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539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026
Showing 539 short story ideas curated by Reedsy.
You are a professional hoax-buster.
You're kneeling in the dirt, working on your garden when your attention is drawn up by a person saying, "Excuse me, I don't mean to interrupt, but..."
I thought he seemed a perfectly normal human being, until he started speaking.
You just discovered that you can teleport into one Hallmark Christmas rom-com of your choosing. Which movie do you choose, and what happens differently in the movie because of your arrival?
All of your birthday presents this year look normal, except for one sitting in the corner that has a strange yellow glow emitting from it...
Write a story where your character gets close to obtaining their greatest desire.
While spring cleaning, you come across something you had forgotten all about.
You hear a commotion on the playground — and from the commotion, you can pick out a familiar voice. What happened?
Write about a time that you found out something surprising about somebody else.
Two super competitive colleagues meet at the office's monthly Bingo night.
Write a story about coming out. The ending is a happy one.
You're going through family photos when you start to notice the same person candidly in the background of every single location.
Write a story that inverts a popular YA trope. You get to pick the trope.
Someone who has lived a thousand years takes up a job teaching high school history.
Write a story centered on the theme of persistence when it comes to exams.
You are a Nobel Prize Winner, on your way to the awards ceremony. Suddenly, you are transported back in time.
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