The Letter Before Eighteen
Create a story where the main character, on the eve of their 18th birthday, receives a mysterious letter that reveals a family secret. Explore how this information impacts their transition into adulthood.
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.
- Make the adults well-meaning but wrong.
- Use the way your hero texts to show who they are.
- Write in close first person, as if it's happening right now.
Writing young adult books
Ages 12 to 18: firsts, identity and everything at stake.
Young adult fiction is written for teens, with protagonists usually 14 to 18. Every genre lives here, from fantasy to thrillers to romance. What makes it YA is the voice: immediate, intense and inside a teenager's head.
What readers expect
- A teen protagonist
- An immediate, close voice
- Identity and independence
- Big feelings, taken seriously
A tip before you start
Write from inside a teen's head, not from an adult looking back. That immediacy is what separates YA from an adult book with a young hero.
More Coming-of-Age prompts
- The Career TestImagine a world where your career is determined by a test taken at age 16. Write about a teen whose result is a job they'd never have chosen, and what…
- First in the FamilyDescribe a character who is the first in their family to attend college. Detail their struggles with balancing family expectations, new friendships…
- Diaries from the WoodsIn a small town where everyone knows each other's secrets, a group of friends discovers an abandoned house in the woods containing diaries from the…
- The Town's Hidden MuralWrite a story about a group of teens who discover a hidden mural in their small town. The mural's mysterious symbols lead them on a quest to uncover…
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