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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#105: Gaining Perspective

Selecting which point of view to tell their story from is one of the most crucial choices an author can make. Whether you opt for the intimacy of first person (“I”), the directness of second person (“you”), or the versatility of third person (“they”), this decision is critically important in creating a story that resonates with readers. Identifying your POV characters is also of the utmost importance: a story might actually be more interesting when told not from the perspective of the action hero, but through the eyes of their overshadowed, long-suffering sidekick.

With this week’s prompts, I’d like you to consider your choice of perspective, and maybe try something new! Put yourself into the shoes of an unexpected character — or ask your character to consider another’s point of view. How meta!

Like I mentioned, we’re currently working on some big changes to Prompts. With that in mind, we’re asking again for you to submit your stories 24 hours earlier than usual, to make those changes possible. The deadline for submitting a story to this week’s contest is 11:59PM EST on Thursday, August 5th. Stay tuned!

This week's prompts

Write a story from the point of view of three different characters.

Character – 191 stories

Write about a person trying to see something from another’s point of view.

Nonfiction – 92 stories

Write your story from the perspective of a side character.

Character – 143 stories

Write a story that switches between first person and third person point of view.

Kids – 100 stories

Write about a character who can suddenly see through another person's eyes — literally.

Adventure – 131 stories

Stories

“A Boy Needs His Father” by Kimberly Hallman

Submitted to Contest #105

My customer service smile never leaves my face even as I feel my cell phone vibrating in my pocket for the fourth time. As I finish bagging up groceries for the fiftieth customer today, I subtly flag my manager, hoping he’s in a good enough mood to let me go on break a half-hour early. By the time I’m done ringing up the next customer in line, my manager is walking over. He looks annoyed, but not angry, so I take it to be a good sign. Before I can open my mouth to ask for my br...

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“A Genius Up in the Stars” by Alex Arias

Submitted to Contest #105

Yara sat in the cramped emergency pod, her muzzle twitching in the stale air. What an adventure, she thought. Her claws scratched at the metal as she stood on her two feet, her tail swinging out to balance herself. She wasn’t sure how much time had passed since she’d stowed away on the visiting ship, only that she was probably miles and miles away from home. “You don’t belong here,” a feminine voice said from nowhere. Yara looked up at the ceiling and around the curved structure of the pod, finding a small speaker built into the wall. ...

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“I HAVE A VISION ” by Mahita Ghattu

Submitted to Contest #105

“Five years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the emancipation proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon of light of hope to millions of negro slaves...” My mother said, lowering her voice, and finally stopping. She looked away from the notepad that read-- Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a dream” speech. I was fast asleep. My mother kissed my forehead and got up from her chair. She looked back at me and shook her head. Then she frowned. She opened the door, and closed it, quietly, in an a...

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“BEAUTIFUL” by Praise Olamotse

Submitted to Contest #105

Once again I felt the cool tap water rumble round my face as I tried washing only-God-knows-what, off it. I raised my head and took another look at the mirror in my bathroom. I exhaled deeply in displeasure. I drew out a fake grin at my reflection but I was hit with disappointment. I hated my dentition. It had faded yellowish color on it and it wasn’t straight but crooked. Many in school would always comment on how beautiful my grin is but I never saw it and I doubt I ever would. That’s why I resolved to only smiling even in the most joyous ...

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“The Mirror and me” by Maryam Gholami

Submitted to Contest #105

Are you Maryam? No, you are not. Definitely not. You are only a picture of me. I know that. I have many pictures of me in my cellphone. I have many selfies in Facebook. You are not even a picture. You are some kind of imagination of my face in the mirror. Do not look at me like that with those eyes. Even those eyes belong to me. Do you agree? Do you if you or other virtual stuff were not there in my life, I could not even know how I look like? Do you think now I know? Is that it? Is that the only responsibility you and all the pictures in th...

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“A tale of two Sarahs” by Marie McLaughlin

Submitted to Contest #105

My name is Sarah Swanson and I'm Eleven and a half years old. I'm laying in my bed, laptop in my hands. My mom and dad are downstairs having an argument over something probably not worth arguing about anyway. "Do you think I make a million dollars at my desk job!?!? I don't make enough to afford that museum field trip for Sarah!!" That's my dad, Mike. He's always complaining about his job at the office, and he talks about how everything my mom and me want to spend money on means "one more day that he has to work a job he hates", but he thi...

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“The Sea Serpent and the Village” by Xara Ashmann

Submitted to Contest #105

You had a bad day at the café, and right now, all you wanted to do is read at your favorite library a few walks away from your house. As soon as you walk past the library’s towering doors, the smell of bibliosmia greets you and the books on the shelves seemed to give a warm welcome. You take random books one by one from their shelves, and in your impatience to rid yourself of the day’s stress you fail to notice the miniature tower that began to form. Soon, the weight of the books became too much for you to carry, and you drop them all on the...

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“OPEN SECRET” by Sivaram Govindaraj

Submitted to Contest #105

RUBY SAYS: I am a woman with a ‘past’ and wonder who would marry me. I am fair, tall and have nice features. I know that if I dressed provocatively somebody would give me a wolf whistle. I have remained a spinster long enough and have decided to somehow take the plunge into matrimony. I had started reading matrimonial ads and one day this ad caught my eye : I am 43 and am a widower. My wife died of natural causes after 22 years of marriage leaving behind a daughter who is now 19. I am idealistic, broad minded and in good health. I am looking...

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“Time and Hope goes hand in hand” by Emma Bates

Submitted to Contest #105

There was once a boy I loved. He wasn’t handsome, nor was he tall. He didn’t have hazel or amber eyes full of passion, He didn’t know how to flirt, nor did he even try to. He wasn’t the perfect guy everyone wanted. He was just ... a boy. A boy who brought trouble. He was cast away and rarely mentioned by those around him because he reminded them of their mortality. He made them feel like they are inadequate and he sometimes was mistaken as the culprit who took away their loved and close ones. Silly little beings, the real culprits behind tha...

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“Killer. Detective. Patient.” by Shiza Asfar

Submitted to Contest #105

Scarlett's POV: I stood between life and death. Beyond me stood the tall light monsters. My head was dizzy, filled with so many images that were fuzzy, and something slimy oozed out of my hands. That's Funny, I thought. I don't remember anything. Not even my name. That's when I heard the sirens. The only familiar sound I heard in the last ten minutes. It is the police! They are coming! I heard my own voice in my head as a distant echo. And suddenly, the reds and blues and yellows beyond me coalesced into focus. They were not light m...

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“I didn’t!” by Aimee K

Submitted to Contest #105

“How many times do I need to tell you? I didn’t kill her!”“Can you please remain calm Mrs Buck. You are a witness and a suspect in the case. All I am asking for is your cooperation. Can you describe what Mia was like?”“Well, Mia was such a wonderful child. She was pretty, she was smart, she was everything a parent would want. It was her nineteenth birthday yesterday. Her father, my husband, died two years ago and she hadn’t celebrated her birthday ever since. I advised her to throw a party this time. Her father used to throw such splendid pa...

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“Nature” by Leeav Quaoar

Submitted to Contest #105

I have had enough.The thought of staying alive has been crawling onto my body, stabbing my skin until it bleeds, and nevermore I wish to see more of the world that keeps on betraying my beliefs and feelings.I have lost appetite for this thing called “life.” Surely I am contented enough to die; when someone says they are content, I scorn them, for contentment is not supposed to be subjected to life, but subjected to death.If you do not wish to die, you are still dissatisfied, so to speak. You want to see more of the world so your satisfaction...

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“Pretty Views” by You'd Think A Writer Would Have A More Creative Name .

Submitted to Contest #105

1091 wordsRated PG; blood, painPrompt: Write about a character who can suddenly see things through another person's eyes--literally.Author's note: Really short story because this can't be extended.“Uh, I think it worked?”“Yeah, that’s right! It did! We did it!”Nama runs over and hugs me. She hides her face from me, burying it into my chest. I know why. However, I appreciate it, so I don’t call her out. It’s a little weird, with her being almost my height, but I can’t complain. She's also probably hiding so she doesn’t have to look at me, to ...

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“The Joy Mission” by Michelle Gregory

Submitted to Contest #105

THE JOY MISSION Lauryn stood at her kitchen sink, looking out the window, filling the coffee pot with water. This was the first pot of coffee she and her husband would share in their new home. Jeff was upstairs getting ready for his first day of work since being transferred for his job at an architecture firm. He would have a long drive into the city so they were both up early. The sun was just peeking over the horizon in the distance and Lauryn thought how lucky she was to be able to watch the sun greet her every mornin...

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“The Late-Night Caller” by Del Gibson

Submitted to Contest #105

THE LATE-NIGHT CALLER by Del Gibson ‘Jake, the phone’s ringing,’ I shove him hard with my elbow into his side. ‘Jake, answer the god damn phone!’ My eyes stray to the luminescent sick, green, digital-clock, it’s 2:30 a.m. Phone still ringing… ‘What the hell? Who would be calling at this time?’ he says, reaching over and snatching the landline from its cradle. ‘Hello,’ Jake’s voice hoarse; having been ripped from his sleep, almost hesitant, as he realises the time on the digital clock. ‘Hello, sorry to call at such a late hour. But may I ...

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$50

Prize money

662

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Aug 05, 2021 EST

Won by Vi Bisky 🏆

Title: The Next Good Day

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

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