Love in the Windowpane
After a bizarre electrical storm, your character, a barista, begins to experience flashes of someone else’s life through reflections in mirrors and windows—a complex man entangled in a dangerous, otherworldly affair. The reflections become more frequent and intense, revealing that this man is not only real but reaching out for help, and love, across dimensions.
Suggested length: A short story: 1,500 to 5,000 words, or flash fiction under 1,000
Start the clock
Pick a sprint, press start and keep going until it stops. Momentum beats polish on a first draft.
Make it yours
Three ways to take this prompt somewhere nobody else will.
- Show the moment one of them almost walks away.
- Give them a deadline: the contest, the wedding, the last train.
- Let a secondary character see what's happening before either lead does.
Writing romance books
Not whether they end up together, but how.
Romance puts a love story at the center and promises a happy ending: happily ever after, or at least happy for now. Readers know where it's going. The pleasure is in the obstacles, the banter and the moment the two leads finally stop fighting it.
What readers expect
- Two leads the reader roots for
- Obstacles that keep them apart
- Emotional growth, not just attraction
- A happy ending, guaranteed
A tip before you start
The happy ending isn't optional. Without it you've written a love story, and romance readers will tell you so.
More Paranormal Romance prompts
- Love Beneath the Full MoonEvery full moon, your character transforms into someone else—not a werewolf, but a different person entirely. During one transformation, they fall…
- The Woman in the AtticYour character, a young doctor, inherits an old mansion from a relative they never knew. While exploring the house, they find a striking portrait of a…
- Love Beneath the EclipseDuring a total solar eclipse, you find yourself inexplicably drawn to a mysterious figure in the crowd. As soon as your eyes meet, visions of past…
- The Unmatched RebelIn a world where people are paired with a destined soulmate by a benevolent spirit at birth, one young rebel discovers they have no such match.…
Fifteen minutes in? Keep going.
Chapterly gives a draft somewhere to grow: chapters, daily word goals, and readers when you're ready.
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