Every writer has faced that blank page with a mix of anticipation and dread, hoping that today will be the day inspiration finally shows up and offers something brilliant.

But here's the truth: inspiration rarely shows up in grand, cinematic moments. It doesn’t always strike under perfect lighting or in quiet writing cabins tucked into the woods.

More often than not, it sneaks up on us when we’re not even looking—halfway through a grocery run, people-watching at a bus stop, or scrolling past a decades-old photo in a Facebook album.

When it comes to finding writing inspiration, it’s not about chasing lightning—it’s about learning how to collect sparks.

If you’ve been waiting for your next story idea to arrive in a burst of genius, let’s reframe the search. Here are a few unexpected places where stories love to hide—and how you can start looking.

Overheard Conversations in Public Places

Writers are natural eavesdroppers. (I won’t tell if you won’t.)

Next time you're in a coffee shop or sitting in a waiting room, listen. People speak in unfiltered, vulnerable, and often unintentionally poetic ways. You might hear a line of dialogue that belongs in a story, or a question that begs to be answered in fiction.

Imagine being in a public place and hearing someone say, “She said she’d only be gone for five minutes, but I didn’t hear from her for three hours.”

Who is “she”? Where did she go? There’s a mystery here that could be a source of writing inspiration.

That one overheard sentence could be the seed of an entire story.

Tip: Carry a small notebook (or use your phone notes app) and jot down snippets of dialogue or scenes you witness. They don’t need to make sense yet—they’re raw material for later.

Old Photographs and Forgotten Albums

Photos offer a visual entry point into another world, whether you’re flipping through a family album or digging into online archives. They capture moments that are frozen in time but bursting with untold backstory.

Look at the faces, the body language, the clothing, and the background details. Ask yourself:

What happened right before this photo was taken?
What secret is one of these people hiding?
What happens one hour after this moment?

Photos don’t just inspire historical fiction or memoir. They can fuel sci-fi, magical realism, or poetry. A blurry, off-kilter photo from 1992 might lead to a ghost story or a futuristic reimagining of that moment.

Tip: Look up old photos in a Google search to find sources of writing inspiration. Better yet, go on a field trip to an antique store, where family photos are often for sale. Explore online or at an in-person location until you find something intriguing.

Odd Items at Thrift Stores or Yard Sales

Speaking of antique stores, one of the most fun ways to find writing inspiration is to go to a place filled with stories, like a secondhand shop.

Pick up an item—a necklace, a teacup, a dusty painting—and let your imagination ask:

Who did this belong to?
How did it end up here?
What would happen if someone found this and it changed their life?

Tip: Turn it into a writing game! Buy a random item under $5, take it home, and write a story where it plays a central role.

Dreams That Linger After You Wake

Not all dreams are story-worthy—in fact, sometimes they can make for really bad stories.

But some leave behind images, feelings, or fragments that haunt you long after the alarm goes off.

Even if the narrative of your dream doesn’t make sense, you can use the emotion it stirred. Maybe the fear of being chased, or the wonder of flying, becomes the emotional spine of a character’s experience.

Tip: Keep a dream journal by your bed. Even just jotting down one line—“Walking barefoot through a frozen garden”—might inspire a poem, a story, or a scene years from now.

Childhood Memories You Can’t Let Go Of

You don’t have to write autobiographically to use your memories as creative fuel.

Ask yourself: what moment from your childhood still comes back to you, seemingly out of nowhere?

Maybe it’s a single image: the flickering light of fireflies at summer camp, or the crackling sound of ice melting in spring.

Those sensory memories can become powerful entry points into stories and sources of writing inspiration.

Tip: Use them to create fictional characters who live through a version of that memory. Let your imagination answer the question: What if that moment had gone differently?

Your "What If" Thoughts

Speaking of what-ifs, writers live in the space between reality and possibility. That’s where the best stories begin—with questions that start with What if . . . ?

What if your childhood home had a secret room no one ever discovered?
What if you got a letter from your future self?
What if someone vanished every time they told a lie?

These questions don’t need answers right away. In fact, the best ones spark more questions than they resolve.

Tip: Let your imagination wander, and write down the most ridiculous or fantastical "what ifs" you can think of. Later, you might discover that one of them becomes the core of your next short story—or even a novel.

Boredom and Waiting Rooms

My favorite author, Flannery O’Connor, spent most of her adult life suffering from lupus. This required her to spend a lot of time in hospitals and doctors’ offices.

Therefore, it’s no wonder that the primary action of “Revelation,” one of her most beloved stories, takes place in a waiting room. It also subverts the boredom and monotony that people typically experience in these locations.

It might sound strange, but boredom is one of the most fertile spaces for creativity. When your brain isn’t distracted, it starts to invent.

Tip: The next time you're stuck in traffic or in a dentist's waiting room, resist the urge to pull out your phone and play games or doodle on Instagram. Instead, ask yourself: If this were the opening scene of a story, what would happen next?

Let your mind wander. You might be surprised what shows up.

Remember: You Don't Need a Lightning Bolt—Just a Spark

Finding writing inspiration doesn’t have to feel like waiting for a miracle. It’s more like being a collector of curious things, a noticer of strange moments, a gatherer of fragments.

Start paying attention to the places that make your imagination twitch. And don’t wait until you “have time to write” to start collecting ideas. Keep a running list. Take notes. Be the kind of person who always wonders what story might be hiding beneath the surface of something ordinary.

The best stories often begin when you least expect them to.

Need Help Finding Writing Inspiration?

If you’re ready to flex your creative muscles and turn everyday moments into compelling fiction, I’ve got something that will help: my 50 Flash Fiction Prompts guide.

This free resource is packed with short, punchy, unexpected prompts designed to help you overcome writer’s block and get to the heart of a story quickly.

Whether you’ve got five minutes or fifty, these prompts will challenge your imagination—and help you find inspiration in places you never thought to look.

Grab a copy here!