Last Updated on by Michael Brockbank
The Reedsy Plot Generator is a tool that can help kickstart your creative juices for a variety of purposes. And I think it’s one of the best plot generators on the Internet. So, how do you use it and why should you?
Whether you’re combatting writer’s block, need a story idea for your book, or simply want to practice writing, the Reedy Plot Generator is a valuable tool.
Keep in mind that the plot generator is different than Reedsy’s writing prompts page. Instead of base ideas, the generator will put together hundreds of thousands of potential combinations for stories.
What is the Reedsy Plot Generator?
The Reedsy Plot Generator is a free tool anyone can use to get ideas for stories. You don’t need an account with Reedsy, and the browser-based app starts generating the moment you visit the page.
Because of the randomization elements, the generator can potentially provide a million unique plotlines.
The tool also provides specific genre types and the ability to lock any one element into place to generate more ideas for specific details.
I’ll show you how to do this in a moment.
If you do generate several good ideas on the platform, you can use the “Save” button. This will tell Reedsy to email you the story idea from the plot generator. That way, you don’t lose it.
However, using the “Save to Email” function, Reedsy will also send you weekly writing tips and access to free writing webinars.
In reality, I’ve found a lot of these emails to be quite useful as I develop my writing abilities. So, it might be something that could hold your interest.
How to Use the Reedsy Plot Generator
The plot generator itself will begin working the moment you visit the website. You’ll be presented with a quick, randomized idea complete with a protagonist, secondary character, plot, side note, and twist.
The antagonist for the story will be solely up to you. However, some of the plots can work to help create the antagonist with a bit of imagination.
As the tool itself is straightforward, I’ll just go over the elements to give you a better idea of how it works.
Generate New Ideas
Each time you click the “Generate” button, Reedsy will produce an entirely new set of ideas for the story. The system will randomize all of the sections almost instantly.
But be careful. If you like an idea or at least parts of it, you can’t go back. If you accidentally click the “Generate” button again, the idea will be replaced by a new set of points.
NOTE: If you copy and paste the idea from the Reedsy Plot Generator, the text will be in white. You’ll have to select the text and use your word processor’s color selector to make it visible in most programs.
Pick Your Genre
At the time of this post, Reedsy has five genres in the plot generator. Selecting one will deliver a set of randomized ideas that are specific to that genre.
For example, you’ll see something like “A space marine” as the secondary character if you choose “Sci-Fi.”
Although there are only five basic genres, it wouldn’t take much to use the idea it provides to turn it into something else. For example, you can run with the generated idea for “Mystery” and turn it into a horror story.
In reality, you can turn most ideas into something else to fit your preferred genre with a bit of imagination.
The Random Button
Clicking the Random button essentially reloads the page while generating an entirely new story idea. The difference between “Generate” and “Random” is the fact that Random also delivers ideas for a random genre.
So, if you don’t really care about the genre itself, you can click the Random button for a completely new story idea.
The Random button will also clear any locked aspects of the story.
Locking Aspects Into Place for New Ideas
One of my favorite features of the Reedsy Plot Generator is the ability to lock certain things into place. By hovering your mouse over an underlined element, you can choose to use the lock icon to keep it when generating new ideas.
For example, let’s say you like the idea for the secondary character. By clicking the lock icon, you can keep it during a new set of ideas.
You’ll also notice the locked idea being highlighted in white as opposed to the light blue of the other sections.
Saving
As I mentioned earlier, clicking the “Save” button will open a dialog window allowing you to send the idea to your email address. This will also enroll you in weekly writing tips and access to free webinars.
Instead of emailing the plot, you can copy and paste it. Just remember that the text will be white when pasting it into your word processor of choice. You may have to change the color to read the text.
I don’t mind getting emails from Reedsy. I’ve come across some interesting reads since I started using the book editing app and I like the vast majority of their content.
This is completely optional, though.
Ideas for Using the Reedsy Plot Generator
There are all kinds of ways you can use virtually any plot generator. Though, some are easier to adapt to certain situations than others.
It really comes down to what you need the ideas for in the first place.
So, what are some ways you can use the Reedsy Plot Generator?
- Getting short story ideas to publish on Vocal or Medium.
- Collecting ideas for writing an anthology.
- Using one as a primary and another as a secondary plotline in the same book.
- Challenges for yourself to practice writing that you don’t intend on publishing.
- Challenging your community to write short stories once per week.
- To help with writer’s block to get the creativity flowing again.
In the near future, I’m actually going to challenge myself to write an anthology of different story ideas using nothing but the Reedsy Plot Generator.
That is as soon as I am finished with all of my other major writing projects.
Keep in mind that any of the ideas Reedsy generates are not set in stone. That’s part of the reason why there is a locking mechanism on the main points.
There’s nothing wrong with taking bits and pieces and coming up with your own ideas.
How Often Have You Used Plot Generators?
If you’re out of ideas or just need a kickstart, the Reedsy Plot Generator is a helpful tool. Whether it’s for a novel or a short story, there are so many combinations that you probably will never see the exact same two in a row.
What I like most about plot generators is that they are not AI-driven. Instead, it’s merely a randomized set of pre-entered data points. Kind of like rolling the dice.
What kind of plot generators have you used in the past? What are some other ways you get ideas for your stories?
- Why Did It Take Me So Long to Publish a Book? - January 17, 2025
- How to Make a Free QR Code for Your Athour Blog or Books - January 15, 2025
- 5 Things I’m Seriously Considering Adding This Year - January 13, 2025