I’m going to give you ten one-word titles.
You will pick one, either by choice or by random generator, to be the title of a piece of flash fiction for this week’s flash fiction challenge.
You’ve got ~1000 words, due by Friday, April 7th, noon EST.
Post the story online.
Link back here.
Here are the ten one-word titles.
Do not combine them.
Do not speak them aloud because they may be a magic spell or launch codes.
CHOOSE.
- Holiday
- Undulate
- Juniper
- Jumper
- Permanence
- Ossuary
- Supernumerary
- Sidereal
- Bushcraft
- Tourmaline
The Urban Spaceman says:
I picked “Holiday” because as soon as I saw it, I knew the story I had to write:
https://theurbanspaceman.net/2017/03/31/holiday-flash-fiction/
670 words, but I hope they’re 670 enjoyable ones! (no refunds given if story is not enjoyed)
March 31, 2017 — 9:01 AM
caramckee says:
This is just a little flash of fiction, what was on my mind at 4.30am when I couldn’t sleep!
http://caralmckee.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/undulate.html
March 31, 2017 — 9:06 AM
David Ralph Lewis says:
Dam, I love this. Great use of language and a brilliant premise
April 6, 2017 — 11:52 AM
caramckee says:
Thank you!
April 7, 2017 — 12:37 PM
nwjn says:
Beautiful, dream-like. I really like notion of dragons being responsible for earthquakes and tsunamis.
April 7, 2017 — 11:46 AM
The Urban Spaceman says:
Very nicely done! It feels poetic and flowing, even though it’s prose.
April 12, 2017 — 8:46 AM
forgottenrat says:
“Do not speak them aloud because they may be a magic spell or launch codes.”
Damn. I just spoke them aloud and some guy with a metal arm showed up and tried to kill me.
March 31, 2017 — 10:53 AM
Dave says:
Sorry about that. When I read them out loud my arm turned to metal and I got sucked over to your universe. I wasn’t really trying to kill you per se, but the whole ordeal had put me off my tea. Apologies.
March 31, 2017 — 12:24 PM
The Urban Spaceman says:
Oh. My. Gawd.
CABLE is at your house?! 😮 I can’t wait to see who plays him in the next Deadpool movie.
March 31, 2017 — 2:54 PM
Elizabeth Tweed says:
I didn’t make 1,000 word, but I also didn’t really feel like making this one longer: https://tealeavesandtweed.com/2017/03/31/flash-fiction-juniper/
March 31, 2017 — 1:01 PM
petitemalfoi says:
Here’s my submission for the latest challenge. I had chosen “Ossuary.” Hope I got it right context-wise. Enjoy!
https://brainfartcom.wordpress.com/2017/03/31/chuck-wendigs-flash-fiction-challenge-ossuary/
March 31, 2017 — 2:20 PM
curioushart says:
Something like that can really ruin your day.
April 7, 2017 — 6:25 PM
Mark Gardner says:
I decided to use all ten words in my flash. It’s a short from the Days Until Home universe: https://article94.wordpress.com/2017/03/31/permanence/
March 31, 2017 — 11:30 PM
S RENEE GREENE says:
JUNIPER: https://www.facebook.com/notes/grams-cup/juniper/1818180955111018
April 1, 2017 — 6:22 PM
Mozette says:
http://youcantgoback-andotherimpossibilities.blogspot.com.au/2017/04/tourmaline.html
enjoy…
April 2, 2017 — 1:28 AM
Elizabeth Tweed says:
I didn’t make it all the way to 1,000 words, but here is my offering this week: https://tealeavesandtweed.com/2017/03/31/flash-fiction-juniper/
April 2, 2017 — 11:30 AM
The Writer says:
“Permanence” —Thanks for keeping me busy. I went the WEIRD route lol. Enjoy!
https://atcrump.com/2017/04/02/permanence/
April 2, 2017 — 1:50 PM
The Writer says:
Oops, bad link. Here’s a working one. https://atcrump.com/2017/04/03/permanence/
April 5, 2017 — 12:55 PM
mreauow says:
I gave it a go. Here’s my link:
https://becca.mreauowpublishing.com/bushcraft/
April 3, 2017 — 9:31 AM
nwjn says:
I enjoyed the sparseness of detail, and the ambiguity. Thanks for posting.
April 7, 2017 — 12:17 PM
The Penultimate Universe says:
Here is my attempt. I went with the word Permanence. I think my story fits the brief, and the word. See what you think!
https://penultimateuniverse.wordpress.com/2017/04/03/permanence/
April 3, 2017 — 10:16 AM
Shana L. Horn says:
One of two I am doing for this week is posted at http://slwhshorts.blogspot.com/2017/04/jumper.html
April 4, 2017 — 1:46 AM
Modern Authors says:
Here’s mine. I picked Tourmaline. Is it in the spirit of the title? Maybe.
https://modernauthors.org/2017/04/04/tourmaline/
April 4, 2017 — 1:57 PM
jakashadows says:
https://jakashadows.wordpress.com/2017/04/04/flash-fiction-sidereal/
“Sidereal”
1,056 words
April 4, 2017 — 2:07 PM
Lisa says:
Still don’t have this one written because I hate the title the random number generator spit back at me and I’m silently protesting the fact that I feel like I must obey the generator.
