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Write a story about an ordinary person speaking truth to power.

Posted in Adults on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 68 stories

Bad High School Teacher

Submitted to Contest #88

They prepare no lessons, carry no papers, and instruct no one. They spit unrelated facts, regurgitate irrelevant dates, and monotonously spew textbook drivel. They strangle curiosity, stifle a love of learning, and murder both classroom discussion and critical thinking. Most egregiously, bad high school teachers spend far too much time at the photocopier, endlessly printing off soul-crushing packets that teach nothing, inspire no one, and offer no hope. Francis Boswell taught World History badly. She knew she did and she didn’t care. Th...

101 likes 79 comments 79
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One Day

Submitted to Contest #88

You’ll wake up in the morning and sleep at night. You’ll go to work, read sappy romance on Metro trains, and scream daggers at the radio. On sunny days, you’ll go on a walk and then eat a bar of chocolate afterward because that’s how you are.But that isn’t your story. The very meaning of “a story” can be controversial, but you won’t realize that until 2056, which is still an improvement since most individuals never get it at all. You see, understanding the future is like telling a story that hasn’t gotten written yet, and stories are words t...

99 likes 62 comments 62
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Push Through the Hard

Submitted to Contest #88

This is for all those people who feel like they can't do it anymore, me included <333They never know the hidden sideYou put on a smile, they think you're alrightYou tell 'em your fine, doing just plain ol’ fine, But they never know what's forcing that line. It could be your feelings, your emotions running wild.But you know better, you’re no innocent child. It could be that thing that's bugging you, That thing that made you escape the zoo.You never did want to, but you still did,You escaped your crazy emotions that made...

56 likes 19 comments 19
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Meta Abilities (Reedsy Cast, Part One, Tora POV)

Submitted to Contest #88

Trust me when I say this; there is nothing you could do to get me to like history class. Some enjoy it; and to you, I tip my hat and say “great job”, because this is killing me. Ms. Shindle drones on, her thin black glasses falling like dominoes. Her bun follows, and then the entire lesson plan. “For goodness sake, Matthews!” I bolt up as I hear my name, ignoring the snickers from the girls beside me. “Pay attention!” “Um,” I sigh. “Yes ma'am.” “In fact,” a cruel smile twists up her mouth. “Answer my question. Give me the origin of quirks....

52 likes 81 comments 81
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Between the Stars

Submitted to Contest #88

Owen sits in the garden, lost in thought. He looks out of place here, a tall, well-built man sitting alone under vines and roses. Fingers twisting along the rough wooden bench, he plans and unplans, running the future over in his mind. His phone rings, dragging him away from the abyss of time. It’s Ezra. Just seeing the name and photo sends his heart racing.“Hey,” he hears, “are we still on for tonight?”Owen nods nervously, forgetting he’s just a voice. “Uh, yeah. 7:00.”“Need me to pick anything up on the way?”“Nope, all good.”“Okay, se...

44 likes 24 comments 24
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The Man and The Sundial

Submitted to Contest #88

Long ago, there was a man living with his wife. She was one grouchy woman but apparently, the man was loving enough to consider her. They had no children for his wife couldn’t bear a child because of her condition. They lacked every luxurious thing in the world and lived under the shabby thatched of nipa hut in a place unheard of. A far-flung land where they needed a day or two to reach the market. The couple were thrusted with such weights in their hearts, yet they were generous. They loved each other and together, they were living happil...

32 likes 7 comments 7
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Dreams and Tambourines

Submitted to Contest #88

Disclaimer: I don’t believe in coincidence, so I won’t claim that the fact that this story lines up very nicely with one of the stories in Tanach is merely coincidental. I did, however, make up several parts of the story, and have to choose some interpretations over others. Also, for those of you who don’t know, the Hebrews later became known as Jews. If there’s anything else you need translated or explained, feel free to let me know.***It was hard for most Hebrews. I was from the tribe of Levi, the one tribe that wasn’t forced to work all d...

31 likes 8 comments 8
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The Injustice.

