Center your story around a character who is obsessed with an object.

Posted in Character on Sep 23, 2024

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✍️ 66 stories

“Rooted Grief” by Aaron Morgan

Submitted to Contest #269

Friday, 4:26 pmI have to get home.Ever since I got the call from Sarah my right foot has been sliding downward, pushing a little harder on the accelerator. That's a daring thing to do out on Highway 59 where there is a law enforcement vehicle in every dead town, waiting for someone like me, someone in a hurry, to come by doing 63 in a 45.Sarah called me while I was in Milledgeville at a business meeting. I looked back at our call history and saw the last time we talked was 4 months ago. Has it been that long? Sarah had called to say sh...

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“The Red Pen” by VJ Hamilton

Submitted to Contest #269

MathieuShe is dead now, that Ms. Beasley who wielded the nastiest red pen this side of the Atlantic. I saw with my own eyes the drops of blood punctuating the white tile floor. I heard with my own ears the frantic call for help. I listened as the breathing became still, due to the poison of my dart.Generations of upper-year science students had to suffer the indignity of Beasley’s red pen as she reigned supreme in her laboratory. I was a student, a damn good one too. I had to take her lab class—I needed that course for my degree, and I had t...

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“The Sun Set in the East” by Ava Morrison

Submitted to Contest #269

My eyes meet his. They are beautiful, deep brown, and peaceful. It was like staring down into a cup of tea after a long day. The sun highlights his beautiful eyes. The light brightens his skin and glows a lovely, bright shade of amber. The sunset makes this all so much more calming and warm. He moved his hand to mine, and I felt millions of birds flock inside my soul; it sent shivers through my body. Even after 10 years, my heart flutters for him, and only him. "Damian, do you think we could stay here forever?" I ask while glancing back at t...

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“Evangeline” by Frances Hogg Lochow

Submitted to Contest #269

Jennifer Smythe was good at this. Good at being interested in something without appearing to be interested. It was a skill she had honed during more than thirty years of poking through attics and garage sales and attending auctions. With just a hint of a flared nostril, a downturned lip or a disappointed sigh, she could shatter expectations and lower hopes. She had carefully built her reputation as an expert appraiser of antique dolls and had even appeared on the Antiques Roadshow and a BBC documentary about the dolls of Princesses Elizabeth...

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“Two Sides to Every Towel” by Suzanne Jennifer

Submitted to Contest #269

Clarise stood in front of the fogged up bathroom mirror aligning her face in the circle she had wiped clear with her towel. Staring back at her were two dull blue pools of swirling emotion, not the eyes she expected to see. Drifting her focus down past her mouth, her hand came up to confirm that the thin sagging skin on the neck in the reflection was hers.“That can’t be my neck.” She murmured as she turned away.She reached for her bath towel to hang it up, but burried her face in it and let out an exasperated cry. The passing of time left it...

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“Obsession” by Curtis Jones

Submitted to Contest #269

Isaac Wilder’s life was perfectly ordinary until the day he found the orb.The day had begun like any other. He rose from bed, prepared a tasteless breakfast, and trudged down the narrow streets of his small town toward the dusty little shop where he worked. Isaac, at 35, was a man of routine. His existence was carefully curated—a series of predictably timed events that offered little excitement. He was perfectly content in the knowledge that his life was without the mystery or chaos that seemed to chase others. But that all changed on a Tues...

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“My Quin” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #269

Two weeks before Halloween, and a display changed on the pedestrianised high street I walked through on the way to the office. Now, this was of interest to me for two reasons. Firstly, I am a bah and I am a humbug when it comes to Halloween. Bonfire night, yes. Halloween is just plain silly though. A fright night for children that has been ruined by the Americans. The whole trick or treat thing sickens me. Stylised begging, and for hyper-processed food stuffs that are killing entire generations now. That’s the true horror at play on the last...

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“The Key ” by Michael Palmieri

Submitted to Contest #269

I was seven years old when I first noticed the key. It hung in a picture frame above the mantle, catching the light in a way that made its surface shimmer with a faint rainbow glow. I couldn’t help but stare at it, mesmerized, wondering what it unlocked. When I asked my grandparents about it, they spat on the floor, their faces twisting in disgust. "Find something else to worry about," they said, dismissing me sharply. It always struck me as strange—that they would keep something in their home, prominently displayed, yet speak of it as if ...

