose favorite things are slowly disappearing from their life one by one . Write a story about their journey to hold on to the essence of what they love most, the challenges they face in preserving their cherished favorites, and the unexpected discoveries they make along the way.
• Two strangers find themselves washed ashore on a deserted island after a shipwreck . They have no memory of their past lives and must work together to survive. Write a story about their journey of discovery, resilience, and the bond that forms as they navigate the challenges of the deserted island.
• Your favorite holiday has always been a time of joy and celebration, but this year, it’s under threat of cancellation. Write a story about the determined efforts of a group of individuals who come together to save and rekindle the spirit of their favorite holiday , facing unexpected challenges and finding new meaning in the process.
• Write a story set in a quaint English village, where an eccentric resident claims to have discovered a hidden portal to another dimension in their garden shed . As rumors spread and curiosity grows, explore the adventures and mysteries that unfold when the villagers decide to investigate this bizarre claim and step into the unknown.
• Your favorite Tumblr blog suddenly starts posting cryptic messages that seem to predict events in your life . Write a story about the growing intrigue and obsession as you try to uncover the identity of the blog’s enigmatic author and the source of their uncanny knowledge.
• Your favorite season has always been winter, but this year, it never ends . Write a story about the challenges, wonders, and unexpected consequences that arise as your world becomes perpetually blanketed in snow and ice, and you must navigate the eternal winter that now defines your life.
• Write a story about a high school student who stumbles upon a mysterious diary hidden in the school library . The diary seems to contain entries from a former student who experienced extraordinary and supernatural events during their time at the school. As the current student reads the diary, they begin to notice strange occurrences happening around them, blurring the line between reality and the paranormal.

Nonfiction writing prompts

Here’s a selection of nonfiction writing prompts to help you delve into your own experiences , share your expertise, and craft powerful narratives rooted in the world around us.

• Explore the concept of “utopia” and “dystopia.” Write an analytical essay comparing and contrasting two fictional utopian or dystopian worlds from literature, film, or popular culture, and discuss their societal ideals, flaws, and relevance to contemporary society.
• Consider a unique or unusual skill or hobby you possess , such as extreme knitting or competitive tree climbing. Write a how-to guide or tutorial that explains the fundamentals and intricacies of this skill, offering practical advice and personal anecdotes to inspire others to explore it.
• Take a nature walk or visit a local park, and choose a specific tree as your subject . Write a detailed and poetic nature essay that describes the tree’s appearance, its role in the ecosystem, and the stories it could tell if it could speak.
• Choose an everyday object that holds special significance to you , such as a childhood toy or a family heirloom. Write a detailed essay exploring the memories, emotions, and stories connected to this object, and how it has shaped your identity.
• Imagine you have the opportunity to interview your future self 10 years from now . Draft a list of thought-provoking questions you would ask to gain insights into your future experiences, decisions, and reflections.
• Select a word from a language other than your own that encapsulates a feeling or concept you find intriguing but that has no direct translation in your language. Write an essay exploring the word’s meaning, cultural context, and the emotions it evokes, reflecting on the beauty of language and its ability to convey complex ideas.
• Imagine you are given the chance to host a dinner party with five historical figures , living or deceased, from any time period. Create a detailed guest list, describe the menu, and write an essay outlining the topics of conversation you would explore with your eclectic group of guests.
• Write a personal essay about a specific sound or noise that holds deep meaning to you . Explain why this sound resonates with you, its significance in your life, and the emotions or memories it triggers.
• Consider a peculiar or unusual museum exhibit you’ve encountered or would like to visit . Write an engaging review or critique of the exhibit, examining its historical, artistic, or cultural value, and sharing your insights and reactions as a visitor.
• Think about an unsolved mystery, conspiracy theory, or urban legend that has always intrigued you . Write an investigative essay delving into the facts, theories, and speculations surrounding this enigma, presenting your own analysis and conclusions.
• Explore the concept of “lost cities” or “hidden civilizations.” Write an investigative essay about a real or legendary lost city, such as Atlantis, discussing the historical evidence, theories, and mysteries surrounding its existence and disappearance.
• Imagine you have the ability to witness and document a day in the life of a famous historical figure or celebrity of your choice. Write a detailed and immersive diary entry that captures their experiences, thoughts, and emotions on this hypothetical day.
• Reflect on the idea of “space tourism” becoming a reality in the near future . Write an opinion piece discussing the ethical, environmental, and cultural implications of commercial space travel and colonization.
• Select an everyday object or phenomenon, such as rain, a traffic light, or a pencil , and write an in-depth exploration of its history, evolution, and societal impact. Share surprising facts and anecdotes that shed new light on this seemingly ordinary subject.
• Write an i n-depth profile of a local unsung hero or community leader who has made a significant impact on your town or neighborhood. Share their story, accomplishments, and the lasting effects of their work.
• Explore the concept of “found family.” Write a personal essay reflecting on the importance of the friendships and relationships you’ve built with individuals who may not be biologically related but have become like family to you.
• Consider the phenomenon of life hacks and practical tips shared on the internet. Write a guide or compilation of your favorite life hacks, along with personal anecdotes of how they’ve improved your daily life.
• Reflect on the concept of digital nostalgia. Write an essay about the emotional connections people form with digital content, such as video games, social media, or online communities, and how it shapes their sense of identity and belonging.
• Explore the world of extreme sports or unconventional hobbies. Write a feature article about individuals who engage in activities like base jumping, extreme ironing, or underwater pumpkin carving, and delve into their motivations and experiences.
• Imagine you have the opportunity to curate an art exhibition featuring the work of artists from different time periods and backgrounds . Describe the themes, connections, and narratives that tie these diverse artworks together.
• Write a reflective essay about your personal journey with mental health , highlighting a specific turning point or moment of insight that led to a deeper understanding of your own well-being. Discuss the strategies, resources, or support systems that have helped you on this path and how your experience might offer inspiration or guidance to others facing similar challenges.
• Explore the cultural and personal significance of your favorite food . Write an essay that delves into the history, traditions, and memories associated with this dish, and how it has become a symbol of comfort, celebration, or connection in your life.
• Create a comprehensive FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) document for your own life , highlighting the questions people often ask you about your experiences, beliefs, or expertise. Write detailed and thoughtful responses to these questions, providing insights into your unique perspective and experiences. Reflect on how compiling this FAQ helps you understand the common themes and curiosities that surround your life and the impact they have on your relationships and identity.
• Explore the concept of “first days” in human history . Write a historical analysis that delves into the pivotal first days of significant events, discoveries, or eras, such as the first day humans walked on the moon, the first day of the Industrial Revolution, or the first day a groundbreaking scientific theory was proposed.
• Imagine you have the ability to observe and document the everyday life of an individual from a completely different culture or time period. Write a descriptive essay that vividly portrays the daily rituals, customs, and experiences of this person, highlighting the contrasts and similarities between their everyday life and your own.

Journal prompts

These prompts are designed to encourage self-discovery, mindfulness, and the art of capturing the essence of your life’s moments on paper. Use them for directed journaling or as part of your Morning Pages practice .

• Choose an object in your immediate environment, such as a book, a plant, or a piece of artwork. Write a journal entry from the perspective of that object , describing its history, observations, and the emotions it might feel as it silently witnesses your life.
• Create a gratitude journal entry in the form of a letter to your past self, expressing appreciation for the experiences, challenges, and lessons that have shaped you into the person you are today. Reflect on how these past moments have contributed to your growth.
• Imagine you’re given the opportunity to have a conversation with your future self 20 years from now . Write a journal entry in which you ask your future self three questions about your life, dreams, and accomplishments, and then respond as you believe your future self would.
• Imagine you have a “time capsule” journal in which you can write messages to your future descendants . Write a journal entry addressing your great-great-grandchildren, sharing personal stories, values, and advice you would want them to know about your life and the world you lived in.
• Write a journal entry as if you were a detective or investigator documenting your own life’s mysteries and unsolved questions . Explore the enigmas, unanswered questions, or unresolved situations you’ve encountered, and brainstorm potential solutions or paths for exploration.
• Create a reverse bucket list in your journal —a list of experiences, achievements, and moments from your life that you’re proud of and grateful for. Reflect on each item and the significance it holds for you.
• Write a journal entry as if you were a traveler from the future, visiting the present day . Describe your observations of contemporary life, technology, culture, and the changes that have occurred since your time.
• Imagine you possess a magic journal that can answer any question you pose to it . Write a series of questions about life, the universe, or personal dilemmas, and then provide detailed answers as if the journal responded.
• Select a word from a foreign language that has no direct translation in your native language. Write a journal entry exploring the word’s meaning, cultural context, and the emotions or concepts it represents. Reflect on how this word might enrich your understanding of life.
• Create a journal entry capturing your ideal day from start to finish . Describe the perfect morning routine, activities, interactions, and moments of joy you would like to experience. Reflect on what elements of this ideal day you can incorporate into your current life.
• Imagine you have a “memory map” in your mind that marks the locations of significant moments from your life . Write a journal entry where you choose a location on this map and describe the memories associated with it, delving into the emotions, people, and events that make it special.
• Write a journal entry from the perspective of your favorite fictional character . Imagine their thoughts, experiences, and feelings in a specific moment from their story, and explore how their perspective might differ from your own.
• Create a “ soundtrack of your life” journal entry . List songs or pieces of music that have been significant at different stages of your life, and describe the memories and emotions each song evokes.
• Imagine you have the ability to visit parallel universes and experience different versions of your life . Write a journal entry about a day in the life of an alternate “you” in a parallel universe, describing the choices and outcomes that diverged from your current reality.
• Reflect on the idea of “unfinished stories” in your life —those moments or relationships that you wish you could revisit or complete. Write a journal entry exploring these unfinished stories and consider what closure or resolution might mean to you.
• Reflect on a cherished memory with your best friend that you haven’t shared before . Write a journal entry describing the moment—the sights, sounds, and emotions that made it special. Consider how this memory has shaped your friendship and what it reveals about the unique bond you share.
• Choose a family member whose life story or experiences you find intriguing . Write a journal entry where you explore their perspective, challenges, and defining moments from their point of view. Consider how understanding their journey can deepen your connection and appreciation for the complexities of family dynamics.
• Imagine your favorite place, whether it’s a bustling city square, a tranquil beach, or a cozy corner of your home . Write a journal entry that transports yourself and your readers to this cherished spot. Describe the sights, sounds, and sensations that make it your favorite place, and reflect on why it holds such a special space in your heart.
• Select a random word from a dictionary and let it guide your journal entry today. Write about the first memories, emotions, or thoughts that come to mind when you encounter this word. Explore its connections to your life, experiences, or the world around you, and see where this unexpected word takes your reflections.
• Recall your earliest memory, no matter how faint or fragmentary it may be. Write a journal entry that delves into the details of this memory—what you saw, felt, or experienced. Reflect on how this seemingly distant moment may have shaped your perceptions, fears, or interests as you grew older, and consider what hidden treasures might lie within your earliest recollections.
• Think about your favorite story from childhood , whether it’s a fairy tale, a classic novel, or a bedtime fable. Write a journal entry that explores why this particular story resonated with you so deeply and how its themes, characters, or lessons continue to influence your life and perspective.
• Imagine planning the ultimate road trip of a lifetime with no constraints or limitations. Write a journal entry detailing the destinations you would visit, the people you’d travel with (or not), and the experiences you’d seek along the way.
• Describe a recent dream or vivid daydream in detail. Dive into the symbolism, emotions, and hidden meanings behind the dream’s elements. Consider how this dream might relate to your current thoughts, fears, or aspirations.
• Reflect on a memorable encounter with a stranger that left a lasting impression on you . Write a journal entry describing the details of this encounter, the emotions it stirred, and any insights or lessons you gained from the brief connection.
• Create a life garden in your journal, where each flower or plant represents a person, experience, or aspect of your life . Write a journal entry about the state of your life garden—which plants are thriving, which need nurturing, and the symbolic meaning behind each one.

Fun writing prompts

Here are some fun writing prompts that will take you on whimsical journeys, tickle your funny bone, and remind you that writing can be as joyful as it is expressive.

• Write a story where the characters have the ability to swap bodies with one another, but they can only do it for one day. Explore the humorous and chaotic situations that arise as they navigate each other’s lives and personalities.
• Imagine a world where all forms of transportation, from bicycles to rocket ships, are powered by something unexpected , like laughter, music, or compliments. Write a whimsical tale set in this world, where the power of positive emotions fuels extraordinary journeys.
• Write a dialogue between a superhero and their arch-nemesis as they meet for coffee on their day off. Explore the dynamics of their relationship when they’re not in the midst of battling each other and consider the unexpected topics they might discuss.
• Create a story set in a magical library where the books come to life at night . Write about the adventures of the librarian and their bookish companions as they go on quests within the pages of the books, encountering characters and worlds from classic literature.
• Imagine a future where humans can communicate with animals through a universal translator . Write a humorous narrative from the perspective of a pet who has overheard some surprising conversations and secrets among their human family members.
• Write a story set in a world where time moves backward for one hour each day . Explore the consequences and comedic situations that arise as people try to navigate a daily rewind hour.
• Imagine a future where robots have taken over mundane household tasks, but they’ve also developed quirky personalities . Write a series of humorous vignettes about the misadventures of a family and their eccentric robot helpers.
• Create a story where the characters discover a magical paintbrush that brings anything they draw to life . Explore the imaginative creations and unexpected challenges that arise as they wield this extraordinary tool.
• Write a dialogue between a famous historical figure and a modern-day teenager who accidentally time-traveled to the past. Explore the clash of perspectives, cultural differences, and humorous misunderstandings that occur during their conversation.
• Imagine a world where dreams are physical objects that can be collected, traded, and even stolen. Write a thrilling heist story where a group of dream thieves plans to steal the most valuable dream ever recorded.
• Write a story in which the main character has a time-traveling pet —a dog or cat that can transport them to different time periods by touching specific objects. Explore the adventures and challenges they face together as they navigate history.
• Imagine a world where everyone’s dreams become real, but only for 24 hours. Write about the chaos and hilarity that ensue as people try to make the most of their dream days. What unusual dreams and desires come to life?
• Create a story set in a town where every resident has a superpower, but each power comes with an unusual and often comical drawback . Explore the everyday challenges and humorous situations that arise in this extraordinary community.
• Write a tale about a character who discovers a magic book that allows them to rewrite one event from their past. Explore the consequences, both intended and unintended, of altering a pivotal moment in their life.
• Imagine a reality where technology allows people to swap personalities for a day. Write a story about two individuals who decide to exchange lives, exploring the comedic and thought-provoking results of their temporary personality swap.
• Write a story set in a world where every time someone tells a lie, a colorful tattoo appears on their skin, revealing the nature of the falsehood. Explore the adventures and misadventures of a charismatic con artist in this truth-telling society.
• Imagine a reality where people can communicate with objects, from talking to their toaster to negotiating with their car. Write a humorous tale about the challenges and comedic situations that arise when inanimate objects have opinions and demands.
• Create a story about a group of time-traveling tourists who accidentally land in a pivotal historical event. How do they handle being unexpected witnesses to history, and what comical twists and turns result from their presence?
• Write a narrative in which a group of misfit superheroes forms a support group to discuss their quirky and seemingly useless powers. Explore their camaraderie and how they come together to solve a surprisingly mundane problem.
• Imagine a town where each day is themed differently , from “Pirate Day” to “Outer Space Day.” Write a day-in-the-life story of a resident navigating the zany challenges and adventures that come with living in a town of perpetual themed days.
• Write a story in which a middle school’s annual talent show becomes a time-traveling extravaganza . Students’ talents inadvertently transport them to different historical eras. Describe the hilarious and surprising adventures as they try to make their way back to the present, using their unique talents to navigate history.
• Imagine attending a summer camp where everything is topsy-turvy! Campers become the counselors, and counselors become campers. Write a story about the humorous and unexpected challenges, pranks, and adventures that unfold when kids are in charge of running the camp, from organizing activities to dealing with the chaos that ensues.
• Create a story about an unusual camping trip where the characters discover their campsite is a portal to a fantasy realm . Write about the magical creatures, enchanted forests, and unexpected challenges they encounter while trying to enjoy a traditional camping experience with a fantastical twist.
• Write a story about a quirky character who believes they have the power to predict when things will happen for the last time . Explore the humorous and imaginative ways in which they navigate everyday life, from savoring last time moments like the last scoop of ice cream in the tub to the last raindrop before a storm.
• Imagine a world where the word “finish” holds the power to complete any task or goal instantly. Write a story about a protagonist who stumbles upon this word’s magical ability and the humorous and unexpected situations that unfold as they navigate life with the ultimate shortcut at their disposal.

(You can also download this prompts list as a printable pdf sheet and sign up to the Wordling’s weekly newsletter for more writing and publishing tips.)

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100 Journal Prompts & Reflections For Entrepreneurs & CEOs

• September 15, 2023
• by Epifania

In the bustling world of startups and boardrooms, it’s often a challenge to find a moment of quiet reflection. Yet, the world’s most successful leaders swear by the power of introspection for achieving clarity and insight. For those at the helm of businesses, be it budding startups or established conglomerates, regular journaling can be a transformative tool. But where does one start? Especially when your day-to-day thoughts are consumed with balance sheets, marketing strategies, and team dynamics? That’s where our curated list of journal prompts for entrepreneurs and CEOs comes in.

As an entrepreneur or CEO, the decisions you make can significantly impact not just your enterprise, but also the lives of those associated with it. These journal prompts are designed to not only guide you in navigating the treacherous waters of business leadership but also to help you discover more about yourself and your vision. By consistently engaging with these prompts, you’ll uncover deeper motivations, understand challenges with a clearer lens, and develop a renewed appreciation for your journey.

In this post, we’ll delve into 100 handpicked prompts tailored specifically for the entrepreneurial mindset. Whether you’re seeking solutions to business hurdles, pondering over strategic pivots, or simply looking to rekindle your passion for what you do, this list is your treasure trove. So, grab your journal, find a quiet corner, and let’s embark on this journey of introspection together!

The Benefits of Journaling for Entrepreneurs and CEOs

1. Enhanced Decision-Making

Every entrepreneur knows that decision-making is the lifeblood of a thriving business. Journaling helps distill thoughts, evaluate options, and discern the potential outcomes of decisions. By methodically jotting down pros and cons or predicting possible scenarios, the fog of indecision often clears, paving the way for informed choices.

2. Emotional Resilience

The entrepreneurial journey is a roller coaster of emotions – from the dizzying highs of success to the gut-wrenching lows of setbacks. Writing provides an outlet to process these feelings, aiding in emotional balance and resilience. It’s a space where fears can be confronted, disappointments can be processed, and successes can be celebrated.

3. Clarity of Vision

It’s easy for entrepreneurs to get so lost in daily tasks that they lose sight of the bigger picture. Journaling serves as a reminder of the ‘why’ behind their venture. By regularly revisiting and refining their vision, entrepreneurs can align their daily actions with their long-term goals.

4. Boosted Creativity

The world’s most innovative entrepreneurs, from Richard Branson to Oprah Winfrey, often talk about the importance of creative thinking. Journaling is a wellspring of creativity. Free-writing, in particular, can unlock novel ideas, perspectives, and solutions that might not emerge in a more structured setting.

5. Track Progress and Celebrate Wins

For those at the helm, progress can sometimes feel incremental, especially when they’re aiming for exponential growth. A journal acts as a tangible record of milestones, both big and small. It serves not just as a motivator but also as a testament to the journey, highlighting the wins that deserve celebration.

6. Improved Time Management

Journaling isn’t just about introspection; it’s also a powerful tool for productivity. By noting down tasks, reflecting on time-drainers, and strategizing on efficiencies, entrepreneurs can hone their time management skills, making the most of their ever-busy schedules.

7. Personal Growth and Leadership Development

As leaders, entrepreneurs and CEOs are constantly evolving. The act of writing helps in distilling lessons from experiences, understanding leadership styles, and fostering personal growth. The introspective nature of journaling offers a platform for self-awareness and continuous learning.

In essence, while the world sees the external journey of building businesses and leading teams, journaling provides entrepreneurs and CEOs with an invaluable tool to navigate their internal journey. As the adage goes, “Know thyself to lead thyself.” The journal becomes the silent mentor, guiding them through challenges and cheering them on in victories. So, for every entrepreneur and CEO looking to elevate their game, remember that sometimes, the most impactful conversations are the ones you have with yourself, on the pages of your journal.

100 Journal Prompts and Reflection Topics For Entrepreneurs & CEOs

• What inspired you to start your business?
• Describe a failure you experienced and what you learned from it.
• What are three core values for your business?
• Who is your ideal customer, and why?
• What does success look like for you?
• Where do you see your business in 5 years?
• What unique value does your product/service offer?
• Who are your business role models?
• What’s the biggest risk you’ve taken so far?
• How do you handle rejection or negative feedback?
• Describe a moment when you felt proud of your business.
• What areas of your business could use improvement?
• How do you prioritize your tasks and responsibilities?
• How do you handle work-life balance?
• What motivates you on tough days?
• Describe a recent achievement and its impact.
• What are your business goals for the next month?
• How do you foster creativity in your workspace?
• How do you maintain your passion and drive?
• Describe a time you had to pivot or change direction.
• What networking opportunities or collaborations excite you?
• How do you ensure your team stays motivated and aligned?
• How do you handle competition?
• What are some untapped markets or niches you’re interested in?
• What’s a feedback you’ve received that transformed your business?
• How do you handle financial stress?
• What are your top three business-related books or resources?
• How do you keep up with industry trends?
• What are the ethics and sustainability practices you uphold?
• What legacy do you want to leave with your business?
• How do you handle disputes or disagreements?
• What new skills or knowledge do you want to acquire?
• How do you handle imposter syndrome?
• What partnerships have benefited your business the most?
• How do you define and measure productivity?
• Describe an idea you haven’t acted upon yet.
• How do you celebrate wins, big or small?
• What’s a customer testimonial that touched you deeply?
• How do you ensure customer satisfaction?
• How do you continue personal growth alongside business growth?
• What are the blind spots or vulnerabilities of your business?
• How do you maintain transparency with your team and stakeholders?
• What are some cultural practices or traditions in your business?
• How do you approach hiring and team building?
• Describe a time when you felt overwhelmed by your business. How did you overcome it?
• How do you incorporate feedback into your business model?
• What recent industry changes or innovations excite you?
• How do you approach diversifying your revenue streams?
• How do you handle periods of slow growth or stagnation?
• Describe a mentor’s impact on your entrepreneurial journey.
• What are some self-care routines you maintain to keep yourself energized?
• How do you handle internal conflicts within your team?
• What are your business’s CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) initiatives?
• How do you handle the pressure and expectations as a leader?
• What are your criteria for deciding to invest in new ventures or tools?
• How do you keep the vision of your business fresh and inspiring?
• What are your strategies for building brand loyalty?
• How do you approach and manage scaling?
• How do you stay grounded in the midst of success?
• Describe a challenging decision you recently made and its implications.
• How do you keep up with technology and digital advancements in your industry?
• How do you ensure that your business remains customer-centric?
• How do you approach learning from competitors without losing your uniqueness?
• What new markets or demographics are you aiming to reach?
• How do you maintain trust within your team?
• What’s a project that didn’t go as planned, and what lessons emerged from it?
• How do you gauge the pulse or mood within your company?
• Describe a time when you had to make a decision contrary to popular opinion.
• How do you approach building a company culture?
• How do you ensure your personal biases don’t interfere with business decisions?
• What are the non-negotiables in your business?
• How do you adapt to changing customer needs?
• Describe a strategy that proved more effective than you anticipated.
• How do you manage and delegate tasks you’re not an expert in?
• How do you maintain accountability to yourself and your team?
• What’s an unexpected challenge you faced this year?
• How do you approach the balance of innovation vs. sticking to what works?
• What’s a trend you foresee in your industry, and how are you preparing for it?
• How do you nurture leads and relationships?
• What are some KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) you track consistently?
• How do you incorporate inclusivity and diversity in your business?
• Describe a time when you had to say ‘no’ to an opportunity.
• How do you manage burnout, both personally and within your team?
• What kind of legacy do you hope your business creates?
• How do you manage the mental and emotional challenges of entrepreneurship?
• What are the biggest misconceptions about your industry?
• How do you adapt your marketing strategies to current trends?
• How do you ensure consistent quality in your products or services?
• What would you tell your younger self at the start of your entrepreneurial journey?
• How do you manage feedback and criticism, both internally and from customers?
• What are your strategies for expanding your reach and visibility?
• How do you integrate community involvement in your business model?
• What’s an unpopular business opinion you hold?
• Describe a time when you had to trust your gut feeling.
• How do you approach mentoring or being mentored?
• How do you balance profitability with ethical considerations?
• What’s a business dream or aspiration you haven’t shared with anyone?
• Describe a time you challenged the status quo.
• How do you approach setbacks and what mechanisms are in place to bounce back?
• Reflect on your biggest win this year. What factors led to it and how can they be replicated?

The Power of Journaling for the Business Mind

Steering a business, whether it’s a sprouting startup or an established empire, requires more than just acumen and strategy; it demands introspection, personal growth , and a deep understanding of one’s vision and values. As we’ve journeyed through these 100 journal prompts for entrepreneurs and CEOs, the overarching theme is clear: reflection is a powerful tool that, when harnessed correctly, can pave the way to profound insights and renewed motivation.

Entrepreneurs and CEOs often find themselves at the crossroads of decision-making, where the path isn’t always clear. Journaling acts as a beacon, shedding light on the nuances of challenges and opportunities alike. It fosters clarity, facilitates a deeper connection with one’s inner compass, and offers a sanctuary for thoughts and ideas to flourish without the noise of external influences .

As you turn the pages of your journal, filling them with responses, hopes , fears, and aspirations, you are also penning down the evolution of your leadership journey. It’s an intimate dance of self-discovery that holds the promise of personal and professional growth.

While the world of business is ever-evolving, with its fair share of uncertainties and surprises, grounding oneself through practices like journaling can be the anchor amidst the storm. And as you revisit these journal prompts for entrepreneurs , remember that with each prompt, you’re not just writing ; you’re conversing with the essence of your entrepreneurial spirit . Here’s to unearthing deeper insights, achieving greater clarity, and charting the path forward with confidence and conviction!

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70 Blog Writing Prompts to Inspire You Beat Writer's Block and Create Great Content (For All Bloggers & Blogging Niches)

Are you struggling to come up with an idea for your next blog post? My blog writing prompts will help you beat writer’s block and craft popular posts that are well-designed for SEO traffic from Google (and other search engines).

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Are you struggling to come up with an idea for your next blog post? Maybe you’re staring at a blank screen as you battle writers’ block—or you’re wondering about giving up blogging and digital marketing entirely. Enter: my favorite blog writing prompts to get you back on track today.

Coming up with blog ideas can be tough, even for seasoned bloggers—though I built a free blog idea generator to help with exactly that. From a more traditional standpoint, working with some creative blog writing prompts are a great way to kick things off—giving you the inspiration you need to make a start.

Whether you’re working on your 1st post or your 100th post, these writing prompts will get your creative juices flowing. I’ve split them into different categories: you can either pick prompts that suit the type of post you’re trying to write, or you can dig into specific writing prompts that relate to your blogging niche .

With these prompts & brainstorming tips in hand, you can get your creative juices flowing right now. My goal is that you’ll never struggle with writer’s block again. Add in my free AI writer tool, blog title generator , keyword research tool , paragraph rewriter , meta description generator and you’ll be blogging on fire.

70 Blog Writing Prompts to Get You Past Writer’s Block

What are blog writing prompts and how can you use them, blog writing prompts for “how to” posts, blogging prompts for listicles, writing prompts for affiliate marketing posts, blog writing prompts for inspirational posts, fun writing prompts for creative writers, finance blog writing prompts, travel blog writing prompts, parenting blog writing prompts, technology blog writing prompts, food blog writing prompts, personal development writing prompts, business blog writing prompts, health and fitness writing prompts, lifestyle blog writing prompts, beauty and fashion blog writing prompts.

Disclosure: Please note that some of the links below are affiliate links and at no additional cost to you, I’ll earn a commission. Know that I only recommend products and services I’ve personally used and stand behind. When you use one of my affiliate links, the company compensates me, which helps me run this blog and keep my in-depth content free of charge for readers (like you).

Try My Free AI-Powered Blog Idea Generator Tool

Writer’s block can be a real pain. Trust me, I know. That’s why I built this forever free blog post idea generator tool, powered by AI. In seconds, you can generate endless ideas for your next blog posts.

Blog writing prompts are a type of creative writing prompt, giving you ideas or starting points for your blog posts. Not to be confused with ChatGPT prompts for bloggers, you could view writing prompts as themes, topics, or even challenges for your blogging efforts.

There’s no “right” way to use writing prompts for bloggers. Some people like to look through lists of prompts until they find something that resonates with them. Others choose a prompt at random and start brainstorming a post to fit that prompt. You might even want to adjust or tweak prompts so that they’re a perfect fit for you and your blog. Anything goes—so long as it works to get you blogging!

Another way to make the most of writing prompts is to use ChatGPT: feed in the prompt and see what the OpenAI algorithm comes up with. ChatGPT can understand natural language so these prompts can work well there too.

25 General Blog Writing Prompts to Beat Writer’s Block for Good

Let’s start with some prompts that are tailor-made for specific types of posts. I’ve deliberately come up with prompts here that work across all sorts of different profitable blogging niches . You could also tweak these ideas a little to create shorter posts for social media platforms.

Taking a page out of my own book with guides like how to start a blog and make money , the “how to” post is a blogging classic—and it’s a great one to turn to if you’re having a hard time getting inspired. Try some of these prompts to get you going.

