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539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026
Showing 539 short story ideas curated by Reedsy.
You're driving down a lonely road when you see a machine-looking object jet across the night sky.
An elderly person finally takes the last picture on a film camera they've had for decades. Today they're going to print it.
A former party animal lives in a retirement home. They've decided it's time for one last bash.
You left cookies on the table on the day before Christmas. When you wake up the next day, the cookies are gone, and in their place is a note. What does it say?
Write a story about a terrible, unfixable hair cut.
August 30, 1946: The date of the one and only time travel convention. You attend every year.
An anxious and unsure person becomes extremely decisive.
A child finds out by accident that Santa Claus… isn't real! Write about the fallout that occurs afterward.
While on a leisurely stroll through the forest, you find strange footprints. Do you follow them?
A bittersweet farewell: bitter for one person, sweet for the other.
Write a story with these words: "teddy bear," "black," "blood."
"When i grow up, I want to..."
Write a story about two best friends at their first school dance.
A legendary dragon is on its way to capture a princess. Plot twist: the princess kidnaps it, and temporarily locks it away in her tower to teach it a lesson.
"I have to go!" she/he said suddenly, jumping up from the table during dinner.
Write about someone discovering something important from their childhood hidden in the back of a closet.
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