Center your story around a character’s personal exploration, whether it's trying a new hobby, visiting an unfamiliar place, or learning something completely new.

Posted in Character on Apr 19, 2024

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✍️ 89 stories

“The Bittersweet Holiday of a Lifetime” by Kaitlyn Wadsworth

Submitted to Contest #247

Tears rolled down Lara’s face as she approached her mother in the dining room. Her mother, Liz, sat on the sofa near the air conditioner outlet, her favorite place. The air conditioner kept the place warm in winter and cool in summer. The evenings had chilled down lately, making this a comfortable place to sit and do mending after dinner. “Mum, are you going to Fiji again?” Lara had overheard her parents talking about taking another trip.They seemed to do this every second year and always took Marie, the youngest, with them. This would ...

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“Baking Bad” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #247

The timer – a pink plastic pig you had to twist around until its eyes faced the same direction as its butt – went off.Beverley Reade jumped. The sound was rare in her tiny kitchen – a shrill, metallic, mechanical noise. The smell of something baking was also rare. But if she hoped to be Whitney’s well-remembered grandmother once she passed, Bev had better get used to it. And she better get better, too. Grandmothers are good at baking. It was a universal law. ‘Energy can neither be created nor destroyed. Oh, and once a woman has a grandchild,...

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“The House at the Edge of Shadows” by Scott Taylor

Submitted to Contest #247

The House at the Edge of Shadows“YouTube videos make it look easy. Trust me; you can’t refurbish an old house with DIY videos.” Priscilla said.The house had been on the market for well over a year. Built-in the 1600s, it stood like a forgotten sentinel, its time-worn facade weathered by storms and secrets. Nobody wanted to touch it. Not after the haunted rumors spread through the town.They said the house had an eerie atmosphere as if it was inhabited by unseen spirits. It carried memories too heavy for mortal minds to comprehend within its d...

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“Uncharted” by John K Adams

Submitted to Contest #247

Cody thrived in his well-controlled world. He worked hard and played video games into the night. The vitality of the game’s characters inspired him. If they wanted something, they took it with style. He envied characters untethered by imposed social niceties. He loved exploring the secrets hidden within each new level. He wanted that life.Onscreen, his life was simple and direct. Those who dared interfere with his desires for a woman, a car or other treasures found life was brutish and short.Cody’d been up all night. And he’d left no one sta...

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“The Known Unknown” by Therese Bambe

Submitted to Contest #247

The sun timidly peeked through the curtains as Mira prepared for another day at the office. While sipping from her favorite coffee mug, she glanced at her computer screen, checking for new emails from her manager. After closing her mail application, when she was about to shut down her laptop and head to her car, an unusual file appeared on her computer's screen with the name "open if you dare." Noticing this, Mira started to shiver, indecisive about whether to open the file or leave it be. A few minutes later, curiosity had got the best of M...

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“The Elusive Impossible Dream” by Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #247

The Elusive Impossible DreamWalmart Break Room“You don’t look too happy today, Henry. Anything wrong?”The uncomfortable silence suggested that all was not well in Henry's world at the start of this work day.“What’s wrong?”“I’m not sure, Kate. Coming into work this morning, it hit me. I guess I want to do more with my life than stocking shelves at Walmart. I feel like a real loser.”“That’s what I do, Henry.”“Oh, sorry, Kate. I didn’t mean it that way. I only meant I might be happier doing something else.”“We make our own happiness, Henry.”Wit...

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“Up, Up and Away” by Stevie Burges

Submitted to Contest #247

Before World War II, life was relatively simple for Lorraine. As a woman, she was expected to find a man who could keep her to a standard deemed appropriate by her parents. The ‘happy couple’ would marry and, due to limited available contraception, almost immediately start a family. It was rare for women to still work after marriage. Instead, now that she was married, her full-time job was as a housekeeper, a wife, and, in a reasonably short time, a mother.Feeling that she understood her new role in life, she was surprised that everything co...

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“The box” by Laura Camacho Frias

Submitted to Contest #247

When I hung up the phone, an immense rage took over my body. I am not one to throw stuff around the room or crash the dishes on the floor because I'm the one who had to pay for them, but right then, that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to break it all, smash it all, make it disappear from the face of the Earth. But I am moderate, so I kicked the door instead and hurt my toes. That's what I did: I hurt myself trying to get satisfaction. Now that I think about it, I realize it was stupid: the door had no blame, no matter how frustrated I was. ...

