Stolen Art in Harlem
Imagine a story that takes place in a vibrant neighborhood in Harlem, New York, during the Harlem Renaissance. A priceless piece of African art is stolen during a lively street parade. The protagonist, a young African American detective, delves into the world of jazz clubs and poetry cafes to find the thief.
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.
- Start with the confession, and make the story about why it's false.
- Make the detective wrong at the midpoint, for a good reason.
- End with the solution in a single line of dialogue.
Writing mystery books
Who did it? You get every clue and a fair shot at the answer.
A mystery opens with a puzzle, usually a death, and closes with the solution. In between, a detective (professional or not) gathers clues and suspects while the reader tries to get there first. A mystery looks backward, at a crime that has already happened.
What readers expect
- A crime or puzzle early on
- Clues, suspects and red herrings
- A detective the reader follows
- A solution that is surprising but fair
A tip before you start
Play fair. Every clue your detective uses should appear on the page first, ideally hidden in plain sight.
More Multicultural Mystery prompts
- The Letter and the Stolen ArtifactThe daughter of a Japanese diplomat and a Mexican artist finds an old, cryptic letter in her late grandmother's belongings, pointing to an unsolved…
- The Missing Marrakech CarpetWrite a story set in a bustling outdoor market in Marrakech, where a famous antique carpet goes missing under mysterious circumstances. The…
- The Bayou Pirate ShipWrite about an ex-con turned amateur sleuth living in a small town in Louisiana, who uncovers a connection between a recent string of burglaries and a…
- Murder at Rio CarnivalAt the heart of Rio de Janeiro's Carnival, an American expatriate and local journalist partner up after witnessing a seemingly accidental death that…
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