AI Story Prompt Generator for Every Genre

Coming up with new story ideas can feel harder than writing the story itself. A story prompt generator gives you a way out, offering a wide range of story writing prompts for you to experiment with. You might discover love story prompts that explore complex emotions, mystery story prompts with unexpected twists, fantasy short story prompts filled with magic, or dystopian story prompts imagining grim futures.

In the following sections, you’ll find creative story prompts across genres and learn how Quillbot’s AI story prompt generator can help transform scattered ideas into captivating story starters.

Story-writing prompts

Writing can take you anywhere—from hidden romances to twisted mysteries, magical realms, or worlds on the brink of collapse. In this section, you’ll find prompts across genres that will help you dive deeper into different worlds and discover stories you never knew were waiting inside you.

Love story prompts

From old friends rekindling an old flame to couples who never quite reach a happy ending, these prompts explore the many twists love can take—tender, surprising, and sometimes bittersweet.

• On a rainy day, two characters meet and fall in love in a museum.
• While volunteering at an animal shelter, two people bond over caring for a difficult dog, realizing their growing affection in the process.
• Old friends reunite at a high school reunion and slowly realize that the spark between them never faded.
• Write a story about two opposites finding themselves surprisingly attracted to one another.
• Write a story about two characters who like each other but don’t get a happily-ever-after.

Mystery story prompts

Whether it’s solving a decades-old crime or keeping a promise that uncovers dark secrets, these prompts put characters at the center of mysteries waiting to be solved.

• You arrive at a destination you promised an old friend you’d visit after they passed away, only to find them there too.
• At a secluded boarding school, students begin to disappear one by one, and a small group of friends must unravel the school’s dark secrets before it’s too late.
• Every year, a mysterious letter arrives on the same day, hinting at an unsolved crime from decades ago. This year, someone decides to finally decode its message.
• Detectives from different decades each discover the same unidentified body under mysterious circumstances, and must solve the case across time to stop a larger conspiracy.

Fantasy short story prompts

Fantasy opens the door to magical worlds filled with creatures, spells, and adventures. These prompts help you imagine stories beyond the ordinary.

• Every night, a different mythical creature appears in a small village, and a curious innkeeper sets out to learn why.
• Write about a gallery where the paintings come alive at night.
• A barista in a small town’s favorite coffee shop discovers they can grant wishes like a genie. Write their story.
• A monster is terrified by the scary child who lives above his bed.
• Write about a hero who doesn’t want to kill the dragon.

Dystopian story prompts

Dystopian fiction imagines worlds gone wrong: autocratic regimes, rogue algorithms, and societies at the brink of collapse. These prompts will push you to explore the darker side of “what if.”

• In a future where emotions are regulated by the government, a rebellious teenager discovers an underground group determined to restore true feelings to society.
• Society is controlled by a powerful algorithm that assigns life roles at birth, but when a glitch gives one person the wrong identity, they begin to question the system.
• In the end, it wasn’t humankind that destroyed the world. It was …
• Start your story with a major news event breaking—one that will change the world forever.
• All written language is banned, and history is told only through government-approved images—until an artist discovers ancient books and risks everything to share their message.

Choose a prompt that intrigues you and start writing—you might be surprised by the story that unfolds!

Using an AI story prompt generator

An AI story prompt generator works best when you have a broad idea, like a genre or mood, and need help turning it into something more specific. You can start with just a hint of direction and then shape the results until they match what you’re looking for.

Here’s how it works:

1. Enter your idea. Share guidance about the kind of story prompt you’d like in the chatbox.
2. Tweak your results. Add context or adjust the direction to refine the prompt.
3. Get your prompt. Copy your finished idea and start writing right away.

It’s a simple, flexible way to bridge the gap between vague ideas and story starters you can actually write with.

Frequently asked questions about story prompts

What are some creative writing prompts?

Creative writing prompts can inspire you when you’re not sure what to write about. Here are a few examples to get you started:

• Write a story that begins with a character receiving an anonymous letter.
• Imagine a world where people’s emotions are visible as colors hovering around them.
• Describe a meeting between two strangers who realize they’ve been appearing in each other’s dreams.
• Write about a character who discovers a hidden room in their home that changes every time they open the door.

If you’d like even more inspiration, try QuillBot’s AI story prompt generator: it creates tailored prompts in seconds, so you can stop searching for ideas and start writing.

What are some Halloween story prompts?

Halloween story prompts are perfect for exploring eerie settings, supernatural twists, or unsettling characters. Here are a few to inspire you:

• A group of friends dares each other to spend the night in an abandoned house—but the house isn’t as empty as it seems.
• Every Halloween, the same masked figure appears in town. This year, someone decides to follow them.
• A child’s Halloween costume begins to take on a life of its own.
• Write about a town where Halloween night never ends.

For even more spooky inspiration, use QuillBot’s AI story prompt generator to find even more spooky ideas for your next Halloween tale.