Write a story that includes someone saying, “Be careful what you wish for.”

Posted in Character on May 24, 2024

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✍️ 55 stories

“Not Another One!” by Mary Bendickson

Submitted to Contest #252

Moral: Be careful what you wish for, you may get it.“I wish I didn't have a basset hound.”“Hello, Sis. So nice of you to call. What's that about your basset hound?”“I wish I didn't have one. He is nothing but a barf-bag!”“A barf-bag? Are you talking about that adorable little floppy-eared puppy you paid a king's ransom for at a pet shop a few years back because your lonely youngest daughter looked at you with equally sad puppy-dog eyes begging you to let her take him home?”“The one and only. She was left home alone so much when her brother a...

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“Uplifted by Voyages of Wonder on the Mystical Coast ” by Kristi Gott

Submitted to Contest #252

Part I. Crossing Vast Seas to the Islands A new radiance began to grow in Arni as if he absorbed the sun sparkling on the sea.His love for the vast oceans filled him and spilled over.His inner fog cleared and a sense of wonder grew.Arni's tangled thoughts turned into a sense of inspiration and direction. These began to fill Arni and uplift him beyond his daily tasks.Arni knew what he wanted to do.The many threads of his life were becoming woven into one fabric filled with a sense of wonder. He wanted to share it.Soon he was leaving on the Ca...

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“GARY GRIMBLE AND THE DEMON'S CURSE” by Darvico Ulmeli

Submitted to Contest #252

Once upon a time, a man named Gary Grimble lived in the not-so-enchanted town of Gumbleton. Gary wasn't your typical knight in shining armor, nor was he a dashing hero with a secret identity. Nope, Gary was more like the human embodiment of a "Wet Paint" sign—easily ignored and generally avoided. He was an average, run-of-the-mill pessimist who wore his gloom like a comfortable old sweater. If there was a silver lining, Gary would find the tarnish. He believed Murphy's Law was written exclusively for him, like some twisted daily horoscope f...

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“Blackwood's Yew Farm” by Martin Maynard

Submitted to Contest #252

Jenna wiped sweat from her forehead and surveyed the cluttered living room. Boxes labeled Kitchen, Bedroom, Studio Equipment were scattered around. The high ceilings and dusty crown molding had a haunting charm perfect for her next YouTube series.“Alright, guys,” Jenna said, adjusting her camera. “Welcome to Blackwood’s Yew Farm, a place so haunted it’s been empty for years! But you know me, here to bust some myths and find the truth.”Jenna panned the camera around, capturing B-roll footage. “The plan is to document everything,” she said, mo...

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“Compulsion” by Devon Cano

Submitted to Contest #252

CW/TWs: Obsessive-compulsive thoughts*. There is also a brief depiction of gun violence. It wasn’t always a known factor that set Miriam off. It would have been much easier if it was; she could have simply posted a sign titled “Words and Phrases to Avoid Around Miriam” on her office door. Or perhaps, “General Topics of Conversation That Are Potential Minefields, and While Miriam Is Aware That It Is Not Your Responsibility to Cater to Her Every Need, It Would be Awfully Nice if You Tried.” But unfortunately, there were carelessl...

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“Spilling the tea” by AnneMarie Miles

Submitted to Contest #252

It was dark inside the teapot. Crowded, too. Cast iron walls created a cavernous chamber that was both loud and cold. Around him, Smith sensed an endless sea of sticky flesh. It should have been warm, all those bare bodies, but instead, it felt clammy like a feverish chill. It made Smith's skin crawl; made him retract and contort and twist. No matter how he flinched, there was only more cold, sweating flesh; and without his vision, that was all there was.That, and the screaming.The screaming echoed, vibrated through his teeth, filling his ca...

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“Twenty One, A Mermaids Tale” by Scott Taylor

Submitted to Contest #252

A young woman named Lily lived in a quaint coastal town. With her long chestnut hair flowing freely in the wind, she walked along the shoreline, capturing the essence of a genuine, free spirit. As if reflecting the calm ocean, her deep blue eyes shimmered with a captivating curiosity, luring everyone in.Lily couldn’t resist whispering her heartfelt wishes to the gentle ocean waves as she strolled along the shore, her heart brimming with dreams.“My greatest desire is to find a lover, a man who can match and return my deep passion, and most im...

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“Wish Away” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #252

In the pursuit of success, Dan had found a state where all his needs were taken care of. There was not one need that he could muster that was not already catered for. The identification of a need that required attending to became something of an obsession for him, and in time he began to suspect that he was becoming bored with life itself. That he’d bested the final boss, and there was nothing left to play for. He'd even toyed with an array of wants. Wants however, were substandard needs. Dan was wise to that from the outset, and so this var...

