Last week’s challenge: “The Random Fantasy Character.”
Right now I’m neck-deep in the next Miriam Black book, which of course features the aforementioned Miriam: a psychic girl who can see how and when someone is going to die just by touching that person. She’s angry and vulgar and dangerously proactive and — well, she’s a lot of fun to write.
Psychic powers are a hoot, really.
Hers is pretty subtle — lots of psychological horror.
It’s not like she’s setting people on fire with her mind.
But maybe you want to write about that.
So, here’s how this works. I’m going to list 20 psychic powers at the bottom of this post. Feel free to roll a d20 to pick a random one or just grab the one you think it most awesome (though let’s be honest: random is more fun). If you need to know what it is: well, Google is your best friend. And your prom date.
Your story must include one — and only one — of the psychic powers mentioned.
You have one week, as always. Due by May 31st, noon EST.
Write ~1000 words.
Post on your online space.
Link back here.
Ta-da.
And now, the list of psychic powers:
- Clairvoyance
- Pyromancy
- Cryomancy
- Telepathy
- Psychometry
- Faith or Psychic Healing
- Precognition
- Telekinesis
- Mediumship
- Levitation
- Astral Projection
- Bilocation
- Teleportation
- Aura Reading
- Divination
- Retrocognition
- Past-Life Regression
- Mind Control
- Dream Control
- Psychic Empathy (aka an Empath)
185 responses to “Flash Fiction Challenge: Must Contain Psychic Powers”
[…] The rules […]
I cheated in that I asked a random friend to pick a # from 1-20. He picked 5, psychometry. I hit the word count on the nose, I’m anal like that. Hope you enjoy. http://lostinthewriting.net/the-house-on-merry-lane/
Psychometry. An interesting tool for a 1950’s PI.
http://billthescribe.blogspot.com/2013/05/wendig-challenge-cold-reads-and-hot.html
Hopefully there will be another challenge that opens up the next part.
[…] Write a Flash Fiction for this week’s challenge, which has to do with psychics and what not. I chose Divination… I’m not going to lie, I’m […]
Couldn’t resist this challenge when I saw it.
6. Faith or Psychic Healing
http://jenwatson19.wordpress.com/2013/05/29/rock-stars-arent-people/
Glad I managed to get this finished now. The first draft was 1750 words and it took serious cutting! Just hope it all makes sense.
I rolled retrocognition. Interesting. Here’s my story, It’s sci-fi, and I’m afraid I blew through the word limit suggestion a bit at 1600. But this is the first time I’ve done a flash fiction challenge, it was super fun! Anyway, here’s RetCog: http://popcornapocalypse.blogspot.com/2013/05/retcog-short-story.html
http://accessoriesnotincluded.com/2013/05/28/wanted-must-use-fire/
A repost because WordPress went wonky. Pyromancy, DnD and burning things.
Psychometry and crime, in Hands Off.
http://knotachance.tumblr.com/
[…] have more time to write! Anyway, this piece is a response to Chuck Wendig’s latest Flash Fiction Challenge (Warning: language), in which it was required that the story include a psychic power. My randomly […]
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you my first successfully-completed response to the Wendigo’s Flash Fiction Challenges: Helping Hand, in which I explore the Apocalypse, Divination, and demonic influence.
http://toothsomefiction.wordpress.com/2013/05/30/insert-title-here/
[…] week’s challenge was an interesting one, asking us to roll a d20 and use whatever psychic power from the associated […]
I rolled “teleportation” and ended up writing a little diddy called “Harry’s Tavern, 9:30 PM – in the men’s room”:
http://nickegelhoff.wordpress.com/2013/05/30/flash-fiction-challenge-must-contain-psychic-powers/
I responded to this in the wrong place. I wanted to say I liked it and wouldn’t might reading more of how that world works out!
Strange how these random choices get posted together – I also rolled teleportation. My post goes live at about 1 am Eastern Time on 31st, so apologies for posting early – but I’m not here to link then. I’ll have teleported….
http://jemimapett.com/2013/05/31/sir-woebegone-and-the-dragon/
Oh – I’ve nabbed one of the characters from last week’s glum empress story 😀
[…] Anyway, enough self pity, I have returned with…Yep! you guessed it, a Terribleminds Flash Fiction Challenge! […]
I’m not sure this went to well…plus I didn’t have sufficient amount of time to edit. But here goes:
White Mist
http://joetblogs.wordpress.com/2013/05/31/terribleminds-flash-fiction-challenge-must-contain-psychic-powers/
[…] Another contest entry for Chuck Wendig’s weekly challenge. It don’t think it turned out as good as the last one. But I tried. If you want to learn more about it here the linky. My d20 gave me Empath as my power. http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/05/24/flash-fiction-challenge-must-contain-psychic-powers/ […]
I’m not sure how much I like how much this one turned out. But, I told myself I didn’t just puke it out, it would never get done. So, that’s what I did. Empath is the ability.