But in looking through some of my old writing stuff, I came across some items I wrote for a different challenge and thought I’d offer this suggestion up because I found it so difficult. It really make me think about editing as an important ally and not just as the usual idea-eating judgmental self-flagellation.
Write a story in 101 words.
That’s it.
We writers (even the unpaid unprofessional pen monkeys, of which I am one) have big love for words and we use them all, as if they are cheap or something. But what if words were premium and we had to pay to use them? What if words cost us like, a hundred dollars each? Could we write a whole story for the low, low out-of-pocket price-gouging cost of ten-thousand simoleons? Oh the precious, shiny, expensive-as-heck words! Chuck, I would be delighted it if you would not only use this challenge, but also do it with us. You’ve got 10,100 clams just laying around to spend on words, right?
April 4, 2017 — 2:26 PM
Daryl Nash says:
I started out with Permanence as the title, thinking I’d write something about memory and change and just about anything but permanence, so then there was Ossuary, which I just couldn’t get out of my mind, and I’m sorry oh so sorry…
http://wp.me/p1Vfyv-8z
April 4, 2017 — 10:38 PM
Vicente L Ruiz says:
I chose Supernumerary, and a space-opera-like scifi story sprouted from there:
https://medium.com/@VicenteLRuiz/supernumerary-312c5ae0e6b
April 5, 2017 — 5:09 AM
caramckee says:
Can’t work out how to comment on Medium but I love your story, especially the ‘ like he never did ‘ bit.
April 5, 2017 — 8:35 AM
Vicente L Ruiz says:
Thank you!
To comment, you need to sign up to medium (I use Twitter for that) and look for the comment box at the end of an article. And depending on the browser you use, it might not be there. Works well with Chrome and Firefox, not on Vivaldi.
April 6, 2017 — 3:38 AM
nwjn says:
Hi, all. Supernumerary spoke to us (Erik and me). Here you go!
https://nwjnmusings.wordpress.com/writing/supernumerary/
April 5, 2017 — 10:34 AM
curioushart says:
Here is my fiction/nonfiction titled “Supernumerary” inspired by David Shields and Reality Hunger.
https://curioushart.wordpress.com/2017/04/05/supernumerary/
April 5, 2017 — 10:42 AM
nwjn says:
This is very cool. Nice echoes of Shield’s “collage” approach. Thank you!
April 8, 2017 — 9:43 AM
Lacy Muircastle says:
A little taste (well 993 words) of the contradictions of Life in South Africa.
http://lacymuircastle.com/2017/04/05/tourmaline-flash-fiction/
April 5, 2017 — 10:51 AM
kim blades, writer says:
I have written on ‘bushcraft.’ https://kim153.wordpress.com/2017/04/05/bushcraft-terriblemindschuckwendigflashfictionchallenge
April 5, 2017 — 10:57 AM
emweaverblog says:
Just over 1,000 words. Here is my take on Ossuary in cyberpunk genre: https://emweaverblog.wordpress.com/2017/04/05/ff-ossuary/
April 5, 2017 — 11:59 AM
David Ralph Lewis says:
I chose Tourmaline, which after a bit of research, turned into a story about alternative medicine. http://davidralphlewis.co.uk/tourmaline/
April 5, 2017 — 12:21 PM
nwjn says:
Nicely done! Very crisp, and I like the way you make the reader wonder what is really going on.
April 7, 2017 — 1:09 PM
Matthew X. Gomez says:
My attempt at Ossuary, in a dark fantasy kind of way. https://mxgomez.wordpress.com/2017/04/05/ossuary-a-chuck-wendig-challenge/
April 5, 2017 — 4:26 PM
Sam Brady says:
I have no idea what this is about but I hope you like it. Feel free to comment and let me know what you think. “Jumper”.
https://sambrady.wordpress.com/2017/04/05/chuck-wendig-jumper/
April 5, 2017 — 5:20 PM
David Ralph Lewis says:
Loved the dialogue, very Pratchett-esque as you say. Good stuff
April 6, 2017 — 9:17 AM
India Emerlad says:
Tourmaline for me with a sprinkling of Sci-Fi 🙂
https://www.booksie.com/501701-tourmaline
April 6, 2017 — 9:35 AM
Skye says:
I picked “Tourmaline” and added a bit of time-travel, and maybe some humor. Hope you like it! http://runnerskye.ca/flash-fiction-tourmaline/
April 6, 2017 — 12:41 PM
India Emerald says:
I loved your take on Tourmaline and I’m partial to a bit of time-travel 🙂
April 6, 2017 — 6:16 PM
Skye says:
Thanks! It was fun to write.
