Menu
Prompts
Contests
Stories
Blog

Menu

✕
CONNECT
Editing Design Marketing Publicity Ghostwriting Websites
BLOG
Success Stories
APPS
TOOLS
Book Promotion Sites Book Review Blogs Booktube Channel Guide Book Title Generator Character Name Generator Independent Publishers Literary Agents Literary Magazines Pen Name Generator Plot Generator Publishers Directory Short Story Ideas Writing Contests Writing Exercises Writing Scholarships
ABOUT
About Reedsy Terms Privacy

CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write about someone who keeps picking up different hobbies but never manages to stick with them.

Posted in Character on Oct 26, 2022

Submissions are closed

Sorry, we are not accepting submissions for this prompt as it is not part of an active contest. Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy Prompts account.

Sign in with Google
Sign in with Facebook

Or create a new Reedsy account:

Why not check out our active contest?

✍️ 176 stories

“Twenties” by Paige Leppanen

Submitted to Contest #78

She doesn’t feel like writing today. Her head feels foggy, her words lost inside. She tells others she doesn’t have any original ideas. That isn’t quite true; she wants to write about the unique scenes in her mind. She thinks another author could turn her ideas into a New York Times bestseller, but she can’t make it past a few pages. She doesn’t believe she can. Maybe if I wasn’t so lazy. Maybe if I paid more attention to real dialogue, she thinks. She wishes she could translate scenes into a collection of chapters people would actually pay ...

6 comments 6
Read story

“Circles” by Kayla Roberts

Submitted to Contest #78

      My mind runs in circles, picking up the nearest toy, and then throwing it away as I walk to the next one. Constantly moving, distracting, focusing on anything external. I used to think I was depressed, losing interest in everything so quickly. Truthfully, I just get bored with things. I try to slow it down, to tell myself that I could be so much better at things if I would just stick with it for more than a month or two.            How much money have ...

4 comments 4
Read story

“Finding Sophie” by Sophie Aay

Submitted to Contest #78

“You should be more concerned,” Rebecca Kuti began with a loud yell.  Her husband who was only a few metres from her looked up at her strangely, wondering if she was talking about the hero who died in the movie playing on TV but they weren’t watching. They had far more important issues to deal with and the one thing, which topped the list, was the unusual pounding sound coming from their daughter’s workspace. “About what?” he asked through clenched teeth, trying to control his anger. “The noise!”  “It’s probably just Sophie...

7 comments 7
Read story

“The Old General” by Tracey Conley- Bray

Submitted to Contest #78

General Broderick Hook is a legend in his own mind. He hadn't quiet fancy the idea that legends are mostly always dead. He was honorably discharged from the Army in 1975 as a private but, if you let old Broderick tell the tale he is a top ranking General who single handily saved an entire regiment by making a make shift bomb out of an old tin can, some aluminum foil, chewing gum and gun powder. The General was born and raised in BlueVine his mother was a maid and his father was a farmer. He had a happy childhood in spite of times being tou...

10 comments 10
Read story

“Clenching Fists” by Jose Duron

Submitted to Contest #78

"What do you think?" He hands me the painting he had been working on for weeks. I look at it. I tilt my head as I rub my chin. I hmm, lower the frame and look him in the eye. That damn twinkle of his, so childish. I. Am. Impressed. "The lady," I start and halt myself immediately. I could say the same thing I always say. 'It's a great piece man.' 'wow, you're so talented.' 'you did this? you're selling it right?' 'wow, no words.' I ponder for a second. Yes, I could say those things, but then I would make myself fall in a bed of thorny disa...

2 comments 2
Read story

“Failure to Thrive” by Anne McSommers

Submitted to Contest #78

She stood in the middle of the store staring longingly at the brightly colored package.  She wanted to try it, it was a simple thing, such an incredibly simple thing. Made for children really, but she wanted it anyways. It was a beginner’s kit of sculpting clay. She turned and hurried from the store, sad in a way she couldn’t explain. She wasn’t good with clay; she had tried many times before and it never quite turned out the way she wanted it to. When she arrived home she entered, and looked at the bins of crafting sup...

1 comment 1
Read story

“THE HOBBIES” by Mary Kurpiewski

Submitted to Contest #78

After my father-in-law, Tat, as we lovingly called him, retired as a welder from the Navy Yard, he took up many interests and hobbies. Tat always was a handy-man who could put in walls, floors and he loved re-modeling anything. But, he would go overboard with each hobby. He was into gold fish for a while. The various species were beautiful, but I could not breathe in his family room with all the fish tanks and smells and bubbling noises. After a few bouts of sea-sickness-the fish left! Then he got into homing and carrier pigeons. He raced ...

1 comment 1
Read story

“About Samantha” by Ivan Cardoso

Submitted to Contest #78

The phone rang nine times before Clara could turn off the oven, wash her hands, dry them, and pick it up.“Clara, it’s me. We need to talk about something.”“Good morning to you too, Gerald.”“Sorry, sorry, good morning. Where are my manners? How have you been?”“I've been doing alright. A strange cough, but nothing that you need to worry about. How are you?”“Not so well, Clara. I mean, I'm good, but there's something that's not so good.”“What was it you wanted to talk about?”“It’s about Samantha. She called me last night, said I shouldn’t tell ...

2 comments 2
Read story

“A New Day” by Alex D

Submitted to Contest #78

          Today is a new day, she finishes brushing her hair. For most, it is an ordinary Friday morning; for Liz it is yet another attempt at something new.           On this brisk January morning, instead of going straight to a cafe for a piping hot coffee, she heads to the gently wooded trail down the block. Weilding her bag and her keys, she stands at the sidewalk awkwardly. I'm not athletic, I look ridiculous on this trail in my puffy coa...

