• 140 story ideas
  • Checked October 2026

Story Ideas About Secrets

Press the button for three premises about a secret or a lie, each with the question its story must answer.

Story Ideas About Secrets

All 140
  1. A friend trusted to water the plants forgets for three weeks.What does he say when the owner comes home?
  2. The lighthouse keeper's daughter knows that the light once went out for an hour.Who was meant to be watching it?
  3. A student tells the group that her part of the project is nearly done.How late is the night before?

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All 140 story ideas

A secret kept 20

  • A boy goes by a second name at his grandmother's house. Which name does he give when both families are in one room?
  • A boy hides his grandfather's medal so that it cannot be sold. Who was going to sell it, and what for?
  • A boy hides how well he can sing. What happened the last time someone heard him?
  • A boy keeps a stray dog in the garden shed for a week. Who has been leaving food at the shed door besides him?
  • A child knows what the birthday present is and has four days to say nothing. What nearly gives it away on day three?
  • A girl broke the school record in practice, with nobody watching, and has said nothing. Can she do it again on the day?
  • A girl keeps a diary in a code her sister is close to breaking. What is in it that is worth a code?
  • A girl knows the baker's secret ingredient and has promised to take it to her own bakery or nowhere. What happens when the baker's rival offers her a job?
  • A girl's best friend is moving away and has asked her not to tell the class. What does the friend want from her last ordinary week?
  • A grandfather has taken piano lessons in secret for a year. Whose birthday is he practicing for?
  • A man keeps the family's prize recipe from the brother who believes it was their mother's. Whose recipe was it?
  • A sister knows that her brother wrote the winning poem under a pen name. Why did he not use his own?
  • A teacher knows who really painted the mural, and it was not the student who took the prize. Does the real painter want to be known?
  • A whole street knows about the parade except the man it is for. Who is the worst at keeping it?
  • A woman has never told her family that she was once a champion skater. Why did she stop, and who finds the skates?
  • A woman plans to leave her job and has told only her houseplants. Who has noticed that she has stopped complaining?
  • An apprentice sees that his master's eyes can no longer manage the fine work. How long can he quietly redo it?
  • The lighthouse keeper's daughter knows that the light once went out for an hour. Who was meant to be watching it?
  • The mail carrier knows which house sends the unsigned kind notes. What happens the week the notes stop?
  • Someone on the street has been mending the neighbors' fences at night. Why does the mender not want thanks?

A secret found out 20

  • A box in the attic holds letters that were written and never sent. Who were they for, and is it too late to send one?
  • A boy catches his dad practicing the bedtime story voices alone in the car. Does he say that he knows?
  • A boy finds his own baby blanket in his big sister's drawer. Why did she keep it?
  • A boy finds his teacher in an old newspaper, pictured as a circus acrobat. Why does nobody at school know?
  • A boy learns that his lucky win was arranged by his friends. Does he want the truth more than the win?
  • A broken vase turns out to have been mended once before. Who broke it the first time, and who covered for them?
  • A class works out that its strictest teacher writes the unsigned encouraging notes. Do they let the teacher know?
  • A family learns that Grandmother keeps a savings jar for each grandchild, labeled with a dream. Whose label is wrong?
  • A girl finds out that her brother walks the long way to school to avoid someone. Who, and what does she do about it?
  • A girl learns that her quiet aunt writes the town's favorite mystery novels. Which neighbor is the villain based on?
  • A girl learns that the neighbor she is afraid of has fed her cat for years. What else has she had wrong about him?
  • A map in the pocket of a secondhand coat marks a garden nobody tends. Who drew it, and what was planted there?
  • A recipe card in a library book shows where the bakery's famous cake really came from. Does the baker know?
  • A student discovers that the new kid attended this school before, under another name. Why come back?
  • A surprise is found out a week early by the person it is for. Can she act surprised, and should she?
  • A town learns that its "ancient" well was dug by the mayor's grandfather as a joke. Does the town keep the legend?
  • A workbench is found behind a false wall in the garage. What was being built in there, and for whom?
  • A wrong name on a form shows a girl that her father once changed his. What was the old name left behind for?
  • An old photograph shows a grandfather in a band uniform, holding the trumpet he says he never played. What made him put it down?
  • The best gardener in town is found to be buying her tomatoes. Who finds out, and do they tell?

A secret two people share 20

  • A boy and his grandmother have a private language of taps on the table. What do they say with it that they can't say aloud?
  • A boy and his sister both know that he gets off the bus one stop early. Where does he go for those ten minutes?
  • A brother and a little sister know where the last cookies are. How long does a secret last between a nine-year-old and a four-year-old?
  • A father and daughter are building a boat in the garage as a surprise. How do they explain the smell of varnish?
  • A girl and her friend's mother are planning the friend's surprise. How does she keep a secret from someone she tells everything?
  • A girl and her older cousin are the only ones who feed the fox behind the gym. What happens when the gym is to be extended?
  • A girl and her uncle know that the "store-bought" pies at the fair are his. Why does he not want the ribbon?
  • Twins trade places for one school day, and the day goes too well. Which twin wants to trade back?
  • Two brothers have one hiding place for everything they ever broke. What happens on the day it is full?
  • Two classmates wrote the note that everyone believes came from the teacher. Do they own up when it starts doing good?
  • Two cousins are the only ones who know where the spare key is hidden. What happens when one of them wants it moved?
  • Two friends found a cave and swore to tell nobody. Which of them wants to show a third?
  • Two friends know the password to the tree house, and a third wants in. What is the password protecting?
  • Two friends saw something in the woods and cannot agree on what it was. Does the secret hold if the story does not match?
  • Two girls know who really wrote the song the whole school is singing. Why has the writer asked them to keep quiet?
  • Two neighbors know why the tree on the corner leans. Why have they never told the street?
  • Two old men share the secret of where the fish are. What happens when one of them can no longer make the walk?
  • Two sisters both know which of them broke the window, and it is not the one who confessed. What does the other one owe?
  • Two teammates know that one of them is leaving at the end of the season. How do they play their last games together?
  • The two top students both know that the answer key was wrong. Who speaks up, and when?

A lie that grows 20

  • A baker says the recipe is a hundred years old. What happens when the town plans a centennial for it?
  • A boy says he built the model that his father finished. What does he do when he is entered in the contest?
  • A boy says he found a dinosaur bone in the yard. What does the museum say when his teacher calls it?
  • A boy says he knows the way. How far do the others follow before somebody asks?
  • A boy says he saw the rare bird. What does he do when forty bird watchers arrive at his fence?
  • A boy says his uncle is a pilot, and is asked to bring him on career day. Who does he bring?
  • A boy tells his little brother that the moon follows their car on purpose. What does he do when the brother tells the class?
  • A boy with a French-sounding name says he speaks French. Who is seated beside the exchange student?
  • A girl adds one small thing to her summer story each time she tells it. What is it by October?
  • A girl claims a cousin in every country that comes up. What happens when a classmate is going to one?
  • A girl says her grandmother knows the mayor. What does she do when the class needs a favor from the mayor?
  • A girl says she is not afraid of the high diving board. How does she get down?
  • A girl says the dog ate her homework, and the dog becomes famous. What does she say the day the dog is asked to prove it?
  • A girl tells one neighbor that her family is getting a horse. Who turns up with hay?
  • A man says he can fix it. How many parts are on the floor when the owner comes back?
  • A man tells the book club that he has read the book. What does he say when asked for his favorite chapter?
  • A new student says he was the star of his old team. What happens at the first practice?
  • A student tells the group that her part of the project is nearly done. How late is the night before?
  • A town says its fair is the oldest in the state. Who finds the older poster?
  • A woman answering a wrong call says that yes, she is the manager. How many decisions does she make before lunch?

A lie told to be kind 20

  • A boy says he is not cold, and gives away his gloves. Who sees his hands?
  • A boy slows down in a race and says he lost fairly. Does the winner know?
  • A boy tells his friend the haircut looks great. What does he say when the friend asks where to get the same?
  • A boy tells his little sister that thunder is clouds bowling. What does he say when she asks who is winning?
  • A boy tells the new kid that everyone gets lost in the first week. Did he?
  • A coach tells the player who was cut that she was next on the list. Was there a list?
  • A family tells Grandpa that his soup is still the best. Who is secretly fixing it at the stove?
  • A friend says "I was just about to call you." Was she?
  • A friend says the drawing looks just like the dog. Which way up was she holding it?
  • A girl lets her friend win and says she tried her hardest. What happens when the friend wants a rematch for real?
  • A girl says the gift is exactly what she wanted. Where does she wear it?
  • A girl tells her cousin the bike was getting too small for her anyway. Who sees her watch it ride away?
  • A girl tells her grandmother she loves the sweater, and gets one every year. In which year does she say so, and how?
  • A grandmother pretends her phone confuses her so that her grandson will visit. What does he pretend in return?
  • A man says he was passing by anyway. How far out of his way was the house?
  • A mother says the burnt cake is just how she likes it. Does she eat the second slice?
  • A neighbor says the trumpet practice did not bother him at all. What is he doing with earplugs?
  • A sister says she is not hungry so that her brother takes the last piece. Does he ever find out?
  • A teacher tells a nervous student that everyone forgets a line. What does the teacher forget, on purpose, on the night?
  • A waiter says the kitchen made one dessert too many. Who is paying for it?

