Story Starters: Professional Incidents

Below are some story ideas related to the characters' jobs. At the bottom of the page, you'll find links to hundreds of other fiction writing prompts about all kinds of topics.

1) Your character is a marriage counselor. A couple comes to your character's office, wanting him/her to save their marriage. But your character is intensely attracted to one of them and decides, for selfish reasons, to try to break them apart...

2) Your character is a new employee at a small zoo. Proud of his/her new job, your character brings a friend to the zoo at night when no one else is there. Your character's not supposed to be there at night, but s/he has gotten hold of a key and knows the security code. His/Her plan is to show the friend and leave. Unfortunately, things get out of control while they're there, and your character accidentally lets a dangerous animal escape from its cage. Your character has to catch the animal himself/herself before anyone finds out... or gets hurt...

3) Your character is a babysitter, who develops an intense emotional attachment to the children s/he's taking care of, and feels that s/he would be a much more suitable parent to them than their actual parents. Then one day, abruptly, the parents fire your character. But your character isn't going to let go of the children without a fight...

4) Your character is a writer, who discovers that whatever s/he writes seems to come true...

5) Your character is a long-distance truck driver. One night, on a cross-country trip, your character nearly has an accident when a black Mercedes suddenly swerves in front of him/her. About an hour later, your character has another near-miss with the same black Mercedes. Shaken by the two incidents, your character stops at a truck stop for a cup of coffee. But when your character gets back on the road, s/he sees the black Mercedes again, just ahead. Is it your character's imagination, or is that car deliberately targeting your character, trying to provoke an accident?

6) Your character is an actor who is playing the role of a psychopath. As always, when your character takes on a role, s/he tries to understand and get inside the head of the person s/he is supposed to play. In this case, however, your character may be connecting too much with the role. Your character's family and friends start complaining that your character is frightening them with strange and sinister behavior...

7) Your character is a detective, who falls in love with someone s/he has been hired to follow...

8) Your character is a scientist who has invented a revolutionary new type of vitamin pill. However, s/he is unable to get approval to test the safety of the pill in a laboratory. Unwilling to give up on his/her invention, your character decides to test the pill on himself or herself. The results are surprising, even amazing. It's as if your character is developing superpowers. But there's also an unexpected side effect...

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