April 8, 2017 — 4:13 PM
Tehseen Baweja says:
I picked ‘Supernumerary’ and kept it short. let’s see!
https://medium.com/@tehseen.baweja/supernumerary-bd8fe1b82ac3
April 6, 2017 — 3:10 PM
M.R. Dorough says:
I picked “Ossuary.” After struggling for inspiration, I ended up writing over the word limit by quite a bit. Here’s some grimdark fantasy: https://mrdorough.wordpress.com/2017/04/06/ossuary/
April 6, 2017 — 11:28 PM
SpeakerfortheDead says:
This is my first foray into the magical world with you (I assume) seasoned veterans of terribleminds so do afford my post some room for inadequacy. I did really enjoy the scaffolding provided by Chuck and how it went about limiting the story and what I was allowed to do as a consequence. Feedback is most welcome, in exchange for cyberhugs!! Enjoy Juniper. https://eiaemlourde.wordpress.com/2017/04/01/first-blog-post/
April 7, 2017 — 1:00 AM
Shana Horn says:
Wrote a second one for this week. Tourmaline, based upon the gemstone. I also write Jumper, same PoV character, on the 4th. http://slwhshorts.blogspot.com/2017/04/tourmaline.html
April 7, 2017 — 2:15 AM
Jemima Pett says:
I was looking for an F for the A to Z Challenge today – but realised Bushcraft could also be Fieldcraft. So that’s what we have. Enjoy!
http://jemimapett.com/blog/2017/04/07/fridayflash-fiction-fieldcraft-atozchallenge/
April 7, 2017 — 4:56 AM
Martin says:
Nice selection of words. Ossuary jumped out at me. I got some inspiration by reading up on the Ossuary concept on Wikepedia. Here is my take: http://mywrite.martinperlin.com/2017/04/one-word-titles-ossuary.html
April 7, 2017 — 10:18 AM
Cameron Mount says:
“Juniper” took off in a direction I didn’t expect, so I followed it down the rabbit hole.
https://cameronamount.wordpress.com/2017/04/07/juniper-wendig-challenge/
April 7, 2017 — 11:33 AM
W.J.Redd says:
My pick was “Ossuary”
https://seriouslyirrelevant.wordpress.com/2017/04/07/flash-fiction-challenge-ossuary/
April 7, 2017 — 6:03 PM
John says:
It’s late because of work and kids and a different time zone and I think it’s a little rushed towards the end because of an arbitrary deadline that I missed anyway.
http://somewordsforchuck.blogspot.com.au/2017/04/holiday.html
April 7, 2017 — 9:05 PM
nwjn says:
Hi, all. Being new to this community, I have a protocol question: do authors prefer to have comments made on their stories’s website, or here in the forum. I’ve seen both, so maybe it’s either or?
Thanks Mr. Wendig – this is a very fun place to hang out.
April 8, 2017 — 9:54 AM
The Urban Spaceman says:
My personal preference is to comment on others’ blogs, and to have comments left on my blog. That way it doesn’t clutter up Chuck’s comments feed, and allows story links to be seen more easily here.
Sometimes I have to leave comments here because Blogspot hates me and won’t always let me comment, plus I don’t have a Facebook, which more and more people seem to be using for some reason I just can’t fathom.
This isn’t technically a forum, and the limited nesting of comments makes it difficult to hold any multi-post conversations. Plus, more comments means slower page loading times (AFAIK).
April 12, 2017 — 9:04 AM
Mary Layton says:
Hmm…I tried posting this yesterday, and it didn’t seem to work. So, I’ve switched from my wordpress account to my facebook account to see if that works…
I chose Tourmaline, because I like Tourmalines, and so does Sir Willoughby Gregson-Smythe 🙂
http://melayton.weebly.com/blog/flash-fiction-tourmaline
April 8, 2017 — 2:31 PM
The Urban Spaceman says:
No offence, but your post is very difficult to read. Light grey text on an off-white background is challenging enough, but the fancy font (which looks very pretty, BTW) is very jarring. I stumble over every capital letter, and the capital “I” looks like “J”. I quite like the font in your menus and as a title font, but for the main body of the text, it’s just slowing my reading right down to a crawl. If I’m honest (which I always try to be) it makes me want to just close my browser window instead of putting the effort into reading it.
April 12, 2017 — 9:11 AM
lpstribling says:
Chuck – a serial story (Tourmaline) http://www.lpstribling.com/?p=3396
May 1, 2017 — 11:03 AM
Jennifer Moss says:
Undulate. Bacon. That is all. https://www.tumblr.com/reblog/172567346013/DbKxM7OJ
April 4, 2018 — 12:37 AM