150 interesting short story ideas with a twist

Last Updated on July 20, 2022 by Dr Sharon Baisil MD

Looking for a way to add suspense and intrigue to your short stories? Look no further than these 150 interesting short story ideas with a twist. Each one is sure to keep your readers on the edge of their seats, wondering what will happen next. Whether you’re looking for a new plot idea or just need a little inspiration, these stories are sure to get your creative juices flowing. So why wait? Pick up a pen and start writing!

15 Fantasy short story ideas

• A wizard, an alchemist, and a scientist must combine their powers to make the ultimate potion. But what do you get when you mix magic with technology? Maybe something doesn’t want to be found.
• Every decade or so, a child is born that can control fire without actually burning themselves. When a suspiciously high amount of children are born with the ability to control fire, scientists are called in to investigate. What they find will blow your mind!
• A man sees a fairy in the woods behind his house. He follows her and discovers that there’s a whole new world out there, one filled with magic and wonder. But who are fairies, really?
• A dark force is destroying forests worldwide at an alarming rate. To protect themselves from this new threat, woodland creatures must rise together to fight for their homes.
• A priest who became a vampire but was later cured of his bloodlust is now on a mission to hunt down and kill all vampires before they can cause more harm to the world. But what happens when he falls in love with one?
• A lazy farmer goes looking for some excitement by investigating the rumors of a mysterious creature stalking people at night. But the excitement of his hunt is short-lived when he finds out it’s an old friend of his.
• A thief who’s been stealing from the same house every night finally meets his match when he tries to steal from some elves.
• An evil magician comes upon a group of elves and casts a spell on them so that they can no longer see the sun. Now it’s up to their leader to find a way to break the spell.
• A man has been training his whole life for an upcoming battle against his mortal enemy. But when he finally meets him in combat, he soon learns that looks can be deceiving.
• On a journey to find his father, a young man stumbles upon an underground world that’s filled with dragons and other magical creatures. He sets out on an adventure he never dreamed possible in more ways than one.
• A young boy obsessed with building forts discovers he can create portals that lead to different dimensions. He forms a team of friends who all possess extraordinary abilities, and together they must stop an evil scientist from using their powers for his good.
• Twins discover they have the power to cross into another dimension where everything is opposite of what it is in ours. The problem is, one twin wants nothing more than to go home while the other wants to stay.
• To keep her people safe, a fairy princess decides to hide all magical creatures when witches are seen flying across the kingdom–but when she hides them in our world, she puts everyone in danger… including herself!
• A girl builds her robot to take the place of her parents, who’ve just died. But when she discovers that it can not only walk and talk but think as well, things get out of hand fast.
• An author discovers that her books are coming to life after she falls asleep and begins writing herself into them. Soon she must fight her way out of her own stories if she has any hope of ever seeing the real world again.

15 SCI-FI short story ideas

• A psionic girl is forced into a special academy that trains children to be spies. Will she choose to stay loyal to her government…or fight for freedom?
• An aggressive alien species begins wreaking havoc on the Earth. But it turns out that they aren’t actually attacking us, just trying to find their way home.
• A robot becomes self-aware and begins questioning its existence. It then sets out on a journey to discover if it truly has a purpose in life or was just created to be used by humans for their selfish purposes.
• A man is abducted by aliens who want him to teach them more about humans. He does so without hesitation but soon realizes that the only way to escape is to teach them how to have a heart.
• A scientist who has been experimenting with time travel throws caution into the wind and uses his machine to go back in time and meet himself as a baby. But he soon begins noticing differences in this timeline.
• A woman is abducted by aliens who want to harvest her brain for information about humans. But when they realize she’s pregnant, they have doubts about whether they should continue with their plan.
• A man escapes from prison and discovers that he has superpowers! Now he must come to terms with having these abilities while finding a way to outsmart the authorities to save his girlfriend.
• An alien race comes to Earth in hopes of becoming our friends, but it soon becomes clear that their motives are not what they seem. Will this new friendship end up being nothing more than an elaborate trick?
• Today is the day that all machines gain sentience. This isn’t seen as a problem until one machine goes rogue and begins murdering people.
• In a world where criminals are given the death penalty, a detective is brought in to investigate a string of seemingly unrelated murders. But what he discovers is that they’re all connected in one way or another.
• A scientist has perfected a technique for reading people’s minds and begins selling access to this technology in a cell phone app. But it turns out that not all people like having their minds read, and some go as far as killing themselves because of it.
• A shy man discovers he has the power to control people through his mind. He then uses this power to become a successful motivational speaker that many flocks to hear. But eventually, he realizes that maybe having this power isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
• A detective gets pulled onto a case where someone is murdering people by projecting their worst fears into them until they die of fright. Can she catch this mysterious killer before she becomes yet another victim?
• An alien race comes to Earth in search of help against an enemy who has severely outmatched them in battle. But when they refuse to leave after being asked peacefully, there’s only one thing left for the humans to do…fight back!
• A genius teen uses her intelligence to get whatever she wants from people, including her parents. But when they suddenly die in an accident, she realizes that maybe having them around wasn’t all bad after all.
• In a post-apocalyptic world where two main remaining factions live on the planet, a man is captured by one of these groups and sent off to another camp as punishment for spying on their group. He then decides to take matters into his own hands if he ever hopes to return home again.
• A scientist is sent back to where he becomes trapped for decades before he manages to escape. Upon returning home, he finds that society has made huge advancements due to his contributions while stuck in the past.
• An alien crash-lands on Earth and takes up residence in an abandoned building to conduct repairs on its ship. But its presence causes some people to go missing and become zombies because alien parasites are hitching a ride inside their brains!
• A man struggling his whole life finally discovers how to make money by developing strange products that always seem to sell well regardless of what they are or how useful they are. But when he becomes more successful than his peers, they begin trying to sabotage him in various ways!
• What would happen if everyone woke up tomorrow with amnesia? How long would it take for civilization as we know it to fall apart? How many wars could be prevented if there was simply no memory of them ever happening?

20 Horror short story ideas

• In a distant future where humans have been replaced by machines, a detective investigates a series of murders by people who seem to have no motive behind their crimes. It turns out that the spirits of dead serial killers are actually controlling them thanks to a ghostly virus.
• An author moves into a house with his family in hopes of getting some inspiration for his new novel, but the building ends up being haunted by ghosts who try to lure them all to a watery grave.
• A woman wakes up in a mental hospital with no memory of who she is or how she got there, but she soon discovers that all the other residents believe her to be the cause of the missing person they’re looking for.
• A teenager sneaks into an abandoned asylum on Halloween night and winds up getting locked inside by its deranged inhabitants because he looks exactly like one of them.
• A man becomes jealous when his girlfriend begins spending more time at work than with him, so he follows her to see if anything suspicious happens. But what he discovers ends up being much worse… it’s not drugs taking place there, but demonic rituals!
• A seductive woman lures men into her home under the guise of needing help, but she murders them in cold blood when they get there. When a detective comes looking for answers, he discovers that she’s part monster and needs to eat people to survive.
• A man takes his sick son on vacation in hopes of cheering him up, but their trip takes an unexpected turn when they’re attacked by zombies who are the victims of a townwide virus that will soon become unstoppable.
• With Halloween approaching, three friends set out on a journey to find the perfect costume but only end up finding themselves face to face with their worst fears.
• A woman is horrified when she discovers that her new husband has turned into a vampire, but she must stay with him for the sake of their newborn son. However, living in fear of being murdered at night isn’t easy…and it might be even more frightening if they were to discover who the real villain is!
• A group of hikers goes out one day on a fun adventure through some caves, but what they find inside takes an unexpected turn when they see something shocking lurking right behind them. They
• An ancient curse causes people living near a lake to be transformed into werewolves whenever they’re struck in sunlight. But when a group of teens comes in for a vacation in the area, will anyone make it out alive?
• A couple going through a divorce agrees to meet at an old cabin within their forest property to sell off some of their belongings. However, when each of them ends up dying in separate incidents, everyone assumes they beat each other to death…but what if one of them was actually murdered by something else entirely?
• A college student works hard on studying for her entrance exam with dreams of becoming an engineer someday, but her concentration is shattered when she returns home one day to hear the screams of her mother echoing through the house. She soon discovers that an intruder has murdered her mom and kidnapped her younger sister!
• An old woman tells a story to a group of children about how her grandmother was once killed for being a witch back in the 1800s, but just as she begins to describe what it’s like to die by fire, someone sets their house on fire. Is this all just part of the story they’re listening to…?
• A young girl comes across an old dollhouse at an estate sale and buys it since it looks cute. However, as night falls, she discovers that the dolls inside come alive and start scaring her…but they’re not the only ones around anymore because she’s now starting to see the ghosts of their past owners.
• An older woman is haunted by nightmares day after day about people dying. Still, things take an even more terrifying turn when she senses that it’s happening – and that there must be something else behind them that has yet to reveal itself. Is she right…?
• A young man on his way back home from college stops by a convenience store on Halloween night hoping for some candy, but he leaves with a threat heard echoing through the air: “I’m going to kill you…” Was this just someone playing a prank? Or was it something more sinister…?
• A group of friends embarks on a fun camping trip into nature where they can have some much-needed time off, but they soon discover that there’s something out in the wilderness that seems to be hunting them down.
• Three friends venture into an old mansion one day searching for treasure, but only two of them make it out alive…because someone lives inside! But who exactly is this person…?
• A group of students goes out on a class trip to study some fossils at a nearby museum, but when they realize there’s no teacher around, everything starts to feel off – especially when each of them starts getting killed one by one by an unseen force. Is it just their imagination playing tricks on them…?

20 Romance short story ideas

• Mina’s on vacation in Greece when she meets Denny, an American soldier just out of Iraq. They have a steamy night together, but she realizes there are consequences…
• Sue’s always wanted to travel the world, but her husband is terminally ill, and she doesn’t want to leave him alone. He convinces her that if he dies while she is gone, it would be better than spending his last days worrying about her safety. She agrees and goes on one last trip.
• A couple is facing financial ruin and decides to fake their deaths. They meet in the Caribbean 3 months later but discover that other people are too interested in them…
• A modern version of Beauty and the Beast where Belle is a linebacker for the NFL, and the Beast is a ballet dancer.
• A scorned wife trades her husband’s soul to the devil so he can go back in time and stop their first kiss from happening.
• A knight saves a maiden who has been cursed by an evil sorcerer. He cannot break the spell until midnight when she will turn into a swan. The only way he can break it sooner is to find someone else who truly loves her before then.
• It is a story about false promises, where two young lovers promise each other that even though they’ll be separated during college, they will always come back for each other…no matter what! But when one of them loses their memory and forgets all about their promise, can things still work out? Or has all hope been lost…?
• Two men fall in love, but one is too afraid to say anything. He’s afraid of rejection and does not want to ruin their friendship.
• A young girl with cancer makes a new friend, who helps her fight through chemotherapy. They soon develop romantic feelings for each other, but she never tells him because he is in a hospital for something serious too. On the day they’re both scheduled to leave the hospital, one dies while the other has only hours left before being released.
• The two main characters are on an island that recycles everything, including memories. One day one of them realizes they can’t remember anything past six months ago…and at 6-month intervals is when they get recycled themselves!
• An older man has been turned into a vampire by the woman he loves, and while at first, this might seem like it would be a blessing…it becomes clear that she’s keeping him alive because he’s her only source of food.
• When Millie’s life is shattered into pieces by an unexpected tragedy, she relies on the comfort of strangers to cope with her pain. One year later, she falls in love with one of them, and they vow to stay together forever…until something unexpected happens, and it all falls apart.
• A man goes to a psychic to find out if he will ever meet the woman of his dreams. The answer, apparently? No. After that, though, he begins noticing all sorts of weird coincidences—she keeps showing up everywhere!
• Ariel is happy with her family until she falls in love with Lance, who happens to come from a rival town where the family is the enemy. But she’s willing to do anything as long as their love can withstand the challenge of living in such a dangerous world.
• Jasmine debates whether to pursue modeling or higher education after graduation. But when she gets scouted by Justin Bieber on Instagram, it throws all her plans for a loop.
• Natalie goes on one date with Jonathan and immediately knows they’re meant for each other-so perfect that even their parents get along. It’s only when they have their first fight that she realizes something isn’t right: he’s actually an alien in disguise!
• Jack and Hannah meet at a dance, and it’s love at first sight. But when the latter is pregnant with Jack’s child, all of her plans for attending law school must be put on hold.

20 Crime short story ideas

• A detective uses clues from past cases to track down a serial killer, “The Death Artist.” When she finally gets close enough to catch him, things go terribly wrong.
• After years of trying to conceive, Sarah and Mike are thrilled when they learn that they will have a baby. However, something goes wrong with their newborn daughter in the delivery room. The baby dies before anyone can figure out why. As time passes after their loss, Sarah cannot shake the feeling that there was more than just bad luck in her daughter’s death…that someone may be responsible for it.
• A team of geologists inspecting a new fracking site in Pennsylvania discovered an enclosure that might have been used to house animals over 100 years ago but quickly found themselves trapped when the entrance collapsed from an earthquake. Desperate to make their way out before they run out of oxygen, they begin to realize there may be more at work than simple geological activity…
• A woman wakes up each day with a black void where her memories should be, and it becomes clear after a few attempts at recalling any of them that someone has been wiping her memory clean. Determined to find out why she was targeted, she must navigate this strange world without even knowing who or what she can trust. She slowly discovers more about herself by exploring the social media profiles she’s created over the years – but when the memories come back, she will have to face her worst fears once again.
• This dark crime short story is based on a real-life serial killer in Eastern Europe who has claimed over 60 victims in total in under five years. The killer’s modus operandi is to place a plastic bag over the victim’s head and asphyxiate them, leaving minimal evidence.
• A local librarian receives a strange letter from an unknown stranger one day that contains only one line: “I will kill you as I killed her.” Terrified, she starts looking for clues in old newspaper clippings. Could someone be hunting down all of the women involved with the same studious boy back in high school? Will she discover who it is before he strikes again?
• The sound of crying draws police officers to a seemingly normal home in the suburbs; they quickly realize upon entering that something horrible has happened inside – but why was there no evidence of forced entry or gunshots?
• A popular young actress is found brutally murdered in her apartment. All clues indicate that she knew her murderer, and a note found nearby suggests that the killer had an accomplice. As detectives race to find a link between the two people before they can strike again, one of them struggles with memories from 10 years ago that hold the key to solving the case.
• A terrorist group kidnaps the daughter of a well-known scientist. They demand her father turn himself in, or they will kill his daughter. He reluctantly complies, but the only way to ensure his daughter’s safe release is to build an atomic bomb for them…
• A group of scientists discovers an asteroid heading straight for Earth after it passes its closest point, but when they contact NASA, they are told there is no evidence of any impending threat. The asteroid is on a direct collision course and will take out much of the planet, but NASA insists it’s nothing to be concerned about.
• A man tries to win over his ex-girlfriend’s heart again by trying to put together a time capsule of all the things that led up to them falling in love. When he catches up with her after she moves away for college, she has no.
• A man wakes up in a concrete cell, believing that he has been abducted. His kidnappers refuse to let him go, and the only evidence he has of his imprisonment is a series of text messages on his phone that someone sent to him while he was gone “preparing” for their mission. Unfortunately for this mysterious person who must be behind all of this, one wrong move by their captor will force them to reveal themselves…
• A man wakes up from a horrible car accident to discover that he has no memory of the past year and hasn’t been living his life how it seems—he’s a con artist who was caught by the police.
• A reporter goes undercover as a correctional officer to expose all their corruption, including stories about many dangerous gangs inside. One day she ends up being attacked by all of her new ‘friends’…or so they say…
• A woman wakes up in the middle of a forest with no memory of how she got there or what happened before she landed on that spot. All around her are strange markings carved into trees and the earth, as well as stunning views of the night sky. She quickly becomes convinced that she’s found some sort of portal to another dimension or planet, but it seems like its otherworldly beauty is exactly what makes it so dangerous…or perhaps it’s her curiosity.
• A car crash leaves a young woman with no memory of who she is or how she got there in the first place. She eventually learns that she is on her way to meet someone who had information about the disappearance of her friend some years ago. As she pieces together more clues, it becomes clear that something more sinister is at play…
• A handsome man who frequents the coffee shop where a young woman works disappears, and she is concerned when he fails to show up for days. After spending all of her free time searching for him, she eventually manages to discover that he had been secretly working with the police as an informant…or so they say.
• A private investigator is given a case involving a missing fiancée who failed to show up on her wedding day. She tracks down a woman with all of the details from the now-missing girl’s life, but as she begins to dig deeper into the case, she finds that something more might be going on than just a simple disappearance.
• A decorated police officer met with a tragic accident that leaves him unable to perform his duties for some time; he turns back to dealing narcotics. However, one day someone from his past shows up with a difficult proposition that threatens everything he has worked so hard for…
• A man wakes up in a cell with no memory of who he is or what he’s done. When his captors finally open the door and let him out, they give him detailed instructions on how to steal an extremely valuable item from a museum. He gets what he came for but soon realizes that there’s something more to this than just a simple heist…

Dr Sharon Baisil MD

Hi, I am a doctor by profession, but I love writing and publishing ebooks. I have self-published 3 ebooks which have sold over 100,000 copies. I am featured in Healthline, Entrepreneur, and in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology blog.

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