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Narrative writing prompt - What's that?
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What's That? - Upper School

– Narrative writing example
– Full size prompt – PowerPoint

  • Grades: 4-8
  • Versions: PDF & PowerPoint
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Fairy - Lower School

– Narrative writing example
– Full size prompt – PowerPoint

  • Grades: 2-3
  • Versions: PDF & PowerPoint
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Writing Prompt - What's That?

Use this free narrative writing prompt to help your students generate ideas for their writing. This particular writing prompt could steer your students in many directions. What could it be that the man is looking at? Is he looking at something hurtling towards the earth? Is it an alien spaceship hovering above him? Is he looking at an approaching storm? Encourage your students to be creative with their writing, but to also keep their short stories simple! The story doesn’t have to go far, describing is the key. Click on the image below to download the story writing prompt. Remember to use the story starter as an example of an engaging way to start. Get rid of the boring beginnings and start with something exciting!

Narrative Writing Example

This narrative writing example has some excellent vocabulary and a simple story for your students to follow. There are a bunch of descriptive sentences that your children can ‘magpie’ for their own stories. This is the story of Tom’s fight for survival after an asteroid storm engulfs him. With his leg trapped and broken, his chances are slip. Read this story writing example with your class to help them generate story ideas for “What’s That?”.

Narrative writing prompt - What's that?

What's That?

Tom’s chance of survival was slim. He lay flat on his back, trappeed by an asteroid. It seem as if the sky was falling with rock parts landing all around him.

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Narrative writing prompt - Mystery Island

Mystery Island

The plane had crashed 3 weeks ago. 20 of us were still alive, fighting for survival. Strange noises echoed across the mysterious island. Survival seemed futile.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Universe

The Universe

While exploring the forest, Alex stumbled upon an interesting box. He opened it to find an earth shaped orb that had a luminous glow to it.

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Narrative writing prompt - Santa's Journey

Santa's Journey

Trapped in the mountains with no way of fixing his sleigh, Santa was stuck and all alone. A cold shiver ran down his spine and the icy fingers of the wind caressed his chubby cheeks.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Magic Bridge

The Magic Bridge

The bridge seemed to shimmer in the light and its stone was etched with intricate designs. Maya took the first step on to the magic bridge found on the edge of town.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Compass

The Compass

Tundi’s eye’s lit up as she held the compass. “So this will lead me to the treasure, huh?” she mumbled to herself. Her heart began to race.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Mad Scientist

The Mad Scientist

“I’m not crazy,” whispered Bill as he stared down at his creation. It was a tiny little frankenstein…a horrible monster….

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Narrative writing prompt - The Cauldron

The Cauldron

There it was, just sitting. The cauldron that they had been searching for. 6 Long years it had escaped them, but now it was within their grasp…

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Narrative writing prompt - Strange Forest

The Strange Forest

Stella and her sister had given up. They were lost in the strangest forest with no way home, until…they came across an odd shoe house…

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Narrative writing prompt - T-Rex

T-Rex

Min couldn’t believe his eyes. His dog had just been eaten by a T-Rex. ‘Where am I?’ he thought. ‘This doesn’t look like home’.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Magic of the Lake

The Magic of The Lake

It shimmered in the beautiful sunlight and sat between the tallest mountains. It’s temperature never changed, nor did its majestic blue. It was the lake that healed anyone who enetered.

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Narrative writing prompt - Ninja

Ninja

Stone walls and metal bars surrounded Samson. His mind remained calm. The chains that bound him were no match. He had been trained as a ninja from the age of 3. 

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Narrative writing prompt - The Good Witch

The Good Witch

Alexia was different from her four sisters, and she was the strongest of them all. They chose evil and she chose good. But now she was in trouble, 3 verse 1 was going to be tricky…

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Narrative writing prompt - Kid Genius

Kid Genius

Tom was no ordinary boy. He finished high school at the age of 7 and had a degree from Harvard by 10. There was only one problem…he wasn’t human.

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Narrative writing prompt - Pirates

Pirates

As their boats drifted on to the shore, Sam ran back to his village. His heart racing and his mind frantic. “They’re here, the pirates are here!” he screamed. 

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Narrative writing prompt - The Invention

The Invention

It was the greatest invention of all time and no one had a clue. Yensen held it up to the light and admired his creation. “What a magnificent beauty you are,” he whispered.

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Narrative writing prompt - Ghost Town

Ghost Town

After a radioactive explosion, the town of Scarlet had been abandoned and was now a ghost town. 20 years had now passed, and creatures began to emerge out of the radioactive city…

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Narrative writing prompt - Magic Mountain

Magic Mountain

On Terry’s 14th birthday, she made her way up Magic Mountain. That was the age that you could journey up the mountain and claim your one wish, anything you desired.

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Narrative writing prompt - A Time in Space

A Time in Space

Time was running out and Sarah had to get back through the space gate. Her mission was complete, but she was about to be stranded in space.

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Narrative writing prompt - Tight Rope

Tight Rope

Sweat ran through Pete’s fingers as he hung on for dear life. Thousands watched on in horror. Pete’s tight rope act had gone horribly wrong.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Portal

The Portal

Liz’s heart was trying to beat out of her chest, but she refused to let it. She had to get everyone out, even if it would drain her. “Help!” cried the voices.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Acquaintance

The Acquaintance

A single woman protected our village. No one really knew her. All we knew is that when her father was killed, she mysteriously moved to the hills and watched over us.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Blizzard

The Blizzard

This was the end. The blizzard had all but consumed us. We huddled together, ready to die.

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Narrative writing - Venus

Venus

Our entry was rough, but we finally made it to Venus. The air was hot and thick. Sweat filled my suit and my glass cover began to fog up. What was on this strange planet?

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Narrative writing - Moving Houses

Moving Houses

It was time for Sam’s family to move again. Every year before Christmas, they would prepare their land and head to a new location. It was their way of keeping safe from the warlocks.

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Narrative writing - Magic Hands

Magic Hands

I hovered my hands over her broken leg. It usually took 20 seconds to heal the bone completely. Mary winced in pain as the bone mended. I pulled my hands back and smiled at Mary. “Magic hands,” she whispered.

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Narrative writing - House on the Hill

House on The Hill

“There’s no way out!” screamed Lexi. The gates had closed and they were trapped at the house on the hill. The doors opened and a tall figured emerged.

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Narrative writing - Lonely Powers

Lonely Powers

Banksy wanted to use her powers, but she was afraid. Banksy didn’t want to hurt anyone and she knew that her powers were strong.

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Narrative writing - The Talking Owl

The Talking Owl

“You’re going the wrong way,” whispered a voice. “You’re in grave danger,” it continued. Peter looked up to see an owl…a talking owl…

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Narrative writing - Man in the Woods

Man in The Woods

For 13 years, there lived a man in the woods. He had no house and no family. The woods were his home, but that was about to change…

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Narrative writing - Hot Air Adventures

Hot Air Adventure

Their hot air balloon dropped around 100m in less than 3 seconds! Peter and Simon, brothers, looked at each other with panic in their eyes. 

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Narrative writing - The Millionaire

The Millionaire

The millionaire who lived in the mansion on the edge of town never came out of his house. Until one day, the door opened and out stepped an old, tired man…

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Narrative writing prompt - The Old Hut

The Old Hut

An old hut sat on the edge of the forest. Many thought it was abandoned, but there seemed to some life to it. One day, Jackson noticed the door was slightly open…

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Narrative writing - The Flood

The Flood

“We have to go now!” Adelaide shouted at the top of her lungs. The water continued to rise and there seemed to only be one way out.

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Narrative Writing Prompt - The Stars

Stars

Mary noticed something different in the sky. There seemed to be a message written in the stars. “R…U…N” it read. 

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writing prompt

The Haunted House

Sarah stood in the overgrown lawn with grass tickling her knees. The haunted house seemed to sway in the summer breeze. It was tall and daunting.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Storm

The Storm

We hid in the basement as the storm raged on. We were one of the last families left in town. We had decided to stay, a choice we began to regret.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Monster

The Monster

We slowly opened the door and peeked through with caution. The monster was sitting there as expected. “Now!” Jack screamed.

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Narrative writing prompt - Winter's Ghost

Winter's Ghost

“There’s no such thing as the Winter’s Ghost!” exclaimed her mother. Just then, the window flew open. They couldn’t believe their eyes…

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The Pit

Sandy lay flat on her back, staring up at the night sky. Trapped in a pit was not how she wanted to spend her birthday. She could sense that the rain was coming

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The Mysterious Library

The shelves had a light glow, and the books seemed to talk to Peter. Each of them calling for him to open them, but he knew that would be a mistake.

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The Magic Book

Arnie moved towards the book slowly, knowing the danger it possessed. She paused for a second, “Is this a good idea?” she mumbled.

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Narrative writing prompt - Another World

Another World

There it was, the door that was supposed to be a myth. It was glowing and a strange sound was coming from it. He approached it with caution.

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Narrative writing - The Fork in the Path

Fork in The Path

It had to be a trick. One path was dark and the other was so bright. Sami had to decide, time was running out. “The dark one!” she whispered.

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Narrative writing prompt - Espirit

E-Spirit

The files would take another 5 minutes to download. After months of searching, she was just minutes away from getting the classified information she needed to free her brother.

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Narrative writing prompt - Dragons

Dragons

All was lost. The ship was on fire and the dragons still roamed above. “Jump on its back!” cried Mary.

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Narrative writing prompt - Elephant Love

Elephant Love

The village was under attack and Sami was in trouble. Her family had died and she had no hope. In the distance, she spotted something.

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Narrative writing prompt - Found Money

Found Money

What would you do if you found a million dollars in your backyard? Well, that’s exactly what happened to me and my friend, Alex.

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Narrative writing - The Shining Globe

The Shining Globe

Jani looked left and right and ran for her life. Her strawberry blonde hair whipped in the wind as silence enveloped the area.

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Narrative writing prompt

The Dragon's Egg

Patrick held on to the egg with a tight grip. The owner of the egg soared above, screeching for its baby.

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The Long Journey

Audacious and kind, Oliver, the young wizard wondered through his local village in great desperation. He had to find his lost spell book.

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Narrative writing prompt - Giant

Giant

There was once a giant who lived in a small town. He was a lonely giant because he didn’t have any friends, until one day when things changed.

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writing prompt

Taken

Lily was like no other girl her age. She had a special gift; invisibility. She could vanish without a trace. But that meant others were after her…

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Narrative writing - Fairy

Fairy

“I will grant you one wish, anything you desire,” said the fairy. Mary had only awoken moments ago to the sound of her window opening.

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Narrative writing prompt - The Young King

The Young King

Staring mindlessly at the crowds, Peter’s mind fell blank. His father was dead and he was now the king. He turned to his uncle. “Arrest that man, he killed my father.”

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Narrative writing prompt - The Dark Knight

The Dark Knight

Trapped alone in a dark cage was unusual for the greatest knight in the land. However, this was reality now. His cage was small and the damp smell stung his nostrils.

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Narrative writing - The Grim

Grim

Bill’s life was over. A shark was the last way he’d thought he’d die. ‘Such was life,’ thought Bill as he made his way to the underworld.

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Narrative writing - the magic of the moon

Magic of The Moon

The moon rose from behind the clouds as butterflies drifted at the water’s edge. Amy had no idea why she was chosen. Each night her powers came to life.

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narrative writing prompt

Message in a Bottle

I could not help but feel a burning in my chest and a whole in my heart. To my shock, the letter in the bottle displayed a message that read: “I am alive. Follow the signs. Find me.”

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The Archer Queen

Her eyes narrowed in on the target. She never missed. It shimmered in the distance and would be gone in a matter of seconds. The Archer Queen steadied her bow…

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Real Life Movie

Simon couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “How is this real?” he whispered to his brothers. The characters were walking out of the television!

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Stone Prison

Dazed and confused, Peter awoke in chains. His knees were grazed and his face was bruised. He peered around to see only stone walls.

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The Black Cat

A gust of breeze swept through Sally’s kitchen. The chirping birds were replaced with an eerie silence, and there on her kitchen table sat a mysterious black cat.

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Skeleton Family

At the end of our street, there lives a skeleton family. They seem normal, but they have something hiding in their closet…

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Friendly Ghost

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” asked Millie. The ghost just sat there, staring at her. Millie slowly backed away…

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Halloween Nightmare

“This can’t be real,” mumbled Katy. The inanimate Halloween objects had come to life…”Run!” cried her dad.

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The Red House

The red house at the end of my streets glows 24 hours a day. There are strange noises and smoke coming out of the chimney. The weird thing is…no one lives there…

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Scary School

Amy shivered from the back of the classroom. This was no ordinary school and these were no ordinary students…

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Persuasive writing
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Mini Alien

In my basement, there lives a mini alien. His name is Trevor and he is the size of a walnut.

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Alien Invasion

The signs were loud and clear. The warnings had echoed through time, and yet my people refused to listen.

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Narrative writing - a new world

A New World

Sarah was afraid of her new home. There were things that were only found in books. She had to escape.

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Astronaut

Pat was the best astronaut in the world, but he was in trouble. His breathing was heavy as his eyes scanned the area. Pat’s rope to the ship had broken and his chance of survival was fading.

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A Changed World

The world had changed after the asteroid. The planets had moved and the position of the Sun made life challenging. It felt like life on our planet was heading towards extinction.

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Writing prompt

Mr Universe

Mr Universe used his powers to protect the planets in our solar system. His super strength and speed stopped all invasions from enemies only found in nightmares. Until one day, he met his match… 

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Writing prompt

Area 51

The location was a secret and the employees were…odd. Area 51 was rumored to be hiding an alien. Sandy decided it was her mission to find the location and rescue the alien.

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Space Cat

His mission to explore Mars had failed. Space cat was now floating into the abyss. However, This extraordinary cat, with a human sized brain, had a plan…

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The Future

Bella’s life seemed normal, but it was far from it. She went to school, had friends and played sport on the weekend. The only strange thing was…she was from the past, living in the future.

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Lost in Space

Vera looked up at the darkness of the sky. Hope had faded as this was not her sky. Lost and stranded on another planet meant certain death for Vera…

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Green Machine

His scaly exterior was tough and the power he possessed was destructive. The “Green Machine” had already taken over 2 continents and he was on in way to ours. 

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Narrative writing - The Takeover

The Takeover

First the lights came and then the sky evolved. Human curiosity changed to fear and anxiety. One spaceship turned to thousands, hovering above the earth. For days they didn’t move, just sat in the purple sky. 

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Space Explorer

Jack gasped for air, clinging onto life. His mission to establish a colony on Mars was running smoothly until his helmet cracked in a sandstorm. Now, his life and the mission was about to end.

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A New Journey

It was finally Ben’s time to go. He had been contacted 5 years ago about moving to a new planet with an alien species. Ben had been chosen and was ready for the journey.

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New Friends

The news was wild with information about the alien “invasion”. Jack watched in awe. “They have come in peace, they have come in peace!” repeated the news broadcaster.

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Narrative writing prompt - Time Travel

Time Travel

Her heart beat uncontrollably as her time machine whirred in the background. Jenny’s invention had finally come to life and now was the time to test it. “200 years ago should do it,” she muttered to herself.

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Narrative writing prompt - New Powers

New Powers

Her skin beamed red as adrenaline rushed through her veins. Jendi could feel her new powers surging through her body. Every 5 years, the Gods gifted her with new powers which she used to protect the planet.

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Narrative writing - The Family Curse

The Family Curse

The forest offered no safety from the nightmares. The loud ringing of bells and an almost too angelic voice hummed harshly in his ears, as if someone was using cymbals on his head. He felt his entire body vibrate; a low shiver ran down his spine.

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The Mission

Sam had one mission, to find his brother. He had been missing for 185 days and hope was fading. Sam’s determination had not faded. Alone in his mission, he had to succeed.

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The Keeper

Her light hair cascaded down her shoulders as she moved back and forth. The stick that she wielded was filled with power and evil. Her long nose and deep black eyes were only seen in nightmares. She was, after all, the keep of souls.

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Hooded Figure

He stood in the street, staring at the house. The hooded figure did not flinch. His dark cloak covered his entire body and was symbolic of the man himself. Dark energy pulsed through his veins. He had one mission in life…

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Blue Moon

Sam stopped panicking. He had come to the realization that his life was over. Floating in the open ocean for over 12 hours with no sign of help had taken away his hope. However, as the blue moon rose, Sam felt something, a kind of energy surge from the moon.

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Narrative writing - Princess Arrow

Princess Arrow

With her kingdom behind her, the princess moved forward. Her evil ambitions were on display. She planned to take over all of the kingdoms in the land, one by one. “Move forward!” she roared to her troops.

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House on The Corner - Narrative Writing

House on The Corner

Dazed and confused, Sandy awoke to the sound of mumbles. She was bound by rope and was covered in dust. Her heart began to beat rapidly as she realized where she was and what had happened.

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Narrative writing - Full Moon

Full Moon

Amy had seen the same sight for 5 years. Every full moon, at midnight, a witch would fly across the moon with her cat. This full moon was different. The witch never came. Instead, as the clock struck twelve, she heard a cackle at her front door.

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Narrative Writing - The Little Magician

The Little Magician

Jack was a fan of all things magic, but what he created was shocking. He had managed to craft a real wand! A wand in the hand of an 8 year old was sure to have dire consequences.

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The Magical Orb

The location of the orb appeared to Brian in a dream. Now he was standing in front of it without a clue of how to use it. Brian approached the orb with caution…

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Narrative writing prompt

The Book in The Attic

Sarah’s eyes widened as her grandfather’s book began to sparkle. A careless visit to the attic was about to turn into an adventure. She leaned forward…

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Narrative writing prompt

The Mask

Since discovering the magical mask, Alexandra’s life had changed drastically. The mask gave her a special power. A power that she used to save lives.

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Narrative writing prompt

The Portal

Peter had a decision to make. Jump into the portal and risk everything, or turn and walk away. Sweat ran down his forehead as the Sun cast a long shadow behind him. He clenched his fist and walked forward…

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