The Ghost at the Scottish Cottage
On a trip to Scotland, a writer discovers an old, untouched cottage and decides to stay there to find inspiration. During their stay, they meet a ghostly figure who claims to be the original owner from centuries ago. He’s charming, witty, and terribly sad about a lost love who he waits for every sunset at the shore. Intrigued and increasingly attached, the writer decides to help the ghost find peace, unraveling a haunting, romantic story hidden beneath the time-worn stones of the cottage.
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 obstacle something they both believe in, not a misunderstanding.
- Put them in close quarters they can't escape.
- Tell it from the point of view of the one who falls first.
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
- The Siren's Lost SongAfter a near-death experience, your character develops the ability to communicate with mythical creatures. On a retreat to reconnect with nature and…
- Letters in the LibraryIn a quiet town known for its unexplainable phenomena, your character, a local librarian, discovers a series of ancient letters between star-crossed…
- Love in the WindowpaneAfter a bizarre electrical storm, your character, a barista, begins to experience flashes of someone else’s life through reflections in mirrors and…
- 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…
Fifteen minutes in? Keep going.
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