Fantasy Fiction Writing Prompts & Tips for Beginners
Fantasy fiction writing prompts can be powerful tools—ones that might’ve gotten me unstuck a lot sooner. You see, when I first started writing my fantasy fiction novel, I spent eight months building my world from the outside in.
I drew a detailed map, named every character (and their ancestors), fleshed out cultures and religions… but didn’t write a single scene.
(Well, except for that one training scene between my protagonist and the love interest, but that doesn’t count.)
I barely had a plot. Just lots of lore and half-baked ideas. It wasn’t until month nine that I finally opened a blank doc and started chapter one.
If you’re in that same “I’ve built everything except the story” phase, this post is for you.
I’m sharing five beginner-friendly tips plus a collection of original fantasy fiction writing prompts to help you finally start writing.
• Start with emotional stakes over plot complexity
• Design magic systems with personal consequences
• Twist familiar fantasy tropes creatively
• Worldbuild progressively while writing
• Discover your writing style through experimentation
1. Start with emotional stakes, not plot twists
I used to think the key to writing a good fantasy story was nailing the plot. Like, “this epic thing happens, then this even more epic twist happens.”
But without emotional stakes, none of it sticks. You want readers to care, not just be impressed.
So before you outline the world or the prophecy or the final battle, ask this:
What does my character want, and what are they afraid to lose?
That internal tension will do way more for your writing than a clever villain reveal, and it’s exactly the kind of emotional core that great fantasy fiction writing is built around.
Try this prompt:
Your protagonist can't feel fear, until a magical relic breaks the curse at the worst possible moment.
What’s fun about this one is you get immediate emotional conflict and magical weirdness. You can explore how your character reacts to fear for the first time, or how this change shifts their role in the world.
2. Build your magic around personal consequences
One of the biggest fantasy-writing pitfalls? Treating magic like a superpower instead of a storytelling tool.
If magic solves problems too easily, it becomes boring. But if it creates problems? Now you’ve got a story.
Think about:
Who can access the magic?
What’s the cost or side effect?
How does society treat those with (or without) magical abilities?
Try this prompt:
A character discovers they’re immune to the most dangerous magic in the realm, and now every major power wants them captured, recruited, or eliminated.
Instant stakes. You don’t need to define the magic system yet, just explore what “immunity” means to this character. What did they lose? What kind of power are they caught between?
Bonus tip: If you want help designing a magic system with structure and story relevance, I’ve got a whole section on that inside my eBook Fantasy Writing for Beginners.
eBook sample: Fantasy Writing for Beginners
3. Twist the tropes you secretly love
Yes, tropes get a bad rap. But the truth is most readers enjoy familiar beats. They just want to see them handled in a fresh way.
Instead of avoiding tropes altogether, try asking:
What would happen if I flipped the roles?
What if the “villain” was right?
What if the hero never wanted to be chosen?
You don’t need to reinvent fantasy. You just need to write your version of it.
That’s why many fantasy fiction writing prompts work best when they flip familiar tropes on their head or dig into character motivations instead of clichés.
Try this prompt:
The princess has spent years preparing to kill the dragon who took her sister. But when she finally finds him, she realizes he’s half-human… and she recognizes his face.
This flips the classic dragon-slaying revenge tale into something more personal and unsettling. Suddenly, the mission isn’t just about slaying a beast—it’s about confronting memory, betrayal, and a truth that doesn’t fit the story she was told. Great for dark fantasy, morally gray characters, or stories where the real enemy might not be who she thought.
4. Worldbuild as you go (or you’ll never start)
Here’s a thing I’ve learned the hard way: trying to build your entire world before you write your story is a fast-track to burnout.
That doesn’t mean worldbuilding isn’t important. It absolutely is.
But if you’re a beginner (or a perfectionist), you need to learn how to build only what you need right now.
Start with the basics:
What’s different about this world compared to ours?
What does your character believe about their world that might not be true?
What setting does your opening scene take place in?
Try this prompt:
Your protagonist's younger sibling has just manifested a magical ability that's either forbidden, impossible, or hasn't been seen in generations. Write the scene where your protagonist has to decide whether to hide this or report it to the authorities.
This reveals your magic system's rules, social hierarchies, and family dynamics all at once. You'll naturally develop the consequences of magic, who controls it, and what your protagonist values most.
5. Use prompts to discover your writing style
A lot of beginner writers feel like they need to “figure out” their style before they start. But honestly? You find your voice by writing.
Fantasy fiction prompts are great because they give you:
A specific moment or tension to explore
Permission to experiment (no pressure to finish anything)
A way to test tone, pacing, POV, and world logic in small scenes, especially when you're working with fantasy fiction writing prompts that push you outside your usual ideas.
Sometimes I’ll write the same prompt three times: once in first person, once in third limited, and once as a letter or journal entry. You’d be amazed how quickly that reveals what feels right to you.
Try this prompt:
Two characters are having an argument about something trivial (like whose turn it is to feed the griffin), but they're really fighting about something much deeper.
Write this as: dialogue-heavy banter, a scene full of action and subtext, and an internal monologue from one character's perspective. Reveals whether you prefer witty dialogue, visual storytelling through action, or deep psychological exploration.
10 fantasy fiction writing prompts to inspire you
Still need a little push? Here are 10 more original fantasy fiction writing prompts to explore. Use them as warm-ups, side quests, or story starters.
And don’t worry about “doing them right.” These are here to get your ideas flowing.
The local blacksmith has been forging weapons that whisper their previous owners' secrets. Your protagonist needs a blade, but they're not sure they want to hear what it might tell them.
A royal wedding is interrupted when the bride vanishes mid-vow—along with every candle flame in the kingdom.
A cursed forest offers safe passage to anyone who answers a riddle. But the answer changes with every traveler.
Your protagonist's job is to repair the holes that nightmares tear in reality. Tonight, they've discovered a hole too big to fix alone.
The ocean has receded overnight, revealing a hidden city beneath the waves—and a warning etched in stone.
A traveling merchant sells emotions in glass bottles. Someone buys “hope” and now can’t feel anything else.
The city's gargoyles come alive at night to gossip about what they've witnessed during the day. Your protagonist desperately needs information that only they would know.
A child is born with the mark of an ancient prophecy. But the prophecy was a lie invented to start a war.
Every door in your protagonist's house leads to a different season. This morning, they discovered a fifth door that shouldn't be there.
Two rival kingdoms use enchanted tattoos to track their soldiers. One defector discovers their tattoo is rewriting itself.
P.S. You can use this free fantasy prompt generator to come up with a few more ideas.
Want to go beyond prompts?
If you’ve tried a few prompts and feel like you’re ready to plan an actual novel (one that doesn’t collapse halfway through) then my eBook Fantasy Writing for Beginners was made for you.
It’s a 60+ page guide that helps you:
Brainstorm and validate your story idea
Build a world that supports your plot (without worldbuilding bloat)
Create layered, believable characters with strong motivations
Structure your story in a way that’s flexible, beginner-friendly, and actually finishable
It also includes:
Scene checklists and character arc builders
A worldbuilding audit to spot plot holes and dead ends
A story structure breakdown tailored for fantasy authors
Bonus tips on staying motivated, finding your writing style, and avoiding common traps
I wrote this because I needed it. I’ve been where you are—excited, overwhelmed, and slightly terrified to start. This eBook is the guide I wish I’d had.
Frequently asked questions about fantasy fiction writing prompts
What makes a good fantasy writing prompt for adults?
A strong prompt for adult fantasy usually explores moral tension, emotional consequences, or the weight of power. It’s less about dragons and more about what those dragons mean to your characters.
How do I write a fantasy story with a twist that actually lands?
Start with a setup that feels familiar, then break one assumption your character (or reader) is holding onto. The best twists feel inevitable once they happen, not like you threw them in at the last second.
Can I use these prompts for dark fantasy too?
Yes. Most of the prompts here can go darker just by raising the cost of failure or the weight of the choices. Let the world feel heavier, and let your characters suffer a little. You can also read this post on dark fantasy writing prompts.
How do I turn a prompt into a full story?
Focus on urgency. What’s forcing your character to act right now? That question helps you expand the prompt into a plot. You don’t need to know everything about the world yet—just enough to follow the tension.
What if my fantasy story turns into romance halfway through?
Go with it. If a romantic arc starts to emerge naturally, let it develop. As long as the romance is tied to character growth or plot consequences, it can raise the emotional stakes in all the right ways.
