Thrillers & Suspense writing prompt
The Detective's Missing Key
Imagine a scenario in which a retired detective receives a mysterious letter that contains a key and an address. Upon visiting the address, the detective finds themselves trapped in a game of cat and mouse with an elusive criminal they failed to catch during their career.
Suggested length: A short story: 1,500 to 5,000 words, or flash fiction under 1,000
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Pick a sprint, start the clock and keep going until it stops. Momentum beats polish on a first draft.
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Three ways to take this prompt somewhere nobody else will.
- 1Put a clock on it: the hero has until midnight.
- 2Trap your hero in one place they can't easily leave.
- 3Raise the stakes from personal to public halfway through.
More thrillers & suspense prompts
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- The Detective's Birthday LetterWrite a story in which a retired detective receives a puzzling letter on the eve of their 60th birthday, implicating them in a crime they might have solved incorrectly decades ago. The only clue is a sealed, never-before-seen evidence bag attached to the letter.
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