Place your characters in a tough situation, where nobody wants to acknowledge the reality of what's happening.

Posted in Angst on Jul 12, 2024

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✍️ 84 stories

“Smile for the Camera” by Sandhya Ramachandran

Submitted to Contest #259

A little girl in a blue ballerina-esque dress, starstruck by a cardboard cutout of the genie from Aladdin. A man with an arm around a woman and his other hand rested on the girl’s shoulder, his deep set chestnut brown eyes revealing nothing out of the ordinary. All smiles for the camera. That was how Kathy Creuset remembered the trip to Cameron Highlands - a rose-tinted window to a life filled with some sort of childlike ecstasy and wonder that could only see dreams and love. Not pain or heartbreak. All that Kathy had known on that trip was ...

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“The Cordie Marshall interview ” by Sutcliffe Martha

Submitted to Contest #259

TW Mention of homophobia and internalised homophobiaNeve knew a lot about Cordie Marshall. She knew that Cordelia ‘Cordie’ Marshall was born in 1986 on the 12th of July, making her 23 years old at the time. She had been in 26 movies, nominated for 33 awards and won 19 of them. Her favourite colour was lilac, but she couldn’t wear it since she believed it clashed with her hair. Neve also knew that she was rumoured to be the biggest sex symbol after Monroe. Her skin transformed to gold in the spotlights, her voice celestial through a mic...

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“Escape from Castets (January 1969)” by Rebecca Kalin

Submitted to Contest #259

Paris by midnight was our goal. After an early start and shared nonstop driving, it seemed within reach. From the sandy beaches in the south through the snow-capped Pyrenees in the north we had driven ten hours and now, with Spain behind us, we had only seven to go. The sun was beginning to set when the knocking began: a steady metallic thumping that got louder and louder until there was a terrible bang. The car lurched to a stop and an acrid smell began to seep in from behind—from exactly that place where one might find the engine of a Volk...

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“It's Not About The Mini-Skirt” by Maria Wickens

Submitted to Contest #259

Trigger Warning : Theme of Suicide Dad set a rule that we have to take breakfast together as a family. It dropped off when it was just my brother Jess and me at home, but after Harrison got back from Vietnam and Lane and Annie moved in the rule was rigidly enforced. Fatigue is a symptom of swimming through the quicksand of life in a small nothing happening town. I crawl my way to the breakfast room each day resenting every step. This is a sleep until winter’s over kind of tired. Hush! A piece of advice I picked up along my r...

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“Supertide” by Phil Martin

Submitted to Contest #259

The Super TideWritten by Phillip Martin JR. The air was crisp. Not cold enough to stay indoors but cold enough to keep the riff raff from the beach. Marty can’t complain. He took this gig for the money and having a bungalow on the beach was just a bonus. Good paying work for an electrician over the holidays. It’s time for the older of his two girls at home to start driving. This gig makes the difference between buying her a busted 2007 Escort or a sound 2017 Corolla! &nbs...

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“Betrayal” by Jacqueline Jones

Submitted to Contest #259

BetrayalNo matter the time, the place, the culture, or the people, betrayal looks and feels the same. There may be a new cast of characters with different names and faces, playing various roles in the age-old drama of love and romance. Still, the negative feelings of denunciation, refusal, and denial associated with rejection remain the same.Enmeshed in a loveless marriage arrangement, a woman named Hannah becomes an unwilling participant in the role of the romantically rejected. She was born into a gentry upper-class society that expects he...

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“The Elephant in the Room is Blue” by Cassi Stilianessis

Submitted to Contest #259

The Elephant in the Room is BlueCassi StilianessisWriting as: R. W. Pierette Content Advisory: mental illness, attempted suicide When they take you away, I think for sure I will never see you again. They come in hot, barreling up the driveway at warp speed. Five of them spill from the ambulance; two rush to the door I’m holding open while mom waits with you, your head in her lap. I hear them call your name, the EMTs dressed in blue coveralls. The questions they ask are distant. Too far away for me to hear even though they are in the bathroom...

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“The Way Things Have to Be” by Katelin Grudzinski

Submitted to Contest #259

The sun beat down on Indo’s back; hot dust floated around and settled in the air on a slight breeze. The herd of elephants moved slowly, one foot in front of the other. Their destination: the water hole. It had been a long time since Indo had a bath and he was looking forward to the cool water. A shadow crossed over his head and he peered up into the face of his mother. Her ears flapped a few times and a breeze drifted off of Indo’s face. “It is warm today,” he remarked. His mother nodded. “We should be at the water hole shortly....

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“Onkel” by Edith Fullerton

Submitted to Contest #259

Onkel He sat in the kitchen on the chromed steel chair with the blue vinyl seat. Had he looked up and to his right, he could have seen the sky and trees through the kitchen window, but he rarely looked that way. His focus was on the stained crystal ashtray that sat on the cool grey- blue surface of the formica table before him. It was in contrast with the colour and texture of the tan skin on his hairy left arm, which rested on it. The arm wore a short- sleeved cotton shirt, striped in faded green, grey, and yellow, covering his upper arms a...

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Place your characters in a tough situation, where nobody wants to acknowledge the reality of what's happening.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 84 stories

“Smile for the Camera” by Sandhya Ramachandran

“The Cordie Marshall interview ” by Sutcliffe Martha

“Escape from Castets (January 1969)” by Rebecca Kalin

“It's Not About The Mini-Skirt” by Maria Wickens

“Supertide” by Phil Martin

“Betrayal” by Jacqueline Jones

“The Elephant in the Room is Blue” by Cassi Stilianessis

“The Way Things Have to Be” by Katelin Grudzinski

“Onkel” by Edith Fullerton

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about two people who aren't admitting their true feelings for one another, despite it being obvious to outsiders.

Write a story that includes the line, "Is nobody going to say it?".

In a small town, a powerful family have a dark secret that nobody wants to discuss. One day, an outsider arrives, who's not happy to simply drop it.

Set your story in a world where conversation about one particular topic is banned — but there are ways to get around the rule.

Contest #259

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

297

Contest entries

143

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: