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539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026
Showing 539 short story ideas curated by Reedsy.
If a fire broke out in your home, what are the first three things that you would grab? Why?
A plane that's been missing for years suddenly lands at a major airport.
"I didn't believe in Christmas until now." What might have happened to cause this character to say this?
You open a door, but before you can go through, someone sneaks in front of you without saying "thank you." You've had an awful day and this is the last straw.
A reindeer is loose! What can you, a mere elf on the lowest rung of Santa's helpers, do?
Write a story that retells a Shakespeare play, but in a modern-day high school setting.
Write a story about a series of unfortunate events that takes place over the span of a field trip.
Write a story about moving to an entirely new city where everything is new and unfamiliar.
August 30, 1946: The date of the one and only time travel convention. You attend every year.
Write about a power hungry wizard summoning an eldritch creature from a blood-stained spellbook.
One person's trash is another's treasure.
You stumble across an abandoned house in the woods.
Do you believe in ghosts? Why or why not?
From a dog's perspective, humans seem to be either immortal or at least live extremely long lives. Write from the perspective of a dog contemplating this.
Write a story about the small kindnesses that you see every day.
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?
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