Last week’s challenge: Holiday Horror!
I love the random title challenge.
I love it so much I wanna hug it.
I wanna hug it so much it explodes.
Anyway.
Way it works is this: you pick one from the two columns of 20 either by using a d20 die or a random number generator, and smooshing the word from Column One with the word from Column Two gets you a title. (You can modify that title slightly by putting “The” in front of it or making the title plural or possessive in some way.) You write the story — we’ll say 1500 words max this time around. Then you post it at your online space and drop a link here so we can all read it. Due by next Friday, noon EST.
Get it? Got it? Great.
Column One
- Skyborn
- Murderer’s
- Cocktail
- Night
- Dead
- Obliterated
- Heaven’s
- Thirteenth
- White
- Armored
- Wrong
- Daniel’s
- A Song For
- Screaming
- The Oathkeeper’s
- The Day of the
- Bleeding
- God’s Own
- Ghostly
- Endless
Column Two
- Inkwell
- Treasure
- Waitress
- Keeper
- Bird
- Corps
- Traveler
- Padlock
- Comet
- Elf
- Starfish
- Medallion
- Absinthe
- Rats
- Reason
- Crusade
- Nebula
- Screwdriver
- Snowflake
- Forge
152 responses to “Flash Fiction Challenge: The Randomized Title Rears Its Head”
I got 4 and 6 =Night Corps.–We’ll see.
first (i needed my friday fix, stop judging me) i rolled a 17 and a 12. The Bleeding Medallion. time for fantasy me thinks.
https://adamskistoryblog.wordpress.com/2014/12/16/flash-fiction-challenge-the-randomized-title-rears-its-head/
And done. This was fun, had a few ideas but this one fit. It’s 1,192 words.Feel free to criticise, it will only help.
Cheers 😀
White Waitress. The alliteration is alluring, to say the least.
I was SO hoping I would get that.
Over a week late, but I did finish if you’re interested:
http://panningforclouds.com/2014/12/27/white-waitress/
Always love an excuse to pull out the d20! The Oathkeeper’s Forge. I can dig it!
Sounds epic already.
Good one! I got a “keeper” too!
I’m extremely jealous.
Where do you get these wonderful lists? I’ve got Screaming Comet, and an idea has struck already.
I MAKE THEM UP WITH MY BRAIN
That’s very scary. (Oh wait. That’s was last week’s challenge.)
Still scary.
My second time participating. Don’t know how this is going to go down as I’m not used to writing flash fiction (I’m used to writing longer works of fiction). I got Heaven’s Treasure.
White Traveler. Sounds ominous.
Hmmm. Wrong Keeper. Or Wrong Keeper? Maybe Wrong, Keeper. Oooh: Wrongkeeper. Uhhhh, I dunno.
Idea formulating, hehehe.
Mmm, I got that one too…I don’t even know.
I’m going for short and sweet this week – just over 100 words. I hope you enjoy: Night Rats
http://mikeycampling.com/night-rats-short-story/
Fantastic piece! A brief, but impactful ride. It says a lot through implication and doesn’t do it just to be cute! Kudos!
Hey Hawk, thank you for your comment – that’s very cool of you.
19 & 15, Here’s Ghostly Reason at 1042 words:
https://article94.wordpress.com/2014/12/12/ghostly-reason/
I have written “White Screwdriver.”
https://hollygeely.wordpress.com/2014/12/12/white-screwdriver/
Good fun, all the way through. It might use a little…tightening? I’d have to go line-by-line to find where it wanders, but the voice and tone are dead-on. Thanks!
Heavens’s Inkwell. That sounds just right for my asteroid miners Pete and the Swede. You’ll have to wait till next Friday for it, though!
I changed my mind about the blog post and put it on Pete & The Swede’s website, the Viridian System series, instead – and it’s live already 🙂
http://viridianseries.uk/2014/12/14/flash-heavens-inkwell/
very good. loved the ending
Thanks, Addy!
If you can find the story from last year, it’s even better!
got a link? i tried to find it but i had no joy.
I got Daniel’s Screwdriver (which has some potential) though I’ve got a second option in mind too…
3 & 6 Cocktail Corps. I thought it said corpse and got excited then I read it again. Huh…
You could write about a crazed army of cocktail swinging banshees…
I started it and surprisingly I’m bit going horror. I’m a little scared.
[…] like to thank Chuck Wendig and his Flash Fiction Challenge for the week. This is my […]
Here’s my submission: God’s Own Padlock
http://jpowerdesign.com/2014/12/12/gods-own-padlock/
Ack! What WAS it? I want to read more!
That was AWESOME! I had my suspicions about what it was the whole time, and was wrong at the end.
It was really good. I’d read more.
I loved your style, creepy as hell and i need to know what happens next!!
Bleeding Traveler….Hmm…interesting. Time for ghost story!
(16) The Day of the
(13) Absinthe
This could be psychedelic to say the least.
God’s Own
Keeper
Hmmm…. I wonder who that would be?
http://youcantgoback-andotherimpossibilities.blogspot.com.au/2014/12/gods-own-keeper.html
I had to think about this for bit… but then, it came to me! 😀
Even after I saw where it was going, it still worked for me. Clever, dark and a little funny.
Thank you… 😀 I wanted so badly to mention his name, but thought not to see who go it, and who didn’t … 🙂
I can’t wait to read All Of These Words.
