The Library Beyond the Shadows
Describe a modern city where every full moon, the shadows of buildings stretch and transform into doorways to other dimensions. One night, a young, curious librarian steps into a shadow and finds themselves in a library where the books predict the future. Explore their journey and the implications of bringing knowledge back from beyond.
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.
- Start in the middle of the strangest moment, and explain nothing for a page.
- Write it as a document from the world: a letter, a field report, a warning sign.
- Make the magic or technology cost your hero something they can't get back.
Writing fantasy books
Magic is real, and it costs something.
Fantasy builds a world where the impossible works: dragons, spells, gods who answer back. It might be a whole invented continent or one enchanted door in an ordinary house. Either way, readers come for the wonder and stay for the people paying the price for it.
What readers expect
- Magic or the supernatural, with limits
- A world that feels lived in
- Quests, wars or a power worth fighting over
- Myths and history under the surface
A tip before you start
Give magic a cost. Readers believe in a power when they can see what it takes from the person using it.
More Urban Fantasy prompts
- The Subway Through TimeEvery building in a sprawling urban landscape is connected by a sentient subway system that can transport passengers not just to different locations…
- The Mural's WarningImagine a city where the graffiti is alive, reflecting the thoughts and feelings of the neighborhood. One morning, a mural's message changes…
- Messages on Every SignImagine a city where every billboard, street sign, and advertisement magically changes to communicate messages to specific individuals. What chaos or…
- The Creature from the BookWrite a story about a librarian who discovers that certain books in the restricted section can transport readers to the realm they're written about.…
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