Sneak peek at 1200 Creative Writing Prompts.

Today I’d like to share a few excerpts from 1200 Creative Writing Prompts, which is packed with fiction, poetry, and nonfiction writing prompts.

1200 Creative Writing Prompts is from the Adventures in Writing series. It’s a lean book with a short introduction and three lists of prompts separated into fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. There isn’t any technique or instruction — just a straightforward collection of writing prompts, so you can get started writing.

Today’s post features an excerpt from the introduction and a selection of five prompts from each section.

Excerpts from 1200 Creative Writing Prompts

Have you ever wanted to write but weren’t sure where to begin? Maybe you wanted to write a story, but you couldn’t think of a plot. Maybe you wanted to write an essay or an article, but you couldn’t think of a subject to write about. Maybe you wanted to write a poem, but you couldn’t find the words.

Writing prompts provide helpful starting points when you’re not sure what to write. Give the prompts below a try and see what happens:

Fiction Writing Prompts

1. The protagonist finds himself or herself stranded on a deserted island. But this island wasn’t always deserted. An abandoned village and a lighthouse, which may be the best chance for getting rescued, become the protagonist’s new home.
2. Someone is sitting on a park bench reading a news article about a recent string of crimes. This person knows who did it.
3. A child pretending to be a spy discovers incredible secrets while surveilling his or her parent, who conducts top-secret research for the military.
4. A writer loses the ability to distinguish reality from the fantastical worlds of his or her stories.
5. Write a story about how humans could breathe in space without having to wear bulky, uncomfortable space suits.

Poetry Writing Prompts

1. Write a descriptive poem about a banana split: three scoops of ice cream with banana halves on either side and a big mound of whipped cream on top laced with chocolate sauce and sprinkled with chopped nuts—all topped off with a plump red cherry.
2. Use all of the following words in a poem: tapestry, sings, eye, din, collide, slippery, fantasy, casting, chameleon, lives.
3. Write a poem about somebody who betrayed you, or write a poem about betrayal.
4. Write a poem using the following image: a glove lying in a puddle.
5. Write a poem about something ugly—war, fear, hate, or cruelty—but try to find the beauty (silver lining) in it or something good that comes out of it.

Creative Nonfiction Writing Prompts

1. Write about someone you admire from afar—a public figure or celebrity.
2. Revisit your earliest memories of learning about faith, religion, or spirituality.
3. Write a how-to article about a task, activity, or project you’ve learned to complete through practical experience in your career.
4. Have you ever had déjà vu—the strange sense that you’ve experienced something before? Write a personal essay about it.
5. What is the number-one goal you want to achieve as a writer? To reach your main writing goal, what do you need to do?

Get More Creative Writing Prompts!

To get more prompts like these, pick up a copy of 1200 Creative Writing Prompts, available at your favorite online bookstores.