Writing fantasy can be an incredible way of expressing your creativity. In this genre, there are no limits in terms of what you can write about, the characters you create, or the fictional worlds you build.
Although this genre permits unlimited imagination, if you are going through writer’s block or simply feeling uninspired, you may feel overwhelmed. Thankfully, you don’t need to start from scratch. Writing prompts can be a great way to ignite the creative flame in you and help you write your next fantasy story!
Writing prompts come in many different forms. A prompt can consist of a word, a sentence, a paragraph, or even a picture. Below I have written 26 fantasy prompts in the form of small paragraphs. However, if pictures are more your thing, you can check out the following articles:
20 Amazing Fantasy Writing Prompts with Pictures
15 Prompt Pictures for Writing Fantasy
Table of Contents
Fairy tale fantasy prompts
Although it is true that a lot of children’s stories and movies involve fairy tales, this genre can be used to create enthralling short stories or even novels. With this genre, you can either retell the story of a known fairy tale or create a new story that draws upon known tropes. In fairy tales, it is typically implied that the events in the story happened a long time ago. There is also a clear divide between heroes and villains. These stories tend to have simple narratives where a problem must be solved and a moral lesson is learned at the end.
1.A cursed lover: Write about a man meeting a woman that has been cursed to look like a beast. At first, he is frightened by her appearance but gradually they get to know each other, and feelings start to develop. Think of this story as a retelling of beauty and the beast but in a more modern setting.
2. The myth of the evil King: Write about a country that is ruled by a king with a bad reputation. People think he is rude and reckless. One day, a girl who is said to have incredible powers is invited to the castle to entertain the king. However, she discovers that he is not what the rumors say he is.
3. The Monsters Under the bridge: Write about a cursed bridge that is situated deep in a forest. Princesses, Kings, and Knights have to pass over this bridge every day. However, there are monsters that live below this bridge, and they tend to frighten the people who have to cross. Write your story from the perspective of the monsters. Are they evil? Why do they live there?
4. The three sides to a story: Usually in fairy tales there are heroes and villains. We usually only get to hear the hero’s side. Rewrite a fairy tale of your choice. Start off by telling the hero’s side of the story. Then write from the perspective of the “villain”. Finish your story by writing the truth about what happened (which should be a mixture of the hero and the villain’s perspectives).
5. Lovers at Sea: Write about an adventurous prince who enjoys traveling. During one of his travels, he meets a young peasant girl who has unexplainable abilities. He brings her back to his castle so that he may show her abilities to the King and Queen.
6. The Masquerade Ball: Write about two characters meeting each other during a masquerade ball. As they are dancing with each other, a drunk fairy godmother comes tumbling down the hall causing chaos.
7. The Sorcerer’s Castle: A sorcerer has trapped a young girl in his castle cursing her to an eternity of loneliness. One day, the sorcerer’s son learns about this girl and attempts to free her.
8. A Royal Mess: Write about a young princess who has an arranged marriage with a king of another country. She is excited at the thought of becoming a Queen but she soon learns that the family she is marrying into is dysfunctional. She also discovers that her future husband and his family have powers.
9. An unexpected Knight: Write about a peasant in a small village who steals the clothing of a knight in order to escape the people he has pissed off. When he is mistaken for a real knight, he is asked to embark on a journey to save a princess.
10. A Princess in Training: Write about an academy where they teach young girls proper etiquette and train them to become respectable princesses. At the end of the training, the girls are to be married. However, unlike her peers, your main character is disobedient, unruly, and has unexplainable powers.
Gridmark Fantasy Prompts
Gridmark fantasy is typically set in a fictional world and centers around anti-heroes, villains, and characters with questionable values. The ambiance is dark & somber. With this sub-genre of fantasy, stories will typically include subjects such as corruption, murder & crime.
11. The lord of the borough: Write about an all-powerful businessman that runs a small town. His businesses are shady, but everyone is too scared to question him. Some people believe he has some magical abilities that make him undefeatable, and others believe he isn’t even human. Who is he? What is his story?
12. A Serial killer on the loose: Write about a serial killer with superpowers. How does the city/police deal with him/her?
13. The Gang: There is a gang in town whose members all have “special” abilities. They are so powerful that even the police are afraid of them. Write from the perspective of one of the members. How do they deal with all of this power? What is their role in the gang?
14. A Hero and a criminal: Write about a criminal who is asked to be a hero for a day. In exchange, they will be given a serum that will give them superhuman strength.
15. A Corrupt Company: Write about a company with extremely shady practices. It has been rumored that they experiment and torture people because they’re attempting to create superhumans.
16. I know your Secret: Your character witnesses a crime punishable by death. However, they decide not to report it because they know the person who committed it.
17. A thief in the night: Write about a poor character who decides to steal some food at the corner store to feed their family. Unfortunately for them, events escalate quickly, and your character ends up getting chased by the police. Whilst attempting to escape, they discover that they have special abilities.
18. The Undercity: Write about a character who comes from a wealthy background. They have lived a very sheltered childhood and have never adventured past certain areas of their city. One day they decide to adventure further than they have ever gone and they discover the undercity, a place where the poor, the miserable and the freaks of the city live.
19. The Blood Siblings: Write about a family who is rumored to be vampires. The parents are powerful politicians, and the children are spoilt brats.
20. The City Ruins: Write about a mysterious city whose inhabitants have disappeared. Nobody knows what happened to the people who lived there, and the city ruins are rumored to be haunted.
Dystopian fantasy prompts
Dystopian fantasy is typically set in a post-apocalyptic world where corruption & injustice prevail. This genre involves an imagined future where the climate is frightening and oppressive. The typical elements of dystopian fantasy include extreme corruption of the government, the destruction of nature & substantial pollution, an emphasis on survival & excessive control/surveillance of the population.
21. The Twins: Write your story about tyrannical twins with great power. They have each inherited control over a part of the city. They despise each other and have each forbidden the inhabitants of their side of the city to cross over to the other side.
22. The Underclass: Superhumans have taken control over the world and normal humans are now considered to be the underclass of society. Write your story from the perspective of a character from the underclass who is planning a rebellion.
23. After the War: Write about a city that has been ravaged by war. Most of its inhabitants have left but some of them have been forced to stay. Why can’t they leave the city? What does their life look like?
24. The Lab: In a post-apocalyptic city, the government forces its inhabitants to become lab rats. Every couple of months, one hundred people are chosen and brought to a lab where they are experimented on. If they refuse or attempt to run away, they are executed.
25. The Non-Women: Write about a society where women of lower status are treated as less than. They are sometimes forced to participate in dangerous experiments that either result in death or serious mutations.
26. Children of Tomorrow: Children that are shown to have special abilities are forcibly taken away from their families never to be seen again. Where do these children go? Who takes them and why?
I hope you guys found these prompts useful. Feel free to share which prompts were your favorite in the comments!