Tricia Shulist

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Feb, 2021

Stories (180)

180 Stories

1406 karma pts

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“The Chicken House” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #102

THE CHICKEN HOUSE An abandoned building draws kids to it, like a moths to a flame. And sometimes, they get burned. Allister looked down at what he had written, and sighed. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to write about his own childhood, even under the guise of fiction.  He had thought that it would be a good idea — they say to write what you know, but what did he know, really? He only knew what he knew. There were the stories from the others, but what had happened, exactly? His father, a police officer a...

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“Drinking Bloody Marys May Be Harmful To Your Health” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #101

DRINKING BLOODY MARYS MAY BE HARMFUL TO YOUR HEALTH“What’ll you have?” Joey, the bartender, asked, looking up at the woman standing at the bar, leaning in. She was about his age, late twenties, tall, with long black hair, hanging straight down her back. She was smiling at him, green eyes crinkling, and white teeth flashing.It was hard to hear anything tonight, though. The bar was hopping, a loud background din filling the air. It was just after six on a Friday night, and people were cutting loose, looking forward to ...

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“Bad Architecture” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #101

BAD ARCHITECTURE I have lived in this condo for, what, almost a year? In all that time, I would never have guessed … About a week ago, I got up to get a drink of water in the middle of the night. I’d been out with friends the night before, and we had drunk some wine. It was around three in the morning, when I woke up, parched, so I stumbled half asleep into the ensuite bathroom to get some water. This is my home, and I know it pretty well, and I have pretty good night vision, so I hadn’t turned on any lights, with o...

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“The Picnic” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #100

THE PICNIC It was all over the news. Everyone was warned to stay inside. There had been an incident at the zoo. Well, more than an incident, actually. The entire zoo had been emptied out, and all the animals were roaming free — from the smallest animal to the largest. From the most docile to the most aggressive. Herbivores, omnivores, and most concerning, carnivores. All free and wandering around in the general vicinity of the zoo.   The Animal Liberation Front -- AFL -- had taken responsibility for t...

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“The Good, the Bad, and the Dinner” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #100

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE DINNERGod and Satan sat at the dining table, facing each other.“Satan, good to see you. I’m glad you were able to make this year’s meeting.”“Thanks, God. Glad I could come. As you know, I’ve been super busy, what with COVID, and climate change, and well, the GOP. That’s a lot of pokers to keep in the fire, literally and figuratively.” Satan gave a little snort.“Nonetheless, Satan, I’m glad we’re here.” God paused. “I’ve been fairly busy myself. What with the vaccine, and the ...

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“Going Up” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #100

GOING UP Annalise breezed through the lobby of her building, heading for her sanctuary on the ninety-sixth floor of the Central Park Tower.   “Hi Charlie!” “Evening Ms. Briggs.” She was in a wonderful mood. Why not? She was having her girlfriends over for Friday night wine and cheese, and were expected in about an hour. Annalise had everything she needed in the three overloaded bags she was carrying. In the heaviest bag, she had the wine — red, white, and rosé — from the finest vintners in Manhattan. In ...

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“Trip of a Lifetime” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #99

TRIP OF A LIFETIME Harry double-checked that he had remembered to pack everything.  He pulled out the list that he had been carrying around in his pocket for weeks — since this trip had first been planned. Everything was ready to go. It was eight a.m., and they were right on schedule. He hopped into the van, started the engine, and dropped it into gear. Before he left the driveway, he turned to his wife, Eleanor, and said, “All set?” They were on the road for an epic trip cross the country — their Greatest Hits...

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“Midsummer” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #98

MIDSUMMER The three sisters were sitting together on the couch, a photo album open on the middle sister’s lap. Yes, an honest-to-goodness photo album with old colour and black and white photos held in place with a sheet of clear acetate. They were all smiling, and pointing, an air of nostalgia surrounding them. Or maybe it was melancholy. Their mother, Esmeralda — Esmy to to one and all — had died last solstice, and this was their first celebration without her.   The three sisters still lived in their fami...