• Teach the reader how to do something small and self-contained. For instance, if you write a recipe blog, you might come up with a basic how-to on “How to chop onions” or even “How to preheat your oven correctly.”
• Write a how-to post that tackles a huge topic in a straightforward and helpful way, like “how to be happy” or “how to make money”.
• Do you use a piece of software or online tool that fits with your niche? Write a how-to guide on getting started with it.
• Choose a question that you frequently get asked and create a how-to post that walks readers through everything they need to know.
• Flip it around and write a “how to not ” post. That could be something practical like “how to not snore” or something more inspirational like “how to not care what people think.”

Another staple of the blogging world is the listicle or list post. This type of content is fun to write … all you need is a prompt to get you going.

• Write a list of your favorite books relating to your niche. If you have a lot  of favorites, choose a specific topic and come up with books just for that topic.
• List your best advice for beginners or newcomers in your niche. What do you wish you’d known when you got started? What lessons have you learned?
• Bring together your favorite quotes—those could be inspirational, funny, insightful, or anything that you think will resonate with your readers.
• Write a “top tips” post: come up with lots of tips that readers can put into practice, without needing to follow them all at once.
• Create a “top 10” post that lists the best 10 items of some kind: movies, people, cities, recipes, local restaurants… it’s up to you.

Affiliate marketing  is a fantastic, beginner-friendly way to make money blogging. Some types of posts are particularly good for bringing in affiliate income (if you’re a member of the right affiliate programs for bloggers ). Here are a few blogging prompts to help:

• Review a product or service that you use on a daily (or near-daily) basis. You could even include photos or a video showing how you use it.
• Round up a list of top products/services in a particular category. This is a great type of post to link to on social media.
• Create a product comparison that takes 2 or 3 popular products and compares them head to head. (This works well for SEO, as many people will search for X vs Y when looking to make a purchasing decision.)
• Keep a journal as you try out a new product or service, recording what you think of it and how your view develops. You can use this as the basis for a blog post.
• Write a case study about the results you got from a particular product or service (or interview someone else for a case study).

Some blogs just stick to informational content—but many also try to inspire their readers, offering encouragement to dream big. These blog post ideas will help you create this type of content.

• Write about your biggest challenge (related to your niche)—and how you overcame it or what you learned from it. Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable: readers like to see that you’re human, too, and that you make mistakes just like they do.
• Think about your readers who may want to give up on their goal. Write a post aimed at them, encouraging them to continue. If it suits your blogging voice, you could even write this as though you’re writing them a letter.
• Share facts and figures about how far you’ve come from where you started out. If you write about small businesses, for instance, you could share your own income figures year-on-year, so readers can see how your business grew slowly at first, then much faster.
• Choose some inspirational quotes that you find especially powerful and explain what each one means to you.
• Start a conversation or even a challenge for your readers to take part in. Encourage them to set a goal or achieve something specific.

What if your blog doesn’t have a “niche” as such? Some bloggers write purely for personal enjoyment, or for a small audience of personal friends, seeing their blogging as a form of creative nonfiction. If that’s you, try these blog post prompts.

• Choose a photo that you’ve taken and that you love. Tell the story behind the photo—the sometimes-stressful family holiday, the moment of calm and tranquility, the longtime friendship, or whatever it might be.
• Write about an unusual hobby or interest that you have. Explain it to your readers and try to convey just why it is that you enjoy it so much.
• Write a letter to your past self, at a specific age. What advice do you wish you could give to your younger self? What would you tell them to do differently? Another option is to write a letter to or from a fictional character.
• Describe a family gathering: that could be a typical Christmas or Thanksgiving, where you write about special traditions, or it could be one standout memory of a specific time, told in the form of a short story.
• List some of the things you’re most grateful for in your life currently. They could be tiny or ordinary things—but through your writing, you can show readers why they’re filled with meaning for you.

45 Blogging Prompts for Popular Blog Niches

Now that we’ve taken a look at some more general blogging prompts, let’s dig into specific prompts niche by niche. If you write in a big, popular niche , you’ll hopefully find some great prompts here to inspire you.

• Give your advice to readers at a specific age (e.g. “financial tips for your 30s” or “how to get on top of your finances in your 50s”). Alternatively, you could offer tips for a specific stage of life—e.g. “How to manage your money when you’ve just bought your first house.”
• Offer practical and encouraging tips on how to get out of debt: a huge issue for many people. You could potentially tackle this in the form of an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) guide.
• Share your advice on saving: how much should readers save? How can they save faster? What about saving for a range of different goals with different timespans?
• Write about the financial mistakes you’ve made—and how you recovered from them. Explain exactly what readers need to do to avoid those mistakes.
• Cover some common scams or dangerous practices with money, helping readers to spot red flags and keep their money safe.

If you’re feeling a little uninspired with your travel blog , these writing prompts will get you back on the go.

• Tell readers about the typical contents of your luggage—what are your “must haves” when you’re traveling? If possible, share photos, and don’t forget to use affiliate links wherever you can.
• Write about the worst trip you ever had, including plenty of humor. This is a great way to keep it real on your blog and let readers know that you, too, have had your share of vacation disasters.
• Offer tips on having a budget-friendly vacation. What are the countries or cities where readers can get the most for their money? How about clever ways to cut the costs of plane tickets or other travel?
• Pick a destination you love and share the top reasons to visit it. What are your favorite attractions, sights, restaurants, or experiences there? How can readers get the most from a trip to that place?
• Share a fun story from a recent trip. What stood out in your memory? Really paint a picture for your reader, giving them all the details so they can imagine just what it was like.

If you run a mom blog or dad blog , then these writing prompts will be right up your alley.

• Write about a “day in the life” of how things are at a particular stage of your parenting journey, sharing details about your kids’ routine, typical activities, school, and so on.
• List the things you worried about before having kids that turned out to be no big deal.
• Share advice for new parents, or parents at a new stage (e.g. child starting school) in the form of a letter.
• Talk about the best toys or other purchases you made. What stood the test of time? What still gets used or played with years later?
• Write about some of the funniest things your kids have said—or some of the strangest (but ultimately relatable) misconceptions they’ve had.
• Create a list of useful shortcuts for a popular software program, like Excel, Google Docs, or Notion.
• Make a free course or ultimate guide to a piece of software (such as WordPress) perhaps rounding up other pieces that you’ve written or linking to tutorials by other bloggers.
• Record a video or write a tutorial about a small but important use of technology. For instance, if you focus on blogging, you might explain how to create a meta description for search engines.
• Choose a technology topic that’s been in the news recently and give your take on it, like artificial intelligence or automation.
• Write about why you switched from one tool to another—this is another take on the “comparison” post but can also help readers understand your journey in your niche.

Food blogging is one of my favorite niches—here are some prompts to get you back to feeling inspired with your blogging menu.

• List a range of ways to use up a common ingredient. Pick something that readers might often have left over, or something that they may end up buying or acquiring in bulk (e.g. a glut of tomatoes from their garden).
• Write a guide to a particular vegetable: how to cook it, recipes that use it, when it’s in season, how long it lasts in the refrigerator, and so on.
• Tell readers about your favorite kitchen tool or gadget. You could even make a video that shows how you use it.
• Let readers know when it’s worth spending more for better quality ingredients … and when they’d just be wasting their money.
• Write about foods that are in season right now and share recipes or ideas for using them (this type of post is one you could do quarterly or even monthly).
• Give readers a “before” and “after” picture of your life. What’s changed in the last few years? Maybe you’ve paid off your debts, become much more productive, or significantly improved your health.
• Share your best “little” tips that make a really big difference. Think things like putting your alarm out of reach so you have  to get out of bed. What small, easy things could help your target audience to make big progress?
• Describe your typical morning routine—and explain why you include different elements. You could also add more of your personal story, detailing how your routine has changed at different stages of your life.
• Pick a popular influencer and discuss some of their social media posts. What can your readers learn from them?
• Create a tool, template, or resource to help readers with their goals, and share that in a blog post. For instance, you might make a habit tracker printable for readers to download, and use your post to discuss habits and how to use the tracker.

Whether you’re teaching about online marketing, business basics, or how to nail your follow-up game as a startup founder, these business blog writing prompts will steer you in the right direction.

• Write candidly about any business failures you’ve had. Many small businesses fail, and it’s reassuring to readers to know that failure definitely isn’t the end!
• Tackle “firsts”, like creating your first website, hiring your first employee, or running your first marketing campaign. All of these can be daunting challenges for readers: a guide explaining what to do and what to expect will really help.
• List your top business-related podcasts, audiobooks, or other resources that busy readers could enjoy listening to.
• If your company has a number of employees, consider interviewing them for the blog. Ask them about their work, what they enjoy most, and what advice they might have for your readers.
• Talk about top conferences or events that small to medium business owners could visit. Explain who each conference/event is best for and share details about what to expect and how to get the most from them.
• Write a “Beginner’s Guide” to an aspect of health and fitness—perhaps to a specific type of exercise, like running, or to a type of healthy eating program, like calorie counting, Keto, or intermittent fasting.
• Talk about your health journey, including any challenges you’ve faced. What helped you to get through difficult times?
• Write about common mistakes or misunderstandings about a particular aspect of health or fitness. What myths or half-truths do you find yourself hearing again and again from readers? How could you debunk these?
• Create a video demonstrating a particular exercise or technique, and share it with your readers. You could even include multiple short videos in one blog post.
• Share health and fitness advice for different ages or stages of life. What health advice would you give to someone in their 20s versus someone in their 60s? How about busy stay-at-home parents vs child-free adults working long hours?

Lifestyle blogging is all about building connection with your readers—and the right story ideas will help set you apart from the crowd in this packed niche.

• Tell readers about your typical day. What time do you get up? What do you eat? What do you do for work and for fun? Lifestyle blog readers are keen to get to know you and what makes you tick.
• Talk about your favorite recent purchase: what have you loved since the moment you bought it? (Don’t forget the affiliate links, and photos.)
• What self-care activities do you enjoy? Share these with your readers—again, don’t forget affiliate links, if appropriate.
• Share the books, movies, or TV shows you’ve been enjoying recently. What did you love most about them? Why would you recommend them to your readers?
• Tell readers about a fun recent day trip. Where did you go, who did you go with, and what did you do?
• Write about your favorite accessories and how you use them to style different outfits. Add photos or even a video.
• Create a simple, basic guide to a particular beauty technique, like “5 steps to flawless eyeliner”. Keep it easy and go step by step.
• Choose a particular beauty or fashion trend and tell readers your take on it. You might want to explore the history of that trend or you could just give your opinion.
• Show readers what’s in your makeup bag—or what products you never leave the house without. (This is a great post for making affiliate revenue.)
• Give readers skincare tips for different ages or different skin types (dry, oily, etc).

Get Blogging Again: Use These Writing Prompts to Inspire Your Next Post

Writers’ block is a struggle for lots of bloggers—and coming up with idea after idea, week after week, isn’t easy, even if blogging is an important part of your marketing strategy.

Hopefully, my blog writing prompts will give you the inspiration you need to get moving again, whatever your niche. You might even incorporate prompts as a regular part of your blogging workflow.

Once you’ve chosen a prompt, I’ve got plenty of help for you with writing and structuring your post. Check out my tips on writing a blog post  and my guide to creating a blog post structure that hooks readers  for everything you need to know.

Keep in mind too, that employing the right writing tools (like my AI tool suite, RightBlogger ) can help immensely in blowing past writer’s block forever.

Hi I'm Ryan Robinson

I'm a blogger, but I'm not my blog. I am not my business either. Occasional podcaster and very-much-recovering side project addict. Co-Founder at RightBlogger . Join me here, on ryrob.com to learn how to start a blog and build a purpose-connected business. Be sure to take my free blogging tools for a spin... especially my wildly popular free keyword research tool & AI article writer . They rule. Somehow, I also find time to write for publications like Fast Company , Forbes , Entrepreneur , The Next Web , Business Insider , and more. Let’s chat on Twitter (X?) and YouTube about our feelings (and business, of course).

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2 replies to “70 Blog Writing Prompts to Get You Past Writer’s Block”

very great blogging prompts for any newbie wishing to start up blogging.

I wish you will add more niches much later in the future as updates to this great article.

uzoma Ichetaonye

Great advice. I have been blogging for over a decade now. I like finding topics I know my readers will want to know more about. Sometimes I delve into a very specific topic and challenge myself to learn more about the details and nuances.

Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, 105 creative writing prompts to try out.

General Education

The most common advice out there for being a writer is, "if you want to write, write." While this is true (and good advice), it's not always that easy, particularly if you're not writing regularly.

Whether you're looking for help getting started on your next project, or just want to spend 20 minutes being creative, writing prompts are great ways to rev up your imagination. Read on for our list of over 100 creative writing prompts!

feature image credit: r. nial bradshaw /Flickr

10 Short Writing Prompts

If you're looking for a quick boost to get yourself going, these 10 short writing prompts will do the trick.

#1 : Write a scene starting with a regular family ritual that goes awry.

#2 : Describe exactly what you see/smell/hear/etc, right now. Include objects, people, and anything else in your immediate environment.

#3 : Suggest eight possible ways to get a ping pong ball out of a vertical pipe.

#4 : A shoe falls out of the sky. Justify why.

#5 : If your brain were a tangible, physical place, what would it be like?

#6 : Begin your writing with the phrase, "The stage was set."

#7 : You have been asked to write a history of "The Summer of [this past year]." Your publisher wants a table of contents. What events will you submit?

#8 : Write a sympathetic story from the point of view of the "bad guy." (Think fractured fairy tales like Wicked or The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! , although the story doesn't have to be a fairy tale.)

#9 : Look at everyday objects in a new way and write about the stories one of these objects contains.

#10 : One person meets a stranger on a mode of transportation. Write the story that ensues.

11 Writing Prompts for Kids

Any of these prompts can be used by writers of any age, but we chose the following 11 prompts as ones that would be particularly fun for kids to write about. (Most of them I used myself as a young writer, so I can vouch for their working!)

#1 : Include something falling in your writing.

#2 : Write a short poem (or story) with the title, "We don't know when it will be fixed."

#3 : Write from the perspective of someone of a different gender than you.

#4 : Write a dumb internet quiz.

#5 : Finish this thought: "A perfect day in my imagination begins like this:"

#6 : Write a character's inner monologue (what they are thinking as they go about their day).

#7 : Think of a character. Write a paragraph each about:

• An important childhood experience that character had.
• The character's living situation.
• Two hobbies or things the character likes to do.
• The room where the character sleeps.
• An ambition of the character.
• Two physical characteristics of the character.
• What happens when a second person and this character meet.
• Two important defining personal traits of this character.

#8 : Start a story with a quote from a song.

#9 : Begin a story with, "It was the summer of ______ when ______"

#10 : Pretend everyday objects have no names. Think about what you would name them based on what they do, what you can use them for, and what they look like.

#11 : Start a story with the phrases "My grandparents are/were," "My parents are/were," or "My mother/father/parent is/was."

15 Cool Writing Prompts

#1 : List five issues that you're passionate about. Write about them from the opposite point of view (or from the perspective of a character with the opposite point of view).

#2 : Walk around and write down a phrase you hear (or read). Make a story out of it.

#3 : Write using no adjectives or adverbs.

#4 : Write a character's inner dialogue between different aspects of a character's self (rather than an inner monologue).

#5 : Write a true story from your past that involves light or darkness in some way.

#6 : "Saying goodbye awakens us to the true nature of things." Write something in which someone has to say goodbye and has a realization.

#7 : Begin by writing the end of the story.

#8 : Write a recipe for an intangible thing.

#9 : Write a horror story about an ordinary situation (e.g., buying groceries, going to the bank, listening to music).

#10 : Write a story from within a bubble.

#11 : Write down 2-3 short character descriptions and then write the characters in conversation with one another.

#12 : Write a story in second person.

#13 : Write a story that keeps contradicting itself.

#14 : Write about a character with at least three big problems.

#15 : Write something that takes place on a Friday, the 13th (of any month).

15 Funny Writing Prompts

#1 : Write a story which starts with someone eating a pickle and potato sandwich.

#2 : Write a short script where the plot has to do with evil dolls trying to take over something.

#3 : Write about writers' block.

#4 : List five election issues that would be ridiculous to includes as part of your election platform (e.g. outlawing mechanical pencils and clicky pens, mandating every person over the age of 30 must own an emergency last rites kit). Choose one of the ridiculous issues and write a speech in favor of it.

#5 : Write a children's story that is insanely inappropriate but can't use graphic language, curses, or violence.

#6 : List five careers. Write about someone with one of those careers who wants to quit it.

#7 : Write down a list of murder methods. Choose one at random from the list to use in a story.

#8 : Write a romance story in which the hero must have a last name corresponding with a physical characteristic (e.g. Jacques Hairyback or Flora Dimple).

#9 : Come up with 10 different ways to:

• order a pizza
• congratulate someone on a job well done
• return to the store something that's broken

#10 : Search for "random Renaissance painting" (or any other inspirational image search text you can think of) on any online internet image search engine. Picking one image, write half a page each of:

• Statements about this image (e.g. "I meant bring me the BREAD of John the Baptist").
• Questions about this image (e.g. "How many of those cherubs look like their necks are broken?").
• Explanations of this image (e.g. "The painter ran out of blue paint halfway through and had to improvise for the color of the sky").
• Commands said by people in this image or about this image (e.g. "Stop telling me to smile!" or "Bring me some gasoline!").

#11 : Write starting with a word that sounds like "chute" (e.g. "chute," "shoot," "shooed").

#12 : Write about a character named X "The [article of clothing]" Y (e.g. Julie "The Yellow Darted Skirt" Whyte) or simply referred to by their clothing (e.g. "the man in the brown suit" or "the woman in black").

#13 : Write down a paragraph each describing two wildly different settings. Write a story involving both settings.

#14 : Think of a fictional holiday based around some natural event (e.g. the Earth being at its farthest point from the sun, in memory of a volcanic eruption, that time a cloud looked like a rabbit riding a bicycle). Write about how this holiday is celebrated.

#15 : Write a "Just-So" type story about a fictional creature (e.g. "how the dragon got its firebreath" or "how the mudkip got its cheek gills").

54 Other Writing Prompt Ideas

#1 : Borrow a character from some other form of media (or create your own). Write from that character's perspective.

#2 : Write for and against a non-consequential controversy (e.g., salt vs. pepper, Mac vs. PC, best kind of door).

#3 : Choose an ancestor or a person from the past to write about or to.

#4 : Write a pirate story with a twist.

#5 : Have a character talk about another character and their feelings about that other character.

#6 : Pick a season and think about an event in your life that occurred in that season. Write a creative nonfiction piece about that event and that season.

#7 : Think of something very complicated and long. Write a page about it using short sentences.

#8 : Write a story as a dream.

#9 : Describe around a food without ever directly naming it.

#10 : Write a monologue (one character, talking to the audience/reader) (*not* an inner monologue).

#11 : Begin a story with the phrase, "It only took five seconds to..."

#12 : List five strong emotions. Choosing one, write about a character experiencing that emotion, but only use the character's actions to convey how they are feeling (no outright statements).

#13 : Write a chapter of the memoir of your life.

#14 : Look through the (physical) things you're currently carrying with you or wearing. Write about the memories or emotions tied with each of them.

#15 : Go be in nature. Write drawing your story from your surroundings (both physical, social, and mental/emotional).

#16 : Write from the perspective of a bubble (or bubble-like creature).

#17 : A person is jogging along an asphalt road. Write a story.

#18 : Title your story (or poem, or play, etc) "Anti-_____". Fill in the blank and write the story.

#19 : Write something that must include an animal, a mineral, and a vegetable.

#20 : Begin your writing with the phrase, "6 weeks later..."

#21 : List 5-10 office jobs. Pick one of them and describe a person working in that job as if you were a commentator on an Olympic sporting event.

#22 : Practice your poetic imagery: overwrite a description of a character's breakfast routine.

#23 : Write about a character (or group of characters) trying to convince another character to try something they're scared of.

#24 : Keep an eye out in your environment for examples of greengrocer's apostrophes and rogue quotation marks. Pick an example and write about what the misplaced punctuation implies (e.g., we have the "best" meat or we have the best "meat" ).

#25 : Fill in the blank with the first word that comes to mind: "_______ Riot!" Write a newspaper-style article describing the events that that took place.

#26 : Write from the point of view of your most-loved possession. What does it think of you?

#27 : Think of five common sayings (e.g., "An apple a day keeps the doctor away"). Write a horror story whose plot is one of those common sayings.

#28 : Write a scene in which two characters are finally hashing out a long-standing misunderstanding or disagreement.

#29 : You start receiving text messages from an unknown number. Tell the story of what happens next.

#30 : Write one character bragging to another about the story behind their new tattoo.

#31 : Superheroes save the world...but they also leave a lot of destruction in their wake. Write about a normal person in a superhero's world.

#32 : Sometimes, family is who we are related to; sometimes, family is a group of people we gather around ourselves. Write a story about (some of) a character's found family and relatives meeting for the first time.

#33 : Write a story that begins in the middle of the plot's action ( en media res ).

#34 : Everyone says you can never have too much of a good thing. Write a story where that isn't true.

#35 : What do ghosts do when they're not creating mischief? Write about the secret lives of ghosts.

#36 : Every year, you dread the last week of April. Write a story about why.

#37 : Write a story about what it would be like to have an animal sidekick in real life.

#38 : Heists don't just have to be black-clad thieves stealing into vaults to steal rare art or money. Write about a group of people (adults or children) who commit a heist for something of seemingly little monetary value.

#39 : "Life is like a chooseable-path adventure, except you don't get to see what would have happened if you chose differently." Think of a choice you've made and write about a world where you made a different choice.

#40 : Write a story about a secret room.

#41 : You find a message in a bottle with very specific directions. Write a story about the adventure you embark upon.

#42 : "You'll always be okay as long as you know where your _______ is." Fill in the blank and write a story (either fictional or from your life) illustrating this statement.

#43 : Forcing people into prolonged proximity can change and deepen relationships. Write about characters on a road trip together.

#44 : In music, sonata form includes three main parts: exposition, development, and recapitulation. Write a short story that follows this format.

#45 : Begin writing with a character saying, "I'm afraid this simply can't wait."

#46 : Write a story with a happy ending (either happily-ever-after or happy-for-now).

#47 : Write about a character before and after a tragedy in that character's life.

#48 : Choose an object or concept you encounter in everyday life (e.g. tables, the feeling of hot or cold, oxygen) and write an infomercial about it.

#49 : "Life is a series of quests, whether important or mundane." Write about a quest you've gone on (or would like to go on, or will have to go on).

#50 : List 10 different ways to learn. Choose one (or more) and write a story where a character learns something using that one (or more) method.

#51 : You've been called to the principal's office for bad behavior. You know what you did. Explain and justify yourself.

#52 : A character discovers their sibling owns a cursed object. Write about what happens next.

#53 : Write a character description by writing a list of items that would be on a scavenger hunt about them.

#54 : The slogan for a product or service you're advertising is, "Kid-tested, _____." Fill in the blank and write the copy for a radio or podcast advertisement for your product.

How to Use Creative Writing Prompts

There's no wrong way to use a creative writing prompt (unless it's to harass and hurt someone)—the point of them is to get you writing and your imagination flowing.

To help you get the most out of these writing prompts, however, we've come up with the six tips below. Try them out!

#1: DON'T Limit Yourself to Prose

Unless you're writing for a particular assignment, there's no reason everything you write in response to a writing prompt has to be prose fiction . Instead of writing your response to a prompt as a story, try writing a poem, nonfiction essay, play, screenplay, or some other format entirely.

#2: DON'T Edit as You Write

The purposes of writing prompts is to get you writing, typos and weird grammar and all. Editing comes later, once you've finished writing and have some space from it to come back to what you wrote.

It's OK to fix things that will make it difficult to read what you've written (e.g., a weird autocorrect that changes the meaning of a sentence), but don't worry too much about typos or perfect grammar when you're writing; those are easy enough to fix in edits . You also can always insert asterisks or a short note as you're writing to remind yourself to go back to fix something (for instance, if as you're writing it seems like you want to move around the order of your paragraphs or insert something earlier).

#3: DO Interpret the Prompt Broadly

The point of using a writing prompt is not to write something that best exemplifies the prompt, but something that sparks your own creativity. Again, unless you're writing in response to an assignment with specific directions, feel free to interpret writing prompts as broadly or as narrowly as you want.

For instance, if your prompt is to write a story that begins with "The stage was set," you could write about anything from someone preparing to put a plan into motion to a literal theatre stage constructed out of pieces of old sets (or something else entirely).

If you're using a writing prompt, it doesn't have to be the first sentence of your story or poem, either; you can also use the prompt as a goal to work towards in your writing.

#4: DO Try Switching Up Your Writing Methods

If it's a possibility for you, see if you write differently in different media. Do you write the same kind of stories by hand as you would typing at a computer? What about if you dictate a story and then transcribe it? Or text it to a friend? Varying the method you use to write can affect the stories you're able to tell.

For example, you may find that it's easier for you to tell stories about your life to a voice recorder than to try to write out a personal essay. Or maybe you have trouble writing poetry, but can easily text yourself or a friend a poem. You might even find you like a writing method you've not tried before better than what you've been doing!

#5: DO Mix and Match Prompt Ideas

If you need more inspiration, feel free to combine multiple prompts (but don't overwhelm yourself with too much to write about).

You can also try switching genres from what might be suggested in the prompt. For instance, try writing a prompt that seems funny in a serious and sad way, or finding the humor in something that otherwise seems humorless. The categories we've organized the prompts into are by no means limiters on what you're allowed to write about.

#6: DO Try to Write Regularly

The more regularly you write, the easier it will be to write (with or without writing prompts).

For some people, this means writing daily; for others, it means setting aside time to write each weekend or each month. Set yourself an achievable goal (write 2x a week, write 1000 words a month) and stick to it. You can always start small and then ramp your wordcount or frequency up.

If you do better when you have something outside yourself prompting to write, you may also want to try something like morning pages , which encourages you to write at least 750 words every day, in any format (story, diary entry, social media postings, etc).

What's Next?

Thinking about attending college or grad school for creative writing? Our articles on whether or not you should major in creative writing and the best creative writing programs are there for you! Plus, if you're a high schooler, you should check out these top writing contests .

Creative writing doesn't necessarily have to be fiction. Check out these three examples of narrative writing and our tips for how to write your own narrative stories and essays .

Just as writing prompts can help give form to amorphous creative energy, using specific writing structures or devices can be great starting points for your next story. Read through our discussion of the top 20 poetic devices to know and see if you can work at least one new one into your next writing session.

Still looking for more writing ideas? Try repurposing our 100+ easy drawing ideas for characters, settings, or plot points in your writing.

Laura graduated magna cum laude from Wellesley College with a BA in Music and Psychology, and earned a Master's degree in Composition from the Longy School of Music of Bard College. She scored 99 percentile scores on the SAT and GRE and loves advising students on how to excel in high school.

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61 Blog Writing Prompts for your Next Business Blog Post

Aaron Agius

Share article.

You’re on board the content train. You’ve got profiles on the hottest social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter), and a beautifully designed and optimized website . You provide a steady flow of various types of content including case studies, infographics, whitepapers, articles, interviews, videos…

And blog posts. Sometimes those content campaigns fail , and sometimes they succeed, but you keep at it because you know it’s a long game.

A quality blog is the keystone for most strategies. That’s part of the problem. It’s a long game. You need plenty of ideas and topics to write about if you want to keep the content creature fed. It can be exhausting and frustrating.

From CMI’s annual report for 2017 on B2B and B2C content marketing:

• 89% (with 52% of non-users planning to start in the next 12 months) of B2B marketers and 86% (51% of the non-users plan to begin) of B2C marketers are currently using content marketing.
• 75% of B2C marketers use blogs as part of their average seven tactics, and over half of them (51%) believe blogs to be most important to their success.
• 80% of B2B marketers use blogs as part of their average eight tactics, and 52% of them believe blogs to be most important to their marketing success.
• Top goals (in order) include brand awareness, engagement, and lead generation for B2C, and lead generation, brand awareness, and engagement for B2B…all of which are directly influenced by a consistent, well crafted blog.

Eventually, the well goes dry for everyone. The ideas simply aren’t bubbling up to the surface like they used to, and you’re stuck staring at a blank computer screen. All the while, that damn blinking cursor is mocking you.

But fear not. I’m here to help. A simple writing prompt can be your ticket back to business blog bliss.

Here are 61 to guide you home.

• What is your most inspiring customer success story? How did your product/service impact them?
• Write about the events leading up to and the moment you decided to launch your business/website/product.
• What is your biggest regret as relates to your business? If you could go back and do one thing differently, what would it be?
• Write a behind-the-scenes post about your typical day. Write other posts about a day in the life of your business partner, or your sales team, or your programmer, or whomever else makes your business run smoothly.
• Describe the evolution of your product or service. What was the inspiration? How has it evolved since the early days?
• What’s the biggest controversy in your industry these days? Reflect and present your opinion on the issue.
• Who is or was your business mentor? What lessons did you learn from them? What advice sticks out the most?
• Roundup links to your favorite posts on topic X. Briefly comment on each one.
• What books do you think should be on every business owner’s bookshelf? Why?
• What’s the worst mistake you’ve made with your business? What biases or misinformation led to it?
• Become a fortune teller. What predictions do you have for your industry? How are you working to keep up?
• What Twitter profiles do you think every entrepreneur should follow? Why?
• What blogs do you think every entrepreneur should read? Why?
• Discuss your marketing strategy. What tactics, channels, and tools do you employ? What are the pros and cons of each?
• Write about the business tools you use every day. What 3, or 4, or 5, or 10 could you not live without?
• Reflect on the biggest problem or struggle that your business has faced. How did you overcome it?
• Interview an expert in your industry or niche.
• What are your top business priorities for the next 12 months?
• Do a weekly link roundup of the most popular posts in your industry (use a tool like Buzzsumo to help).
• Share and comment on an excerpt from your latest whitepaper, ebook, or case study. Invite readers to download the full version.
• Ruminate on your experience at a recent conference or industry event. What did you do? What takeaways did you leave with?
• Conduct a simple poll on Twitter or a more complex survey using SurveyMonkey and present the findings to your readers.
• Present key findings from recent research in your industry. Do you agree or disagree with them? What’s your take?
• What are the common misconceptions about you, your brand, your niche, or your industry?
• Write a Top One List. Top Ten lists are very popular, but opt instead to create a post that presents only ONE idea, tool, or suggestion in detail.
• Share an epiphany you’ve had about either your personal or professional life.
• Create an “example post” such as 6 Brands Killing It On Social Media , or How 10 Industries Are Using Big Data to Win Big .
• What causes or issues are important to you and your business? Write a passionate plea for others to get involved and care.
• Craft a user-friendly how-to guide for something your readers have trouble with or don’t always understand.
• Write a “stop post” like How to Stop Worrying , or 12 Ways to Stop Wasting Time in Meetings . (Readers love these posts because we’re all looking for ways to stop bad habits)
• Do you have a brand name and/or logo? Write about the story behind its creation.
• Answer a question you frequently get from your readers, fans, followers, and customers.
• What’s your unique selling proposition ? What’s makes you and your brand better than the competition? Write about it.
• Launching a new product or service? Give a sneak peek and reveal a bit about its development and your goals for it.
• Check your analytics solution to see what keywords and queries are bringing people to your website. Write a post about those that you haven’t yet targeted (or aren’t targeting enough).
• How do you maintain your work/life balance?
• Reflect on the beginning of your business. At what point did you know that you’d “made it”? How did it impact how you conducted business moving forward?
• What fascinates you about your industry? What appealed to you most about it when you were deciding what to do with your life?
• Interview a long-time customer.
• Argue against a commonly held belief or industry truism.
• Write a series. Create a series of explainer posts about your area(s) of expertise (Google Analytics, sales in the modern world, digital marketing, or whatever). Not only does this fill several spots on your content calendar, but it’s a great way to get subscribers who don’t want to miss the next installment.
• Do you have any exciting company news to share, such as new hires, milestones, partnerships, acquisitions, anniversaries, awards, or locations?
• Highlight some of your charitable work, donations, or sponsorship.
• Discuss your business eco-friendly initiatives and plans for reducing your environmental impact.
• What are some of the unusual and less common ways people use your products/services?
• Are they any insider tips and tricks you can share so your customers can get more out of your product(s)?
• What’s the one thing you wish people knew about you, your business, or your products/services?
• Interview an employee.
• Reveal an industry secret. This does not mean give away your secret recipe for finger lickin’ good chicken, but is there something that no one outside your industry knows that people might find interesting, intriguing, unusual, fascinating, adorable, or even shocking?
• What’s the one thing you already know that your target audience should know? Write a post about that.
• Share a few of your favorite quotes and connect them to you and your business.
• Write a “template post” such as X Ways to [Overcome a Problem] , or What X Means for [the customer, your business, the industry] , or This Simple Tweak Helped Me X , or What is X, Anyway? , or The Truth About X , or What You Need To Know If You’re About to X .
• What business advice didn’t work for you?
• Write your business manifesto .
• What’s the one thing you hate most about your job, business, or industry?
• Where do you see your brand in five years? Ten years? Twenty years?
• If you weren’t in your current job or industry, what would you be doing instead? Why?
• What would you like to improve about yourself or your business?
• What advice would you give to someone looking to start a career in your industry or niche? Or what advice would you give to your younger self?
• Write a review of a product or service (but not necessarily one that’s in direct competition with you and yours) that your readers would probably find useful.
• What are your top productivity tips, tools, and tricks?

Let’s stop there. That’s a solid two month’s worth of prompts to get the creative juices flowing, and you can always google more prompts and ideas later. Or download Problogger’s colossal six months of post ideas templates.

Business blogging is a major commitment. You don’t want to start all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed only to give up a few months from now when it starts getting a bit harder. Go in with your eyes open : it’s not easy, it’s not fast, but it is absolutely worth it.

Get blogging. No more excuses. Your customers – and your bottom line – will thank you.

Any powerful prompts you’d add to the list?

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Writing Prompts

Table of Contents

It’s normal for writers of all levels to occasionally feel writer’s block. Sometimes we simply lack inspiration and our thoughts are just not turning into words.

Writing prompts are a great tool to tackle that mental and creative hurdle. They’re also great with helping you make writing a habit.

What is a Writing Prompt ?

By definition, a prompt is a brief text that provides you with a topic around which you can build your ideas. Prompts take many forms: a short phrase, a paragraph, a picture, or even a single word. They can help you develop your original idea or inspire you with a completely new topic . D o not be afraid of challenging yourself and your writing style on any possible occasion – your written work will benefit in the long run.

Examples of Writing Prompts

Check out these 20 writing prompts and use them to kickstart your imagination. As you pick one, do not worry about what ideas come to your mind or whether what you have written is “good”. The purpose is to just get into the habit of writing. You can always polish it later on if you want.

• It was the first cold day of the year.
• He had not seen her since High School graduation.
• The city burned, fire and smoke filling the air.
• She studied her face in the mirror.
• The smell of freshly cut flowers.
• She came back every year to lay flowers at the feet of the statue.
• The streets were empty. Where had everyone disappeared?
• This time her co-worker had gone too far.
• Stars blazed in the night sky.
• He woke to birdsong.
• ‘Shh! Hear that?’ ‘I didn’t hear anything.’
• He had always loved public speaking.
• She woke, sweating, in the dark of the night.
• The garden was overgrown now.
• He had never noticed a door there before.
• She would have to ask for a ride back.
• ‘I told him not to come back!’
• His feet were already numb. He should have listened.

Targeted Writing Prompts

Now you that have a clear idea of what basic prompts may look like, we can begin to discuss the importance and benefit of using targeted writing prompts . Targeted prompts are those which aim your short story or novel in a targeted direction, whether that be around a theme, genre, or perspective . 

Targeting your prompts can hone your writing skills to fit different genres . Additionally, many writers find that using different genres of prompts can kickstart their short story ideas and break away any existing writer’s block .

Let’s take a look at what some more targeted creative writing prompts may look like, specifically separating prompts by use or genre.

Fantasy Writing 

• A wishing well becomes a portal to a mysterious place. 
• You are able to make a new wish every single day . 
• Tired of your fantasy world , you seek a more monotonous planet . 

Sci-Fi Writing 

• After looking into a telescope, you see a group of new planets that look strangely like Earth. 
• An astronaut wakes up on a desert island , unsure of what planet who truly is on. 
• Video games were never supposed to be this real. 

Romance Writing 

• two lovers come together in a new time period . 
• an old friend appears at your front door . 
• You find an old letter hidden within a pen . 

​Old poems seem to be hiding a secret message.

Horror Stories

• Everybody else is wasting their time with their useless hobbies. You prefer a more meaningful skill: murder. 
• After waking up in an unfamiliar  backyard , you begin to question if you are a human or  alien . 
• Gaining a  magical power  wasn’t at good asit seemed. 
• Nobody knew that a simple  journal entry  would unleash the  monster . 
• A  horror  writer seeks to create a  new genre  of literature; one they will regret forever. 

Other Related Resources

You can find numerous sources of writing prompts online. Below are a few sites that provide them:

• ServiceScape Writing Prompt Generator
• 200+ Writing Prompts to Inspire You

How To Make Your Own Writing Prompts

You can find inspiration for writing prompts on your own as well: snatches of overheard conversation, headlines, signs, words picked from a book can give you inspiration for your work. Always keep an eye out for words and phrases that fire your imagination, jot them down, and use them to spark your creativity . They may take you to some fantastic places.

Points of View in Writing

Using Analogies in Writing

Tone and Voice in Writing

Transitional Words and Phrases

• Frequently Asked

When Should You Spell Out Numbers?

“Vs” Versus “Vs.” Versus “V.”

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ThinkWritten

365 Creative Writing Prompts

Here are 365 Creative Writing Prompts to help inspire you to write every single day! Use them for journaling, story starters, poetry, and more!

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If you want to become a better writer, the best thing you can do is practice writing every single day. Writing prompts are useful because we know sometimes it can be hard to think of what to write about!

To help you brainstorm, we put together this list of 365 creative writing prompts to give you something to write about daily.

Want to Download these prompts?  I am super excited to announce due to popular demand we now have an ad-free printable version of this list of writing prompts available for just $5. The  printable version  includes a PDF as a list AND print-ready prompt cards. {And all the design source files you could ever need to customize any way you would like!}

Here are 365 Creative Writing Prompts to Inspire:

Whether you write short stories, poems, or like to keep a journal – these will stretch your imagination and give you some ideas for topics to write about!

1. Outside the Window : What’s the weather outside your window doing right now? If that’s not inspiring, what’s the weather like somewhere you wish you could be?

2. The Unrequited love poem: How do you feel when you love someone who does not love you back?

3. The Vessel: Write about a ship or other vehicle that can take you somewhere different from where you are now.

4. Dancing: Who’s dancing and why are they tapping those toes?

5. Food: What’s for breakfast? Dinner? Lunch? Or maybe you could write a poem about that time you met a friend at a cafe.

6. Eye Contact: Write about two people seeing each other for the first time.

7. The Rocket-ship: Write about a rocket-ship on its way to the moon or a distant galaxy far, far, away.

8. Dream-catcher : Write something inspired by a recent dream you had.

9. Animals: Choose an animal. Write about it!

10. Friendship: Write about being friends with someone.

11. Dragon : Envision a dragon. Do you battle him? Or is the dragon friendly? Use descriptive language.

12. Greeting : Write a story or poem that starts with the word “hello” or another greeting.

13. The Letter: Write a poem or story using words from a famous letter or inspired by a letter someone sent you.

14. The Found Poem : Read a book and circle some words on a page. Use those words to craft a poem. Alternatively, you can cut out words and phrases from magazines.

15. Eavesdropper : Create a poem, short story, or journal entry about a conversation you’ve overheard.

16. Addict: Everyone’s addicted to something in some shape or form. What are things you can’t go without?

17. Dictionary Definition : Open up a dictionary to a random word. Define what that word means to you.

18. Cleaning: Hey, even writers and creative artists have to do housework sometimes. Write about doing laundry, dishes, and other cleaning activities.

19. Great Minds: Write  about someone you admire and you thought to have had a beautiful mind.

20. Missed Connections: If you go to Craigslist, there is a “Missed Connections” section where you can find some interesting storylines to inspire your writing.

21. Foreclosure : Write a poem or short story about someone who has lost or is about to lose their home.

22. Smoke, Fog, and Haze: Write about not being able to see ahead of you.

23. Sugar: Write something so sweet, it makes your teeth hurt.

24. Numbers:  Write a poem or journal entry about numbers that have special meaning to you.

25. Dread: Write about doing something you don’t want to do.

26. Fear: What scares you a little? What do you feel when scared? How do you react?

27. Closed Doors: What’s behind the door? Why is it closed?

28. Shadow: Imagine you are someone’s shadow for a day.

29. Good Vibes: What makes you smile? What makes you happy?

30. Shopping:  Write about your shopping wishlist and how you like to spend money.

31. The Professor: Write about a teacher that has influenced you.

32. Rewrite : Take any poem or short story you enjoy. Rewrite it in your own words.

33. Jewelry: Write about a piece of jewelry. Who does it belong to?

34. Sounds : Sit outside for about an hour. Write down the sounds you hear.

35. War and Peace: Write about a recent conflict that you dealt with in your life.

36. Frame It: Write a poem or some phrases that would make for good wall art in your home.

37. Puzzle: Write about putting together the pieces of puzzles.

38. Fire-starters: Write about building a fire.

39. Coffee & Tea: Surely you drink one or the other or know someone who does- write about it!

40. Car Keys: Write about someone getting their driver’s license for the first time.

41. What You Don’t Know: Write about a secret you’ve kept from someone else or how you feel when you know someone is keeping a secret from you.

42. Warehouse : Write about being inside an old abandoned warehouse.

43. The Sound of Silence: Write about staying quiet when you feel like shouting.

44. Insult: Write about being insulted. How do you feel? Why do you think the other person insulted you?

45. Mirror, Mirror: What if you mirror started talking to you? What might the mirror say?

46. Dirty: Write a poem about getting covered in mud.

47. Light Switch : Write about coming out of the dark and seeing the light.

48. The Stars : Take inspiration from a night sky. Or, write about a time when “the stars aligned” in your horoscope.

49. Joke Poem : What did the wall say to the other wall? Meet you at the corner! Write something inspired by a favorite joke.

50. Just Say No : Write about the power you felt when you told someone no.

51: Sunrise/Sunset : The sun comes up, the sun goes down. It goes round and round. Write something inspiring about the sunrise or sunset.

52. Memory Lane : What does Memory Lane look like? How do you get there?

53. Tear-Jerker : Watch a movie that makes you cry. Write about that scene in the movie.

54. Dear Diary: Write a poem or short story about a diary entry you’ve read or imagined.

55. Holding Hands : The first time you held someone’s hand.

56. Photograph : Write a story or journal entry influenced by a photograph you see online or in a magazine.

57. Alarm Clock: Write about waking up.

58. Darkness: Write a poem or journal entry inspired by what you can’t see.

59. Refreshed: Write a poem about a time you really felt refreshed and renewed. Maybe it was a dip into a pool on a hot summer day, a drink of lemonade, or other situation that helped you relax and start again.

60. Handle With Care : Write about a very fragile or delicate object.

61. Drama: Write about a time when you got stuck in between two parties fighting with each other.

62. Slip Up: Write about making mistakes.

63. Spice: Write about flavors and tastes or a favorite spice of yours.

64. Sing a New Song: Take a popular song off the radio and rewrite it as a poem in your own words.

65. Telephone: Write about a phone call you recently received.

66. Name: Write a poem or short story using your name in some way or form.

67. Dollhouse: Write a poem or short story from the viewpoint of someone living in a doll house.

68. Random Wikipedia Article : Go to Wikipedia and click on Random Article . Write about whatever the page you get.

69. Silly Sports: Write about an extreme or silly sport. If none inspire you, make up the rules for your own game.

70. Recipe : Write about a recipe for something abstract, such as a feeling.

71. Famous Artwork: Choose a famous painting and write about it.

72. Where That Place Used to Be : Think of a place you went to when you were younger but it now no longer there or is something else. Capture your feelings about this in your writing.

73. Last Person You Talked to: Write a quick little poem or story about the last person you spoke with.

74. Caught Red-Handed: Write about being caught doing something embarrassing.

75. Interview: Write a list of questions you have for someone you would like to interview, real or fictional.

76. Missing You: Write about someone you miss dearly.

77. Geography: Pick a state or country you’ve never visited. Write about why you would or would not like to visit that place.

78. Random Song: Turn on the radio, use the shuffle feature on your music collection or your favorite streaming music service. Write something inspired by the first song you hear.

79. Hero: Write a tribute to someone you regard as a hero.

80. Ode to Strangers: Go people watching and write an ode to a stranger you see on the street.

81. Advertisement: Advertisements are everywhere, aren’t they? Write using the slogan or line from an ad.

82. Book Inspired: Think of your favorite book. Now write a poem that sums up the entire story in 10 lines.

83. Magic : Imagine you have a touch of magic, and can make impossible things happen. What would you do?

84. Fanciest Pen: Get out your favorite pen, pencils, or even colored markers and write using them!

85. A Day in the Life: Write about your daily habits and routine.

86. Your Muse: Write about your muse – what do they look like? What does your muse do to inspire you?

87. Convenience Store : Write about an experience you’ve had at a gas station or convenience store.

88. Natural Wonders of the World: Choose one of the natural wonders of the world. Write about it.

89. Status Update: Write a poem using the words from your latest status update or a friend’s status update. If you don’t use sites like Facebook or Twitter, you can often search online for some funny ones to use as inspiration.

90. Green Thumb: Write about growing something.

91. Family Heirloom: Write about an object that’s been passed through the generations in your family.

92. Bug Catcher: Write about insects.

93. Potion: Write about a magic potion. What is it made of? What does it do? What is the antidote?

94. Swinging & Sliding: Write something inspired by a playground or treehouse.

95. Adjectives: Make a list of the first 5 adjectives that pop into your head. Use these 5 words in your story, poem, or journal entry.

96. Fairy Tales: Rewrite a fairy tale. Give it a new ending or make it modern or write as a poem.

97. Whispers: Write about someone who has to whisper a secret to someone else.

98. Smile: Write a poem about the things that make you smile.

99. Seasonal: Write about your favorite season.

100.  Normal: What does normal mean to you? Is it good or bad to be normal?

101. Recycle : Take something you’ve written in the past and rewrite it into a completely different piece.

102. Wardrobe: Write about a fashion model or what’s currently in your closet or drawers.

103. Secret Message : Write something with a secret message hidden in between the words. For example, you could make an acrostic poem using the last letters of the word or use secret code words in the poem.

104. Vacation: Write about a vacation you took.

105. Heat: Write about being overheated and sweltering.

106. Spellbinding: Write a magic spell.

107. Collection : Write about collecting something, such as salt shakers, sea shells, or stamps.

108. Taking Chances: Everyone takes a risk at some point in their life. Write about a time when you took a chance and what the result was.

109. Carnival: Write a poem or story or journal entry inspired by a carnival or street fair.

110. Country Mouse: Write about someone who grew up in the country visiting the city for the first time.

111: Questions: Write about questions you have for the universe. Optional: include an answer key.

112. Rushing: Write about moving quickly and doing things fast.

113. Staircase : Use a photo of a staircase or the stairs in your home or a building you love to inspire you.

114. Neighbors: Make up a story or poem about your next door neighbor.

115. Black and Blue: Write about a time you’ve been physically hurt.

116. All Saints: Choose a saint and create a poem about his or her life.

117. Beach Inspired: What’s not to write about the beach?

118. Shoes: What kind of shoes do you wear? Where do they lead your feet?

119. The Ex: Write a poem to someone who is estranged from you.

120. My Point of View: Write in the first person point of view.

121. Stray Animal: Think of the life of a stray cat or dog and write about that.

122. Stop and Stare : Create a poem or story about something you could watch forever.

123. Your Bed: Describe where you sleep each night.

124. Fireworks : Do they inspire you or do you not like the noise and commotion? Write about it.

125. Frozen: Write about a moment in your life you wish you could freeze and preserve.

126. Alone : Do you like to be alone or do you like having company?

127. Know-it-all: Write about something you are very knowledgeable about, for example a favorite hobby or passion of yours.

128. The Promise: Write about a promise you’ve made to someone. Did you keep that promise?

129. Commotion: Write about being overstimulated by a lot of chaos.

130. Read the News Today : Construct a poem or story using a news headline for your first line.

131. Macro: Write a description of an object close-up.

132. Transportation : Write about taking your favorite (or least-favorite) form of transportation.

133. Gadgets: If you could invent a gadget, what would it do? Are there any gadgets that make your life easier?

134: Bring on the Cheese: Write a tacky love poem that is so cheesy, it belongs on top of a pizza.

135. Ladders: Write a story or poem that uses ladders as a symbol.

136. Bizarre Holiday : There is a bizarre holiday for any date! Look up a holiday for today’s date and create a poem in greeting card fashion or write a short story about the holiday to celebrate.

137. Blog-o-sphere : Visit your favorite blog or your feedreader and craft a story, journal entry, or poem based on the latest blog post you read.

138. Mailbox: Create a poem, short story, or journal entry based on a recent item of mail you’ve received.

139. Sharing : Write about sharing something with someone else.

140. Cactus: Write from the viewpoint of a cactus. What’s it like to live in the desert or have a prickly personality?

141. It’s a Sign : Have you seen any interesting road signs lately?

142. Furniture: Write about a piece of furniture in your home.

143. Failure: Write about a time you failed at something. Did you try again or give up completely?

144. Mystical Creatures: Angels or other mystical creatures – use them as inspiration.

145. Flying: Write about having wings and what you would do.

146. Clear and Transparent: Write a poem about being able to see-through something.

147. Break the Silence : Record yourself speaking, then write down what you spoke and revise into a short story or poem.

148. Beat: Listen to music with a strong rhythm or listen to drum loops. Write something that goes along with the beat you feel and hear.

149. Color Palette: Search online for color palettes and be inspired to write by one you resonate with.

150. Magazine: Randomly flip to a page in a magazine and write using the first few words you see as an opening line.

151. The Grass is Greener : Write about switching the place with someone or going to where it seems the “grass is greener”.

152. Mind & Body: Write something that would motivate others to workout and exercise.

153. Shaping Up : Write something that makes a shape on the page…ie: a circle, a heart, a square, etc.

154. Twenty-One: Write about your 21st birthday.

155. Aromatherapy: Write about scents you just absolutely love.

156. Swish, Buzz, Pop : Create a poem that uses Onomatopoeia .

157. What Time is It? Write about the time of day it is right now. What are people doing? What do you usually do at this time each day?

158. Party Animal: Have you ever gone to a party you didn’t want to leave? Or do you hate parties? Write about it!

159: Miss Manners : Use the words “please” and “thank you” in your writing.

160. Cliche: Choose a common cliche, then write something that says the same thing but without using the catch phrase.

161. Eco-friendly : Write about going green or an environmental concern you have.

162. Missing You: Write about someone you miss.

163. Set it Free: Think of a time when you had to let someone or something go to be free…did they come back?

164: Left Out : Write about a time when you’ve felt left out or you’ve noticed someone else feeling as if they didn’t belong.

165. Suitcase: Write about packing for a trip or unpacking from when you arrive home.

166. Fantasy : Write about fairies, gnomes, elves, or other mythical creatures.

167. Give and Receive : Write about giving and receiving.

168. Baker’s Dozen: Imagine the scents and sights of a bakery and write.

169. Treehouse: Write about your own secret treehouse hideaway.

170.  Risk: Write about taking a gamble on something.

171. Acrostic : Choose a word and write an acrostic poem where every line starts with a letter from the word.

172. Crossword Puzzle: Open up the newspaper or find a crossword puzzle online and choose one of the clues to use as inspiration for your writing.

173. Silver Lining : Write about the good that happens in a bad situation.

174. Gloves: Write about a pair of gloves – what kind of gloves are they? Who wears them and why?

175. All that Glitters: Write about a shiny object.

176. Jealousy: Write with a theme of envy and jealousy.

Want to Download these prompts?  I am super excited to announce due to popular demand we now have an ad-free printable version of this list of writing prompts available for just $5. The  printable version  includes a PDF as a list AND print-ready prompt cards. {And all the design source files you could ever need to customize any way you would like!}

177. How Does Your Garden Grow? Write about a flower that grows in an unusual place.

178. Jury Duty : Write a short story or poem that takes place in a courtroom.

179. Gifts: Write about a gift you have given or received.

180. Running: Write about running away from someone or something.

181. Discovery: Think of something you’ve recently discovered and use it as inspiration.

182. Complain:  Write about your complaints about something.

183. Gratitude: Write a poem or journal entry that is all about things you are thankful for.

184. Chemistry: Choose an element and write a poem or story that uses that word in one of the lines.

185. Applause: Write about giving someone a standing ovation.

186. Old Endings Into New Beginnings:  Take an old poem, story, or journal entry of yours and use the last line and make it the first line of your writing today.

187. Longing: Write  about something you very much want to do.

188. I Am: Write a motivational poem or journal entry about positive traits that make you who you are.

189. Rainbow : What is at the end of a rainbow? Or, take a cue from Kermit the Frog, and ask yourself, why are there so many songs about rainbows?

190. Museum: Take some time to visit a nearby museum with your journal. Write about one of the pieces that speaks to you.

191. Cartoon: Think of your favorite cartoon or comic. Write a poem or story that takes place in that setting.

192. Copycat: Borrow a line from a famous public domain poem to craft your own.

193. From the Roof-tops:  Imagine you could stand on a rooftop and broadcast a message to everyone below – what would you say?

194. Time Travel: If there was a time period you could visit for a day, where would you go? Write about traveling back in time to that day.

195. Changing Places: Imagine living the day as someone else.

196. Neighborhood: Write about your favorite place in your neighborhood to visit and hang out at.

197. Pirates: Write about a pirate ship.

198. Interview : Write based on a recent interview you’ve read or seen on TV or heard on the radio.

199.  Hiding Spaces : Write about places you like to hide things at. What was a favorite hiding spot for you as a child playing hide-and-seek?

200. Extreme Makeover: Imagine how life might be different if you could change your hair color or clothing into something completely opposite from your current style.

201. Empathy: Write about your feelings of empathy or compassion for another person.

202. Opposites: Write a poem or story that ties in together two opposites.

203. Boredom: Write about being bored or make a list of different ways to entertain yourself.

204. Strength : Think of a time when you’ve been physically or emotionally strong and use that as inspiration.

205. Hunger: Write from the perspective of someone with no money to buy food.

206. Greed: Write about someone who always wants more – whether it be money, power, etc. etc.

207. Volcano: Write about an eruption of a volcano.

208. Video Inspiration : Go to Vimeo.com or YouTube.com and watch one of the videos featured on the homepage. Write something based on what you watch.

209. Sneeze: Write about things that make you sneeze.

210. Footsteps on the Moon:  Write about the possibility of life in outer-space.

211: Star-crossed: Write a short modern version of the story of Romeo and Juliet or think of real-life examples of lovers who are not allowed to be together to use as inspiration for your writing.

212. Font-tastic: Choose a unique font and type out a poem, story or journal entry using that font.

213. Schedule: Take a look at your calendar and use the schedule for inspiration in writing.

214. Grandparents: Write about a moment in your grandparent’s life.

215. Collage: Go through a magazine and cut out words that grab your attention. Use these words to construct a poem or as a story starter or inspiration for your journal.

216. Oh so Lonely: Write a poem about what you do when you are alone – do you feel lonely or do you enjoy your own company?

217. Waterfall: Think of a waterfall you’ve seen in person or spend some time browsing photos of waterfalls online. Write about the movement, flow, and energy.

218. First Kiss: Write about your first kiss.

219. So Ironic: Write about an ironic situation you’ve been in throughout your life.

220. Limerick: Write a limerick today.

221. Grocery Shopping: Write about an experience at the grocery store.

222. Fashion : Go through a fashion magazine or browse fashion websites online and write about a style you love.

223. So Close: Write about coming close to reaching a goal.

224. Drinks on Me: Write a poem or short story that takes place at a bar.

225. Online Friends: Write an ode to someone online you’ve met and become friends with.

226. Admiration: Is there someone you admire? Write about those feelings.

227. Trash Day: Write from the perspective of a garbage collector.

228. Mailbox: Open your mailbox and write something inspired by one of the pieces of mail you received.

229. Fresh & Clean: Write about how you feel after you take a shower.

230. Energized: Write about how you feel when you’re either at a high or low energy level for the day.

231. Rhyme & No Reason: Make up a silly rhyming poem using made up words.

232. Tech Support: Use computers or a conversation with tech support you’ve had as inspiration.

233. Hotel: Write from the perspective of someone who works at a hotel or staying at a hotel.

234. Underwater: Write about sea creatures and under water life. What’s under the surface of the ocean? What adventures might be waiting?

235. Breathing: Take a few minutes to do some deep breathing relaxation techniques. Once your mind is clear, just write the first few things that you think of.

236. Liar, Liar: Make up a poem or story of complete lies about yourself or someone else.

237. Obituaries: Look at the recent obituaries online or in the newspaper and imagine the life of someone and write about that person.

238. Pocket: Rummage through your pockets and write about what you keep or find in your pockets.

239. Cinquain: Write a cinquain poem, which consists of 5 lines that do not rhyme.

240. Alphabetical: Write a poem that has every letter of the alphabet in it.

241.  Comedy Club: Write something inspired by a comedian.

242. Cheater: Write about someone who is unfaithful.

243. Sestina: Give a try to writing a sestina poem.

244. Fight: Write about witnessing two people get in an argument with each other.

245. Social Network : Visit your favorite Social Networking website (ie: Facebook, Pinterest, Google, Twitter, etc.) and write a about a post you see there.

246. Peaceful: Write about something peaceful and serene.

247. In the Clouds: Go cloud watching for the day and write about what you imagine in the clouds.

248. At the Park: Take some time to sit on a park bench and write about the sights, scenes, and senses and emotions you experience.

249. Sonnet: Write a sonnet today.

250. Should, Would, And Could: Write a poem or story using the words should, would, and could.

251. How to: Write directions on how to do something.

252. Alliteration: Use alliteration in your poem or in a sentence in a story.

253. Poker Face: Write about playing a card game.

254. Timer: Set a timer for 5 minutes and just write. Don’t worry about it making sense or being perfect.

255. Dance: Write about a dancer or a time you remember dancing.

256. Write for a Cause: Write a poem or essay that raises awareness for a cause you support.

257. Magic : Write about a magician or magic trick.

258. Out of the Box: Imagine finding a box. Write about opening it and what’s inside.

259. Under the Influence: What is something has impacted you positively in your life?

260. Forgotten Toy : Write from the perspective a forgotten or lost toy.

261. Rocks and Gems: Write about a rock or gemstone meaning.

262. Remote Control: Imagine you can fast forward and rewind your life with a remote control.

263. Symbolism: Think of objects, animals, etc. that have symbolic meaning to you. Write about it.

264. Light at the End of the Tunnel: Write about a time when you saw hope when it seemed like a hopeless situation.

265. Smoke and Fire : “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.” Use this saying as inspiration to write!

266. Railroad: Write about a train and its cargo or passengers.

267. Clipboard: Write about words you imagine on an office clipboard.

268. Shipwrecked: Write about being stranded somewhere – an island, a bus stop, etc.

269. Quotable: Use a popular quote from a speaker and use it as inspiration for your writing.

270. Mind   Map it Out: Create a mind map of words, phrases, and ideas that pop into your head or spend some time browsing the many mind maps online. Write a poem, story, or journal entry inspired by the mind map.

271. Patterns : Write about repeating patterns that occur in life.

272. Scrapbook : Write about finding a scrapbook and the memories it contains.

273. Cure: Write about finding a cure for an illness.

274. Email Subject Lines: Read your email today and look for subject lines that may be good starters for writing inspiration.

275. Wishful Thinking: Write about a wish you have.

276. Doodle : Spend some time today doodling for about 5-10 minutes. Write about the thoughts you had while doodling or create something inspired by your finished doodle.

277. Chalkboard: Imagine you are in a classroom. What does it say on the chalkboard?

278. Sticky: Imagine a situation that’s very sticky, maybe even covered in maple syrup, tape or glue. Write about it!

279. Flashlight : Imagine going somewhere very dark with only a flashlight to guide you.

280. A Far Away Place : Envision yourself traveling to a fictional place, what do you experience in your imaginary journey?

281. On the Farm : Write about being in a country or rural setting.

282. Promise to Yourself: Write about a promise you want to make to yourself and keep.

283. Brick Wall : Write a poem that is about a brick wall – whether literal or figurative.

284. Making a Choice: Write about a time when you had to make a difficult choice.

285.  Repeat: Write about a time when you’ve had to repeat yourself or a time when it felt like no one was listening.

286. Outcast : Write about someone who is not accepted by their peers. (for example, the Ugly Ducking)

287. Scary Monsters: Write about a scary (or not-so-scary) monster in your closet or under the bed.

288. Sacrifice: Write about something you’ve sacrificed doing to do something else or help another person.

289. Imperfection: Create a poem that highlights the beauty in being flawed.

290. Birthday Poem: Write a poem inspired by birthdays.

291. Title First : Make a list of potential poem or story titles and choose one to write from.

292. Job Interview : Write about going on a job interview.

293. Get Well : Write a poem that will help someone who is sick feel better quick!

294. Lost in the Crowd: Write about feeling lost in the crowd.

295. Apple a Day: Write about a health topic that interests you.

296. Cravings: Write about craving something.

297. Phobia: Research some common phobias, choose one, and write about it.

298. In the Moment: Write about living in the present moment.

299. Concrete : Write about walking down a sidewalk and what you see and experience.

300. Battle: Write about an epic battle, whether real, fictional or figurative.

301. This Old House : Write about an old house that is abandoned or being renovated.

302. Clutter: Is there a cluttered spot in your home? Go through some of that clutter today and write about what you find or the process of organizing.

303. Go Fly a Kite: Write about flying a kite.

304. On the TV: Flip to a random TV channel and write about the first thing that comes on – even if it is an infomercial!

305. Fruit: Write an ode to your favorite fruit.

306. Long Distance Love: Write about a couple that is separated by distance.

307. Glasses: Write about a pair of eyeglasses or someone wearing glasses.

308. Robotic : Write about a robot.

309. Cute as a Button: Write about something you think is just adorable.

310. Movie Conversation: Use a memorable conversation from a favorite movie to inspire your writing.

311. Easy-Peasy : Write  about doing something effortlessly.

312. Idiom: Choose from a list of idioms one that speaks to you and create a poem around that saying or phrase. (Ie: It is raining cats and dogs)

313. Playground: Whether it is the swings or the sandbox or the sliding boards, write about your memories of being on a playground.

314. Romance: Write about romantic things partners can do for each other.

315. Rock Star: Imagine you are a famous rock star. Write about the experience.

316. Come to Life: Imagine ordinary objects have come to life. Write about what they do and say.

317. Airplane: Write about meeting someone on an airplane and a conversation you might have.

318. Health & Beauty: Take some time to peruse your medicine cabinet or the health and beauty aisles at a local store. Write a poem, short story, or journal entry inspired by a product label.

319. Determination: Write about not giving up.

320. Instrumental Inspiration: Listen to some instrumental music and write a poem that matches the mood, beat, and style of the music.

321. Wait Your Turn: Write about having to wait in line.

322. Personality Type : Do you know your personality type? (There are many free quizzes online) – write about what type of personality traits you have.

323. Decade: Choose a favorite decade and write about it. (IE: 1980’s or 1950’s for example)

324. I Believe: Write your personal credo of things you believe in.

325. Lost and Found: Write about a lost object.

326. Say it: Write a poem or story that uses dialogue between two people.

327. The Unsent Letter: Write about a letter that never made it to its recipient.

328. The Windows of the Soul: Write a poem about the story that is told through someone’s eyes.

329. Trial and Error: Write about something you learned the hard way.

330. Escape : Write about where you like to go to escape from it all.

331. What’s Cooking: Write something inspired a favorite food or recipe.

332. Records : Go through your file box and pull out old receipts or records…write something inspired by what you find!

333. Banking: Write about visiting the bank.

334. Sweet Talk: Write about trying to convince someone of something.

335. Serendipity: Write about something that happened by chance in a positive way.

336. Distractions: Write about how it feels when you can’t focus.

337. Corporation: Write about big business.

338. Word of the Day: Go to a dictionary website that has a word of the day and use it in a poem, story or journal entry you write.

339. Pick Me Up:  What do you do when you need a pick me up?

340. Unfinished: Write about a project you started but never completed.

341. Forgiveness: Write about a time when someone forgave you or you forgave someone.

342. Weakness: Write about your greatest weakness.

343. Starting: Write about starting a project.

344. Mechanical: Think of gears, moving parts, machines.

345. Random Act of Kindness : Write about a random act of kindness you’ve done for someone or someone has done for you, no matter how small or insignificant it may have seemed.

346. Underground: Imagine living in a home underground and use that as inspiration for writing.

347. Classic Rock: Pick a classic rock love ballad and rewrite it into a story or poem with a similar theme.

348. Night Owl : Write about staying up late at night.

349. Magnetic : Write about attraction to something or someone.

350. Teamwork: Write about working with a team towards a common goal.

351. Roller-coaster : Write about the ups and downs in life.

352. Motivational Poster: Look at some motivational posters online and write a poem or journal entry inspired by your favorite one.

353. Games: Write about the games people play – figuratively or literally.

354. Turning Point: Write about a point in life where things turned for the better or worse.

355. Spellbound: Write about a witch’s spell.

356. Anniversary: Write about the anniversary of a special date.

357. Gamble:  Be inspired by a casino or lottery ticket.

358. Picnic: Write about going on a picnic.

359. Garage: Write about some random item you might find in a garage.

360. Review: Review your week, month, or year in a journal entry or poem format.

361. Detective: Write about a detective searching for clues or solving a mystery.

362. Camera: Take your camera for a walk and write based on one of the photographs you take.

363. Visiting : Write about visiting a family member or friend.

364. Trust: Write about putting trust in someone.

365. Congratulations : Did you write a poem, short story, or journal entry every day for a whole year? Write about what you’ve learned and celebrate your achievement!

We hope you enjoy these creative writing prompts! And of course, if you write anything using these prompts, we’d love to know about it! Tell us how you’ll use these everyday creative writing prompts in the comments section below!

And of course, if you’d like the printable ad-free version of these prompts to reference again and again or to use in your classroom, you can find them at our Etsy shop !

Chelle Stein wrote her first embarrassingly bad novel at the age of 14 and hasn't stopped writing since. As the founder of ThinkWritten, she enjoys encouraging writers and creatives of all types.

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193 comments.

I have been on a reading binge since being on vacation from school. By rereading Little House, Anne of Green Gables, and Little Women among others, one wonders about writing a book. I stumbled across this while looking up unit supplements for my kiddos, and thought, hey, write a page a day and see what happens! Thank you for this collection of prompts! I’ve linked back to this page several times so others can try their hand at writing. Thank you again!

The Flicker, The Teeth, and A Warehouse in the Dark (the warehouse prompt)

I am in a large abandoned warehouse with a flickering light The only light in the whole room. It flickered leaving me in temporal darkness It flickered again and as it was dark I swore I saw something glowing It looked like glowing teeth The lights return and I see nothing Flickers on Flickers off I see the teeth closer Flickers on I see nothing Flickers off The teeth so close Flickers on An empty warehouse Flickers off The glowing teeth are inchings away bright red blood drips from their tips Flickers on Panic rises in my chest but nothing is there Turns off The mouth of bloody teeth is before my eyes I wait for the light to flicker back on I wait in complete darkness I wait And wait And wait The teeth open wide I try to scream by the darkness swallows it A hear the crunch of my bones I see my blood pore down my chest But I wait in darkness for the pain I wait And wait And wait The mouth of teeth devours my lower half I wait for pain and death I wait And wait And wait The light flickers on I see no monster Only my morphed body And blood And blood And blood And so much blood The light flickers off The monster eats my arm Flickers on I wait for pain Flickers off I watch as the creature eats my limbs Flickers on I wait for death Flickers off Slowly the teeth eat my head All I see is dark I wait for it to flicker on Where is the warehouse light? Where is the only light in the room? Where is the flicker? Where am I? Where are the bloody teeth? I wait for the light to come back And wait And wait And wait And wait And wait And wait And wait in eternal darkness

WOW. Thank you!

This is such a helpful tool! I’ve learned a lot about my self through picking a random prompt and writing the first thing that comes to mind. I’d love to see a follow up list of possible! Definitely a recomended sight!

I agree. Very helpful.

I am new at the blogging game. You have provided some wonderful ideas for blog posts. Great ideas just to get used to writing every day. Thanks

This list is really impressive and useful for those of us who are looking for good topics to blog about. Thanks!

Thank you! That somes in handy

Very nice list. Thanks for compiling and posting it. It’s not only good for bloggers, but poets, as well.

yess im using it for my new years resolution, which is to write a poem daily!

Wow, thanks so much for all these wonderful prompts! They are lots of fun and very helpful. I love how you’ve provided 365 of them–A prompt for every day of the year! 🙂

Not if it’s a leap year…

Haha. Yea. This is great though all the same.. ;-;

Lol actually there’s 364 days in a year and 365 in a leap year so……yeah

are you fucking stupid

There are actually 366 days in a leap year so… yeah

I use this for my homeschooling-I love it! Thank you so much!! This is a wonderful list. So creative! 🙂 🙂

Thanks! I’m preparing for writing every day next year and this will come in really handy. It’s just 364 writing prompts though. 164 is missing. 😉

MiMschi is wrong 164 is there i looked

I think they meant that as a joke, 164 is called left out…

Good it is useful

no its not you nonce

You Don’t Love Me, Damn You

things left unsaid

and then some

anger strangles the baby

in its crib,

flowers wilt,

rivers dry up

harsh words clatter upon the day,

echo unfortunately

till silence smothers

in its embrace

you wish you could take it back

what’s done is done

never to be undone

though things move on

part of you remains

locked in the middle of protesting

one last thing,

mouth open,

no words emerging

why must you be misunderstood?

why must everything you say

no way of straightening things out

gestures halted mid-air

an accusatory finger

shoulders locked

in sardonic shrug

dishes smash on the floor

spray of fragments

frozen mid-air

slam the door

it doesn’t open

but in spite of yourself

you turn and look

one last time…..

(Greg Cameron, Poem, Surrey, B.C., Canada)

Love these. Thank you!

This is really amazingly deep. I love it so much. You have so much talent!!

Thanks SOOO much for the prompts but I have another suggestion!

A Recipe for disaster- write a recipe for a disastrous camping trip…

that one sounds awesome.

Haha. Reminds me of the old twin’s show.. what was it.. where the two girls switch places when they meet at camp?

Pretty sure I know what you’re talking about. The Parent Trap, right? Never seen the whole movie, but it seems funny.

and also #309, everyone should have thought of a hamster “write” away XD!

May I have permission to use this list at my next Ozarks Chapter of the American Christian Writers meeting. Thank you for consideration.

Hi Leah, please send some more info here: https://thinkwritten.com/contact

i am using it for my homeschooling and i love it

i am using it for my homeschooling

where is prompt 165?

sorry I meant 164, my mistake.

well kay, there is a 164 AND 165. So your head is clearly ????????????

What I like most about these is how you can combine them and get really weird ideas. For example, empathy from the rooftops: what if you shouted something positive in public every day – or if everyone did so? It might be fun to try, and then write a diary about it. Online time travel: if people could live virtually in incredibly well=constructed versions of different time periods, what would the effects be on today’s society? Could it change our language or customs?

It would be cool if we could have goggles that showed places during a certain time period. Like Seattle 1989. And you could buy special plugins, like specific people you want to hang out with, famous or non.

That one about online time travel is crazy brilliant!!! And highly thought-provoking.

It is amazing what creative writing could do to you. Daily prompts have proven to be very inspiring and overtime writers develop their own style of writing depending on how passionate they are about it. I would love to write about all 3, online, space, and time travel. cheers! and Don’t stop writing!

I belong to a writing club. We seem to have a lot of prompts to use. I love stories having to do with rain. Would you join me. I am jim

Wow! Inspiration right here.

May I use this list for a speech at my Ozarks Chapter of the American Christian Writers?

Love the inspiration

THANK YOU. THAT IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY IS THANK YOU.

What about a leap year? You’re missing one topic.

Wonderful! I love writing and these prompts are very helpful. Thank you very much! ♥

It’s been really useful in getting me to write again! Thank you very much!

I really love the list of writing ideas you have compiled here. I will be using it and others to get myself back into writing every single day if I can be away with it. Also, I have noticed a few problems with this list. One is a repeat topic. Those are numbers 76 and 162. And you skipped a number. And have only 364 days of writing. Still through! All these ideas are absolutely amazing and awesome ideas! I commend you for putting it all together in an easy to read format too. Thank you so very much.

I think we have the list all fixed now, but thanks for catching a couple of early mistakes!

Thank you for helping me edit Lora! I don’t always have a second pair of eyes + appreciated this to fix + update the post! I always say my readers are my best editors. 🙂

these days get brighter, mine gets darker, why does it has to be me , why not life.

Mirror, Mirror: What if you mirror started talking to you?

u r awesome man

Wonderful compilation of ideas! I will send your blog along to my many Creative Writing students. I’m enjoying reading your posts.

wow!! great tips! but how long did it take you to write that? its a lot of words!! lol great stuff though..

This is so cool! I love these prompts and will definitely recommend some to my teacher!!

The promise “I made a promise with my best friend, I said i’d never break, Our personalities really did blend, But then I lied awake, The people disappearing, Her gaze was always leering. I never thought she was serious, I always took it as a joke, But it really made me curious, When she was digging around that oak, My best friend is a serial killer, And i knew the truth, My life turned into a thriller, And eating at me took away my youth, I couldn’t take it any long living with this weight, To the police I went to tell my tale, Looking at me with eyes of hate, she smiled and said, without her I would fail. Now i sit in the prison cell, Waiting for my call My friend across the room smiling, my eyes begin to swell, My neck snapping on the, from my sides my hands fall

Although my writing style is dark, that’s the way I enjoy writing, and thank you for this list, even though I didn’t do one per day, scrolling through I was able to see keywords that formed ideas in my mind

I love this <3 It's amazing :))

These are really nice I absolutely love them.

This is very helpful and I’ve been finding a way to help improve my creative writing!!! Thank you very much!

You are such a life developer, who can virtually transform a life busy with unnecessary activities humans are posted to through internet. And who can restore the appetite of people to purchase pen and paper which have considered the last commodity in the market at the expense of that great vampire ‘social media’ that left both old and young paralyzed. Thanks to the proponent of this great idea.

These are great. The Closed door one gives me a great idea for a new story! Thank you so much!

man what the fuck is this shit! i was looking for short story writing prompts and I get stuck with shit like “write about the weather outside”. Damn this shit is disappointing.

Hi John, the weather might seem boring, but there are a lot of ways you can springboard from that – maybe you write a story about a character who despises the sunshine or melts if they get rained on or they live in a underground tunnel and the house gets flooded…You can also use it as an exercise in developing more descriptive writing that shows, not tells for the scenes in your story. Writing about the weather seems “easy and boring” but seriously challenge yourself to write about it in a way that makes it interesting – it is not so easy to avoid the cliches as you might think!

I LOVE IT SO MUCH i do not know why but my kids, they will just like come on this website every time it is time to have a little bit of video games! XD

The weather outside that day was dark.

It was a perfectly reasonable sort of darkness. The kind of darkness you might get if you wake up an hour before sunrise. But it was late in the morning.

He had to make sure of that. He checked his alarm clock, his microwave oven clock, and his cell phone.

The sun was supposed to be out. But the moonlit sky was starlit and clear.

And as he looked outside again, he saw that people were out, going about their business, as if none of this really mattered at all.

What was he missing here?

(There. Now you have a short story writing prompt..)

You know what “John” i think this website is great so fuck you.

yeah you tell him john

It depends on how you view it. That one topic for instance has given me a beautiful story telling. I am currently about to round up with it and trust me the feedback has been amazing.

That is great! I’m glad it helped inspire you!

Dude kids go on here so stop swearing “John”

Maybe you need to work on improving the quality of your writing. Your use of expletives is totally uncalled for. I see nothing wrong with “writing about the weather outside”. In fact, this is a great topic and can lead to awesome discussions.

Very useful indeed. Thank u

i think this is a good prompted

I think it’s awesome, I looked for inspiration, I found inspiration, thank you

well! i fall in love with all these ideas! i loved this page! thanks for sharing these amazing ideas!

Great stuff mat Keep up the good work

I LOVE THIS SO MUCH IT IS VERY HELPFUL BUT FOR A SUGGESTION YOU COULD DO DIARY STUFF MAYBE

When I read your comment, I thought you said “DAIRY,” not “DIARY.”

So… why not both? Write something based on a dairy farmer’s diary. Or… a dairy COW’S diary. Tell their stories, their private dreams. Or hidden shame…

That’s the way to think + use this list 🙂

Great idea!

Awesome list! Thank you!

Thanks so much! I’ve always been told I’m a great writer and should publish. I haven’t done a lot of leisure writing because I’m afraid I might realize I’m NOT a good writer. My therapist wants me to write more and these prompts are perfect!

This is fun i will keep doing this no matter what every year. I can’t stop writing either. Thanks for making this, it is very fun.

This helps so much! love these ideas

Can this website give me a write on the following topic. –

Imagine that the scientists could replace the human brains with computers or invent the computers with human feelings. What do you think would happen?Would the world become a better place to live in???

I’ve been looking for prompts to work through my creative art/collage journal for 2017…and love the ones you offer here….LOVE THEM! I like that they are more than just one word and give me something to think about before I start creating each day as a warm up to what is ahead.

I hope don’t mind, but I shared them on both Instagram and my FaceBook page in hopes to get my artist/creative friends to follow along with me in creating each day. I would like to include a link to your page in a near future blog post about my creative journal.

Thank you for posting and sharing you prompts…I’m excited to get started!

I’m on number 43 and I’ve already discovered a whole bunch about myself! These prompts are amazing and I can’t wait for the next 322 of them. I’ve recommended this to several of my friends. Totally worth several notebooks chock full of prompts and a years worth of writing 🙂

Very inspiring….

Hello! Is it alright if I add some of these to a little book I’m making for my Grandmother? She hasn’t opened a computer in her life but I know these prompts would do her a world of good. I believe in the importance of asking permission to use the creative property of another person 🙂 Cheers!

Hi Maxx, of course you may share with your grandmother – the only thing we would worry about is if you were to publish them for monetary gain. Enjoy! 🙂

This is really helpful. I’m glad I saw it first. ♥

OMG!! I’ve never been in this website before!!

Thank u so much this was so helpful. Idk how u came up with all thoughts prompts. It was very helpful. Thank u again.

For the first time in a long time it finally felt like I knew was going to happen next. I was gazing into her eyes and she was gazing back. I remember it like it was just yesterday, when she was still the one for me but never forgave me. I miss the sweet sound of her laughter and now all i hear are friends. I have tried to go back and apologize to her just to see if the answer will change but even I know that it will never change because I will never be enough for her. But if she ever decides that she wants me back she can have me because a life without love is one not worth living.

gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood

can u give me one using the prompt “normal”

Thanks for this!!!!! Will definitely help me in learning to tap into my creative writing genius 🙂

Thanks, this helped me a lot!

u have a typo!!!! 364

Thanks for pointing out, got it fixed 🙂 Sometimes my brain goes faster than the computer. 🙂

I wrote this, tell me what you think; prompt #4-dancing You see her tapping her toes, always listening to music. Although she doesn’t like the music, what she doesn’t know yet is it will be stuck in her head for the next year. She’s as graceful as a butterfly yet as strong as a fighter. Many only see a pretty face yet those close enough to the fire know the passion burning deep inside of her. At home she’s quiet, always in her room yet making loud noises through the floorboards. Her parents know what she’s up to but her little brothers don’t quite understand yet. All they know is that when she goes up there she’s listening to music and soon she will play it for the whole neighborhood to hear. They don’t know that she’s practicing, practicing for the most important day of the year. The one she’s been waiting for since she’s been a little girl. Tapping her toes at the table only stops when her parents beg her to rest. Even in her dreams she on stage, dancing like a swan. Yet deep down she’s scared of the failure that she will feel if this one day goes a bit to south. Tapping her toes to the beat of her music gives her a bit of pip in her pep when she walks down the halls. No one quite understands the stress she’s going through. Through her smile she’s worries, scared that one misstep might end it all for her. But she won’t let anyone see that she’s nervous. She’s used to getting bruises, she falls on the ground but always gets back up. Because she’s a dancer, the show must go on.

Brilliant. Loved it.

Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I’m working on a site in Danish about writing and I would love to translate these awesome prompts into Danish and use it on the site. Would that be OK? I’ll credit with links of course!

Hi Camilla, you cannot copy + post these on your site, but feel free to link to the article – our site is compatible with Google translate 🙂

Hi Camilla, this list cannot be republished, even if translated into another language. However, if you would like to link to our website that would be great, your readers are able to translate it into any language if they use a web browser such as Google Chrome.

My goal is to write all of these prompts before 2018

This is amazing! I am writing for fun and this is a list of amazing prompts!

Ha, Ha . I see what you did , #164 was missing and now it say write about being left out .

Thanks a ton !!!

This link has been really helpful for my blog, loved the ideas.

Thanks for not publishing my email address

You are welcome! We never publish email addresses. If you’d like to learn more about how we collect and use information you may provide us with on this website, you can read more on our privacy policy page. Hope that helps! https://thinkwritten.com/privacy/

I have another suggestion, What about “The Secret Journey to the Unknown”. I reckon it’s awesome!

I was wondering if you could please send new ideas to me, much appreciated thanks.

I love all of these so much and i try to write referring to these at least once everyday thank you so much for these!

Trust, It is a beautiful thing. You give it to others, For them to protect. They can keep it forever, Or they can destroy it.

Wow what a treasure! Am glad I have found the right place to begging my writing journey.Thanks guys

Super awesome! Thanks so much for this collection of writing prompts!!

Today is the last day of the year 2017. I’m proud to say that I was able to complete this challenge. Thank you for the inspiring prompts! 🙂

That is awesome! We might just have to think of some new ones!!

how about one with sports like the NBA

I thought my life was over when I couldn’t access this for a couple weeks. These prompts are excellent. I write two page short stories on one every day. I hope you guys never take down this site but I’m printing these for insurance because it truly was devastating. I’m very emotionally attached to this list. Thank you so much for sharing.

Yes, we did have a small glitch in our hosting services for a few days! Fortunately, it was only temporary and unexpected! {Though I’m sure it did feel like 2 weeks!} Good to hear you are using the prompts!

Very nice article. Very useful one for improving writing skills

Thank you Sid! Glad it is useful for you!

Oh my god.. This is something a different, thought provoking and a yardstick to those who cultivated passion on writing, like me, beginners. Wishes for this website. I really wanted to try this 365 days of writing. Thanks in tons.

Glad you find it helpful! I hope it keeps you inspired to keep growing as a writer!

i love writing too! i am writing a book and this website inspired me too!

i have been writing lots of things and am getting A + on writing

thxs for your time with the web

i am making a epic book. it is because of this website. you really help. i will share a link of my book once i am done with it to your awesome cool really helpful website! thank you for your time

That is great to hear Christopher! Would love to see some of your work when you are ready to share! 🙂

WOOOOOOOOW BEST SITE!

I’m going to write few marvelous essays based on ideas in your impressive list. Thanks!

Just to tell some people that 165 or 164 is not missing because some people probably can’t see but just to let u know that 164 is a prompt called “Left Out”

Dang. The second idea about writing about what it feels like to love someone who doesn’t love you back, I wrote something like that BEFORE I found this website.

You can always try writing it again, maybe from the other person’s perspective this time? That is the beauty of the open-ended writing prompts – you can always interpret them in a way to push and challenge you as a writer!

Thank you for these prompts! I enjoyed looking through them and writing them! They gave me great ideas and inspired me so much.

This is my favorite website to find inspiration to write. I had run out of ideas and i had a huge writers block but this made it all go away. Here’s something i wrote:

He is a mess She is beautiful He has tears streaming down his face She glides across the room as if it were her kingdom And she’s The reigning queen He’s curled up in a ball In the corner of the room He looks at me I wonder what he thinks I can’t take my eyes off her The way she subtly smiles when she realizes Someone is looking She seems to be happy all the time But I can see through the smile It’s my first time noticing It’s not complete That was the first time I wanted to say hi But I thought Why would he look at me? The nerd with all the answers in her head All the books in her hands And Her sleeves full of hearts She looked at me From the corner of her eye She saw me looking The boy with the tear stains She saw me His tears were no longer streaming He had finally stood up Tall and handsome As he is Eyes Bluer than the blue jay that sat outside my bedroom window She had opened a book and started reading She hadn’t changed pages for a while Safe to assume She was distracted She looked up and Without knowing I was in front of her “Hi” Her brown eyes Stared in to my soul Erased the memory of why the tears Were streaming in the first place “Hi”

I love it Cynthia, thank you for sharing and glad that it inspired you to keep writing! 🙂

Thank you for so many amazing ideas! I love the sound of mirror, mirror!

Glad you found it inspiring Ar!

read the whole thing and didn’t find anything I’d enjoy writing 🙁

What kinds of things do you like to write? We have a whole collection of additional writing prompts lists here. Sometimes challenging yourself to write something you don’t like all in its own can be a good exercise for writing. Hope that helps!

These are ingenious!

I love these prompts! They’re inspiring! I’ve chosen to challenge myself by using one of these prompts every day of this 2019 year. I posted my writings for the first prompt on my Tumblr and Facebook pages with the prompt and a link back to this article- I hope that’s alright. If not, I can take it down, or I would love to discuss a way I could continue to do this. I hope more people can see and use these prompts because I have already found joy in using the first one.

Hi Elizabeth! Glad you are enjoying the prompts! You can definitely post what you write with these prompts as long as you do not copy the entire list or claim them as your own. Linking back to our website or this post will help others find the prompts so they too can use them for writing! If you have any questions feel free to contact us anytime using our contact form. Thanks!

Amazing original prompts Thank you so much!

Good list, but you’re not supposed to mistake it’s for its. Not on a website for writers, of all places!

I appreciate your comment, especially because after triple checking the article AND having a few grammar-police personality type friends do the same we could not find any typos. All of the instances of its and it’s are the correct usage.

However, one thing we did remember is that it is very easy for the person reading to accidentally misunderstand and not interpret it the way as the writer intended.

To clarify when we should use it’s vs. its:

We use it’s when we intend the meaning as the contraction. This is a shortened way of writing it is . We use its without an apostrophe when we use it as a possessive noun. Any instances you may note here are correct for their intended meaning.

Some examples:

Prompt #141 It’s a Sign : In this case we intend it to be interpreted as IT IS a Sign , where the usage is a contraction.

Prompt #7 The Rocket Ship : In this case we intend it to be interpreted as the possessive form.

I hope that helps clear up any possible confusion for you!

Thank you soooo much! That helped me a lot!

You’re welcome Keira! Glad you enjoyed our list of writing ideas!

It is so rich in bright and thought-provoking ideas. Thank you so much. Get inspired to have more, please

Thanks for this. I love to write things like this. Some of these though, weren’t as interesting as I wanted it to be, not saying that they aren’t interesting. I like the help you’ve added in, such as being led into a dark room with only a flashlight to help so it gets us started. Great job!

Thanks Maya, I’m glad you like the prompts. Sometimes the prompts that seem boring are the best ones to help you practice your skills as a writer to make them interesting topics. Some of the best writers can make the most mundane topics fun!

Nice….I don’t think I’ll ever lack something to write on … I so appreciate your ideas ..,they are great

Thank you, glad you enjoyed them!

Thank you for providing these writing prompts! They are great!

Thank You so much, these are amazing to start of with to get the creative juices flowing

Thank you very much

Sweet! Thank you so much! I plan to use some of these for some creative writing on CourageousChristianFather.com

I’m glad they inspired you Steve! I always love seeing what everyone writes with these prompts – I really enjoyed your post about the cookie ad jingle! 🙂

Thanks so much for this list. I needed something to kickstart my writing. This is exactly what I’ve been looking for! I just wrote #1. WooHoo!!

Thank you for your list. This is great!

I write feature articles for our church library’s monthly newsletter. Perusing this list has helped me come up with a couple dozen ideas to consider for future issues! Thanks much for putting this together – it is being used beyond the scope of what you intended, I think!

That’s wonderful Debbie! There are so many ways to apply these prompts to any sort of project – thank you for sharing how you are using them!

Thanks for your prompts, an idea I have for a prompt is write a story based on your favorite story for example I’m writing a fantasy book based on the game dungeons and dragons…

i guss its ok

cgv hbvkd vjvhsvhivhcickbcjh

Just needed to ask: I’d like to think these prompts are for free writing with no pauses? But, does one edit and polish the piece after that? I keep reading about writing every day…like brain dumping. But, there is never a mention of what one does with the piece after that??

This article has been written with sheer intelligence. Such 365 creative writing prompts has been written here. This article is worth marking as Good. I like how you have researched and presented these exact points so clearly.

Thank you for this list! You’ve inspired me to take up the challenge, though I haven’t written anything in years!

