Last week’s challenge: “Spin The Wheel.” (So many entries!)
The past challenge was rather successful, so — I think we’re going to do it again.
I love these “games of aspects.” Eeeee!
Ahem. Anyway. So! Another set of random parameters for you to choose from, whether by rolling a d10 or using a random number generator like this one right here.
As usual, you’ve got 1000 words. Post it at your online space. Link back here.
You have one week. Due by Friday the 18th, noon EST.
Randomly choose one (or if you don’t want random and hate fun, pick one) from each:
Subgenre
- Weird West
- Comic Fantasy
- Wuxia
- Bad Girls In Prison
- Zombie Apocalypse
- Alien Abduction
- Lovecraftian
- Teenage Noir
- Steampunk
- Locked Room Mystery
Conflict
- Betrayal by a loved one!
- Need to hide a body!
- Someone’s been poisoned!
- The character is being hunted!
- Enemy at the gates!
- Heist gone wrong!
- Man versus nature!
- Man versus technology!
- Revenge!
- Family torn apart!
Must Feature:
- Demonic possession
- A forbidden book
- A mysterious stranger
- A bottle of rare whiskey
- A vengeful god
- Someone gone or going mad
- A suitcase full of money
- Carnival folk
- A secret message
- A hidden tunnel
joeturner87 says:
Rolled…3,6,7…should be…interesting
January 11, 2013 — 9:36 AM
Stephen says:
Anyone wanting a random selection from the lists (rather than rolling / looking up) can get them here:
http://stephenemm.co.uk/flash-fiction/first-flash-fiction-challenge-of-the-year-part-2.php
January 11, 2013 — 10:23 AM
Misa says:
The Random gods have been kind – I got 1, 6 and 4. If I can’t make a story from those, there’s no hope for me.
January 11, 2013 — 11:35 AM
Sam Hume says:
cant wait to see
January 11, 2013 — 7:45 PM
Alex says:
Rolled a 8, 5 and a 10. This should be good
January 11, 2013 — 11:49 AM
csoffer says:
I am not going to enter this contest. I did, however, just buy Mockingbirds and Blackbirds. As soon as I can figure out which one I’m supposed to read first, I will dive in!!!!!! #ilovechuck
January 11, 2013 — 12:26 PM
Curtis Edmonds (@Curtis_Edmonds) says:
There is, really, no such thing as random. Clearly, the random gods meant for me to enter this contest, and meant for me to choose “zombie apocalypse,” because OF COURSE, and “hunted,” because of the tie-in and, well, SHAMELESS RIP-OFF of a classical work of fiction, and “whiskey”, because it is by-God five o’clock somewhere. So I give you THOR SLAYMASTER’S DANGEROUS GAME.
http://www.curtisedmonds.com/thor-slaymasters-dangerous-game/
You’re welcome, America.
January 11, 2013 — 1:08 PM
James says:
8, 1, 3.
I have no idea, but tonight… oh hell.
January 11, 2013 — 1:55 PM
Chelsea says:
1,2,10 This does’t seem to hard I just kind of wish the random number generator had given me something a little weirder.
January 11, 2013 — 4:39 PM
Sam Hume says:
I got 5, 7, and 7. which seems easy. So I roll again *shake the dice and 1 7 6. Dang Stephen king already did that one.
January 11, 2013 — 7:51 PM
joeturner87 says:
I got 3,6,7.
I don’t know if it could be called a Heist Gone Wrong, or if its Wuxia, but there is a Suitcase Full of Money. So one out of three ain’t bad.
http://joetblogs.wordpress.com/2013/01/12/terribleminds-flash-fiction-challenge-spin-the-wheel-pt-2/
January 11, 2013 — 7:52 PM
erimeh says:
I rolled 6, 6, 8…this is going to be even weirder than the last one.
