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Brainstorm
Don't know where to start? Try some of these story starters to fire up your imagination!

Ideas and Techniques

Fiction from Art
Is a picture really worth 1000 words? React to this art with your writing.

Fiction from Life
One of the best places to look for short fiction material — believe it or not — is your own life.

Fiction from the News
Want to know where to search for great stories every morning? Look no further than your local newspaper.

Fiction from Fiction
Mine award-winning stories from our Critics’ Picks for inspiration.

Shadow Fiction (PDF)
Follow this prompt and generate new ideas from your favorite pieces of writing.
Featured Author

“After getting the initial idea, I brain- stormed elements that would be essential to the story, such as a strong central character, and then I wrote down different ways to tie all those elements together.”
—Jocelyn Fox
Read Jocelyn's award winning story, "A Small Taste of Normalcy."

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