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539 Best Short Story Ideas for Authors in 2026
Showing 539 short story ideas curated by Reedsy.
Write a story about a character who can only tell lies.
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.
Everyday, you sit at your window to watch a neighbor play a musical instrument. You can't hear the music, but you're transfixed by the musician's expression.
The one place where the sun rises in the west and sets in the east.
Two elderly people in a retirement home are a secret pair of detectives that have solved some of the biggest crimes and mysteries through anonymous tips.
Two strangers have an interesting encounter on a park bench during a snowy, winter evening.
It's the beginning of a new term at your university. As usual, you scramble to your first class and get there just in time. No one is there but you and the professor.
You buy your son a teddy bear. Every night, the bear protects your son from the monsters in the dark.
Write a dual perspective story, with each alternating perspective based on one of these two words: "bitter" and "sweet."
Write a story that takes place entirely in the dark.
You eavesdrop on a hushed conversation taking place in the hallway. What's being said is not nice about someone you know.
You've just made the discovery of secret playground deep in the woods... and only you know of its existence.
Write a story about the passage of time based only upon a series of birthday wishes.
You discover a secret family member you never knew existed.
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?
A student has to fight against societal expectations in order to fulfill a lifelong dream.
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