January 11, 2013 — 9:55 PM
erimeh says:
I’m late I know I just spent the last 30 minutes fighting with my internet connection. I hope y’all enjoy it.
http://weirderthanithought.blogspot.com/2013/01/working-for-peanuts-flash-fiction.html
January 18, 2013 — 12:24 PM
jreinmiller says:
7,8,10 for me. Second go at Lovecraft in the challenges. Happier with how this one came out than the last one.
http://www.jqpdx.com/2013/01/12/dear-friend/
January 11, 2013 — 10:20 PM
Dave Scott says:
I was very impressed with this work. You were able to merge the (3) selections in a very unique way. You also did a great job on the ‘language’ of it – it ‘flavored’ the writing. Loved it.
January 17, 2013 — 10:30 PM
Natalie Maddalena says:
Lovecraftian. Need to hide a body! A secret message.
http://highlightonwords.wordpress.com/2013/01/12/rlyeh/
January 11, 2013 — 10:49 PM
Riley Hill says:
Loved this! Well crafted and strange.
January 17, 2013 — 10:26 AM
troylefman says:
8 2 10 challenge accepted!
January 11, 2013 — 11:05 PM
S.W. Sondheimer says:
Locked room mystery. Family torn apart! A bottle of rare whiskey!
A new moment with some old friends.
http://swsondheimer.wordpress.com/this-just-in/whiskey-in-the-room/
January 11, 2013 — 11:13 PM
Tia Kalla (@tiakall) says:
I got 10, 10 and 7. To which my brain promptly went “okay, time to be a sick motherfucker! Let’s take ‘a family torn apart’ LITERALLY!”
So I present my not-safe-for-hematophobes-or-anyone-with-taste, “A Forensic Puzzle”: http://itt.ymakadomain.com/?p=69
January 12, 2013 — 12:11 AM
darleneaubol says:
I give you The Bearded Lady
http://darlene.underdahl.net/?p=204
aka Darlene Underdahl
http://www.VermillionRoadPress.com
January 12, 2013 — 8:13 AM
Alexa Muir says:
Rather enjoyed this and pleased that the gods of story gave me three things that turned out to be a prequel to another idea I’d had a while back. I give you, 1. Weird West, 5. Enemy at the gates and 6. Someone gone or going mad. Or as I called it, “Sunset”.
Hope you enjoy and happy for any feedback.
http://bit.ly/X2X690
January 12, 2013 — 6:05 PM
Tami Veldura says:
Very pleased with my dice rolls: steampunk, enemy at the gates, vengeful god
I give you: To Heaven and Back Again, another short in my Approaching Lightspeed steampunk-in-space
http://www.tamiveldura.com/2013/01/to-heaven-and-back-again.html?zx=1ac83a3532ed3587
January 12, 2013 — 7:35 PM
AM Gray says:
I scored, 2 Comic Fantasy
· 6 Heist gone wrong!
· 1 Demonic possession
It’s called ‘Hobbit heist’
http://amgray.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/hobbit-heist.html
January 12, 2013 — 9:59 PM
Riley Hill says:
Enjoyed!
January 17, 2013 — 3:00 PM
Jim Franklin says:
Here we go then.
I rolled Weird West, Someone’s Been Poisoned, and Mysterious Stranger, hope you like it.
The Untold Legend of Skull Ridge
http://writewayround.wordpress.com/2013/01/13/flash-fiction-untold-legend-skull-ridge/
January 13, 2013 — 10:19 AM
Riley Hill says:
Hah! Amusing, and definitely the weirdest west I’ve read about.
January 17, 2013 — 2:48 PM
Anthony Elmore says:
I pulled from the hat Locked Room Mystery, Someone’s been poisoned, A bottle of rare whiskey. The challenge has been accepted.
http://www.barelyok.com/terrible-minds-flash-fiction-challenge-the-wheel-part-ii.html
January 13, 2013 — 12:31 PM
Dave Scott says:
I loved your character development and attention to the small details – it makes it feel so much larger than the 1000 words written. Great job man – loved it.
January 16, 2013 — 9:13 PM
Riley Hill says:
Oh, this was fine. Didn’t find the locked room, but loved the dark humor, clean writing, and mystery. Well balanced.