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“19, 8, 5, 10, 3, 25, 7” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #98

19, 8, 5, 10, 3, 25, 7 The woman sucked in a giant gasp of air. She looked frightened, her face pale, eyes darting, a sheen of sweat covering her brow. She put her hand to her chest trying to calm her racing heart. She took small sips of air, trying to save herself from tumbling into a full-on anxiety attack. Or maybe heart attack — based on how hard her pulse was pounding. “Are you alright?” The voice was coming from behind her left shoulder. She turned to face her husband. “Yeah … I think so,” she sai...

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“The Magic of Owls” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #97

THE MAGIC OF OWLSTap. Tap. Tap, tap, tap.Bethany-Ann Pendergast looked over at her bedroom window. Her room was dark, shadows filling every corner. In the daylight, Bethany-Ann loved her bedroom, all pink and purple, filled with all the things she loved. But at night she found it a bit scary. The green power button on her laptop glowed like a Cyclopes’s eye. Her pile of stuffies in the corner looked like a monster crouching, waiting to leap out at her. The black and white keys of her keyboard gaped lik...

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“Goodbye. Hello.” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #96

I most certainly did not feel well, not well, at all. Everything was hinky — my mind was all fuzzy, light from the sun blinded me, my skin was all itchy, I was dizzy as hell. And I had a migraine to beat all migraines — the worst ever. I was in rough shape.What the heck happened? I asked myself.I squinted my eyes, and looked around. I had no idea where I was. A city, for sure, but I didn’t know which one. My scrambled brain couldn’t come up with a name. I stood on the sidewalk, people streaming around me.&n...

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“Both Sides of the Story” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #95

BOTH SIDES OF THE STORYTRANSCRIPTDate: May 26, 2021Time: 08:32Interviewer #1: Detective Terry WaitsInterviewer #2: Detective Carlos ItoDET. WAITS: Could you identify yourself for the record, please.PANDORA: I’m Pandora and this is my twin, Angelica.ANGELICA: We’re identical twins. In fact, we’re mirror twins. That means that we look identical, but mirror each other.PANDORA: Right. So Ang is right-handed, and I’m left-handed.ANGELICA: And Dora’s hair parts on the left, and mine parts on the right.PANDORA: And if you w...

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“The Two Doors” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #95

CW: sexual assault The Two DoorsIn her mind’s eye, Jemma saw two doors. It was kinda like Let’s Make A Deal, but there were no prizes, no Wayne Brady, no studio audience. It was just her, and she had to make a decision. Do I open Door #1? Or do I open the Door #2?It wasn’t like she didn’t know what was behind each of the doors. That was the problem. She DID know what was waiting for her behind each door. She just couldn’t make a decision on which door would serve her best.She had faced this type of dilemma ...

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“Stronger Together” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #94

The two women sat beside each other in the van. Joy, the older sister was driving. Her younger sister Harmony, sat in the passenger seat, arms crossed tightly across her chest. Her face an angry mask. “I didn’t ask you to do this, you know.” “I know.” Silence.   To look at both women, you would know immediately that they were related. Both had sharp green eyes, a trait that harkened back to their Irish heritage. This rare and unusual luminous green was one shared by mother and daughters.   Ri...

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“Life is a Carnival” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #93

One minute I was standing beside my Mom and Dad, and the next minute they were gone. And now I’m in jail. How did this happen?We’d gone to the carnival. I love going to the carnival. All the smells, all the people, all the food. It is never not an amazing time. Except this time. And, did I mention, I’m in jail? So, it was early. We’d eaten a light dinner. Mom said that she wanted to be there before it got too busy. Apparently night-time is the busiest time at carnivals. So we set ou...

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Author bio

Love reading. Trying to be a better writer. Meshing both through Reedsy.