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539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026
Showing 539 short story ideas curated by Reedsy.
What is the memory that you remember the most? Why?
As a joke, you use your cell phone to dial your own number. Someone picks up.
Write a story about an elementary school student who has to overcome their fear of public speaking in order to win a speech contest.
Write a story about moving to an entirely new city where everything is new and unfamiliar.
A student has to fight against societal expectations in order to fulfill a lifelong dream.
A cell phone is found inside a sealed Egyptian tomb.
After searching for your lost cat for months, it saunters into your house one day. It looks rather plump.
Describe a change that you think you've gone through.
You canÍt believe what you just read on the scroll. You have to tell someone.
Write a story about a pair of siblings who open up a lemonade stand during summer vacation, and the rivalry that flares up when their neighbors decide to start a Kool-Aid stand at the same time.
Your new cell phone number used to be the number of a very popular personal therapist.
Write a story about a character who doesn't know how to share.
"By the time I wake up in the morning, I want them dead."
As the sun set, the desert wasteland glowed an eerie red.
Write a story centered on the theme of persistence when it comes to exams.
Write a story about a group of five friends who set out at night for trick or treating… and when they return, they're only four.
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