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539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026

Showing 539 short story ideas curated by Reedsy.

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Page 12

There's someone standing on the corner of the street you live on. It's the fifth time they've been there this week.

Dramatic

Someone just knocked on the door late at night, but you weren't expecting anyone. When you open the door... no one's there.

Narrative

Write a story about a character who must confront their past.

Middle School

Write about a family with secrets that get stuck in a corn maze overnight. One by one, all of the secrets come out in the course of the night.

Halloween

A friendly pranking rivalry between two colleagues in an office starts to get serious.

Funny

Rewrite a famous romantic scene from the perspective of a bystander who has no idea what is going on.

Love

Some fishy things have been going on at school. Write about a group of friends who establish their own detective agency to get down to the bottom of it, once and for all.

Kids

You are a student working on a team project. You and your group are accidentally locked in the school library overnight.

Funny

You get lost in the woods during a hike. It's starting to get dark, when you see the glow of a campfire nearby.

Mystery / Thriller

You're driving down a lonely road when you see a machine-looking object jet across the night sky.

Science Fiction

A former party animal lives in a retirement home. They've decided it's time for one last bash.

Funny

Overheard at the track-and-field: "I! NEVER! WANT! TO! SEE! THAT! DOG! POKING! HIS! HEAD! IN! HERE! AGAIN!"

Teens

Write about the last nightmare you had.

Narrative

539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026

There's someone standing on the corner of the street you live on. It's the fifth time they've been there this week.

Someone just knocked on the door late at night, but you weren't expecting anyone. When you open the door... no one's there.

Write a story about a character who must confront their past.

Write about a family with secrets that get stuck in a corn maze overnight. One by one, all of the secrets come out in the course of the night.

A friendly pranking rivalry between two colleagues in an office starts to get serious.

Rewrite a famous romantic scene from the perspective of a bystander who has no idea what is going on.

Some fishy things have been going on at school. Write about a group of friends who establish their own detective agency to get down to the bottom of it, once and for all.

You are a student working on a team project. You and your group are accidentally locked in the school library overnight.

You get lost in the woods during a hike. It's starting to get dark, when you see the glow of a campfire nearby.

You're driving down a lonely road when you see a machine-looking object jet across the night sky.

A former party animal lives in a retirement home. They've decided it's time for one last bash.

"Savor this sunset, folks. It might be the last one we ever see."

Re-write Romeo and Juliet as a short story... but make it horror.

Write a love story using dramatic irony.

Overheard at the track-and-field: "I! NEVER! WANT! TO! SEE! THAT! DOG! POKING! HIS! HEAD! IN! HERE! AGAIN!"

Write about the last nightmare you had.

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