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Are you ready to write but don’t know what to write about? Prepare to kick your writing into gear by browsing through our list of 200+ short story ideas. New prompts are added each week, and you can search by genre. But don’t let our categories stop you from putting your own spin on a writing prompt: if you find a short story idea tagged as sci-fi, but you think it would make a great romance plot, run with it! For tips on how to come up with your own story ideas, scroll to the bottom of the page.

539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026

Showing 539 short story ideas curated by Reedsy.

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Page 33

You were mowing your lawn when someone walked by your yard and burst into tears.

Funny

Instead of trying to get a man on the moon, every nation raced to be the first at the very bottom of the ocean.

Fantasy

The Earth does not rotate. One side always faces the sun and is in continual daylight. The other side is in eternal night. Cultures on both sides develop around this.

Fantasy

Write a story about coming out. The ending is a happy one.

Teens

Adapt your favorite fairy tale to take place in your home town.

Middle School

You live in a future where music in any form is considered repugnant. You find an old music box.

Dramatic

Amazon has invented time travel and introduced pre-emptive shipping. Today, you receive something completely unexpected from your future self.

Science Fiction

You're digging in your garden when you unearth something that makes you stagger from shock.

Dark

On your commute to work, you expect to see the sun rise as usual. This time, two suns rise.

Fantasy

A child walks into the forest and learns about all of the animals that live in there.

Children's Book

Write about your goals at ages 5, 10, 15, and 20.

Narrative

You are a server at a restaurant, having the busiest shift of your life.

Funny

You were waiting at a crosswalk when someone you didn't recognize started waving from across the street.

Fiction

539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026

You were mowing your lawn when someone walked by your yard and burst into tears.

Instead of trying to get a man on the moon, every nation raced to be the first at the very bottom of the ocean.

The Earth does not rotate. One side always faces the sun and is in continual daylight. The other side is in eternal night. Cultures on both sides develop around this.

Write a story about coming out. The ending is a happy one.

Adapt your favorite fairy tale to take place in your home town.

You live in a future where music in any form is considered repugnant. You find an old music box.

"By the time I wake up in the morning, I want them dead."

Mars is the new wild west, complete with gunslingers.

A love story that starts and ends in 24 hours.

Amazon has invented time travel and introduced pre-emptive shipping. Today, you receive something completely unexpected from your future self.

You're digging in your garden when you unearth something that makes you stagger from shock.

On your commute to work, you expect to see the sun rise as usual. This time, two suns rise.

A child walks into the forest and learns about all of the animals that live in there.

Write about your goals at ages 5, 10, 15, and 20.

You are a server at a restaurant, having the busiest shift of your life.

You were waiting at a crosswalk when someone you didn't recognize started waving from across the street.

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