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“Heikel ” by Cindy Calder

Submitted to Contest #269

I don’t really know why I gravitated to the old, dilapidated trunk that afternoon while wandering amidst the many vendors’ galleries at the antique store, but I did. It was as though I was compelled, drawn to it for reasons unknown. I remember running my fingers over it, feeling the raised ridges of peeling paint as I gingerly lifting the faded, damaged lid. From what I could see, it held an assortment of old clothing, costume jewelry, books, and other personal items. It was an intriguing mix of unknown treasures, and I was sure there'd be s...

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“The trumpet” by John Dover

Submitted to Contest #269

The Trumpet By: John Dover “You’ve been staring at that thing for over an hour, Freddie.” Freddie finally blinked, the rough denim of his jacket sleeve dabbing away the welcome moisture in his eyes as he returned to the present. “What? I have not.” “Seems like it. Come on, I want to get to the candy shop before all the good taffy is gone,” Sally pleaded with him. She fought the urge to stamp her feet in frustration and gave a shuffled kick to the ground instead. Freddie had already turned his attention back to the dark patina of the trumpet...

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“A Ring for Randa” by Thomas Wetzel

Submitted to Contest #269

The ring was perfect.It was a 1.75 carat "Princess Cut" stone in an elegantly stylized platinum setting that encircled the diamond like a cresting wave. Colin had been stopping by the window of this jewelry shop on his way to the subway after work once or twice a week since he first spotted it two months earlier. He just liked to look at it and calculate how much longer it would be until he saved up sufficient funds to make the purchase. Barring any unforeseen expenses, it would only be another month now.Randa was waiting for him when he wal...

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“The useless bean” by Will Chu

Submitted to Contest #269

Old Badger was a farmer, and for generations the Badger family had worked the farmlands to provide the freshest vegetables for the inhabitants of the small forest country."Remember, hard work makes you rich!" Children!"The old badger would gather his children together every day after dinner, smoking a hookah and proudly telling them.They had a neighbor, the fox.The fox had been very resourceful as a child, and was the first student from their town to be admitted to college in a neighboring metropolis. The journey was very long and due to the...

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“From Womb to Wounds” by Eddie Collins

Submitted to Contest #269

1 Corinthians 15:42-44. So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable, it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; and it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. Caskets, they come in different colors, shapes…and sizes. There isn’t one that’s a cut above the other; they all serve the same purpose, to house our loved ones in the ground, never to be u...

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“To Run from Fate” by Joseph Glaser

Submitted to Contest #269

We shouldn't be together, she said. He didn't care, the love that they shared was like nothing he'd ever experienced. He said he didn't care about his wife. He promised to divorce her before their baby came out. They met in the guest bedroom like they always did, she was always in awe of how well he fucked her. It was like all of their depraved, nasty repressions were acceptable and encouraged for the few moments that they had together. Even meeting in secret was part of the rush. But they knew that this could go on no longer. This was the l...

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“In My Dreams” by James Shields

Submitted to Contest #269

A week ago, I finally saw it and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head since. Tucked away. Behind protective glass. Out of my reach, but not out of my dreams. Before, I had only seen it in old books. Read about it between musty pages like it was a fairy tale. Legends and stories spanning centuries. But now, I know it’s real. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. It’s no longer a fairy tale. It made me wonder, are the legends and stories real too? And if they are, that means I could fix everything that’s wrong with me and my shitty life. I ca...

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Center your story around a character who is obsessed with an object.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 66 stories

“Rooted Grief” by Aaron Morgan

“The Red Pen” by VJ Hamilton

“The Sun Set in the East” by Ava Morrison

“Evangeline” by Frances Hogg Lochow

“Two Sides to Every Towel” by Suzanne Jennifer

“Obsession” by Curtis Jones

“My Quin” by Jed Cope

“The Key ” by Michael Palmieri

“Heikel ” by Cindy Calder

“The trumpet” by John Dover

“A Ring for Randa” by Thomas Wetzel

“The useless bean” by Will Chu

“From Womb to Wounds” by Eddie Collins

“To Run from Fate” by Joseph Glaser

“In My Dreams” by James Shields

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about an object that changed everything for a character.

Send your characters on an unforgettable quest to find an essential object.

Write a story about an ordinary object that becomes magical (either literally or figuratively).

Show how an object’s meaning can change as a character changes.

Contest #269

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

312

Contest entries

122

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: