Random Topic Generator
Topics you can actually write about — personal, argumentative, creative and factual, mixed together. Draw several and keep the one that makes you want to start.
How to use this tool
- 1Choose how many topics you want.
- 2Use the filter if you only want part of the list.
- 3Press Generate.
- 4Copy the whole list, or download it as a text file.
Press Generate to draw your first topic.
Draw several, not one
One topic is a demand. Five topics is a choice, and a choice is much easier to answer. Even when you reject all five, the act of comparing them usually surfaces the thing you actually wanted to write about, which is the real point of the exercise.
From topic to title
A topic is the subject; a title is the angle you take on it. Once you have picked one, narrow it until it is specific enough to be interesting — then put it through the title capitalization tool so it is correctly capitalized before it goes anywhere.
Frequently asked questions
Are these good enough for a real essay or speech?
They are starting points, not finished titles. A topic like "the last thing you learned by failing at it" still needs you to narrow it down to one thing you can actually cover in the space you have.
What if none of them appeal?
Draw again, and notice which ones you rejected quickly. The topic you almost picked usually tells you more about what you want to write than the one you chose.
Is the result really random?
It is drawn by a seeded random number generator, which means the draw is unpredictable but repeatable. Press Generate again for a fresh seed and a completely different set.
Can the same result appear twice?
Not unless you turn on "Allow repeats". By default every item in a list is different, which is what you want for a game, a team draw or a set of prompts.
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