A Song for Reason. It has potential.
White Treasure.
I see snow in there somewhere. Or coconut cream pie.
Mmm…let it be pie!
Night Medallion: http://apromptripost.com/post/105055058544/the-night-medallion
I am so tired. So, so tired. Love me?
Nice… I really like this one! 🙂
I like the world you created with this story. So many good questions that made me want to read more.
I was drawn in immediately. I could imagine this as a sample chapter I would download because I couldn’t wait until the next book of this came out.
Very interesting. I really liked how you described her.
‘Screaming starfish’ …WTF!
Skyborn Padlock. Oh my.
14-11screaming starfish WTF ! https://darktowerjunky.wordpress.com/2014/12/13/screaming-starfish/
Nice twist at the end.
Daniel’s Starfish …
[…] Lolita! I feel sorry for you, poor corrupt child, but more on that in another post) I went over to terribleminds and found a new flash fiction challenge – the random title. Now I bent the rules a little and […]
The Bleeding Snowflake. I love this title.
Forgot to add the link, here it is: http://wrongspelling.com/?p=1985
That was amazing, I will admit it took a couple of read-throughs for me to ‘get’, but it was worth. Your word play (and you do really seem to be playing) is stunning.
Thanks for reading it. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Nicely done!
My previous comment was for Hawk and Night Medallion.
#2 & #17… Murderer’s Nebula? Really? Hmmm…
Endless Snowflake[s]. Excellent.
All right, here we go. (Sorry for the ugly-long link)
http://americanogig.wix.com/elizabethbeck#!Endless-Snowflakes/c5il/10F7E4A9-3742-46F6-BAC3-DFDA7CA2FF94
This was an intriguing short piece with some beautiful sensory detail. It also really made me want to learn the “before” and “after” of your main character’s story. Thanks for sharing!
Night Comet….
Either a super hero story or an apocalyptic one. Not entirely sure yet. Hmmm
A retired criminal overlooks his life choices as a comet closes in earth. http://joeharris462.wordpress.com/2014/12/14/night-comet/. I apoligize in advance for any problems with the blog thing. I’m new to wordpress and honestly very confused.
The random number generator gave me 15 twice, so I ended up with “The Oathkeeper’s Reason”
https://ajbauers.wordpress.com/2014/12/14/the-oathkeepers-reason/
I gotta agree with Chuck, the random titles are probably my favorite of his flash fiction challenges.
I like it! That’s some fantastic worldbuilding there. Especially for 1500 words!
Thanks for reading. I was happy for the extra words beyond the usual 1000 when I thought of this story 🙂
Got the fairly ordinary-sounding ‘Daniel’s Treasure’.
http://manyfacesof.wordpress.com/2014/12/14/flash-fiction-daniels-treasure/
This was a good piece with especially strong dialogue. And for a fairly ordinary sounding roll, you sure made it unique 🙂
I thought it would be appropriate to write a Christmas story. Here’s Bleeding Elf (not as grim as it sounds!):
http://jezpgknee.wordpress.com/2014/12/14/bleeding-elf/
That was unexpectedly funny. Nice story!
I got Dead Forge – mythic fantasy or historical realism or…
How about a mash-up?
[…] Flash Fiction Challenge: The Randomized Title Rears Its Head […]
Here’s mine (2-12: Murderer’s Medallion): http://wickedflagon.wordpress.com/2014/12/15/chuck-wendigs-flash-fiction-challenge-the-randomized-title-rears-its-head-2-12-murderers-medallion/
[…] for another Chuck Wendig provided flash fiction challenge. This time, it’s a randomized title challenge. My random number generator landed on the words […]
I got Screaming Starfish and turned it into a romance.
http://allisonmaruska.com/2014/12/14/flash-fiction-screaming-starfish/
A little bit weird, slightly depressing: “Obliterated Snowflakes.”
http://alissareads.tumblr.com/post/105244416161/obliterated-snowflakes
Great read, made me want more!
Thanks so much!
I got “Night Bird”… interesting
Not happy with it… http://thestoryhive.wordpress.com/2014/12/19/night-bird/
erm… endless treasure. this should be interesting….
After some fantastically bad combinations I decided to just go with whatever came next, and so was born ‘Endless Starfish’: http://jottermonster.tumblr.com/post/105254100359/endless-starfish
I used my daughters as random number generators and ended up with two titles. That’s what happens when you have three kids and a husband who want a turn at choosing a number between 1 and 20.
The titles are: “Screaming Snowflake” and “Endless Medallion”.
I foresee no problem coming up with some good piece of flash fiction. After all:
1. I’m a romance writer who has just started writing. Those lists of words seem perfectly suited for romance … not.
2. I didn’t even know what flash fiction really was until today. When I first read that term it made me think it was some kind of NC-17 rated, steamy writing. That’s why I got excited about the challenge. 🙂
Enough complaining. Time for some writing. Out of the sci-fi/fantasy suited titles, a beautiful romance … or two … shall come forth.
I finished “Screaming Snowflake” and posted it on my blog. http://unashamedwriting.com/screaming-snowflake-the-result-of-my-first-flash-fiction-challenge/
The more I thought about “Endless Medallion” the bigger the story grew … not kidding.
I hope you enjoy. If you have any feedback I would love to hear it … I hope. 🙂
God’s Own Inkwell. Good gravy, this is going to be fun.