The Lost Climate Machine
Envision a world where climate change has been reversed through the rediscovery of a lost technology from ancient civilizations. Detail the journey of an archaeologist who must navigate political and environmental challenges to deploy this technology worldwide.
Suggested length: A short story: 1,500 to 5,000 words, or flash fiction under 1,000
Start the clock
Pick a sprint, press start and keep going until it stops. Momentum beats polish on a first draft.
Make it yours
Three ways to take this prompt somewhere nobody else will.
- Make the magic or technology cost your hero something they can't get back.
- Give the villain a reason that would convince you, if you lived there.
- Let the hero's plan work, and make that the problem.
Writing science fiction
Change one thing about the world. Follow it all the way.
Science fiction asks what happens to people when science, technology or contact with something new changes the rules. The spaceships are optional; the question is the point. The best of it says as much about today as it does about the future.
What readers expect
- An idea that drives the plot
- Technology or science with consequences
- Futures, other worlds or alternate presents
- Big questions about being human
A tip before you start
Show how your big change reshapes ordinary life: what people eat, fear and joke about. Scenery alone isn't world-building.
More Alternate Reality prompts
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- The Alchemist's New ElementDevelop a story about a distant planet where the inhabitants have the ability to manipulate the elements of classical alchemy (earth, air, fire…
- Dreams of Other ChoicesImagine a reality where dreams are actually glimpses into what could have been in alternate universes. Describe a character who starts to live more in…
- An Eight-Year-Old's Eightieth BirthdayImagine a world where people age backwards. The story begins on the day the protagonist, who looks only eight years old, is celebrating their 80th…
Fifteen minutes in? Keep going.
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