Write a story about someone who has to “move mountains” to get what they want.

Posted in Angst on Jan 13, 2023

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✍️ 16 stories

“Amor Vincit Omnia. Love Conquers All.” by Marilyn Filewood

(One profanity, a theme of Autism, bullying) "Asparagus got Aspergers!" Bronson lowered his face to my eye level and beamed with menace. His two front teeth had fallen out last week, so a spray of spittle came through the gaps and landed on my glasses. I wished glasses came with windscreen wipers. Due to the missing teeth, what Bronson actually said was "Athparagath got Athbergeth...

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“The Wizard of Washington Square” by Lee Disco

There is a wizard in Washington Square. He wears a billowing cloak, bundled in a pile on his shoulders; he is a tall creature, and with the ebony fabric wrapped up to his ears, he looks even larger. The rest of the cloak drapes down his legs, swaying in fraying threads at his ankles. His jeans—black, too—are too short for him, yielding to gray ankles and ragged shoes. He is pale all over, with s...

20 comments 20 SHORTLIST ⭐️

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“Doomscrolling Mountains” by Akash Joshi

You open google and type “unsplash.com”. The site is simple, functional, and promising. You know you are at the right place when the most prominent thing on a site is the search bar. And there are two of them. Search free high-resolution photos, they say. You know why you are here. Your life is lacking. You need inspiration. Or is it motivation? Or is it both? You decide to go with the fo...

12 comments 12 SHORTLIST ⭐️

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“The Miners of Mount Elgon” by 𝔊𝔲𝔞𝔡𝔞𝔩𝔲𝔭𝔢 𝔗𝔢𝔩𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔱𝔞𝔯

As the sun sets on the extinct volcano of Mount Elgon and the red light of the African evening fades, a female dung beetle scrambles over a pile of elephant droppings, forming her find into a ball. Once completed, it will be at least three times larger than the shiny, black-armored insect. She will roll her prize away backwards, a single egg enclosed within, to be buried in soft ground.Though the deed of the lady dung beetle is both fascinating and commendable—for it is she, and all her kindred, who help prevent the putr...

29 comments 29 SHORTLIST ⭐️

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“Futility” by Kylah Adams

The mouth of a cave comes into view, the Empress is both relieved and anxious. She’s heard stories of the types of monsters lurking in these woods. It’s her only option though, her silk traveling slippers are soaked through and the rain refuses to let up. Taking a deep breath, she ducks into the cave, hands clasped as she says a silent prayer to the gods that they watch over her and keep her safe. She finds herself a pl...

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“Bullets and Feathers” by Ian Gonzales

“Sigma Station Control, this is Shuttle D177 on approach, please confirm.” I release the transmit key and sit back in my command chair, feeling that sense of weary satisfaction that comes at the end of a long day’s work, done well. “I’ve got one giant hunk of rock, all ready to deliver.” There’s a moment of silence, then the comm crackles to life. “Roger that, D177. We have you on our scopes. Your approach vector ...

5 comments 5 SHORTLIST ⭐️

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“Conquering catatonia” by Autism Active

He lay across the breakfast table, locked in uncontrollable rigidity. His head was turned to one side and the unchewed food bulged in his cheeks. She jumped up, once again on red alert. “Jimmy, Jimmy” she called as she immediately shook his shoulders to sit back up. He didn’t respond. With the confidence of a pro, she pressed on his chin, opening his mouth and in one fluid movement cleared the contents onto the side pl...

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“Amalie's Escape” by Richard Leslie Brock

On June 25th of 1930, Amalie turned eighteen and lived with her parents near the Saint-Lizier Cathedral in a house overlooking the Salat river in France. One year later, she would go to the Spanish side of the Pyrenees to become a teacher of children, change her name to Amala, and marry a sheep farmer who lived high on a mountain and had a bent toward philosophy.

