Legal Thrillers writing prompt

The Defender's USB Drive

In a city rife with political corruption, a public defender receives a USB drive anonymously, containing details of illegal activities by the city’s elite, connected directly to the cases they are handling. Risking their career and their life, they must decide how to use the information to bring justice, without falling victim to the same powers entrenched in the legal system.

Suggested length: A short story: 1,500 to 5,000 words, or flash fiction under 1,000

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Three ways to take this prompt somewhere nobody else will.

  1. Let the reader know something the hero doesn't.
  2. Cut every scene the moment the tension drops.
  3. Put a clock on it: the hero has until midnight.

Writing thriller books

Something terrible is coming. Can they stop it in time?

Where a mystery looks back at a crime, a thriller looks forward at a threat. The reader often knows more than the hero, and the tension comes from watching danger close in. Short chapters, high stakes and a ticking clock are the tools of the trade.

What readers expect

  • A clear, escalating threat
  • A hero under pressure
  • Twists and reversals
  • Pace: little time to breathe

A tip before you start

Put a clock on it. A deadline the reader can count down turns every scene into a race.

More about thriller in our book genres guide

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