The Attic Game World
Describe an adventure of two friends who discover an old, dusty board game in their attic. When they start playing, they realise the game is magical, and they are sucked into the game world. To get back home, they must finish the game, facing various challenges and making unlikely allies with the game characters.
Suggested length: A middle grade story: 2,000 to 5,000 words
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.
- Give every page or scene one picture worth drawing.
- Use one silly sound word kids will want to say.
- Use a repeated line young readers can join in on.
Writing middle grade books
Ages 8 to 12: friendship, family and figuring out who you are.
Middle grade novels are written for readers around 8 to 12, with heroes usually 10 to 13. The stakes are huge to the characters, the focus stays on their world, and any romance stops at a crush.
What readers expect
- A hero aged about 10 to 13
- Family, friends and school
- Humor and heart
- Hope, even in hard stories
A tip before you start
Kids read up. Make your hero as old as your oldest readers, or a little older.
More Middle Grade prompts
- The Dog Who Spoke at MoonriseYou discover that your pet dog can speak, but only in the presence of a full moon. On a night of a full moon, you and your pet embark on an adventure.…
- Five Minutes in TimeYou inherit a strange, quirky watch from your eccentric uncle that doesn’t tell time; instead, it lets you jump forward or backward in time, but only…
- The Treehouse ContestPicture a world where every kid lives in a treehouse. Describe your own treehouse and the unique features that make it special. Then, create a story…
- The Secret School RoomYou discover a hidden room in your school that isn’t on any floorplans. Inside, there are gadgets that seem to control various aspects of the school…
Fifteen minutes in? Keep going.
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