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Incredible Mystery Story Ideas: 65 Creative Mystery Writing Prompts

  • March 9, 2022

There are few things as satisfying as fleshing out a fantastic idea. It’s a great creative writing exercise . Many writers use short writing prompts as inspiration for story starters.

What makes a good prompt? It’s relatively simple: a good prompt has a who and a what. You don’t necessarily need a where or when, but they can be included to form a more specific mystery plot.

But what if you can’t think of anything? Here are 65 mystery writing prompts to get you started. Any of these ideas can be turned into a short story or a mystery novel!

Mystery Story Ideas And Mystery Writing Prompts

Mystery story starters.

Below are starters to help you in conceptualizing, imagining, and creating a new mystery story:

  • The fast-paced city you currently reside in turns out to be moving irregularly one day. People wander around slowly, cashiers swipe items slowly, and cars seem to be slower than your walking pace. Everything slows down except you.
  • A man visited his best friend’s house, only to find a scrapbook with pictures where his face has been intentionally erased.
  • A woman has arrived home after work one night, only to noticed that there is not one other light in her apartment building that is on except for hers. Where did the other people go? And who is inside her apartment?
  • A group of teenagers were looking for an adventure, they end up at an abandoned house; a series of screams followed their entrance.
  • A man was browsing his emails one night, when a new email pops up saying: “Someone will knock on your door; no matter what it takes, secure the door.”
  • A person is detained for a crime and believes that they are innocent but their DNA is on the murder weapon and the clothes of the dead body. As a detective, you have to find ways to prove their innocence.
  • A woman’s grandfather passed away and left his last will. However, on the day before its reading, the attorney was nowhere to be found and has disappeared without a trace.
  • An 80-year-old woman is convinced that you were her teacher in 1950 and added that you were her favorite. However, you were born in 1994.
  • A man wakes up and everything feels like  deja vu . Is it because of the wrong choice he made the night before?

Historical Story Ideas and writing prompts

The following prompts include mysteries in the ancient world.

  • As the head archaeologist on the dig, you get the honor of opening up the sarcophagus. What a surprise it is to find a cell phone in a thousand-year-old tomb.
  • An ancient artifact arrives at the museum you work at. Your mentor is tasked with dating and placing the piece. When you come in the next day, you find your mentor murdered and the artifact missing.
  • A man who struck it rich in the gold rush suddenly disappears, leaving nothing but a cryptic note.
  • A sharp-tongued guard and the mayor’s aid team up in WWII Germany and try to find the true killer of the mayor. Plot twist: it’s the guard.
  • A defense attorney and the high school-aged son of the murder victim team up together to find the murderer, only to realize it’s actually a suicide.
  • The main character is a mafia member in 1920’s New York who has to get away with murder.
  • A story set in the 1900’s where the entire police force is complacent in the crime.

mystery writing prompts for mystery stories, mystery writers

Classic Murder Mystery Plot Ideas

  • A new boy arrives in your small town just in time for something to go terribly wrong at the yearly homecoming parade, resulting in at least one death. As chaos depends on your high school, one has to ask, “Who is responsible?”
  • A dead body turns up at your apartment. The local police chief of your small town is convinced you are responsible, and he’s determined to find the evidence to arrest you.
  • A woman is missing and presumed dead. As a private detective, you aren’t limited by the law the same way police officers are. You’re stumped, that is, until the next-door neighbor is killed, and you were the last person to see her alive. Well, besides the murderer.
  • Even as an experienced detective, you’re still surprised when someone confesses to a murder they’re convinced they committed, mostly because you know they didn’t do it. Or did they?
  • A relationship ends, and the following day the man is found dead.
  • A recording of a confession of murder is dropped off at your station. As the head detective, you’re tasked with finding out who the victim is and who the killer is.
  • A hardboiled PI and a stranded bridesmaid enter the underbelly of society after a mass grave is discovered. 
  • A baker who consistently stumbles into trouble is the main suspect in a murder investigation.
  • A story starts with, “I was twenty-one when I first met my killer.”
  • The detective is atoning for murdering a man in his youth.
  • A murderous hitchhiker must be caught before he strikes again, but it’s the 70’s and everyone hitchhikes.
  • A housekeeper that is a hoarder finds a decayed body in her home under a pile of things.

Mystical/Magical writing prompts

  • Your best friend goes missing, and in the chaos that ensues, you find out she’s a practicing witch. Does this have anything to do with her disappearance?
  • You follow the detective as he solves the murder, only to find out he’s narrating how his own death occurred.
  • You find a secret door in an abandoned manor you’re exploring. Upon opening it, you step back in time. Who put the door there and why? Why is the house abandoned?
  • Murder victims keep turning up surrounded by strange symbols. They look like ritual killings but end up being something entirely different.
  • You buried your sister years ago, yet here she is at your doorstep. Which one was the imposter, and which one is your real sister?
  • You’re haunted by your lover’s ghost (literally), and you have to find out who killed them.
  • A haunted house is sold in the suburbs. The protagonist can hear the ghosts, and they’re begging her to solve their murders.
  • A lost wallet appears in front of you on the sidewalk, and when you pick it up, you’re transported back in time and must solve the missing person’s case before you can return.
  • A flight vanishes mid-air, lost in another dimension.

General writing prompts

  • Someone is proposed to. The only problem is, where is their current spouse?
  • Your best friend stops by to say hi. The only problem is they’ve been missing for the better part of five years. They have no recollection of any missing time at all.
  • Secret Santa starts off with a bang when the first present is a mangled hand. Unfortunately, as the rest of the presents are unwrapped, the manager’s body emerges, piece by piece.
  • The family is together for the first time in a decade, all to read grandpa’s will and see who gets what. No one was prepared for the winner to take all approach that grandpa took towards catching his murderer.
  • A reporter investigating policy corruption disappears.
  • A house fire and a burglary next door appear unconnected, but a mysterious note implies otherwise.
  • An heiress is missing and doesn’t want to be found. Is finding her the right thing to do?
  • A forensic scientist and a babysitter are drawn into a decades-old cold case. Is the killer even alive anymore?
  • A serial killer that’s never been caught aids in the investigation of a different serial killer.
  • A manipulative janitor finds a missing child in the basement of the school he works for. How did he get there?
  • A hardboiled PI with a double identity must keep his secret safe, as he is thrust into the spotlight.
  • A whodunit story about drug trafficking that starts with a live alligator being thrown through the farmhouse window.
  • A story where every witness is lying about everything but one fact and when those facts are combined the truth can be found.
  • A story where the key suspect is a hallucination.
  • A story where the protagonist is the murder victim.
  • A story idea where the detective solved the crime but is suffering amnesia.
  • Evidence arrives at the detective’s door that may reopen a decade-long cold case.
  • The husband is in denial that his wife is missing at all and keeps trying to give evidence that she’s still around.
  • A story is set in a prison where the killer is already caught, but no one knows it.
  • A priest’s dead body is found by his congregation.
  • A story where the murder scene and mystery are told through a child who doesn’t understand everything.
  • A story where two characters who are never in the same scene together turn out to be the same person.
  • The FBI agent is completely incompetent yet somehow stumbles across the truth.
  • A story where a minor character is actually the killer.
  • A story where one of the characters has a secret that everyone knows exists but is never revealed.
  • A story where the protagonist fails, and the killer gets away (for now).
  • A story that simultaneously takes place in two different timelines.
  • A story where the protagonist’s main objective is revenge, and he’ll take down anyone who gets in his way, regardless of who they are.
  • They’re racing the clock to find someone buried alive.
  • A story where a blue-collar crime spans four decades and two generations.
  • A story that is non-linear and involves a spy searching for a murder weapon.
  • A story where the protagonist is a sociopath, but the reader doesn’t know. They may or may not be the actual villain.
  • A story where the key witness is a compulsive liar.
  • Write a story that is a retelling of a Shakespearean tragedy.
  • A journalist is wrongfully accused of murder and thrown in jail. From there, he must find a way to solve the crime and bring the actual murderer to justice.
  • A story where the serial killer had been put to death a decade ago, but it is now back.
  • A story where someone overhears something they aren’t supposed to and is kidnapped. The detective has to find them.

Mystery Story Ideas to improve your writing skills

Using These Prompts as Plot Ideas

There is no right or wrong way to use these mystery writing prompts, whether you write them exactly as suggested or you alter them as you see fit. 

The purpose isn’t to come up with a perfect piece that follows the prompt exactly, but rather to get your brain flowing so you can write more within the mystery genre.

Depending on the amount of time you have and the length of the piece you decide to write, you can easily work through a prompt a day. Choosing a prompt is as easy or as complicated as you make it. You can randomly choose one, or you can sort through them to find the perfect prompt.

Once you have the right prompt , the length of the story has to be determined. You can write a snippet, a short story , you can write a full-length novel or begin a small series of mystery novels. It’s entirely up to you.

It’s always helpful to have prompts lying around, whether the prompt is from your own mind that you scribbled down or if it was from someone else because prompts help you get the creativity started.

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Aposiopesis, write a story in which an important message is cut off, leaving characters to wonder or puzzle out what was left unsaid., write a story about someone finally gaining access into their family’s very old computer., start your story with a character finding a retro piece of tech they don’t recognize., write a story that hides something from its reader until the very end., write a story in which a character eats something that they shouldn’t have eaten..

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Write about a student reporter uncovering a university scandal., start your story with a student discovering a hidden room in a university library., you’re awakened from your nap by someone asking, “are you hungry”. you fell asleep somewhere else entirely., as a child you’re helping your grandparent bake. when you’re sent to the pantry to fetch an ingredient, you discover something odd., subscribe to our prompts newsletter.

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The best mystery writing prompts

Great mystery writing is full of suspense and intrigue that gets your readers to ask questions. The key to the gripping whodunnit mystery books you love is the unique mysterious story ideas behind them. If you’re currently waiting for a lightbulb to go off in your head before you embrace your inner Agatha Christie, you’ll enjoy these mystery writing prompts!

There are several types of mystery stories you might want to consider writing: 1) Cozies, which usually take place in — as the name would suggest — cozy settings, such as small towns. They are meant to be a “light read” meaning they don’t involve graphic violence, although the crime in question can still be a murder or death. 2) Hard-boiled. Typically feature a professional detective. As the story unfolds, not only is the mystery untangled, but so is the protagonist’s character development as they face their own internal struggles. While chasing up alibis and collecting evidence to try to bring the killer to justice, the investigation forces our protagonist to confront parts of their own personalities they may have buried. 3) Procedurals. Distinguished by their very in-depth explanation of how a mystery was solved. Fine details will be explored, and the drama often culminates in a courtroom, with a judge and jury deciding whether the suspect is innocent or guilty.

To get you started, here are our top ten mystery writing prompts:

  • A crime’s been committed, and the only clues left behind are a half-eaten apple and a bobby pin.
  • Write a mystery where the detective realizes at the last moment that they have the wrong suspect.
  • You are legally allowed to commit murder once, but you must fill out the proper paperwork and your proposed victim will be notified of your intentions.
  • You discover a trap door in your home that you never knew about.
  • You thought he was dead, but there he is, right in front of you on the street, smiling at you.
  • You're shaking hands with a stranger at a networking event when you ask for their name. I have no name, they reply.
  • You’ve forgotten the last year of your life, and have to retrace your steps to figure out how you got here.
  • Write a story about a valuable object that goes missing.
  • You open a book and note with a letterhead falls out. At the top it says: If you are reading this, you have been chosen.
  • Write a story that starts with the reveal of a long-kept secret.

If you’re an author looking to write a mystery novel or short story, check out some of our resources on the topic, full of helpful tips for mystery writers:

  • What is Exposition? Examples of Backstory in Action  — When writing mystery fiction, anything could be an important clue — or a red herring. How are you going to drip-feed your reader information? Rather than holding their hand through the story, you’re going to want to provide clues slowly and subtly. That’s where exposition comes in. And don’t forget to check out our guide to  Show, Don't Tell  while you’re there!
  • Understanding Point of View (free course) — Our ten-day guide to choosing and mastering your POV. In a genre like mystery, where facts are hazy and everything is up for debate, choosing the right POV is crucial in deploying information and keeping the narrative compelling. Perhaps you’ll opt for an unreliable narrator, oscillate between different POV characters, or go for an omniscient third-person narrator. The possibilities are endless.
  • How to Develop Characters (free course)  — The key to a great mystery is not just a great hero. You’re going to need an entire cast of interesting characters, to keep readers guessing and give them a reason to be invested in the events they’re witnessing. This requires a lot of work, which is why you’ll want to dedicate plenty of time to character development.

Want more help learning how to write a short mystery? Check out  How to Write a Short Story That Gets Published  — a free, ten-day course guiding you through the process of short story writing by Laura Mae Isaacman, a full-time editor who runs a book editing company in Brooklyn.

Ready to start writing? Check out Reedsy’s weekly  short story contest , for the chance of winning $250 , plus potential publication in our literary magazine, Prompted ! You can also check out our list of  writing contests  or our directory of  literary magazines  for more opportunities to submit your story.

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BRYN DONOVAN

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50 Intriguing Mystery Story Ideas!

handcuffs, pipe, brandy

Mystery story ideas often follow a similar pattern. Early on, a dead body turns up, a valuable item goes missing, or a puzzle begs to be solved. The reader knows that by the end of the book, questions will have been answered, which is a comforting element in even the most gruesome murder mysteries.

This simple structure allows for endless creative and original variations. And ten different writers could take the same writing prompt here and write ten vastly different stories! I’ve been reading a lot of mystery novels lately — mostly cozy mysteries, not gritty crime novels, although I might enjoy those, too. That inspired me to write this list of prompts for mystery story ideas.

You can also use this list as an idea generator for free-writing.  Whether you stumble across a story idea you love in the process, or you just get your creative writing juices flowing again, it’s so worth it.

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Although I had mystery novels in mind, some of these could become a subplot in a different fiction genre, from fantasy and romance (especially romantic suspense), to historical fiction and thrillers. (And you might also be interested in my list of 50 thriller plot ideas !)

Be sure to save the post for future reference (or pin it on Pinterest!)

50 MYSTERY STORY IDEAS: plots and writing prompts | magnifying glass, book, glasses

Mystery Story Ideas

1. A woman asks a writer to write the story of her life. Then she goes missing.

2. Murder victims are found buried with some of their wordly goods, Viking style.

3. Three people close to the murder victim have confessed. Each of them swears they acted alone.

4. Notes and gifts from her “Secret Santa” at work take a strange turn.

5. It’s going to be a beautiful wedding at a beautiful destination, but two people in the wedding party have been murdered.

6. The creator of a high-tech prototype that will change an industry has gone missing.

7. Her parents believe her to be their biological child, but they all learn otherwise.

8. The dead woman’s wedding ring is found in a ditch forty miles away.

9. A museum conservator is restoring an old painting, and an X-ray reveals something shocking or mysterious painted or written in the layer beneath.

10. A sorority sister who bullied prospective pledges is found dead.

11. As a man researches his genealogy, he finds that ancestors from a few different generations and a few different countries made visits to the same remote place.

12. Someone replaced the woman’s contact lens solution with a damaging liquid. (This mystery story idea brought to you courtesy of a phobia of mine!)

13. He’s always been a faithful husband, but someone has planted false evidence of his having an affair.

14. A detective is hired for a high price to find a thief who stole something that doesn’t appear to have any real value.

15. Every unmarried lady at the ball wanted to dance with the duke, so it’s too bad he was found stabbed in the garden.

16. In the middle of a wilderness, someone finds an abandoned bunker with security cameras, powered by a generator.

17. The graves of historic figures are being robbed.

18. Clues to the mystery come to him in dreams, but nobody believes him.

19. Serial murders in cities in two different countries are very similar.

20. A man she didn’t know left her a valuable and unusual item in his will.

21. A writer researching his biography of a Golden Age movie star comes across something that makes him suspect that contrary to the official story, she was a murder victim.

22. The accidental death of this investigative reporter seems a little too convenient.

23. The murders all relate to common fears, such as public speaking, flying, and heights.

24. A woman wakes up with a headache and goes into work, only to learn that she’s been missing for a month.

25. Writers are being murdered at the mystery writers’ convention.

26. The painting must have been stolen from the museum in broad daylight, but the security cameras malfunctioned and no witnesses have come forward.

27. Three different guests at the Air BnB died later under mysterious circumstances.

28. A practicing witch or voodoo priestess is accused of murder.

29. The murders are re-enactments of famous murders in novels or movies.

30. He claims to be the rich man who was lost at sea two decades ago.

31. The inspector’s friend is murdered while he is talking on the phone to the inspector.

32. A dead body is found in an unclaimed piece of luggage at the airport.

33. He was murdered on his honeymoon on a cruise ship, and his new, much-younger bride was the only one on board who even knew him.

34. A woman who didn’t know she was adopted meets her twin sister, who gives her a dire warning.

35. One of the pies submitted to the state fair contest was poisoned.

36. The report of a celebrity’s death is false, but he dies soon after.

37. The murder victims all have the same tailor.

38. Who would kill the guest of honor at their 100 th birthday party?

39. The victim was found drowned in a whiskey barrel at the distillery.

40. A wife arranges a romantic “scavenger hunt” for her husband, but someone else changes a few of the clues.

41. The thief who steals rare books always leaves a sonnet behind. (As someone who’s written a few sonnets, I’m particularly fond of this mystery story idea, but you can think of all kinds of creative “calling cards” for criminals!)

42. The wrong body is in the casket at the visitation. No one knows who it is, or where the other body is.

43. The murders were definitely committed by a human, but resemble the attacks of wild animals.

44. After the woman returned the lost wallet, someone began stalking her.

45. The book she’s reading seems to be telling the story of her own life, though she doesn’t think she’s ever met the author.

46. A man who faked his own death must be found in time.

47. Someone in a villain costume and mask attempts to kill an actor at a fan convention. The actor is saved by a fan dressed as a superhero.

48. An Egyptian mummy, or what appears to be one, is found in an unlikely place.

49. A man is found murdered following a heated argument with several people on social media.

50. A body is found in the organic vegetable garden at a hippie commune.

Do you have some thoughts on mystery story ideas?

If so, I’d love to hear from you in the comments! 

And if you want more inspiration, please check out my book 5,000 Writing Prompts !  It has 100 more mystery writing prompts in addition to the ones on this list, plus hundreds of other master plots by genre, dialogue and character prompts, and much more.

creative writing about a mysterious place

Thanks so much for stopping by, and happy writing!

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62 thoughts on “ 50 intriguing mystery story ideas ”.

  • Pingback: 50 Mystery Plot Ideas and Writing Prompts! – All About Writing and more

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I love cozy mysteries and I love these prompts. A couple of them have spoken to me already and I’ve never written a mystery before.

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Thanks, KC! And yeah… cozy mysteries are a whole new world for me, and I love them. 🙂

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And I thought I could come up with some off the wall stuff…Thanks Bryn! You’ve offered up several gems.

Haha, thank you Anne!

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Your writing prompts should get the writing juices flowing. Thanks for sharing.

Hey, thanks for reading! And for commenting!

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Thanks for the mystery prompts, Bryn! I’ve queued up a link to share tonight for Write it Wednesday on my blog.

Oh, thank you. It’s always an honor!

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Is 46 a transvestite mystery then?

It’s either a typo, transvestite, cross dresser, a man who was dressed as a woman as part of his job, or dressed as a woman as a way of hiding from the trouble he’s in. Your choice 🙂

Ha! It’s a typo. I corrected it. 🙂 Thank you!

PS I do that ALL THE TIME in my writing! I always have to correct a few pronouns when I edit a story.

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Number 2 is brilliant and I would binge watch an entire Scandi-noir series based on it.

Hahaha! Thanks, Maggie!

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You helped me a LOT, thanks! I wrote stories on #9 and #11. I liked several others, but couldn’t think of ways to put them into stories. I tweaked #9 quite a bit. You have awesome ideas! ??

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Hi Bryn, just to say your “Master List for Writers” rocks – love it!

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Thanks a lot Bryn… the ideas were nice… can work as a kick starter…!!

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this was very helpful thank you so much (they were also in a very understanable english, im only 13 and from denmark)

These ideas are genius! Please write more for mystery and other types of books. (if you have time.) I LOVED EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOUR IDEAS.

Hello, Bryn! Thank you so much for making this! it’s really inspire me:))

these are useless

just kidding there good

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is it okay to use these prompts for movie ideas?

  • Pingback: 4 Places to Find Plot Ideas for Your Mystery Novel | | Silviya's Writing Nook

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Its really good to have these prompts…..they speaka lot for the forwarding story

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so glad to have found you! Love it! Story Ideas for a whole Lifetime!!

Hi there! I’m so glad it’s helpful! Thanks for the nice comment; I really appreciate it!

Yayyyyy I wanna be a author can I know how to become a AUTHOR BTW I’m 11 yrs old and I love reading and writing stories Love it!

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thank you i am 11 with my friend we are writing a book

Saul, that’s awesome! I wish you and your friend good luck on your book. Have fun!

Hello, I just found this, and thanks so much! I really wanted to write a mystery novel but I couldn’t come up with anything. Thanks a lot for the effort u put into these ideas and I’m so glad that people like you exist…. ❤

im 12 and im writing a mystery series! so helpful !

Good luck on your mystery series!

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Thanks for the prompts!

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What a lovely collection of mystery ideas!

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A lot of good ideas here Bryn. Thanks for the inspiration!

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I think 99% of content that could lead to a mystery story, comes from people. In solving the mystery, usually it’s a question of finding out what happened, right? I think it’s just as important to know WHY someone did something. The human factor, not just the event, is like, so important, right?

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Nice, and helpful. Let me see if I can connect two or more together and come up with a good plot.

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thank u so much! i am 11 yrs old and I’ve been writing short and simple stories since 7 or 8 years old. i came up with the idea to write a mystery novel/murder mystery when i remembered the “Sweet Valley High” series that i read most of by Francine Pascal and how much murder and drama got developed after the 94th one. Anyway, my mind was blank and the ideas i did came up with weren’t exactly genius. i was searching and stumbled against your ideas. they are sooo helpful!! i can literally imagine one of those ideas that u wrote into a movie (for example, your 1st one where everyone is searching for the woman and find nothing. then her adopted brother who had a bond discovered where she was and knew that he should tell no one. he talked to her through lights and letters written on the wall(i got that from STRANGER THINGS) and rescued her from the people who were holding her hostage) i stretched that but i can really imagine this in my mind right now. well, i am so grateful for your ideas. i hope more people can find your ideas helpful worldwide. thank again 🙂

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i think that that is really cool. i used to start stories like that around 8 and 9 and i am also 11 looking for more stories

i will also be really happy if u reply 😉

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hiya im also 11 i was wondering if you could help me on a 100 word unsolved writting challenge?

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Be careful kids. You do not know that the people contacting you are not adults pretending. Never give out your details to strangers. Keep safe. Keep writing.

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will do, thanks 🙂

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Number 41 is awesome!! I might use it, but in my story the thief leaves behind haikus. Thanks for the prompts!!!

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Hi can you please help me out on a private dective story

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I have been reading posts regarding this topic and this post is one of the most interesting and informative one I have read. Thank you for this!

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A cult believes the victim is not human/heretic.

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My problem right now isn’t finding an idea. It’s how to bring it to fruition. Any advice on that would be helpful

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  • Writing Prompts

70 Mystery Writing Prompts That’ll Keep Your Readers Hooked

From whodunits to unsolved crimes, here are over 70 mystery writing prompts that will keep your readers hooked from beginning to end. 

The mystery genre is all about gathering clues and evidence to solve a crime or mystery of some sort. Common mysteries to solve may include murder, kidnappings, theft and any other unsolved crimes. The thing that makes a mystery story so appealing is that no one knows who the true culprit is until the very end of the story. And the big reveal at the end is always shocking to the reader. The secret to a good mystery lies in the plot twist . You have to be two steps ahead of your readers – Get inside the head of your readers and think, “Who would your readers think the main culprit is?” Then switch it around, and pick someone who is highly unlikely to be the real baddie.

You can pick a random prompt from our mystery writing prompts generator below to practice your plot twist skills on:

In a mystery novel, characters are a huge part of the mystery. Common characters may include:

  • Street smart detective – They ask all the right questions, but are the answers to be trusted?
  • Bent cop – Known for planting fake evidence at crime scenes.
  • Mysterious guy – No one knows anything about them, and therefore they could be an easy suspect in the case.
  • The scapegoat – The one everyone is blaming.
  • The obvious suspect – All clues point to this person.
  • The unobvious suspect – No real evidence against this person, but somehow they link to the crime in question.

When writing your mystery story think about the characters you would include carefully before diving in. We even recommend creating character profiles for each character, and maybe even a mind-map to show their connection to the crime in question.

70 Mystery Writing Prompts

List of over 70 mystery writing prompts, from unsolved murder cases to items that vanished into thin air:

