It is 1800. A lighthouse on a barren cliff in Canada. Two lighthouse keepers, German immigrants, are alone for the winter and effectively cut off from the rest of the world until the ice thaws. Both Wilhelm and Matthias are settled in for the long haul with warm clothes, canned goods, and matches a-plenty. Then Wilhelm starts hearing voices. His personal belongings disappear from where he'd placed them, only to reappear in strange spots—like the catwalk, or dangling beneath the spiral stair knotted in brown twine. Matthias begs innocence. Little by little, Wilhelm grows convinced that Matthias is trying to convince him (Wilhelm) to kill himself. Is the insanity real, or is this really Matthias' doing? And if it is real, what will he do to defend himself? There are so many months until spring... (Bonus: this prompt works from Matthias' point of view, too, since he'd find himself locked in a lighthouse with a crazy guy.)
It's sometime in the future, and China has become a dystopian society, run with an iron fist by its government. The pollution is so bad that citizens almost never step outside, traveling instead via tubes between residence and work, or the small, expensive shops and home. Even the domiciles are all underground, small two-room apartments run completely by nano-bot technology and voice-command. In this grey and airless life, Bo and Lifen's six-month-old son, Heng, is mysteriously kidnapped. Devastated, they survive a near-breakup of their marriage, Lifen's failed suicide attempt, and Bo's brief stint with alcoholism as they both tried to cope with their loss. Eventually, they manage to grieve together instead of apart, and rebuild their lives... but it all comes to a crashing halt when a stranger rings the doorbell. It is a young man who claims to be their son. Not only that, but he has a small thumb-drive hanging around his heck giving him legal claim to their tiny, one-door domicile and everything they own—which means that when he steps inside, his voice-command locks the door behind him... and it won't unlock until he tells it to. In fact, he controls food. He controls the air supply. Little by little, he takes over their lives, forcing them both to quit their jobs and huddle in their cold and frightening home as they struggle to survive to this invasion of a so-called son who acts nothing like a son should. Why is he doing this? Is he really their son? And can they possibly fight him when the nano-bot run home obeys his every command?
Shah is the son of the Rajah of BahSeengSay, arguably the richest heir in the world, and dangerously bored. How does he fill his time? By thinking of himself as a detective and solving "mysteries" all around the palace. This means Shah gets into everyb1ody's business and makes up completely absurd tales about his adventures, but who's going to argue? He's the son of the rajah, and technically holds their lives in his hands. But don't think Shah has no friends; his most faithful servant, Nainsuk, has raised Shah from an infant, and while he loves the boy as his own, Nainsuk isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer. He believes Shah's wild tales of night-escapes from demons and genius in solving unsolvable mysteries. So, when Nainsuk's younger sister goes missing, he begs the prince for help. Shah, convinced of his own near-immortality, takes the case... but when he leaves the palace for the first time in his life, following clues, he discovers life on the outside is nowhere near as idyllic as life within. Religious factions struggle for supremacy, political groups jostle for influence and the Rajah's ear, and the desperate poor and the greedy rich all fight, turning the city around the palace into a boiling mess of blood and sweat. In short order, Shah loses his money, his jeweled sword, and his beard—and without these things, the guards at the palace don't recognize him, refusing to let him back inside. Shah's only chance is to wait for Nainsuk to return in the morning, since surely his old caretaker will recognize him... but in order to do that, he has to survive the night in the crime-ridden streets of BahSeengSay. Roving gangs, packs of wild dogs, and desperate thugs who see him as an easy target are the least of his concerns. It turns out Nainsuk's sister was kidnapped as a sacrifice to the goddess Kali, and he has until dawn to save her... and himself. (P.S. No, I will not apologize for the Avatar reference.)
It's 1935. Germany's government has been persecuting the Sinti people since long before the Nazis came to power, but the Third Reich has taken a particularly dim view: they claim that the Sinti (which you might know as "Gypsies") are of mixed blood, and consequently both degenerate and criminal. Many are being forcibly sterilized. Ten-year-old Mirela is an orphan, and knows they're looking for her—not just because her mother was Sinti, but also because of her dreams. Mirela has dreams of the future, and they always come true... and she's had one three nights in a row about scary soldiers coming to the orphanage, taking away any child they deem not Aryan enough, and doing horrible things to them. Finally, she can take it no longer: she gathers together her six closest friends, and they leave in the dead of night, trying to sneak out of Berlin and toward the distant border of Austria. But Austria is over 400 miles away, and these seven children have no money. They also don't have blond hair or typically Aryan features. They must avoid soldiers and anyone who still thinks Jewish blood and dark hair are responsible for Germany's struggle. Mirela's dreams help, but she has no powers of protection. What follows is a daring, heart-rending journey of many nights, of loss and tears and triumph, and in the end, none of them will really be children anymore.
Fourteen years ago, Stan cheated on his brand-new bride of four months. It was just a one-afternoon fling, a reaction to a silly fight he can no longer remember, and he gave the girl in the club a fake name, anyway, so who cares? Now, he's general manager for a profitable beer company; his wife and four kids are well-provided-for, with college funds and all the amenities they could desire. Stan's in line for CEO, if he can keep up his business ethic until old Paul retires, and he intends to... until shecomes in for a job interview. Stan recognizes Delilah Bond, oh hell yes, he does, but she doesn't seem to recognize him. Slightly shaken, he plays dumb, treats her with complete professional cool, and goes about his day. The next night, his youngest daughter waxes eloquent about her new music teacher, Ms. Bond... who matches the description of Stan's fourteen-year-old mistake. He tries to ignore this until he sees her outside his window, trimming the hedges, wearing an ordinary landscaper's uniform. And again, in his favorite bar, where she's slinging drinks like a pro and conspicuously avoiding his eyes. In fact, he starts to see her everywhere, impossibly everywhere—touching the life of each of his children, involved with his wife (her new tennis partner), and hired at his company, though not in his division. Is he going crazy? No; it's worse. Delilah Bond is one of four quadruplets, or she was. The girl Stan slept with fourteen years ago got pregnant, miscarried badly, and died. Her three sisters took a long time to figure out who'd taken their sister from them, and they have every intention of making him suffer the way they have... and they've had a really long time to plan.
Which of these stories speaks to you? Let me know in the comments.
have a good day
-A
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Top 100 Short Story Ideas.
Non-Fiction*ALL CATEGORIES* Do you want to write but just need a great story idea? Or perhaps you have too many ideas and can't choose the best one? Well, good news. We've got you covered. Below are one hundred short story ideas for all your favorite genres. Y...
