Set your story in a staff room of an essential profession that is often undervalued — nurses, cafeteria staff, sanitation workers, etc.

Posted in Character on Apr 21, 2023

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✍️ 51 stories

“Thirty Years In” by Don Tucker

Submitted to Contest #195

It had been years since anyone was allowed to smoke in their tiny break room, but it had been even longer since anyone from administration had ventured down to their little corner of the world. One would have to walk in the main entrance, past the gymnasium and the glass trophy dust caked with a thick layer of dust. Girl’s Basketball State Champions, 1981, Boy’s Baseball State Champions 1989, 1993 were inscribed upon some of the forgotten plaques. Down the stairs, through the hallway adorned with faded yellow bricks, take a right through the...

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“What does a nurse do?” by Derionne Arné

Submitted to Contest #195

This is the first time it’s ever been so quiet in here. Everyone is seated around the table with tense, agitated expressions on their face. One of the senior doctors at the hospital has went to the board to complain so much about the nurses, we had to have a mandatory meeting. “I’m not getting the respect I’ve earned as a doctor. The nurses are here to assist us doctors in whatever we need to help these people. These nurses here are much too opinionated, stubborn, and immature. They’d rather stand around and socialize than make sure thei...

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“The Big Deal” by Hannah Lloyd

Submitted to Contest #195

It wasn’t really a big deal. I laughed as I emptied the fiftieth trash can into the giant, black one with wheels that I carried behind me. I glanced around the room, noting the change in the dirt, blood, and gore that had been there moments before. Now, it was clean and sparkling, ready for the next patient. The nurses and doctors scurried around outside as I finished cleaning the room. The patient had been in a horrific car accident. They moved him from ICU to a regular room, and I breathed a sigh of relief when they did. ...

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“Trash Man” by Elizabeth Hanlon

Submitted to Contest #195

Janie July 20, 1983 I pulled in the drive to my little summer cottage at the shore which, I shared with...

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“The Last Greatest Act” by Jill Story

Submitted to Contest #195

Midnight in an intensive care unit is not an easy time to find a vodka and orange juice. This was his request, or at least something that resembled it, and not an unreasonable request from a man facing down the last hours of his life. Far less demanding than the IV pumps beeping, the call bells ringing and the alarms of the ventilators causing nurses to rush in and out of rooms. Yes, this was an easy request from this gentle patient, Telling him I would do my best, I went to the break room to see what I could find. The offerings were pretty ...

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“Reminders” by Eline Pols

Submitted to Contest #195

TW: Mentioned: death of a child, home on fire, the darker sides of being a first responder, one partner is religious and the other is not*Kazimieras walks into the staff room minutes before his shift starts.He cringing as the flashbacks from his last shift slap him in the face.It was to be expected but it's certainly not what he's looking forward to this early in the morning.He greets some of the people from the B-shift, whose shift is about to end, while trying and failing to keep his mind elsewhere.He curses as the what if's hit ...

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Set your story in a staff room of an essential profession that is often undervalued — nurses, cafeteria staff, sanitation workers, etc.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 51 stories

“Thirty Years In” by Don Tucker

“What does a nurse do?” by Derionne Arné

“The Big Deal” by Hannah Lloyd

“Trash Man” by Elizabeth Hanlon

“The Last Greatest Act” by Jill Story

“Reminders” by Eline Pols

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story from the point of view of a sidekick, or someone who is happy to stay away from the limelight.

Write a story about someone who receives — or makes — a life-changing, anonymous donation.

Write a story that includes the phrase “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

Write about someone who is learning to recognize and take credit for their own achievements.

Contest #195

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

207

Contest entries

92

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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