  • The richest man on Earth has a hidden vault filled with millions of dollars, expensive jewellery and gems. One night he goes to add to his collection of gems and notices a sentimental piece of jewellery missing.
  • One-by-one random things keep on going missing in your house. First your watch, then a teapot. Who is taking them and why?
  • One of your classmates mysteriously stops coming to school. It’s been nearly 2 weeks since you last saw them. What could have happened to them?
  • A police officer finds a dead body at a barber’s shop in town. The cause of death was drowning. No one knows how the body got there and who did it.
  • A person takes a game of snakes and ladders too literally. In random locations around the city, snakes and ladders have been placed. Where do those ladders go? Why are snakes placed in these random places? Can you solve this strange mystery?
  • You wake up in a warehouse with no memory of how you got there. The warehouse office is filled with newspaper clippings of missing people from the past 20 years. Who is the kidnapper and why are you in this warehouse?
  • Last night a series of supermarkets and warehouses across the city were robbed. The thief or thieves only steal toilet paper. Can you solve this case?
  • Meet Benji, the cat detective. Benji is a feisty feline who is on a mission to capture the great tuna can thief. 
  • At exactly 7.08 pm last night a scream was heard from 59 Pebble Lane. The neighbours knocked but no one was home. Later that night, the police arrived at approximately 2.13 am to find a cold dead body on the floor in a pool of spilt tea.
  • You are a reporter for the Imagine Forest Times newspaper, you are writing an article on the missing bird eggs in the local forest.
  • Imagine you are a security guard. It’s your first night shift at the local art Museum. The next morning a priceless painting goes missing, and you are blamed. You need to prove your innocence before you are sent to prison, but how?
  • Write a time travel mystery story where the main character keeps going back in time to find out who really murdered their parents.
  • You and your friends go to the fairground. You decide to ride the carousel. Round and round you go, and then the ride stops. When it stops you notice one of your friends is suddenly missing. Where did they go? (See our list of writing prompts about friendship for more ideas.)
  • The main character in your story is caught red-handed with the missing jewel in their hand. But did they really steal this jewel?
  • Write a diary from the perspective of a paranoid person who thinks their neighbour is stealing from them.
  • Write down an action scene where the main character trails the secondary character to an abandoned warehouse. What do you think will happen next?
  • Someone has been stealing mobile phones at your school. You think you know who it is, so you set up a try to catch the thief.
  • A bent police officer has been planting false evidence at crime scenes for years. Who are they protecting and why?
  • Write a script between two characters who are meeting in secret to discuss some new evidence in a murder trial.
  • Imagine you are a detective interviewing a suspect in the crime of jewellery theft. Write down some questions that you might ask the suspect. If you have time, you can also write the possible answers from the suspect’s point of view.
  • You discover a note in your bag. It says, “I know what YOU have done!” – Who can have left this note, and what are they talking about?
  • Write a story about a young police officer who is solving the murder case of his best friend from high school. The twist is that this police officer turns out to be the murderer.
  • For over 10 years, your twin sister was missing. But there she is – Suddenly walking in the middle of the street. Where has she been? What happened to her?
  • Imagine you are an investigator examining the scene of a murder crime. What types of clues would you look out for? Can you make a list of at least 10 possible clues you might find?
  • A police car is chasing a potential suspect in a murder trial. Halfway through the chase, the police car disappears. The suspect slows down their car, and wonders, “What happened? Why did they stop coming after me?”
  • You come home from school one day and notice that your mother’s things are gone. Your first thought is that she left you and your father. But the truth is that she was kidnapped by someone.
  • A mysterious person has stolen all your teddy bears and is holding them for ransom somewhere. Each day you get a cryptic riddle. If you can solve each riddle you will receive one teddy bear back each time. 
  • It’s the year 3,000. Your main character is a lawyer for a robot. They must prove this robot’s innocence in a human murder trial. (See this list of sci-fi writing prompts for more inspiration.)
  • Someone keeps stealing textbooks from your school. One day you go to school and see a huge statement art piece outside the school made from the stolen textbooks. Can you find out who did this?
  • Cinderella has turned into a detective. She needs to solve the case of the stolen glass slippers. After all those glass slippers are super rare.
  • The main character in your story must prove their innocence in a murder trial. How would they do this? What evidence would they need?
  • The main character in your story discovers that their brother is the real killer. They then try to destroy all evidence linked to their brother to protect them.
  • “Poppy! Poppy! Where are you, buddy?” Mindy searched for her pet Labrador everywhere. But she was nowhere to be seen. It turns out all the dogs in town have been missing since last night. What could have possibly happened to them?
  • Someone has been leaving embarrassing photographs of various people all over town. Can you track down this person? Why are they posting these photos? 
  • Write a mystery story titled, ‘Piece-by-Piece’ about a jigsaw puzzle thief who is stealing random puzzles pieces.
  • You notice some muddy footprints leading into a thick forest at your local park. You follow this trail of footprints to a secret hatch in the woods. The door of the hatch has been left open. When you go inside you discover something shocking.
  • Your dog digs up an old lunchbox in your backyard. Inside the lunchbox, you find a key, an address and some old newspaper clipping of missing people. You think you can solve this case of the missing people by just visiting that address. But things get a little more complicated…
  • This is a mystery story about a boy named Billy who’s home alone and is playing with a toy truck when he finds a strange box. His mother, a lady with a past, is suspicious of this mysterious box, so she calls the police. Billy’s mother is a detective, and they find that the box is really a trap, and Billy is kidnapped.
  • Write a crime mystery story about how a little girl’s dream of becoming a scientist led to her death. Why would anyone murder a young girl who wants to be a scientist? How did this happen?
  • A small-town sheriff gets caught up in the biggest robbery in history. When over a million dollars just vanish into thin air, people are quick to blame the shifty-eyed sheriff from out of town. But is he really the culprit in this crime?
  • When Sara was a young girl she was kidnapped by a strange man and woman who took care of her. But now Sara wants to know what happened to her real parents. Are they still alive? Are they still looking for her?
  • The clock is ticking. Somewhere in the city, a group of hostages are locked up. With every hour that goes by, one hostage will be killed. The main character, a street-smart detective must solve the clues to find the location of these hostages in time.
  • A police officer finds himself in a very unusual situation. It is just before 6 pm on a Friday night when police were called to a disturbance in the street. The call came from a man who was allegedly threatening a woman with a knife. The man was arrested at 6.05 pm and taken to the police station. However, it was later revealed that the woman left at home has been murdered by someone else, but who?
  • A murder mystery party takes a dark turn when one of the guests is murdered for real.
  • Write a mystery story titled, ‘Who Stole My Homework?’ The main character’s A* worthy English essay is stolen by someone, but who?
  • Use this sentence as inspiration: Inspector Robins pulls out his notebook and writes down two words: Green fingers.
  • “10 car windows broken in 10 days! What does it all mean? What does it mean?” Exclaimed Detective Riley.
  • During a stop and search, a police officer finds a dead body in the boot of a car. But is the car driver really to blame?
  • A lost bracelet ends up in your best friend’s locker at school, along with other precious items. Your best friend is wrongly accused of stealing these items.
  • One girl must find her stolen prom dress before the prom. In the days leading up to the prom, more and more of her accessories for prom night are being stolen. Who is this thief?
  • Write a mystery thriller titled, “Come and Get It”. It’s about an arrogant criminal who is stealing sentimental items from each police officer in the state, He leaves these items in random locations in the city, along with a note that says: Come and get it!
  • Every night the car alarms for every car on your street turn on at exactly 2.03 am. why is this happening, and who is responsible?
  • A mysterious hacker has hacked into the city’s power grid. They have the power to on and off electricity whenever they want. Can you catch them before they do any more damage?
  • A secret admirer is leaving expensive gifts for your main character. At first, these gifts seem great, but then they soon take a dark twist (see our Valentine’s Day Prompts for more inspiration).
  • Your main character is at their senior prom. Dancing the night away. Suddenly the lights go off. Pitch darkness for a minute. When the lights come on, your best friend is gone. And there’s a message in red paint on the wall: You’re next!
  • Your teacher gives back your English assignment, and you got an F! Looking closer, you realise that this is not your assignment at all! The same starts happening in your other classes. Someone has been swapping your assignments – But who?
  • For the past few days, you have been receiving anonymous emails from someone. The emails are telling you not to be friends with him. You don’t take any of these emails seriously until the police come knocking on your door.
  • A family picnic at the park becomes unbearable when you open up the basket to discover every family members untold secrets.
  • You are at a Chinese restaurant with your family. It’s time to open up the fortune cookies. When your mother opens up her fortune cookie, it says: “One of your children has been very naughty!”. Then your father opens his cookie up, it says: “Who’s been sneaking around behind mommy’s and daddy’s back?” All eyes at the table are on you. But what did you do?
  • Your main character is a bent cop. Trying to manipulate the course of justice, and helping real criminals get away with murder. One day, someone plants evidence that gets this bent cop arrested for a murder they did not commit.
  • Write down a scene between two characters. In this scene, the ‘real’ criminal is trying to convince a detective that someone else is guilty of the crime of stealing from a church.
  • There are three potential suspects in the murder case of Phillip Green. You are the lead detective on this case. What questions would you ask these suspects to find the real murderer? Make a list of at least 10 questions you may ask.
  • A health inspector arrives at a vegan restaurant to discover rotten vegetables, and raw, old meat. The owners know nothing about this and believe someone planted this as sabotage. Who can have sabotaged the vegan restaurant?
  • Write a short mystery story for kids titled, ‘Why is the sky blue?’ One child’s curiosity about the sky leads them to discover a secret playground in the park.
  • Your main character is a news reporter who is convinced that the killer of Rosie Moore is still out there. They know that the police have convicted the wrong person for this heinous crime. Can your main character find the real killer before the wrong person is sentenced to life in prison?
  • Someone has been replacing all shampoos around town with a hair removal solution. When half the town’s hair starts falling out, it is up to you, a top detective to solve this crime.
  • Write a mystery story set in the future where a secret cyber group called the ‘Merry Man’ are hacking the bank accounts of rich people and giving this money to the poor. Your main character is a police detective trying to hunt the members of this cyber group down.
  • A mysterious person is playing a nasty game of hide and seek with you. They have kidnapped your friends and family members and hid them in various locations within the city. You have exactly 1 hour to find each person before something bad happens to them.
  • Someone has left a note in your locker at school. The note reads: Help me, please! You ignore this note, but more notes start appearing in your notebooks, bag and even at home. Until eventually you get a package through the mail. You open this package and scream…
  • Write an animal mystery tale about a dog who wants to find the original owner of a doll he found in the park.
  • Can you solve this bonus mystery prompt: Someone has been stealing socks from the locals at night. Who could this be and why would they be doing this? (See video prompt below for more ideas.)

Did you find these mystery writing prompts useful when writing your own story? Let us know in the comments below!

mystery Writing Prompts

Marty the wizard is the master of Imagine Forest. When he's not reading a ton of books or writing some of his own tales, he loves to be surrounded by the magical creatures that live in Imagine Forest. While living in his tree house he has devoted his time to helping children around the world with their writing skills and creativity.

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A Mysterious Find (Short Story)

By chris j mitchell, i was deep in the woods and the trees were casting a cold shadow on to the ground..

The call of a solitary bird echoed from far away, and I wondered if it was time to turn back for my stroll had turned into something more strenuous than I had planned.

Still, I kept on for I felt something inside of me wanting to push forward. I squeezed through a couple of huddled trees, but then stepped into a tangle of nettles. This distracted my attention for a moment while I freed myself and I kept my balance with one hand firmly placed against the damp bark of a tree.

I then caught sight of a curious-looking structure set a few feet from my location.

Laying in the ground the hands of time had covered it in moss and hidden it away from civilisation. The object looked as though it had not been touched for over a hundred years. Was it an old stone trough or even an ancient grave I thought to myself?

The structure rose a foot from the ground and where it was not covered in moss there were flakes of stone peeling away after years of rain, damp and cold.

I approached, carefully stepping one foot over the other, but the sound of a twig breaking under my foot forced me to freeze. Why it should force me to do this? I cannot say for I was not hiding or in danger, but a sense of fear came over me.

My heart rate had increased and little sounds, such as leaves rustling or the chirp of a bird all became exaggerated and ringing out in my ears as potential threats of danger. A natural fight or flight reaction I assumed.

I gazed into the centre of the structure and could see only leaves and a few rotting branches. Glancing over my shoulder I took a few steps closer.

Most likely a drinking basin for livestock or horses, but still enough for my curiosity to push me to investigate. I put my foot gently on top of the leaves and pressed a little. The rotting organic debris depressed under the weight of my foot, but no trap door or hidden passageway swung open.

I kneeled on the side with one knee and cleared a few small branches and leaves away with my hand. They felt cold, damp and as you would expect. Underneath was earth and disappointment that I had not discovered a great missing artifact.

My heart rate returned to normal and I sat down on one of the cold stone sides to take in the silence…

Then a strange sound, like the wind whipping against a cliff edge, emanated from behind me. Jumping to my feet and turning around, there was a strange swirl enveloping the leaves and the earth inside the shallow walls of the structure.

I took my feet into a stride and just as I made the nearest tree I stopped and turned around.

“Yes, of course,” I said out loud. “How could I forget!”

Memories at this point were flooding back into my mind. The past, the future and the Otherworld.

A hand, old, wrinkled and greyish popped up through a vortex that had formed at the centre of the swirling mess of leaves and earth.

This was followed by an arm and then the bald, boney head of a strange figure. He had grey skin and in places bones showing where there should have been skin. It clambered out of the edifice.

My heart was not racing though and my palms were not sweaty, for I knew exactly who he was.

His name was Graham!

He pulled out an old rolled-up manuscript and sat on one of the stone sides of the structure.

“Ready when you are,” he said.

“Sounding a little rusty, you need some more vitamin D. It would add colour to your cheeks,” I replied. To which he did not respond, but started reading the paper.

“How did it go?” he asked over his shoulder.

“It went well.”

“You found here okay?”

“It appears so… Please give me a moment.”

I checked in my backpack and sure enough, it was still there. An old Celtic artifact lost long ago. Stolen from the Otherworld and brought to Earth without permission. My task to retrieve it and then to return.

The vortex and the magic around it had restored my memories to their rightful place. My name is Caratacus, and having been sent here from the Otherworld years ago the memories of my real identity quickly faded. This was a side effect of the transition spell and its casting that sent me here.

Aside from a few notes written on a parchment how would I know to retrieve it or where to return?

I was assured by my elders it would all fall into place. I would have an instinct in me that called me to this place when the time was right. Where the keeper, Graham, would let me in.

“I have friends here you know that I will not see again,” I said.

“I know, and we all knew that is a price you would pay. Anyway, can’t you send them a text goodbye or something? Isn’t that all the rage these days?”

“I could, but texting is a little out of date, I will send a DM instead.”

“Please do, its chilly here.”

“I sent the message, “Tata for now.” and that was it. I was always a bit of an enigma for those few who knew me. Maybe I will meet them again one day in another life. But who knows. For here, for now, my time is done!

For further fictional tales please see the fiction page or for an insightful academic look at the history of ghosts and how they have been used in creative literature to add suspense, story devices and to engage with the reader please see A Concise History of Ghosts and Famous Accounts in Literature

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67 Thrilling And Chilling Mystery Writing Prompts

You’re a huge fan of riveting mystery plots.

You’ve read some of the best mystery fiction ever written (some well-known, some not), and you just know you could create a mystery that would keep your readers enthralled to the shocking end. 

Think how gratifying it’ll feel to hear readers raving that you kept them guessing until the final reveal! 

All you need right now are some high-quality murder mystery ideas like the ones in this post. Read on to find the seed of your new bestseller .

May it lead to many others. 

67 Mystery Writing Prompts 

Look through the following mystery story ideas and make a note of those that get your mind working in strange and vaguely uncomfortable ways. You know better than anyone the prompts that speak to you louder than others. 

If you get a chill as you’re developing the idea, chances are good, your reader will, too. 

1. You’re a memoir writer with a complicated love life. An estranged cousin calls asking if you’ll help her write a “tell-all” memoir . Then she disappears.

2. You’re a private investigator looking into the murder of a philanthropist’s reclusive wife. Two people confess, each swearing they acted alone. You suspect another.

3. You’re the assistant to the creator of the first empathic AI, who disappears just as the first psychopath AI blows away the competition at a global tech convention. 

4. Your candle shop wins a prestigious award. Last year’s winner is angry and slanders you and your products. You find their body behind your store, covered in wax. 

5. You research your genealogy and find that several people from different branches all died in the same mysterious location — of unknown causes.

6. A well-known motivational speaker is about to give a TED talk when they take a drink from a fresh water bottle and collapse. Their assistant disappears.

7. She’s always been faithful to her husband. So, who’s been trying to frame her for adultery? And what does her husband’s dead lawyer have to do with it?

8. You’re lost in the woods, no thanks to a poorly-planned nature hike, when you find the hatch to an underground bunker. A picture on the wall stops you cold.

9. Someone is stealing items from the graves of historical figures buried in the New Orleans cemeteries near your home. What does your latest Etsy purchase have to do with that?

10. Every eligible woman was eager to claim his attention at the ball, but only one would add his name to her dance card — and something else to her collection. 

11. A grandfather you never met has left you an unusual item in his will with a warning: “Don’t underestimate this gift. It’s always been meant for you.” 

12. You’re a witness to the opening of an Egyptian sarcophagus that’s only just been discovered in a buried tomb. Resting on the mummy’s chest is an old camera.

13. A few minutes after you buy a friend’s older smartphone from them (for a bargain), you get a phone call from someone who’s tracking your every move. 

mysterious man holding a sickle mystery writing prompts

14. Your business computer has just been hacked by a pro, who happens to be a resident in the local nursing home — and the father of last night’s date. 

15. You’re on a solitary walk through the woods near your new home, and you find a set of fresh footprints leading deeper in, possibly toward the lake. You follow them. 

16. You’re on your way home from a vacation when an airport official tells you your passport must be a fake. Your country of origin doesn’t exist. 

17. You take a short walk out in the snow and come back to find a fresh, icy handprint on the glass by your door. There are no footprints leading to it. 

18. You visit a tea shop, and a woman pulls you aside and convinces you to buy a special blend she’s created, warning you to only drink one cup a day — and only at night. 

19. While looking for the cabin retreat you signed up for, you get lost and end up at a cabin that resembles what you expected. They welcome you. 

20. Every night, a new house of worship in your town is ransacked. Each time, the thieves steal a hidden sacred object but leave more expensive things untouched.

21. A rogue doctor overseas has created a life-saving vaccine for a deadly pandemic but disappears before he can share it. 

22. You’re a seasoned detective looking over a murder scene at your ex-wife’s residence. So far, her dog is the prime suspect. 

23. The winner of the beauty pageant is the last person everyone expected. Then she wins the lottery jackpot and wakes up with a dead guy in her closet. 

24. You’ve agreed to deliver a package to a recluse living in a neglected manor in exchange for $100,000,000. They never told you he’d want you to stay. 

25. The night before you head home from college, someone calls you from the home phone and leaves a disturbing message. Now, no one’s answering the phone. 

26. You think you know the identity of your “Secret Santa” until you see the most recent gift: a gem your suspect could not have afforded (and wouldn’t have given). 

27. After the “prophecy,” he changed her name and never expected her to spell out the name “Petra” with her wooden blocks. The near-drowning was not an accident.

28. At night, she sleeps with a different stone beneath her pillow. This morning, she woke to feel as if she’d spent the night running. She wasn’t wrong. 

29. The murder victims all had admitted to the same phobia. And all of them died just as they’d overcome it. Now, the hypnotist who’d helped them was missing. 

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30. You arrived early for a job interview and have noticed two candidates walking into a room but not leaving it. The secretary who calls you in is visibly shaking.

31. You visit a practicing witch who happens to be the prime suspect in a murder. Only she wasn’t even in town when it happened. And she’s your sister. 

32. The winning pie was the murder weapon. And the pie plate looked identical to your mother’s favorite — the one that had disappeared after she died. 

33. A woman claiming to be your sister warns you not to get in touch with your birth parents. She leaves a duffel bag with you and, within a day, disappears.

34. A marriage counselor arranges a scavenger hunt for a struggling couple, based on their history. Someone changes the clues, though, and one of them ends up dead.

35. You go to a friend’s wake and see a different body in the casket. Hers is nowhere to be found. And there’s a note under the corpse’s right hand — addressed to you. 

36. A woman returns a lost wallet and becomes the target of a stalker. An item from the wallet (one she’d considered keeping) ends up in her mailbox. 

37. Members of a notorious fraternity are found dead and partially “dismembered.” Their leader has the most reason to fear and goes to you for help and protection.

38. You’re reading a book given to you by a quiet but friendly classmate who lives down the hall when you realize it’s about you. And you die in the end.

39. You subscribe to a candle of the month club recommended by a new colleague, and your first candle reveals a ring that once belonged to a local murder victim. 

40. A desperate housewife fakes her own death, then ends up in the trunk of her husband’s car, wearing a dress that cost twice as much. 

picture of an old abandoned house mystery writing prompts

41. A talented musician who performs at a local coffeehouse is found wiped of his memory when his faithful dog leads a police officer to him. 

42. A group of carefully selected teens returns home from a conference to find their parents have all disappeared, leaving identical typewritten notes. 

43. An orphanage with a reputation for finding good families for every child in their charge finds itself under a microscope when one teen returns with a horrific tale.

44. A stranger uses magic to hide his true intentions as he grooms a new target — the young daughter of a rising politician — to do the unthinkable. 

45. You return home and notice strange behavior among the townspeople and an even stranger weekly ritual. You investigate and make an enemy.

46. Bored with your small-town life, you happily accept an offer of a month-long internship at a London bookshop. You get there and find the owner dead. 

47. You run a cafe and have just hired a troubled teen. Unfortunately, her reputation raises the ire of some locals, who point the finger when a customer ends up dead.

48. You take a job at a local bakeshop run by identical twin sisters, one of whom wants to start a business of her own. One of them dies, leaving you a note.

49. Every member of this community took vows of non-violence and silence, so when one is found dead in the herb garden, you and your deaf partner investigate.

50. Random objects in your home go missing, replaced by strange, typewritten poems . You wake up to find one of these poems resting on your pillow.. 

51. A bouquet of flowers arrives each week from an unknown admirer. Each flower means something, and those meanings have taken a dark turn. 

52. Whenever you order from your favorite Chinese restaurant, the fortune cookie’s message sounds eerily personal and prescient. There’s a reason. 

53. When you’re feeling low, your new best friend knows just what tea to brew to make you feel better. It turns out she can also help you remember things long forgotten. 

54. You could swear you’re being followed, but when you turn, no one’s there. Once you’re home with your doors and windows locked, they’re closer to you than ever. 

55. You’re a cop investigating the murderer of a homeless person, but your new partner, who grew up here, seems determined to trip you up at every turn. 

56. When a local bartender is found dead, his curious neighbor finds a secret door propped open by his corpse. The door leads to an underground world of trouble. 

57. You overhear a murder confession and hide where you can see the penitent when the door opens. You recognize the face and barely manage to keep quiet. 

58. You’re looking through a deceased relative’s possessions and planning to donate most of it until you find a note she left you — about stolen evidence. 

59. You wake up to the sound of a blizzard, and you’re dressed in someone else’s winter clothes, wondering how you got there — and what happened to your date?

60. You turn a corner in your new neighborhood, and someone stops in front of you, looks you up and down, presses a key into your hand, and says, “I’ll be back for this.”

61. You didn’t know you had a doppelganger until you came face to face with her at the new coffee shop on the corner. She’s not nearly as surprised as you are.

62. You’re stress-shopping early Black Friday sales when you notice the cameras seem to be following your every move. The manager nervously invites you into his office. 

hands of a person with blood in black and white mystery writing prompts

63. Five fellow college students have been murdered in the same week. Each had stolen something on a dare. One of them mailed their stolen item to you. 

64. You’re decorating for Christmas, and you find a book that belonged to your ex. A note falls out of it addressed to someone who died shortly before he left. 

65. Self-care hasn’t been a priority for you lately, but you accept an invitation to a weekend spa retreat. You didn’t expect your host to be the boss who fired you. 

66. You’re a photographer looking over wedding pictures when you notice a figure with a blurry face that appears in every shot. His face is turned toward the groom.

67. You’re telling your children a story about a babysitting job that went terribly wrong. But you’re not telling them everything. And there will be consequences. 

How will you use these mystery writing prompts?

When it comes to storytelling, only a small share of the magic is in the gift of an inspiring prompt. The rest of it lies in you. 

Begin by choosing one of these prompts and freewriting for a few minutes — or for as long as you like. Paint a picture for yourself, and describe everything your senses tell you. 

Whether you lean toward horror or romantic suspense story ideas, you’ll find a way to make each chosen story prompt your own. 

May each adventure teach you something new.  

You’re a huge fan of riveting mystery plots. You’ve read some of the best mystery fiction ever written (some well-known, some not), and you just know you could create a mystery that would keep your readers enthralled to the shocking end.  #writingprompts

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30 Scene Ideas for Mystery Subplots

Mystery Writing Prompts

A mystery is an easy way to add interest to an otherwise simple story. These mystery writing prompts will make you curious to know more. And your readers too!

What Creates Mystery?

A few elements are vital to keeping a mystery story moving forward:

  • Questions – A single question can be enough to sow doubt in a reader’s mind, and create a mystery where previously there was none.
  • Answers – The dance between questions and answers is what keeps readers engaged in a mystery. Every answer creates a new question until the final dénouement resolves the last loose ends… Or does it? Here’s a worksheet to help you solve a mystery (your own or another writer’s).
  • Suspense – Between the questions and the answers there’s… suspense .

The mystery genre often solidifies these elements around physical objects – a dead body, a murder weapon, a clue, a suspect, etc. – whereas a psychological thriller will focus on the internal, non-material aspects – a doubt about another character, the suspense created by a ringing telephone, the silence on the other end, etc.

Mystery Plots & Subplots

You can use these scene ideas in your mystery story, suspense story, adventure story, or thriller, and they can also come in handy for mystery subplots in any genre.

You could generate a whole plot from these mystery writing prompts alone, but if you need mystery story ideas, you might like to adapt one from this list of  story ideas , or from this list of  romance story ideas . Or you can consult a mystery plot generator !

Mystery Writing Prompts

Sometimes we can overcomplicate a story problem, or overestimate the amount of effort required to fix a plot. It doesn’t need to be that hard!

Randomly choose a few of these mystery writing prompts and draft a quick scene summary for each…

P.S. If you’re enrolled in The One Page Novel course , don’t forget to refer to the mystery cheatsheet in the Genre Cheatsheet pack!

Don’t miss these writing prompts…

Worldbuilding ideas

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How to Write a Mystery Story

Last Updated: July 7, 2023 References

This article was co-authored by Lucy V. Hay . Lucy V. Hay is a Professional Writer based in London, England. With over 20 years of industry experience, Lucy is an author, script editor, and award-winning blogger who helps other writers through writing workshops, courses, and her blog Bang2Write. Lucy is the producer of two British thrillers, and Bang2Write has appeared in the Top 100 round-ups for Writer’s Digest & The Write Life and is a UK Blog Awards Finalist and Feedspot’s #1 Screenwriting blog in the UK. She received a B.A. in Scriptwriting for Film & Television from Bournemouth University. There are 10 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 564,914 times.

A good mystery story will have fascinating characters, exciting suspense, and a puzzle that keeps you turning the pages. But it can be difficult to write an engaging mystery story, especially if you have never tried to before. With the right preparation, brainstorming, and outlining, you can create a page-turning mystery of your own.

Preparing to Write

Step 1 Understand the distinction between the mystery genre and the thriller genre.

  • When it comes to mystery, one of the key elements is tension and making the story compelling from the very beginning. [1] X Research source
  • In mystery stories, your reader does not know who committed the murder until the end of the novel. Mysteries are centered on the intellectual exercise of trying to figure out the motivations behind the crime, or the puzzle.
  • Mysteries tend to be written in the first person, while thrillers are often written in the third person and from multiple points of view. In mystery stories, there is usually a slower pace as the hero/detective/main character tries to solve the crime. There are also limited action sequences in mysteries than in thrillers.
  • Because mysteries are often slower paced, the characters are usually more in-depth and well rounded in a mystery story than in a thriller.

Step 2 Read examples of mystery stories.

  • The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. The 19th-century mystery novel was originally written in serial form, so the story moves forward in measured steps. Much of what became standard in crime fiction was done by Collins in this novel, so it is an engaging and instructive introduction to the genre.
  • The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler. Chandler is one of the genre’s greatest writers, creating engaging stories about the trials and tribulations of private detective Philip Marlowe. Marlowe is a tough, cynical, but honest P.I. who becomes entangled in a plot with a General, his daughter, and a blackmailing photographer. Chandler’s work is known for its sharp dialogue, great pacing, and riveting hero, Marlowe. [3] X Research source
  • The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. One of the genre’s most famous detectives, along with his equally famous sleuthing partner Watson, solves a series of mysteries and crimes in this collection of stories. Holmes and Watson inject their unique character traits into the stories along the way. [4] X Research source
  • NANCY DREW by Carolyn Keene. The whole series is situated in the United States.Nancy Drew is a detective. Her close friends Helen Corning, Bess Marvin and George Fayne appear in some mysteries. Nancy is Carson Drew's daughter. Carson Drew is the most famous lawyer in River Heights, where they live.
  • "Hardy Boys by Franklin W. Dixon.This is similar to Nancy Drew.It is about two brothers: Frank and Joe Hardy, who are talented detectives.They are the sons of a very famous detective, and they sometimes help in his cases.
  • A Crime in the Neighborhood by Suzanne Berne. This recent mystery novel is set in 1970s suburban Washington. It centers on the “crime” in the neighborhood, the murder of a young boy. Berne intersperses a coming of age story with the mystery of the death of the young boy in bland, boring suburbia, but manages to make the story anything but bland or boring. [5] X Research source

Step 3 Identify the main character in an example story.

  • For example, in The Big Sleep , Chandler’s first-person narrator describes himself through his clothing on the first page: “I was wearing my powder-blue suit, with the dark blue shirt, tie and display handkerchief, black brogues, black wool socks with dark blue clocks on them. I was neat, clean, shaved and sober, and I didn’t care who knew it. I was everything the well-dressed private detective ought to be."
  • With these opening sentences, Chandler makes the narrator distinct through his way of describing himself, his outfit, and his job (private detective).

Step 4 Note the setting or time period of an example story.

  • For example, in the second paragraph of the first page of The Big Sleep , Marlowe places the reader in the time and setting: “The main hallway of the Sternwood place was two stories high.”
  • The reader now knows Marlowe is in front of the home of the Sternwoods and it is a larger home, possibly wealthy.

Step 5 Consider the crime or mystery the main character needs to solve.

  • In The Big Sleep , Marlowe is hired by General Sternwood to “take care” of a photographer who has been blackmailing the General with scandalous pictures of the General’s daughter.

Step 6 Identify the obstacles or problems the main character encounters.

  • In The Big Sleep , Chandler complicates Marlowe’s pursuit of the photographer by having the photographer killed in the early chapters, followed by the suspicious suicide of the General’s chauffeur. So Chandler sets up the story with two crimes that Marlowe has to solve.

Step 7 Note the resolution of the mystery.

  • The resolution of the mystery should feel surprising to your reader, without confusing them. One of the benefits of a mystery is that you can pace the story so the solution unfolds gradually, rather than in a rushed or hurried manner.

Developing Your Main Character and Outlining the Story

Step 1 Create your detective or sleuth.

  • Body size and shape, hair and eye color, and any other physical characteristics. For example, you may have a short female main character with dark hair, glasses, and green eyes. Or you may want a more typical detective character: tall with slicked-back hair and a five o’clock shadow.
  • Clothing and dress. Your character’s clothing will not only create a more detailed image for your reader, it can also indicate what time period your story is set in. For example, if your main character wears heavy armor and a helmet with a crest, your reader will realize your story is set in medieval times. If your character wears a hoodie, jeans, and a backpack, this will tip off your readers that the story is likely set in modern times.
  • What makes your main character unique. It’s important to create a main character who stands out to your reader and feels engaging enough to sustain many pages in a story or novel. Consider what your character likes and dislikes. Maybe your female sleuth is shy and awkward at parties, and has a secret love of reptiles. Or perhaps your detective is a complete klutz and doesn’t consider himself a strong or smart person. Focus on details that will help to create a unique main character and don’t be afraid to draw on details from your own life or your own preferences and tastes. [7] X Research source
  • What matters most is that your main character has a burning question or burning need to solve the mystery.

Step 2 Determine the setting.

  • If you decide to set your story in a time period or location you are unfamiliar with, conduct research on the time period or location through your local library, online sources, or interviews with experts in a certain time period or location. Be specific with your research and during your interviews to ensure you get all the details of a setting or time period right.

Step 3 Create the puzzle or mystery.

  • An item is stolen from your main character or someone close to the main character.
  • A person close to the main character disappears.
  • The main character receives threatening or disturbing notes.
  • The main character witnesses a crime.
  • The main character is asked to help solve a crime.
  • The main character stumbles upon a mystery.
  • You can also combine several of these scenarios to create a more layered mystery. For example, an item may be stolen from your main character, a person close to the main character disappears, and then the main character witnesses a crime she is later asked to help solve.

Step 4 Decide how you are going to complicate the puzzle or mystery.

