You wouldn’t go for a 10km run without stretching beforehand, would you? It would be like inviting your hamstrings to revolt. The same warm-up principle applies to your writing practice.

All writers need to stretch their creative muscles, loosening up the joints from the constraints of their current story or WIP, removing tension and stiffness so the day’s words can flow freely. Even the most prolific writers encounter moments when the muse is MIA, and the blank page stares back at them. During these times, many authors turn to a simple yet powerful tool: writing prompts.

From original story starters to thought-provoking questions, prompts help you tease out new writing genres, styles and perspectives (also known as POVs). The important thing is to reconnect with the joy of your fingers hitting the keyword, so be sure to write freely and without constraint or a critical eye.

Ready to go? Below, we’ve compiled a list of 50 creative writing prompts, 5 for each of the following genres: romance, historical fiction, thriller, middle grade, young adult, crime, literary fiction, fantasy, sci-fi and even journal writing prompts.

Your hamstrings will thank you later!

50 Creative Writing Prompts 

Romance Writing Prompts

1. A Zoom call between a couple who are trying to navigate the complexities of a long-distance relationship.
2. A bride who is having niggling doubts bumps into her childhood sweetheart on the morning of her wedding.
3. Two warring colleagues are paired together in an Amazing Race challenge.
4. Sparks fly between two warring social media influencers on a photoshoot.
5. Chemistry develops between two divorced parents who are called in to discuss their feuding teenagers.

Historical Fiction Writing Prompts

1. A widowed mother whose three sons are all soldiers in WWII is preparing a meal ahead of one son coming home on medical leave.
2. Against the backdrop of the Renaissance, a talented artist in Florence risks everything to pursue her art. Write a scene where she is forced to hide her paintings before the Gestapo arrive.
3. Craft a narrative set during the Gold Rush, where a prospector is being interrogated by law enforcement about a gold nugget he claims to have found.
4. Write a scene imagining a family of immigrants arriving at Ellis Island in 1910 who are seeing the New York City skyline for the first time.
5. Write a story about a character amidst the Roaring Twenties amidst the underground world of speakeasies and jazz clubs from the perspective of an aspiring lounge singer.

Thriller Writing Prompts

1. Craft a suspenseful scene where a protagonist discovers a hidden message that puts their life in danger.
2. Write a psychological thriller scene in which the protagonist's reality starts to unravel when they receive a series of disturbing images via text.
3. Explore a scene where two detectives arrive on an idyllic suburban street to knock on a missing child cold case, for which some new evidence has recently come to light.
4. Write a thriller scene set in a remote cabin where a group of friends becomes trapped with a mysterious stranger during a snowstorm.
5. Write about a family vacation that takes a sinister turn when one parent disappears.

Middle-Grade Writing Prompts

1. Write a story about a group of kids who band together to solve a mystery about missing pets in their inner-city neighbourhood.
2. Craft a scene where your protagonist wakes up in a world where time now moves backwards.
3. Write about a summer camp where strange things start happening from the POV of a young protagonist nobody believes.
4. Craft a narrative about a group of kids starting a secret club with a mission to make pocket money.
5. Write about a rehearsal for a school talent show where the misfit protagonist has to overcome stage fright to showcase their talent.

YA Writing Prompts

1. Write about a road trip adventure where the protagonist is forced to drive with his new blended family across the country.
2. Write a love story between a teenager and an AI machine or device.
3. Write about a forbidden romance between two teenagers from different magical realms.
4. Explore the challenges of mental health through the eyes of a teenage protagonist struggling with online bullying.
5. Create a narrative about a high school detective trying to solve a mystery that threatens their rural farming community, using the words crop, brothers and tyre.

Crime Writing Prompts

1. Craft a noir-style story set in an urban landscape from the POV of a young mother with a baby.
2. Write about a bank job gone wrong, where the protagonists are from one family, from the POV of the matriarch.
3. Write a story about a young detective who wants to reopen a cold case after a new piece of evidence is delivered to their home address.
4. A protagonist stumbles across a fresh crime scene inside their workplace.
5. Start your scene with this sentence: The iPhone glinted under the glare of the interrogation room lights. “Do you know who this belongs to?” the detective asked.

Literary Fiction Writing Prompts

1. Write a character-driven story exploring the intricacies of familial relationships from the perspective of the youngest child in a family.
2. Craft a narrative about a protagonist confronting a mistake from their past as they seek forgiveness from a person they have wronged.
3. Create a story about a family reunion where a long-buried secret finally comes to light.
4. Explore the complexities of human nature through a series of interconnected vignettes set in an inner city apartment building.
5. Write a scene where a sister and brother are cleaning out their parent’s house after their mother has died.

Fantasy Writing Prompts

1. Craft a scene in which a young street girl discovers that she possesses a powerful ability in a world where magic is forbidden.
2. Write about a forbidden romance between a mortal and a creature of legend.
3. Create a high-stakes quest where the fate of the world rests on the shoulders of an unlikely group of heroes who can’t agree on their plan.
4. Explore the concept of destiny and free will through a story about a protagonist who is grappling with their role in the world.
5. In a realm where time flows backwards, causing memories to fade and events to unravel in reverse, write about a group of adventurers who must journey against the current of time to prevent a catastrophic event from erasing their existence.

Sci-Fi Writing Prompts

1. Write about a scientist who has invented a medicine that allows people to only remember happy memories.
2. Explore the ethical dilemma of artificial intelligence through a story about a sentient robot struggling for autonomy.
3. Craft a dystopian society where genetic engineering has divided humanity into new classes.
4. Write about a virtual reality game that blurs the lines between fantasy and reality.
5. Start a story using this blurb: “The year is 2060, and a ground-breaking scientific experiment has exposed a parallel realm that seeks to engulf and assimilate our own.”

Journal writing prompts

1. Describe a recent encounter with someone that changed or challenged your existing perspective. What did you learn?
2. Write about a place you love as though it were a scene from your novel. Close your eyes and visualise it using all your senses. Now use vivid language and setting to transport the reader there.
3. Choose a controversial topic that you feel strongly in one direction about, and write an argumentative piece presenting the opposite side.
4. Think of a cultural tradition or celebration that is significant in your life. Why does it mean so much to you?
5. Reflect on a moment from your childhood that has shaped who you are today and describe how it has influenced you.

If these haven’t hit the mark for you, you could also try online writing prompt generators like the Reedsy Writing Prompt Generator or Writingprompts.com.

We hope this post has been useful, storytellers! Please contact us if there are any writing topics you would like us to cover.