January 17, 2013 — 10:34 AM
ljpaddock says:
Here’s mine. Great fun! Louise
http://ontheedgeofinfinity.wordpress.com/2013/01/13/spin-the-wheel-flash-fiction/
January 13, 2013 — 4:05 PM
whirlingnerdish (@whirlingnerdish) says:
Okay, finally got my nailed down. I got: Steampunk, the character is hunted, and it must feature a demonic possession. It came in around 978 words.
Doing the Devil’s Work: http://whirlingnerdish.blogspot.com/2013/01/flash-fiction-challenge-doing-devils.html
January 13, 2013 — 8:20 PM
Riley Hill says:
Oooh! Good writing. I enjoyed this. I don’t usually like steampunk, but you really captured the flavor of…everything.
January 17, 2013 — 3:07 PM
Anthony Elmore says:
BTW, I’ve given myself a challenge. I will do all Flash Fiction Challenges by the close of 2013. That’s right, Every mother frogging one! Statistically speaking, it’s impossible to write 50 consecutive crappy stories. By the end of the year, I should have at least 5 that are salable. Can he do it?
Link to the blog category for the FF challenges: http://www.barelyok.com/category/terrible-minds-flash-fiction-challenge
January 14, 2013 — 1:24 AM
erimeh says:
My goal is to do at least 75% of the challenges. It’s far more ambitious then I normally am but I, like you, feel that at least some of my stories will not be totally craptacular
January 18, 2013 — 12:43 PM
Josh Loomis says:
9,3,9 – A return to Steampunk. Interesting.
1000 Words: “The Last Flight of the Wayward Albatross” http://www.blueinkalchemy.com/2013/01/14/flash-fiction-last-flight-of-the-wayward-albatross/
January 14, 2013 — 7:58 AM
Victoria Huntley says:
http://eyeofthewriter.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/not-so-different.html
I rolled Bad Girls In Prison, Enemy at the Gates and A Bottle of Rare Whiskey. ^^
January 14, 2013 — 12:15 PM
chelsearthompson says:
Not flash-fiction, as it’s way too long, but fulfills Weird West, man vs. nature (desert of DEATH), and a rare bottle of whiskey. Written in honor of my BFF’s birthday. http://chelsearthompson.wordpress.com/2013/01/14/the-shortest-and-most-puerto-rican-sherrif-in-the-west/
January 14, 2013 — 4:20 PM
Becky Rae says:
I rolled Bad Girls in Prison, Enemy at the Gates, and Carnival folk. I had a lot of fun! Thanks for posting!
http://a-curious-person.blogspot.com/2013/01/flask-fiction.html
January 14, 2013 — 8:45 PM
Riley Hill says:
Some great and quirky writing here. I read this piece with a smile on my face, and was really into it. The ending shocked me (in a good way).
January 17, 2013 — 3:18 PM
Dave Scott says:
I really liked the tempo of your writing. It made me laugh more than once and yet there were some nicely grimy visuals. Great job 🙂
January 17, 2013 — 10:23 PM
Clay Ashby says:
I’m a novice by every meaning of the word, but I’m practicing every day and this little competition is a great opportunity to do that.
My random was 5, 1, 1
I even started a blog for this, and it doesn’t even have a real domain name yet 😉
http://www.thegnomecomputercompany.com/ClayAshby/the-end-of-salem/
January 15, 2013 — 1:53 PM
Rebecca Douglass says:
Had to cheat a little. First two genres I rolled I didn’t even know what they’d look like. (What IS Wuxia?). So I took comic fantasy and then rolled 3 & 6. Halitor the Hero (or maybe Halitosis the Hero) coming soon. . .
January 15, 2013 — 2:59 PM
Meghan says:
I rolled 7, 9, and 4…high standards to live up to – here’s hoping I do Lovecraft justice!
January 15, 2013 — 4:46 PM
Riley Hill says:
6,2,10. Alien abduction, need to hide a body, a secret tunnel. That was fun, though the listed conflict hit more in the second part of the tale. Trimmed to under a thousand words. http://authorrileyhill.com
January 16, 2013 — 2:16 PM
Dave Scott says:
This, is, awesome! You had me captured to a point in the end where I audibly said “What?!?” My wife asked me “What, what?” I couldn’t explain – she had to read – we loved it 🙂
Brilliantly done Riley.
January 16, 2013 — 9:04 PM
Riley Hill says:
Thanks, Dave. It was a blast to write. It started out around 1500 words, so I had to bite it down a bit. I might flesh it out and use it in a collection.
January 17, 2013 — 10:15 AM
Clay Ashby says:
I really enjoyed your story! I felt like it had not just one twist, but two.
January 17, 2013 — 10:44 AM
lwpatricks says:
Hey Riley! I’m thrilled you enjoyed my story =) I read through yours and loved it. You’re a fantastic writer and I love your voice and prose. How hard was it to cut words from your work? I shaved off 300. You know what they say: ‘Kill your darlings’ lol.
Cheers!
January 17, 2013 — 7:27 PM
Riley Hill says:
Added another link since it moved down in my posts: http://authorrileyhill.com/archives/218
January 18, 2013 — 12:52 PM
Sarah O'Hara says:
Not entirely on topic, but fun nonetheless.
http://authorsarahohara.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/terribleminds-flash-fiction-challenge_16.html
January 16, 2013 — 5:11 PM
Dave Scott says:
Oh yeah – 7, 6, 8 – Lovecraftian : Heist gone wrong! : Carnival Folk !!!
I wrote it from the standard H.P. (almost the modern found-footage-type film) docu-style creeptastic mystery. I got it to 1060 words and cut it back to 995.
I hope this is even close to as enjoyable to read as it was to write – I honestly had a blast writing this one!
Here is “Case #207”
http://www.cf.frickbat.com/davescott/?p=321
January 16, 2013 — 8:51 PM
Riley Hill says:
Well done, Dave. I enjoyed more than one chuckle. Having encountered a few police reports, I couldn’t help but imagine how the readers of these would react. This was a fun read.
January 17, 2013 — 10:13 AM
lwpatricks says:
Damnit Chuck!
Your addictive contests are taking 1000 words away from my own project weekly lol. Here’s my story entitled the Path of Crows – A kung fu fable with flavours of wuxia, revenge, and the reason why Nickelback exists — a vengeful god.
http://lwpatricks.com/publications/flash-fiction-the-path-of-crows-a-kung-fu-fable/
January 16, 2013 — 10:19 PM
Riley Hill says:
A Native American friend of mine used to comment on the laughter of crows…I completely enjoyed this story. I found it elegant, with twisted humor and wonderful characters. Thank you for a fine read.
January 17, 2013 — 2:43 PM
Beth L. says:
I freely admit, I do not roll. I take what I like most, and leave the rest. That being said, here’s steampunk, someone’s been poisoned, and a secret message.
http://knotachance.tumblr.com/
January 16, 2013 — 11:06 PM
Laura Libricz says:
I like Stephen’s random picker. And I am also goofing off writing Flash Fiction instead of working on my book.
“But it’s a great exercise in focusing,” she said.
Teen Noir: http://lauralibricz.blogspot.de/2013/01/914-flash-fiction.html
January 17, 2013 — 5:55 AM
Laura Libricz says:
No, wait, that was Teeange Noir, Somebody blocking the exit and a suitcase full of money. But that wasn’t 914 was it? Did Stephen slip me a mickey? Or was that me?
January 17, 2013 — 2:51 PM
Riley Hill says:
Tight! Nice ending–didn’t see it coming. What were your “3” random selections from the categories (I got the whiskey and money). Fun read.
January 17, 2013 — 10:47 AM
louisesor says:
My setting was Weired West, the conflict man vs. tech, the must have, Forbidden Book.
Wild Wild Horse http://wp.me/p1BAlV-3u
January 17, 2013 — 5:36 PM