A liar caught 20

  • A baker who says everything is fresh is seen at another shop's day-old shelf. Why does he need to?
  • A boy blames his brother, forgetting that the brother was away all week. Who points it out?
  • A boy blames the broken vase on the cat, in a house with no cat. What does he invent next?
  • A boy who "does not like cake" is found in the kitchen with a fork. Why did he say it in the first place?
  • A boy who called in sick meets his teacher at the fair, one seat above him on the Ferris wheel. What do they agree on before the ride ends?
  • A boy who claims the high score is asked to do it again with people watching. Whose score was it?
  • A boy who says he lost his homework learns that the teacher found it, blank. What does the teacher write on it?
  • A boy who says he walked the dog is given away by the dog's clean paws. What does the dog do at the word "walk"?
  • A copied essay is handed in with the other student's name still in the heading. Which of them is called in first?
  • A girl invents a stomachache to miss the recital and is told it has moved to tomorrow. What is she really afraid of?
  • A girl who says she practiced is asked to play the piece. How many bars does the bluff last?
  • A girl who says she read the book is asked to lead the discussion. What does she learn by listening?
  • A girl who says she was at the library comes home with grass stains. What was she doing that needed a cover story?
  • A girl's homemade cookies still have the bakery's paper under them. Who lifts one first?
  • A man who never got the invitation is holding it. What was he going to miss, and why?
  • A man who says he built the shed himself is asked to build another. Who built the first?
  • A man who shows off a fish photo is asked where the lake is. Whose fish was it?
  • A sleepover story falls apart when two mothers meet at the store. Where were the girls?
  • A teller of fishing tales meets the man who really caught the fish. Which of them tells it better?
  • A woman who says she ran the race is in every photo of the sidelines. What made her say it?

A trust broken 20

  • A boy asked to keep score for both teams adds a point for his friends. Who else was counting?
  • A boy tells the group his friend's biggest fear as a joke. What does the friend do the next time the fear comes up?
  • A boy trades something a friend told him for a place on the team. Is the place worth it by the second game?
  • A boy trusted with the secret knock teaches it to an older kid. What happens to the clubhouse?
  • A boy wears the jacket a friend asked him to look after, and tears it. What does it take to put it right?
  • A brother reads his sister's diary and quotes a line from it in an argument. What does it take before she writes another page?
  • A captain promises that everyone will play, and benches the weakest for the final. Was winning worth the promise?
  • A cousin shows the family hiding place to a new friend. What goes missing, or does anything?
  • A friend borrows a bike and lends it on to someone else. Whose fault is the bent wheel?
  • A friend laughs along when the group mocks the thing she was told in confidence. Did the one who told her see?
  • A friend trusted to water the plants forgets for three weeks. What does he say when the owner comes home?
  • A girl gives her friend's song to the choir as her own. Who recognizes the tune?
  • A girl hands her club's treasure map to the rival club. What did they offer, and what do they do with the map?
  • A girl promised to save a seat and gave it away. Who was the seat for, and who got it?
  • A girl tells the one secret she was asked to keep, to seem interesting. What does it cost her that she did not expect?
  • A lab partner hands in the shared project under one name. What does the other partner do with the notes she kept?
  • A pen pal shows the letters to her whole class. How does the writer find out, an ocean away?
  • A teammate tells the other side the play. What did she want that her own team would not give her?
  • An older sister promises not to tell their parents, and then tells them, for a reason. Was the reason good enough?
  • In the middle of a quarrel, a girl tells a surprise to the person it was for. Who planned it, and can it be mended?

How it works

These story ideas about secrets are 140 premises, each one sentence about something hidden, shared or untrue. Under each is the question the story has to answer. The secrets are small: a surprise, a letter, a hidden talent.

Read the full guide

Three groups about a secret

A list under the button holds seven groups. A secret kept, A secret found out and A secret two people share come first: a hidden thing seen from the keeper's side, from the finder's side, and from between two people.

Story ideas about lying, and betrayal story ideas

A lie that grows, A lie told to be kind and A liar caught hold the premises about lies. A trust broken holds small betrayals: a secret told to seem interesting, a seat that was promised and given away.

  • Decide who knows before you decide what the secret is. The list of who knows is the plot.

Questions and answers

What makes a secret a good start for a story?

It arrives with two questions: who else will find out, and what happens then. Each note here adds a third, such as who was going to sell the medal, and what for.

What is the difference between a secret and a lie in a story?

A secret is something not said. A lie is something said that is untrue. The first three groups here are secrets and the next three are lies. A trust broken is what can follow either.

Are these ideas suitable for young writers?

They were written to be. The secrets are surprises, letters and hidden talents, and the lies are small ones. Nothing here is about abuse, a crime with a victim, self-harm or romance.

How do I use the question under each idea?

Answer it in one sentence before you write, and keep that answer out of the first half. The story is the reader finding out what you already know.

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