Menu
Write your book in Reedsy Studio. Try the beloved writing app for free today.
Win up to $250 in our weekly writing contest
Submit your short story on Reedsy Prompts.
DIRECTORY
539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026
Showing 539 short story ideas curated by Reedsy.
A character becomes addicted to the slots in Las Vegas.
It's the first day of school, and you're finding it hard to make friends when someone unexpected steps up.
August 30, 1946: The date of the one and only time travel convention. You attend every year.
Write a book with anthromorpohized characters.
Instead of trying to get a man on the moon, every nation raced to be the first at the very bottom of the ocean.
You work at an airport and notice the same person waiting in "arrivals" every week. Each time, they leave alone. One day you muster the courage to ask who they are waiting for.
You are an astronaut spending your last few hours on Earth before a journey into space.
On Easter Monday, if a certain rabbit emerges from the ground and sees its shadow, winter returns for 4 weeks.
You have to let go of something you treasure.
You're beginning to believe the person writing the daily crossword puzzle in your newspaper is trying to send you an encoded message.
Pick a genre and then write about a long walk home after school.
You are going home for Christmas for the first time in twenty-five years.
This was the moment you'd been waiting for. Gleefully, you raised your camera to take a picture and then... the battery died.
You are home alone watching TV. A character dials a number on their phone. Your phone rings.
A man sidles up to a woman in a bar. Little does he know she's an undercover cop following him.
Write a story that retells a Shakespeare play, but in a modern-day high school setting.
Find the perfect editor for your next book
Over 1 million authors trust the professionals on Reedsy. Come meet them.
Save your shortlist
Enter your email address to save your shortlist so that you don't lose it!
By continuing, you will also receive Reedsy's weekly publishing tips and access to our free webinars.
Check your email
We've sent over your shortlist. Thank you for using Reedsy's Short Story Ideas Directory 🙌