I have even created a blog to post my ideas, and keep myself accountable. I hope this is okay, I will credit, and provide a link back to this page on each post. https://thefishhavegotitright.blogspot.com/

I love it Ariadne, I’ll definitely come check out your site! Keep at it!

This is really Helpful thanks I love it😊

I never knew how much I had to write about. This should definitely keep me busy! Thank you so much for the list.

Hi! I saw a note saying this had been updated for 2020. I was curious if there are plans to update it for 2021. If so, when would the 2021-updated list become available?

Hi Gabrielle, I am not sure when we will next update this list, but feel free to check out some of our other writing prompts lists if you’ve exhausted this one! Writing Prompts for Kids {which is for grown-ups too!} and Poetry Writing Prompts are two great ones to check out. Hope that helps!

Loved this a lot! I would like to ask permission for using these prompts for my poetry and stories page on Instagram. Kindly let me know if I can use these and let my followers write on them too.

Hi, Piyusha, I’m just a user of the site like you, so I’m not “official”. But if you hit CTRL + F in your browser, that should open the “Find” dialog. Search on “Camilla”, and that will take you to a post and response concerning your request. Have a great and productive writing day. K. B. Tidwell

very informative thank you

I have always had problems finding something to write about. My problem is solved🥰 Thank you

I love this

Oh great. Good for everyone who enjoys picking the pen and writing something readable

Love these prompts. I am going to write a story about a group of people creating and building a city where homeless people can live, where everyone has access to as much money as they need because money is in endless supply. Where no one has too little or too much of anything.

I decided to write a poem about prompt 41, I have been writing poetry for 2 years now and haven’t had much inspiration so I appreciate these prompts!

“WHAT THEY DON’T KNOW”

They don’t know. They don’t know the dread I feel, The pain I feel, The crippling anxiety And the depression that I feel.

For I have worn this mask, Sealed to my face with wax, To make sure no one knows That I am suffering, Every Single Day.

Telling someone these feelings I feel, Well that would surely Be a relief, But if something goes wrong, If they send my thoughts Throughout everyone I know, And anyone I could know.

Well, if that happens, I’ll have to travel abroad. To a distant land, Start over.

And hope and make sure, No one finds out what Might be under this mask Sealed with wax. And that they won’t know how I feel.

Because I’d rather deal with being a Trainwreck, A teenage disaster, And keeping everything about me a secret, Then having everyone Look at me as if I’m not human For having problems just like them.

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25 Creative Writing Prompts to Ignite Your Creativity

Creative writing is a vast and dynamic field that offers a platform for individuals to express their ideas, emotions, and stories in an imaginative and original way.

It plays a crucial role in enhancing communication skills, fostering empathy, and also promoting a deep understanding of the human experience. If you’re not sure how to get started, consider these helpful writing prompts – let’s get creative!

The Importance of Creative Writing

In the realm of literature and beyond, creative writing holds a pivotal role. It not only allows for personal expression but also:

• fosters critical thinking
• enhances vocabulary
• improves writing skills
• conveys complex ideas and emotions
• serves as a therapeutic medium
• enhances empathy

From short stories and poetry to novels and screenplays, creative writing spans a wide array of genres and styles, and offers endless opportunities for exploration and expression.

In the professional realm, creative writing skills are highly valued. They can lead to various creative writing jobs in fields like publishing, advertising, journalism, and content creation. For those interested in pursuing higher education in this field, you might want to explore whether a degree in creative writing is worth it .

Understanding Creative Writing Prompts

When it comes to igniting creativity and fostering unique ideas, creative writing prompts play an invaluable role. They provide a starting point, a spark that can lead to a flame of inspiration for writers.

How Prompts Can Ignite Creativity

While creative writing is an exciting field, it can sometimes be challenging to kickstart the creative process. This is where creative writing prompts come into play. These prompts are designed to ignite the imagination and inspire writers to create original and compelling pieces.

They help to overcome writer’s block , encourage experimentation with different styles and genres. So, whether you’re a seasoned writer or a beginner, creative writing prompts can be an invaluable tool to spark creativity and enhance your writing skills.

What are Creative Writing Prompts?

Creative writing prompts are essentially ideas, questions, or topics that are designed to inspire and stimulate the creative writing process. They serve as a catalyst, helping to ignite the writer’s imagination and encourage them to explore new themes, concepts, or perspectives.

These prompts can take a myriad of forms. They might be a single word, a phrase, a sentence, or even an image. Remember, regardless of the format, the goal of a creative writing prompt is to trigger thought and also encourage writers to delve deeper into their creative psyche, producing unique and compelling pieces of writing.

For more understanding of what creative writing entails, read our article on what is creative writing .

Types of Creative Writing Prompts

There are various types of creative writing prompts, each tailored to stimulate different forms of writing, cater to various genres, or inspire certain ideas. For example, you might encounter:

• Fiction Writing Prompts : These prompts are designed to inspire stories. They might provide a setting, a character, a conflict, or a plot point to kick-start the writer’s imagination.
• Non-Fiction Writing Prompts : These prompts are geared towards non-fiction writing, such as essays, memoirs, or journalistic pieces. They might pose a question, present a topic, or propose a perspective for the writer to explore.
• Poetry Writing Prompts : These prompts are tailored for writing poetry. They could suggest a theme, a form, a line, or a poetic device to be used in the poem.
• Dialogue Writing Prompts : These prompts focus on conversations and are designed to inspire dialogue-driven pieces. They generally provide a line or a snippet of conversation to act as a starting point.
• Story Starter Writing Prompts : These prompts serve as the opening line or the first paragraph of a story. The writer’s task is to continue the narrative from there.

Understanding the different types of creative writing prompts is essential to making the most of them. For example, when you choose the right type of prompt, you target specific writing skills , push boundaries of creativity, and provide the necessary spark to bring your ideas to life.

25 Creative Writing Prompts

Using creative writing prompts is a great way to jumpstart your creativity and get the ideas flowing. Whether you’re a seasoned writer or a beginner, these prompts can help inspire your next piece. Here, we’ve broken down 25 prompts into five categories: fiction, non-fiction, poetry, dialogue, and story starters.

Fiction Writing Prompts

Fiction allows writers to flex their imaginative muscles. The following prompts can help to stir up new ideas for a unique storyline:

• Write a story where the main character finds an old, mysterious letter in the attic.
• Imagine a world where animals can talk.
• Create a tale where a character discovers they have a superpower.
• Write about a character who wakes up in a different era.
• Write a story set in a world where money doesn’t exist.

Non-Fiction Writing Prompts

Non-fiction writing can help you explore real-life experiences and lessons. Here are some prompts to get you started:

• Write about a time when you faced a significant challenge and how you overcame it.
• Describe the most influential person in your life.
• Share a moment when you learned a valuable lesson.
• Write about an unforgettable trip.
• Discuss a current event that has impacted you personally.

Poetry Writing Prompts

Poetry allows for artistic expression through words. These prompts can inspire new verses:

• Write a poem about a dream you can’t forget.
• Create a sonnet about the changing seasons.
• Write about an emotion without naming it directly.
• Craft a poem inspired by a piece of art.
• Pen a haiku about nature’s power.

Dialogue Writing Prompts

Dialogue writing can help you improve your dialogue creation skills. Try these prompts:

• Write a conversation between two people stuck in an elevator.
• Describe a heated argument between a character and their best friend.
• Create a dialogue where a character reveals a deep secret.
• Write an exchange between a detective and a suspect.
• Craft a conversation between two people who speak different languages.

Story Starter Writing Prompts

Story starters are great for sparking an idea for a story. Here are some to try:

• “When she opened the door, she couldn’t believe her eyes…”
• “He’d waited his whole life for this moment, and now…”
• “It was a town like no other, because…”
• “She was the last person on earth, or so she thought…”
• “The letter arrived, marked with a seal she didn’t recognize…”

These creative writing prompts are designed to challenge you and spark your creativity. Remember, the goal is not to create a perfect piece of writing but to ignite your imagination and hone your writing skills. Also, don’t forget, you can always revise and refine your work later .

For more on the art of writing, check out our article on what is creative writing .

Making the Most of Your Creative Writing Prompts

Now that you have a list of creative writing prompts at your disposal, it’s important to understand how to utilize them effectively. The value of a prompt lies not just in the initial idea it provides, but also in how it can be expanded and developed into a full-blown piece of writing.

How to Use Creative Writing Prompts Effectively

Using creative writing prompts effectively requires an open mind and a willingness to explore. Here are some strategies to make the most of your prompts:

• Brainstorming: Allow yourself to brainstorm ideas after reading the prompt. Jot down whatever comes to mind without self-judgment or censorship.
• Freedom: Give yourself the freedom to interpret the prompt in your own way. Remember, prompts are starting points, not rigid guidelines.
• Experimentation: Experiment with different genres, perspectives, and writing styles. A prompt can be turned into a poem, a short story, or even a script for a play.
• Consistency: Try to write regularly. Whether you choose to do this daily, weekly, or bi-weekly, consistency can help develop your writing skills.
• Reflection: Finally, reflect on the prompt and your writing. Consider what worked, what didn’t, and also what you would like to improve in your next piece.

In addition to this, check out our article on what is creative writing .

Tips to Expand on a Prompt

Expanding on a prompt involves transforming a simple idea into a fully developed narrative. Here are a few tips:

• Character Development: Flesh out your characters. Give them backgrounds, motivations, and flaws to make them more relatable and interesting.
• Plot Building: Develop a coherent plot. Consider the key events, conflicts, and resolutions that will drive your story forward.
• Show, Don’t Tell: Show the reader what’s happening through vivid descriptions and actions rather than simply telling them.
• Dialogue: Use dialogue to reveal character traits and advance the plot. Make sure it’s natural and adds value to your story.
• Editing: Finally review and revise your work. Look for areas where you can improve clarity, tighten your prose, and also eliminate any inconsistencies or errors.

Editor’s Note : Don’t get rid of old ideas or unfinished works – you never know when looking back over these might spark inspiration or two ideas might mesh to form something cohesive and new!

The Right Prompts Grow Your Skills

By using these strategies, you can take full advantage of creative writing prompts and improve your writing skills. So, whether you’re pursuing a career in creative writing or just looking for a new hobby, these tips can help you unlock your full creative potential.

For more insights on creative writing, check out our articles on creative writing jobs and what you can do with a creative writing degree and how to teach creative writing .

Also, don’t miss our master list of more than 250 journal prompts .

Brooks Manley

Creative Primer  is a resource on all things journaling, creativity, and productivity. We’ll help you produce better ideas, get more done, and live a more effective life.

My name is Brooks. I do a ton of journaling, like to think I’m a creative (jury’s out), and spend a lot of time thinking about productivity. I hope these resources and product recommendations serve you well. Reach out if you ever want to chat or let me know about a journal I need to check out!

Here’s my favorite journal for 2024: 

Gratitude Journal Prompts Mindfulness Journal Prompts Journal Prompts for Anxiety Reflective Journal Prompts Healing Journal Prompts Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Journal Prompts Mental Health Journal Prompts ASMR Journal Prompts Manifestation Journal Prompts Self-Care Journal Prompts Morning Journal Prompts Evening Journal Prompts Self-Improvement Journal Prompts Creative Writing Journal Prompts Dream Journal Prompts Relationship Journal Prompts "What If" Journal Prompts New Year Journal Prompts Shadow Work Journal Prompts Journal Prompts for Overcoming Fear Journal Prompts for Dealing with Loss Journal Prompts for Discerning and Decision Making Travel Journal Prompts Fun Journal Prompts

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WEEKLY WRITING PROMPTS

Join (probably?) the world's largest writing contest. Flex those creative muscles with weekly writing prompts.

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Shakespeare, set your story during rehearsals for a production of a shakespeare play..

LIVE – High School

Write a story about a tragic hero.

LIVE – Dramatic

Write a story in which a case of mistaken identity plays a pivotal role.

LIVE – Funny

Write your story in the form of a script, complete with stage directions.

LIVE – Narrative

Write a story named after, and inspired by, one of Shakespeare's plays. Think modern retellings, metanarratives, subversions, etc.

Write a story about two sporting rivals having to work together., write about a moment of defeat., write a story about an underdog, or somebody making a comeback., write about someone who has trained all their life for one moment., set your story in the stands at a major sporting event., write a story about someone finding acceptance., start your story with a character in despair., center your story around a character bargaining for something that's important to them., write a story about anger., write a story about a someone who's in denial., write a story in the format of a gossip column., write a story where an important conversation takes place during a dance., write a story about two characters who start as mortal enemies but learn to embrace their differences., write a story where a rumor starts to spread. your protagonist is either the topic or the source., set your story at a regency-themed fair., 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 #257 LIVE

Enter our weekly contest.

This week's theme: Shakespeare

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Contest entries, closes at 23:59 - jul 05, 2024 est, recent contests ✍️.

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More From Forbes

How and why to improve your creative writing skills as an entrepreneur.

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By John Turner, founder of SeedProd , a popular coming-soon page solution used by over 800,000 websites.

Creative writing is an excellent way to express yourself and stretch the limits of your imagination. In some cases, it might involve composing an email to a colleague. In other instances, it could mean drafting a captivating blog post for your website.

It doesn’t matter if you want to become a top-tier blogger, an award-winning author or simply a better communicator—creative writing can help you hone your skills. In my case, it is paramount to my success as a business leader. I have to flex my creativity when I'm writing company emails, reaching out to partners and connecting with new prospects. I've found the ability to think outside the box has led to long-term benefits, such as greater self-confidence, both professionally and personally.

Here are five actionable strategies I've used that can help you take your creative writing skills to the next level:

Read often.

If you want to become a better writer, you should first find more time to read. Reading other people’s work allows you to experience different writing styles, tones and formats. Consuming creative content can also expand your vocabulary, improve your comprehension and help you fine-tune your sentence structure.

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I suggest creating a running list of things you would like to read. Next, set a 20-minute time block every day where you're committed to sitting down and reading. Since my schedule is usually jam-packed, this time management strategy has helped me stay on track, even during hectic months.

Work through the list at a reasonable pace, and there’s a good chance you’ll see your creative writing skills bloom.

Practice writing every day.

Once you get into the habit of reading daily, take an extra 10 to 20 minutes to practice writing. Like most skills, writing improves over time. The more time you spend brainstorming and writing down your thoughts and ideas in vivid detail, the better you’ll become.

Everyone has a different writing medium they prefer. Some people like traditional diaries, others have turned to digital journals, while others use public forums like social media to express themselves creatively. Experiment with these options, and you’ll likely start to find writing easier and more engaging.

If you're not sure where to start, I suggest writing about things you're passionate about, even if it's not directly business-related. As you gain experience and confidence, start experimenting by researching various business writing prompts. Eventually, you can test your creative skills by applying what you've learned to your day-to-day and email and company chat channels.

Get out of your comfort zone.

Now that you have made a regular reading list and started writing, it’s time to step out of your comfort zone. This usually means drafting something other people can read and critique.

How you get out of your comfort zone will vary based on your long-term goals and interests. Here are a few ideas to help you get started:

• Write short stories for websites like Medium. These platforms are excellent for gathering constructive feedback and improving your work.

• Publish guest posts on sites that are relevant to your industry.

• Interact with people on social media. Take your time and craft thoughtful, engaging responses.

• Allow friends and family to read your written work and share their thoughts.

• Join writing communities through LinkedIn or standalone sites. Connect with other new writers as well as experienced experts so you can hone your craft.

I know it's not easy to leave your comfort zone. If you're feeling hesitant, I recommend blocking a section of your time each day to mix things up and work on a writing task that makes you uncomfortable. Before long, you'll start to make progress.

Use brainstorming tools.

I've found that brainstorming tools can dramatically speed up your writing process and help improve your skills. Some writers have taken to artificial intelligence to get writing prompts and guidance on their journey. It’s not hard to imagine why this is the case. AI can give immediate output when asked for specific prompts and general advice.

However, you should also consider the benefits of other brainstorming tools, like mind mapping and word association. These strategies can help you overcome writer’s block and stay on track. In my experience, tools like this simplify the brainstorming process, which means you have more time to write.

Practice editing.

Finally, editing is just as important as writing. If you’re not regularly editing your own work, your skills could begin to stagnate. It’s hard to improve if you can’t identify mistakes and actively improve.

Editing allows you to spot and correct errors before your writing is available for the world to read. As you practice, you’ll get a sharper eye for detail, which will help speed up your accuracy and performance in the future.

My best advice is to wait at least one full day before you edit your writing. In my experience, a little bit of breathing room before editing makes it much easier to spot mistakes and give your writing the polish it needs to thrive.

You should also avoid relying too heavily on grammar tools to edit your work. I believe that people who use these tools too much don’t flex their editing skills as often, which usually means their writing isn’t as refined as those who self-edit.

As you can see, creative writing is an involved process that takes time and plenty of patience. You probably won’t become an award-winning writer overnight, but you can eventually get there if you’re willing to do the work. The tips presented today have helped me improve my writing over the years; I’m confident you can achieve similar results.

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101 Creative Writing Prompts: Spark your Inspiration

Explore creativity with our blog featuring 101 Creative Writing Prompts, spanning from fiction to poetry. Ignite your imagination and enhance your writing skills. Our curated Prompts offer endless inspiration for Writers of all levels. Unleash your inner wordsmith and craft compelling tales with the power of Creative Writing Prompts.

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Prompts ensure stories stay fresh and varied. They challenge Writers, push boundaries, encourage new perspectives and transform the blank canvas. Read this blog to spark your imagination with our collection of 101 unique Creative Writing Prompts designed from fiction to poetry. 

Table of contents  

1) What do you understand by a Writing Prompt?

2) How often are Writing Prompts used?

3) The essence of short Creative Writing Prompts 

4) Types of Creative Writing Prompts 

5) 101 Creative Writing Prompts 

6) Conclusion 

What do you understand by a Writing Prompt?

Writing Prompts often help Authors and Writers to practice and hone their writing skills. These Prompts are generally a selection of topics that can improve creative thinking and provide inspiration to write your own story. These Prompts give you the push that helps you to write your book, journal, etc. Sometimes, Nature or random scenarios can also inspire you to write.  

How often are Writing Prompts used?

Writing Prompts can be used as many times as the Author or the Writer wants. These Prompts are provided so that your thoughts can go up and running with your next story. However, there are some Writers who do not use Writing Prompts at all or use them only for a few instances. It depends entirely on that individual person what is essential for them to start writing.

The essence of short Creative Writing Prompts  

Short Creative Writing Prompts serve a unique purpose because they ignite imagination swiftly. Each Prompt is a spark through which ideas burst into flame. Writers benefit immensely from this brevity because it challenges their creativity. With the help of these Prompts, ideas get condensed yet impactful. 

A concise Prompt provides clear direction. It cuts through ambiguity and sets the tone quickly. With the help of these Prompts, Writers don’t wade through excess and dive straight into the core. This immediacy fuels spontaneous creativity, and it nurtures out-of-the-box thinking. 

Short Prompts also aid versatility since they fit various genres and styles. They can quickly adapt, whether fantasy, drama, or romance. This flexibility enriches a Writer's repertoire and teaches conciseness. With limited cues, every word count translates into crisp, engaging stories.

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Types of Creative Writing Prompts  

b) Character-driven Prompts: These revolve around a particular character or a trait.  

c) Setting-focused Prompts: As the name suggests, these revolve around a place or time. These Prompts offer a backdrop for stories to unfold. 

d) Dialogue Prompts: These are initiated by a piece of dialogue. A conversation snippet can set the tone, theme, or direction of a story. 

e)  Theme-centric Prompts: These Prompts revolve around a specific theme, such as love, betrayal, or discovery. 

f) Visual Prompts: These are based on images, art, or any visual stimuli. 

g) Sensory Prompts: Rooted in sensory experiences – be it taste, touch, sound, sight, or smell. They inspire Writers to craft stories that immerse readers in a rich sensory world. 

h) Abstract Prompts: These are often open-ended, vague, or surreal. They push Writers to interpret them in unique ways, leading to diverse and creative outputs. 

i) Historical Prompts: Set in specific historical periods, they provide a blend of factual settings with fictional elements. They are gateways to bygone eras. 

j) First-line Prompts: These offer the opening line of a story. The challenge lies in taking that line and building an entire narrative around it. 

101 Creative Writing Prompts  

From hushed whispers around campfires to sprawling epics on printed pages, stories shape our world. Yet, even the most prolific storytellers occasionally find themselves at a crossroads, yearning for a spark to reignite their narrative flame. Enter the realm of Creative Writing Prompts: these short, evocative suggestions or ideas are designed to kickstart your imagination. 

Grouped under diverse subheadings, each Prompt is a gateway, opening doors to myriad tales waiting to be told. Let's start our journey of 101 Creative Writing Prompts.

Atmospheric settings  

Atmospheric settings provide stories with mood and tone. They transport readers to unique worlds, evoking specific emotions. Here, the environment isn't just a backdrop; it's a character. Let’s have a look at these Prompts. 

a) A town where it never stops raining.   Benefit: Encourages themes of persistence, melancholy, or mystery. Great for introspective or mood-driven stories. 

b) Deserts with rivers of shimmering starlight.   Benefit: Blends the vast emptiness with magic. Perfect for fantasy or spiritual journeys. 

c) High-rise buildings that touch the clouds.   Benefit: Explores contrasts between urban life and nature. Ideal for tales of ambition or escape. 

d) Forests where trees glow by night.   Benefit: Introduces elements of enchantment and wonder. Suitable for fairy tales or adventures. 

e) Islands that float above the ocean.   Benefit: Challenges the norms of gravity and geography. Inspires stories of discovery or isolation. 

f) Caves that echo with forgotten songs.   Benefit: Invokes a sense of history and timelessness. Best for ancestral tales or uncovering secrets. 

g) Mountains that change colour with one's mood.   Benefit: Connects nature with human emotions. Ideal for character-driven stories or introspections. 

h) An old village trapped in perpetual twilight.   Benefit: Sets a mysterious or eerie tone. Great for thrillers or historical tales. 

i) Fields where flowers bloom under moonlight.   Benefit: Offers a serene and peaceful backdrop. Suitable for romance or gentle reflections. 

j) An icy tundra with auroras that tell stories.   Benefit: Merges harshness with beauty. Ideal for tales of survival or legends. 

Using these settings, Writers can instantly establish mood, making readers more immersed in the narrative's world. 

Conversations and dialogue  

b) They don't sing; they communicate in colour. Benefit: Suggests an unconventional form of communication. Ideal for creating alien or fantasy cultures.  

c) The shadows here have memories. Benefit: Brings an eerie or introspective tone. Great for thrillers or ghost stories.  

d) You can't bottle the wind, but I did. Benefit: Combines natural elements with impossibility. Inspires tales of inventiveness or fantasy.  

e) Every time I blink, I see a different era. Benefit: Introduces time travel or visions. Perfect for historical jumps or sci-fi.  

f) Whispers? No, the trees are screaming. Benefit: Transforms a tranquil setting into something intense. Suitable for suspense or environmental tales.  

g) Your reflection is not you anymore. Benefit: Challenges identity or introduces doppelgangers. Ideal for psychological or horror stories.  

h) The stars have stopped blinking. Benefit: Highlights a change in the cosmos. Great for sci-fi or end-of-the-world scenarios.  

i) Dreams? More like messages from the ocean. Benefit: Connects natural elements with the subconscious. Suitable for mystical or deep-sea adventures.  

j) This compass doesn't point north; it points to the truth. ​Benefit: Introduces a quest or moral journey. Ideal for adventure or philosophical tales.  

Engaging dialogues not only move the story but also captivate readers, making them eager for the next exchange. 

Intriguing characters  

b) A thief who steals only from other thieves. Benefit: Challenges traditional moralities. Perfect for heist stories or vigilante tales.  

c) A child who speaks only in poetic verse. Benefit: Offers a lyrical and artistic tone. Suitable for literary fiction or fairy tales.  

d) A detective who can't recognize faces. Benefit: Combines professional skills with personal challenges. Great for crime or mystery genres.  

e) An astronaut afraid of the dark. Benefit: Merges bravery with vulnerability. Ideal for space adventures or psychological tales.  

f) A chef who can taste people's emotions. Benefit: Mixes culinary arts with emotional depth. Perfect for romance or drama.  

g) A painter who creates landscapes of unseen worlds. Benefit: Introduces fantastical or alien elements. Suitable for sci-fi or fantasy stories.  

h) A musician whose melodies can heal or harm. Benefit: Incorporates the power of music. Ideal for adventures or moral dilemmas.  

i) A gardener whose plants whisper secrets. Benefit: Brings nature into play in unexpected ways. Great for mysteries or urban fantasies.  

j) A clockmaker whose creations can manipulate time. ​Benefit: Merges craftsmanship with time-travel. Perfect for historical fiction or thrillers.   Characters form the bridge between readers and the narrative world, making their intricacies vital for a story's success. 

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Thematic inspirations  

b) A society that celebrates failures, not successes.   Benefit: Challenges conventional norms. Great for introspective or societal critique stories. 

c) A place where ageing happens backward .  Benefit: Reimagines life's stages. Suitable for philosophical or fantasy genres. 

d) An arena where debates replace physical battles. Benefit: Highlights the power of words. Perfect for political or intellectual narratives.  

e) A town that forbids any form of art. Benefit: Investigates artistic expression's importance. Ideal for cultural or rebellious tales.  

f) A land where shadows determine one's fate. Benefit: Uses symbolism for destiny. Suitable for fantasy or psychological stories.  

g) A city where emotions are currency. Benefit: Examines emotional value. Perfect for speculative fiction or emotional dramas.  

h) A realm where seasons reflect collective moods. Benefit: Connects nature with societal feelings. Great for allegorical or magical realism tales.  

i) A universe where every choice splits reality. Benefit: Explores decision-making consequences. Ideal for sci-fi or existential narratives.  

j) A community that believes dreams are shared memories. ​Benefit: Merges subconscious with communal bonds. Suitable for mystery or fantasy genres.  

Themes anchor stories, giving readers something to ponder long after they've turned the last page. 

Visual imagery  

b) Ruins overgrown with roses and thorns. Benefit: Combines beauty with decay. Suitable for historical or tragic narratives.  

c) A cityscape reflected in countless puddles. Benefit: Showcases urban life's duality. Perfect for noir or introspective stories.  

d) Endless sand dunes punctuated by lone oases. Benefit: Presents isolation and hope. Ideal for survival or adventure tales.  

e) A night sky with constellations constantly shifting. Benefit: Infuses wonder and change. Suitable for cosmic or philosophical genres.  

f) A sea of clouds viewed from a mountaintop. Benefit: Elevates perspective and dreams. Great for quest or coming-of-age narratives.  

g) A labyrinth made entirely of mirrors. Benefit: Explores self-reflection and mystery. Perfect for psychological or fantasy stories.  

h) A town square where statues come alive at dusk. Benefit: Merges realism with magic. Ideal for urban fantasy or historical tales.  

i) A river that flows with liquid crystal. Benefit: Creates a mesmerizing, radiant setting. Suitable for adventure or allegorical stories.  

j) A forest with trees bearing fruit of pure gold. ​Benefit: Introduces elements of temptation and wealth. Great for moral dilemmas or quests.  

Dive into these visual canvases, letting them guide your narrative's tone, setting, and mood. 

Mystical and magical  

b) A library where books whisper their stories. Benefit: Combines love for literature with enchantment. Perfect for adventure or metafiction.  

c) A market that sells bottled emotions. Benefit: Examines human feelings tangibly. Suitable for fantasy or emotional journeys.  

d) A clock that ticks backwards during a full moon. Benefit: Introduces time anomalies. Great for mystery or time-travel stories.  

e) A fountain where each drop tells a different story. Benefit: Showcases a multitude of tales. Ideal for an anthology or interconnected narratives.  

f) A garden where flowers bloom with spoken secrets. Benefit: Merges nature with confidentiality. Perfect for romantic or detective tales.  

g) A mirror that reflects alternate life choices. Benefit: Explores the "what ifs" of decisions. Suitable for philosophical or drama stories.  

h) A music box that traps and releases dreams. Benefit: Transforms dreams into melodies. Great for lullabies or fantasy adventures.  

i) An inn where rooms lead to different realms. Benefit: Connects diverse universes. Ideal for multiverse or portal fiction.  

j) A quill that writes in the future tense. ​Benefit: Narrates events yet to unfold. Perfect for prophetic or speculative tales.  

Embrace the charm and wonder of these mystical Prompts, letting magic weave its spell through your stories. 

Historical and time-based  

b) A watch that stops time during sunsets. Benefit: Combines natural beauty with time manipulation. Perfect for romance or adventure tales.  

c) An underground speakeasy in the 1920s. Benefit: Sets a vibrant, rebellious atmosphere. Suitable for crime or jazz-era stories.  

d) A gladiator's last moments before the Colosseum battle. Benefit: Highlights tension and historical grandeur. Great for action or dramatic recounts.  

e) A ship's diary from the Age of Exploration. Benefit: Takes readers on oceanic adventures. Ideal for discovery or survival tales.  

f) A tea ceremony in feudal Japan. Benefit: Immerses in cultural and aesthetic richness. Perfect for drama or historical romance.  

g) A forbidden romance during the Renaissance. Benefit: Melds art, culture, and passion. Suitable for romance or historical fiction.  

h) A train ride on the Orient Express in its prime. Benefit: Combines luxury with mystery. Great for detective or period dramas.  

i) The diary of a soldier in a forgotten war. Benefit: Gives voice to untold stories. Ideal for war narratives or emotional tales.  

j) A stolen artefact that alters historical events. ​Benefit: Challenges known history. Perfect for alternative history or time-travel adventures.  

Travel through these temporal doorways, crafting stories that bridge past, present, and sometimes, even the future. 

