The Story Starter Shed (2024)

  1. I didn’t mean to kill her.
  2. The air turned black all around me.
  3. Icy fingers gripped my arm in the darkness.
  4. Wandering through the graveyard it felt like something was watching me.
  5. The eyes in the painting follow him down the corridor.
  6. A shrill cry echoed in the mist
  7. Icy wind slashed at his face and the rain danced its evil dance upon his head as he tried to get his bearings on the isolated beach.
  8. Footsteps slowly creaked on every step of the stairs. The bedroom door handle turned slowly.
  9. Death lurked in every door way with hell at one dark window. Inspired by A. Noyes 'The Highwayman'
  10. My hair stood on end, a shiver raced down my spine and a lump came to my throat. It was him...
  11. The gravestones stood silently, row upon row like soldiers long forgotten, a scream shattered the silence...
  12. It was there and then it had gone, why would a rabbit be on my bathroom floor?
  13. Bleary-eyed, I went downstairs for breakfast, the house was empty, even the furniture had gone...
  14. The lights flickered and then went off, then the sirens started, it was coming, we knew it wouldn’t be the last time...
  15. The date was 13th July, my 345th birthday... it would be my last...
  16. Three of us. We were the only ones left, the only ones to make it to the island.
  17. "What have you done?" the headmaster bellowed, all eyes now turned to me as he stood over the lifeless body on playground.
  18. Dad just sat and cried. He cried for three whole days. His face was blotchy and his eyes were red. Then one day he just stopped...
  19. The clock stopped... 74 minutes past 18...it was time to get up.
  20. The car screamed to a halt, four men wearing masks jumped out and ran into the nearest building, I looked around. The street was deserted except for me.
  21. Everything stopped, people were stood like statues all around me, people in cars, men on bicycles, babies in prams all lifeless, frozen in time.
  22. I had never seen a ghost. But like they say, there is a first time for everything.
  23. He opened the safe and it had gone. No one had the code, who could have opened it?
  24. Grey and foreboding, the castle stood atop the hill looking down across the small town, in the topmost window of the highest tower stood a small boy called...
  25. Am I in heaven? What happened to me?
  26. Closer and closer it came, it was getting bigger and bigger, soon it filled the sky above, was the moon falling?
  27. He wandered aimlessly through the house seeking any form of distraction to avoid the inevitable doom. Why did it feel like he was nearing the gallows?
  28. Peeking through the window her surprise turned to horror...
  29. I woke up with a start, something was in my room. The wardrobe doors opened and it came out of my wardrobe.
  30. "Witches don't exist!" My gran's words echoed around my head as the horrific visage gurned at me through my bedroom window.
  31. Keeping watch at the side of the ship, George was tiring; his eyes weary from constantly searching the horizon, were they also playing tricks on him? What was that waving from the rocks?
  32. The two coins in his pocket clinked together as he stumbled down the cold pavement, the holes in his shoes turning his feet into blocks of ice. His heart was warmed though in the knowledge that he was rich.
  33. The phone rang. "Hello," I said, "Hello." No one was there. I hung up. All the lights went out...
  34. Wrapped up warm against the icy fingers of dusk, the caretaker closed the cemetery gates, who was that watching him?
  35. Hundreds of eyes peered at me through the darkness in the alley. How many cats where there? Why were they all here together?
  36. I heard the music as I entered the room, but all that was there was a violin, lay there on it's back on the bare floorboards.
  37. It was the day the moon fell.
  38. I couldn't believe a word he told me any more and why had he brought me here?
  39. Cold and wet, tired and exhausted she made her way along the path through the forest.
  40. Everything stopped, everything a statue all around me. Frozen in time.
  41. "Help me!" Help me!" Came the call from behind the steel door.
  42. "Welcome to the future!" saidving, the teacher as she removed the sheet with a flourish revealing what had been hidden beneath.
  43. My next door neighbours, The Johnsons, were all asleep in their coffins when I climbed the fence to get the ball.
  44. It moved, why was it moving? That should not have been moving, well not on it's own anyway.
  45. I hadn't seen the door before. It wasn't there last night. Cautiously, I turned the handle.
  46. She scratched his face from the photograph. She would get her revenge.
  47. It was a bright, frosty morning. The pavement glistened like a carpet of crushed diamonds in the early morning sunshine. by Debbie Reynolds
  48. As she walked along the street the tiny dragon in her pocket stirred restlessly. By Dot Hallam
  49. Just after he died, he sat up.
  50. His metal mask shone in the sunlight, he prayed that this would not be his last day.
  51. 'I pushed open the old creaky door and looked inside. What a sight met my eyes!' (by @petejackson32)
  52. It was spring 2014 when I first realised I could breathe under water. (by @jackson2160)

Download all of thestarters as an editable word document here

The Story Starter Shed (2)

Do not know how to start a story? Look here at academichelp.net.

The Story Starter Shed (2024)

FAQs

What is a good starter sentence for a story? ›

Story Starters that Include the First Sentence

As the door creaked open, I saw something that I thought I would never see again. As I was walking through the forest behind our backyard, I thought I heard a whisper, but there was no one in sight.

What is the best line to start a story? ›

18 of the best first lines in fiction
  • 'The King is dead. ...
  • Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy. ...
  • Call me Ishmael.
  • I am an invisible man.
  • The story so far: in the beginning, the universe was created. ...
  • Mother died today.
Apr 6, 2022

How do you start off a story example? ›

Story starters
  1. I didn't mean to kill her.
  2. The air turned black all around me.
  3. Icy fingers gripped my arm in the darkness.
  4. Wandering through the graveyard it felt like something was watching me.
  5. The eyes in the painting follow him down the corridor.
  6. A shrill cry echoed in the mist.

How do you write a killer first line? ›

How To Write A Good Opening Line:
  1. Full stops are your friends. Short, clear sentences will grab your readers' attention.
  2. Use language that will add weight to your sentences.
  3. Use your verbs correctly, and your adjectives sparingly.
  4. Opening lines don't have to be loud, subtlety is just as effective.

What is a catchy opening sentence? ›

A good hook might also be a question or a claim—anything that will elicit an emotional response from a reader. Think about it this way: a good opening sentence is the thing you don't think you can say, but you still want to say. Like, “This book will change your life.”

What is the most famous first sentence of a book? ›

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times ...” The opening line to Charles Dickens' “A Tale of Two Cities” is one of the most well-known opening lines to a novel of all time.

What is a short story line? ›

Short stories typically focus on a single plot instead of multiple subplots, as you might see in novels. Some stories follow a traditional narrative arc, with exposition (description) at the beginning, rising action, a climax (peak moment of conflict or action), and a resolution at the end.

What's a story starter? ›

A story starter is a great tool to help students begin a narrative writing piece! These prompts can help your students unlock their creativity and inspire them to explore more graphic elements in their writing — everything from imagery to figurative language.

How not to start a story? ›

8 Mistakes to Avoid to Write the Perfect Novel Opening
  1. Don't world build. ...
  2. Avoid language flourishes. ...
  3. Don't go too deep into backstory. ...
  4. Introduce your main character. ...
  5. But don't describe your character. ...
  6. Don't have your characters wake up to an alarm clock. ...
  7. Focus on the conflict. ...
  8. Give your reader some credit.
Feb 2, 2024

How do I write my first story? ›

8 Great Ways to Start the Writing Process
  1. Start in the Middle. If you don't know where to start, don't bother deciding right now. ...
  2. Start Small and Build Up. ...
  3. Incentivize the Reader. ...
  4. Commit to a Title Up Front. ...
  5. Create a Synopsis. ...
  6. Allow Yourself to Write Badly. ...
  7. Make Up the Story as You Go. ...
  8. Do the Opposite.

How do you start a story prompt? ›

25 Ways to Start a Story
  1. Man is running from someone or something in the moonlight.
  2. Woman is searching for someone or something in a thick fog.
  3. A loud noise startles a person awake.
  4. Narrator confesses something outrageous.
  5. An unmarked package is left on someone's porch.
  6. Two lovers explore an abandoned island.
Jan 31, 2020

What is an example of a 5 sentence story? ›

Once upon a time, there was a woodcutter, who lived in a little house in a beautiful, green wood. One day, he was merrily chopping some wood, when he saw a little girl skipping through the woods, whistling happily, followed by a big grey wolf.

What is a short story example? ›

A short story is a piece of writing ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 words. “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allen Poe, “The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry, and “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens are some famous short story examples.

How to start a paragraph? ›

All good paragraph writing starts with a topic sentence. The topic sentence provides a brief summary of the content. In an essay's body, each paragraph begins with a topic sentence. The topic sentence gives structure to a paragraph the same way a thesis gives structure to an essay.

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