Education

11 Free Short Story Generators To Try

Published on November 12, 2023

Have you tried a short story generator? These fantastic tools can transform your ideas into characters, plots, and even complete stories in minutes. Whether you’re feeling stumped about where to start or are trying to overcome writer’s block, using a story generator can help you get back on track.

Note: While short story generators can be valuable tools for generating ideas and overcoming creative challenges, it’s essential to view their output as a starting point rather than a final product. Writers should use their creative judgment to refine and develop the generated ideas into unique and compelling narratives that reflect their own voice and style.

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How Do AI Short Story Generators Work?

AI short story generators typically work based on a combination of natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning algorithms. They rely on the underlying algorithms’ ability to understand and replicate the structures, styles, and themes found in existing texts and stories.

Based on the prompts and information provided, AI tools can generate characters, dialogs, and even a solid plot—but within limits. While they can create compelling narratives, the stories may lack the emotional depth and nuanced understanding that human authors bring to their work.

Ways To Responsibly Use a Short Story Generator

There’s a lot of hesitation surrounding the use of AI tools, and a lot of the concerns are valid. However, there are also many benefits to using AI tools in the classroom. Before you get started, it’s a good idea to make sure you have a school AI policy in place. Let’s take a look at some of the productive ways teachers can use AI short story generators in the classroom.

Prompt Writing

Save time by using a story generator to quickly produce a number of writing prompts for students.

Brainstorming

Short story generators can provide a starting point or a spark of inspiration for writers who are struggling to come up with ideas. By generating prompts or initial story elements, these tools can help writers kick-start their creative process.

Discussion and Analysis

You can generate stories to use as material for class discussions, analysis, and critique. Students can examine elements like plot, character development, and style.

Idea Exploration

Short story generators allow writers to explore diverse story ideas, themes, and narrative structures that they may not have considered otherwise. This can be particularly helpful for those looking to experiment with different genres or styles of storytelling.

Alternative Storylines and Plot Twists

Short story generators can be used as a complementary tool in the writing process, offering ideas for alternative storylines or plot twists that writers can integrate into their own narratives. This can add depth and complexity to a writer’s work, leading to more dynamic and engaging storytelling.

Overcoming Writer’s Block

Short story generators can provide a way to break through creative barriers and encourage writers to approach their work from different perspectives. They can serve as a source of fresh ideas and concepts that can reignite a writer’s passion for storytelling.

Best Short Story Generators

Ready to get started? We’ve put together this list of free tools to help you choose the short story generator that’s right for you! How do you know which one is best? Read our reviews and then try them for yourself!

ToolBaz AI Story Generator

This is a great tool that allows you to simply enter a prompt and generate a story.

Easy to use? Yes.
Sign-up required? No.
Free? Yes.

Quicktools by Picsart Free AI Story Generator

Overall: This AI tool allows you to set the length and creativity levels of the story you generate. “Short” and “Low” were chosen in this example.

Easy to use? Yes.
Sign-up required? No.
Free? Yes.

Toolsaday Story Generator

In addition to inputting the details for the plot, this AI tool allows you to add information about your characters, setting, genre, and more.

Easy to use? Yes.
Sign-up required? No.
Free? Yes.

AI Story Generator

Given how incredibly basic the landing page is for this tool, the quality and length of the story were surprising!

Easy to use? Yes.
Sign-up required? No.
Free? Yes.

Editpad AI Story Generator

Unlike the instant results generated by other AI short story tools, this one took a few minutes, but the end results were worth the short wait.

Easy to use? Yes.
Sign-up required? No.
Free? Yes.

Squibler AI Story Generator

The story this tool generated was surprisingly short and not as nuanced or complete as the others on this list.

Easy to use? Yes.
Sign-up required? No.
Free? Yes.

TinyWow Story Generator

The topic input allowance was so short that the prompt had to be changed to fit the limits. We had to change our prompt to: “A boy’s first day of school in a new country.” One nice feature is that you can choose the number of paragraphs for your story.

Easy to use? Yes, but the topic character limit was a bit frustrating.
Sign-up required? No.
Free? Yes.

WriterHand AI Story Generator

While this tool didn’t fill in gaps like the name of the character, it did add fun little details (like having a map in his pocket to avoid getting lost).

Easy to use? Yes.
Sign-up required? No, but there is a CAPTCHA.
Free? Yes.

Sassbook AI Story Generator

Even though it has some nice features, this tool is nowhere near as smooth as the others on this list and generated a story that contained errors and odd language. We’ve included it to show that the tool you choose really does matter.