Human emotions and relationships  

b) Two strangers sharing an umbrella during a downpour. Benefit: Sparks unexpected connections. Perfect for romance or slice-of-life stories.  

c) A diary capturing a lifelong unrequited love. Benefit: Delves into deep emotional landscapes. Suitable for romance or tragic tales.  

d) Siblings rediscovering each other after decades apart. Benefit: Chronicles family bonds and reunions. Great for drama or emotional journeys.  

e) A handshake that transfers a day from one's life. Benefit: Examines life's value and connection. Ideal for philosophical or fantasy stories.  

f) A cafe where patrons trade stories, not money. Benefit: Celebrates the power of shared tales. Perfect for anthology or interconnected narratives.  

g) A song that makes listeners relive their happiest memories. Benefit: Infuses nostalgia and joy. Suitable for musical or emotional stories.  

h) A letter of apology delivered ten years late. Benefit: Confronts past mistakes and redemption. Great for drama or mystery tales.  

i) A locket that shows the wearer's future soulmate. Benefit: Merges fate and romance. Ideal for romantic fantasy or adventure.  

j) An argument seen from both perspectives. ​ Benefit: Highlights understanding and empathy. Perfect for introspective or relational tales.  

By tapping into the vast sea of human emotions, Writers craft tales that tug at the heartstrings, reminding readers of the intricate tapestry of human connections. 

Nature and the universe  

b) Meteor showers that bring forgotten memories to Earth. Benefit: Combines cosmic events with personal nostalgia. Suitable for introspective or fantasy stories.  

c) A mountain peak where stars can be plucked. Benefit: Creates a setting of celestial wonder. Great for adventure or philosophical narratives.  

d) An ocean that reflects not the sky but galaxies beyond. Benefit: Expands the perspective of the cosmos. Ideal for sci-fi or deep-sea tales.  

e) A forest where each leaf represents a different world. Benefit: Offers endless worlds to explore. Perfect for portal or multiverse adventures.  

f) Deserts with sands that can tell the future. Benefit: Introduces an element of prophecy. Suitable for fantasy or adventure stories.  

g) A lagoon lit solely by bioluminescent constellations. Benefit: Merges natural beauty with starry wonder. Great for romance or fantasy tales.  

h) A wind that whispers stories from other planets. Benefit: Breathes life into extraterrestrial tales. Ideal for sci-fi or adventure stories.  

i) A flower that blooms once every solar eclipse. Benefit: Intertwines rare cosmic and natural events. Perfect for mystery or romance tales.  

j) Caves that lead to the centre of a miniature universe. ​Benefit: Fuses cosmic scale with earthly exploration. Suitable for sci-fi or philosophical stories.  

Venture into these Prompts, letting the awe of nature and the universe fuel your tales' imagination and depth. 

Twists on reality  

b) Streets where reflections dictate the real world's actions.   Benefit: Reverses perceptions of control. Suitable for mystery or philosophical stories. 

c) Rain that imparts knowledge of a random skill. Benefit: Merges nature with knowledge acquisition. Great for speculative fiction or adventure.  

d) Clocks that measure experiences, not time. Benefit: Redefines life's value metrics. Ideal for introspective or alternative reality tales.  

e) Books where characters interact with readers. Benefit: Breaks the fourth wall, engaging directly. Perfect for metafiction or interactive stories.  

f) Mirrors that show what you could become, not what you are. Benefit: Projects potential futures and choices. Suitable for drama or speculative tales.  

g) A city where every door leads to a past memory. Benefit: Blends architecture with personal history. Great for emotional or mystery stories.  

h Music that can physically shape surroundings. Benefit: Fuses auditory experiences with tangible change. Ideal for magical realism or fantasy.  

i) Rivers flowing with stories instead of water. Benefit: Turns natural elements into narrative carriers. Perfect for allegorical or fantasy tales.  

j) Dreams that become reality for a day. Benefit: Examines the consequences of innermost desires. Suitable for drama or adventure stories.  

k) A market where thoughts, not goods, are bartered. ​Benefit: Explores the value of ideas and memories. Ideal for philosophical tales or speculative fiction.  

With these Prompts, Writers can challenge and reshape the contours of reality, crafting tales that linger long after the final word. 

Conclusion  

With platforms like Twitter enforcing a 280-character limit, Writers embraced compact Prompts to create micro-tales and poems, boosting the concept's popularity. This is where Creative Writing Prompts come in. Many believe Prompts are a novice's tool. That's a misconception. Even literary greats have sought inspiration. They've turned to Prompts, themes, or muses. From an abyss of uncertainty to a world of possibilities. 

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Frequently Asked Questions

Four major steps are important in Creative Writing. These steps are:

a) Prewriting

b) Drafting

c) Revising

d) Editing  

There are various types of Creative Writing including:

f) Short stories

g) Speeches

i) Personal essays

j) Novellas  

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• What Is NaNoWriMo? Top 7 Tips to Ace the Writing Marathon
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• Tags: Fiction Writing , Novel , Novel Writing , Short Story Poetry

Do you wish to write but don’t know how to start? If you have writer’s block, this article is for you! This article includes 100 plus creative writing prompts across all genres to kickstart your writing journey. 

From horror writing prompts to fantasy writing prompts, we’ve covered everything for you! Before we see examples of writing prompts, let’s quickly understand the meaning of writing prompts. 

Ready to take your writing to the next level? Learn more

What are writing prompts? 

A writing prompt is a simple topic idea to inspire the writer to get the first words on the page. It can be a picture, a line from a poem, or an imaginary scenario. Writing prompts can be abstract, realistic, evocative, thought-provoking, insightful, or descriptive. 

Dive in to see exciting writing prompts from various genres! These also include many creative writing prompts for adults.

1. Horror writing prompts 

1) A man inside the coffin breaks the coffin and starts walking. 

2) A demonic spirit has entered your friend’s body and she is moving closer to attack you. 

3) You wake up in an empty house and see a ghost. 

4) A doll you brought for a friend suddenly starts speaking. 

5)  You suddenly see a man who was supposed to have died in 1900. 

6) A vampire you saw in your dream kidnaps you in real life. 

7) You are awakened by drops of blood falling on your face. 

8) You have an accident and suddenly see a centaur who has a half-human, half-animal face. 

9)  You are walking in the forest and witness a shocking ritual where people are drinking blood. 

10) You wear an old ring you found after which something terrible keeps happening to you. 

11) An excavator finds an old mummy while digging which tries to grab him. 

Now let’s see some of the best creative writing prompts for adults and kids for journaling, 

2. Journal writing prompts 

1) Describe a childhood memory that always makes you smile. 

2) Write about a dream you had that you can never forget. 

3) Recount your biggest challenge and what you learned from it. 

4) Name three people who inspire you the most and why. 

5) Pen a letter to yourself and describe your accomplishments and future goals. 

6) Explain what would you like to change if you had a chance to go back in time. 

7) Narrate an incident where the kindness of strangers moved you. 

8) Express in detail some of your best memories with school friends. 

9) List five activities you love to do and your efforts to perform those activities. 

10) Tell in detail about your favorite travel destination. 

11) Describe your most challenging times and how you overcame them. 

If you wish to explore writing about mysteries, the following are some creative prompts about mysteries. 

3. Mystery writing prompts 

1) Ten scientists die on the same day and a Scotland Yard detective is assigned to find out why. 

2) A top bureaucrat starts getting anonymous threatening notes and decides to investigate. 

3) A retired police officer decides to play detective and solve the case of his granddaughter’s death. 

4) A private investigator is assigned to find the truth about a journalist who went missing.

5)  A meteor strikes a village after which people start falling sick. 

6) An archaeologist finds a document about a cursed treasure and decides to find out the truth. 

7) A young boy hears screams from a tower and sees torch lights flashing in the dark. 

8) A factory burns and an investigator finds out whether the fire was caused naturally or intentionally. 

9) A girl inquires to understand why her dog was shot and discovers a shocking truth. 

10) A son promises his mother to uncover the reason behind his sister’s suicide. 

11) A police inspector has to solve the murder case of an orphan who was earlier arrested in a drug case. 

4. Romance writing prompts 

1) A girl falls in love with a video gamer she met in college.  

2) A 70-year-old realizes that he has fallen in love with a woman he met at an old age home. 

3) A man meets his childhood crush after years and tries to woo her once more. 

4)  Two best friends decide to experiment and set up a double date. 

5) Give a love story to a person whom everyone assumes to be a villain. 

6) Pen a romance story with the words affair, flirting, infatuation, and fling. 

7) A man who has a phobia of getting married meets a girl with a similar fear. 

8) Write a love story of two people staying in two different countries. 

9) Two employees from rival companies fall in love. 

10) A paramedic falls in love with a spy whose life she saves. She later realizes that he will soon embark on a dangerous mission. 

11) Write a love story of a librarian and a time-traveler. 

Instead of writing about romance, you might be interested in the science fiction genre. Given below are some creative prompts related to science fiction. 

5. Science fiction writing prompts 

1) Two scientists invent a machine that can control and manipulate weather. 

2) An astronaut flies to the planet Jupiter and discovers alien life. 

3) An archaeologist finds an old book about a magical time travel ritual and uses that ritual to go back in time. 

4) A young boy finds a hidden library of science books and is trapped inside the library. 

5) A science teacher decides to take revenge against the government by performing a dangerous science experiment. 

6) A jailed scientist uses science to escape and prove his innocence. 

7) A science geek creates an AI program that can hack the data of government and private organizations without leaving a trace. 

8) A spaceship is pulled into another universe by an unknown force and aliens are planning to invade the Earth. 

9) A scientist designs a robot that looks and talks exactly like the country’s President and plans to kill the real President. 

10) To reduce population, a crazy scientist makes a deadly plan to release a virus into the air. 

11) A chemistry professor creates a dangerous solution that can massively change the genes of animals and humans. 

If science fiction is not your cup of tea and you love fantasy, here are some creative writing prompts about fantasy. 

6. Fantasy writing prompts 

1) An archaeologist enters a magical world of dragons and is unable to return to Earth. 

2) A tribal girl develops fairy wings and she is later assigned the task to save the fairy race from extinction. 

3) A man discovers a magical dream shop where dreams are sold to change reality. 

4) A musician visits a hidden world and finds a magical flute that can hypnotize people and make them stand still. 

5) A boy finds a small dwarf in his garden who shows him the train to travel to parallel universes. 

6) A woman finds the feather of a rare bird, using which she enters the world of lost secrets. 

7) A college student falls in love with a cursed mermaid and travels to her land to free her from the curse. 

8) An excavator opens a door and arrives in the land where destinies are written. 

9) A man unintentionally awakens a sleeping devil who creates a new world and new citizens to destroy the earth. 

10) A girl realizes that she has the power to control stars and is pulled into a world of demons and monsters. 

11) A fairy falls in love with a human and must convince Fairyland to accept her love and let her go. 

You might also have an interest in writing poems about various topics. For poetry lovers, the following are some of the best creative writing prompts. 

7. Poetry writing prompts 

1) Write a poem about your favorite fairy tale as a child. 

2) Describe an unforgettable memory with your first crush in a poem. 

3) Pen a poem about a stray dog who became your best friend. 

4) Craft a poem about the beauty of witnessing fireflies in the dark. 

5) Explore the sadness of losing touch with school classmates in a poem. 

6) Narrate an incident about a memorable dance you saw in a poem. 

7) Write a poem that has the quote “Tough times never last but tough people do”. 

8) Compose a poem on a special gift you received and its importance. 

9) Pen a poem about your favorite cartoon character. 

10) Write a poem about how a person who passed away inspired you in life. 

11) Compose a poem about a magical land where you wish to go. 

If you love to write on light-hearted, funny topics, given below are some of the best writing prompts for you! 

8. Funny writing prompts 

1) Jot down a hilarious conversation between a madman and a witty parrot. 

2) Create a funny story about how a person is forced to communicate with a stranger who doesn’t understand English. 

3) Write a funny dialogue about a person who says something wrong at the most inappropriate time. 

4) Describe a prank where you created a savory dish that looked like chocolate and made your friend taste it. 

5) Write a humorous conversation between a standup comedian and an angry spectator. 

6) Pen a story about a disaster that takes place because a scientist forgot to add a valuable component to an experiment. 

7) Craft a funny story about a brother who takes revenge on his sister for revealing his girlfriend to his parents. 

8) Imagine a funny situation where a friend tries to copy everything you do to irritate you and write about it. 

9) Write about a funny incident when you received a parcel you hadn’t ordered.

10) Narrate an incident about a funny costume party where everyone was dressed up as different animals.  

11) Write about a comic incident where an aunt asked you to take responsibility for her son while she was away. However, the son ends up in prison. 

9. Short story writing prompts 

1) Write a short story about a ship that mysteriously sank in the ocean. 

2) Pen a short story about a girl who has synesthesia and sees colors around people. 

3) Craft a short story about a mountaineer who decides to climb Mount Everest. 

4) Develop a short story about a road trip gone wrong. 

5) Write a short story about what happens when a government official finds out about a dangerous secret. 

6) Create a short story about a detective who disguises himself and is discovered. 

7) Pen a short story about a businessman with a big scar and a twisted lip. 

8) Write a short story about how a boy discovers a magical wishing feather after which his every wish comes true. 

9) Develop a short story about a blind man who takes revenge for an insult. 

10) Craft a short story about an eagle who saves a jungle from being destroyed. 

11) Write a short story about the last living princess who makes a mark on the world. 

If you wish to explore historical fiction instead, here are some of the best writing prompts for you! 

10. Historical fiction writing prompts 

1) A librarian discovers a shocking secret about the Second World War which can change the future of the USA and Russia. 

2) Write a story about a mirror that talks about an ancient era and reveals a secret about that era. 

3) Craft a tale about a poet who wrote about the Red Indians. 

4) A political leader begins a movement to get recognition for a lesser-known historical figure, resulting in controversy. 

5) An excavator finds a valuable artifact from the Mayan civilization that could affect the world’s future. 

6) A girl realizes that she is the last living descendant of a French queen and must protect a family secret at all costs. 

7) A bureaucrat finds a diary about a man who suffered during the Great Depression and resolves to make amends. 

8) A boy has dreams about the First World War and decides to solve the mystery of his dreams. 

9) A tribe decides to get back a valuable historical artifact stolen from them. 

10) A historian finds out about the most dangerous escape of an American soldier. 

11) A girl discovers a magical portal that transports her to the 18th century.  

Now that you’ve understood what are writing prompts, you can use one prompt daily and start writing. The next step after writing is editing. As providers of editing and proofreading services , we’d love to help you edit and perfect your writing! 

We realize how writing and editing can be challenging tasks. Here are some resources to enhance your writing: 

• The dynamics of Christian book editing and proofreading
• What Is Developmental Editing? A Self-Editing Checklist
• How to Write a Novel in Past Tense? 3 Steps & Examples

Frequently Asked Questions

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111 Creative Writing Prompts to Inspire You

By ali luke.

Maybe writing comes easily to you. You simply sit down at your computer, open up a document, and the ideas—and the words—flow instantly. No? That’s not how it goes for me either!

Like most writers, I have days when I feel completely uninspired. Even looking at my novel in progress feels daunting. Writing prompts make a great warm-up if you’re struggling to get into writing mode. They can be lots of fun and even give you short story ideas.

Table of Contents

What is a writing prompt?

A writing prompt can be anything from a word to a few sentences. It’s perfect when you’re wondering what to write about.

Writing prompts aren’t quite the same as writing exercises.

If you’ve taken a creative writing course (or read a book that includes exercises), these are usually designed to help you learn how to write fiction by practicing different skills—like showing instead of telling, or writing great dialogue .

While there’s certainly some overlap between writing prompts and writing exercises, writing prompts are generally starting points for your own creativity . They aim to give you writing inspiration and things to write about.

How To Use Writing Prompts

Using a writing prompt is easy : pick a prompt, and write. There’s no right or wrong way to use them.

Prompts can help you “warm up” at the start of a writing session. They can get you moving again when you’re stuck partway through a story (one-word prompts are great for this). Story prompts can even help you come up with new short story ideas.

Most of the prompts I’ve listed are fiction writing prompts but the one-word prompts could work well for non-fiction too. I’ve also included ten non-fiction prompts.

100+ Writing Prompts

Feel free to alter the prompts if that suits you better. E.g. change the gender, age, or number of characters involved in a situation, or combine two or more prompts.

Fiction Writing Prompts

• Three teenage children are left alone at home all summer.
• A man flicks idly through a newspaper while waiting for a doctor’s appointment. He reads about a crime…and realizes he knows who did it.
• While digging in the garden of her newly bought house, a woman uncovers a pile of bones.
• A group of people met at summer camp as teenagers a decade ago. They hoped never to see one another again. Now, their lives become entwined once more—and they must come to terms with what happened at camp.
• A 40-year-old woman walks away from her former life, taking nothing except the clothes she’s wearing and £1,000 in cash.
• A couple return home after a night out to find all their furniture missing.
• Two children find out a terrifying secret about one of their teachers.
• A family is camping in an isolated cabin when a blizzard begins one evening. They’re miles from any neighbors and the snow has closed the roads. There’s a knock on the door.
• A man in his 50s receives a cryptic crossword in the mail each day. He begins to suspect that whoever’s compiling the crosswords is sending a secret message.
• An ordinary trip to buy groceries goes horribly wrong.

Romance Writing Prompts

• Two strangers marry for a bet between a group of friends in Vegas…and slowly begin to realize they’re falling in love.
• Two highly competitive members of a sales team end up stuck together in a hotel room after their work accommodation plans fall through. They begin to realize they have feelings for one another.
•  A misunderstanding leads to two lifelong friends being mistaken for lovers. This makes them see one another in a new way…
• Two friends agree to a marriage of convenience to surmount a legal hurdle. It’s only intended to be platonic, but then they begin to fall in love.
• A woman on a terrible blind date is rescued by a stranger who pretends to know her to give her an easy way to leave. He’s handsome but unforthcoming.
• Two high school friends meet again many years later in a retirement village. The love they couldn’t admit 50 years ago now flourishes.
• Two strangers sit next to one another (and behind a screaming baby) on a long-haul flight. They’re exchanging numbers when they realize they’re going to be staying at the same hotel.
• One day, a college student who’s always early to class arrives a few minutes later than usual to find his usual chair taken. He ends up sitting next to someone who he’s barely noticed…until now.
• After a very long day at work, a woman finds she’s lost her front door key. She keeps a spare with her neighbor, a spritely grandmother—but when she knocks on the door, she finds a handsome young man there instead.
• Two students in an art class are told to draw “Anything that catches your eye.” At the end of the session, they find that they’ve drawn each other.

Sci-Fi Writing Prompts

• A plane that went missing five years ago lands at a major airport—with all the passengers on board. None of them appear to have aged at all.
• Unsettling new evidence suggests that our universe isn’t expanding, after all. It’s closed in—and it’s being taken somewhere.
• A group of teenage kids are wandering around in the woods behind their neighborhood when they find an abandoned shack. Little do they know they have stumbled upon a portal to another universe.
• In a futuristic society, elective surgery is extremely common, but not just nose jobs and wrinkle correcting. People are adding extra limbs and cartoonish features.
• A new device helps you track your brain’s dopamine levels. Some people become obsessed with mood optimization.
• Each morning for the past week, you’ve received a note with the word “Powerball” and six numbers on it. Each evening, they turn out to be the winning Powerball numbers. Today, you get a similar note, except this one says “LAST CHANCE!” You buy a ticket.
• New technology develops, creating a way for humans to communicate with animals.
• A deadly pandemic kills 95% of people within 24 hours of contracting it—but 5% of people develop mild (but unusual) symptoms before recovering in full. It’s not immediately clear what protects them.
• A spaceship traveling hundreds of lightyears, with children being born, raised, and dying on board, is hijacked.
• A huge alien craft crash lands on Earth, bringing hundreds of refugees from a far-off war.

Fantasy Writing Prompts

• A child discovers they have the ability to rewind time for 10 seconds. They can only use this ability 2 – 3 times per day before being too tired to continue.
• One day, a teenager bunking off school slips and falls in an abandoned quarry—ending up in a deep lake at the bottom. Something lurking beneath the water comes to the rescue.
• A college student brings cookies to a two-hour class. After thirty minutes, the people who’ve eaten cookies realize they can hear one another’s thoughts.
• In a world where dwarves using technology scorn fairies who use magic, it’s discovered that the dwarves’ most impressive work yet is powered by magic.
• An enchanted book makes everything written in it become true, but often in unexpected ways.
• An ancient artifact could destroy the world…and it’s up to a small group of heroes to see that it doesn’t.
• Two friends step through a portal into a different world. Too late, they realize that the portal is only one way.
• A magical coin lets the bearer visit the afterlife and return again, alive. These coins are very rare and very valuable, and forgeries are hard to detect—so royalty often “test” their coins using willing peasants.
• A woman digs a deep pit at a crossroads and buries a name written on a piece of paper. As she does so, the sky turns dark.
• In a very old house, there’s a huge mirror that’s always blurry, however much it’s cleaned. One morning, it isn’t reflecting the room. Instead, there’s another world there, showing up sharp and clear.

“Three Nouns” Writing Prompts

These are inspired by the Writing Exercises “ Take Three Nouns ” prompt generator (though they’re not taken directly from there). The idea is to create a piece of writing that uses all three nouns.

• Computer, sword, grandmother
• Dinner, necklace, tree
• Shed, coffin, backpack
• Meat, audience, tooth
• Beer, virus, birthday
• Sidewalk, potato, shield
• Ship, apple, speech
• Castle, paper, eyes
• Host, knife, egg
• Honey, army, winner

Mystery Writing Prompts

• One man leaves a party early. He turns back 10 minutes later, realizing he’s forgotten his coat. By the time he gets back there, everyone is dead.
• Four friends take part in an escape room adventure to try to get past recent difficulties. But there’s a power cut. The room is plunged into darkness, the cameras stop working, and the emergency exit is jammed shut. By the time the escape room team gets the room open, one of the friends is dead. The other three swear none of them did it.
• A woman moves into a new apartment, only for a visitor to arrive an hour later. He’s looking for the previous visitor and asks, urgently, if they left a small wooden box behind in the top left kitchen cupboard.
• Seven rich Silicon Valley CEOs decide to spend a week in their high-tech, very expensive, impossible-to-break-into bunker, with no phones, laptops, or any contact with the outside world. On the second day, one of them is found stabbed to death. The emergency alert to contact the outside world doesn’t work. Then another CEO is killed, and another.
• Ten banks were broken into simultaneously…with all the security systems mysteriously malfunctioning. All potential eye-witnesses claim not to remember anything from the past few hours.
• A man wakes up on the side of the highway with a phone number scrawled in biro on his arm along with the word “DEVON”. He has no idea how he got there and whether Devon is a person, place, or something else.
• In the middle of the school year, a new student arrives, but no one can figure out where he came from or even who he is. The school administrators simply say, “He’s supposed to be here.”
• Twenty classmates gather for the 21st birthday party of a rich, self-important fellow student none of them liked. His self-driving car pulls up outside but he doesn’t get out. Someone goes to check on him—only to find that he’s dead, with a note pinned to his tux.
• The groom is missing on his wedding day. His bride is a police detective. As her family members try to comfort her, believing she’s been jilted and is in denial, she continues to insist that she’ll find him.
• A woman is surprised when a man comes to the door claiming to be her long-lost twin brother. She’s an only child to two close, loving parents. He gives her a bag containing a map, a letter, and five thousand dollars in cash—then drives away.

Dialogue Writing Prompts

I love writing dialogue, and dialogue prompts can be a great way to spark a story idea as they instantly set you up with two characters—the one speaking, and the one they’re speaking to.

• “That’s not where I left it.”
• “I suppose you think you’re funny, do you?”
• “I swear, I don’t know anything about it.”
• “Come on. You can do better than that.”
• “You’ll really take care of everything for me?”
• “That isn’t how I’d have put it … but, yes.”
• “He’s an even bigger idiot than he looks.”
• “No, I can’t lend you the money.”
• “This is as good as it gets, so enjoy it while it lasts.”
• “I don’t care what you say. I’m not moving.”

Funny Writing Prompts

• A police sergeant’s favorite mug has gone missing at work. He conducts an extremely thorough investigation, complete with interrogating suspects.
• A group of supervillains go on a team-building retreat, with hilarious results.
• You’ve heard of “angel investors”—these startups are funded by “demon investors”…
• Everyone on an ordinary suburban street wins a million dollars on the lottery, simultaneously.
• Elementary school friends promise to marry one another at the age of 35 if they’re still single. It turns out they are…but they discover they’re now very different people.
• Someone who’s an inveterate liar wakes up one day and finds they can’t help blurting out the truth.
• A woman buys a dress in a hurry online to wear for her friend’s wedding, thinking a size 8 will be about right. It turns out to be a child’s dress for an 8-year-old—but she only discovers this while getting ready in her hotel room. She has nothing else to wear.
• After the kids’ pranks get out of hand, a group of teachers decide to get their own back. Unfortunately, no one remembered to give the Principal a heads-up.
• An unfortunate stumble in a museum results in the destruction of two priceless artifacts.
• Three friends in a retirement home suffer from insomnia. They decide to sneak out to a nightclub.

Non-Fiction Narrative Writing Prompts

• Picture a place you love. Write about what you love most about it and why.
• Write about your family’s holiday traditions, particularly anything that’s special or unusual.
• Write about five moments in your life you hope you never forget.
• Write about your most special birthday gift. Why was it so precious? Who gave it to you? Do you still have it?
• Share your best advice for living a happy life, whatever that means for you.
• Tell the story of someone who shaped your life without even knowing it.
• Write about your favorite teacher from childhood and share three things you learned from them.
• Explain how you got started on your favorite hobby. Was it tricky to begin with? What drew you to it?
• Share some of the biggest “lessons learned” in a particular area of your life (e.g. work, studying, parenting).
• Choose a photograph you love and tell the story behind it—perhaps it was a special trip, a birthday party, or someone’s wedding.

One-Word Writing Prompts

• Underground
• Disturbance
• Thunderstorm
• Consequence
• Eclectic  (my favorite word)

Here’s your challenge for today: grab a prompt and set a timer for 5 minutes. See what you can come up with—you just might surprise yourself.

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305 Creative Prompts for Writing: Explore a World of Imagination

By: Author Paul Jenkins

Posted on August 17, 2023

Categories Writing

You’ve hit a wall in your writing and can’t find the ladder to climb over? Don’t fret! Dive into this treasure trove of creative prompts we’ve assembled just for you.

They’ll not only spark your imagination, but also fuel your passion for storytelling. So buckle up, let’s venture into the world of creative prompts together and watch as they transform your writing journey.

Are you ready to unleash your creativity?

Key Takeaways

• Creative prompts serve as an oasis in the face of writer’s block.
• Mind mapping techniques, such as doodling and connecting random words, can boost creativity.
• Unconventional techniques, like writing with the non-dominant hand or narrating to an imaginary audience, can overcome writer’s block.
• Enhancing writing skills involves finding the perfect adjective, expanding vocabulary, and using metaphors.

Creative Prompts for Writing

Here are creative writing prompts for all kinds of creative writing:

Love & Relationships

• Write about your first crush. What did you like about them?
• Imagine you wake up one day as the opposite sex. Describe your day.
• Write a love letter to your partner apologizing for a fight.
• Describe the perfect date you’d take your crush on.
• Write a break-up letter to someone who hurt you.

Nature & The Outdoors

• Describe your favorite place in nature and what you like to do there.
• Imagine you’re camping and hear strange noises at night. Write the scene.
• You’re hiking and come across a beautiful waterfall. Describe it.
• Write about getting lost in the woods and how you found your way out.
• On a nature walk you discover a hidden grove or beach. Describe it.

Challenges & Overcoming Adversity

• Write about a injury or illness you recovered from.
• Describe a time you failed and what you learned from it.
• Imagine you switched places with someone very different from you. Write about your day in their shoes.
• Write about a challenge you overcame that made you stronger.
• Describe a time someone helped you when you were struggling.

Interests & Hobbies

• Explain how to play your favorite sport or game.
• Write a story featuring your favorite book or movie character.
• Describe the process of creating your favorite craft or art project.
• Imagine you could have any superpower. What would it be and how would you use it?
• Write a song or poem about one of your hobbies.

Imagination & Fantasy

• Describe a day in the life of your fantasy self (rockstar, wizard, princess, etc).
• Make up and describe a new mythical creature.
• Write a scene featuring a magic portal that leads somewhere unexpected.
• Craft a story featuring time travel.
• Imagine you find a magic lamp. The genie grants you 3 wishes – what do you wish for?

Travel & Culture

• Write a travel guide for your hometown. What landmarks and activities would you recommend?
• Describe your dream vacation – where would you go and what would you do?
• Imagine you wake up in a foreign country with no idea how you got there. What happens next?
• Narrate a day exploring a new city for the first time.
• Pick a cultural festival or holiday and describe celebrating it.

Memories & Reflection

• Write about your earliest childhood memory.
• Describe a family tradition or celebration.
• Recollect the house or neighborhood where you grew up.
• Pick an object that reminds you of an important memory and write about it.
• Reflect on a major milestone or accomplishment in your life.

Daily Life & Routines

• Explain your morning routine.
• Describe your commute to work or school.
• Narrate a typical day in your life. Don’t leave out any details!
• Write about getting ready for and going to a party or social event.
• Pick an everyday object and write a story about its origins and history.

Food & Cooking

• Write a descriptive essay about a family recipe and its significance.
• Imagine you are a food critic reviewing a new restaurant.
• Describe the most delicious meal you’ve ever eaten.
• Explain, step-by-step, how to cook your specialty dish.
• Craft a story featuring a magic fridge that can produce any food you ask for.

Personal Growth & Goals

• Write a letter to your future self with goals and predictions.
• List 10 things you want to accomplish in the next 5 years.
• Describe a personal quality, skill or virtue you want to cultivate.
• Explain a topic you want to learn more about and why it interests you.
• Write about a place you want to visit and what you would do there.

School & Work

• Imagine you could switch your career or calling. What would you do?
• Describe the most interesting class or workshop you ever took.
• Explain how you overcame a big challenge or obstacle at school or work.
• Narrate a typical day for you at school or your job.
• Describe your dream school, college or workplace. What’s it like?

Family & Friends

• Write a letter to a family member you haven’t seen in a long time.
• Describe a quirky or funny family tradition.
• Craft a story about a childhood adventure you had with friends.
• Write about a friend who impacted your life in a positive way.
• List 10 traits or qualities you appreciate in your best friend.

Neighborhood & Community

• Imagine you are leading a tour of your neighborhood or town. What landmarks would you include?
• Craft a story about discovering something unexpected down the street.
• Pick a local small business and write a positive review.
• Write about a community service experience that had an impact on you.
• Describe your ideal community. What’s it like?

Current Events & Social Issues

• Write a letter to a newspaper about a current event issue you care about.
• Describe how an important news story impacted you or your community.
• Craft a poem expressing your perspective on a social problem.
• Imagine yourself in a leadership role. How would you address a pressing issue?
• Explain why a certain cause or nonprofit matters to you.

Science & Technology

• Speculate on likely future technology and how it will change people’s lives.
• Describe your role model or inspiration in the sciences or tech field. Why do they inspire you?
• Craft a story set 100 years in the future featuring new, imagined technology.
• Explain a complex scientific concept or theory in simple, everyday language.
• Write a poem or metaphor to describe a process in nature.

Good & Evil

• Tell the story of an epic battle between good and evil.
• Craft a tale featuring magic used for good purposes.
• Imagine you can erase one evil person or event from history. Which do you choose and why?
• Write a superhero story featuring a character with an unlikely weakness or vulnerability.
• Describe a villain’s backstory showing how they became evil.

Mysteries & Suspense

• You’re a detective investigating a puzzling crime or mystery. Describe your findings.
• Craft a ghost story set in a haunted house or castle.
• Write a scene where a character realizes they’re being followed. Build suspense.
• Imagine you discover a secret room, passageway or object with a hidden history.
• Narrate a story where an ordinary object turns out to be more than meets the eye.

Humor & Satire

• Describe a comical day where everything goes wrong.
• Craft a scene featuring outrageously bad customer service.
• Imagine a world with silly laws. What funny laws would you make up?
• Write a playful poem or song making light of some everyday annoyance.
• Compose a humorous dialogue between two fictional characters arguing about something trivial.

Historical Fiction

• Rewrite a key historical event from an unusual perspective, like a soldier, servant, etc.
• Imagine yourself as part of an ancient civilization. Describe your daily life.
• Craft a fictional tale featuring figures from mythology or folklore.
• Set a story within a key event or era from history.
• Pick a historical landmark and write a fictional account of its beginnings.

Dystopias & Alternate Worlds

• Describe daily life in a future dystopian society.
• Craft a scene showing the moment a character realizes their “perfect” world isn’t so perfect after all.
• Imagine you discover life is just a simulation. Describe how you uncover the truth.
• Write a tale about someone encountering a portal to an alternate universe or dimension.
• Design your own fantasy or alien world. Describe key elements like geography, culture, creatures, etc.

Self-Improvement & Growth

• List 10 things you appreciate about yourself and why they make you special.
• Imagine your life 5 years from now if you make positive changes. How is it different?
• Describe a personal struggle and how you overcame it.
• Explain how an inspiring figure or mentor impacted your life in a positive way.
• Write about a place you visited or experience you had that led to self-discovery.

Learning & Education

• Outline the plot for an educational children’s book that teaches a lesson.
• Explain a complex idea or theory in your own words as if teaching it.
• Write a how-to guide about one of your skills or areas of expertise.
• Describe the most rewarding class, workshop or training you ever took. Why was it meaningful?
• Imagine you can take any course at a university. What do you study and why?

Loss & Grief

• Write a letter to someone you lost, saying the things you wish you could have said.
• Describe going through the stages of grief after a significant loss.
• Craft a story featuring a support group for people dealing with loss.
• Write about an object or memento that reminds you of a loved one.
• Reflect on how a loss changed your outlook or priorities.

Freedom & Confinement

• Imagine yourself in jail writing about your experience and dreams of freedom.
• Craft a story about someone trapped on a deserted island, trying to escape.
• Describe a character confined to a hospital or their home, and their changing perspective.
• Narrate a prison break scene from the point of view of the escapee.
• Write about finding freedom after an abusive or controlling relationship.
• Compose a tale about a deal with the devil. What are the terms and consequences?
• Craft a redemption story about a villain who turns over a new leaf.
• Imagine being able to peer into someone’s soul. Whose would you look into?
• Write about the gray area between good and evil.
• Describe a character realizing they were on the wrong side of good and evil.

Coming of Age

• Write about a rite of passage or milestone marking your transition to adulthood.
• Craft a bildungsroman novel featuring a character’s journey to maturity.
• Describe moving away from home for the first time.
• Narrate a scene where a character rebels against his or her parents for the first time.
• Reflect on a key life lesson you learned growing up.

Relationships

• Describe the meeting of two characters destined to be together.
• Craft a story centered on a lifelong friendship.
• Write about reconnecting with an old friend or relative after many years apart.
• Imagine characters with contrasting personalities becoming unlikely friends.
• Narrate a scene where two characters have an intense heart-to-heart talk.

Nature & Animals

• Personify an animal or object in nature and write its perspective.
• Craft a mythical legend explaining a natural phenomenon.
• Imagine you can communicate with animals. What do they say?
• Write a poem inspired by a natural object or scene.
• Describe encountering magnificent wildlife on a hike or safari.

Horror & Suspense

• Write a scary campfire story.
• Craft a horror scene using vivid sensory details and suspenseful build up.
• Imagine you notice something sinister about a seemingly ordinary object or place. Describe it.
• Write a thriller featuring mistaken identity or an unreliable narrator.
• Describe the creepy atmosphere of an abandoned building using vivid details.

Fantasy & Dreams

• Describe a vivid dream where magic felt real.
• Craft a fantasy tale set in a world unlike our own.
• Tell the story of someone caught between magical and ordinary worlds.
• Imagine discovering you have supernatural abilities. How do you react?
• Write about a prophecy coming true against all odds.

Culture & Tradition

• Write about a holiday, festival or celebration in your family or culture.
• Craft a legend or fable from another culture explaining something about their values or history.
• Imagine you wake up in another country. How do you manage day-to-day life?
• Write a fish out of water story featuring someone experiencing a foreign culture.
• Describe visiting a cultural landmark. Transport the reader there.

Slice of Life

• Pick an ordinary object and describe its significance in your life.
• Craft a story where small moments build to create meaning.
• Narrate a quiet scene showing time passing.
• Describe a nostalgic memory surrounding food.
• Capture the atmosphere and conversations at a local café or bar.

Flash Fiction

• Write a 50-100 word story with a beginning, middle and end.
• Craft a miniature flash fiction fantasy or sci-fi tale.
• Describe a scene from an unusual perspective in micro fiction form.
• Capture a relatable moment or emotion in a paragraph.
• Challenge yourself to very short fiction – stories under 15 words.

Poetry & Free Verse

• Try your hand at a form like haiku, limerick, sonnet or villanelle.
• Craft a free verse nature poem.
• Use metaphor and imagery to describe a feeling, place or memory.
• Experiment with sound and rhythm in a poem.
• Write a nostalgic poem about childhood.

Fan Fiction

• Explore “what if” scenarios by rewriting scenes from a favorite work.
• Craft a crossover story combining characters from different fictional worlds.
• Write a prequel or sequel to a favorite story.
• Describe a ficitional character’s childhood or backstory.
• Pick an interesting relationship between characters to focus on.
• Record your thoughts, feelings and experiences over a day or week.
• List goals and dreams for the future in a journal entry.
• Describe memories surrounding an old photo, letter or memento.
• Write about your shifting perspective on an important issue.
• Capture a description of someone important in your life.
• Write about a significant or life-changing event from your past.
• Craft a personal essay about an important lesson, insight or realization.
• Describe a place that shaped your childhood or a key period in your past.
• Recount an impactful conversation that stuck with you.
• Reflect on a personal habit, quirk or trait and its origins.

Creative Non-Fiction

• Write a profile of someone fascinating, like a local character in your town.
• Craft a thoughtful review of a book, movie, play or piece of music.
• Describe a place you’ve visited using all five senses. Transport the reader.
• Research an interesting historical figure and write a creative biography.
• Pick a topic that interests you and write an informative guide or “how to” article about it.

Screenwriting

• Outline a plot for a short film or indie movie. Don’t forget key elements like conflict and character arcs.
• Craft a scene showing character relationships through realistic dialogue.
• Imagine a film adaptation of a book. Write or adapt an important scene.
• Describe an opening scene that sets the tone and introduces the story.
• Brainstorm interesting characters, settings and themes that would come together in a compelling story.

Playwriting & Scripts

• Draft a scene for a playscript. Remember stage directions and line breaks for dialogue.
• Craft a monologue revealing a character’s inner thoughts and emotions.
• Imagine a comedic skit parodying everyday life. Outline the premise.
• Write a script for a video project you’d like to create on YouTube or TikTok.
• Plan interviews with interesting people for a podcast episode. Draft sample questions.

Advertising & Marketing

• Craft catchy slogans for imaginary products or campaigns.
• Imagine a commercial for an unlikely or absurd product. Describe the angle.
• Outline a viral social media campaign for a brand.
• Write basic copy for a brochure, mailer, or digital ad. Focus on benefits and persuasive language.
• Brainstorm creative guerilla marketing ideas and stunts that grab public attention.

Business Writing

• Draft a professional email corresponding with a colleague or client.
• Outline a proposal for improving operations at a company.
• Compose meeting minutes, agendas, and notes.
• Create basic templates for documents like expense reports, presentations, etc.
• Practice writing snappy social media posts that promote a brand’s voice.

Technical Writing

• Explain a technical process in simple, clear steps.
• Draft a FAQ page or user manual for a product. Anticipate reader questions.
• Outline a tutorial for software, tools, or a system at work.
• Describe specs for a new technology idea. Get creative.
• Write basic instructions for assembling or repairing a common device or object.
• Write a news article on an imaginary event, with attention to factual detail.
• Craft an editorial or letter to the editor on a current issue.
• Compose a profile of a compelling public figure.
• Interview someone in your field and write up the Q&A.
• Investigate an interesting local place or event and report your findings.
• Draft a blog post that announces news in your industry or niche.
• Create a list-based post with tips and advice for your target readership.
• Write a thoughtful review of a product or service.
• Compose an inspirational personal essay for your blog.
• Outline an idea for a video blog or vlog. What would you discuss on camera?

Other Genres

• Craft a Western, romance, thriller, sci-fi, cozy mystery or other genre tale.
• Outline a plot for a best selling epic novel.
• Describe the climax or key suspenseful scene in a fictional work.
• Imagine key characters and setting details for a future book idea.
• Draft a passage of witty dialogue between fictional characters.

Alternate Storylines

• Explore an alternate storyline for characters from a favorite fictional world.
• Compose a piece of fanfiction focused on “missing moments” from a story.
• Write a crossover scene combining two fictional worlds or characters.
• Create a prequel story about how two characters first met.
• Imagine one fictional world colliding with our real world.

Research Topics

• Outline key points and sources for a research paper.
• Draft an opening thesis statement and outline main arguments.
• Write an informative abstract summarizing your research and findings.
• Craft an annotated bibliography with summaries and assessments of sources.
• Brainstorm research questions on a topic you want to study further.

Persuasive Writing

• Compose a persuasive letter advocating for a cause or issue you care about.
• Outline arguments you would make in a debate speech.
• Draft an op-ed style column making an argument on a current event topic.
• Write a petition to leadership calling for a change or action.
• Craft a script for a video advocating your position on an issue.

Speech Writing

• Draft text for a commencement or graduation speech. Include inspiring advice.
• Compose a tribute speech highlighting someone’s achievements and character.
• Outline main points for a motivational speech to persuade and inspire an audience.
• Script remarks for an awards ceremony or charity gala.
• Brainstorm funny stories, quotes and anecdotes to include in a wedding toast.

Comedy & Humor Writing

• Craft a funny monologue in the style of a standup comedy routine.
• Parody modern life in a satirical news article or sketch.
• Pen a witty dialogue between two oddball characters.
• Describe an absurd imaginary scenario in vivid detail.
• Outline ideas for a comedic YouTube video, TikTok or webcomic.

Freewriting

• Set a timer and write freely without stopping about whatever comes to mind.
• Fill several pages fast with stream-of-consciousness writing.
• Scribble or type any words, thoughts, or phrases that arise.
• List random memories, ideas, dreams, worries, and interests.
• Let your mind wander loosely and follow where it leads.

Morning Pages

• Write 2-3 pages discussing plans, thoughts, and feelings to start your day.
• Jot down dreams you remember from the previous night. Analyze meanings.
• Vent about worries, frustrations, anger or other emotions cluttering your mind.
• Free write about what you hope to accomplish today.
• Make a gratitude list of things you appreciate in your life.

Dream Journaling

• Record any dreams you recall upon waking up. What details can you remember?
• Sketch images, scenes, or symbols that appeared in the dream.
• Reflect on possible meanings, messages, or interpretations of the dream.
• Note emotions you experienced or changes in the dream mood.
• Log any real life concerns that may have sparked dream themes.

Brainstorming

• Make lists of ideas related to a creative project or endeavor.
• Populate mind maps with related concepts and key words surrounding a central topic.
• Fill pages with raw material to gather thoughts on a subject.
• Outline potential scenes for a story- draw inspiration from memories, issues, and imagination.
• Define ongoing lines of inquiry to deeply explore over time in your creative work.

Observation

• Sit somewhere public and write detailed notes about the setting, people, and overheard conversations.
• Pick an object and describe it using all five senses with fresh, vivid language.
• Capture portrait-like descriptions of interesting looking strangers.
• Notice and record small oddities and curiosities around you.
• Document an eavesdropped exchange between two people word for word.

Travel Writing

• Chronicle impressions of a city or country you visited – sights, sounds, people, feelings.
• Compose a virtual tour depicting landmarks and atmosphere of a place you know well.
• Plan an ideal itinerary for visiting a new location – what would you want to do and see?
• Outline a local guide on hidden gems and favorite spots off the tourist trail.
• Capture a particularly impactful or transporting travel experience.

Nature Writing

• Paint a vivid wilderness landscape in words like anature poet. Transport the reader.
• Personify an animal, plant, body of water, land formation or natural force. Give it a voice.
• Reflect on a powerful personal experience in nature and what it meant to you.
• Describe encountering and interacting closely with a wild creature.
• Craft a micro-story from an unusual perspective like a tree, mountain, insect etc.

Food Writing

• Create mouthwatering descriptions of a delicious homecooked meal.
• Compose an ode or love letter to your favorite childhood dish.
• Review a local restaurant like a professional critic.
• Outline a recipe for your personal food specialty. Include prep and cooking instructions.
• Describe the experience and memories surrounding a meaningful family or cultural food tradition.

Wellness Writing

• Explain tips, practices, or philosophy from your particular approach to wellness and self-care.
• Describe your personal struggle and breakthrough with a health challenge.
• Outline a regimen or routine that helps you thrive in body, mind, or spirit.
• Craft a manifesto for living well – what would be the key principles?
• Tell the story of a wellness journey that radically changed your life.

Spirituality & Religion

• Imagine having a conversation with your higher power – what would you say?
• Compose a personal prayer, meditation, or reflection.
• Describe attending a moving religious service or spiritual community gathering.
• Analyze teachings and ethical models from faith traditions you admire. What wisdom resonates?
• Unpack the meaning behind a favorite quote, poem, or passage of spiritual literature.

Exploring the Concept of Creative Prompts

You’re now delving into the concept of creative prompts, aren’t you? It’s like entering an enchanted forest where each tree carries a unique story.

The prompt origin, akin to the seed from which these trees sprout, is often humble – a simple thought or word. Yet, it grows and branches out in your mind, creating a labyrinth of imaginative pathways.

This is the beauty of prompt evolution. What starts off as a vague idea evolves into intricate narratives dancing vividly within your thoughts. It’s akin to watching a magic trick unfold; one moment there’s nothing but silence and emptiness, then suddenly, there’s an explosion of color and life in your mind.

The Importance of Creative Prompts in Writing

Imagine yourself standing at the precipice of a creative drought. Your mind is as barren as a desert, with words refusing to take form. You’re not alone in this battle against the infamous writer’s block!

Now, let’s plunge into this riveting discussion on how creative prompts become your oasis. They boost your creativity, shatter the invisible walls of writer’s block, and enhance your writing skills like never before.

Boosting Creativity

Boosting creativity isn’t just about thinking outside the box. It’s also about embracing your unique perspectives and ideas. You’re a wellspring of originality waiting to be tapped.

Creativity cultivation is an art, not a science. Each person has their own way of getting those creative juices flowing.

Consider these mind mapping techniques:

• Doodling or sketching your thoughts
• Connecting random words and seeing what ideas form
• Using colors to categorize different concepts
• Associating images with specific thoughts
• Incorporating physical movement to stimulate brain activity

These aren’t just exercises; they’re journeys into the heart of imagination. Each color, word, image, or movement can spark an idea that could transform into a brilliant story.

Overcoming Writer’s Block

Overcoming writer’s block isn’t just a struggle, it’s an opportunity to delve deeper into your thoughts and redefine your narrative. It’s like standing at the edge of a dense forest, baffled about which path to take. Unconventional solutions dance around you like fireflies in this darkness.

A quirky idea could be writing with your non-dominant hand or narrating your story to an imaginary audience. Your creativity is a wild beast that sometimes needs goading, and unconventional Block Busting Techniques can help tame it.

Picture yourself inking stories on frosted windows or carving them into sand at the beach. These visualizations activate untouched corners of your imagination, lighting up new pathways in this daunting forest of writer’s block, leading you towards unexplored territories of creativity.

Enhancing Writing Skills

You’re not just battling writer’s block, you’re also honing your skills as an author. This isn’t a mere struggle; it’s a dance with words, a journey of language improvement and vocabulary expansion.

• The euphoria of finding the perfect adjective to paint your scene.
• Your mind, blooming like a flower on a spring day as new words take root.
• The satisfaction when you deftly weave complex sentences together.
• Being lost in the forest of metaphors, only to find your way out with an elegant turn of phrase.
• The thrill when the puzzle pieces fall into place forming a captivating narrative.

See it as mastering an art form rather than overcoming an obstacle. Embrace this process, for each word penned is a step closer to becoming the writer you aspire to be.

Different Types of Creative Writing Prompts

Imagine yourself diving into the vibrant world of visual prompts, exploring every pigment and pattern that could spark your creativity. Feel the thrill of sensory prompts as they engage not only your eyes but also your other senses, sending you on a journey through tastes, smells, sounds, and textures.

You’re about to embark on an expedition through these diverse landscapes of creative writing prompts – it’s time to embrace the adventure.

Visual Prompts Exploration

In your exploration of visual prompts, you’ll find they can spark wildly imaginative story ideas.

Through picture interpretation exercises, you’ll delve into a universe of visual inspiration sources that transcend the ordinary.

The warm hues in an autumn landscape painting, birthing tales of seasonal change

An old black and white photograph, whispering stories from bygone eras

A graffiti wall in a cityscape photo, screaming social commentary

The haunting eyes in a portrait, echoing untold sadness or unspoken joy

A surreal digital art piece, challenging the boundaries of reality

Each image is a doorway to countless narratives. They aren’t just pictures; they are worlds waiting to be explored and stories begging to be told.

Sensory Prompts Use

Diving into sensory cues, you’ll discover they’re a powerful tool to enhance your storytelling, stirring emotions and painting vivid images in the reader’s mind. You can almost taste the salty tang of sea air on your protagonist’s lips, or feel the gritty dust beneath their boots.

Sensory immersion techniques aren’t just for setting scenes, they’re vital for character development too. Imagine applying sensory-based character development strategies. How does your character react to the scent of fresh bread? Do they squint in bright sunlight or savor its warmth?

These details breathe life into characters, making them real and relatable. So next time you write, don’t just tell your story; let readers smell it, see it, touch it… live it!

How to Use Creative Prompts for Story Ideas

Using creative prompts can really help spark your imagination and generate unique story ideas. Picture this process as a treasure hunt for inspiration, where each prompt pushes you toward unexplored territories of your creativity.

• Prompt inspired characters with unheard stories waiting to be unveiled.
• Mystical lands or futuristic cities born from prompt generated settings.
• Unexpected plot twists that turn common narratives into captivating tales.
• Intricate relationships between characters that add depth to their personas.
• Striking dialogues that breathe life into these characters.

These elements collectively weave the vivid tapestry of your narrative, turning abstract thoughts into tangible words.

Boosting Creativity With Unique Writing Prompts

Harnessing unique stimuli for your narratives can significantly boost your creative prowess and help unearth exciting story ideas. Imagine a world where prompts personalization is at the core of every tale you weave, each prompt tailored to spark new dimensions within your storytelling sphere. The potential for prompt inspired artistry is boundless, as diverse as a painter’s palette.

Consider prompts that touch on forgotten dreams or hidden fears. Let them stir up memories drenched in emotion or transport you to unexplored territories of the mind. Picture yourself weaving such richly textured tales, fueled by these personalized cues.

Creative Prompts for Poetry Writing

Dive into the rhythmic ocean of words, where we’ll explore the diverse islands that form Poetry Prompt Categories. Each one is a unique muse to ignite your poetic prowess.

You’ll unearth techniques to seamlessly implement these prompts, transforming them from mere sentences into vibrant verses dancing on your page.

Poetry Prompt Categories

Exploring different poetry prompt categories can really expand your creative horizons and enhance your writing skills. Let’s delve into ‘Metaphor Mastery’ and ‘Emotional Elicitation’.

These aren’t just classifications, but invigorating pathways to artistic development.

Imagine a world where feelings take physical shapes; that’s the essence of Metaphor Mastery. You’re not just penning words, you’re sculpting emotions.

Emotional Elicitation is about stirring up hidden sentiments within your readers.

Consider these prompts:

• Craft a poem where love is a starved lion or courage, a towering mountain.
• Write about grief as an endless ocean.
• Describe joy as a blooming sunflower field.
• Convey anger like a volcanic eruption.
• Evoke nostalgia as an old, dusty attic.

Prompt Implementation Techniques

Let’s shift our focus to how you can effectively implement these poetic ideas into your verses.

Picture yourself in a vibrant landscape, wielding words as an artist uses colors. Each stroke of the brush is guided by prompt categorization, helping you navigate the vast palette of emotions and experiences.

Now imagine adding a personal touch—prompt personalization. It’s like infusing your own essence into the canvas, making every verse pulsate with authenticity. Feel the rhythm of words dancing to your unique beat, painting vivid images that echo your inner world.

Remember, it’s not about fitting into predefined boxes; it’s about shaping them around you. So let loose and weave stories with unabashed creativity and veracity.

Trust me, there’s no better way to make poetry truly yours!

Creative Prompts for Fiction Writing

You’ll find that using creative prompts for fiction writing can significantly boost your creativity and storytelling skills. Through exploring prompt variations, you’re given the freedom to mold concepts into your unique narrative.

Picture this:

• A deserted island where shadows whisper secrets.
• An antique locket holding a timeless curse.
• A city beneath the sea, untouched by human civilization.
• Two strangers locked in an elevator during a power outage.
• A diary detailing future events, written in an unknown language.

These genre-specific prompts stir something inside of you, don’t they? Your imagination begins to unravel storylines from these seeds of inspiration. Like the painter before his canvas, you have all you need to create your masterpiece.

Creative Prompts for Non-fiction Writing

You’ve danced with fiction, spun tales of fantasy that flirted on the edges of reality. Now, it’s time to pivot and explore the terrain of truth—non-fiction themes.

Brace yourself for a journey that is raw and real, where your pen uncovers life’s myriad hues and nuances.

Imagine standing at the cusp of an autobiography. You’re its inspiration; each chapter unfolds from your experiences. Your stories are not borrowed or imagined but distilled from your struggles and triumphs. It’s more than just writing—it’s reliving moments you’ve etched in memory lanes.

Non-fiction writing prompts guide you into this uncharted territory, shedding light on forgotten corners of your past. You’ll need courage because these writings excavate truths hidden beneath layers of consciousness.

The canvas awaits—paint it with words from your world!

Overcoming Writer’s Block With Creative Prompts

Battling writer’s block can be tough, but using thought-provoking stimuli can help you break through those frustrating barriers. Consider the effectiveness of creative prompts, which offer a diverse range of ideas to ignite your imagination.

• Picture a wave crashing against a lonely lighthouse. What story does it tell?
• Imagine being an ant in a bustling city park.
• Visualize the last dream you remember; could it be a surreal short story?
• Ponder about what lies beyond the edge of the universe.
• Think about an old woman’s secrets hidden inside her vintage locket.

These prompts are not just words or phrases; they’re keys unlocking uncharted territories of your mind. They embody prompt diversity and effectiveness, serving as lifelines when creativity seems elusive.

Creative Prompts for Improving Writing Skills

Don’t underestimate the power of these stimuli. They’re not only great for sparking ideas but also for honing your language skills.

Picture this: a wellspring of creativity, bubbling with potential, right at your fingertips through carefully chosen prompts.

Prompt selection isn’t random; it’s an art. It’s about selecting situations or phrases that ignite the dormant imagination within you, pushing you to weave stories in ways never thought before.

Creativity measurement is subjective yet invaluable in this context. You’re not just jotting down words; you’re painting vibrant tapestries of thoughts and emotions using nothing but alphabets as your colors.

Tips to Create Your Own Writing Prompts

Let’s delve into some strategies on how to craft your own inventing cues for better storytelling and improved language skills. Prompt personalization is key, allowing you to tailor prompts that resonate with your unique voice and perspective.

Consider the following:

• Envision ‘Genre specific prompts’. Imagine you’re a detective in a noir novel or an explorer charting uncharted territories.
• Use abstract concepts. Think about emotions, philosophies, or social issues that stir you.
• Get inspired by existing works. A line from a poem or scene from a film can spark marvelous ideas.
• Play with hypothetical scenarios. What if gravity stopped working?
• Incorporate memories or personal experiences. Your past can be full of captivating stories waiting to be told.

These strategies ignite creativity, enhance writing prowess, and make storytelling an enjoyable art form for you.

Real-Life Examples of Effective Creative Prompts

You’ve probably encountered real-life instances where effective cues have sparked great ideas. For example, a memorable quote from a book or an impactful scene in a movie. The trick is to harness these moments and transform them into creative prompts through prompt personalization.

Consider the whiff of your grandmother’s apple pie, the rustle of leaves underfoot on an autumn day, or the evocative imagery of a sunset over the ocean. These experiences are more than just memories; they’re potential narrative goldmines.

Prompt sourcing doesn’t need to be complicated. It can be as simple as jotting down snippets of overheard conversations or noting peculiar events around you. And remember, it’s all about making your prompts personal. Invest them with emotions and images that resonate with you on a profound level.

So, you’ve explored the realm of creative prompts. You’ve seen their value and used them in different styles to ignite story ideas. They’ve helped you overcome writer’s block and improve your writing game.

You even know how to craft your own prompts! Now, it’s time for you to dive into the world of words, armed with these creative catalysts. Remember, imagination is your playground. Let these prompts be your swing set!

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Writing Prompts By Genre: 250+ Creative Writing Prompts For Book Ideas

Writing prompts are powerful vessels for jumpstarting your creativity, and planting the seed for your next book idea. 

Dealing with writer’s block or self-doubt as a writer ? Experiencing a creative rut? Looking to improve your writing development? Experimenting with a new genre? Stuck on finding a book idea? Looking for your author voice?

No matter which of those situations you are struggling with as a writer, you might find your answer in some creative writing prompts.

These original writing prompts can be categorized in nonfiction and fiction groups. There's a long list of genres you could write within. And here, you'll find creative writing prompt topics for nearly all of them!

Here are the best creative writing prompts for writers to use: 

• Business Writing Prompts
• Self-Help Writing Prompts
• Memoir Writing Prompts
• Health & Fitness Writing Prompts
• Family & Relationships Writing Prompts
• Horror/Thriller Creative Writing Prompts
• Romance Creative Writing Prompts
• Mystery Creative Writing Prompts
• Sci-Fi Creative Writing Prompts
• Fantasy Creative Writing Prompts
• Historical Fiction Creative Writing Prompts
• Sentence Starters Creative Prompts

What are writing prompts? 

Writing prompts are story-starters that are used as a guided learning or creativity exercise to help writers get started with a new idea or story. 

Often used in an educational setting for students learning to practice writing specific genres, creative writing prompts are also used by advanced writers and authors who are experiencing writer’s block or are in need of inspiration. 

Writing prompts are designed to get people to think, by providing a starting place for a story premise or book idea, which can be further developed using the writer’s own imagination and creativity. 

There are many benefits to using creative writing prompts as a frequent writing exercise, both for seasoned writers and those just starting out. 

Here are some benefits to using writing prompts: 

• Fight writer’s block. Next time you don’t know what to write about, or aren’t able to produce any writing for your current work-in-progress, try your hand at a writing prompt. 
• Guide your inspiration. Writing prompts often help writers discover new topics by allowing them to start a story from the prompt, and finish it in their own way. Writing prompts can also inspire deviations from the story, or additional writing material, that the author can tap into. 
• Identify new genres. Sometimes it’s beneficial to try your hand at a genre you’re not used to writing in. It can help you discover a topic you never knew you might enjoy, or it can further solidify your strength in your current genre. Either way, it’s good to get out of your comfort zone. 
• Jumpstart a book idea. Writing prompts can incite a new story or book idea for you. If you’re having trouble figuring out what to write a book about, experiment with some writing prompts and see if anything sticks. 
• Improve writing development. Part of improving your writing craft has to do with experimenting – especially when you’re in a writing rut. Dabbling in new genres, practicing how to show and not tell , and using writing prompts you’d never think to write about, can also help you identify opportunities to strengthen your writing, and increase your versatility as a writer. 
• Sharpen creative skills. Creative writing prompts help you hone in on your creative skills. By starting with a story idea from a writing prompt, you’re forced to develop the story through your own imagination and creativity. 
• Practice poetry. Sometimes, a great way to get the creative juices flowing is to write some poetry. You don't need to put it out into the world (though you might find yourself looking up how and where to publish poetry after!), but it can help you with your prose.
• Experiment with tone. There are many different tones in writing , and it can take years to establish your own as an author. Writing prompts can help you arrive there quicker!

How to use creative writing prompts

The process of using a writing prompt is loose, as they are designed to be used in a way that benefits you as the writer most. 

You can be as structured, or as flexible as you choose when using one of our writing prompts. That means you can start with a writing prompt, think of your own premise for the story, and get to writing your own detailed account. Or, you can use all of the details given in the writing prompt, and answer the prompt exactly as you see fit. It’s up to you!

However, if you’re not sure where to start, and need some beginner’s guidelines, there are a few tips we can provide. 

Here’s how to use creative writing prompts: 

• Use pen and paper. If you’re struggling with writing block, I encourage you to use pen and paper to really get your creative juices flowing.
• Choose a writing prompt. Read through some possible creative writing prompts, taking note of any that spark your imagination. Then, you can choose which one calls out to you most. Alternatively, if you’re having trouble deciding, you can choose a random writing prompt and challenge yourself to write about 
• Pick and choose your own details. Some writing prompts include specific details to incorporate in your story. Don’t feel boxed in by your writing prompt; if you want to omit certain details or events and replace them with your own creative idea, feel free to do so. 
• Time your writing. Once you have a prompt chosen, set a timer for 15-20 minutes and challenge yourself to not stop writing until the timer goes off. This will prevent you from overthinking the prompt, and will ensure you stay focused. 
• Expand your own ideas. Use the writing prompt as a seed for your story, but develop it in your own creative way. The key to successfully using a creative writing prompt is to help your own brainstorming process, so it’s okay if you veer off from the writing prompt and take a different direction with your story and characters. You can even use character bio templates to expand your own ideas.

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Nonfiction writing prompts.

If you're on the hunt for the best nonfiction writing prompts to exercise your creativity and help you brainstorm some book ideas to write a nonfiction book , then start with this category.

Here, you'll find a variety of nonfiction topics, from business and self-help, to relationships, wellness, and memoir topics.

Business Writing Prompts 

• Write about the biggest lesson you’ve learned in business. 
• Write about how you have failed in business, and how you overcame that failure. 
• Write about the biggest mistake you made in your industry, and what you learned about it. 
• Write about how your industry can impact lives across the world. 
• Write about the top authorities in your industry and what you can learn from them. 
• Write about how you got started in your industry, and how others can learn from your process.
• Write about industry secrets that can help other people grow their authority. 
• Write about how businesses in your industry can maximize their profits. 
• Write about what you’ve learned in your industry, and educate readers on how to 
• Write about opportunities for innovation in your industry. 
• Write about the top qualities an authority in your industry must have to succeed. 
• Write about the top issues in your industry, and how readers can avoid them. 
• Write about how to empower others in your industry, and why it’s important. 
• Write about the future of your industry, and how readers can adapt to the changes. 
• Write about the history of your industry, and how it has shaped the present and how it will shape the future. 
• Write about a major time period in your industry’s progression, and the lessons from that time that can be learned and applied today. 
• Write about common fears in your industry, and how others can overcome them. 
• Write about the common stressors in your industry, and how others can manage this. 
• Write about a time when you had to start over in your career, and the lessons you learned that can help readers.
• Write about how to generate ideas in your industry.
• Write about how to be a better leader in the workplace. 
• Write about the importance of company culture, especially in our digital age. 
• Write about the secrets to sustainability in your industry. 
• Write about decision making in your industry, and how others can make better decisions. 
• Write about the habits of authority figures in your industry, and what others can learn from them. 
• Write about the failures of authority figures in your industry, and what others can learn from them. 
• Write about the successes of authority figures in your industry, and what others can learn from them. 
• Write about the key to productivity in your industry. 
• Write about the key to creativity in your industry. 
• Write about the key to working smarter in your industry. 
• Write about how to think big, and when to think small, in your industry. 
• Write about what you wish you knew now when you first started in your career.
• Write about setting up a successful atmosphere to thrive in your industry. 
• Write about something big you accomplished in your career, and share your blueprint for success. 
• Write about developing a team, and how to successfully work with others. 

Self-Help Writing Prompts  

Want to know how to write a self-help book ? Start with these prompts:

• Write about a time when you had to start over in your life, and what you learned from that.
• Write about why it’s important to break the rules in life sometimes. 
• Write about how to generate creative ideas. 
• Write about the secrets to gaining unshakeable self-confidence. 
• Write about the secrets to gaining lasting happiness. 
• Write about the secrets to developing laser-focus in work and life. 
• Write about the secrets to living a regret-free life. 
• Write about the secrets to creating lasting love. 
• Write about the power of forgiveness, and how others can tap into this.  
• Write about the power of gratitude, and how to apply it to daily life. 
• Write about critical thinking, and strategies for improving critical thinking skills. 
• Write about how to reduce everyday stress and anxiety with practical tips. 
• Write about effective communication, and how others can communicate more clearly. 
• Write about your creativity process, and include strategies for how to be more creative. 
• Write about the secrets to a successful relationship, and how anyone can be a better partner.
• Write about how to stay disciplined, and why most people fail at self-discipline. 
• Write about society’s hustle culture, and why working hard is good or bad. 
• Write about your favorite country or travel destination, and what you’ve learned from the people and culture.
• Write about the key to being a more productive person, and how it can transform others’ lives. 
• Write about finding your passion, and how others can discover their purpose. 
• Write about the power of positive self talk, and how others can implement it in their daily life. 
• Write about dealing with anxiety. 
• Write about dealing with change. 
• Write about creating an atmosphere of peace. 
• Write about controlling the controllables for happiness. 
• Write about controlling the controllables for peace. 
• Write about something a big goal you’ve accomplished, and share your blueprint for success. 
• Write about finding inspiration, and teach others how they can find it, too. 
• Write about how to better understand the people in your life. 
• Write about the art of simplicity in life, and how others can benefit from it. 
• Write about decision-making and the best practices for making big and small decisions in life. 
• Write about the power of tapping into your imagination, and why it’s so important for people, including adults. 
• Write about the importance of truth, and how others can be more honest with themselves and the people in their life. 
• Write about dealing with life transitions, and strategies to improve adaptability when things change and its out of your control. 
• Write about how to regain control in your life, and what to do when you’ve hit rock bottom. 
• Write about finding your identity, and how people in your niche can discover themselves again. 
• Write about the purpose of life.
• Write about how an individual can increase their confidence.
• Write about how the fear of rejection has been holding you back and what action you can take consistently everyday to break this fear.
• Write about 7 daily habits that can increase your self esteem and make you feel unbreakable.

29 Memoir Prompts 

• Write about a big goal you’ve accomplished, and share your blueprint for success. 
• Write about a major time when you had to start over in your life, and what you learned from that. 
• Write about the greatest lesson  you’ve learned so far in life, and how others can learn from your life. 
• Write about one of your biggest regrets, and teach others going through the same thing how to deal with it. 
• Write about the most difficult decision you’ve ever had to make, and what you’ve learned from that process. 
• Write about a traumatic experience in your life, and how you have dealt with it. 
• Write about a time you failed, and how you were able to rise up. 
• Write about a major event in your childhood, and how that shaped you as an adult. 
• Write about the saddest time in your life, and encourage others who are going through similar situations. 
• Write about the happiest time in your life, and the greatest thing that moment has taught you. 
• Write about the most influential people in your life, and how they helped shape the person you have become. 
• Write about how you have developed self-love, and why it’s important to have a relationship with yourself first. 
• Write about your journey towards self-discovery, and share tips with others who are lost. 
• Write about a time you lost your way in life, and what helped you find your path again. 
• Write about your spirituality and beliefs, and how you can share your message with others. 
• Write about the biggest heartbreak you experienced, and what it’s taught you about love and life. 
• Write about the time you broke someone else’s heart, and what it’s taught you about loving others. 
• Write about a time you experienced compassion, and share how others can be more compassionate in their own life. 
• Write about the biggest self-defining moment in your life thus far, and how you’ve developed from the experience. 
• Write about your biggest accomplishment, and how its helped you banish self-defeating thoughts and behavior. 
• Write about a toxic relationship you had, and how you were able to overcome it. 
• Write about an influential travel experience in your life, and what it taught you about yourself and others. 
• Write about the town you grew up in, and how it’s shaped your perspective on life. 
• Write about how you were raised, and what you learned from the people that raised you. 
• Write about a significant historical event you lived through, and what others can learn from your experience.
• Write about your life’s journey from where you were ten years ago to how you arrived to this point today, and, the most important lesson you have learned on the way.
• Write about five life lessons you believe everyone should practice/follow.
• There is an experience from your past that has always held you back from thriving in life. Write about what this experience is, and if you were to overcome your trauma, how could you lead the life you've been dreaming of?
• There is a saying: “You are the sum of the five people you spend most of your time with.” Write about the people you spend your time with and how they influence your life on a day to day basis.

29 Health & Fitness Prompts

• Write about emotional health: what it means, why it’s important, and how. 
• Write about a time you were very unhealthy, and how you were able to transform yourself.
• Write about the secrets to dieting. 
• Write about diet culture fads, and why they do or do not work. 
• Write about the idea of health, and how people can shift their priorities to be more healthy both mentally and physically.  
• Write about the taboo around mental health, and how we can change this mindset as a society. 
• Write about your struggles with mental health, and help others with what you’ve learned. 
• Write about your struggles with physical health, and help others struggling with the same thing. 
• Write about what health and wellness means to you, and share your perspectives with others. 
• Write about the power of superfoods, and how they can positively affect health. 
• Write about the health practices in a different country. 
• Write about an ancient health practice, and what we can learn from it today. 
• Write about the medicinal properties of certain foods and plants. 
• Write about how to break free from unhealthy habits. 
• Write about food production practices, and how they affect the quality of what we eat.
• Write about health in children, and how to raise health-conscious individuals. 
• Write about raising a healthy family while balancing a busy life
• Write about a time your health was impacted, and how the experience transformed your life
• Write about a time someone you love experienced health issues, and how the experience changed that person’s life, as well as your own
• Write about a time you felt unhappy with your health. What did you do to change your mindset? 
• Write about body acceptance, and how societal expectations affects our mindset.
• Write about the influence of culture on health, and how it affects a group of people differently.
• Write about a harmful everyday practice, how it affects our health, and what we can do to change it.
• Write about dealing with mental health on an everyday basis, and help others understand how to be more compassionate.
• Write about the idea of health, and what contributing factors affect our perspectives.
• Identify a distraction that is wasting your time and causing you to be very unproductive. Write about your plan to eliminate this distraction from your life, and the positive impact it will have.
• Internal dialogue is powerful in developing positivity. Identify your negative internal dialogue and write out your new, positive dialogue to communicate to yourself.
• Write out seven ways you can practice self care and why this is important to you.
• Write about how vulnerability is keeping you scared. Then, write down an action step to overcome this fear.

40 Family & Relationships 

• Write about how to build character in your children. 
• Write about teaching children how to practice self-love. 
• Write about strategies parents can use to instill healthy habits in their children.
• Write about the secrets to balancing discipline and friendship as a parent
• Write about the concept of soulmates, and why the idea is helpful or harmful in our society.
• Write about how to find friends as an adult.
• Write about the importance of having a support group.
• Write about the dangers of toxic parenthood.
• Write about the dangers of toxic relationships.
• Write about the dangers of toxic friendships.
• Write about the power of compassion in marriage.
• Write about the importance of compromise in relationships.
• Write about dealing with heartbreak and starting over.
• Write about the idea of dating in the digital age.
• Write about co-dependence and why its toxic.
• Write about breaking up with a friend, and why it’s necessary sometimes.
• Write about disciplining children in a positive way.
• Write about instilling a positive mindset in the youth.
• Write about developing your child’s uniqueness.
• Write about the struggles in parenthood and how to stay sane.
• Write about the beauty in parenthood and how to make it last, even when your children are being difficult. 
• Write about sibling rivalry and how to cultivate a healthier sibling relationship.
• Write about how to be a better parent.
• Write about how to be a better daughter/son to an aging parent.
• Write about how to be a better friend.
• Write about dealing with the loss of a loved one.
• Write about your journey to find love and what you’ve discovered along the way.
• Write about developing healthy and nurturing relationships.
• Write about the importance of self-confidence in finding love.
• Write about the importance of self-esteem in developing healthy relationships.
• Write about the importance of mindset on the search for love.
• Write about the role self-awareness plays in being a better parent.
• Write about the importance of communication in relationships.
• Write about the red flags in a failing relationship, and how to save it before it’s too late.
• Write about the idea of being single, and how to embrace it in a society that does not.
• Write about the idea of finding the perfect partner, and how this perspective can affect our ability to find someone.
• Write about falling in love, and how to keep the fire alive in a relationship.
• Write about the importance of expectations in relationships.
• Write about disagreements in friendships, and how to overcome and learn from them.
• Write about different styles of parenting, and how to identify which type you are.

Fiction Creative Writing Prompts

Now it's time for the creative fun. Use these fiction creative writing prompts to explore new genres, practice your creative writing development using literary device examples , and get inspired to venture off into a new fiction story.

These fiction writing prompts are categorized based on genre, so you'll find topics for horror or thriller stories, romance writing prompts, historical fiction topics, Sci-Fi and fantasy prompts, and story starters.

While we provide the prompts, it's up to you to expand on your own ideas, create exciting plot twists, and fully develop your elements of setting and characters.

16 Horror/Thriller Prompts

• Write about your last nightmare.
• A couple is awoken at the witching hour (3 AM) by three forceful bangs at their front door. When they call aloud to see who's there, no one answers, but a demonic snarl can be heard from outside. 
• Waking up from a slumber with eyes still closed, your character stretches their arms out, only to hit a cold body next to them. They live alone.  
• You made a late night trip to the gas station, and it’s pouring down rain as you stand outside in the empty parking lot, holding the nozzle to pump gas. Suddenly, a hearse pulls up slowly next to your car, and when you glance over, all you can see is bright red eyes glaring at you from the driver’s seat. 
• Your character just finished the night shift at work. As they walk through the empty parking lot towards their car, its eerily silent and they can’t help but feel like someone is watching them. The hairs on your character’s arms start to stand up, even though it’s a relatively warm night. Your character quickly jumps into their car, starts the engine, and begins to drive home. As they look up into the rearview mirror, a sinister, smiling face appears behind them.
• Two kids venture off into the woods behind their neighborhood, scouting for a place to build their tree house. Before long, they see the streetlights of their neighborhood come on in the distance, which is a sign that it's time to head back home. As they gather their belongings to make the trek back home, they hear a twig snap behind them, and a guttural voice whisper, “You can’t leave yet – the fun’s only just begun.”  
• Ten thousand dollars to own a 3 bedroom cabin? It was a once-in-a-lifetime deal, that you, as a new real estate investor, just couldn’t pass up. But in order to secure your purchase quickly, you had to skip the house tour. Now that the home was purchased by you, it was time to start the renovations. But first, you had to do an in-depth survey of the house to see exactly what work needed to be done. As you enter the creaky, old home, a rancid smell fills your nostrils and in the dark, dusty corner of the entryway, you notice a large, fat rat chewing boldly on a piece of bloody flesh.  
• ‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house. There was a creature stirring, but it wasn’t a mouse…Write about a holiday visitor who isn’t jolly or nice, and who brings gifts nobody would ever dare to ask for. 
• A young family on vacation joins an excursion to a beautiful, remote beach. As they run into the ocean to splash around, they notice something dark lurks in the water, and it doesn’t look like a creature that belongs on Earth. 
• Choose a scary story that you were told as a child, and add your own frightening twist. 
• After a lifetime of waiting, your character has finally found the love of their life. But things turn sinister when one night, your character discovers that their new-found love must eat raw human flesh in order to stay alive.
• Her mind was racing, but she knew she had to conceal her fear. As she turned to face him, she noticed his eyes. They were colorless, and taunted her without saying a word.  
• They weren’t raised to believe in ghosts, ghouls, or demons, but the darkness that began to possess their once-loving father couldn’t be explained any other way. It all happened after he brought home the newest novelty for his antique collection: an 18th century wooden cross, said to belong to a woman that was tortured and hung for committing witchcraft. 
• Vampires, werewolves, and witches. He knew they were the stuff of fiction, or at least, he thought he knew, until tonight.
• It’s time to put your nine-year-old to bed. As you tuck the child in, pulling the blankets over her shoulders, you can’t help but notice the fear in her eyes. Concerned, you ask her what’s going on.  “She visits me every time I fall asleep. Can’t you make her stop?” she whispered in fear. When you probe your child for more details on who this woman is, and what she looks like, your blood turns to ice. She sounds exactly like the woman from the nightmares that plagued your own childhood.
• It was love at first sight – for her, anyway. After years of being single, and sought after by all the eligible bachelors in town, everyone was surprised when Mr. Ezra came in, seemingly out of nowhere, to swoop her off her feet. He was tall, dark, and handsome, and everything she always dreamed of finding in a man. After a brief two weeks of dating, she announced that they had wed in secret. Not only that, but she would be leaving town with him, to start a new life. Little did they know that they would never see her again. Little did she know that the man of her dreams would soon become the man of her nightmares. And he was dead set on making her wish she’d never been born. 

15 Romance Creative Prompts

• An exchange student goes to a foreign country to live for a year abroad, with high goals to learn the language and culture. Little does she know, she’s actually there to learn a lesson on love, from none other than a foreign classmate who has a strong distaste for outsiders like her.
• Your character is widowed, left to raise two young children on his/her own. When it’s least expected, someone from the past comes back into their life. But things aren’t all that they seem, and falling in love again is the last thing on her to-do list.  
• A restless man going through a midlife crisis. A free-spirited woman ready to embrace graceful aging. They butt heads often, but can’t seem to leave each other alone for good. Can they survive through something that threatens to tear them apart forever? 
• They were childhood friends that hardly left their small hometown, and now they are distant strangers that live in two opposite parts of the world. When a tragedy calls them back home, they feel like they never left each other. How do they hold on to one another when they live two very separate lives?
• It’s the day before their second marriage anniversary. As he’s making plans to celebrate, he gets a call from his doctor with news that will change their lives forever. 
• Years of heartbreak and relationship failures have left her disillusioned with the idea of love. But one chance meeting with someone new makes her question her ideology forever. 
• He’s a serial dater that enjoys the chase. She’s a serious achiever with a distaste for men like him. What happens when their two worlds collide? 
• She’s carefully designed her life’s milestones, and is dead set on sticking to her plan. When she meets the man of her dreams and marries him after two years of maintaining a long distance relationship, she’s in for an earth-shattering awakening that not even she could prepare for. 
• She’s a successful powerhouse business owner. He’s a humble trades worker who’s never been to college (and has no desire to ever do so). What started out as a temporary fling for fun has turned into a passionate love affair. But what happens when things settle down, and their everyday lives go on? 
• As the caretaker of their ailing parent, who has no one else in the world to rely on, your character has put their life aspirations on hold to uphold their family duty. So what happens when love comes knocking on their door unexpectedly?
• They were childhood sweethearts that grew up together, and have been inseparable ever since. Now that they have entered the next chapter as adults, their family and friends have urged them to get married. But the night before the wedding, the couple suddenly realizes that they are no longer in love. Where do they go from here?
• Rich man, poor girl. It’s a story as old as time, but what happens when there’s a modern twist to it?
• A young couple is ready to welcome their first child into the world, when a violent war suddenly ravages their town. The young man is forced away to defend his country, and the pregnant young woman is left to face the harsh winter alone. How can they keep their love alive? 
• She’s never been in love, but she’s plagued by vivid memories and dreams of a man who seems so familiar, only she’s never met him. Could she have a lover from a past life that haunts her from another dimension?
• Think of a famous love story that’s always intrigued you. It could be from history, or from your own experience. Now imagine a new ending for it, and write your own version of the story with a twist. 

10 Mystery Prompts

• The crystal clear blue waters. The bright green foliage. The black sand beach. This would be the last thing she saw before she died, and no one would ever know. 
• He went missing twelve years ago. He was just a boy, then. After years of searching for him to no avail, his parents – now in their old age – have succumbed to hopelessness and heartbreak. That is, until a visitor arrives on their doorstep in the pouring rain one stormy night. The visitor looks like their son, but something is very, very different…
• Your character goes for an evening stroll every night after dinner. She passes by each of her neighbors homes down the quiet street, until she gets to a fork in the road and turns back around. Only tonight, she goes on her usual walk, and decides to take a left at the fork instead of turning around. What she discovers is sure to wake the sleepy small town from their slumber. 
• A high profile lawyer on the hunt for justice, he’s adamant about defending his client, accused of committing a crime no mother could ever commit. Or can she? 
• She’s an experienced detective with years under belt, solving the city’s most horrific crimes. As she digs deep on the trail of one of the most sinister serial killers she’s ever dealt with, she begins uncovering some details that brings the case too close to home. 
• Research your favorite unexplained mystery, then re-write the story with your own twist and turn of events. 
• Your character is on a mission to discover the truth about his/her birth parents, two people s/he has been shielded from ever knowing any details about. On a quest to self-discovery, your character learns the truth, and it can be summed up in three words: Murder, lust, and greed. Write about your character’s journey towards discovering where they came from, and the shocking truth they learn along the way. 
• Today is your birthday. You wake up, ready to celebrate with your family and friends, but things get weird when you discover that the year you thought it was, doesn’t seem to be right.
• You are house sitting for your best friend, who you’ve known your entire life. One quiet evening, you rummage through the library in search of a good book. Instead, you find a chest of photos that piques your interest. The chest is full of old photographs featuring your best friend, dressed in old attire and surrounded by people from long, long ago. 
• While driving home in the pouring rain one night, you spot a young girl, dressed in all white, on the side of the deserted highway. You pull over to give her a ride home, but she doesn’t know who she is, why she’s here, or where’s she going.

11 Sci-Fi Creative Writing Prompts

• Earth is dissolving, and it’s up to you to get all of the remaining human children to the new “home” for humans – a newly inhabited planet that mimics Earth’s environment. The issue? The planet is twice as small as Earth, which means there is only room for half of the children in the spacecraft you’ve been given. 
• Your character is a scientist for NASA, and is on the edge of developing a cutting-edge breakthrough technology that will allow humans to be transported to space in half the time. The only problem is, the process ages humans twice as fast…
• The sun burns too bright, causing people to go blind the moment they catch a glimpse of the sun’s rays. This means that humans have learned to avoid the sun, living out their days in protective pods to shield them from the sun. But now, there’s a plague that’s quickly spreading amongst the population, and there seems to be only one cure: a look at the sun. 
• You live in a futuristic world, almost 300 years from present day. Technology has taken its toll on evolution, and the only way to communicate with other humans is through a digital screen. 
• The world as we know it is over, and you’re the leader of this new era. Decide how you want to rule society, and what type of world you will create. 
• Your character starts the day off like any other day. She wakes up, brushes her teeth, then walks into her closet to get dressed for work. Only today, she opens her closet door to find a wide-eyed woman standing there, dripping wet as if she has been rained on. She says her planet is at war, and she has been sent to bring you back home with her, for you are the only one with the power to save her people. 
• Research one of Earth’s unknown mysteries or conspiracy theories. Now, re-write it through the lens of someone who knows all the answers, and has a powerful reason for keeping it all a secret…
• Virtual reality meets the real world. You live in a society where there’s a fine line between who is actually a real person, and who is not. 
• Your character is an expert researcher that’s been chosen to lead a submarine journey to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the ocean. Uninhabitable by humans, the team witnesses sea life that’s never before been seen by man. But things take a turn for the worst when they realize a massive creature has claimed a death grip on their submarine vessel. 
• You’ve been given the task to create the perfect species, but in your effort to do so through multiple experiments, you’ve given life to an army of children who are far from perfect. 
• You’re exiled to a new planet, and you can only take 3 people with you. Who do you take and why?

12 Fantasy Writing Prompts

• An expert diver, your character takes a trip to a remote island to explore all the underwater sights he’s read all about in books and documentaries. When he takes a diving excursion to a cave known for its colorful color, exotic fish schools, and vivid sea foliage, he stumbles upon a secret cave door. What it leads to is a bustling seaworld that’s quite literally, straight out of a storybook.
• A device has been invented that can solve any of mankind’s problems – big or small. The catch is, that along with a solution, comes an even bigger problem…
• You wake up one day to discover that you have been transported to the world from your favorite book. But you quickly discover that things aren’t all that they seem…
• You come from a long line of witches, dating back to the 12th century. But a modern day witch hunt is now in full effect, and to save your life, you must find a way to give up all of your powers. 
• Your character suddenly finds themself in an alternate dimension, where everything is backwards. How can they make sense of this new world, to find their way back to the dimension they actually belong in? 
• Think of your favorite superhuman. Now, imagine that they use their powers for evil. Write a story featuring the dark side of your superhuman’s character.
• Every morning, your alarm sounds off at 6 a.m. Only this morning, instead of the usual beep beep beep to wake you, a voice comes over the alarm and announces, “Today is the day you will say goodbye to everyone.”
• Time no longer exists, and the worlds of the past, present, and future have collided, meshing them all into one. Write a fantasy story about this new world that exists – and the pitfalls that come with not having any boundaries within time. 
• Your character unexpectedly gives birth to a healthy baby boy. What’s strange is that your character was only pregnant for two weeks, and she didn’t even realize it. As the baby grows, she starts to notice that she has quite an extraordinary child on her hands, and she must protect him from those who know he exists.
• A dream-like world where everything seems to go your character’s way. He’s happy, peaceful, and surrounded by those he loves. But one day, he discovers that this isn’t in fact the world that he belongs in…and those that really love him desperately need him to return.
• You’re given the chance to build your own character taking five of the best traits from people you know. What traits do you take from whom?
• Your memory is erased and you have to start learning from scratch. (You can still feed and clothe yourself.) What is the first thing you want to learn and why?

10 Historical Fiction Writing Prompts

• Write about a specific folklore tale from your cultural background, but add a special twist. 
• Imagine your modern-day character suddenly finds themself in the past. Not only that, but they are the neighbor to a famous historical figure. Write about a significant event in the historical figures life with a modern day twist. 
• Your character is caught between love and war. A passionate crusader with a prominent position in a revolutionary war, they fall in love with someone across the enemy lines. Do they give up their fight in a cause they stand so strongly for, or say goodbye to the one person they would give up their life for?
• Research a significant event from your favorite time period. Then, create a character who was there to witness it all – the good, the bad, and the ugly. Write a story from this character’s point of view, sharing how the event changed their lives forever. 
• You’re given the opportunity to travel back and time to a significant moment in history. Write about where you go, what you see, and who you meet. 
• Your character is a factory worked living in Victorian London
• Think of a time period you would never wish to live in. Now, imagine you suddenly wake up living in that era. Write about your experience from the perspective of someone who is actually living the reality you have no wish to be part of. 
• Write about a character that was born a slave, and is the mastermind behind a dangerous mission to lead others to freedom. 
• Research a historical figure who is considered a real-life villain. Then, write a story from their lover, or spouse's perspective. 
• Research the history of your favorite place (city, country, etc.), then write a story from the perspective of a character who witnessed how the place as you know it came to be. 

20 Sentence Starter Prompts

• The unrelenting sun beat down on his forearms, and all he could think about was how cold he felt inside.
• A sick feeling caused by strong alcohol on an empty stomach, mixed with unsettling anxiety, caused her to crouch over in discomfort. But she couldn’t stop now. 
• The clock struck three, and it was as if the entire world turned upside down. 
• Whoosh whoosh whoosh. The dryer violently spun the wet clothes around, and 
• He wasn’t sure what the crying creature was, but he knew it couldn’t be human.  
• He stared at her, staring at him. And in the blink of an eye, an insatiable fury seemed to paint the sky blood red. 
• The spacecraft zinged through the blackened bubble, and as she looked outside the window, she couldn’t help but feel the gravity of her eternal loneliness. 
• No one knew him more than she did, but there were things she simply could not look past. 
• This place was home – it always had been, so why did it feel so strange? 
• The tapping of the keyboard was all she could hear in the empty office, and the room seemed to start spinning around her. 
• A fast heartbeat, thumping uncontrollably inside his chest, was all he could to react; after all, this was the greatest moment of his life. 
• “This is your moment, and you can either rise to the occasion, or crumble to your shortcomings,” the speaker said over the intercom. 
• They were the only ones who knew the truth, and try as they might, they couldn’t forget that fateful day, even when they desperately wanted to. 
• Despite the enchantment, her intuition gnawed at her core, warning her that this was a very, very bad idea.
• Today is the day you realize your entire life is going to change forever because…
• As soon as the words came out of her mouth, her eyes widened in horror; how could she have let herself say such a thing? 
• The storm raged on outside the window, and the world in all its chaos was truly coming to an end, just like they had warned. 
• The sun looked blood orange as it lifted off the horizon, and she knew the time had come. 
• “Your heart belongs to me,” said the stranger in a hushed, yet familiar tone. 
• Ding dong. He ran to get the door, and when he looked through the eyehole, as was his habit before unlocking it, he couldn’t believe his eyes. 

Once you've had your fun with these writing prompts, it's time to get started with your new book idea and start writing your book, so that you can move on to self-publishing your book and sharing it with the world.

There is a world of readers waiting for your story. It's time to start writing.

Whether you used these creative writing prompts to help brainstorm what to write about, or fight writer's block, it's time to actually sit down, grab your pen or keyboard, and get to writing a captivating story.

Didn't find what you were looking for with these prompts? Don't worry – we are constantly updating this list with new writing prompts for our readers.

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