25 Creative Writing Prompts
25 creative writing prompts to inspire and motivate
Don’t you just hate writer’s block? Some say it’s a disease that only attacks creative workers. Some say it’s a curse. Others argue that it doesn’t exist at all. But just about everyone has been there — sitting in front of a blank screen, fingers itching to create a masterpiece. And nothing comes.
For me, the most bizarre thing about writer’s block is that it strikes randomly. Most of the time, I’m overwhelmed with ideas — more than I can possibly write about. Then, out of the blue, I’ll sit down and just go blank. Sure, I flip through my notebooks and review all the ideas I’ve had, but nothing feels right. I want something fresh. I need a new angle.
Luckily, I have several books and other writing resources that are packed with writing exercises and creative writing prompts. Sometimes, all it takes are a few words to get me started, and then I’m off, writing into the sunset.
Here at Writing Forward, I’ve published poetry prompts, journal prompts, fiction and poetry writing exercises, but today I’d like to try something different. Here’s a mash-up of creative writing prompts. There are no rules. Write a poem. Write a short story. Write an essay. Aim for a hundred words or aim for a thousand. Just start writing. Take off and fly, and have fun.
Creative Writing Prompts
- You’re digging in your garden and find a fist-sized nugget of gold.
- Write about something ugly — war, fear, hate, cruelty — but find the beauty (silver lining) in it.
- The asteroid was hurtling straight for…
- A kid comes out of the bathroom with toilet paper dangling from his or her waistband.
- Write about your early memories of faith, religion, or spirituality; yours or someone else’s.
- There’s a guy sitting on a park bench reading a newspaper…
- Write a poem about a first romantic (dare I say: sexual) experience or encounter.
- He turned the key in the lock and opened the door. To his horror, he saw…
- Silvery flakes drifted down, glittering in the bright light of the harvest moon. The blackbird…
- The detective saw his opportunity. He grabbed the waitress’s arm and said…
- There are three children sitting on a log near a stream. One of them looks up at the sky and says…
- There is a magic talisman that allows its keeper to read minds. It falls into the hands of a young politician…
- And you thought dragons didn’t exist…
- Write about nature. Include the following words: hard drive, stapler, phone, car, billboard.
- The doctor put his hand on her arm and said gently, “You or the baby will survive. Not both. I’m sorry.”
- The nation is controlled by…
- You walk into your house and it’s completely different — furniture, decor, all changed. And nobody’s home.
- Write about one (or both) of your parents. Start with “I was born…”
- The most beautiful smile I ever saw…
- I believe that animals exist to…
- A twinkling eye can mean many things. The one that is twinkling at me right now…
- Good versus evil. Does it truly exist? What are the gray areas? Do good people do bad things?
- My body…
- Have you ever been just about to drift off to sleep only to be roused because you spontaneously remembered an embarrassing moment from your past?
- Get a package of one of your favorite canned or boxed foods and look at the ingredients. Use every ingredient in your writing session.
Now It’s Your Turn
If none of these prompts inspired you, don’t despair. Come up with some creative writing prompts of your own, and then share them in the comments. Later, I’ll publish them in a post or republish an updated version of this post with your prompts added to the list. Anyone who contributes will be credited!
Keep on writing!
Melissa Donovan is a website designer and copywriter. She writes fiction and poetry and is the founder and editor of Writing Forward, a blog packed with creative writing tips and ideas.
These writing ideas helped a lot thank you. I really want to go to a creative writing school when I get older. One idea which I just came up with is
I hope you like I write often mostly stories with a more poetic base, but once in a while i will feel in the mood to write some thing different. Oh also try continuing after this sentence. Its eyes gleamed pitch black death, creeping into imaginary, azure skies. now continue it :3
Write from the perspective of your fish.( does each fish have there own personality, how does each fish react to the different members of the house, what is it like to be a fish)
Thanks for sharing your prompt Samantha, and good luck to you!
For school, I have to enter a creative writing competition. I have two days and i was really panicking but then i found this website! It really helped! Thankyou Writing Forward!!
Hannah, I’m so glad you found help and inspiration here. Thank you!
Lately I’ve been trying to write a lot like Sarah Dessen! Were doing stories in class and I’m doin one about a girl who runs away, it starts out “I’m on the run! I don’t know where I’m going or where I’ll end up, but I’m not turning back!”
Do you like it?
I do like your opening line. It certainly grabs the reader’s attention and rouses curiosity. Nice job.
Thank you so much!!!! This got me over my terrible case of writer’s block. But now my muse is back!
Wow, thanks Maria. That’s awesome!
I just want to say that this list of prompts has inspired me to take on a challenge of using one every day up until xmas on my blog… or at least until the end of the month!
Thanks for the great list
That’s awesome, Julz. Good luck with your December writing
I haven’t tried it yet, but I think a fun way to mix these up even more would be to choose one of these, then draw the name of an author out of a hat, then write that prompt in the style of that author. That would really stretch your creativity.
That’s an excellent exercise and would definitely be challenging. You’d have to be deeply familiar with the author’s voice.
