Chuck Wendig: Terribleminds

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April 25, 2014 / 92 Comments

Flash Fiction Challenge: Fifty Characters

Last week’s challenge: Pick an Opening Line and Go.

This week, I’ve given you 50 random character snidbits (gleaned from Seventh Sanctum character generators).

You will choose five of these and include them in a 1500-word piece of short fiction.

Post at your online domicile.

Link back here in the comments.

Due in one week — by May 2nd, noon EST.

Fifty Characters

  1. The slothful, unheroic teacher.
  2. The fear-ridden, short-tempered theologian.
  3. The unathletic, boastful gigolo who belongs to a secret organization.
  4. The aggravated thief needing a friend.
  5. The athletic, cruel architect looking for a challenge.
  6. The negative rogue.
  7. The clumsy, wise, sleazy mentor on the wrong side of the law.
  8. The athletic, tired, arrogant bounty hunter with no hope.
  9. The agile, serene traveler.
  10. The philandering architect searching for purpose.
  11. The actor with unexpected depths.
  12. The laid-back champion who hates children.
  13. The dexterous, funny hermit.
  14. The strong, contemplative prospector.
  15. The plain, biased gigolo who fears the future.
  16. The pretender who can’t resist a fight.
  17. The weak, homely ambassador who suffers from a chronic disease.
  18. The shiftless rascal.
  19. The athletic, tough wanderer.
  20. The dexterous, neurotic, chaste servant who is a complete fraud.
  21. The awkward, tolerant, philandering teacher who hates children.
  22. The weak, tolerant architect.
  23. The quiet wanderer.
  24. The biased prostitute with uncanny abilities.
  25. The graceful official searching for truth.
  26. The mysterious, heroic outlaw.
  27. The unpredictable hunter who is considered the worst in his/her profession.
  28. The selfless bandit.
  29. The poised, snide, bloodthirsty fence with uncanny abilities.
  30. The tough, burnt-out, opinionated assistant hiding a dark secret.
  31. The clumsy, materialistic, moralizing teacher searching for employment.
  32. The poised sailor who is considered the best in his/her profession.
  33. The unhealthy jailer.
  34. The tactless ambassador with big dreams.
  35. The healthy trader with unusual luck.
  36. The rude boatman.
  37. The enduring, joyful, tactless actor.
  38. The clumsy, generous fence who fell in with the wrong crowd.
  39. The agile heir.
  40. The plain actor.
  41. The dexterous, persuasive student from a small family.
  42. The puerile, aloof smuggler who belongs to a secret organization.
  43. The strong actor searching for a family member.
  44. The domineering assassin looking for a challenge.
  45. The friendly musician.
  46. The brutal businessperson.
  47. The plain comic.
  48. The spy who hates children.
  49. The unheroic impostor.
  50. The pompous boatman who has an odd way of speaking.

78 Comments

Add yours →

  1. Mark Gardner says:

    Interesting idea, I’ll be unable to write until Sunday, though. Them ideas will percolate until then…

    April 25, 2014 — 12:29 AM

    Reply

  3. Eva Therese says:

    Can I just say, that I think it’s funny, you use Seventh Sanctum as well? I use that page every time I have to name something on the fly. Minor characters, cities, whatever.

    April 25, 2014 — 3:36 AM

    Reply

  4. Pavowski says:

    This is the part where I say, okay, that looks tricky, and then I remember that it’s called a challenge and is therefore, of course, meant to be tricky.

    But still.

    Five characters in 1500 words? That’s tricky!

    April 25, 2014 — 5:43 AM

    Reply

  5. Jim Franklin says:

    They were randomly generated, so I figure they should also be randomly selected. I got…

    The weak, tolerant architect.
    The unathletic, boastful gigolo who belongs to a secret organization.
    The brutal businessperson.
    The plain comic.
    The spy who hates children.

    Hmmmmm…. off we go then.

    April 25, 2014 — 6:02 AM

    Reply

  6. springinkerl says:

    The dexterous, funny hermit.
    The biased prostitute with uncanny abilities.
    The friendly musician.
    The rude boatman.
    The domineering assassin looking for a challenge.

