50 Awesome Superhero Writing Prompts
Superheroes are popular. Thanks to that, you might find it interesting to write about them. If you aren’t sure where to start, you can always use superhero writing prompts as inspiration.
Sometimes, people prefer a fun topic. Other times, people might want something more thought-provoking. Whatever you have in mind, chances are good that you can find it from superhero writing prompts.
Consider these 50 superhero writing prompts:
1. If You Could Choose a Superpower, What Would It Be?
This is a simple question to get you thinking more about the potential of superpowers.
2. How Can You Make Money Using That Superpower?
Meanwhile, this is more focused. Your answer doesn’t need to be very sophisticated. It could be as simple as using superstrength to lift things that would call for heavy machinery under normal circumstances.
3. Would You Want to Be a Superhero?
Someone having superpowers doesn’t necessarily mean they would want to become a superhero.
4. If You Need a Superhero Costume, Would What It Look Like?
It can be fun to design superhero costumes. After all, everyone likes to look good.
5. What Are Two Superpowers With Synergy?
Some superpowers come packaged together. For instance, someone with super strength would pretty much have to have super toughness. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to do anything without hurting themselves. We can hurt ourselves by just coughing too hard and too frequently. It is scary to think how badly we could hurt ourselves if we had super strength.
6. What Are Two Superpowers Without Synergy?
It might be a bigger challenge to think of superpowers that don’t have any synergy with one another.
7. Do You Like Bright, Inspiring Superheroes?
Superheroes are often bright, inspiring figures. However, that is far from being the only option for them.
8. Are Bright, Inspiring Superheroes Unrealistic?
Sometimes, people criticize bright, inspiring superheroes for being unrealistic. They might be right, but they might also be missing the point.
9. Do You Like Dark, Gritty Superheroes?
The reverse would be dark, gritty superheroes. In particular, the 1990s were infamous for them. Of course, dark, gritty superheroes can be excessive. That was all too often the case in the 1990s.
10. How Dark and Gritty Can Superheroes Get Before They Are No Longer Superheroes?
There is a point when a superhero is so dark and gritty they are no longer a superhero. The exact point when that happens is a question that comes up in superhero media from time to time.
11. Can Someone Be a Superhero to Some People and a Supervillain to Others?
In real life, whether someone is seen as a hero or a villain is often a matter of perspective. Many conquerors remain highly regarded even though they did terrible things. For instance, Livius points out that Julius Caesar killed and enslaved many people in pursuit of power and prestige. As a result, it is worth asking whether someone can be a superhero to some people and a supervillain to others, particularly in works that care about politics.
12. When Does a Superhero Become a Supervillain?
The long-running nature of superhero comics means that some superheroes have done ridiculously awful things. You might find it interesting to determine at what point you would consider them supervillains rather than superheroes.
13. What Should Be a Superhero’s Relationship With the Law?
Superheroes are often seen as vigilantes. However, that isn’t necessarily the case.
14. Can a Superhero Be a Superhero While Violating the Law?
Generally, superheroes don’t go as far as to act as judge, jury, and executioner. Even so, they are often vigilantes, which raises the question of whether they should be.
Of course, superhero stories become even messier when international politics become involved.
16. How Would Superpowers Change Politics?
It seems safe to say that superpowers would change politics. You might find it interesting to do some brainstorming on the matter.
17. Argue that Superpowers Would Make the World Safer.
Superheroes are often presented as defenders of all that is good. As such, you should be able to articulate an argument that superpowers would make the world safer.
18. Argue that Superpowers Would Make the World More Dangerous.
Alas, it is easy to imagine how superpowers would make the world more dangerous.
19. Should Superhumans Be Registered?
Many of the reasons for registering firearms apply to registering superpowers. Make your case for whether superhumans should or shouldn’t be registered.
20. Does the Existence of Superhumans Doom the World to Feudalism?
ThoughtCo points out that feudalism is a misleading term. Still, it is useful as a casual term for a decentralized system in which power is distributed because the top leadership can’t exert effective control over everything. Superhumans seem like the kind of thing that could bring about such a state.
21. Name Five Ways Inherited Superpowers Would Change Society.
Inherited superpowers are different from superpowers gotten through other means. Spend some time thinking about how they would change the way we do things.
22. Would Superhero Media Sell in a World with Superpowers?
Men’s Health states that Watchmen ran with the idea that superhero comics weren’t very interesting in a world in which superheroes were real. That may or may not be true, but that is certainly worth writing about.
23. How Would Superhero Media Be Different in a World with Superpowers?
On a related note, it can be more interesting to think about how superhero media would change in a world with superpowers.
24. Should Governments Try to Rein In the Stronger Kinds of Superhumans?
The monopoly on force is one of the most notable characteristics of modern states. The stronger kinds of superhumans would be a major challenge to that, which raises the question of how states should handle them.
25. Can Governments Rein In the Stronger Kinds of Superhumans?
In some cases, it might be best for governments to stay away from the stronger kinds of superhumans. After all, some of them are world-destroyers or above.
26. Would Corporate Sponsorships Make Superheroes Less Superheroic?
Some corporations would love to attach their marketing to superheroes. However, it is interesting to consider whether that would count as selling out on the superheroes’ part.
