The Officer's First Case
On the eve of retiring, a seasoned police officer stumbles upon an old, unsolved file that turns out to be the first ever case they worked on. Obsessed with resolving it before leaving the force, they return to the small town where it all began, only to find that townspeople are not merely unhelpful, but actively trying to hinder the investigation.
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 Mystery and Crime prompts
- The Birthday Case FileA retired detective receives a mystery birthday gift: an old, unsolved case file from his past, now with a new clue enclosed. As he dusts off his…
- Murder at the Writers' RetreatA famous crime novelist attends a writer's retreat and becomes unwittingly embroiled in a real mystery when one of the attendees mirrors the murder…
- The Letter Before the CrimeA renowned detective receives an anonymous letter predicting a crime that will occur in 24 hours. The letter details are vague, pointing only to a…
- Letters Behind the Bookshop WallDuring a routine renovation of an old family-owned bookstore, a hidden stack of letters tied to a notorious unsolved robbery from the 1930s is found…
Fifteen minutes in? Keep going.
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