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Best Dramatic Writing Prompts

Join our ongoing contests and win up to $1,500. Flex those creative muscles with these writing prompts.

Showing 238 prompts reset

This week's contest:
Win $250

What We Carry

76 contest entries /
30 stories

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Closes at 23:59 - Aug 28 EST

Write about a character whose job is to bring water to people.

– 40 stories

Start your story with the whistle of a kettle.

– 58 stories

Write about someone seeking an oasis in a desert — whether literally, or figuratively.

– 37 stories

Write about someone who books a bargain vacation, only to be told when they arrive that they need to share a hotel suite with a stranger.

– 148 stories

Write about a child witnessing a major historical event.

– 236 stories

Your main character is approached by their long-estranged parent who wants to reconnect. How do they react?

– 190 stories

Start your story with someone robbing a bank and end it with two people driving on an interstate.

– 86 stories

Start your story with someone admitting a secret and end it with someone telling a lie.

– 179 stories

Write about a character who’s finally on the verge of achieving their lifelong dream.

– 135 stories

Write about a family attempting to hide their secrets from someone new.

– 121 stories

Write about two characters on the verge of a life-changing event, but one has rigged the outcome.

– 90 stories

Write about a character discovering something new about their past that changes how they remember an important moment.

– 138 stories

Write a story that starts with someone writing their will — one they know people won’t like.

– 183 stories

Write a story about a teenager visiting the place where they grew up.

– 31 stories

Write a story about an author who has just started writing again for the first time in a couple of years.

Write a story about a group of people who meet every month to air out their mistakes.

Write a story about a character who is certain the world is going to end today.

"Quiet on set!" A dense hush fell, and you waited for your cue.

It's 2 a.m. and you've been tossing and turning trying to get some sleep. Finally, you sit up. You know what you need to do.

After a friend or family member's funeral, you come home to a stranger on your doorstep, who tells you that they're not really dead.

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