Hi,
I have found these prompts really helpful for the English lessons that I teach.
Many thanks.
That’s great Cass. I love the idea of these prompts helping students with reading and writing.
i have learnt English as a second language…writing is my passion…this page is REALLY inspiring!thanks for evoking our creative faculties… i want to suggest some topics and the list goes as:
1The beast in me
2Daily journal of a pair of shoes which is in the process of its making
3What the world be if gender roles get changed
4What if i were in the shoes of my English teacher
5How things at the high school are going to be if the concept of beauty gets altered altogether
6It is said that writing is all about pouring your mind on a piece of paper but what it your pen literally starts articulating your thoughts and you end up writing EVERRRRYTHING(What consequences are you going to face)
Thanks for adding your ideas to these prompts!
I haven’t tried the prompts yet but I have always wanted to be a writer since I was eight years old. However ever since graduating and entering the real world I find my muse being choked to death by the responsibility at home. I’ve had to give up my dream of writing for the past two years. I tried taking it up again and was drawing a huge blank, but just by reading a few of these prompts I’ve felt my muse start to breathe. Thank you!
Hi Rochelle, I remember graduating and entering the real world, and I had a similar experience. All of a sudden I just didn’t have the time or inspiration. It took a while, but I adjusted and my creativity returned
I’m so glad you found these prompts helpful!
it was really helpful for me. Thanks to the website and the team who is working behind it. Thanks a tons.
Regards
Aloysius
It’s just me behind the scenes
Thanks for your kind words. I appreciate it.
I found like 5 great writing prompts thank u so much
You are so welcome!
you thought dragoons unicorns and monsters didnt exist? think again! write story of your pet unicorn
That’s a cute idea!
Thank you for these, I am a writer waiting to hear if a publisher is going to publish my novel. Waiting is so hard and my mind has gone blank. These help to stir the jucies again. I’m hand writing them in a note book and taking them with me when I’m out, to write on the go. When I have to wait for a kid to get to the car I can write and not have to figure out how to start a story. So thank you. so much.
That’s awesome. What is it about being in a car or shower that makes us more creative? I always get ideas in those two locations
He stepped out of the Time Machine and found Jesus of Nazareth outside the Temple with Peter and John standing just inside the Gate and the Time Traveler asked Jesus,…
thanks sooo much! those were super helfull! you have the most helpfull website ive found! and i’m a picky writer! THANKYOU!!!
Thanks Anna.
here are some more ideas:
you inherit 1 million dollars
your backpack grows wings on the way to school
a zombie invasion stikes your small/big town
a kidnapper captures you
… hope these help
Thanks Ebony!
Hey! These prompts really helped and I can’t wait to use some
I have started with the one about twinklling eyes and turned it into a story about creatures similar to werewolves XD
Sounds interesting, Molly! Good luck with your story, and keep writing
My English teacher says she doesn’t believe in writer’s block. I on the other hand am not so sure. Sometimes I sit in the afternoon and stare out the window, unable to come up with anything good but I find that ideas flow like crazy at two in the morning with a cup of coffee in my left hand. That’s always my best remedy, though writing prompts like these always help me get going. Thanks for sharing
Some prompts:
10 things I hate about…
What’s the recipe for those wonderful _______ muffins you baked last night? (Try filling that blank with ‘unicorn’.)
I believe in writer’s block, but I think that it’s presented as being unable to write whereas usually it’s just a case of needing to work a little harder at writing. Sometimes, we need to stop procrastinating, stop trying to force our ideas, or we just need to allow ourselves to write badly for a while. I believe there are ideas everywhere; the trick is to keep ourselves open to them and be willing to explore them. Having said all that, writer’s block still sucks. I’m like you, Maluly, the ideas flow like crazy at two in the morning (no coffee required!).
Thank you for all these prompts! I really like them. Do you have anymore?
Thanks for these! I definitely believe in writer’s block!! In fact, I am just emerging from what I like to call writer’s ‘droubt’, since it lasted at least a year. But I don’t think you need to be blocked to use prompts. They are great exercises and get you to try new ways of writing. And sometimes, when I get burned out with the story I’m currently writing, it helps to focus on something completely different for a while, and you can come back to it with fresh eyes. Here are some prompts that I came up with and they helped me out:
1) ‘It all started with the cat…’
2) ‘Have you ever seen something out of the corner of your eye, but when you turned to look, found nothing there? You dismiss it as an illusion, a trick of the light. You’re wrong…’
3) Write something from the perspective of a ghost.
4) Write something using the five senses EXCEPT sight (hearing, smell, touch, taste)
5) Instead of using first or third person, write with second person point-of-view (in other words, use ‘you’ instead of ‘he/she’ or ‘I’. Or try writing in present or even future tense, instead of past tense.
Oh yeah, and one more: 6) Write something from the perspective of the BAD guy, instead of the hero
I love when stories do this! Thanks for adding it, CJM.
These are excellent prompts, especially well suited for speculative fiction writers. My favorite is the prompt about seeing something out of the corner of your eye (that happens to me sometimes!). Thanks for adding these.