  • Create a list of possible suspects your main character may encounter throughout the story. You can use several suspects to point the detective and/or the reader in the wrong direction to build suspense and surprise. [8] X Research source
  • Write a list of clues. Red herrings are clues that are false or misleading. Your story will be stronger if you include several red herring clues in the story. For example, your main character may find a clue that points to one suspect, but it is later revealed the clue is actually tied to a different suspect. Or your detective may find a clue without realizing it is the key to unlocking the entire mystery. [9] X Research source
  • Red herrings are all about saying "follow this thread" when the "thread" in question is completely wrong. A good writer can put something in the way that stops readers from realizing what's going on.

Step 5 Use cliffhangers to keep the story entertaining.

  • The main character is investigating a possible lead alone and encounters the murderer or killer.
  • The main character begins to doubt his/her abilities and lets his/her guard down, allowing the murderer to kill again.
  • No one believes the main character and he/she ends up trying to solve the crime alone,and he/she ends up getting kidnapped.
  • The main character is injured and trapped in a dangerous place.
  • The main character is going to lose an important clue if he/she can’t get out of a certain location or situation.

Step 6 Create a resolution or ending.

  • The main character saves someone close to them, or an innocent person wrapped up in the mystery.
  • The main character saves himself/herself and is changed by his/her courage or smarts.
  • The main character exposes a bad character or organization.
  • The main character exposes the murderer or person responsible for the crime.

Step 7 Write a story outline.

  • Introduction of main character and setting.
  • The inciting incident, or the crime.
  • The call to adventure: The main character gets involved in solving the crime.
  • Tests and trials: The main character finds clues, encounters potential suspects, and tries to stay alive as he/she pursues the truth. Close ones might be kidnapped as a threat
  • Ordeal: The main character thinks he/she has found a key clue or suspect and believes he/she has solved the crime. This is a false resolution, and is a good way to surprise your reader when it turns out the main character got it wrong.
  • Major setback: All seems lost for the main character. He/She found the wrong suspect or clue, someone else is killed or harmed, and all his/her allies have abandoned him/her. A major setback will amp up the tension in the story and keep the reader guessing.
  • The reveal: The main character gathers all interested parties together, lays out the clues, explains the false leads, and reveals who the murderer or guilty person is.

Writing the Story

Step 1 Use the five senses to describe the setting.

  • Think what your main character might see in a certain setting. For example, if your character lives in a home much like yours in a small town, you may describe his/her bedroom or his/her walk to school. If you are using a specific historical setting, like 70s California, you may describe your character standing on a street corner and looking at the unique architecture or the cars that drive by.
  • Consider what your main character might hear in a certain setting. Your sleuth may listen to the birds chirping and the sprinklers on the lawns on the way to school. Or your detective may hear the roaring of cars or the crashing of ocean waves.
  • Describe what your main character might smell in a certain setting. Your main character might wake up to the smell of coffee being made in the kitchen by his/her parents. Or your detective may be hit with the smell of the city: rotting garbage and body odor.
  • Describe what your character might feel. This could be a light breeze, a sharp pain, a sudden jolt, or a shiver down his/her spine. Focus on how your character’s body might react to a feeling.
  • Think about what your character might taste. Your main character may still taste the cereal she had for breakfast in his/her mouth, or the drink from the night before.

Step 2 Start the action right away.

  • Think about being concise with your language and description. Most readers continue reading a good mystery because they are invested in the main character and want to see his/her succeed. Be brief but specific when describing the main character and his/her perspective on the world.
  • For example, Chandler’s The Big Sleep starts by situating the reader in a setting and gives the reader a sense of the main character’s perspective on the world. “It was about eleven o’clock in the morning, mid October, with the sun not shining and a look of hard wet rain in the clearness of the foothills. I was wearing my powder-blue suit, with dark blue shirt, tie and display handkerchief, black brogues, black wool socks with dark blue clocks on them. I was neat, clean, shaved and sober, and I didn’t care who knew it. I was everything the well-dressed private detective ought to be. I was calling on four million dollars.”
  • With this beginning, the story starts in action, with a specific time, date, and description of the setting. It then presents the main character’s physical description and job title. The section ends with the main character’s motivation: four million dollars. In three lines, Chandler has covered many of the essential details of the character, the setting, and the story.

Step 3 Show, don’t tell.

  • Think about how you would react in a situation if you were angry or scared. Have your character react in ways that communicate angry or scared, without telling the reader about the character’s emotions. For example, rather than “Stephanie was angry,” you could write: “Stephanie slammed his/her water glass down on the table so hard his/her dinner plate rattled. She glared at him, and started ripping the thin, white napkin into shreds with his/her fingers.”
  • Showing, rather than telling also works well for descriptions of setting. For example, in The Big Sleep , rather than tell the reader the Sternwoods were wealthy, Chandler describes the luxurious details of the estate: “There were French doors at the back of the hall, beyond them a wide sweep of emerald grass to a white garage, in front of which a slim dark young chauffeur in shiny black leggings was dusting a maroon Packard convertible. Beyond the garage were some decorative trees trimmed as carefully as poodle dogs. Beyond them a large greenhouse with a domed roof. Then more trees and beyond everything the solid, uneven, comfortable line of the foothills.”

Step 4 Surprise your reader but don’t confuse her.

  • Plot. Ensure your story sticks to the outline and has a clear beginning, middle, and an ending. You should also confirm your main character shifts or changes at the end of the story.
  • Characters. Are your characters, including your main character, distinct and unique? Do all the characters sound and act the same or are they different from each other? Do your characters feel original and engaging?
  • Pacing. Pacing is how fast or how slow the action moves in the story. Good pacing will feel invisible to the reader. If the story feels like it is moving too fast, make the scenes longer to draw out the emotions of the characters. If it feels like the story gets bogged down or confusing, shorten the scenes to only include essential information. A good rule of thumb is to always end a scene earlier than you might think or want. This will keep the tension from scene to scene from dropping and keep the pace of the story moving.
  • The twist. The twist can either make or break a good mystery story. This is completely optional, but many of the best stories have a twist at the end. Make sure that a twist is not too "cheesy". The more unique a twist is, the easier it is to write. When writing an overused twist, such as "then they woke up", you'll need to be a very good writer to make it sound good. A good twist not only fools the audience, but fools the character(s) too. Consider hinting towards the twist during action scenes, so that when the reader looks back on the story, they'll wonder how they missed it. Try not to make the twist evident too early on.

Mystery Story Help

creative writing about a mysterious place

Community Q&A

Community Answer

Things You'll Need

  • Paper and pen and/or a computer with a word processor (like Word)
  • Mystery books/stories
  • An idea/plot for the story

You Might Also Like

Write a Short Detective Story

  • ↑ https://www.writersdigest.com/write-better-fiction/7-tips-writing-great-mystery-suspense-novels
  • ↑ http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/tip-sheet/article/59582-the-10-best-mystery-books.html
  • ↑ http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/bigsleep/summary.html
  • ↑ http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1661/1661-h/1661-h.htm
  • ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/books/97/07/20/reviews/970720.20careyt.html
  • ↑ http://blog.karenwoodward.org/2013/10/how-to-write-murder-mystery.html
  • ↑ http://www.creative-writing-now.com/how-to-write-a-mystery.html
  • ↑ http://blog.karenwoodward.org/2014/03/how-to-write-murderously-good-mystery.html
  • ↑ http://www.creative-writing-now.com/how-to-write-fiction.html
  • ↑ http://blog.karenwoodward.org/2013/10/how-to-write-murder-mystery-part-two.html

About This Article

Lucy V. Hay

Before you write your mystery story you’ll want to create some characters and outline the plot. You might make your main character a detective or just a curious citizen who witnessed a crime. Once you have characters, choose a setting and a mystery such as a murder or a robbery of a precious artwork. If you want to make your story dramatic, add in cliffhangers and red herrings, or clues that lead to dead ends. When you’re ready to write your story, scroll down for tips from our Creative Writing reviewer on creating a well-paced and exciting narrative. Did this summary help you? Yes No

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How to Create a Setting for Mystery—Let’s Crack This Case

creative writing about a mysterious place

All the best mysteries have two things in common: unforgettable sleuths and immersive settings. In fact, if you think of your favorite mystery protagonist, I’m willing to bet you can’t picture them without the surrounding world that makes them who they are.

Sherlock Holmes’s Victorian London. Shawn Spencer’s deceptively sunny Santa Barbara. Darren Matthews’s East Texas. A great mystery setting is vivid and unforgettable.

It’s also a powerful tool for revealing character, building suspense , heightening conflict, illuminating themes, and much more. If you’re interested in writing mysteries that stick with readers forever, you’ll have to master the fine art of setting. 

Let’s get started now with tips on:

  • Creating an engaging setting for your mystery novel
  • Learning how to improve your own setting by reading successful mysteries
  • Researching your story’s location and time period
  • Treating your setting like another character in the novel
  • Describing your fictional world
  • Using the setting to enhance other aspects of your mystery

First, let’s clarify what a good mystery setting involves.

Elements of a Good Mystery Setting

A small oceanside village.

What makes a mystery setting work? What elements need to be in place in order for your readers to feel the thrills and chills you’re going for?

Here are the key elements of your mystery novel’s world:

Strong atmosphere - Atmosphere is the character of a place—the way it makes people feel. And what fun is a mystery setting that doesn’t tingle the spine or carry a sense of foreboding? 

If you’re not sure how to tap into atmosphere and make your reader feel it in their bones, stick with me. We’ll cover it.

Location - This is the element we tend to think of first when we start talking about setting. Where does this story physically take place?

In a mystery novel, your choice of location influences the atmosphere. It can also create obstacles for your main character, provide unique opportunities for crime, and symbolize the deeper themes of your story.

Time period - When does your mystery story take place? Setting your novel in the past means you’ll have to do additional research. It also means you’ll need to consider the cultural, political, and technological context of that point in history.

Climate - What kind of weather does your main character have to navigate in this world? How does that weather affect the atmosphere? Does it present any challenges for your protagonist?

Cultural context - What are the cultural norms of your main character’s world? Are there any tensions or power dynamics that are relevant to your mystery story? Does your sleuth fit in here, or are they struggling to solve mysteries in a place where they’re considered an outsider?

Clearly, there’s a lot to think about when you’re trying to write a mystery setting. Don’t sweat it. We’ll take this step by step.

Creating an Engaging Setting for Your Mystery Novel

Black and white image of a writer writing in a notebook at a desk beside a lamp.

Let’s start by setting up the basic blueprint for your story’s world.

Choosing the Right Location

Your first order of business is to determine where this murder mystery is going to take place. There’s no right answer. Any place can feel sinister once you get a writer involved. Nevertheless, you want to think this through.

Here are some things to consider as you select the location for your mystery novel.

Your subgenre will clue you in to what your readers expect in terms of setting. Cozy mysteries tend to take place in seemingly harmless places: quiet villages, bakeries, bookshops, and the like. The joy of the subgenre comes from the dastardly hidden within the quaint.

If you’re writing noir, you’re probably looking at something darker and harsher—lots of concrete and shadows. A caper could carry your characters all around the world. So could a thriller . 

We’re back to that question of how you want your reader to feel reading your mystery story. 

Are you going for playful and quirky with a thrilling undercurrent of intrigue? Then you might want a sleepy village filled with colorful characters and historical buildings. Are you going for gritty and suspenseful? Then you might want a dark, hard-to-navigate space like a sprawling city.

If you get stuck, make a list of locations that you associate with the feeling you’re trying to convey. What sparks your interest?

Obstacles 

Ideally, some aspects of the location will throw obstacles in your main character’s path. This could be things like:

  • Dangerous situations like pursuing a perp into an abandoned warehouse or navigating treacherous mountain trails
  • Easy opportunities to dispose of evidence, like a giant body of water
  • Resource issues, like an inability to access forensic technology, find a competent crime-solving partner, or gain respect in a powerful police force
  • Difficulty connecting with the locals if your main character is in a fish-out-of-water situation
  • Too many red herrings if the crime took place in a setting where the crime rate is high or everyone has a connection to the victim 

Crime 

How does the crime itself integrate with the location? Is it delightfully shocking that a murder mystery would happen here? Or does it feel almost inevitable—so much so that the main character has a hard time getting anyone to care about the crime? Does the location give you plenty of opportunities to establish red herrings and false suspects? 

Think through the relationship between where your story takes place and the way both the crime and investigation unfold.

Once you’ve nailed down a location, you’re ready to think about ways to make it come alive.

Creating a Sense of Atmosphere and Mood

Light shines down on a single metal chair in an abandoned industrial building.

We’re talking about scene description here, and let me tell you, it takes a light touch when it comes to mystery writing.

Your audience is here for the story . They want to pick up clues, get creeped out, and try to help your main character solve this thing. They don’t want three pages discussing every creaky floorboard and loose screw.

This means you need to master the fine art of picking details that get the job done fast. 

Start by identifying what you want your reader to feel in the scene. Is it a sense of danger? Urgency? Momentary relief?

Think about what sights, sounds, smells, textures, and tastes evoke those feelings in you. If it helps, think of a location where you’ve felt the way you want your reader to feel. Are there any details you can bring into your scene description or adapt for your setting?  

The important thing is to show, not tell. That means you help the reader experience the moment rather than telling them how they should feel about it. It’s a cardinal rule for writing mysteries as well as every other genre. In fact, we made some worksheets to help you practice it.

Developing Sense of Suspense: The Role of Foreshadowing

Lightning strikes the far edge of the Toronto skyline.

Just as your setting can inspire some great red herrings, it can also help you hint at the chaos to come.

Foreshadowing happens when something in your mystery story indicates that something is coming—something good or bad, but usually bad. It can be very on-the-nose, like a character saying, “Something bad is coming.” (Be more artful about it than that, though.) 

It can also be something in the environment that feels foreboding. The lights flicker in the abandoned museum where the sleuth is searching for the perp. Or an unnatural silence blankets the town the morning the body is discovered.

Establishing Cultural and Historical Context

A French castle and small village protruding into the ocean.

It might seem like a murder mystery is the one story where the cultural context doesn’t matter. I mean, murder is happening. Don’t your characters have bigger things to worry about than navigating cultural dynamics?

The fact is, culture influences the way we deal with everything, including homicide. All successful mystery novels reflect the norms, values, and assumptions that define their settings.

Sometimes it’s simply a matter of creating obstacles for the main character. Perhaps there’s a culture of fear in the community that makes witnesses reluctant to talk. Maybe the main character can’t get locals to communicate because they’re seen as an outsider.

For some mysteries, cultural and historical contexts are the most defining aspects of the setting. Attica Locke’s Highway 59 series confronts both the history and present reality of white supremacy in East Texas as Black Texas Ranger Darren Matthews investigates the murders that happen there. 

Whether you seek to examine society or just use it to add depth to your world, it’s important to consider this context when writing your own mystery novel. 

If your story takes place in the past, be sure to do your research so you understand not just what the world looked like in your time period, but also what it felt like to live in that era. On that note…

Tapping Into the Time Period

Black and white image of an old train.

When does your mystery novel take place? The answer to this determines many of your story’s details, including:

  • How your characters dress and communicate
  • The technology available to your detective
  • How the community feels about engaging with law enforcement
  • What it would take to pull off the crime in question
  • How characters view their world, themselves, and others

We’ll talk more about how to research your story’s time period in a bit. For now, just know that it matters. Even if your story is set in the present, think about which aspects of our current world should play a role in your novel.

The norms of a time period can even help you set up a few red herrings. For example, suppose a young lady in a Regency Era mystery story can’t supply an alibi when her lady’s maid reveals that she was not in her room at the time of the crime, as previously stated. It’s eventually revealed that the young woman was attending a political rally in disguise—a move that could destroy her family’s reputation in the community.

Now that you’ve got a solid understanding of the setting elements that make for a great mystery novel, let’s take a look how it’s done in these successful mysteries:

Examples of Successful Mystery Settings

A person sits in a chair in a bookshop reading a book.

In order to write a good mystery novel, you need to read a lot of mysteries. Current bestsellers will help you pick up on current trends and audience interests. Beloved classics will reveal timeless tropes and plot structure. 

All great mysteries will show you how to write engaging sleuths, dazzling plots , and—of course—worlds that draw the reader in. Here are some solid books to read for examples of well-executed (*cough*) mystery settings.

Cooper’s Chase Retirement Village, Present – Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club Series

If you’re writing a cozy mystery, this series is one to check out. In the tradition of all cozies, these books are set in a place you wouldn’t associate with murder: a comfortable retirement home.

What makes Osman’s mystery novels unique, however, is the extent to which he leans into the trope of the geriatric amateur sleuth. Not only does this series include an entire gang of senior detectives, it also has a few suspects and spies of a certain age.

Rural Ireland, Present – The Searcher

In this Tana French novel, the main character, Cal, retires from the Chicago police force and retreats to rural Ireland for peace and solitude. When he gets roped into the search for a missing child, his beautiful surroundings start to feel more sinister.

This is an excellent mystery story to read if you want to study shifting atmospheres and learn how to use the environment to create a sense of danger. It’s also good for examining cultural settings and the treacherous business of being an outsider. 

Chicago, 1944 – Clark and Division

This mystery follows a young woman investigating the death of her sister after her family’s release from a Japanese internment camp, casting a light on a corner of history that gets limited attention in pop culture.

If you’re interested in learning about blending a compelling mystery with a weighty historical and cultural context, this is it. Plus, author Naomi Hirahara studied and collected oral histories on Japanese internment for a previous nonfiction book, so Clark and Division is a solid example of a thoroughly researched historical mystery.

Pemberley, 1803 – Death Comes to Pemberley

Writers are nothing if not artistic borrowers, and that includes mystery authors like P.D. James. This murder mystery is set at Pemberley, the fictional estate Jane Austen fans will recognize from Pride and Prejudice .

By writing a whodunit in this setting, James taps into a world that’s already beloved and funnels it into an entirely new genre. The familiar becomes fresh and the fresh is somehow familiar. 

Los Angeles, Present – Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch Series

As this series lands in the crime fiction branch of the mystery genre, it’s not at all shocking that it would take place in a major city—the popular setting choice for gritty deeds and a cynical main character.

But Los Angeles specifically is a great choice for the protagonist, Detective Harry Bosch, who works by the philosophy that “Everybody counts or nobody counts.” As L.A. is known for being a place where people are either somebodies are nobodies, it’s satisfying to watch Bosch doggedly pursue justice for all victims.

The Importance of Research in Creating a Mystery Setting

A pair of glasses sits on top of an open textbook.

By now, you have the basic idea of what makes for a good mystery setting. Time to get into the details of how to bring the world of your story to life for your reader.

The first step: research.

What to Research

The amount of research you have to do depends on how familiar you are with the time and place in which your novel takes place. But here are some things you’ll probably want to know about your setting before you start writing:

  • Landscape and climate
  • Architecture
  • Cultural values
  • Dominant religious beliefs or political affiliations
  • Relationships between cultural groups, economic classes, etc.
  • Power structures
  • Technology used by regular people
  • Fashion, entertainment, and pop culture
  • Threatening forces like extreme weather, wild predators, mob presence, etc.
  • Local crime history
  • Available forensic technology
  • Police presence, including the size of the force and their relationship with the community

As you brainstorm and write your mystery, you’ll discover other gaps you need to fill in. But the list above should get you started.

Research Strategies

So how exactly are you supposed to find all this information?

We’ve actually written an entire article on the fine art of researching historical fiction, and many of the strategies in it can apply to researching a present-day location, too. Either way, here’s a quick list of places to look to find information about your mystery’s setting:

Internet - Make sure sources are credible and you’ve got the most current information.

Library - In addition to books and periodicals, your local library might have photo, video, and audio archives, as well as maps. Librarians love research questions, so don’t be shy about asking for help. 

Experts - Is there someone who would know about a particular aspect of your story’s setting? Someone who really knows the time period or can clarify what it’s really like to work in a police department?

The actual place - Can you visit the setting of your mystery novel? Spend a weekend in the town or tour the courthouse that features prominently in your story? 

Museums - Do you have access to a museum that features items or art from the world of your mystery story? Go check it out.

Pop culture - If you plan to write a mystery that takes place in the past, immerse yourself in the pop culture of the time. Listen to the music, watch the movies (if they existed), and even dabble in the kind of recreation that was popular at the time if that experience would help you understand your characters better.

And don’t forget to bookmark this article. You’ll need it for evidence of your authorly ambitions when federal law enforcement inquires about your concerning search history. (Just kidding. Probably.)

Setting as a Character in a Mystery Story

Silhouette of a person standing in a forest of backlit trees.

Now for a very artsy matter that’s bound to come up on author panels and NPR interviews when your mystery novel becomes a bestseller. 

How is your setting almost like a character in the story?

I have mixed feelings about this question, because what people are usually saying when they ask it is:

  • “This setting has a clear personality of its own.”
  • “I want to spend more time in this world.”
  • “This place felt real and deeply human to me.”
  • “The setting has an obvious influence on your characters’ decisions, conflicts, and sense of identity.”

All those things describe a well-crafted setting. There’s no need to call it by a different name. At the same time, describing anything in human terms changes the way we look at it, so if it helps to think of the world of your mystery as another character, go for it.

When you’re writing mysteries, you usually want to think of the setting as an antagonist . What would it look like if your world was actively interfering with the main character’s goals? 

Maybe this is an antagonist who hides secrets in dark alleyways or eerie bogs, protects the guilty within corrupt power structures, misleads with constant red herrings, or threatens your sleuth with dangerous elements.

Go ahead and give your world a personality. Think about who it would be if it were a character. Then write yourself a living, breathing setting that will impress all the fancy people who interview you.

Using the Setting to Write a Compelling Opening Scene

A person reading a book at an outdoor bistro table.

Your audience reads mysteries because they want to feel the kind of thrills you can only get from a good whodunit. So if you want to rope them in on page one, you have to give them the atmosphere they’re looking for.

Our friend Doug has already put together a great article on writing a solid opening scene. But here’s a quick rundown of how to make your setting shine in those crucial first pages.

Set the mood - Remember all that stuff we said about creating an atmosphere? Now is the time to put those skills to work.

Highlight the obstacles - What aspects of this world are likely to work against your main character as the story progresses? Give the reader a glimpse of that dangerous terrain or tight-lipped culture in the first scene. 

Create a sense of character - How does your main character relate to the setting? Is it familiar or unfamiliar? What about the other characters?

Foreshadow danger - You can accomplish this just by shining a light on the challenges that exist within your setting. You can also take the more symbolic route and let the atmosphere suggest that trouble is coming.

Using the Setting to Enhance Other Elements in Your Story

A car drives down an empty, dark, tree-lined road.

We’ve already covered this topic in bits and pieces over the course of this article. So consider this a quick reference for when you want to make sure your setting is truly pulling its weight in your novel.

Here are some of the most important ways the world can interact with other elements of a mystery story.

The setting informs and reveals who the characters are, including their:

  • Norms and taboos
  • Relationships to one another
  • Interests and hobbies
  • Ability to investigate a crime
  • Ability to defend themselves in an investigation

In mysteries, the setting often contributes to both internal and external conflict.

For external conflict , you’re looking at things like:

  • The resources available to your main character as they attempt to solve the mystery
  • How crimes are concealed in this society and/or physical space
  • The level of physical danger your detective must accept in order to do their job
  • What it takes to get witnesses and sources to trust your main character
  • Red herrings

For internal conflict , the setting can contribute to things like:

  • The main character’s dilemma between the importance of their goal and the dangers of the situation
  • Any social or cultural risks the witnesses might face by coming forward with the information they have
  • Your detective’s strong sense of justice while having to work within a corrupt system

A good mystery demands a setting that contributes to the overall puzzle. When building the world of your story, think about things like:

  • How a criminal could conceal their crime in this setting
  • What aspect of the setting could potentially give them away
  • If there are any accidental red herrings built into this world
  • What opportunities there might be to heighten tension by trapping your sleuth in a dangerous location
  • How the culture of the world might promote secrecy or distrust of the detective
  • The cleverest way to dispose of a body

Think about whether your setting can convey something more than just, “This place has secrets .” 

We talked about the way the setting of L.A. highlights Harry Bosch’s personal philosophy by constantly challenging it.

And in The Searcher , Cal retreats to the quiet beauty of rural Ireland in an attempt to flee the corruption and family drama he’s unable to fix back home. As the atmosphere shifts from quaint to sinister, Cal is forced to confront the fact that you can’t escape pain anymore than you can erase it.

What can your setting do to support the theme of your mystery story?

For more on highlighting a theme, check out this article .

Want More Clues on Writing a Mystery?

I hope you’re feeling more equipped to write a mystery. Of course, there’s a lot more to learn when it comes to this particular genre. If you could use help any other area of your mystery writing, check out:

How to Write a Mystery That Tingles the Spine

How to Build Suspense in Thrillers

Creating Mystery Characters

And may I emphatically recommend using Dabble to plan, draft, and revise your novel? The fully customizable Story Notes make worldbuilding a breeze (or at least worldorganizing), and the Plot Grid is an absolute lifesaver when it comes to writing mysteries. This feature helps you keep track of everything , from alibis to red herrings.

Screenshot of a Dabble Plot Grid with columns for each scene and character wherabouts.

Want a chance to inspect Dabble before you commit? You got it. You can access a 14-day free trial at this link , no credit card information needed.

Abi Wurdeman is the author of Cross-Section of a Human Heart: A Memoir of Early Adulthood, as well as the novella, Holiday Gifts for Insufferable People. She also writes for film and television with her brother and writing partner, Phil Wurdeman. On occasion, Abi pretends to be a poet. One of her poems is (legally) stamped into a sidewalk in Santa Clarita, California. When she’s not writing, Abi is most likely hiking, reading, or texting her mother pictures of her houseplants to ask why they look like that.

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Insider GCSE creative writing tips + 106 prompts from past papers

by Hayley | Mar 9, 2023 | Exams , Writing | 0 comments

Are you feeling a little bit twitchy about your child’s English GCSE writing task?

Sciences and humanities – although sometimes daunting in their content – seem a fair bet as ‘revisable’ topics. But the creative writing element of the English Language GCSE is less knowable and ultimately more of a frightening prospect for a student keen to do well.

What is the GCSE writing element of the GCSE Language Paper?

There are 5 key GCSE exam boards: AQA , OCR , Pearson Edexcel , WJEC Eduqas and CCEA . Each board sets their own papers which may appear much the same at first glance (bizarrely they all have a similar front cover layout and fonts). Certainly there is plenty of overlap between their mark schemes and the comments and tips they share in their Examiner Reports.

However, as with all your child’s other subjects, it is essential to know which exam board they are preparing for. You may be surprised to discover that schools pick and choose boards by subject, perhaps choosing AQA for chemistry and OCR for mathematics. Individual school departments have their own preferences. My brother teaches at a school where their English Literature and English Language exams have been split between two different boards. This is unusual though, not the norm!

What forms (question formats) can the test take?

It varies by board.

The AQA board has a writing task in their Question Paper 1 called Explorations in creative reading and writing . Students are given two prompts to choose between. The AQA board also has a second persuasive writing task in Paper 2 called Writers’ viewpoints and perspectives.

Jump ahead to AQA creative writing and persuasive writing prompts from past GCSE papers

The Pearson/Edexcel international iGCSE favoured by many UK private schools has two prompts to choose between for each section. The student is asked to complete a piece of transactional writing (perhaps a persuasive speech or an advertisement leaflet) and additionally a piece of imaginative writing.

Jump ahead to Pearson/Edexcel transactional writing and imaginative writing prompts from past GCSE papers

Interestingly, the WJEC Eduqas board favours non-fiction writing. Unit 2 Reading and Writing: Description, Narration and Exposition gives two prompts to choose between, for an account and an essay perhaps, and Unit 3: Reading and Writing: Argumentation, Persuasion and Instructional sets up a letter, or similar.

Jump ahead to WJEC Eduqas non-fiction writing prompts from past GCSE papers

The OCR board offers two prompts to choose between. One might be a talk for other students and the other might be a letter on a difficult subject .

Jump ahead to OCR creative writing prompts from past GCSE papers

The CCEA board has a writing task in called “ Writing for Purpose and Audience and Reading to Access Non-fiction and Media Texts” and a second writing task which offers a choice between personal writing and creative writing.

Jump ahead to CCEA persuasive writing, personal writing, and creative prompts from past GCSE papers

How long do students have to craft their piece of writing?

Creative writing tests are timed at either 45 minutes or 1 hour. The last thing your child will need is to prepare to write for an hour, only to find they have just three-quarters of an hour on the day. If in doubt, insist that they check with their teacher.

AQA students are given 45 minutes to produce their writing response. The introduction advises: ‘ You are reminded of the need to plan your answer. You should leave enough time to check your work at the end.’ What this means is that 30–35 minutes max is what’s really allowed there for the writing itself.

Pearson/Edexcel allows 45 minutes for each of the two writing tasks.

OCR students are given an hour to complete this section of their exam. The introduction states: ‘You are advised to plan and check your work carefully,’ so they will expect the writing itself to take 45–50 minutes.

How long should the completed GCSE writing task be?

Interestingly, although the mark schemes all refer to paragraphingthey don’t state how many paragraphs they expect to see.

‘A skilfully controlled overall structure, with paragraphs and grammatical features used to support cohesion and achieve a range of effects’ (OCR)
‘Fluently linked paragraphs with seamlessly integrated discourse markers’ (AQA)

Why? Because management of paragraph and sentence length is a structural technique available to the student as part of their writers’ toolkit. If the number of optimal paragraphs were to be spelled out by the board, it would have a negative impact on the freedom of the writer to use their paragraphs for impact or to manage the pace of the reader.

