Flash Fiction Challenge: The Dead Body
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.
Flash Fiction: You Are Dead | Blue Ink Alchemy
June 15, 2015 @ 1:33 PM
[…] 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 […]
June 15, 2015 @ 1:34 PM
Okay, Chuck. Let’s pretend that we’re dead.
You Are Dead
June 15, 2015 @ 2:20 PM
That was shivering. Especially the burning bullet in the chest.
June 15, 2015 @ 8:14 PM
Daring use of 2nd person narrative. Refreshing!
June 15, 2015 @ 9:23 PM
That’s a really good story. More please.
June 16, 2015 @ 3:06 PM
I was intrigued and wanted to know more. Mission accomplished. (Maybe you should keep going too, it has an interesting perspective worth pursuing.)
June 15, 2015 @ 3:00 PM
Can’t get mine to show up in the comments, but I did write one and it’s on my website.
June 16, 2015 @ 3:58 AM
A wonderful vignette. I love that it wasn’t crowded into the word count. Short and sinful.
June 15, 2015 @ 3:57 PM
Fun challenge. Here’s mine. I hope you enjoy. http://johnchyriwsky.com/2015/06/15/the-purpose/
June 16, 2015 @ 5:22 AM
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?
June 15, 2015 @ 10:03 PM
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!!
June 16, 2015 @ 12:15 AM
Nope. Not for purpose…for lust. Soooo sad?
June 16, 2015 @ 12:59 AM
Wow that was like a kick in the gut! Well done but very sad !
June 16, 2015 @ 8:15 AM
Great challenge, helped me with an online course assignment too. Here it is:
https://ceciliamrc.wordpress.com/2015/06/15/week-8/
June 16, 2015 @ 1:12 PM
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/
June 16, 2015 @ 3:01 PM
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 !
June 16, 2015 @ 3:23 PM
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!
June 17, 2015 @ 7:12 PM
Ha! Nice. I like it. I’m seeing it in almost a Robert Rodriguez-esq loop of ultra violence.
June 16, 2015 @ 1:58 PM
How Murder Came to the Sasquatch
http://www.slipperywords.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=109&action=edit
June 16, 2015 @ 6:26 PM
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.
June 16, 2015 @ 8:01 PM
Thanks for reading, and who knows what happens but it is definitely a transition point.
Flash Fiction Challenge – The Dead Body | Catastrophe Jones
June 16, 2015 @ 3:19 PM
[…] one of Chuck’s Flash Fiction Challenges, from Terrible Minds. This comes in at exactly 1000 […]
June 16, 2015 @ 3:27 PM
Here goes nothin! https://catastrophejones.wordpress.com/2015/06/16/flash-fiction-challenge-the-dead-body/
June 16, 2015 @ 3:58 PM
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.
June 16, 2015 @ 10:17 PM
He is.
He did.
And thank you!
June 16, 2015 @ 4:53 PM
I would hardly call that piece nothin’ !
Angels and cast-outs battled for eons over spiritual existentialism!
I say well done, Carastrophe Jones!
June 16, 2015 @ 10:11 PM
Thanks so much!
June 17, 2015 @ 11:06 AM
That was simply beautiful. Not a strong enough word, but for now it will do.
June 17, 2015 @ 11:48 AM
Well thank you!
June 16, 2015 @ 6:26 PM
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.
June 16, 2015 @ 7:55 PM
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.”
June 16, 2015 @ 10:20 PM
Here she goes.
http://mschaotica.tumblr.com/post/121721318179/like-going-to-europe
June 18, 2015 @ 8:55 AM
Oooh, pretty scary! Not sure if she had a REALLY good reason, or if she was just a closet psycho! Lol
June 17, 2015 @ 12:00 AM
https://apostrophobic.wordpress.com/2015/06/17/the-day-it-rained-men/ Here’s mine!
June 17, 2015 @ 1:39 PM
This made me smile on a day that badly needed it–thanks!
June 18, 2015 @ 7:18 PM
Haha! Loved it. Flow was great, as was dialogue.
June 19, 2015 @ 2:30 PM
Funny! Love the headsmack
June 17, 2015 @ 6:54 PM
Spork … You cracked me up ! Great job
June 18, 2015 @ 2:10 AM
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/
June 18, 2015 @ 7:39 AM
This was a blast to read. Love the dialogue and the cadence of the story. Totally enjoyed it !
June 18, 2015 @ 11:04 AM
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.
June 18, 2015 @ 1:05 PM
Yeah been there lol !!!
June 18, 2015 @ 8:44 AM
I agree—this was great! Welcome!
June 18, 2015 @ 11:02 AM
Thanks, Sam. Much appreciated. Great to be aboard.
June 18, 2015 @ 9:59 AM
Nice! A great first one. Clear voice and a good flow. Have you been doing these challenges before without publishing them?
June 18, 2015 @ 11:00 AM
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.
June 19, 2015 @ 10:22 AM
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.
June 19, 2015 @ 2:52 PM
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.
June 20, 2015 @ 5:00 AM
Hey – great tale. Loved the pacing
Flash Fiction Challenge – The Dead Body | Write about now
June 18, 2015 @ 8:44 AM
[…] by the lovely and bearded Chuck Wendig. Prompt can be found here and consisted of ‘Include a dead body in the first […]
June 18, 2015 @ 8:50 AM
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/
June 19, 2015 @ 3:04 PM
Wow, great plotbunny! I love the entanglement issue. I would read this book.
June 18, 2015 @ 10:16 AM
Mine goes live in a few hours.
http://www.ninjalibrarian.com/2015/06/friday-flash-dead-in-water.html
The Inn Itself: Terrible Minds Flash Fiction Challenge | Violet Graves
June 18, 2015 @ 10:31 AM
[…] 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 […]
June 18, 2015 @ 10:38 AM
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/
June 18, 2015 @ 10:46 AM
Whoa! Hi creep factor! I’ll never complain about a hotel room again. 🙂
June 19, 2015 @ 12:05 AM
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!
June 19, 2015 @ 3:40 PM
Haha that was super fun, great job!
I love the line where she corrects his grammar!
June 19, 2015 @ 10:17 AM
Hey Violet. Loved the tale. Very eerie 🙂
June 18, 2015 @ 2:54 PM
Well, here she be:
http://www.bradpeirson.com/flash-fiction-revenge-reborn/
June 18, 2015 @ 3:00 PM
Please tell me you are going to keep writing this story!
June 19, 2015 @ 12:09 AM
That gave me palpitations. Well done.
June 19, 2015 @ 2:39 PM
Very nice! I would love to follow her tale.
June 18, 2015 @ 3:31 PM
https://ello.co/ashleykagaoan/post/_0kxPhPvCTXkh_cx64LjhA
Feels great to be writing some fiction again! Thank you Chuck Wendig for the inspiration!
June 18, 2015 @ 9:01 PM
Very poignant.
June 18, 2015 @ 4:03 PM
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/
Flash Fiction Challenge: Filling The Void | Surrender & Soar
June 18, 2015 @ 5:53 PM
[…] 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 […]
June 18, 2015 @ 6:03 PM
-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/
Dagger of The Damned #FlashFiction #AmWriting | LaurieWriting
June 18, 2015 @ 6:09 PM
[…] of The Damned is a story participating in Chuck Wendig’s Flash Fiction Challenge. Enjoy! […]
Flash Fiction Challenge – 1000 Words, The Dead Body: Phoenix | Spoon-fed by Aliens
June 18, 2015 @ 6:31 PM
[…] 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. […]
June 18, 2015 @ 6:37 PM
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/
When You Bury Your Mother | Gathering My Pieces
June 18, 2015 @ 6:44 PM
[…] A response to Chuck Wendig’s June 12 Flash Fiction Challenge. […]
June 18, 2015 @ 6:44 PM
Here’s mine!
https://gatheringmypieces.wordpress.com/2015/06/18/when-you-bury-your-mother/
June 18, 2015 @ 9:13 PM
Needless to say, I took some liberties with the definition of “dead body”…
June 19, 2015 @ 12:13 AM
:O
It’s like you knew my grandmother.
June 19, 2015 @ 2:56 PM
“…only her and a poor imitation of her…” Wow, very cool line. Deep story. Wonderfully done.
Flash Challenge – Maggie’s New Beginning | COW PASTURE CHRONICLES
June 18, 2015 @ 10:39 PM
[…] FLASH FICTION CHALLENGE: THE DEAD BODY (Dead bodies: they do a story good.) […]
June 18, 2015 @ 10:40 PM
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/
June 19, 2015 @ 9:15 AM
Excellent! Reeled me in and gave new meaning to the word Karma. LOL
June 19, 2015 @ 10:10 AM
A fantastic story. It really grabbed me from the beginning.
Flash Fiction: Fallen So Far From Home | We Love The Stars Too Fondly
June 19, 2015 @ 2:55 AM
[…] 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. […]
June 19, 2015 @ 2:56 AM
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/
June 19, 2015 @ 4:53 AM
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
June 20, 2015 @ 11:55 AM
Wow! Crazy ride, Sam. Loved the stark imagery and action. “A bit different” indeed. Creative to the max. On the edge. More please.
June 19, 2015 @ 6:38 AM
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/
June 19, 2015 @ 9:18 AM
Here’s my submission. A lot of fun writing this one.
http://www.bxbstudios.com/flash-fiction-the-dead-body/
June 19, 2015 @ 10:37 AM
my first entry ever into a Chuck Wendig challenge. Here goes nothing
http://teapotmusings.blogspot.com/2015/06/flash-fiction.html
Need some aspirin (short story #22) - Loudly Introverted
June 19, 2015 @ 10:47 AM
[…] flash fiction challenge from Chuck Wendig–this time showcasing a dead body. Everybody loves a good dead body story since there’s […]
June 19, 2015 @ 10:49 AM
Here’s mine!
http://www.loudlyintroverted.com/need-some-aspirin/
June 19, 2015 @ 11:19 AM
Here’s mine. Running really late for me. https://mxgomez.wordpress.com/2015/06/19/black-magic-blues-a-chuck-wendig-challenge/
June 20, 2015 @ 7:31 AM
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.
June 20, 2015 @ 2:28 PM
Thanks! I seem to run into “this would make for a great longer piece” issues all too often it seems.
June 20, 2015 @ 4:09 PM
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! 🙂
June 21, 2015 @ 1:34 PM
Wow, very nice.
June 19, 2015 @ 11:32 AM
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
June 20, 2015 @ 7:22 AM
Great ending !
Put Discipline into Your Daily Writing Schedule | COW PASTURE CHRONICLES
June 19, 2015 @ 12:56 PM
[…] and I wrote a story, Maggie’s New Beginning (Check it out) the (terribleminds) Flash Fiction Challenge (Chuck […]
June 19, 2015 @ 5:56 PM
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!
June 19, 2015 @ 8:29 PM
Thank you! 🙂
Catalysis | Silicon of the Internet
December 30, 2016 @ 3:05 PM
[…] Terrible Minds(weekly, as far as I can see)Dead Bodies […]