2 comments 2
Read story

“History” by Anna Smith

Submitted to Contest #78

When most people saw Arianna's room, they declared her a hoarder, though it was never out loud, always kept in their thoughts as was polite to do.But, looking about the room, it was undeniable.It started with the cello in the corner, which was always the first thing that people saw when they walked into her room. The wood gleamed in the light of her overhead fan's lamp, and the automatic assumption was that she was a musician.That assumption quickly dissipated when their eyes swept over the rest of her room.There was a bracelet making statio...

0 comments 0
Read story

“FAILING HOBBIES” by Sivaram Govindaraj

Submitted to Contest #78

My wife said “You’re sitting watching TV all the time. That’s because you’ve no hobby. You had told me you had started by taking a course on homeopathy as a hobby so that you could treat the poor. That was before we were married. You had acquired a big box full of those medicines which remains unused. You said that system of medicine ran in the family as your grandfather in the village had practised it in ancient times. You received a diploma but your treatment was wrong from the start. The then gardener’s son had pain in the neck and took y...

2 comments 2
Read story

“Too Many Spools of Yarn” by Maggie K

Submitted to Contest #78

I grab some spools of yarn. Purple, green, pink, blue and red all go into my shopping cart. My hand hovers over yellow and orange. Do I really need this many colors? Not really but I grab them both anyway because the yellow is gorgeous sunshine color and the orange is the same color as a flame. I grab some knitting needles and head to check out. I stand in line and wait for the person in front of me to finish checking out. I take a peek at what they've bought. Beads and string. Next time I come here I’ll get some.  “Hey, how are you?" A...

48 comments 48
Read story

“Me and my hobbies” by Lorzy Saringo

Submitted to Contest #78

This prompt is relatable to me because I am the one with so many hobbies but I cannot stick to them. This is my story on how I started with my hobbies. When I was in Elementary, I used to collect stamps from the letter my father sent when he was still working in Saudi Arabia. He worked there for ten years until he got a stroke and returned home in the Philippines. He always send letter to my mother and I received birthday card for my birthday every year. I used to collect stamps from his letter and barter it to my classmates whose parents ...

0 comments 0
Read story

“View Finder” by Philip Hedges

Submitted to Contest #78

Paul sat on the bus ride home. He half-heartedly poked at his phone screen while listening to a podcast on his headphones. A short buzz from the phone startled him. His eyes lit up. The moment he stepped off the bus he slid the phone into his pocket and scurried along the way. He reached his apartment complex with a wide grin on his face. There it was. The delivery carton sat expectantly on his doormat. As he entered his flat, he kicked aside a bunch of clothes that lay scattered on the floor. He set the box down on the kitchen table and, in...

5 comments 5
Read story

“Finish Me” by Samuel Munk

Submitted to Contest #78

Dearest David,If you gave me a voice, I could tell you how I feel. You play such sweet music on your saxophone, or your guitar, or your piano. If you stuck with one, you could be really good. You compose stories in text files buried in your C:/ drive. I read them all. You should finish the one about the princess trapped in the castle. I hope she gets out. You should finish that painting you started last August. The one with the little boy. You left him there just standing in the meadow with no face, poor thing. Someday I’ll tell you all this...

2 comments 2
Read story

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with one character trying to convince another to take up their favorite hobby.

Fluff – 177 stories

Write about someone who keeps an unusual animal as a pet.

Teens – 178 stories

Write about someone who still practices a skill that used to be necessary but has long since been replaced by technology.

Fiction – 133 stories

Set your story at a convention for a hobby most people have never heard of.

Fluff – 70 stories

Contest #78

Enter our weekly contest!

This week's theme: Keeping Busy

$50

Prize money

735

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jan 29, 2021 EST

Won by Christina Marie 🏆

Title: Life's Leftovers

View details

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

We'll send you 5 prompts each week. Respond with your short story and you could win $250!

NEW VIDEO COURSE 🎉

How to Write a Novel

Join Tom Bromley for a writing master class and finish your first draft in 3 months. Learn more →

Explore more writing prompt ideas:

Adults Writing Prompts ⭢

Adventure Writing Prompts ⭢

Angst Writing Prompts ⭢

Character Writing Prompts ⭢

Christmas Writing Prompts ⭢

Dark Writing Prompts ⭢

Dialogue Writing Prompts ⭢

Dramatic Writing Prompts ⭢

Dystopian Writing Prompts ⭢

Fall Writing Prompts ⭢

Fantasy Writing Prompts ⭢

Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Fluff Writing Prompts ⭢

Funny Writing Prompts ⭢

Halloween Writing Prompts ⭢

High School Writing Prompts ⭢

Historical Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Holiday Writing Prompts ⭢

Horror Writing Prompts ⭢

Kids Writing Prompts ⭢

Middle School Writing Prompts ⭢

Mystery Writing Prompts ⭢

Narrative Writing Prompts ⭢

Nonfiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Novel Writing Prompts ⭢

Poetry Writing Prompts ⭢

Romance Writing Prompts ⭢

Sad Writing Prompts ⭢

Science Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Short Story Writing Prompts ⭢

Spring Writing Prompts ⭢

Summer Writing Prompts ⭢

Teens Writing Prompts ⭢

Thanksgiving Writing Prompts ⭢

Thriller and Suspense Writing Prompts ⭢

Valentine's Day Writing Prompts ⭢

Vampire Writing Prompts ⭢

Winter Writing Prompts ⭢