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Scott Christenson

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jan, 2022

Stories (143)
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477 Followers
174 Following

143 Stories

6555 karma pts

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Open Pit Mining

Submitted to Contest #200

A lot of people are opposed to open pit mining, tearing up huge chunks of the earth, so people can have more cars, more gadgets, more of everything, but trust me, when you've just lost your job, your girlfriend, and are receiving student debt bills, concerns about the world in 2200 are not the highest priority. Which is how I found myself a week ago travelling across the world, and starting work last week at Fimiston in WA.Seconds before I’m about to get my truck into gear, Robb jumps in. He's invited himself. Having a companion for the tent...

26 likes 27 comments 27
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Tell Me Why I Don’t Like Memoirs

Submitted to Contest #198

Damon, a ghostwriter, finished the editing of yet another memoir he had written for a successful business person. Someone who climbed the corporate ladder and managed to become CEO of a large company, for a few years. And then, reading between the lines (Damon was good at that), the CEO was let go for underperformance. In interviews, the CEO was pleasant, if dully conventional. The type of man women want to marry, and then not talk to their friends about much afterwards.Damon’s draft title for these sorts of memoirs was invariably, Tale...

37 likes 42 comments 42
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The Goddess Must Have Her Way

Submitted to Contest #197

Her gaze lingered on the muscular men working on the plains of Oklahoma. She desired them all, but there was something about the power in his shoulders, the way he carried himself, his easy smile when he cajoled the others, that made her think this one was her choice. Her hero. The Goddess of Stone sent messengers.ↂↂUnder the roaring heat of the natural gas flaring off above, Avrel hauled the next pipe segment into place, sweat exuded from all his pores while his rippling muscles worked to place the 35 foot of steel that hanging from the boo...

17 likes 5 comments 5
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Chat To Me (Emily's Story)

Submitted to Contest #196

My toddler has been crying since yesterday. I really need to turn this thing off soon.“Emily, You can’t go offline now,” my teammate Zeke says, always pushing the mission as usual.“He’s right.” Freya’s face appears, looking concerned. “You promised to stay with us until the trial.” She is the easy-going one, so when she gets serious, that's a sign something is important.We are on our way to the trial of Copernicus to present arguments for clemency. If we don’t reach Rome by 1616 and petition the Pope, the timeline will see Galileo hange...

17 likes 22 comments 22
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The SPON

Submitted to Contest #195

Things turned from bad to worse for my roommate David, back in the 2020s. His problems began with the YouTube videos, then the TikTok and Instagram shorts, and finally, companies began to distribute information on how to ‘spot the narcissist’.“It’s not fair!” David moaned. “On every new project at work, the architecture team puts me on bathroom and storage design saying, "so my ego doesn’t grow any larger.’”I tried to look sympathetic. “It’s not their fault. Everyone has been receiving training on how to deal with Cat-7 narcissists.” “C...

25 likes 25 comments 25
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It Takes Two to Tango

Submitted to Contest #194

I’m sitting down with Wordle and a plate of nachos for dinner, when my mobile rings. An unknown number, but I answer. It might be an opportunity to play games with a telemarketer while I eat. My three rescue cats, Erudite, Musical and Justice, are also eating their dinner under the table next to me.A female voice asks, “Fred Anderson?” “That’s me.” I take a nacho and scoop refried beans from the paper plate.”Alberta's scrabble champion?”“This is correct.” Crunching on the chip, I wonder could this be a reporter?“This is Jen,” she says. ...

21 likes 25 comments 25
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The Brand Ambassador at the End of the Universe

Submitted to Contest #193

After quitting a telemarketing job that wasn't my aesthetic, I spend a lot of time at home. Dad watches me eat my breakfast each morning, then go to my room to play computer games, with steadily escalating frustration as the days and weeks go by. I hear him mumble the word 'failure' to Mom behind closed doors, while she murmurs more comforting sounding words. She must be restraining Dad's bootcamp drill sergeant instincts, for now, at least.From the way his foot taps the floor more loudly each morning, he must be reaching his breaking point,...

21 likes 19 comments 19
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A Byzantine Trade

Submitted to Contest #192

Being in a traveling antique roadshow, one learns to keep a close eye on the competition. Especially the Greens, they organize this roadshow, but have been against me from the beginning.Across the aisle, a young man looks disappointed with whatever Isaac had to offer him, and heads my way. There’s a good chance Isaac—not as educated as I—might not have discerned the cultural nuance of the historical antiquity the young man is trying to sell.When he approaches, he shyly avoids my gaze yet looks hopeful. “My grandfather says this is valuable.”...

