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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write about someone whose luck is running out.

Posted in Character on Jan 6, 2023

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✍️ 44 stories

“Midnight Luck” by Ralph Emery Barhydt

Submitted to Contest #180

It was late on a Thursday night. Ralph had driven all the way to Santa Rosa earlier to buy this extra special rifle because he liked the gun shop. Well, and it was one of the very few left in the Bay Area, anti-gun buying capital of the world. The Bay Area had it’s share of random killings and had even started the trend of mass killings back in the early ‘70s when some lunatic took is automatic weapon into a law firm and start killing people. The firm was in tall, modern building in downtown San Francisco and the world was shocked. People ju...

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“The Mercenary's Lament” by Shin Gwata

Submitted to Contest #180

When Heron built his home, he did so as he’d always dreamed - as close to the edge of man’s world as he could reach. The Wastes were known for one thing - the further south one ventured, the quieter the cries of animals, and the duller the greens of fruitful trees. Down here, the dunes were unforgiving and caked with the dust of powdered bones. At the lowermost point of the Wastes, the sands gave way to an ashen swathe of soil and gravel. Here, Heron found stones just strong enough to form stable walls. The trees, bereft as they were of...

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“May Flower” by Cecelia Crowley

Submitted to Contest #180

There was once a crisp, yellow flower that had not recently bloomed but had bloomed a while ago, in the previous season. Not a shed of deterioration had fallen upon this golden beauty, for it had been standing freshly firm and stargazingly strong since its bloom.  A large spring storm was approaching, one which screams destructive havoc among the unprotected crops, fields, and gardens. Luckily for the resilient yet now endangered flower, a frail yet attentive old lady named May had noticed the sturdy, yellow flower outside of her farm...

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“The Second Suitcase” by Duncan Fletcher

Submitted to Contest #180

“I dont feel great Dave” Helen said, shaking her husband fully awake. Dave groggily rolled over. The night hadnt been great. His wife had tossed and turned and Dave had been lying on the edge of the mattress so as not to disturb her. “I really dont feel well” Helen turned the bedside lamp on, and attempted to sit up, the soft glow of a circle of light next to her. Dave could see her thinning brown hair was even limper than normal, slicked to her head with sweat. His own was standing to attention at every angle. He sat up, turning his light o...

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“The Price of Beauty” by Madeline Honig

Submitted to Contest #180

Jenny fidgeted with the weights on the scale in front of her and audibly blew a breath out.  One hundred and twenty two pounds.  Up a pound from last time she weighed herself, the day before.  And two pounds up from last month.  What was happening to her? She stepped off the scale and looked into the mirror.  She put both manicured hands on either side of her face and pulled the skin taut up a bit.  Much better.  Then released her hands resulting in a frown.  She took a step back and turned sideways ...

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“Darius Düsterwald's Lucky Medicine” by Kimberly Gold

Submitted to Contest #180

Tom rang the round button next to the door and was startled by the shrill sound of the doorbell, which rang through the quiet neighbourhood. As they stood waiting, Tom could feel his mother’s growing apprehension behind him. She had never talked much about her hometown or her father. In fact, Tom knew as good as nothing about one half of his family.He examined the old wooden door in front of him and saw that it had a name carved in its wood. ‘Darius Düsterwald’, he said aloud and realised that his mother had never told him his grandfather’s ...

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“Misfortunate” by Chad Eastwood

Submitted to Contest #180

There’s no predicting me. I can’t even predict myself. I went to a fortune teller, a card reader, and I paid her twenty dollars and she looked at me and she gave me the money back and said, I can’t do anything with you at all – there’s no predicting you. That’s the kind of guy I am. I could wake up in the morning believing in all kinds of things, and before the days out I’m a complete sceptic about all of them. One day I’m a scientist, the next I’m I Pentecostal minister. That’s the kind of person you’re dealing with here. So be warned, you ...

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“One More Life ” by Travis Hitchcock

Submitted to Contest #180

Eight times I’ve survived. That’s eight more than I deserve. I’ve heard about the luck of the Irish, but I’m not Irish. At least, I don’t think I am. Can those such as me be Irish? It’s impossible to tell. Such concepts are beyond my understanding.  Death doesn’t scare me. Well, it does. But it doesn’t scare me more than anything else. The problem is everything scares me. Death is no more frightful than a car horn or a creaking floorboard in the night. Touching me anywhere, but particularly on my neck or back when I’m asleep provokes a...

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“The Luckiest Woman Alive” by Katariina Ruuska

Submitted to Contest #180

Trigger warning: kidnapping, firearm, threat of violence, foul language They call me “The Luckiest Woman Alive.”  I would say that’s a pretty accurate description – that is, if you buy into the more traditional meaning of “luck” –, as I’ve won pretty much every lottery, sweepstake and contest I’ve ever entered, the prizes ranging from all-expenses-paid trips and dream houses to cars, boats and cold hard cash.  Of course, another term of endearment given to me – one that’s particularly popular amongst the masses – is “Rich B...

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“The Coin” by Meli Ann

Submitted to Contest #180

Gary Craver’s auction hall was engulfed in searing, rising orange flames that emitted pale gray smoke that blanketed the surrounding area. The firefighters rushed towards the flames, sirens ringing throughout the city, the sound bounced off the brick walls of the building amplifying the bells. They rushed around like ants around their meal, organized but scattered as they struggled to put on heavy vests and protective gear. They had one task in mind, to save the antiques. The antique items range from two hundred thousand dollars maps, up to...

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“Just a Few Questions” by Juan Diego Olivarez

Submitted to Contest #180

Detective Fraser needed this break. The murderer hadn’t left any fingerprints, any DNA, or anything concrete enough to know where to start. The killer used a 9mm handgun, but there was nothing else to go off of aside from some footprints. The boyfriend was working a night shift when it happened, he’s cleared. There was a suspect, and he did have a 9mm handgun registered to him, with a good lawyer, it wouldn’t be enough to book him. But the killer made a dumb mistake, his luck was about to run out. Luck had been a Lady towards one Logan Moor...

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“My Sociopath, John” by April Mattson

Submitted to Contest #180

What is it like to be under the glare of a sociopath? A real one; a dark triad of malignant psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism. Here’s the thing: sociopaths aren’t wearing trench coats and creeping around playgrounds. (Well, some of them are.) You know them. Or perhaps you don’t really know them. They’re utterly charming. They can gaze into your soul; they know parts of yourself that remain in shadowy corridors. They find your weaknesses; they anticipate your joys. Eve knew him as the Beguiler. A shapeshifter, a snake, a temp...

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“The Four-Leaf Clover” by Bettina Karpathian

Submitted to Contest #180

My daddy was a lucky man. I know this because I saved special things to give him luck. Sometimes I found pretty stones or a penny when we went for a walk. Once I found a four-leaf clover. I always went to old Mrs. Pike’s house next door after school because Mom worked until late. She showed me how to press the leaf between the pages of a book until it was dry and pretty. We glued it onto a card which I decorated with glitter and magic marker for Daddy. I showed it proudly to Mom when she came to get me, still wearing her waitress top, her fa...

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“Lucky Darren” by Chelsie Librun

Submitted to Contest #180

Darren stood in the front of the boardroom with all of the ease and confidence that his illustrious career had granted him. Seated at the long wooden table in front of him were several of the partners at his firm. It was no big deal. Their newest consulting client had approached their firm with such a simple problem: revenue was down; it needed to go up. Too easy. Switch up your marketing plan. Focus on enhancing your products. Listen to your customers. Same shit as always. Darren was what every man wanted to be - tall, objectively handsome,...

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🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story that hinges on the outcome of a coin flip.

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Contest #180

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Ended on 22:59 - Jan 13, 2023 EST

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Title: Come In Spinner

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