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“Ain't No Mountain HIgh Enough...” by Lisa Wentworth

Ain’t No Mountain HIgh Enough… There once was a girl called Lydia. She was pretty and sweet, but not the prettiest and sweetest. She was smart and clever, but not the smartest or most clever. She never won awards for her work in class. She was fit and active, and loved being outside, but she never excelled and got blue ribbons at contests…she preferred to just challenge herself. In fact, Ly...

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“Mama Bear” by Vanessa M

Content warning: language As she watched little Gracie enter the building, Kimberly let out an exhausted sigh. The first two weeks of the school year had been difficult to say the least. Gracie was the new kid, and that was always hard in and of itself. It’s easy to forget how mean kids can be. Then there was the matter of Gracie’s IEP. Gracie was hard of hearing and wore...

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“Moving Mountains” by Sharon Farnsworth

MOVING MOUNTAINS Nic and Pic and their ant colony recently moved but discovered their food source was depleting quicker than anticipated. Someone had to go look for food, and Nic and Pic were chosen. This was good news for them. They were over the moon with the idea of exploring. They hadn’t had new territory to explore in quite a long time, and looking for food presented the perfect opportunity.

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“Impossible to Possible” by Abby Jiang

The thunder was loud and rolling over the dark summer sky. The storm was coming. Against the gusting winds of the incoming rain, I rode my bike through the winding streets of Shanghai to my review class. During the Culture Revolution in 1978 – a movement that Mao started—colleges closed for ten years. My regular school education stopped when I was in fifth grade. Like every young person, I was sent to both the ...

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“To Will a Mountain to Move” by Juan Diego Olivarez

Grand Heights wasn’t a very large town. It was the kind of town where everybody knew each other. Gossip ran amok, families could leave their doors unlocked, and when you saw someone you waved them hello and wished them a good day. With how close-knit the town was, word spread quickly that Mike Oats had been hurt in a car accident, currently in critical condition. Mike was in college, currently separated from his family....

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“Journeymen.” by Erika Mara

I felt repeated taps and repeated grabbing of my shoulder as I was asleep. The sound that no man wants to hear when he is in a deep slumber is, “Vladimir, wake up. It is time to go to work.” I slowly opened my eyes at the sight of my father already wearing his work uniform. Black corduroy pants, with dark brown and black wool flannel. I could see my reflection in his black-rimmed round glasses. The only light in the room was coming from the sun starting to rise because it was the crack of dawn. My father look...

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“New Beginnings” by Val Jean

Trigger Warning: Domestic Violence, Gun ViolenceNew Beginnings It’s not going to be like last time. Violet thought as she squinted through her one good eye and reapplied a different, darker shade of red to her swollen lips. I’m stronger than my excuses and braver than my fears. She placed both hands on the sink counter and stared at her bruised reflection as she repeated the mantra her sponsor, Damon, had given her last week after ...

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Write a story about someone who has to “move mountains” to get what they want.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 16 stories

“Amor Vincit Omnia. Love Conquers All.” by Marilyn Filewood

“The Wizard of Washington Square” by Lee Disco

“Doomscrolling Mountains” by Akash Joshi

“The Miners of Mount Elgon” by 𝔊𝔲𝔞𝔡𝔞𝔩𝔲𝔭𝔢 𝔗𝔢𝔩𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔱𝔞𝔯

“Futility” by Kylah Adams

“Bullets and Feathers” by Ian Gonzales

“Conquering catatonia” by Autism Active

“Amalie's Escape” by Richard Leslie Brock

“Ain't No Mountain HIgh Enough...” by Lisa Wentworth

“Mama Bear” by Vanessa M

“Moving Mountains” by Sharon Farnsworth

“Impossible to Possible” by Abby Jiang

“To Will a Mountain to Move” by Juan Diego Olivarez

“Journeymen.” by Erika Mara

“New Beginnings” by Val Jean

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about someone who realizes they're on the wrong path.

Write about a character who’s climbing a mountain, whether internal, external, or both.

Write about a character who, for whatever reason, retreats to a remote cabin.

Write a story that includes someone saying, “Let’s go for a walk.”

Contest #181

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

286

Contest entries

129

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Tired of MS Word?

Explore more writing prompt ideas: