A hand signs a name at the bottom of a page, slowly, as if it mattered. Write the vignette.Stay with: the pen held above the line, the first stroke, the dot at the end.
The wind gets up five minutes ahead of the rain. Write a backyard in those minutes.Stay with: the washing on the line, a gate that will not stay shut, the first heavy drop.
Vignette of a pianist's hands in the moment before the first note.Stay with: the hover, the breath, the one finger that moves first.
A cat sits in an open back door and will go neither in nor out. Write that minute as a vignette.Stay with: the tail, the draft, the person holding the door.
A child stands outside a parent's bedroom door at night, deciding whether to knock. Write the hallway.Stay with: the strip of light under the door, bare feet, the house ticking.
A delivery driver stands at a front door with a box and rings twice. Write the wait, and stop before the door opens.Stay with: the porch, the sound inside, the box shifted to the other arm.
A grandmother stands in her doorway and watches a car until it turns the corner. Write the vignette.Stay with: her hand on the frame, the porch light, how long she waits after.
A porch in the rain, seen from just inside the screen door: write the vignette.Stay with: the mesh, the steps going dark, the smell coming through.
A shopkeeper unlocks the front door in the morning. Write the vignette.Stay with: the keys, the bell above the door, the street before the first customer.
A student sent to wait in the hall looks back through the small window in the classroom door. Write the vignette.Stay with: the square of glass, the muffled lesson, the long floor.
The doorway of a bakery, very early in the morning. Write it as a vignette.Stay with: the warm air that meets the cold, the trays, the first person in line.
In a vignette, show a teenager leaning in a kitchen doorway while a parent cooks.Stay with: what is said about nothing much, and the spoon going round.
Someone holds a door for a stranger whose arms are full. Write the three seconds as a whole vignette.Stay with: the nod, the boxes, the door swinging shut on its own.
Someone is home after a long trip and has not yet put down the bags. Write the doorway and nothing more.Stay with: the smell of the hall, the mail on the floor, the quiet.
Two neighbors talk across a doorstep, one inside and one out, and neither moves. Write it as a vignette.Stay with: the door held half open, the weather they agree about.
Vignette of a school's front steps in the minute before the doors open.Stay with: the crowd on the steps, the breath in the air, the face behind the glass.
Vignette of a stage door a little while after the show, as one performer comes out.Stay with: the bag over a shoulder, the lamp, the ordinary coat.
Write a vignette of a child on the first day at a new school, stopped in the classroom doorway.Stay with: the noise from inside, the strap of the bag, the one empty desk.
A pair of hands 15
A child's hands wrap a present with far too much tape. Write only the hands and the paper.Stay with: the crooked folds, the tape stuck to a sleeve, the proud pat.
A grandfather ties a child's shoelaces. Write the vignette and never look above the knees.Stay with: the stiff fingers, the double knot, the small foot held still.
A hand signs a name at the bottom of a page, slowly, as if it mattered. Write the vignette.Stay with: the pen held above the line, the first stroke, the dot at the end.
A mechanic's hands feel for a bolt they cannot see. Write the vignette from the elbows down.Stay with: the reach, the turn of the wrist, the grease in the lines of the palm.
A pair of hands untangles a necklace chain under a lamp. Write the vignette, and let the knot take as long as it takes.Stay with: the pin, the patience, the moment the chain runs free.
Hands deal cards at a kitchen table. Write the vignette.Stay with: the snap of each card, the worn corners, who gets the last one.
Hands knead bread dough on a floured counter. Write the vignette for a reader who has never baked.Stay with: the push, the fold, the flour on the wrists.
Hands plant seedlings, one after another, along a row. Write the vignette.Stay with: the hole, the press of two thumbs, the dirt under the nails.
Hands wind yarn into a ball from a loop held on someone else's wrists. Write the vignette.Stay with: the two wrists held apart, the ball growing, the loop going slack.
In a vignette, show a barber's hands at work, seen in the mirror.Stay with: the comb, the scissors, the tilt of a head between two fingers.
Show only a pair of hands shelling peas into a bowl, in a vignette.Stay with: the thumb, the sound in the bowl, the pile of pods.
Small hands and large hands build one sandcastle. Write the vignette without naming either person.Stay with: who digs, who pats, whose idea the moat was.
Two pairs of hands fold a bed sheet between them. Write the folding as a vignette.Stay with: the corners matched, the walk toward each other, the last fold handed over.
Vignette of a pianist's hands in the moment before the first note.Stay with: the hover, the breath, the one finger that moves first.
Vignette of hands folding a paper boat from a sheet of homework.Stay with: the crease run flat with a thumbnail, the numbers on the sail.
Five minutes of a day 15
A candle on a birthday cake burns while the song is sung. Write only as long as the song lasts.Stay with: the flame leaning, the singers out of time, the breath drawn in.
A family car sits in the driveway with the engine off and nobody gets out yet. Write those minutes.Stay with: the ticking of the engine, the song that just ended, the seat belts.
A playground in the five minutes before the bell rings: write the vignette.Stay with: the game that speeds up, the one child already by the door.
