So many stories begin with a dead body.
A dead body is a gateway to mystery.
A story to be solved.
The aftermath of incident that leads to further incident.
It works across a variety of genres, a plethora of storytelling styles.
Dead bodies: they do a story good.
AND SO, today’s flash fiction is precisely that — I want you to take your story and it must begin with a dead body. That’s it. That’s the only stipulation. In the first paragraph you must introduce a dead body. Doesn’t matter the context or the genre. But you gotta check that box marked
[ ] DEAD BODY.
You get 1000 words, as usual. Due by the 19th, at noon EST. Post the story at your online space, then drop a link in the comments below so we can all go check it out.
Begin.
251 responses to “Flash Fiction Challenge: The Dead Body”
[…] Friday, Chuck Wendig said the only thing we need for this Flash Fiction Challenge is a dead body. “Okay,” I said to myself, “let’s pretend that we’re […]
Okay, Chuck. Let’s pretend that we’re dead.
You Are Dead
That was shivering. Especially the burning bullet in the chest.
Daring use of 2nd person narrative. Refreshing!
That’s a really good story. More please.
I was intrigued and wanted to know more. Mission accomplished. (Maybe you should keep going too, it has an interesting perspective worth pursuing.)
Can’t get mine to show up in the comments, but I did write one and it’s on my website.
A wonderful vignette. I love that it wasn’t crowded into the word count. Short and sinful.
Fun challenge. Here’s mine. I hope you enjoy. http://johnchyriwsky.com/2015/06/15/the-purpose/
The only critique I have is right at the beginning. For some reason I thought the narrator’s job was having to watch snuff videos, perhaps looking for evidence, or trying to establish veracity. I didn’t get that it was a time skip until the very end. Is there any way to clarify the jump?
I’m writing mine for my #WriteAWhileWednesday feature….so will post in a bit. Likely quite a bit different than many here. 🙂 But fun reading everything!!
Nope. Not for purpose…for lust. Soooo sad?
Wow that was like a kick in the gut! Well done but very sad !
Great challenge, helped me with an online course assignment too. Here it is:
https://ceciliamrc.wordpress.com/2015/06/15/week-8/
Well now. That was fun. Tell yis what. You read mine, I read yours. https://grahamwrites.wordpress.com/2015/06/15/flash-fiction-dead-ringers/
Okay it’s a Deal.
Read yours …Loved it… Actually it was my favorite story so far!
I was LMAO most of the time.
Def following your blog !
An endless loop of duplicates? Fascinating idea. The elevator is a copier that just keeps shooting them out. They are going to run out of space in that car!
Ha! Nice. I like it. I’m seeing it in almost a Robert Rodriguez-esq loop of ultra violence.
How Murder Came to the Sasquatch
http://www.slipperywords.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=109&action=edit
Get the feeling, what with the clothes and the understanding/command of spoken English, that this particular Sasquatch was always destined to branch out from her clan.
Thanks for reading, and who knows what happens but it is definitely a transition point.
[…] one of Chuck’s Flash Fiction Challenges, from Terrible Minds. This comes in at exactly 1000 […]
Here goes nothin! https://catastrophejones.wordpress.com/2015/06/16/flash-fiction-challenge-the-dead-body/
oh dear. the poor guy is going to Hell? You make me question the role of Hell/Hel. One thing: did he commit suicide? that was the part I wasn’t completely sure about. I enjoyed the Jewish reference to Adonai.
He is.
He did.
And thank you!
I would hardly call that piece nothin’ !
Angels and cast-outs battled for eons over spiritual existentialism!
I say well done, Carastrophe Jones!
Thanks so much!
That was simply beautiful. Not a strong enough word, but for now it will do.
Well thank you!
As a newby here, I need to know da rulz. Are these supposed to be complete beginning to end stories or can they be ‘chapters’ that might make the reader want to read more to find out what happens? Not that I care much about rules, but I like to know how to best break them.
I trust you now…
http://www.penmanhouse.com/413955078
“About fifty feet above the first house they stopped, the figure of a man lay sprawled at its corner.”
Here she goes.
http://mschaotica.tumblr.com/post/121721318179/like-going-to-europe
Oooh, pretty scary! Not sure if she had a REALLY good reason, or if she was just a closet psycho! Lol
https://apostrophobic.wordpress.com/2015/06/17/the-day-it-rained-men/ Here’s mine!