It Was, and It Wasn’t.
http://naharavensari.wordpress.com/2013/05/30/it-was-and-it-wasnt/
I kicked around a few different ideas for which power to use before I let a RNG pick. I’m kind of pleased with this one to be honest. http://contrastsolution.blogspot.com/2013/05/my-less-than-humble-return.html
[…] but haven’t completed the last few. I am trying to remedy that here. This week’s Challenge was a random selection from 20 psychic powers. Random Number Goodness and I ended up with 14. 14 […]
I got Aura Reading. I struggled with this one, but here is my second completed flash challenge.
I am not sure how this one turned out, but I wrote, and there are words. I am counting that as forward progress.
http://ihavenotechnicalskills.com/2013/05/must-contain-psychic-powers/
I think it was pretty good. I liked the ending.
Thanks. I felt more like a pantser this time than my usual tendency to over think and plot everything out. There was much word belching.
This one was tough for me–not sure I like the story, which turned out very dark.
http://www.ninjalibrarian.com/2013/05/flash-fiction-friday-choker.html
Before reading your story I imagined this power as more passive. Your story made me feel like some sort of psychic travel was taking place. I really like that different spin on an idea I thought I understood. You took it somewhere much cooler than I imagined this power could go.
Thanks! I’m not very up on psychic powers, and had to look it up. And what kept coming to me was how nasty it could be if something had been in bad places. . .
Antique stores are not your friend! Cool story.
Thanks! These Challenges are the best. Speaking of which, hey, Chuck! Where’s the next challenge?
[…] http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/05/24/flash-fiction-challenge-must-contain-psychic-powers/ Share this:TwitterDiggFacebookStumbleUponGoogle +1PinterestLinkedInEmailRedditLike this:Like Loading… […]
This was fun!
http://thewriterinmeblog.wordpress.com/2013/05/31/the-touch/
[…] for the Flash Fiction Challenge: Must Contain Psychic Powers at Chuck Wendig‘s site, Terrible Minds. The challenge: 1,000 words using a randomly […]
So I got psychic empathy, fun, but ended up bending the rules and dipping into telepathy. Originally it was used for shadow, but that’s arguable now.
At 975 words, here’s ‘Sharp Minds’: http://blog.icarusmortis.co.uk/2013/05/31/sharp-minds/
Psychic healing was definitely fun to write and visualize. 🙂
http://kcrawfordfiction.wordpress.com/2013/05/31/flash-fiction-psychic-powers/
Ok, bit late but who cares. This is a futuristic thing called The Medium. As always: Caution 18+
http://jess-riegler.blogspot.de/2013/05/a-cold-rainy-night.html
Much like everything I do, finished at the very last minute. ~1000 words, cryomancy, spies, the Cold War and, uh, boiled cabbage?
http://billionmonkeys.blogspot.com/p/a-colder-war.html
Okay, I liked this one too, so the comment below that wandered in from elsewhere fit anyway 😀
‘Salright! 😀
Your comment was close enough that it made me realize that I didn’t give many gender cues in my story. Rereading it again, I realized it could either be a somewhat fabulous female or a rather awesomely catty and effeminate man. I think if I expanded it, I’d go for option #2, because it’s kind of bad ass that way. 🙂
Really liked that. I want to keep reading about that guy.
This is in the wrong place. I went and found the right button to click and put it where I wanted it. Please disregard my incompetence.
[…] Write a Flash Fiction for this week’s challenge, which has to do with psychics and what not. I chose Divination… I’m not going to lie, I’m […]
[…] I’m a day late on this one, but I still decided to post it. I wrote this after quizzing a local barista on what his chosen psychic power would be. After getting to know him a bit more the story took an interesting turn. I was limited to 1000 words which contributed to some major edits that I made, but this is one of the better bits I’ve written in awhile. I’m not ecstatic about it, but here it is. Feel free to provide feedback, because I think it still needs one last final edit. Oh yeah and the rules for this can be found over at Wendig’s online sapce. […]
[…] but haven’t completed the last few. I am trying to remedy that here. This week’s Challenge was a random selection from 20 psychic powers. Random Number Goodness and I ended up with 14. 14 […]
i really liked reading this sight.
[…] psychic and spiritual medium free reading gabriella Source URL: http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/05/24/flash-fiction-challenge-must-contain-psychic-powers/ […]
[…] but haven’t completed the last few. I am trying to remedy that here. This week’s Challenge was a random selection from 20 psychic powers. Random Number Goodness and I ended up with 14. 14 […]
[…] challenge created by Chuck Wendig some time ago – back in May 2013. The challenge was ‘Must Contain Psychic Powers‘, which delighted me to no end, and I wound up immediately rolling my d20 and getting started […]