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“The Wise Goblin” by Cindy Calder

Submitted to Contest #252

Every night at midnight, the purple clouds appeared in the blushing sky. With their arrival, pink flower petals fell from their depths for a solid hour each night. With the rain came a knowledge of things beyond the average person’s ken, but such was not the case with Aoife. Even though she was sixty-four, she awaited the rain each night for she knew it held mystery and power able to change her life. This evening was no different. From the bedroom window, Aoife could hear the chirping of crickets and the see the pink petals floating across d...

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“Lose My Number” by Elizabeth Loman

Submitted to Contest #252

When Ashley’s Uber pulled up curbside, she sent a text. A:Just pulled up, cant wait to see you <3 She waited on the sidewalk for a minute as the car pulled away, not really expecting a reply. Scott wasnt always the best texter, one of the downsides of dating an older man. A few steps down the sidewalk and Ashley was walking up the immaculate concrete driveway of one of the upsides, Scotts massive, modern house located in The Woodlands, Houston. She passed the sleek, shiny black Bentley in the driveway that signalled Scott was home a...

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“BE CAREFUL!” by Cindy Thompson

Submitted to Contest #252

©TRT…BECAREFUL52424 BE CAREFUL “Someday, I’ll be rich, independent, admired, and beautiful,” the twelve-year-old girl told her Grandma. Grandma rolled her eyes and smiled, saying, “Be careful what you wish for.” The girl hadn’t heard this expression before. She remembered ‘be careful what you wish for’ decades later. All she had wished for as a preteenager had come true. The 64-year-old woman was unhappy despite being rich, independent, admired, and still good-looking. The irony of her situation was not l...

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“Ain’t No Fun When The Rabbit Got The Gun” by Thomas Wetzel

Submitted to Contest #252

CW: Contains themes of drug trafficking, violence and profanity.Ain’t No Fun When The Rabbit Got The Gun“Ay yo, Mo-Mo, maybe you should be careful what you wish for. Things is basically goin’ all right now but they can get worse real quick I think. We can prolly smooth this shit out. We should try and talk wit them, for starters at least. Shit.”He just looked at me, with something dark and dangerous swimming through the shallows behind his gray-green eyes.Sure, it would have been easy to just go along with the rest’a them but my pops raised ...

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“The Midas Touch” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #252

There is a lesson in the story of Midas king of Phrygia about wishing for something and then finding out that it was not really what you wanted. The Greeks used this as a life lesson about greed and an insatiable appetite for luxury. The king learned quickly enough that having a golden touch was not a blessing. It was a curse. Barney Jackson was dejected when he walked out of Cashman’s Bar and Grill, his favorite watering hole. His gait was unsteady as he approached the wishing well in front of the bar. He stopped and stare...

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“Stay Out” by Kim Olson

Submitted to Contest #252

“You really want to go undercover at Stay Out?” the sergeant asked him. “You know there was a shooting there last year, right?”“I know,” Detective Ziccarelli, or Zic as everyone called him, said. “But our snitch told us there’s a regular dealer who comes in there almost everyday and sells to the customers. I really want to make my first drug bust.” “Well, be careful what you wish for. It’s a dangerous place,” the sergeant said. “Thanks Sarge,” Zic said. “I’ll do my best to stay safe.”Following that conversation, Zic was ecstatic. H...

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“Room 533” by John McPhee

Submitted to Contest #252

Room 533So here I am sitting on the floor leaning up against the wall in this nice hotel room.I’m having a hard time trying to figure this one out. Where did it go wrong? Where did I go wrong?Was it really just five short weeks ago that I had dinner with uncle Tim at Smitty’s Bar and Grill? He had asked me how my Private Investigator’s business was going after my first 18 months.I knew Uncle Tim had been disappointed when I quit the force at NYPD after just three years, but I just couldn’t take all the political and bureaucratic crap you hav...

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Write a story that includes someone saying, “Be careful what you wish for.”

Submissions are closed

✍️ 55 stories

“Not Another One!” by Mary Bendickson

“Uplifted by Voyages of Wonder on the Mystical Coast ” by Kristi Gott

“GARY GRIMBLE AND THE DEMON'S CURSE” by Darvico Ulmeli

“Blackwood's Yew Farm” by Martin Maynard

“Compulsion” by Devon Cano

“Spilling the tea” by AnneMarie Miles

“Twenty One, A Mermaids Tale” by Scott Taylor

“Wish Away” by Jed Cope

“The Wise Goblin” by Cindy Calder

“Lose My Number” by Elizabeth Loman

“BE CAREFUL!” by Cindy Thompson

“Ain’t No Fun When The Rabbit Got The Gun” by Thomas Wetzel

“The Midas Touch” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

“Stay Out” by Kim Olson

“Room 533” by John McPhee

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with a character being followed.

Write about a character who struggles to do the right thing.

Write a story in which one of the characters is a narcissist.

Make a character’s obsession or addiction an important element of your story.

Contest #252

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

357

Contest entries

143

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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