This made me smile on a day that badly needed it–thanks!
Haha! Loved it. Flow was great, as was dialogue.
Funny! Love the headsmack
Spork … You cracked me up ! Great job
My contribution to the contest. First time here and first time publishing anything at wordpress. Please let me know if the link doesn’t. https://allenalien.wordpress.com/
This was a blast to read. Love the dialogue and the cadence of the story. Totally enjoyed it !
Thank you, thedebc. It was also a blast to write, Could have used another 1000 words though; had to be ruthless with the axe. Tears were flowing.
Yeah been there lol !!!
I agree—this was great! Welcome!
Thanks, Sam. Much appreciated. Great to be aboard.
Nice! A great first one. Clear voice and a good flow. Have you been doing these challenges before without publishing them?
Not on terribleminds, no. But I’ve put a few things up in writing.com that did OK, and I’m 400 pages into a novel. The opposite challenge to trying to write a complete detective story in 1000 words. Yikes! Haven’t tried to publish anything yet. Thanks immensely for the compliment, Eva.
Great story! I enjoyed the humanistic banter, sounded like real people.
Like you, this challenge was my first stab at writing for others to see, as well as blogs in general. For me, it is a tad overwhelming at first but I am getting the hang of it. Good luck in your writing journey.
Thanks, CR. I work hard at dialog. My wife thinks I’m nuts, sitting at my computer playing all the parts in different voices. She may be right. But I don’t care, it’s fun. And I have to hear it out loud to get it anywhere close to my take on authentic.
I’ll look for your work on this site too. It is overwhelming and challenging without a doubt to get naked in public here, but the writers in this community offer a lot of support for each other. Good luck to you as well.
Hey – great tale. Loved the pacing
[…] by the lovely and bearded Chuck Wendig. Prompt can be found here and consisted of ‘Include a dead body in the first […]
I couldn’t really get started on this challenge until I read an article about weird science which gave me a plotbunny. So this is my story: https://evathereseebert.wordpress.com/2015/06/18/flash-fiction-challenge-the-dead-body/
Wow, great plotbunny! I love the entanglement issue. I would read this book.
Mine goes live in a few hours.
http://www.ninjalibrarian.com/2015/06/friday-flash-dead-in-water.html
[…] this morning I was having a hard time getting my writing brain in gear. So I popped over to Terrible Minds to check out his latest writing challenge. Here are the […]
Okay, if I’ve done one of these challenges, it was long enough ago that I can’t remember. I sought this challenge out yesterday when my early morning brain could not focus on the current WIP. Thank you, Chuck, for the exercise:
http://violetgraves.com/2015/06/18/the-inn-itself-terrible-minds-flash-fiction-challenge/
Whoa! Hi creep factor! I’ll never complain about a hotel room again. 🙂
Ooooooooooh. That was a nice little chocolate mousse of a story. Just the right amount of everything and totally satisfying. I loved the ending lines!
Haha that was super fun, great job!
I love the line where she corrects his grammar!
Hey Violet. Loved the tale. Very eerie 🙂
Well, here she be:
http://www.bradpeirson.com/flash-fiction-revenge-reborn/
Please tell me you are going to keep writing this story!
That gave me palpitations. Well done.
Very nice! I would love to follow her tale.
https://ello.co/ashleykagaoan/post/_0kxPhPvCTXkh_cx64LjhA
Feels great to be writing some fiction again! Thank you Chuck Wendig for the inspiration!
Very poignant.
I wrote this without knowing what was going on. I hope you enjoy finding out as much as I did.
“The First Is The Worst”
http://fistfulofwits.com/2015/06/18/flash-fiction-the-first-is-the-worst/
[…] week, I participated in a flash fiction challenge from Chuck Wendig at Terrible Minds. The prompt was to begin a story with a dead body. A dead body must be presented within the first […]
-Dagger of The Damned-
An orphaned young woman tries to breach the crime scene of her brother’s death to obtain an ancient dagger and escape a fate worse than death.
http://lauriewriting.com/2015/06/18/dagger-of-the-damned-flashfiction-amwriting/
[…] of The Damned is a story participating in Chuck Wendig’s Flash Fiction Challenge. Enjoy! […]
[…] post is in response to this weeks Flash Fiction Challenge set by Chuck Wendig. This week he asked us to write a flash fiction story that had a dead body in the first paragraph. […]
Wow! You guy are all really quick at this! It took me a while to get my words down on the page.
