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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write about a character in a situation where they have to be brave for someone else’s sake.

Posted in Character on Jul 7, 2023

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✍️ 68 stories

“Shameless” by Parul Shah

We stopped leaving the garage door open when we were cooking because I told my mom the police were saying criminals had been stealing equipment from garages. My dad was away on an engineering work contract in Dubai like half the Uncles I knew, so we kids were left to help our moms with everything from house maintenance to legal compliance. Back then there was no internet and overseas phone calls to Dubai were expensive, so there were a great many things left unreported to the dads. To compensate for this lack of communication, my mom and...

83 comments 83 WINNER 🏆
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“The Croak Lizard Affair” by Howard Halsall

Aaaakk! Aaaakk!Wake up, Ricky! Huh! Angie, what’s—-?Shush, said Angie, fumbling for her bedside lamp. Didn’t you hear that? Hear what—-?Listen, Angie hissed, as her striped lampshade cast streaks of bright orange around their bedroom. Up there!Aaaakk! Aaaakk! croaked the lizard from its vantage point above the window.Don’t just lie there, she said, shoving her husband. Kill it!The startled creature cast a brief but dramatic shadow in the low angled light like a pantomime vi...

17 comments 17
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“Lucky Shot” by Deidra Whitt Lovegren

Lucky Shot may have been the sleaziest bar in Cocoa Beach, but Riley liked it. Bartenders poured drinks with a heavy hand, and on Friday nights, it was filled with Space Force cadets. Riley had been making eyes at one before a tall, clean-shaven man sat down alongside her. “You alone?” he asked. “I am now.” “I saw you earlier on the dance floor—with your friends.” “My friends have...

40 comments 40
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“Show and Tell ” by Marty B

Tuesday is my day for drop off, and I was already running late when I rang the doorbell to pick up Janey. We needed to move fast so she could get to school on time, and I could make my 9 AM meeting. I am firm with her, I don’t want her to think she could slack off just because I don’t live with her anymore. And for me, being on time is important. Janey did not like rushing, and was not in a good mood when she climbed into the back seat. Her eyes went wide when I told her I was visiting her classroom later that day. She...

28 comments 28
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“Braver Than You Believe ” by Michelle Oliver

CW: Forgive the Aussie slang and vernacular swearing.In Australia, everything is out to kill you! It’s a vicious rumour that we Aussies perpetuate to keep you out. Spoiler… Not everything in Australia wants to kill you, just most of it looks like it will. Except crocs. They will kill you without blinking an eye, or kangaroos. They literally tell you with their body language to “F*off or I will F* you up!” They’re mad buggers, hoppin’ mad. A ‘roo will take on a speeding car and live to tell the tale—or not—but death doesn...

33 comments 33
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“FEAR ITSELF” by Susan Catucci

“Where do you think you’re going?”“Uh, the library.”“You’re supposed to stay here and watch me.”“Camden, don’t you have homework?”“Don’t you?”“Um, library?”“You’re not that kind of . . .”“Okay, okay. Camden, if I tell you, you can’t breathe a word to anyone!”“Allie, you can trust me. I never told anybody about you and, who was that guy . . .”“All right, all right. ...

15 comments 15
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“Peace: The Soldier’s Dream” by Jia Lee

My older brother Dalton had a set of rules I needed to follow so that he could live in peace.  I was not to give him forks and knives. The only utensil he could use was a spoon, but it had to be a wooden one. He couldn’t handle metal objects. I was not to cook any dishes involving meat while he was around. He would throw up if he saw even a tiny piece of meat. I was not to leave him alone....

8 comments 8 SHORTLIST ⭐️
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“No Such Thing as Ghosts” by Keelan LaForge

Claude was always chasing ghosts. He’d promised Julia that he’d be back in ten minutes, but more time than that had elapsed, and he was nowhere to be seen. The house was so fragile looking; it almost seemed to sway like a leaf in the breeze, but it was made of brick and mortar. Its lack of upkeep was the problem. It had been standing there since Victorian days, but with no maintenance in decades. Julia still thought it ...

4 comments 4
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“Emilia” by KG Green

VRRRRR VRRRRR VRRRR.“Emilia…EMILIA. Darling, it’s one am,” said Audrey checking the clock whilst squinting through her tiredness. “Actually, one thirty-three am.” Emilia was twelve years old, but the past twelve months had been extremely tough. She lost her parents in a car accident, both were detectives, and she was now living with her parents’ best friend Audrey Sanderson.Audrey had two children, Jackson, now 19, who was living up north...

4 comments 4
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“Work makes you free” by James Larder

CW: Genocide I held my little boy as close to my chest as I could, as the wooden box where we’d been trapped for God knows how long- Perhaps a day, perhaps a few, began to slow. The stench in the cart was putrid, like raw sewage mixed with sulphur and onion- That’s the best I can describe it. It smelt like hell. We were packed so tightly- Shoulder to shoulder- No room to sit. The short hours we did ma...

14 comments 14
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“Petrichor” by Michael Martin

The thunderstorms that drenched New Babel all afternoon abated briefly just as Marcus led his wife through the parking lot of the King David Hotel, giving way to a cool, damp night. The tiny puddles formed in the asphalt of the parking lot caught glimpses of the rays coming from the hotel’s lights, each mini reflection adding to blended array of lights to create a dreamlike atmosphere. He took in a deep breath, the air refreshing as if the rains had washed away the sins of the world and everything was new. The evening was as close ...

12 comments 12
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“A Descent into Fate and Madness” by Jean Ballard

The buzzing grew louder outside, as did the banging on the door. They didn’t have much time left. Eilidh had to act, she knew it, her people knew it. “M’lady, we must descend now,” her advisor, Nyella, urged. Eilidh nodded and looked to the hallway, where the entrance to the depths awaited. Eilidh had been afraid of the dark since she was a cognizant child. The few times she had been made to face the dark, she felt it changed her. Not in the way that fear either grows or diminishes with time, but in a way that made...

7 comments 7
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“Hang the Witch” by Keira Dyer

The day that the witch was meant to hang, a black cat darted across the road in front of Verity Adams’ window.  Verity watched it go, hurrying across the lane and disappearing beneath her window as if it knew how cursed and unwanted it was in this town. It looked like an average black cat — like two bright green eyes in a cat-shaped void — but she knew it would be a grim reminder of what had been on the townspeo...

2 comments 2
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“Brave for Another” by John Steckley

Brave For Another I’m a professional rodeo rider. It was a career path that I knew would be mine from when I was a child. I grew up on a farm with bulls and horses, and I went to rodeos early on in my life. One of my uncles was a rodeo rider, and I can say that he was early on a hero of mine. I wanted to be just like him. When anyone asked me, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”, I always said ‘rod...

4 comments 4
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“The Game” by H. Peter Alesso

Kateryna said, “Hold still, Dear,” as she wiped the dirty smudge off the corner of Maria’s mouth. Maria asked, “Why is everyone so excited?” Kateryna said, “They’re scared of the loud noise.” “What is it?” “Fireworks. See the bright flashes exploding in the night sky,” said the girl’s mother. Maria nodded. “It’s the start of The Game,” lied her mother. “I told you all ab...

1 comment 1
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Contest #206

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Ended on 23:59 - Jul 14, 2023 EST

Won by Parul Shah 🏆

Title: Shameless

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