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“You Have Arrived At Your Destination” by Liane Fazio

Submitted to Contest #247

YOU HAVE ARRIVED AT YOUR DESTINATION “In 100 feet, turn right,” the robotic female voice announced through the car’s speakers. Heather checked her side mirror, rearview mirror, turned on her right turn signal and eased into the right lane although there were no other cars on the road. The driving app still said she was only twelve minutes away. It felt like she was driving forever. She was getting drowsy and needed to stretch soon. She turned right. &nbsp...

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“Inside Out” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #247

Travel, I was told, would expand my mind. So I followed that sage advice. And I thought it had. It felt like it had. I felt bigger, and as a result I could only conclude that I was better for that. After all, we are supposed to grow. Firstly, we grow up. Then we expand. Our horizons broaden and broaden until we are spoilt for choice. But then, life is a series of choices. Often, the choice we make is to make no choice at all. We bury ourselves in the sands of ignorance and pretend we are staying put, when there is never any possibi...

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“Jacob and the Psychonauts” by Paul Littler

Submitted to Contest #247

Jacob Bayley lay back and placed the mask over his face, in what used to be his father’s favourite chair, and began to inhale. Dad had been dead for a few months now, and Jacob knew he wouldn’t have thought Jacob had the guts to do what he was about to do, but he wasn’t around to bitch about it. The water bath had reached the right temperature, Jacob having put it on a plate warmer lit by a tea light’s small flame. He got the initial ether hit almost immediatel...

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“PR” by Kim Meyers

Submitted to Contest #247

It’s Tuesday, April 23rd and Paula wakes at the same time she does everyday, between 5:45 and 5:55am. Rising, she turns off the alarm that never sounds and quickly pivots to make the bed. She reaches for her shorts and sports bra that she had laid out carefully the night before. For a twenty-three year old, she’s seemingly got her shit together. A recent transplant to New York City, she lives in a one bedroom apartment in an up-and-coming neighborhood of Queens. Although moving across the country required a considerable adjustmen...

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“The Eviction” by Mishka Stennett

Submitted to Contest #247

“I know it was your dog!” His voice rose on every word. Mr. Gallagher was accosting Rory in the second-floor stairwell of their apartment building. The elevator stopped working long before Rory moved into an apartment there and she never had any choice but to take the stairs to access her apartment. She mentally steeled herself for his verbal assault. “I keep telling you, Mr. Gallagher, it wasn’t him. He’s housebroken, always has been- “The slight quiver in her voice betrayed her. “But you’re the only one that lives he...

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“South Fork of the American River” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #247

I had been a group counselor at a juvenile boys’ rehabilitation for substance abuse in the Rincon Valley in Santa Rosa California known as R-House for about ten months when I volunteered for a summer excursion that included a white water rafting tour down the American River. I must admit I was quite apprehensive about making my first white water rafting trip with a group of teenage adolescents who had been court ordered to R-House due to their criminal offenses that included substance abuse. The program at the facility was ...

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“Silent Kay” by Niamh O'Dea

Submitted to Contest #247

I walked into Yvonne’s dusky kitchen and found her stooped in meditation over her puzzle magazine. I was bloated and hungover from too much sleep and clumsily walked to her side, throwing a fright into her. “I’m going home today”, I said, my voice breaking its fast. “Ah no, a few more days. You’re not sick of us yet,” my sister croaked, her first sounds of the day. She pulled herself up, steadied, and headed for the kettle. “I’ve been sick of you for 46 years,” sitting down, allowing her to wait on me one more time. It had been two weeks sin...

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Center your story around a character’s personal exploration, whether it's trying a new hobby, visiting an unfamiliar place, or learning something completely new.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 89 stories

“The Bittersweet Holiday of a Lifetime” by Kaitlyn Wadsworth

“Baking Bad” by Joshua G. J. Insole

“The House at the Edge of Shadows” by Scott Taylor

“Uncharted” by John K Adams

“The Known Unknown” by Therese Bambe

“The Elusive Impossible Dream” by Murray Burns

“Up, Up and Away” by Stevie Burges

“The box” by Laura Camacho Frias

“You Have Arrived At Your Destination” by Liane Fazio

“Inside Out” by Jed Cope

“Jacob and the Psychonauts” by Paul Littler

“PR” by Kim Meyers

“The Eviction” by Mishka Stennett

“South Fork of the American River” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

“Silent Kay” by Niamh O'Dea

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story in the form of diary entries, written by an explorer as they make their way through what they thought was an untouched location.

Set your story on a spaceship exploring the far reaches of space when something goes wrong.

Imagine a world where exploration is forbidden, and write a story about a character who defies this rule to satisfy their innate curiosity.

Write a narrative about a group of scientists exploring the deepest parts of the ocean.

Contest #247

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

260

Contest entries

102

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: