In honor of the 31 days of October (not Baskin Robbins), I present you with 31 fall story prompts for your own and family stories.

Here in Michigan, the fall colors are peaking. This year is spectacularly vibrant. While taking photos, trying to memorialize the beauty, I started remembering falls of the past. Here the fall story prompts I came up with.

Fall Story Prompts to Help you Write about your Favorite Autumn Memories

• Describe your favorite fall trips. Why did you travel in fall? Was this a tradition?
• What about the fall climate and weather where you grew up: Was it different from where you live now? If you moved around as a child, did you encounter different types of fall seasons?
• Did your school or community have any special fall festivals?
• Did you have a favorite fall craft, such as using wax paper to preserve leaves?
• Was Halloween a big “thing” where you grew up? If so, where did you go trick-or-treating? What types of costumes did you don? Do any Halloween nights stand out in your memory?
• What did you love about autumn as a child? What do you like about it now?
• Connect with your five senses. What memories do you have of distinct fall-related smells, sounds, tastes, sights, or tactile experiences?
• Did your family have fall gatherings? Hunting trips? (I’m purposefully leaving out Thanksgiving. That’s a whole separate list of prompts.)
• Any other favorite fall memory.
• Google some famous fall quotes. Which ones stand out to you? Why do they resonate with you?

Fall Story Prompts for Family Stories

• Preserve family or ancestor harvest stories. How do these stories differ from harvests of today?
• Write about Halloween with your kids. What were they excited about? What types of costumes did they want? Did you make them or buy them? How did you decorate the house?
• Recipes for apples, pumpkin, or other fall harvest items. As you write about them, try making the recipes again with family members and snap some candid shots as you do.
• Write a sketch or story about a favorite relative or ancestor.
• Don’t want to play favorites? Write about a family member who was born or died in October.
• Describe family episodes that occurred in Fall, such as storms, trauma, or even famous military battles.
• Walk in your ancestors’ shoes: Describe an October in a specific geographic location during an earlier time period.
• Share how you’ve displayed memories in your home. Be sure to include photos!
• Scan photos or documents and write about them. What do you know about the people and places pictured or mentioned?  What do you hope to still discover?
• Scrapbook some favorite fall photos and include a journal entry. What made each moment special?
• Conduct oral history interviews and share them with your family. If you’re transcribing them, you can find some great technology tips at life.

There are more tips in Family History Month Activities for Non-Genealogists.

Write about this Fall

• How is this Fall different in view of the coronavirus pandemic?
• How do you think the place you live is different from other areas of the world in terms of the COVID-19 crisi?
• Write a letter to your pre-pandemic self. What advice would you give? What wisdom have you gathered?
• What are you grateful for?
• What new fall traditions have you started?
• Free write about anything else that is tugging at your consciousness.

Writing Block Busters – Photo Prompts

Choose one of the below photographic fall story prompts, then set a timer for seven (7) minutes. No editing. Just write.

Your Turn

What have I left out?  What fall story prompts would you add to the list?  Please, leave your comments below.