Howard Seeley

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Dec, 2020

Stories (77)

77 Stories

1792 karma pts

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“A Tiger's Tale” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #187

Being born a Hindu, reincarnation is an important part of my belief, and by some miracle, I have a memory of what’s happening to me. In my past life, my name was Advik, and I was a simple merchant who sold my wares to anyone with a few rupees in their pocket. During my lifetime, I tried to be fair to my customers, and I was doing well, but Vishnu, the protector of the world, must have thought differently. As I passed from my old life into the cycle of samsara, I found myself not to be reincarnated as a person, but as some beast yet unknown t...

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“Mr. Mirror” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #186

“Good morning, Mr. Mirror. What do you think you’re looking at, and why won’t you answer me? If you’re trying to drive me crazy, don’t bother. I’m already there and beyond. You think you can hide behind the mirror, always out of touch, but never out of sight. Every jester I make, you imitate, and as much as I’ve tried to trick or deceive you, I’ve never succeeded. No problem though. Like you, I’ve got all the time in the world. But for now, I’m going to turn away and ignore you.“We’ve been together for so long, it’s now like peering through ...

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“The Witch of Hamilton” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #176

Hello Darkness, my old friend echoes through my mind as I lay on satin cushions. The air touching my exposed skin, utterly still, and the silence surrounding me, suffocating. No hope, no means of reconciliation. Here was my new home, until all is no more. Had I’d known where I would ultimately end up, I never would have gotten mixed up with the Amanda, whom the locals nicknamed the Witch of Hamilton. Amanda was a beautiful young woman who’d recently moved to town. Though her looks were alluring, something deeper, dark, lingered in her soul...

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“The Son of Cinderella” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #172

Being the son of Cinderella, you’d think I lived a charmed life, or so says the eldest heir to the Charming family. But by the time I reached the age of six, I had already tired of hearing the story about my mother, and to this day, it makes me sick. “Fairy Godmothers, indeed,” I cried out to mt mother. “I’m seventeen! Do you still expect me to believe that childish story?” My mother sighed. “Lawrence my son, how many times have I told you that my words are true? Just because one day you’ll be sitting on your father’s throne, doesn’t give ...

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“The Face of Fear” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #171

As I sped out the back door, I was amazed at how fast my feet could carry me. Sweat poured off my face as I dashed across the yard, not from exerting myself, but from facing fear. As I reached our adjoining neighbor’s backyard, my father’s voice called to me from my back porch, but his words were lost in the distance. For two blocks I ran before I was greeted by a friendly face. “Hey, Terry,” Norman shouted out at me. “What’s the hurry?” Not daring to stop for him, I called out as I ran by, “I need a place to hide out. Any suggestions?” ...

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“The Best Unlaid Plans” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #170

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in life, it’s only a well-made plan that can change your future for the better. But in this story, I’m about to tell you, it couldn’t be further from the truth. It all began in January 1974, just after my eighteenth birthday. I was six feet one inch tall, one-hundred-sixty-five pounds, and had the body of an athlete. Externally, I was physically fit, but internally, I bore an invisible flaw, which eventually changed my future. To put it simply, I was half- blind. An ophthalmologist determined it wasn’t from...

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“Shadows of the Headless Horseman” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #169

As a child, I read the story, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and thought the town was only a figment of Washington Irving’s imagination. That was until I moved there. How I happened to end up in Sleepy Hollow is another story, but to put it simply, I was unemployed and was offered a job there. Being from Albany, New York, I did have far to travel. I just had to head down Interstate 87, head east across the Hudson River, and voila! I was there.Now you may think I was offered a glamorous job, such as a bank vice president, or a member of the bo...

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“Clarksdale Station” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #168

I heard myself groaning as I glared at my watch for the third time. It was 10:15PM and there was no sign of the 9:55 train coming. This is ridiculous, I thought. Wasn’t standard time developed to ensure trains ran on schedule? As I stood on the boarding platform at Clarksdale Station, my eyes followed the southbound tracks for as far as I could see, but the appearance of an oncoming train was not to be seen. Shit! It was another ten minutes before the lights of the locomotive turned around the bend.As I stepped off the platform and into the ...

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“Who Dunnit?” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #165

Everyone jumped as Marcus slammed the phone down. Silence followed the drama, then whispering turned to chatter. As police headquarters returned to its normalcy, Marcus continued to brood. A simple DNA test is all I asked for, and what do I get? Delays and excuses! Don’t they realize the longer it takes, the longer the murderer is loose? It took all his willpower not to pick up the phone and throw it across the room. Instead, he took a deep breath and replayed the recorded statements from the three suspects. It was a strange way to calm one’...

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“1942” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #164

Where I come from, men and women become afraid as soon as they saw me. You may think my face is grotesque or has a frightening appearance, but nothing could be farther from the truth. My name is Franz Heinz, and I am a Nazi soldier stationed at Dachau, Germany. It was the spring of 1942, when I received my orders stationing me here, and I couldn’t have been happier. Like most of my comrades, I sighed a breath of relief when the scourge of duty assignment was absent from my orders: Auschwitz. Though I personally didn’t know anyone stationed...

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“Truth and Happiness” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #163

I sat idly at the table playing with my food, doing my best to avoid telling my daughter about my decision. What would Amanda think, I said to myself. Glancing at her eyes, I could tell she sensed something was off. She repeatedly shifted her focus from her dish to my face, until she couldn’t stand it anymore. Gently, Amanda placed her fork on the table, and as it struck its surface, its sound broke the deathly silence filling the room. “What is it, dad,” she asked. It was a simple question, one that should have been easily answered, but ...

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“Cheesy Kid's Stuff” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #162

By the time Gilbert Einstein opened his eyes, the sun had already risen and with it, birds were singing songs to their loved ones. The rustling of leaves accompanied nature’s orchestra and was crescendoed by children’s laughter, and a cloudless sky perfected the scene. For Gilbert, this was icing on the cake, for what made today great wasn’t the weather. It was Saturday. No school, no homework, and best of all, no spelling test. Not wanting to waste a second of his free time, Gilbert jumped out of bed, greeted the poster of his honorary un...

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“Oasis for the Heart” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #160

For six weeks he had been gone, not a word, not even a whisper of his whereabouts. Mary was at her wits end, not knowing what happened to him. And she wasn’t the only one. Of the followers who had stayed after his disappearance, were edgy, ever snipping, constantly rebuking each other. Mary was sure if it weren’t for their faith in his returning, they would either disburse or physically assault each other. “Wasn’t that the opposite of what Yeshua taught them?” A phrase he repeatedly quoted creeped into her mind. "Ye of little faith.” It was ...

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“The Bribe of All Bribes” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #159

As much as Judas tried to understand what happened the night before, he couldn’t fathom why Yeshua wouldn’t declare himself the king of the Jews. “The timing’s perfect!” he thought. “The crowds have never been bigger. A few members of the Sanhedrin are supporting him, even if they are doing it secretly. So, why doesn’t he take the next step?” The answer to this riddle eluded him.Flustered, Judas decided to wander through the market square to take his mind off his troubles. The squabbling between the vendors and customers distracted him and e...

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“The Evil That Lies Within” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #158

It was a beautiful afternoon for playing games. The sun was out, and not a cloud in the sky. It was a perfect day for play and several children from town were taking advantage of it. Through the laughter of the children, one voice rang out. “You’re it, Thomas!” Tag was far from one of Thomas’ favorite games, and he frownedat his plight, for he was smaller than the other children, and rarely was ableto run anyone down to tag them. Still, he had no choice but to try. Again, andagain, he would chase after them, trying to tag them, but as much a...

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Author bio

Welcome to my world, where fiction becomes reality. I guarantee you'll find an enjoyable story, or I'll double your money back! Leave a comment and I'll comment on one of your stories too. You can reach me directly at: hseeley1760@hotmail.com