Submitted to Contest #88

B A N G .Ther i n gof gunshots travel through the air.B A N G .B A N G .B A N G. B A N G. B A N G. B A N G. B A N G. They won't stop shooting.T h e yt h i n kw e ' r et h ee n e m y.If you think racism is no longer prominent in today's world, you're wrong. Even a bat could see the way they look at us, like we wronged them by being born. How could you just stand and watch? We protest, peacefully of course, and we're called criminals.D i dy o uk n o wab l a c kp e r s o ni se i g h tt i m e sm o r el i k e l yt ob ew r o n g f u l l yc o n v i...

27 likes 3 comments 3
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Chia: The Goddess of Gold and Knowledge

Submitted to Contest #88

On the Treville mountain range, built on the smallest, but sturdiest hill, stands the huge Temple of Chia—the goddess of wealth and knowledge.  Draped in the finest of gowns embodied with complex mathematical equations written in gold silk, Chia spends her day drinking the holy wine of the gods and waiting for people to visit her temple. For any brave soul that makes the one-thousand step journey, Chia had a deal to offer. You may offer her a knowledge she does not yet know in return for gold or the answer to a question of your choosing...

27 likes 6 comments 6
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THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE

Submitted to Contest #88

A new test writing shows financial thought processes did not constantly spur that fact telling, and a few elective inspirations have been proposed. Their overall significance in some random setting is as yet not absolutely clear. This paper researches the significance of unadulterated untruth repugnance, an aversion for lies autonomous of their results. We propose a basic plan where unique thought processes considered in the writing foresee zero truth-telling, while unadulterated untruth abhorrence predicts a non-zero rate. In this way we de...

26 likes 6 comments 6
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His Smile

Submitted to Contest #88

I’m sitting in my seat, quietly watching my neighbourhood from my front deck. My half written book lies limply in my lap as I look around the quiet street, searching the world for the one sentence that continues to elude my brain, thus putting my writing on hold. How one sentence can be so hard to put into words, I don’t know. My neighbour that lives directly across the road from me comes out his front door, donning old green gardening gloves and a lovely smile. He brushes his soft brown fringe out of his eyes and waves at me as he notices m...

20 likes 2 comments 2
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A Wednesday at the Park

Submitted to Contest #88

“It is when your voice is shaking that you need to speak the loudest.” Sheryl had heard this and remembered it, but at the moment she did not believe it. Her uncle had been an activist who had worked through civil rights movements, protests against poverty and injustice, and continued to be respected and loved by people Sheryl never knew and may never meet, apart from certain school teachers who were curious about the family name: “Is he your…?” “Are you relations of…?” She looked down at the paper in front of her, her vision swimming a...

20 likes 4 comments 4
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The Castle of Light

Submitted to Contest #88

Once upon a time far far away, so far away, in fact, that not even a tiny bit of sunlight or moonlight reached this land, there existed a secret kingdom. You’re probably wondering how the people of this land lived without light. Now you see they did have light, they had the glow that was emitted from the Castle of Light. This castle was covered in sparkles of every imaginable kind and colour. The source of this light was the queen’s great love for her people and her caring smile. This light covered all the land spreading only joy a...

20 likes 1 comment 1
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Viva la Revolution

Submitted to Contest #88

“How does a kingdom run, with their mighty ruler gone?” Our revolution started off very small, with only me and five others who were brave enough to speak out against this tyrant.  My name is Azarin Frioster and I started the revolution against King Giakja. We started in the deep grain fields which we sat in trying to hide ourselves from the world and any soldier who could hear us. At this point in the gigantic timeline, any person who dared to speak out got taken away and nobody knew what happened to them after. My friend Nesta h...

19 likes 0 comments 0
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Morality vs life

Submitted to Contest #88

When time is ripe,life will make you a judge,a decision to choose between life and morality which one takes the hang.The wet pavement creates a thud,on every footstep he makes,a dull rythm that once and again draws him from his mind to enjoy this childishness that man never seems to let go, but it's not enough to move him further to observe all around him are countrymen running to shade from the rain ,he is oblivious off.Nairobi in 1980 was quiet, a new regime had settled in gracefully but not peacefully. A coup planned by young officers of ...

17 likes 0 comments 0
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