The Rebel Who Chose Age
In a society that has achieved immortality through highly advanced technology, explore the life of a young rebel who wants to experience natural aging and death. Delve into their struggle against societal norms and their journey to find likeminded individuals.
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 High-Tech Sci-Fi prompts
- The Rebels Who Still AgeHumanity has achieved immortality through advanced genetic modifications, but at the cost of being able to reproduce naturally. As society struggles…
- The Weather-Shifting MachineA scientist invents a device that can alter the weather, but every change comes with unpredictable side effects impacting personal relationships.…
- The Computer Wants to DieOn a distant planet, humanity has finally created the first sentient supercomputer. However, the computer's first request is to be shut down. Write…
- The Unclaimed MemoryIn a world where memories can be transferred as easily as files, a young technician discovers a memory that doesn't belong to any known individual. As…
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