21 likes 10 comments 10
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Expat Stories: An Auction in Osaka

Submitted to Contest #191

In Osaka, during the first week of my new job, the only work I’ve done is to buy flowers. The rest of the time, I sit inside Ishikawa Real Estate’s small and crowded office, waiting for something to do while flipping through a manga under my desk, studying Japanese, and trying not to bother any of the real estate agents.The owner walks in. Everyone sits up at their desks. Like a commanding general, Mr Ishikawa has gray hair, rock solid posture, and an aura of extreme confidence. He looks amused each morning to see an American working for his...

21 likes 15 comments 15
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Not Out of the Woods Yet

Submitted to Contest #190

[Trigger warning: illness] ‘This is dope. I’m going to meet Jim Jackson next week’ I tweet and watch the replies: “pass on my hopes for his recovery.” “UR soooo lucky.” “jim is an inspiration.” Jim hasn’t replied to me at all, despite me being his greatest fan. I’ve been with him since the beginning. I know, he’s grown his follower base, maybe sometimes he’s too sick to type replies, but he could at least have sent an emoji once in a while. My Mom, on the other hand, is too much information. She worries the trip to New York might affec...

24 likes 26 comments 26
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Out of the Woods on Mt Tateshina

Submitted to Contest #189

Sayako waves goodbye from our apartment window as I pull the car out of the driveway. With one hand, I wave back, feeling slightly guilty about leaving her for the day. But her broad smile transmits an assurance that it’s ok to go on the hike today, she’ll be there waiting when I return.On Sundays, we have an agreement I can take the day to recharge by hiking alone in the mountains of Nagano. Getting out of the car in the empty parking lot at the trailhead, I pack light: 2 liters of water, mobile phone, an extra jacket, a survival bag a...

30 likes 14 comments 14
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Chaos at the Cryptocurrency Conference

Submitted to Contest #188

[TW: all 5 prompts + multiple douche bags + Toxic Positivity]“So, what’s the catch of the day?” I ask the waiter, already knowing I’m going to reject it as I like to screw with people–be oppositional, as they say. I’m also desperately trying to impress Monique.“Glad you asked. The catch of the day is line caught Hogfish Snapper,” the waiter says all in one breath, because he trying to take his share of orders from the 200+ attendees of Blockchain Overdrive's VIP dinner in Palm Beach.“I think you can do better than Hogfish. Ask the kitchen to...

27 likes 26 comments 26
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Something To Talk About In Palaio Faliro

Submitted to Contest #187

Professor Katopodis had a habit of turning every conversation topic into an academic discussion. He had a feeling that retirement would take some time to get used to. On his first day in Palaio Faliro, a seaside town 10 km south of Athens, his wife suggested he might out go for a walk to clear his head of the 37 years of strife he had endured at the National University.Stepping outside this morning, the first thing he noticed were the oranges. Bright and plump, they littered every inch of the pavement. And then the cats. They lounged in the ...

16 likes 13 comments 13
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Kayaking in Hong Kong

Submitted to Contest #186

I can’t wait for this story to end.As I sat in a hotel bar in San Francisco, my eyes are drawn to the most breathtaking woman I have ever seen. I approach and offer to buy her a drink. To my delight, she accepts, and we spend the next hour chatting and laughing. Then, she leans in and whispers in my ear, “I need to go, but if you would like to see me again.” She writes a name on a napkin and slips it into my front jacket pocket, “Meet me at this coffee shop in Milan.”“Milan, Italy?”She nods, as if that's a normal answer. My heart flutters as...

20 likes 18 comments 18
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And Then There Were Nine

Submitted to Contest #185

Cardboard shoe boxes tower high the walls of our cramped entrance hallway of the apartment on East 23rd street. The ones I need are in a large box at the bottom of this wobbly pyramid. I hold the box above it against the wall, and using my thumb and the very tip of my pinky finger, pull the green box labelled Hoka out.A voice rings out behind me, “You have ten pairs of shoes in the hallway. I think you need to get rid of a few.”“But I need to rotate my shoes to protect my feet,” I say defensively to my wife Melissa.“Ten pairs?”I can’t see he...

27 likes 18 comments 18
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