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Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jan, 2021
Submitted to Contest #292
“Man, six bucks for an ice cream sandwich? Highway robbery.” Jack squinted at the menu slapped crookedly on the side of the bright yellow panel truck. Perry’s Ice Cream. Everyone had a restaurant on wheels these days. Knockoffs of famous characters grinned back at him with their dead eyes. He knew the actual products would be a deformed, melted version of the picture, and he found the irregular eyeballs and melting smiles to be unsettling. A nice, plain ice cream sandwich would hit the spot.“Excuse me? Hell...
Submitted to Contest #186
“One extra hot orange juice and espresso.” “Ew?” “I’m glad you said that, because it’s actually for me. Here’s your latte.” “Thanks. So what do you do for a living? Ugh, sorry. Lame first date question.” “That’s alright. I’m a firefighter.” “Explains your weird mustache.” “It also explains why I’m so handsome.” “I’ve never seen you on a fireman calendar.” “Well of course not. No one would ever change the month. And then people would lose track of days, and the world would descend into chaos. Also, my mustache is awesome....
Submitted to Contest #154
“We’re running out of time. You gotta help me, Hallie.” Gary has me cornered in my kitchen, his eyes wild. For the first time since I can remember, Gary isn’t drunk. This concerns me more than anything else at the moment. “Help you how?” I step backwards so I’m closer to my knife rack. Just in case he gets closer. I don’t like to be touched. “Everyone expects me to fix the world.” He sits heavily in one of my kitchen chairs, his stupid starred jacket catching on the rattan. “I don’t know what t...
Submitted to Contest #132
Age 8“Welcome back, Child,” the old gods whispered through the leaves.Maddie flopped into the grass just short of the forest’s tree line and held her arms out with a grin. The trees were impossibly tall, towering over her and casting their shade over the village. At their bases, the shadows condensed themselves into a tiny kitten that bounded into Maddie’s open arms.“Hi, friends,” Maddie cooed, rubbing her cheek against the kitten’s cool darkness. Maddie had been drawn to the forest since she could remember, but she neve...
Submitted to Contest #117
The morning dawned cold and bright over the valley. As the sun crested over the western hill, it illuminated a lone knight, the formidable and intimidating Sir Mason, on horseback, his red and gold bear crest stark against the cloudless skies. The bear knight’s soldiers emerged behind him, the sun to their backs, creating one solid silhouette of impending warfare.Gallant and beloved Sir Noah, on the eastern hill, blinked against the rising sun. His army stood at his back, silently menacing, an array of soldiers and mounted cav...
Submitted to Contest #115
Abby woke up nauseated.She flung off the heavy blankets and ran to the bathroom, barely kneeling in front of the Cheri-integrated SmartJohn toilet in time. Abby hated throwing up; it made her feel like she was still in grade school. She hadn’t thrown up in years, not since her wedding night with Parker when they both had too much to drink. After cleaning up, Abby needed to use the toilet for other things. As she sat, she realized the auto-set morning peppermint scent from her SmartAroma diffuser was incredibly strong.&nbs...
Submitted to Contest #107
The officer shoves me into the back seat of the police car while I’m still screaming and my pants are wet and my hands are cuffed and oh god Susie is going to tell everyone what happened and my parents are going to be so mad and - FREEZE FRAME I bet you’re wondering how I ended up in this situation. It all started with an innocent Truth or Dare game just a few hours ago. Let’s rewind. We’re all gathered around in my living room, right? Me and Chris and Maisey and Armand. And, somehow, I had managed to get THE cu...
Submitted to Contest #106
I’m alone. I’m so terribly alone, and it’s dark in the apartment. The blackout curtains are drawn tightly to block out the aggressive summer sun. The overhead light is on, but it does nothing to cut through the darkness that is, I recognize, mostly in my own mind. There are times when the loneliness is so overwhelming that I can’t help but cry. This is one of those times, and a soft whine escapes my lips. I take a deep, shuddering breath and push the cry back down my throat. I mustn’t let the neighbors hear. ...
Submitted to Contest #105
Content warning: murder, death I watch with morbid interest as the man dies. The Queen is watching, too, though I can’t see her right now. That’s by design, of course. We must endeavor to keep our experiments a secret and our connection to one another more secret still. The poison is an overwhelming success this time and works exactly as intended. The wretched man dies quickly and quietly but with evident discomfort. He makes no observations of any strange tastes or smells from his food in the moments before...
Submitted to Contest #100
“Put on the Hat, Macy.” I sighed heavily and gave one last puppy dog stare at my parents. My mom didn’t look even a little bit chagrined as she plopped the giant purple sombrero unceremoniously on my head. “Can’t we stop with this stupid hat?” My face burned with embarrassment, and I hadn’t even set foot outside of the house. My mother gasped. “It’s a family tradition!” I looked to my dad, but he was no help either. “A family tradition,” he echoed with a half-hearted shrug. “Yeah, but I’m too old for it.” “You k...
Submitted to Contest #96
I had just finished my second pint of ale when the stranger walked into the tavern. Let me rephrase that. The stranger literally kicked in the door to the tavern which was an immediately unpopular move, but no one wanted to say anything because this particular stranger was easily a head taller than anyone else in the room and oh Gods the muscles on him were bigger around than the stool I was sitting on. Ahem. As one might expect, a hush fell over the townspeople. The Salty Kraken was a hoppin’ place pretty much all the time...
Submitted to Contest #91
I lock the doors and turn off the main lights to the newest addition of the city's public library system after a successful first day. The rows of shelves are now illuminated only by the soft glow of the emergency lights. My librarian training kicks in, and I check the shadows for peering eyes or subtle movements. But this library isn’t haunted. It doesn’t have any secrets. It’s just a perfectly ordinary library. Libraries can be, of course, overwhelmingly powerful. You can feel the magic curling around your...
Shortlisted for Contest #87 ⭐️
“And without further ado, I’d like to get straight to the heart of today’s press conference. Lottie the Fainting Goat is throwing her name into the ring for Jasper City Mayor in this year’s elections!” That was my cue. I stiffened my limbs inside the heavy goat costume and flopped onto my side to the gathered crowd’s thunderous applause. Tucker French, the CEO of Thrill Burger, smiled down at me. I winked even though I knew he couldn’t see my expression through the huge foam head. My security detail helped me stan...
Submitted to Contest #85
1907 The smoke forced her outside. As she gasped for air, an unsolicited hand rested on her lower back to steady her. Henrietta flinched and spun away to face Thomas. “Mr. Ambrewster,” she choked out. “What are you doing here at this hour?” Henrietta heard the fire brigade’s bells growing louder as they neared her burning house. Her mind cleared. “Alice! Where’s Alice?” She grabbed hold of Thomas’ arm, her eyes pleading. “Have you seen her? Has she made it outside?” Thomas smiled beat...
Submitted to Contest #84
In June, when she first arrived, walking the length of the room took almost thirty seconds.By July, Roma was able to walk the length in just ten seconds at a leisurely pace. Gravity was a bitch, she’d decided early on. The most basic movements proved much harder for her on Earth. Her body eventually adjusted to the increased gravity, but maintaining balance and simply moving were exhausting.The scientists, who Roma regarded as little more than captors, visited almost every day to run their tests. They were always covered ...
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