Ideas for a short story?

Question

I'm going to explode. I need to write a short story and I'm experiencing this ultimate mind block. I'm ripping out my hair, biting my nails, picking my scabs, and any other nervous habit you can think of, trust me, I'm doing it. Any ideas are appreciated GREATLY. Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

A hurricane just hit and there is a serial killer running around lose that broke out of prison. A wife is at home and her husband is driving along the road. He sees someone on the side of the road trying to get a ride and pulls over and lets the guy in the car. On the radio they are warning people in the area to look out for a guy that looks exactly like the guy in the car, the serial killer. The guy tells him to turn off the radio, the husband starts freaking out. Meanwhile, at home, someone knocks on the door and the wife finds a tall man at the door. He tells her that he needs some shelter because his house got blown away. She invites him in and they see on the tv a warning about the serial killer running loose. You can take it from there and do what you want to it. Hope it helped!

Answer 2

Short Story Ideas List

Answer 3

First, take a deep breath! Making a short story isn't that hard. It just requires a mind, paper, writing utensil, and these steps!

Now, writing a short story isn't as hard as you may think it is. The easiest way to write a short story is by relating it to your life or the things around you. For example, I am cold at the moment. I may write about the weather and a past experience with that. Another way to write a short story is to think of one word or sentence that interests you and go from there. One word I like is 'flowers'. I may write about a day in a garden. Write down a couple of your ideas, and your ready for the next step!

With the list in front of you, relax and ask your self these questions: Is this one easy to do? Can I make a complete story with this? Is this a good idea? Does this require research or hard work? (Remember: it is always best to write a story that you can somewhat relate to.) How long would it take to make this story? After limiting the list to one choice, now its time to start.

Make a quick outline of your story, including characters, beginning, middle, and end, setting, and important information.

With this, you can make a short story quickly and efficently!

Answer 4

I love writing stories too. I have a list of ideas I keep when I want to write something... so in the future keep a list handy. It always works for me.

As far as an idea for now, here's an idea. Write some random words on a piece of paper. After you do that, try to get the words to somehow connect in a sentence. Inspiration for an idea right there!

One other idea... think about the genre you love writing about. Then think about a genre opposite of that or one that you've never tried before (horror, fantasy, action, drama?). Try writing something in that genre.

Here's a site you should check out. People write and comment on stories, poems, etc. Maybe you'll get an idea there. http://www.fictionpress.com/

Also try http://www.fanfiction.net/ ... you can write stories about characters from different shows/movies/books/etc.

Have fun!

Answer 5

Short Story Tips
Why do some stories truly ring in the mind while others leave you with the feeling of 'what was the point?'. To make your short stories more effective, try to keep in mind these following points while writing:

1. Have a clear theme. What is the story about? That doesn't mean what is the plot line, the sequence of events or the character's actions, it means what is the underlying message or statement behind the words. Get this right and your story will have more resonance in the minds of your readers.
2. An effective short story covers a very short time span. It may be one single event that proves pivotal in the life of the character, and that event will illustrate the theme.
3. Don't have too many characters. Each new character will bring a new dimension to the story, and for an effective short story too many diverse dimensions (or directions) will dilute the theme. Have only enough characters to effectively illustrate the theme.
4. Make every word count. There is no room for unnecessary expansion in a short story. If each word is not working towards putting across the theme, delete it.
5. Focus. The best stories are the ones that follow a narrow subject line. What is the point of your story? Its point is its theme. It's tempting to digress, but in a 'short' you have to follow the straight and narrow otherwise you end up with either a novel beginning or a hodgepodge of ideas that add up to nothing.

Well, I'm an English teacher, so I'll give you a quick brainstorming exercise to hopefully get you started:

Make a list of your favorite things.
Make a list of some exciting, fun, humorous, strange or maybe scary experiences you've had.
Perhaps write down some interesting dreams you've had.
You might want to look through some of your photo albums to jog your memory for ideas.
Here's a favorite of mine: Pick a random stranger you've seen recently and make up a bizarre story about him or her.

Here's an example: When I was in college and I had to write a short story for an exam, sometimes I'd just start writing like this: "Well, here I am in English 101 and I don't know what to write for this exam. I know I should be more creative. Maybe I'll write about my day today. Maybe I'll write about the job interview I just had. Maybe I'll write about that mysterious-looking lady I saw today. I wonder what her story is. She was a gray-haired elderly woman wearing a pink dress that seemed to float in the wind. She looked lost. Or she looked like she was searching for something. I wonder...." You see, as you write, you'll eventually come up with an interesting story to tell.

Remember, the best writing always comes from personal experience. Teachers who read students' papers usually enjoy reading true stories about their students (especially if they're funny). This will help your teacher to get to know you better--and if they're anything like I am, they'll share your exciting story with other teachers!

Regarding "artistic license": If you're writing a "true" story about a personal experience, feel free to embellish the truth. I know. I know. Usually, you're not supposed to lie, but in writing a story, it's all right. It means your story is not strictly autobiographical, but may be "based" on a true story. That's what creative writing is all about!

Another thing: Although correct English is important, try focusing just on the creative writing first. Get your thoughts written down on paper (or on the computer) and edit later. Your teacher will probably have you work on editing and proofreading anyhow. Just start writing down anything and as you write, your thoughts will start to form a story. That's usually how it works.

Story Starters
http://www.kinderkorner.com/starters.html

Answer 6

Write about anything you find interesting about other people, and that you think you know more about than they do, and illustrate why you find their behavior interesting - especially the mistakes caused by that behavior. Show what you learned from watching them that they could learn from as well.

All the seminars, classes and books about writing are useless if you have no idea of what the point will be to whatever you use those techniques to elucidate.

Answer 7

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Ideas for a short story?
I'm going to explode. I need to write a short story and I'm experiencing this ultimate mind block. I'm ripping out my hair, biting my nails, picking my scabs, and any other nervous habit you can think of, trust me, I'm doing it. Any ideas are appreciated GREATLY. Thanks in...

Answer 8

I'm a guy, and individually, I don't like long nails. I actually know a lot of like long, painted nails cause they're "so pretty", but I don't like them.

Answer 9

A little bit of nail is fine... but I agree along with you. Long nails are kinda gross.

Answer 10

You can write about something you can relate to, like the
school experience, and develop characters around that
by various classification (i.e. jocks, preppies, nerds,
geeks, punks, bullies, and others who don't fit into any
category, or who fit into several categories), and go with
that. You can talk about things you have experienced in
your life and build your story from there.