36 stories
The best adventure writing prompts
Sure, we love writing prompts that ask us to reflect on everyday life and record thoughts about our lives. But sometimes, we want to write about something unrelated to our lives — something more adventurous.
Enter adventure writing prompts: prompts that can take you and your characters on a journey globetrotting, whether it’s a spur-of-the-moment trek through the forest with friends or an adventure story across the ocean on a ship. In a genre like Action & Adventure with limitless room for imagination, the sky’s the limit for adventure stories you can create from writing prompts.
If you're looking to cut to the chase, here’s a top ten list of our favorite adventure writing prompts:
- Start your story with the line, “You wanna do something fun?”
- Write a story about a Google Street View driver.
- Write a story about friends taking a road trip they've been planning for years.
- Write a story about friends who wind up on a misadventure.
- Write about a character on the road — and on the run.
- Write about a hero or villain who's deathly afraid of doing their job.
- Write about a pirate captain obsessed with finding a mythical treasure.
- Write about a skier who accidentally strays off-piste.
- Write about a trip to see a natural sight that’s usually only ever seen in photos.
- Write about someone who goes to extreme lengths to get themselves to a tropical island.
If you're curious about learning how to write an adventure story, check out our free resources on the topic:
- How to Write a Fight Scene (blog post) — A great fight scene isn’t just a messy movement of hands and feet: it’s also a scene that racks up the tension, explores character dynamics and character conflict, and satisfies the expectations of your readers all at once. Many adventure stories will have a fight scene at some point, and this blog post will show you how exactly to write it when the time comes.
Ready to start writing? Check out Reedsy’s weekly short story contest for the chance of winning $250! You can also check out our list of writing contests or our directory of literary magazines for more opportunities to submit your story.