For a general guide I would expect to see 3 to 5 paragraphs in a creative piece and 5 paragraphs in a persuasive piece. Leaflets have a different structure entirely and need to be set out in a particular form to achieve the top notes of the mark scheme.

What are the examiners looking for when they are marking a student’s creative writing paper?

There are two assessment objectives for the writing itself:

  • It has to be adapted to the form, tone and register of writing for specific purposes and audiences.
  • It has to use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures, with appropriate paragraphing, spelling, punctuation and grammar.

As a GCSE English nerd, I really enjoy delving deeper into the Examiner Reports that each board brings out once the previous cohort’s papers have been marked. They are a fascinating read and never disappoint…

Within their pages, examiners spell out the differences they have spotted between the stronger and the weaker responses.

For example, a creative task set by the AQA board was to describe a photograph of a town at sunset. The examiners explained that some of the strongest responses imagined changes in the scene as darkness descended. They enjoyed reading responses that included personification of the city, and those that imagined the setting in the past, or the weariness of the city. Weaker candidates simply listed what was in the picture or referred directly to the fact it was an image. This chronological-list approach weakened the structure of their work.

No surprises that some weaker students relied heavily on conversation. (As an exam marker myself, I dreaded reading acres of uninspiring direct speech.)

Pearson/Edexcel explain that weaker persuasive pieces (in this case on the value of television) simply listed pros and cons rather than developed ideas fully to clarify their own opinions. The higher-level responses here were quirky and engaging, entertaining the reader with a range of appropriate techniques and making the argument their own.

What accommodations are possible for students who have specific learning difficulties?

The UK Government’s Guide for Schools and Colleges 2022: GCSE, AS and A Levels includes information about changes to assessments to support ‘disabled students.’ Their definition of disabled includes specific learning difficulties (dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD, ADD, ASD etc).

Exam boards can make a wide range of adjustments to their assessments. Some of the most common adjustments are:

  • modified papers (for example, large print or braille exam papers)
  • access to assistive software (for example, voice recognition systems or computer readers)
  • help with specific tasks (for example, another person might read questions to the student or write their dictated answers)
  • changes to how the assessment is done (for example, an oral rather than a written assessment, word-processing rather than hand-writing answers)
  • extra time to complete assessments
  • exemptions from an assessment

The exam board will expect paperwork to be in place where your child’s specific needs are formally reported by an appropriate professional (Educational Psychologist, Clinical Psychologist, Consultant). The report needs to be recent, but how recent is difficult to confirm.

If your child is likely to need adjustments to their access arrangements you will need to discuss this with their school in plenty of time before the exam itself.

A close friend of mine realised in the final few weeks before her son’s GCSE exams that his tinnitus would have a negative impact on his performance. She approached the school to ask if he might take his exams in a separate room to minimise noise disturbance. Unfortunately, it was far too late by then to apply, and her son was denied the request.

Your child’s school will explain the process for applying for special arrangements and will be able to advise you on what your expectations should be. Never presume your child will be given what they need – but plenty of requests are successful, so stay positive and make sure your paperwork is in order beforehand.

Tips and strategies for writing a high scoring GCSE creative writing paper:

1.         learn the formats.

Know the different formats and conventions of the different GCSE writing tasks. There is a standard layout for a leaflet, for example, where including contact details and a series of bullet points is part of the mark scheme. Not knowing these conventions will knock back a student’s score.

2.         Plan ahead

Prepare a planning structure for each of the written forms you might encounter during the exam. It may need to be flexed on the day, but it will banish fear of the blank page and allow you to get started.

3.         Prepare sentence-openings

Familiarise yourself with appropriate sentence-openings for each type of GCSE writing task. Fronted adverbials of time and place will improve the quality of a creative piece, whereas access to varied and specific conjunctions might push up the mark of a transactional piece.

4.         Check your speaking

Ask your family to check your speech at home. Every now and then try to flip a sentence into formal language, using more interesting synonyms for your usual spoken vocabulary. This will help you to write formally on paper, avoiding colloquialisms.

5.         Forget finishing

Finishing is less important than you might imagine. Sloppy, hurried work is your enemy. GCSE examiners will follow your clear planning and mark you accordingly, even if you’ve not managed to complete that final paragraph.

6.         Note the details

The question often gives additional information the examiner would like to see included. Note it in your plan to make sure it doesn’t get forgotten.

7.         Start strong

Use your best sentence-opener at the start of each paragraph. It will set you up as someone to be taken seriously.

8.         Cut back dialogue

Keep dialogue contained in a single paragraph. Focus on description of the speaker and their actions before noting the second character’s reply.

9.         Revise

Do this by prepping work as above. Nothing beats it.

Would you like me to transform your child’s writing in my higher writing club?

Each week in my higher writing club , we spend 20 minutes on Zoom together. After the task has been introduced, the students write for 15 minutes. Next, they upload their work for 1:1 video marking.

There is no point prepping essays/creative pieces for the GCSE English Language exam if your child’s writing is poor. First, their scruffy presentation, attention to detail, punctuation, grammar and vocabulary need to be addressed.

After 2 months in the higher writing club your child’s written technique and fluency will be transformed by our 1–2-1 video marking system (consistent messaging is achieved by matching your child with their own teacher).

Each weekly activity is drawn directly from the GCSE English Language Subject Content and Assessment Objectives , published by the English Department of Education.

Here’s an example of a student’s writing, BEFORE they joined our club:

Handwriting and creative writing sample from a GCSE level student - before online writing lessons

It is chaotic, poorly-presented and nonsensical. Letter-sizing is confused and the student is clearly anxious and repeatedly scribbling through small errors.

Below is the same student 2 months later:

Handwriting and creative writing sample from a GCSE level student -after 2 months of weekly online writing lessons with Griffin Teaching

Observe the rich vocabulary, authorial techniques (the jagged rocks are ‘like shards of broken glass’) and general fluency and sophistication.

Real and recent GCSE example questions/prompts from each of the 5 key exam boards

Aqa english language gcse questions, paper 2 writers’ viewpoints and perspectives:.

  • ‘Our addiction to cheap clothes and fast fashion means young people in poorer countries have to work in terrible conditions to make them. We must change our attitude to buying clothes now.’ Write an article for a magazine or website in which you argue your point of view on this statement. ( Source )
  • ‘People have become obsessed with travelling ever further and faster. However, travel is expensive, dangerous, damaging and a foolish waste of time!’ Write an article for a news website in which you argue your point of view on this statement. ( Source )
  • ‘Cars are noisy, dirty, smelly and downright dangerous. They should be banned from all town and city centres, allowing people to walk and cycle in peace.’ Write a letter to the Minister for Transport arguing your point of view on this statement. ( Source )
  • ‘All sport should be fun, fair and open to everyone. These days, sport seems to be more about money, corruption and winning at any cost.’ Write an article for a newspaper in which you explain your point of view on this statement. ( Source )

Paper 1 Explorations in creative reading and writing:

  • A magazine has asked for contributions for their creative writing section. Either write a description of an old person as suggested by the picture below or write a story about a time when things turned out unexpectedly. ( Source )

Image of a man with a beard, example image to use as a GCSE creative writing prompt

  • Your school or college is asking students to contribute some creative writing for its website. Either, describe a market place as suggested by the picture below or write a story with the title, ‘Abandoned’. ( Source )

image of a market scene to use as a creative writing prompt

  • Your local library is running a creative writing competition. The best entries will be published in a booklet of creative writing. Either, write a description of a mysterious place, as suggested by the picture below or write a story about an event that cannot be explained. ( Source )

image of a round entrance to a spooky scene to use as a gcse creative writing prompt

  • A magazine has asked for contributions for their creative writing section. Either, describe a place at sunset as suggested by the picture below or write a story about a new beginning. ( Source )

OCR English Language GCSE questions

Paper: communicating information and ideas.

  • Either, Write a post for an online forum for young people about ‘A moment that changed my life’.
  • Or, You are giving a talk at a parents’ information evening about why all children should study science at school. Explain your views. ( Source )
  • Either, Write a letter to a friend to describe a challenging and unpleasant task you once had to do.
  • Or, Write a short guide for new workers about how to deal successfully with difficult customers. ( Source )
  • Either, “Was it worth it?” Write an article for a magazine to describe a time when you had to do something difficult.
  • Or, Write a speech for an event to congratulate young people who have achieved something remarkable. ( Source )
  • Either, Write the words of a talk to advise pet owners how to make life more enjoyable for their pet and themselves.
  • Or, Write an article for a travel magazine to describe your dramatic encounter with an animal. ( Source )
  • Either, ‘How I prefer to spend my time.’ Write the words of a talk to young people about your favourite activity
  • Or, Write a magazine article to persuade parents to allow their teenage children more freedom. You are not required to include any visual or presentational features. ( Source )
  • Either, Write a talk for other students about a person you either admire strongly or dislike intensely
  • Or, Write a letter to a friend to explain a difficult decision you had to make. ( Source )

Paper: Exploring effects and impact

  • Either, Hunger satisfied. Use this as the title for a story.
  • Or, Write about a time when you were waiting for something. ( Source )
  • Either, The Taste of Fear Use this as the title for a story.
  • Or, Write about a time when you were exploring a particular place. ( Source )
  • Either, Alone. Use this as the title for a story.
  • Or, Describe a time when you found yourself in a crowd or surrounded by people. ( Source )
  • Either, Land at Last. Use this as the title for a story.
  • Or, Imagine you have visited somewhere for the first time and are now reporting back on your experience. ( Source )
  • Either, The Playground Use this as the title for a story
  • Or, Write about a memory you have of playing a childhood game. ( Source )
  • Either, It seemed to me like I had been magically transported. Use this as the title for a story.
  • Or, Describe a place where you have felt comfortable. ( Source )

Pearson Edexcel English Language iGCSE questions

Paper 1: transactional writing.

  • Either, ‘In our busy twenty-first century lives, hobbies and interests are more important than ever.’ Write an article for a newspaper expressing your views on this statement.
  • Or, ‘We are harming the planet we live on and need to do more to improve the situation.’ You have been asked to deliver a speech to your peers in which you explain your views on this statement. ( Source )
  • ‘ Zoos protect endangered species from around the world.’ ‘No wild animal should lose its freedom and be kept in captivity. Write an article for a magazine in which you express your views on zoos.
  • Write a review of an exciting or interesting event that you have seen. ( Source )
  • Your local newspaper has published an article with the headline ‘Young people today lack any desire for adventure’. Write a letter to the editor of the newspaper expressing your views on this topic.
  • ‘The key to success in anything is being prepared.’ Write a section for a guide giving advice on the importance of preparation. ( Source )
  • You and your family have just returned from a holiday that did not turn out as you expected. Write a letter to the travel agent with whom you booked your holiday, explaining what happened.
  • A magazine is publishing articles with the title ‘Friendship is one of the greatest gifts in life’. Write your article on this topic. ( Source )
  • ‘Important lessons I have learned in my life.’ You have been asked to deliver a speech to your peers on this topic.
  • Your local/school library wants to encourage young people to read more. Write the text of a leaflet explaining the benefits of reading. ( Source )
  • ‘Most memorable journeys.’ A website is running a competition to reward the best articles on this subject. Write an article for the competition about a memorable journey.
  • ‘Cycling is one form of exercise that can lead to a healthier lifestyle.’ Write a guide for young people on the benefits of exercise. ( Source )
  • ‘Television educates, entertains and helps global understanding.’ ‘Television is to blame for society’s violence and greed and delivers one-sided news.’ You have been asked to deliver a speech in which you express your views and opinions on television.
  • ‘Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions we ever make.’ Write the text of a leaflet that gives advice to young people on how to choose a career. ( Source )
  • Write the text for a leaflet aimed at school students which offers advice on how to deal with bullying.
  • A museum is planning to open a new exhibition called ‘Life in the Twenty-First Century’. ( Source )

Paper 2: Imaginative writing

  • Write about a time when you, or someone you know, enjoyed success
  • Write a story with the title ‘A Surprise Visitor’.
  • Look at the two images below. Choose one and write a story that begins ‘I did not have time for this’ ( Source )

two images to choose to use as a story starter for a gcse creative writing prompt that begins with "I did not have time for this"

  • Write about a time when you, or someone you know, challenged an unfair situation.
  • Write a story with the title ‘Bitter, Twisted Lies’.
  • Look at the two images below. Choose one and write a story that begins ‘It was a new day …’ You may wish to base your response on one of these images. ( Source )

two images to use for GCSE creative writing practice. Image 1 is of a woman on top of a mountain at sunset, the second image is of a harbour at sunset with a bridge in the field of view

  • Write about a time when you, or someone you know, visited a new place.
  • Write a story with the title ‘The Storm’
  • Look at the two images below. Choose one and write a story that ends ‘I decided to get on with it.’ ( Source )

Two images to use as GCSE writing prompts. Students are asked to choose one and start their story with the words "I decided to get on with it"

  • Write about a time when you, or someone you know, saw something surprising.
  • Write a story with the title ‘The Meeting’.
  • Look at the two images below. Choose one and write a story that starts ‘Suddenly, without warning, there was a power cut.’ ( Source )

Two images to use as GCSE writing prompts. The first shows two children sitting at a table lit by candles, the second is of a city scene with half of the buildings lit up and the other half shrouded in darkness

  • Write about a time when you, or someone you know, went on a long journey.
  • Write a story with the title ‘A New Start’
  • Look at the two images below. Choose one and write a story that begins ‘I tried to see what he was reading. ( Source )

two example images students can use while revising for the GCSE wri5ting task. Both are on the theme of reading.

  • Write about a time when you, or someone you know, felt proud.
  • Write a story with the title ‘The Hidden Book’.
  • Look at the two images below. Choose one and write a story that begins ‘It was like a dream’ ( Source )

Two images from past GCSE papers to use as a prompt for creative writing.

  • Write about a time when you, or someone you know, had to be brave
  • Write a story with the title ‘Everything Had Changed’
  • Look at the two images below. Choose one and write a story that begins ‘It was an unusual gift’. ( Source )

Two images of presents that students can use to start a story with "it was an unusual gift."

WJEC Eduqas English Language GCSE questions

Unit 2 reading and writing: description, narration and exposition.