27. Design a Science-Based Superhero.
Comic book science isn’t real science. Instead, it is more of an aesthetic. Still, comic book science is an appealing aesthetic that can enable a wide range of stories.
28. Design a Magic-Based Superhero.
The line between magic and science was thin in pre-modern times. To name an example, Discover reminds us that Sir Issac Newton was also an alchemist. Despite this, a magic-based superhero naturally gravitates towards a different set of narratives than his science-based counterpart.
29. Design a Paragon-Type Superhero
Paragons are superheroes who serve as living examples for everyone else in their setting. Whether they live up to that reputation is a separate matter.
30. Design an Investigator-Type Superhero
Superheroes descend from investigators in considerable part. Unsurprisingly, they remain as popular as ever.
31. Design a Brute-Type Supervillain
Rogues galleries often include supervillains who are more of a physical threat than anything else. They aren’t the most sophisticated of enemies. Still, everyone understands the threat of an abundance of brute force.
32. Design a Mastermind-Type Supervillain
In contrast, other supervillains are more about schemes and manipulation.
33. Design a Dark Mirror-Type Supervillain
Supervillains are sometimes treated as dark mirrors for superheroes. At the simplest level, they possess similar capabilities but choose to do otherwise. However, the similarities can go much further than that.
34. Should Superheroes Be Willing to Kill?
Killing is a controversial topic in superhero media for obvious reasons.
35. When Does a Superhero Cross the Line From Being Too Willing to Kill to Being Too Unwilling to Kill?
With that said, there are cases when superheroes are the only ones capable of acting as judges, juries, and executioners. When that happens, the question of whether they should be willing to kill becomes much more complicated, particularly when higher power levels mean more things are at stake. A supervillain who robs banks is one thing; a supervillain who wants to rewrite reality so they can torture everyone forever is another.
36. How Would You Feel If You Were One of the Few Individuals Without Superpowers?
Being singled out is a terrible feeling. Spend some time thinking about what that would feel like.
37. How Would You Treat Your Friend If They Were One of the Few Individuals Without Superpowers?
Some self-examination and self-reflection can always serve you well.
38. Would You Want to Live in a World In Which Everyone or Almost Everyone Has Superpowers?
Superhero settings are dangerous places.
39. Would You Want to Live in That World If Some Superpowers Came With Major Downsides?
Superpowers are amazing. Even so, they sometimes come with major downsides, which change the analysis. Chances are good that you would go for super strength and toughness if you still looked like yourself. The question is whether that would remain the case if you had to look like a stone person because of it.
40. Describe How You Would Use Your Superpowers in Day-to-Day Life.
It is good to exercise your creativity from time to time.
41. Write About a Superhero Revealing Their Secret Identity to Their Loved Ones.
Secrets can be corrosive to personal relationships. Due to this, one imagines that this scenario would have superheroes on their metaphorical tiptoes.
42. Write About a Superhero Revealing Their Secret Identity to the General Public.
Revealing a secret identity to the general public offers a different kind of drama.
43. Write About a Smalltime Crook Trying to Blackmail a Superhero Using Their Secret Identity.
Sometimes, people get overconfident. Other times, people misread others. Either way, a small-time crook trying to blackmail a superhero isn’t even close to being the most foolish thing ever seen in superhero media.
44. Write About a Supervillain Trying to Blackmail a Superhero Using Their Secret Identity.
A supervillain knowing about a superhero’s secret identity makes for a much tenser situation.
45. Write About a Superhero Uncovering Something Humanizing About a Supervillain.
Most supervillains are human. Presumably, that means they do things that can make people empathize with them. Consider how seeing one of these moments can affect a superhero.
46. Write About a Superhero Realizing They Have a Romantic Attraction to a Supervillain.
Superhero-supervillain romantic relationships are surprisingly common. It seems safe to say that most superheroes would find this awkward.
47. Write About a Superhero Helping a Supervillain Go Clean.
Recidivism is a major problem. As a result, a superhero might try to go the extra mile by helping a supervillain go clean rather than remain a criminal.
48. Write About a Superhero Mentoring Someone With Superpowers.
Superheroes mentoring other people is a time-honored story. After all, they have to get their sidekicks from somewhere.
49. Write About a Superhero Discovering Something Weird About Their Superpowers.
Superpowers don’t work based on what we think makes sense. Thanks to that, it isn’t hard to imagine superheroes with superpowers that behave in weird ways under certain circumstances. This opens up a wide range of narrative possibilities, particularly for people who don’t mind writing less serious narratives.
50. Write About a Superhero Doing Their Taxes.
Realism doesn’t necessarily mean fun things for superheroes. Sometimes, it means dealing with the same things normal people do. Chances are good that taxes would be one of them, if only because successful superheroes seem like they would have lucrative merchandising opportunities.
It can be fun to think about what superheroes would do their taxes themselves and what superheroes would entrust such matters to the professionals. Those with an in-depth understanding of the subject might even want to brainstorm what taxation would look like for those with superpowers. If nothing else, governments are happy to use tax incentives to push policies.
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