Interesting Writing Prompts for Kids & Adults

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Plus, tips from a professional author on becoming a better writer

Co-authored by Grant Faulkner, MA and Dev Murphy, MA

Last Updated: June 29, 2025 Fact Checked

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• Inspirational
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• Unique
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• Elementary Students
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• Middle School
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• High School
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• Adults
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• Improving Your Writing Skills
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• Creative Writing Prompt Generator

|Show more |Show less

It happens to us all: you want to write, but you spend an hour staring at a blank page or computer screen. Thankfully, we’ve compiled a list of interesting and unique writing prompts to get your creative gears moving again. Whether you’re trying to pen the next great American novel (no pressure!) or you just want to get your thoughts and feelings down on paper, these prompts can help you overcome any writer’s block or anxiety you might be facing. As a bonus, we sat down with professional writer Grant Faulkner, MA and got his advice on how to become a better writer. Soon, the words will be flowing like magic...and if they're not, you can create more inspiring prompts using our writing prompt generator!

Helpful Creative Writing Prompts

• What can’t you live without?
• Write a poem about the last thing that made you laugh.
• You find a magical portal in the basement. Where does it go?
• Write a story or poem from the point of view of an animal.
• Write a story that begins with, “I never realized it before, but…”

Steps

Section 1 of 7:

Inspirational Creative Writing Prompts

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1. 
   Overcome writer’s block with these motivating prompts. A solid writing prompt can help get the creative gears turning, whether you’re writing a story, essay, poem, or something else. Kick your writing sesh off with one of these inspirational prompts and watch the words start a-flowing:

   • Freewrite in a stream-of-conscious way, using the word “knickknack” as your jumping-off point.
   • Write a review of the worst movie you’ve ever seen.
   • Write a review of the most moving song you’ve ever heard.
   • Think about a time you saw a random object on the sidewalk or in the road (like a hair clip or a shoe). Write about the object’s owner and their connection to that object.
   • Write about your favorite piece of furniture from your childhood home.
   • Think about your favorite book or poem. Write about what you love about it.
   • Write a poem about the last thing that made you cry.
   • Write a poem about the last thing that made you laugh.
   • Pull a book off your shelf at random, and pull to a random page. What is the first line on the page? Use it as a jumping-off point for a poem or story.
   • Write a story from the perspective of your mother or father.
   • Is there such a thing as a soul? How do you know? Write about it.
   • Who is the most interesting person you know of? Write a story from their perspective.
   • Pretend you’re being interviewed by a talk show host. What are they interviewing you for (can be real or made up!)? What questions do they ask?
   • Write about the last insect you saw.
   • Who did you last receive a text from? Write a story from their perspective.
   • Write a poem that starts with the words “At least...”
   • Write a poem about home and identity in which every line starts with “I am from…,” inspired by the poem “Where I’m From,” by George Ella Lyon.
   • Write about why you want to write.
   • What can’t you live without?
   • What do you regret?
   • Write about “the one who got away.”
   • What do you think about at night?
   • What do you wish you could forget?
   • Write for 1 minute about the strangest thing that’s ever happened to you.
   • Write for 1 minute about your literary hero and what their writing means to you.
   • Write about something nice a stranger did for you.
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Section 2 of 7:

Cool & Unique Creative Writing Prompts

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1. 
   Looking for a really interesting and unique prompt? Look no farther. These cool and compelling prompts are sure to motivate you to write something really spellbinding and original:

   • Write about an item you have that isn’t expensive but means a lot to you.
   • Write about an imagined ideal day walking around a city of your choosing.
   • Write a review of the last movie you saw.
   • Think about a major decision you made. Write a story or poem in which you make a different decision instead, and how things turn out.
   • The world is dying. In order to save it, you’ve been commanded to sacrifice yourself to an invading alien group.
   • Write about what you see outside your window right this moment.
   • Write a story from the perspective of your shoes.
   • If your house were on fire, what (nonliving) item would you save first? Write about this thing. Why is it so special?
   • Write about the worst day of your life. What happened? How did you feel?
   • Take a minute, and freewrite about your favorite snack.
   • What’s the most embarrassing thing that’s ever happened to you?
   • What’s the funniest thing that’s ever happened to you?
   • A goose lays an egg, and it hatches, but instead of a goose, there’s a ____ inside. Write this story.
   • What’s your favorite thing to bake? Write about this food: how it feels to make it, what it tastes like, what your history with it is.
   • Would you ever want to be the president? Why or why not?
   • What’s one thing everyone should do before they die?
   • Is it true that money can’t buy happiness?
   • Describe the last dream you had as if it really happened.
   • “That was the day my life changed.” Keep writing this story.
   • Write a poem about living forever.
   • Write a story from the perspective of a mythical beast.
   • Write a story about people who dress as animals.
   • Write a story about someone with synesthesia.
   • Who do you look up to? Write a poem about them.
   • Write a love poem to a certain food.
   • Write about your favorite holiday tradition.
   • Need more creative writing prompts? Check out Amazon’s assortment of creative writing prompt books, for every age group!

Section 3 of 7:

Creative Writing Prompts for Elementary School Students

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1. 
   These writing prompts are perfect for young children. Writing is a great way to express yourself, no matter if you’re 7 or 77. If you teach or have young children, these prompts will foster reflection, creativity, and imagination in youngsters:

   • Write a story that starts with Once upon a time….
   • Write a story about a magical pineapple.
   • Write a poem from the perspective of an animal.
   • Write a story about an alien from another planet. What is their planet like? How does it compare to Earth?
   • You find a magical portal in the basement. Where does it go?
   • Write a story without using the letter “F.”
   • Write the funniest poem you can think of.
   • Write about the earliest thing you remember.
   • If you were the only person on the planet, what would you do?
   • What’s your favorite thing to do on summer break?
   • Write a poem in which the last word of every line rhymes with “would.”
   • Write a poem that doesn’t rhyme at all.
   • You wake up to discover you can walk through walls. Write about your day with this superpower.
   • What is your favorite book and why?
   • What is your favorite movie and why?
   • If you could be a character in any TV show, movie, book, or video game, who would you be? Write about your life as this character.
   • If you could talk to your pet (or any animal), what would the conversation sound like?
   • If pets could speak to each other, what would they talk about?
   • Describe your dream birthday party.
   • There’s a panda bear in the classroom! How did it get there? What happens when you come upon it?
   • Design a car that can fly and talk.
   • You’ve been invited to a ball at the royal palace! What is it like?
   • Write a poem inspired by a holiday, like Halloween or Valentine’s Day.
   • Rewrite Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs from the perspective of one of the dwarfs.
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Section 4 of 7:

Creative Writing Prompts for Middle School Students

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1. 
   Assign these to middle schoolers to get their creative gears churning. If you’re a teacher of 6th, 7th, or 8th grade students—or a middle school-aged writer yourself—try these thought-provoking prompts, hand-picked for a pre-teen age group:

   • “You’ve never seen somebody do this before!” Write a story in which a character says this. Why do they say it? Only you know…
   • Write a story about an explorer who can’t find what they’re looking for. Where are they trying to go? What obstacles get in their way? Do they ever find what they’re looking for?
   • Say there’s a magical portal in the back of your closet (à la Narnia). Where does it go? Would you enter it?
   • “It was a dark and stormy night.” Write a story that begins with these words.
   • If you had a time machine, what time would you travel to and why?
   • Write a story that includes nail polish, coconuts, and a wallet.
   • Write a poem that includes a walrus, a dictionary, and a chocolate bar.
   • What would make a better pet—a termite or a lion?
   • What is your favorite holiday? What’s so great about it?
   • What food should everybody try? Why should they taste it?
   • Write a story about a character who never speaks.
   • Write a story about a character who can’t shut up.
   • Write a spooky story to share around a campfire.
   • Deep in the heart of a mystical forest, a magical tree grows. What’s special about the tree? Write a story about a character searching for the tree and what they hope to accomplish.
   • Describe an unusual birthday cake flavor (like pickle-flavored, dirt-flavored, or cheese-flavored). Would you eat it? What would this cake look like?
   • Describe the color “green” without using the word “green.”
   • Pick a partner and write a story together! Start by writing the first sentence, then pass it to your partner to write the second sentence.
   • Write a story about a lonely monster.
   • Write a story about a monster with loads of friends.
   • “Something just touched my foot,” they shouted, swimming toward the shore. Finish the story.
   • You’ve just invented a machine that will change the world. What does the machine do?
   • You wake up to find you’ve turned into your pet. What do you do?
   • Rewrite Beauty and the Beast from the beast’s perspective.
   • Rewrite Rapunzel from the perspective of Rapunzel’s hair.
   • What’s your favorite subject in school and why?
   • If you could add another room to your house, where would it go? What would it look like? What would you do in it?

Section 5 of 7:

Creative Writing Prompts for High School Students

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1. 
   These prompts are perfect for teenagers. Whether you’re a teen yourself or you’re a teacher looking for the perfect writing prompts for your students, these suggestions will offer the motivation needed to let the words flow:

   • Write a scene or story about a fairy tale character in an unexpected situation. For instance, what if Cinderella worked at McDonald’s?
   • Write a scene or story about time travel.
   • Write a piece that includes the color red (either literally, as in a fire truck, or figuratively, as in “seeing red”).
   • Write a story in which a group of strangers is invited to a mysterious old house on an island for a night. Who are the strangers? Who invited them to the house? What happens to them?
   • Write a letter to your 5-year-old self.
   • Write a letter to your 30-year-old self.
   • Scientists have discovered a new planet, and it seems habitable! Describe the planet. Who lives there?
   • Write a story or scene in which fictional characters go on vacation. Where do they go? What do they need to bring? What might go wrong?
   • Write a mystery story.
   • Write a story that includes a slow-burn romance.
   • Write a scene, poem, or story that includes the number 10.
   • Write a diary entry from the perspective of a fictional character or somebody you know.
   • What using the stream-of-conscious technique: don’t give yourself any limits, and don’t worry about spelling or grammar. Just write!
   • Write a Shakespearean sonnet.
   • Write a scene that embodies the word “chaos.”
   • Write a scene that embodies the word “order.”
   • Write a song from the perspective of a character from your favorite book.
   • Write a story that begins with, “I never realized it before, but…”
   • Write a scary story.
   • Write a scary poem.
   • Write a story about a character with magic boots. What happens when they lose a boot? Who finds it?
   • Write a love poem to your “hear me out…” character.
   • You’re starstruck: you’ve just met your favorite celebrity! Write about what they’re really like.
   • Write a story or poem from the perspective of a small child.
   • Write a story or poem from the perspective of you in 20 years.
   • Write a story or poem from the perspective of you in 50 years.
   • Write a story or poem from the perspective of you after you’ve died.
   • Write a story or poem from the point of view of an animal.
   • A mysterious package has arrived on your front porch. It’s addressed to you, but there’s no return address. What’s inside it?
   • If you were the only person on Earth for one day, what would you do?
   • If you could say anything without any consequences, what would you say?
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Section 6 of 7:

Creative Writing Prompts for Adults

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1. 
   Use these adult-oriented prompts to unblock the creative pipes. Whether you write every day or you’re dipping your toe into the water for the first time, every writer (of any age) can use a prompt now and again.

   • Your parents tell you that they actually don’t know whose child you are.
   • You’ve joined a cooking class, and you have a huge crush on your instructor. Write about it!
   • Write a story in which the main character falls in love with an extra-terrestrial.
   • A stranger sits down next to you on a train and gets up, leaving a package behind. Do you investigate the package?
   • You’re married to a celebrity. What’s your life like?
   • Write a story in which everyone has the ability to read thoughts, except for one person.
   • You wake up to find you’ve shrunk to the size of an ant. Write about your day.
   • You learn the love of your life is actually a robot. What do you do next? Do you stay together?
   • Write a story about a robot who doesn’t know they’re a robot.
   • Write a story in which the main character must face a major ethical conundrum.
   • You find a spell that will let you summon your dream partner—but there’s a catch. They have all of the qualities you want in another person, but one big flaw. Describe the person you summon with this spell.
   • Write a story in which you move to a new country. Where do you move and why?
   • You wake up from a coma to find 10 years have passed. What’s happened in that time? How do you adjust to life?
   • You wake up from a coma to find yourself in a post-apocalyptic world. What happened? What do you do next?
   • Write a poem about God’s face.
   • Write about your first car.
   • Write a poem about whatever is nearest you, whether it’s a pen, a coffee mug, or your cat.
   • You get a text message from an unknown number saying, “Meet me outside. Now.”
   • Write a story in which two characters fall in love, but are doomed to be apart.
   • Write a story in which gravity doesn’t exist.

Section 7 of 7:

How to Improve Your Writing Skills

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1. 1
   According to Faulkner, you just have to…well, write. He stresses the importance of having a writing routine: “I think writing skills are developed less through exercises than just by constantly writing,” he says. “So, writing often, and writing in a journal every day is good.”

   • “It's just about practicing,” he adds, and “being curious about your writing, and looking at it with a critical eye.”
   • Faulkner recommends freewriting as a daily practice, especially as taught by Julia Cameron in her cult classic book on writing, The Artist’s Way: “She has what she calls ‘morning pages.’ And she says…a lot of people have [emotional or physical] obstacles between themselves and the page…. So she recommends that people just wake up [and] start writing. And you don't have any intention…. [J]ust start putting words on the page.”
2. 2
   Read. A lot. If you want to write well, Faulkner says, you have “to read a lot, to get an appreciation of language through reading, and then to write a lot.” He continues: “The more you write, the more you feel the texture of words,” and the more you “[find] your voice and the tone of a story.” He stresses that reading will likely improve your writing more than studying the mechanics of language, like “grammar, for instance.” (Meaning even if you don’t know what an Oxford comma is, you could still become the next Stephen King.)

   • That doesn’t mean you should totally ignore grammar and spelling: “[Writing and grammar] go together,” Faulkner notes.
   • “I didn't have a lot of formal writing instruction when I was growing up,” he clarifies. “I'm largely self-taught…because I wrote [and read] a lot…. I used the dash just to mimic the authors who I read who use dashes. I didn't know what its formal purpose or role was, but eventually, I did read about it in a grammar book.”
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