The chalk arrow: mystery chat template
A ready Instagram DM-look chat for the tiny mysteries gallery, eight messages and about 26 seconds as a video. Open it, change the words and export it as a labelled, fictional mock-up.
Preview in the Instagram DM look
There is a chalk arrow on the pavement.
Where does it point?
To the next arrow.
Follow it.
I have followed nine.
Where are you now?
At a bench with a thermos and a note: "Well done".
Drink it. It is a gift.
The full script (8 messages)
The first four messages open on the Free plan; the rest need a paid plan.
The template: The chalk arrow
A 26-second mystery template: Dan and Eve, eight messages, opening on "There is a chalk arrow on the pavement." and closing on "Drink it. It is a gift.".
Message 7 is the longest at 11 words ("At a bench with a thermos and a note: 'Well done'.") and message 4 is the shortest ("Follow it."). Two lines ask a question, so the other person keeps answering.
Using it in the Instagram DM look
Close with a new, smaller mystery for Part 2. No upgrade is needed to try Instagram DM. Switch on typing dots, read marks, reactions and an online status when you build the scene. Play fair: never hide the key fact from the viewer. Photos and shared posts normally fill the screen in this style; in ChatsRat the sample keeps to text, so the words carry the scene.
What the Free plan shows
On a Free account you see four messages of The chalk arrow, ending at "Follow it.". To get to "Drink it. It is a gift.", four messages later, upgrade to a paid plan.
Tips
- Pause on Dan's "I have followed nine." before moving to the next bubble.
- Let the opening "There is a chalk arrow on the pavement." breathe so a late scroller still knows who is talking.
- Choose a puzzle with a domestic answer: a note, a key, a sound, a delivery.
- Make the ending your own by editing "Drink it. It is a gift."; add "fictional chat" to the caption.
- Try two new names in place of Dan and Eve, then read the story out loud once.
Questions
Can I use The chalk arrow on the Free plan?
Yes for the look, with limits. The Instagram DM look is on the Free plan, and the editor loads the first four of the eight messages and two people. The rest needs a paid plan. Exports on Free carry a visible ChatsRat watermark.
How long is The chalk arrow as a video?
About 26 seconds at a comfortable reading pace, counting eight messages with a short beat between them. Add a second or two for the ending card.
Is this mystery chat a real conversation?
No. It is an invented chat between Dan and Eve, made as a mock-up. ChatsRat is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any messaging app, and look names describe a style only. Label what you publish as fiction.
Can I change the names and lines?
Yes. Open the template in the editor, replace any line or name and export your own version. Keep the characters invented, and keep the content free of real people and anything sexual.
This is fiction. The people in this template are invented. ChatsRat makes mock-ups and fictional conversations for creators, designers and teachers. Do not use it to pass off a made-up conversation as a real one, to impersonate a real person, or as proof of anything. See the Acceptable Use policy.
About the watermark. Exports on the Free plan carry a visible ChatsRat watermark, and every export carries an invisible mark that the verify page can read. Plans list what changes on paid plans.
ChatsRat is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any messaging app. App names on this page describe a style only.