    The gears are already turning.

    April 25, 2014 — 6:29 AM

    Reply

  7. Mozette says:

    You gave us a real curve ball, Chuck! But you know me! I worked it out and swung the bat and I think I hit a home run! 😀

    http://youcantgoback-andotherimpossibilities.blogspot.com.au/2014/04/devils-collection-agency.html

    April 25, 2014 — 8:31 AM

    Reply

  8. Thom Marrion says:

    They all fight crime!

    April 25, 2014 — 11:35 AM

    Reply

  9. JP Juniper says:

    I am totally new at this not-just-lurking deal, but I loved this challenge. So … yeah. Here is my thing:

    http://jpjuniper.svbtle.com/four-acrobats-and-a-moon

    April 25, 2014 — 12:42 PM

    Reply

  10. J. Sander says:

    Okay, I have no idea what a “fence” is other than what a literal fence is but this one ( 38.The clumsy, generous fence who fell in with the wrong crowd.) inspired me to write the below little flash fiction. It’s not 1500 words but hey, it’s Friday and I’m feelin’ rebellious.

    Check it out and let me know what you think!

    http://dont-delete-me.com/2014/04/25/a-letter/

    April 25, 2014 — 2:07 PM

    Reply

  11. Free Jack Klugman says:

    My story features:

    • The slothful, unheroic teacher
    • The negative rogue
    • The weak, tolerant architect
    • The friendly musician
    • The poised sailor who is considered the best in his/her profession.

    You may find it here: http://freejackklugman.com/shorts/sedition/

    Enjoy!

    April 25, 2014 — 4:12 PM

    Reply

  12. angelacavanaugh says:

    I went ahead and let random.org pick my characters for me.
    The plain, biased gigolo who fears the future.
    The strong, contemplative prospector.
    The puerile, aloof smuggler who belongs to a secret organization.
    The selfless bandit.
    The domineering assassin looking for a challenge.

    Somehow it ended up with a scifi, heist flavor. lol enjoy!
    http://angelacavanaugh.wordpress.com/2014/04/25/flash-fiction-friday-gathered/

    April 25, 2014 — 6:54 PM

    Reply

  13. Doug Daniel says:

    The clumsy, wise, sleazy mentor on the wrong side of the law.
    The quiet wanderer.
    The agile heir.
    The domineering assassin looking for a challenge.
    The friendly musician.

    http://douglasdanieldotcom.wordpress.com/2014/04/25/short-fiction-challenge-the-crossing/

    Another failure, forsooth.

    April 26, 2014 — 2:06 AM

    Reply

  14. murgatroid98 says:

    Very, very good.

    April 26, 2014 — 6:39 PM

    Reply

  15. josef chemtob says:

    what do you do if you don’t have your own online domaine but still want to participate

    April 27, 2014 — 12:22 PM

    Reply

  16. pmcoltrane says:

    This challenge looked interesting, so I thought I would de-lurk and give it a try.

    http://ftlpizza.wordpress.com/2014/04/27/puck-uranus/

    April 27, 2014 — 2:14 PM

    Reply

    • fadedglories says:

      I think you have a great story there. It has an unusual setting, a smidgeon of love interest, a degree of tension and the possibility of more to come. I’d buy that in print.

      April 29, 2014 — 10:10 AM

      Reply

  17. Rachel says:

    The clumsy, wise, sleazy mentor on the wrong side of the law.
    The dexterous, neurotic, chaste servant who is a complete fraud.
    The weak, homely ambassador who suffers from a chronic disease.
    The dexterous, funny hermit.
    The selfless bandit.

    Welp, Random.org speaketh. Off to wordsmithery I go.

    April 27, 2014 — 3:15 PM

    Reply

  18. Scott A. Bullard (@writingbull) says:

    Here is my shot at this. Ha, foreshadowing. http://glipho.com/writingbull/five-liars

    The fear-ridden, short-tempered theologian.
    The unathletic, boastful gigolo who belongs to a secret organization.
    The actor with unexpected depths.
    The weak, homely ambassador who suffers from a chronic disease.
    The tough, burnt-out, opinionated assistant hiding a dark secret

    April 27, 2014 — 5:35 PM

    Reply

  19. Sam Phillips says:

    Here we go then. http://idreamofgypsies.blogspot.com/

    I chose…

    The graceful official searching for truth
    The actor with unexpected depths
    The puerile aloof smuggler who belongs to a secret organisation
    The Rude boatman
    The fear-ridden, short tempered theologian

    …and I broke the word limit slightly. The story just sort of took off on its own! But it ended up as the story Method Acting.

    Hope you like it

    April 28, 2014 — 4:54 AM

    Reply

    • fadedglories says:

      I think your choice of characters was interesting. Great idea. I didn’t guess what was going on till near the end.This was a hard one wasn’t it? I found the word limit difficult too.

      April 28, 2014 — 9:27 AM

      Reply

    • physicsjenn says:

      This is a really weird comment, but I’ve been doing British accent work for a play I’m in, and I really enjoyed reading the narration in my accent. Also, I liked your take on the boatman.

      April 30, 2014 — 9:32 AM

      Reply

  20. fadedglories says:

    My story ‘Three Wishes’ is over on
    http://nanowrimoroman.blogspot.co.uk/
    please take a look and tell me what you think.

    Ta ever so

    April 28, 2014 — 5:08 AM

    Reply

  21. Alex says:

    I’ve been lurking (and writing for the challenges) for a while but I’ve never been brave enough to post anything until now.

    *gathers courage*

    A random number generator gave me these:

    The mysterious, heroic outlaw.
    The agile, serene traveler.
    The strong actor searching for a family member.
    The unheroic impostor.
    The domineering assassin looking for a challenge.

    And I came up with this:

    http://justafeverdream.wordpress.com/2014/04/28/the-rat/

    🙂

    April 29, 2014 — 6:27 AM

    Reply

  22. Ronit Jadhav says:

    Okay, I ran into this blog only a week ago, and I have to say, this is one of the most awesomest blogs I have come across (not being a kiss-ass). I love writing, like everyone else here I suppose, and have found a lot of interesting posts here.
    Anyways, here is the link to my blog post that contains the story. Sorry for the long comment. I hope the story makes up for it 😛

    http://darkwordsfromablackmind.blogspot.in/2014/04/the-tragedy-of-haraki.html

    April 29, 2014 — 3:04 PM

    Reply

  23. physicsjenn says:

    I got:
    31. The clumsy, materialistic, moralizing teacher searching for employment
    46. The brutal businessperson
    41. The dextrous, persuasive student from a small family
    23. The quiet wanderer
    16. The pretender who can’t resist a fight
    by using random.org. I was having a time coming up with something, but this came to me while I was driving to work. I added one additional character.

    http://jennwritesstories.wordpress.com/2014/04/30/terribleminds-flash-fic-challenge-the-interview/

    April 30, 2014 — 9:23 AM

    Reply

  24. Dana Alyce-Schwarz says:

    Here’s mine…I couldn’t think of a better title so I just kept the working title I was using. XP

    Did anyone else find it was easier to write this as a fantasy genre?

    http://contrastsolution.blogspot.com/2014/05/weekly-writings.html

    May 1, 2014 — 12:20 PM

    Reply

  25. R.T. Wilder says:

    Mine uses these characters:
    5 The athletic, cruel architect looking for a challenge.
    26 The mysterious, heroic outlaw.
    27 The unpredictable hunter who is considered the worst in his/her profession.
    29 The poised, snide, bloodthirsty fence with uncanny abilities.
    30 The tough, burnt-out, opinionated assistant hiding a dark secret.

    http://rtwilder.wordpress.com/2014/05/01/the-curators-house/

    May 1, 2014 — 3:08 PM

    Reply

  26. Jemima Pett says:

    I didnt want too much repetition from the random generator thing, so I selected my five to go on a Pilgrimage:
    http://jemimapett.com/blog/2014/05/02/flash-fiction-friday-pilgrimage/
    Live at 7:09 pm this blog time (just after midnight UK time)

    May 1, 2014 — 3:32 PM

    Reply

  27. Amber Roberts says:

    Alrighty, here we go! My five were:
    The aggravated thief needing a friend
    The athletic, tired, arrogant bounty hunter with no hope
    Mysterious, Heroic outlaw
    The unpredictable hunter who is considered the worst in his/her profession
    The domineering assassin looking for a challenge

    And you can read it here: http://wellfrockedlass.wordpress.com/2014/05/01/5characters/

    May 1, 2014 — 8:37 PM

    Reply

  28. Rebecca Douglass says:

    Squeezing in under the wire as usual. I randomly picked six, then chose five of those for my story. Which five is listed at the end of the story. I took liberties 😀
    http://www.ninjalibrarian.com/2014/05/friday-flash-fiction-cleats.html

    May 2, 2014 — 12:37 AM

    Reply

  29. momdude says:

    A little cute and “fourth wall-ly”, but I had fun writing it, hope you have fun reading it.

    #12 – The laid-back champion who hates children
    #13 – The dexterous, funny hermit
    #21 – The awkward, tolerant, philandering teacher who hates children
    #32 – The poised sailor who is considered the best in his/her profession
    #03 – The unathletic, boastful gigolo who belongs to a secret organization

    http://pauljwillett.com/2014/05/01/flash-fiction-sample-collection/

    May 2, 2014 — 2:22 AM

    Reply

  30. clacrymosa says:

    I tried. This is my first time ever writing a piece like this. Hope you guys like it.

    44. The domineering assassin looking for a challenge.
    19. The athletic, tough wanderer.
    48. The spy who hates children.
    28. The selfless bandit.
    7. The clumsy, wise, sleazy mentor on the wrong side of the law.

    http://r0kud3n4sh1.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/the-bandit/

    May 2, 2014 — 4:08 AM

    Reply

  31. Chuck says:

    This was a fun challenge, and it was a challenge! Hope you have fun reading.

    16.The pretender who can’t resist a fight.
    17.The weak, homely ambassador who suffers from a chronic disease.
    23.The quiet wanderer.
    24.The biased prostitute with uncanny abilities.
    36.The rude boatman.

    1,464 words.

    http://storedstory.blogspot.com/p/fast-fiction-slow-whisper.html

    May 2, 2014 — 8:06 AM

    Reply

  32. Jon Jefferson says:

    Coming in just under the wire this week. Check out Ice in the Fryer…
    http://www.10thdaypublishing.com/ice_fryer_bodycount/

    May 2, 2014 — 10:56 AM

    Reply

  33. AE Smith says:

    Out of time and over word limit (sorry), I present Provers and Portents: http://gigantocellularis.tumblr.com/post/84529879212/flash-fiction-provers-and-portents, in which we encounter the following characters (in no particular order):

    -The fear-ridden, short tempered theologian
    -The philandering architect searching for purpose
    -The biased prostitute with uncanny abilities
    -The agile heir
    -The pompous boatman who has an odd way of speaking

    May 2, 2014 — 12:40 PM

    Reply

  35. Ebonstorm says:

    I arrived too late to win (accursed day job) but I did want to submit my story just the same: Come Forth the Rising Tide: http://wp.me/p3t25B-J

    My characters were:

    The slothful, unheroic teacher – Darrin Wells, former master of the mystic arts, now drunken slackard after loss of best student

    The fear-ridden, short-tempered theologian – Father Finnigan, harbinger of the Rising Tide, a demonic force slowly encroaching on the heroes location

    The athletic, tired, arrogant bounty hunter with no hope – Renwick, bounty hunter and immune to magic, bringing in next best magician for the job

    The philandering architect searching for purpose – Collin Reaves: Creator of the Artful Madness, a living house with the ability span dimensions

    The shiftless rascal – Jillian Pace, second most powerful magician in the world, forcibly recruited to retrieve Gabriel’s Horn from Hell.

    Thaddeus Howze
    Master of Hub City Blues: http://hubcityblues

    May 2, 2014 — 7:22 PM

    Reply

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