The Family Birthday Task
Develop a story about a unique tradition in a family where each member must complete a particular (and peculiar) task when they turn a certain age. Focus on one family member approaching the landmark age and how they prepare for and execute their task.
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.
- Let a minor character change the ending.
- Set it all in one day.
- Make the conflict something the reader has faced themselves.
Writing contemporary fiction
People like us, now, in trouble we recognize.
Contemporary fiction is set in the present day and deals with life as it's actually lived: families, marriages, friendships, work, loss. It sits between literary and commercial fiction, often shelved as book club or upmarket fiction.
What readers expect
- A present-day, realistic setting
- Relatable, flawed characters
- Emotional stakes over action
- Issues readers face themselves
A tip before you start
Today is your setting, so use it: the group chat, the parking ticket, the brand of cereal. Specifics make it feel true.
More Contemporary Fiction prompts
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- Two Families in MourningConstruct a story about two families from wildly different socioeconomic backgrounds that are brought together by a mutual tragedy. Focus on their…
- The Shipping Container ClothesWrite a story about a character who discovers an abandoned shipping container filled with hundreds of unworn, designer clothes in their small…
- The Old Cinema ReopensA character inherits an old, rundown cinema from a relative they hardly knew. Detail their journey as they decide to restore it and the eclectic mix…
Fifteen minutes in? Keep going.
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