Katariina Ruuska

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Oct, 2020

Stories (10)

10 Stories

207 karma pts

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“Don't Break Character” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #250

“How does this number look to you?” The man opposite me slides a piece of paper across his desk and my eyes have to scan over it three times for the number to register in my brain. It’s at this moment that I believe in God again. Almost a decade of rejections, doors slammed in my face, and scraping by on instant noodles now, finally, all seem worth it. I look up at the man, who, upon seeing the stupefied expression on my face, breaks into a big smile, his straight white teeth revealing that he hasn’t seen the bottom of an instant noodle cup ...

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“The One Who Hurts You Most” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #247

It’s not them, it’s youYou can pass the blame and cry boo-hooNothing good will it doFor the one who hurts you most is always you Blair thought about her 14-year-old niece’s poem now that the flashing of the cameras stung her retinas, reminding her of the topic of the poem — hurt. She’d read it and felt proud. Sure, it was a little rough around the edges, certainly no Emily Dickinson, but there was a refreshing sense of accountability to it, maturity, wisdom. She’d promised her niece she’d frame it, but it was still sitting on her dining tabl...

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“If You're Reading This...” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #246

Trigger warning: Foul language Creak, creak, creak, goes the seesaw. Hey, you! Yes, you. I’ve got a question for you: When you get transported into a work of fiction, how the hell do you de-transport yourself? And before you ask, this is not one of those if-a-tree-falls-in-the-forest-does-it-make-a-sound type of futile musings that makes you go, Hmm, never thought about that one before, but yay philosophy, I feel like a better person today having pondered that. And since you figure that providing an actual answer probably takes a back...

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“The Luckiest Woman Alive” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #180

Trigger warning: kidnapping, firearm, threat of violence, foul language They call me “The Luckiest Woman Alive.” I would say that’s a pretty accurate description – that is, if you buy into the more traditional meaning of “luck” –, as I’ve won pretty much every lottery, sweepstake and contest I’ve ever entered, the prizes ranging from all-expenses-paid trips and dream houses to cars, boats and cold hard cash. Of course, another term of endearment given to me – one that’s particularly popular amongst the masses – is “Rich B...

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“Hail Mary” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #72

“So, what you're saying is that being part of the dumbest, weakest, and the most talentless species is actually a good thing?” The green alien stares at me with his five yellow eyes. We're sitting in his tiny office just in front of the heavy lead door that says “Simulation in progress – don't disturb” in big red letters. He's waiting for an answer, clipboard in one of his tentacle-like hands, but all I can think about are his eyes and if all five of them are really that necessary, like, when it comes to eyes, isn't less more? But then I rem...

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“Kooky dot com” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #71

"I can't believe you brought me here." My voice is groggy and I'm cranky. It's 6:52 am, and I don't work well after a 3-hour sleep and without a crapload of caffeine. I kick a pebble on the pavement that disappears into the darkness. "Seriously," I continue. "We're standing in the middle of a dark street, staring at the lines of a crossway, and basically giving any Ted Bundy over here an open invitation to go to town on our defenseless selves. You think we could fight back? I have a mouse wrist, and your body has not seen physical labor like...

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“The Last Book Printer” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #69

Marvin stared at the coffee table next to him in his office at his book printing company, processing the words he'd just heard. The icing on the cake that said “After all, tomorrow is another day” – the last line of the novel Gone with the Wind – was melting, the balloons that had been shoved into the back corner with a few champagne bottles looked dusty and half-deflated, and the “Happy Retirement” banner hanging sadly from the ceiling cast a literal and figurative shadow over them. The colorful party supplies that just half an hour ago had...

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“Forty-Two Parsecs Yonder” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #67

"Let the record show that this is a colossally bad idea." "Thank you, Chester, for your input." "Seriously. If this was one of those cheesy horror movies from the before-before times you watch, this would be the part where everybody would yell, 'Don't go there!'" "Uh-huh." "Don't go there, Lakeland!" "Got it, thanks." "It's strange. I always knew you were an odd specimen but I never pegged you as someone with zero survival instinct." That's my space pet Chester, a cat, a catnip-addict, and a major pain in the ass. Just to spite him, I push t...

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“The One You Feed” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #65

Hi, my name is David and I'm a recovering werewolf. [This is when you say “Hi, David!”] Every week I attend my local Recovering Werewolves meeting, RW for short. My wife and my kid think that it stands for Retired Wrestlers. Yes, I know I know, it's not exactly ideal to lie to the people you love, but in a way, a retired wrestler is not too far from the truth. Except that I don't wrestle with other people, only with my inner wolf. I see my alpha Jim twice every week. Alphas are like our mentors, or sponsors if you will, that give us advice a...

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“Swan Song” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #63

My name is Swan-Swan. Before you say anything, yes, I know, it might be a little too on the nose, with me being a swan and all, but I was given that name by some human children several years ago and it sort of stuck, so what can you do? My life partner is called Luk-Luk. In case you were wondering, he was named by the same children just a couple of seconds before I was. I suppose we are lucky that way. Most swans go through their whole lives without any kind of a name at all. You can imagine that there are a lot of Hey-Yous in the swan commu...

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Author bio

Hi, and thank you for stopping by :) My name is Kata, I'm originally from Helsinki, Finland, and currently living in Southern California with my husband. I've been writing fiction all my life, and my work has previously appeared in Eunoia Review and Drunken Pen Writing. For me, Prompts are a good way to exercise my writing muscle, and my intention is to write about as many different types of characters and in as many different genres as possible. So far, I've written from the POV of a bird, a werewolf, a teenage boy in space, a retiree, a hacker, and a billionaire, and I'd still like to try my hand at high fantasy, romance, speculative fiction, and a whodunnit. As a reader, I have eclectic tastes, but I tend to lean a bit more towards the quirkier side of fiction. Feel free to check out my stories, and do let me know if you'd like my opinion on yours :) My blog: http://katawritesblog.blogspot.com/ Contact me: a.katariina.ruuska@gmail.com