This is only the second time I have taken part in one of the Flash Fiction Challenges. This challenge seemed to fun to let pass by.
Here it is: Phoenix
https://spoonfedbyaliens.wordpress.com/2015/06/18/flash-fiction-challenge-1000-words-the-dead-body-phoenix/
[…] A response to Chuck Wendig’s June 12 Flash Fiction Challenge. […]
Here’s mine!
https://gatheringmypieces.wordpress.com/2015/06/18/when-you-bury-your-mother/
Needless to say, I took some liberties with the definition of “dead body”…
:O
It’s like you knew my grandmother.
“…only her and a poor imitation of her…” Wow, very cool line. Deep story. Wonderfully done.
[…] FLASH FICTION CHALLENGE: THE DEAD BODY (Dead bodies: they do a story good.) […]
This challenge was tailor made for me, or so my family tells me. Here is mine. http://cowpasturechronicles.com/2015/06/18/flash-challenge-maggies-new-beginning/
Excellent! Reeled me in and gave new meaning to the word Karma. LOL
A fantastic story. It really grabbed me from the beginning.
[…] This week’s Flash Fiction Challenge starts with a body. A dead body. In the first paragraph. That’s the only requirement, the usual 1,000 words or so, blah, blah, blah. The idea was there, the execution is a little long, about 1,300 words. As always, comments and constructive criticisms are appreciated. […]
A little long and it could probably use some shortening and tightening.
http://pauljwillett.com/2015/06/18/flash-fiction-fallen-so-far-from-home/
Great challenge. I enjoyed trying to come up with something a bit different. “Ocean”
http://idreamofgypsies.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/night-on-oceans-waves.html
Wow! Crazy ride, Sam. Loved the stark imagery and action. “A bit different” indeed. Creative to the max. On the edge. More please.
Another late posting from me, I’m afraid, but I made it by my own noon, let alone yours 🙂 Fans of Sir Woebegone (who originally appeared over a year ago in The Empress and the Peanut) may enjoy this 🙂
http://jemimapett.com/blog/2015/06/19/flash-fiction-friday-sir-woebegone-thinks-and-draws/
Here’s my submission. A lot of fun writing this one.
http://www.bxbstudios.com/flash-fiction-the-dead-body/
my first entry ever into a Chuck Wendig challenge. Here goes nothing
http://teapotmusings.blogspot.com/2015/06/flash-fiction.html
[…] flash fiction challenge from Chuck Wendig–this time showcasing a dead body. Everybody loves a good dead body story since there’s […]
Here’s mine!
http://www.loudlyintroverted.com/need-some-aspirin/
Here’s mine. Running really late for me. https://mxgomez.wordpress.com/2015/06/19/black-magic-blues-a-chuck-wendig-challenge/
Loved it, one of my favorites so far! Super job weaving the witch stuff into the murder mystery. This is a book I’d like to read, so get busy, lol.
Thanks! I seem to run into “this would make for a great longer piece” issues all too often it seems.
Hey, you sound disappointed. But that’s a huge compliment !
The story is super on its own … obviously… however you sucked us into the character and/or the realm ,,, and we want more! 🙂
Wow, very nice.
Here it is. A subway collapses. A body pins down a commuter for days. Late arrival, Survival, and denial! It’s a feel good tale about new friends. Not really, sorta, it’s mostly just a creepy tale.
http://lissaword.blogspot.com/2015/06/morning-train.html
Great ending !
[…] and I wrote a story, Maggie’s New Beginning (Check it out) the (terribleminds) Flash Fiction Challenge (Chuck […]
I missed the week before this one so I ended up combining two flash fictions for this piece. Smashed up title Forgotten Bridesmaid with a dead body!
https://wormholelesstraveled.wordpress.com/2015/06/19/forgotten-bridesmaid/
Enjoy!
Thank you! 🙂
[…] Terrible Minds(weekly, as far as I can see)Dead Bodies […]