Here’s one for those of you who have pets
What do your pets do when you and other inhabitants of your house are not at home?
Ooh, that’s a good one, Lily. That could be great for a children’s story!
Thanks! You helped me finish my school report!
You’re welcome. Glad you found these prompts helpful.
Thank you SO much for these exciting writing prompts! They really inspire me.
I have one idea for a prompt: Write about a conversation that you would have if were stuck in an elevator with a celebrity or famous book character.
You’re welcome, Arieda. I love your elevator prompt! You could also do it with characters from your novel as a test to see how each would behave in an elevator with a celebrity. That could tell you a lot about your characters. Good one!
Lovely ideas, both of these! Arieda, that prompt gave me a short story idea, one that I’m pretty excited about, and I’m definitely going to have to do that with all my characters now, Melissa.
I thought up another twist on this prompt that intrigues me:
Your characters get stuck in an elevator with you, their author. How do they react when they discover who you are and that you control their destinies? What sort of conversations would you have? Would you like interacting with your character? Would your character like you?
Hannah, I love your prompt idea. What a fun writing exercise: The Character Meets the Author. That’s quite brilliant
Thank you so much for these, I’m trying to write a book…and I’ve been at a stand still lately, so this will help me more than ever.
You’re welcome, Alexis. I’m glad you found these prompts helpful.
Hi, i am 13 years old and i am required to create a 10-minute play for my Theatre Arts class. Please, I love to write, but i am stuck on this. Please help me overcome this obstacle. Thank you so much.
Hi Desari, Unfortunately, this isn’t an appropriate venue for getting help with your homework. It sounds like you’re in college. You should be able to go to your professor or your English (writing or language arts) department to seek help and guidance with issues like this. I wish you the best of luck with your assignment.
Maybe take some of these prompts and instead of turning it into a story write dialogue and stage movements.
That’s a great idea for playwrights and screenwriters. Thanks, Emma.
Hi Ms. Donovan!
thank you so much for the writing prompts! i’ve been using them for all my english creative writing assignments. it’s been my dream to be a writer since i was little. although i find it hard to write mysteries. ironically it’s my favorite genre to read though. any advice on how to get started on a good mystery?
I myself don’t write mysteries although I have read a few. My suggestion would be to read as many mysteries as you can and watch mystery films and television shows so you thoroughly know your genre (you should still read other stuff too!). Study the greats and ideas will come to you!
thank you for the writing prompts=)
do you have any tips for writing poetry about nature?
i suck at poems but i have to write one for school about nature
since earth day just passed and all.
i’d appreciate it very much! ;D
I have a post full of nature-inspired poetry prompts that you might find helpful. If you’re stuck with constructing the poem, then I suggest using a form, such as the sonnet. Good luck with your assignment!
Wow i have writers block i have my charecter but i dont know what the problem is……
help any good title ideas?
When I’m stuck and can’t come up with a character or a title, I just skip it. The important thing is to keep writing. You can always come back later and add names and titles. Here’s how I do it:
GIRL said that there was no way out but OLD LADY knew otherwise…
I use all caps for characters who don’t have names yet. Many writers use a “working title” as they are developing their project. A working title can be anything. It’s just temporary.
You’ll find that as you work on your project (and if you work around these little setbacks), ideas will come to you. Good luck!
Awesome post:) Thanks so much, really helped! have a great day! Peace-Jeff
Thanks Jeff!
A prompt could be : She started to fall over and _________( fill in the blank) picked her up.
or : The alien gaze stared from above the fence , and I blushed in embarrassment.
100 words about your favorite animal
a short story about a difficult topic like : war , famine , bullying .etc
a poem about the weather
Hi Melody, thanks for adding your prompts to this ever-growing list
A really good way to start a story is pick the first sentence from a book like : ” The demon exploded in a shower of ichor and guts.”
” We should start back,” Gared urged as the woods began to grow dark around them.”
Your prompts are definitely creative and helpful, but what I’m most impressed with is how you respond so positively and encouragingly to everyone who replied to this. Sometimes all it takes is a little bit of encouragement or approval from even a complete stranger to shift a young writers thought from maybe being able to do something to just doing it. I haven’t written in months, and are still my having any real luck, but I know I will write again someday, and I just thought it should be mentioned that you are a good person for encouraging others to do what they love. Best of luck to you…
Thank you so much Shannon. Your words mean a lot to me. I try to act as an advocate for writers and to encourage young and new writers to explore their ideas and find their voices. I believe the world would be a better place if we all followed our passions and more importantly, encourage others to do so too
“Conundrum”
The little girl cries with a lie on her lips
The girl can’t remember her name
The little boy’s laugh rings with hollow self-doubt
The little girl feels just the same
A little dog lost in the thick of the woods
A little man sick with dismay
A little boy born in the arms of the girl
A little life born from a day
A little death born from an ignorant choice
A little boy crying away
And a little God laughs at the sight of it all
For this little herd has not a say
Thanks for sharing your poem with us, Conner
Keep writing!