Write complete short stories instantly
AI generates full 3,000-word stories from your premise and ending. Get complete first drafts with plot, character, and conflict in minutes.
Write complete short stories instantly
River's Short Story First Draft Generator creates complete 3,000-word short stories from your premise and ending. You provide the basic concept and how you want the story to conclude. The AI writes the full story with characters, dialogue, conflict, and resolution. Within minutes, you have a complete first draft ready to revise and polish. Perfect for short story writers who need to get ideas on the page quickly.
Unlike story outline generators or plot templates, we write the actual story. The AI creates characters with personality, builds tension through scenes, includes natural dialogue, and develops your premise into a complete narrative arc. You get full prose with beginning, middle, and end. The story flows logically from your premise to your specified ending with all the scenes and beats in between.
This tool is perfect for short story writers working in any genre. Use it for literary magazines, writing contests, anthology submissions, or personal projects. Great for writers who have strong ideas but struggle with first drafts, or anyone who wants to experiment with multiple story concepts quickly. The AI handles the initial drafting so you can focus your energy on revision and refinement.
What Makes Short Stories Work
Great short stories focus on a single moment of change. Unlike novels, you don't have space for multiple plot threads or extensive character backstory. The best short stories zoom in on one conflict, one decision, or one revelation. Every scene, every line of dialogue, every description should connect directly to that central moment. Stories fail when they try to cover too much ground or include tangents that don't serve the core narrative.
Character development in short stories happens through action and dialogue, not exposition. You show who someone is through what they do and say in the present moment of the story. Brief hints about the past are fine, but long flashbacks or explanatory paragraphs kill pacing. Readers should understand your character through how they respond to the story's conflict. The protagonist must change by the end, even if the change is subtle.
Structure matters enormously in short fiction. Most successful short stories follow a tight three-act structure. Start close to the conflict, not with unnecessary setup. Build tension quickly. Create a climax where something significant happens or gets revealed. End with resolution that feels earned but not over-explained. The ending should resonate emotionally without spelling everything out. Trust readers to understand implications.
What You Get
Complete 3,000-word short story from opening to resolution
Developed characters with personality, motivation, and conflict
Natural dialogue and realistic character interactions
Narrative arc that builds from premise to specified ending
Vivid scenes with sensory details and emotional depth
How It Works
- 1Provide premise and endingDescribe your story concept and how you want it to conclude
- 2AI writes complete storyOur AI generates a full 3,000-word short story with characters, conflict, and scenes in 4-6 minutes
- 3Review first draftRead your complete story and identify what works and what needs revision
- 4Revise and polishEdit character voice, strengthen dialogue, refine descriptions, and polish prose
Frequently Asked Questions
What if I don't know the ending yet?
That's fine! Provide the premise and say something like 'Ending: The character makes a difficult choice that changes their perspective' or 'Ending: She discovers the truth about what really happened.' You can be vague about the ending. The AI will create a resolution that fits your premise. You can always revise the ending completely during editing if the AI's version doesn't work for you.
Can this write literary fiction or just genre stories?
The AI can write any style. For literary fiction, your premise might focus on internal conflict, relationships, or moments of realization. For genre fiction, include plot elements like mystery, romance, or science fiction concepts. The AI adapts to your input. A premise about family dynamics and regret will yield literary fiction. A premise about a detective solving a crime will yield mystery. The tone matches what you describe.
Will the story be publishable as-is?
No. Think of this as a first draft, not a finished story. The AI creates solid structure and gets your ideas on the page, but you'll need to revise. You'll want to develop character voice, add your unique descriptions, refine dialogue, adjust pacing, and polish prose. Every published story goes through multiple revisions. This tool gets you past the blank page and gives you material to work with.
How detailed should my premise be?
Keep it simple. One or two sentences about the core concept is enough. Include the protagonist, the central conflict or situation, and maybe one unique element. Example: 'A wedding photographer realizes the groom is her ex-boyfriend who disappeared five years ago' or 'An astronaut discovers her AI copilot is developing emotions.' Don't over-explain. The AI builds the story from these seeds.
What if the story goes in a direction I don't like?
Use it as raw material. Keep the scenes and elements that work, cut or rewrite the rest. Sometimes the AI's unexpected choices spark better ideas. Other times, you'll rewrite entire sections. Either way, you have 3,000 words of prose instead of a blank page. That's a huge head start. First drafts are supposed to be messy. This tool gets you to the revision stage faster.
What is River?
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