  • Write an account of a time when you enjoyed or hated taking part in an outdoor activity.
  • “It’s essential that more people are more active, more often.” (Professor Laura McAllister, Chair of Sport Wales) Write an essay to explain how far you agree with this view, giving clear reasons and examples. ( Source )
  • Describe an occasion when you did something you found rewarding.
  • Famous chefs such as Jamie Oliver and Mary Berry have spoken of the need for better food and better education about food in schools. Write an essay to explain your views on this subject, giving clear reasons and examples. ( Source )
  • Write an account of a visit to a dentist or a doctor’s surgery.
  • NHS staff, such as doctors and nurses, provide excellent service in difficult circumstances. Write an essay to explain your views on this subject, giving clear reasons and examples. ( Source )
  • Write an article for a travel magazine describing somewhere interesting that you have visited.
  • You see the following in your local newspaper: ‘Young people are selfish. They should all be made to volunteer to help others.’ Write an essay to explain your views on this subject, giving clear reasons and examples. ( Source )
  • Describe an occasion when technology made a difference to your life.
  • Write an account of a time you were unwilling to do something. ( Source )
  • Describe a time when you faced a challenge
  • Write an essay explaining why charity is important, giving clear reasons and examples. ( Source )
  • Write an account of a time when you did something for the first time.
  • “It’s time for us to start making some changes. Let’s change the way we eat, let’s change the way we live, and let’s change the way we treat each other.” Tupac Shakur Write an essay on the subject of change, giving clear reasons and examples. ( Source )
  • “School uniform is vitally important in all schools.” Write an essay explaining your views on this, giving clear reasons and examples.
  • Describe a time when you had to create a good impression. ( Source )

Unit 3: Reading and writing: Argumentation, persuasion and instructional

  • Your school/college is considering using more Fairtrade items in its canteen. Although this will help to support Fairtrade farmers, it will mean an increase in the price of meals. You feel strongly about this proposal and decide to write a letter to your Headteacher/Principal giving your views. ( Source )
  • Increasing litter levels suggest we have lost all pride in our beautiful country. Prepare a talk for your classmates in which you give your opinions on this view. ( Source )
  • Write a guide for other students persuading them to stay safe when using social media and the internet. ( Source )
  • According to your PE teacher, ‘Swimming is the very best form of exercise.’ You have been asked to prepare a talk for your classmates in which you give your views about swimming. ( Source )
  • You read the following in a newspaper: ‘Plastic is one of the biggest problems faced by our planet. Why would we use something for a few minutes that has been made from a material that’s going to last forever?’ Write a letter to the newspaper giving your views on the use of plastic. ( Source )
  • “People today never show enough kindness to one another. We must make more effort to be kind.” Write a talk to give on BBC Wales’ new programme Youth Views persuading young people to be kind to others. ( Source )
  • ‘We have enough problems in the world without worrying about animals.’ Write an article for the school or college magazine giving your views on this statement.
  • You would like to raise some money for an animal charity. Write a talk for your classmates persuading them to donate to your chosen charity. ( Source )

CCEA English Language GCSE questions

Unit 1: writing for purpose and audience and reading to access non-fiction and media texts.

  • Write a speech for your classmates persuading them to agree with your views on the following issue: “Young people today are too worried about their body image.” ( Source )
  • Write an article for your school magazine persuading the readers to agree with your views on the following question: “Should school uniform have a place in 21st century schools?” ( Source )
  • Write a speech for your classmates persuading them to agree with your views on the following question: “Are celebrities the best role models for teenagers?” ( Source )
  • Write an article for your school magazine persuading the readers to agree with your views on the following statement: “Advertising is just another source of pressure that teenagers don’t need!” ( Source )

Unit 4: Personal or creative writing and reading literacy and non-fiction texts

  • Either, Personal writing: Write a personal essay for the examiner about what you consider to be one of the proudest moments in your life.
  • Or, Creative writing: Write your entry for a creative essay writing competition. The audience is teenagers. You may provide your own title. ( Source )
  • Write a personal essay for the examiner about an experience that resulted in a positive change in your life.
  • Write a creative essay for the examiner. The picture below is to be the basis for your writing. You may provide your own title. ( Source )

Picture of a family waiting at an airport.

  • Personal writing: Write a speech for your classmates about the most interesting person you have ever met.
  • Creative writing: Write a creative essay for your school magazine. The picture below is to be the basis for your writing. You may provide your own title. ( Source )

picture of two elderly men playing soccer

  • Personal writing: Write a personal essay for the examiner describing your dream destination.
  • Creative writing: Write a creative essay for publication in your school magazine. The picture below is to be the basis for your creative writing. You may provide your own title. (Source)

picture of a two people mountain climbing

Get 1:1 support and personalized feedback on your GCSE creative writing practice

For 1–2-1 writing support for your pre-GCSE child, join the Griffin Teaching Higher Writing Club—online weekly writing classes specifically tailored to English GCSE creative writing preparation.

In just 20 minutes per week and their writing will be transformed.

creative writing about a mysterious place

creative writing about a mysterious place

AQA GCSE Questions: Narrative, Creative and Descriptive

Below, you’ll find a list of narrative and descriptive questions for AQA GCSE English Language, Paper 1 Section B. These questions can also be used more generally as narrative and descriptive prompts for those exploring the craft of creative writing, or studying an alternate GCSE or IGCSE exam board. 

Thanks for reading! For all English Language and Literature courses,  click here .

AQA GCSE English Language Paper 1

AQA GCSE English Language Paper 2

THE QUESTION

Write a description of a mysterious place, as suggested by this picture:(2020) 

Write a story about an event that cannot be explained. (2020)

Write a story about a magical world as suggested by this picture: 

Different Types of Essay Questions

The picture shows a young child in pyjamas, who is standing beside a window, holding a snow globe. The snow globe is lighting up the child’s face. (2019)

Describe a place you think is beautiful. (2019)

Write a story about a time when things turned out unexpectedly. (2018)

Write a description of an old person as suggested by this picture: (2018)

Write a story with the title ‘Discovery’. (2017) 

Write a story, set in a mountainous area, as suggested by this picture: (2017) 

Write a story about two people from very different backgrounds. (2016) 

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A Literary Tour of Moscow

creative writing about a mysterious place

It’s hard to count the exact number of great Russian writers who showed their love for Moscow. The city has attracted and prompted stories for a long time now, inspiring many to express their writing talent. Thus, Moscow’s literary sights are fully deserving of our attention, and this guide gladly presents you six of them, from museums to apartments.

1. nikolay gogol museum.

Library, Museum

House-museum of Gogol in Moscow

2. The State Museum of Mayakovsky

Mayakovsy

3. Turgenev's Family House

The portrait of Ivan Turgenev by Vasiliy Perov (1872)

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5. The Apartment of Dostoevsky

Building, Memorial, Museum

56-3941803-1441302856840439ed4e7b401ebe751c0a0add0e0c

6. The Mikhail Bulgakov Museum

Mikhail Bulgakov Museum

KEEN TO EXPLORE THE WORLD?

Connect with like-minded people on our premium trips curated by local insiders and with care for the world

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.

creative writing about a mysterious place

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creative writing about a mysterious place

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IMAGES

  1. Descriptive writing (how to describe a place? )

    creative writing about a mysterious place

  2. Mysterious Haunted House Creative Writing by Elementary Teachers Rock

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  3. 😎 Haunted house writing. Winner of the Fiction Writing Prompt Contest

    creative writing about a mysterious place

  4. Abandoned Places

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  5. Haunted House Descriptive Writing

    creative writing about a mysterious place

  6. These creative writing photo prompts invite kids to write imaginative

    creative writing about a mysterious place

VIDEO

  1. The Mysterious Writing Style Of Crosswriting

  2. Mysterious Book 😰| #short #ytshorts #youtubeshorts #shorts

  3. Script writing Place✍️#minivlog#vlog95 #trading #shortvideo #familyvlog #shortvlog #minivolgs

  4. mysterious place (part 1)

  5. ✍️Writing 😎writing advice 🔥creative writing 😴writing tips

  6. Strange Writing In The Laundry Chute!

COMMENTS

  1. Incredible Mystery Story Ideas: 65 Creative Mystery Writing Prompts

    Mystery Story Starters Below are starters to help you in conceptualizing, imagining, and creating a new mystery story: The fast-paced city you currently reside in turns out to be moving irregularly one day. People wander around slowly, cashiers swipe items slowly, and cars seem to be slower than your walking pace. Everything slows down except you.

  2. Best Mystery Writing Prompts of 2023

    Mystery Write a story about someone finally gaining access into their family's very old computer. Mystery - 37 stories Start your story with a character finding a retro piece of tech they don't recognize. Mystery - 34 stories Write a story that hides something from its reader until the very end. Mystery - 104 stories

  3. 50 Intriguing Mystery Story Ideas!

    Mystery Story Ideas 1. A woman asks a writer to write the story of her life. Then she goes missing. 2. Murder victims are found buried with some of their wordly goods, Viking style. 3. Three people close to the murder victim have confessed. Each of them swears they acted alone. 4. Notes and gifts from her "Secret Santa" at work take a strange turn.

  4. 70+ Mystery Writing Prompts & Story Ideas

    January 26, 2022 From whodunits to unsolved crimes, here are over 70 mystery writing prompts that will keep your readers hooked from beginning to end. The mystery genre is all about gathering clues and evidence to solve a crime or mystery of some sort. Common mysteries to solve may include murder, kidnappings, theft and any other unsolved crimes.

  5. 18 Fun and Easy Mystery Story Ideas » JournalBuddies.com

    18 Fun and Easy Mystery Story Ideas If you have ever wanted to write mysteries but didn't know how to get started, then you are in luck. You see… this article includes a brief mystery writing guide and eighteen fun and easy mystery story ideas to help you — or your student writers — get to crafting a mystery story today.

  6. A Mysterious Find (Short Story)

    By Chris J Mitchell I was deep in the woods and the trees were casting a cold shadow on to the ground. The call of a solitary bird echoed from far away, and I wondered if it was time to turn back for my stroll had turned into something more strenuous than I had planned. Still, I kept on for I felt something inside of me wanting to push forward.

  7. 67 Thrilling And Chilling Mystery Writing Prompts

    60. You turn a corner in your new neighborhood, and someone stops in front of you, looks you up and down, presses a key into your hand, and says, "I'll be back for this.". 61. You didn't know you had a doppelganger until you came face to face with her at the new coffee shop on the corner.

  8. 69+ Mystery Story Ideas To Keep Your Audience Guessing Until the End

    mystery story ideas with a twist. 11. A woman receives a mysterious phone call that leads her on a thrilling and dangerous adventure to solve a long-forgotten mystery. 12. A group of friends gathers for a séance, but when one is killed in a seemingly supernatural way, they must determine whether the killer is human.

  9. Mystery Writing Prompts

    It doesn't need to be that hard! Randomly choose a few of these mystery writing prompts and draft a quick scene summary for each…. 01. A note is discovered. Who was the intended recipient? 02. A character who was thought lost or who departed reappears. Why did they stay away until now? 03.

  10. How to Write a Mystery in 12 Steps, Plus Pro Tips

    There's no right or wrong approach to how to write a mystery, but here's a process you can try. 1. Come up with an idea. Here are some ways to get ideas for your mystery story: - Start with real-life crime. Read the news, research crimes that actually happened, and then imagine a story around them.

  11. How to Write a Mystery Story (That Will Grip Readers)

    For the longest time, I thought mysteries were impossible to write. That's partly by design—a compelling mystery will pull the rug out from under your feet and make you wonder how you missed the conclusion, which now feels obvious.It surprises and excites you, and it makes you want to go back and look at all the clues and details you might have missed along the way.

  12. How to Write a Mystery Story (with Examples)

    7. Write a story outline. Now that you have considered all the aspects of your story, create a clear outline of the plot. It's important to map out how exactly the mystery will unfold before you sit down to write the story, as this will ensure there will are no loose ends in the mystery.

  13. A description about a mysterious place order

    Othello knowledge organiser 2021 Unseen-Poetry-A-Level-A - Exemplar- Essays Isabella; or the pot of basil context A description about a mysterious place Clouds lay grey and stoned above, for it was not they that mattered, yet the presence or absence of the sun.

  14. 199+ Creative Writing Prompts To Help You Write Your Next Story

    A long list of creative writing prompts and writing ideas. 1. Symphony of the Skies. Imagine a world where music can literally change the weather. Write a story about a character who uses this power to communicate emotions, transforming the skies to reflect their inner turmoil or joy. 2.

  15. Story Ideas About Mysterious Happenings and More

    1) Your character's husband/wife slips out of the house every night at two a.m. and doesn't return until morning. When confronted about this, s/he says only, "It's better for you not to know..." 2) Hidden in his or her house, your character finds what appears to be a voodoo doll in his/her own image...

  16. How to Create a Setting for Mystery—Let's Crack This Case

    Pop culture - If you plan to write a mystery that takes place in the past, immerse yourself in the pop culture of the time. Listen to the music, watch the movies (if they existed), and even dabble in the kind of recreation that was popular at the time if that experience would help you understand your characters better.

  17. Insider GCSE creative writing tips + 106 prompts from past papers

    It varies by board. The AQA board has a writing task in their Question Paper 1 called Explorations in creative reading and writing. Students are given two prompts to choose between. The AQA board also has a second persuasive writing task in Paper 2 called Writers' viewpoints and perspectives.

  18. AQA GCSE Questions: Narrative, Creative and Descriptive

    THE QUESTION. Write a description of a mysterious place, as suggested by this picture: (2020) Write a story about an event that cannot be explained. (2020) Write a story about a magical world as suggested by this picture: The picture shows a young child in pyjamas, who is standing beside a window, holding a snow globe.

  19. Free Essay: A Mysterious Place

    2 Pages Analyze This Draft A Mysterious Place View Writing Issues Filter Results A Mysterious Place You're walking down a pathway with some of your friends, when you realize that you are all on your own. Nobody is around you except some scary looking figures with blood in their mouth and others that look like ghosts and scary monsters.

  20. Mysterious Bookshop

    Discover Mysterious Bookshop in New York, New York: The world's oldest and biggest bookstore stocking only mystery, crime fiction, espionage, and thrillers.

  21. A Literary Tour Of Moscow

    Novodevichy Cemetery is one of the most famous burial sites in Moscow. It originates at the southern wall of the Novodevichy Convent in 1898, and originally served as a burial place for nuns, the emperor's family and later other socio-economical classes. By the beginning of the 20th century the monastery had run out of empty space, and in 1922 all monastery buildings, including the ...

  22. 17 Unusual Things to Do in Moscow, Russia

    15 Unusual Things to Do in St. Petersburg, Russia. This beautiful Soviet train will take you on a trip to the Moscow engine house built in 1901. The steam train journey is quite short and lasts only 15 minutes one way. However, the whole experience includes a tour of the engine house. You will see the first Cherepanov train built in Russia all ...

  23. City Life: A Symphony of Endless Activity Free Essay Example

    Views. 14198. Life in the city is full of activity. Early in the morning hundreds of people rush out of their homes in the manner ants do when their nest is broken. Soon the streets are full of traffic. Shops and offices open, students flock to their schools and the day's work begins. The city now throb with activity, and it is full of noise.