The Black Death Village
Imagine a scenario during the Black Death in a small English village around 1348. Tell the story of one family deciding whether to flee or stay as the plague arrives, and what the choice costs them.
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.
- End with a choice that history would never record.
- Let your character believe something about their world that turned out to be wrong.
- Give the hero a rule of the era they have to break.
Writing historical fiction
Step into another time and feel what it was like.
Historical fiction is set in the past, usually at least 50 years before it was written. Real events and people often appear, but the story belongs to its characters. Readers come for the immersion: the smells, the rules, the dangers of a world that's gone.
What readers expect
- A vivid, well-researched setting
- Real events as backdrop or engine
- Characters shaped by their era
- Details that feel lived, not looked up
A tip before you start
Research deeply, show lightly. One telling detail in a scene beats a paragraph of facts.
More European Historical Fiction prompts
- Lovers in Inquisition SpainWrite a story centered around a secret romance during the Spanish Inquisition. Two lovers from different faiths face perilous consequences if their…
- The Aristocrat in DisguiseSet in Paris during the French Revolution, tell the tale of a young aristocrat who has disguised themselves as a commoner. Delve into their life in…
- Rival to MichelangeloSet in the heart of the Renaissance, craft a tale around a fictitious artist who rivals Michelangelo. The artist receives a potentially career-making…
- The Soldier and the MillA Scottish soldier returns to his village after surviving the Napoleonic Wars, only to find it on the brink of industrial change. Craft a story…
Fifteen minutes in? Keep going.
Chapterly gives a draft somewhere to grow: chapters, daily word goals, and readers when you're ready.
Plans from $9.99 a month. Cancel any time. Your words are always yours.