A swimmer stands at the end of the diving board. Write the vignette, and end it before the jump.Stay with: the toes, the water far below, the line of people behind.
A train is five minutes late. Write the platform.Stay with: the board, the same three steps walked back and forth, a pigeon.
The five minutes after everyone has gone to bed: write the living room.Stay with: the cushion still dented, a cup, the lamp someone forgot.
The five minutes while the pasta water comes to a boil: write the kitchen.Stay with: the lid, the steam on the window, someone setting out forks.
Four children wait at a stop in the five minutes before the school bus arrives. Write the vignette.Stay with: the breath in the air, the kicked stone, the first one to see the bus.
In a vignette, show a goalkeeper during the minutes when the ball is at the other end.Stay with: the gloves, the grass around the cleats, the far-off shouting.
Nothing happens in a waiting room for five minutes. Write the vignette.Stay with: the clock, the magazines, the way everyone looks up at the door.
Vignette of a sunset from a balcony, from the first orange to the first lamp.Stay with: the railing, a neighbor's radio, the minute the color goes.
The wind gets up five minutes ahead of the rain. Write a backyard in those minutes.Stay with: the washing on the line, a gate that will not stay shut, the first heavy drop.
Write the five minutes a kite stays up on its first good flight.Stay with: the pull on the string, the neck tipped back, the small shape of it.
Write the five minutes between the lights going down and the film starting.Stay with: the rustling, a late couple finding their seats, the dark settling.
Write the last five minutes of a long drive home, seen by a child in the back seat.Stay with: the streetlights passing, the familiar turn, pretending to be asleep.
After the party 15
A backyard after a summer cookout, at dusk. Write the vignette with nobody in it.Stay with: the folding chairs in a ring, the grill ticking as it cools, a moth.
A classroom a few minutes after the last bell of the year: write the vignette.Stay with: the bare walls, the tape marks, one forgotten sweater on a hook.
A kitchen after a holiday meal, with one person washing and one drying. Write it as a vignette.Stay with: the towel, the fogged window, the pan left to soak.
A sleepover has ended and the house is quiet. Write the room where everyone slept.Stay with: the rolled sleeping bags, popcorn in the carpet, the flattened pillows.
A surprise party is over, and the person it was for looks around the decorated room once more. Write that look.Stay with: the banner with their name, what is left of the cake, the quiet.
The field after the big game, when the stands are empty: write the vignette.Stay with: paper cups under the seats, the lines worn off the grass, one light still on.
In a vignette, show a park the morning after a fireworks night.Stay with: the trampled grass, a lost mitten, the smell still in the air.
In a wedding hall, the tables are cleared around the last two people dancing. Write the vignette.Stay with: the stacked chairs, the band packing up, the slow turn.
The last guest has left and the host sits down for the first time all night. Write the room around them.Stay with: the chair, the half-full glasses, the music still playing low.
Vignette of a school gym the morning after a dance.Stay with: streamers on the floor, the folded chairs, sunlight on the scuffed boards.
Write a vignette of a living room the morning after a birthday party, with the wrapping paper still on the floor.Stay with: ribbon on the stairs, a chair with coats still on it, one shoe nobody claims.
Write a vignette of a porch after trick-or-treat is over and the light has been switched off.Stay with: the empty bowl, a wrapper on the step, the pumpkin still glowing.
Write the dining table after a long family lunch, as a vignette with no people in it.Stay with: the tablecloth pulled crooked, a ring where a jug stood, one folded napkin.
Write the hallway after the guests have collected their coats: the hooks, the mat, the door just closed.Stay with: one scarf left behind, wet footprints, voices fading outside.
Write the stage after the school play, with the set still standing and the lights half down.Stay with: a paper crown, the tape marks on the floor, the hush.
How it works
Each of these vignette writing prompts supplies one moment: someone at a door, hands at a job, a few minutes passing, a place just emptied. No prompt has a problem in it, so there is no ending to reach.
Read the full guide
Writing prompts for vignettes: where to look
Because nothing has to happen, the hard part is knowing what to look at. The line under each prompt begins Stay with and names three things. For a grandmother watching a car go: her hand on the door frame, the porch light, how long she waits after.
Why the hour after a party
A place just emptied is a vignette already. The event is over, and what is left can only be described. Fifteen prompts start there, from a school gym the morning after a dance to a porch once trick-or-treat is done.
Stay in one place and one stretch of time. If a second day arrives, it is turning into a story.
Stop when the looking is done.
Questions and answers
What is a vignette in writing?
A brief piece of description that holds one short stretch of time. It leans on image and meaning and has little or no plot. A vignette can stand by itself, though more often it sits inside a longer work.
What is the difference between a vignette and a short story?
A short story is whole: it begins, develops and ends. A vignette keeps none of that shape. It has less action and less plot, and spends itself on one scene or one moment.
How long should a vignette be?
There is no fixed length. Wikipedia's article on the form puts most vignettes below 1,000 words. One prompt here is three seconds at a held door, and a few paragraphs will hold it.
What is a good vignette writing prompt?
One with a place, a stretch of time and nothing to resolve. A family car sits in the driveway with the engine off and nobody gets out yet. Write those minutes.