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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#110: Hit the Road, Jack

On September 5th, 1957, Jack Kerouac published On the Road — a hugely influential novel, swelling with jazz, heat, and Americana, that follows free-spirited mavericks Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty on their travels across the States. To celebrate its 64th anniversary, this week’s prompts all take place on the long and winding road (or right next to it). Safe travels!

This week's prompts

Set your story in a roadside diner.

Dystopian – 59 stories

Write about a couple who fall out on the road.

Valentine's Day – 16 stories

Start your story with a vehicle pulling over for a hitchhiker.

Horror – 47 stories

Write about a character on the road — and on the run.

Adventure – 40 stories

Start your story with the line “We have plenty of time,” and/or end it with the line “We were never going to make it.”

Angst – 47 stories

Stories

“No One Understands” by Sabin Cunningham

Submitted to Contest #110

Journal Entry #142 (Earthen Cycles) I got a visit from the royal guard again today. It’s been so long since their last attempt I thought they’d given up and moved on. Three whole years of peace and utter bliss has lulled me into a state of confusion. I should’ve known they’d never stop. So now I have to remember why I’m here. The vibrations of car engines soothe the raging space pilot in me, that’s one of the main reasons. Gyrating through the mysterious wonder of space and stars above can always be interesting, but I’ve only ever been so ...

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“Time Makes Children” by Mike Rhodes

Submitted to Contest #110

Just from looking at the back of her head, Nell knew what her sister was thinking. 'You wanna go explore, don't you?' Amy pulled her head back from the diner window and turned around. 'Don't you?' Nell looked out at a drab main street and the glimpse of some woods behind it. 'It's just another small town.' 'I'm not interested in the town, I want to see the woods.' 'It's just another wood,' Nell said. The leather squeaked as she sat on the opposite bench. Amy rolled her eyes. 'If we want to make it for the morning we can't stay long,' Nell re...

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“Self-defeating Prophecy” by Mari Swindley

Submitted to Contest #110

'We have plenty of time' is one of those phrases that really should not be uttered. For in the uttering it becomes a self-defeating prophecy. In this case, young Daniel spoke the thought out as his mother banged on his bedroom door for the third time that morning. "We will have plenty of time, if we are on the road in the next five minutes, young man." Sheila sighed. "It's not like you didn't know this was happening. Now come on! Even your dad is ready before you!" "Alright, alright. Keep your hair on Mum. I'll be down in a sec." They ...

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“Sunday Drive ” by Sabrina Rose

Submitted to Contest #110

"There’s always enough time to stop and smell the roses.” I said to myself smelling a fat sherbet color rose. I was watering my rose garden on another Sunny Sunday in Silicone Valley Suburbia (of course this isn’t the real name but due to the high volume of people equipped with silicone parts it seemed fitting to me). Although I can’t make too much fun, I have my own pal made of silicone, his name ADAM, that I built with my own two hands and one big brain coming by years of inspiration from too many sci-fi movies and ...

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“Among the Trees” by Aner Tal

Submitted to Contest #110

Among the Trees “We have plenty of time.” Your voice is warm, an almost palpable touch of heat gently caressing my ear. I smile. I can tell you are too, sitting beside me. My leg is cramping. Ten hours on the road is a long time, and the road still lies long ahead, stretching to an endless dark horizon. “That’s, yeah, that’s what I’m worried about.” I laugh. I try stretching my leg without removing it from the gas pedal. I think of how nice it would be if the old Chevrolet was of the self driving sort, the sort that takes you to where...

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“Robado Canyon, 2021” by J. Wilson Davis

Submitted to Contest #110

We have plenty of time, she yelled, slow down! as Todd threw bags into the back of the SUV. The gray air stank of old campfire and heat. Don’t panic. We can’t panic. She waddled to him with a load of photo albums bouncing against her 29-week belly. Why oh why hadn’t she had the damn things digitized last winter when they were just sitting around? If the house was going to burn, so be it. They had more than enough to replace it. But her babies were going to be able to hold a picture of their grand...

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“Sunny Side Diner” by Nikki Madigan

Submitted to Contest #110

TW: substance abuse, goreOrville Ballard sat in his usual booth at the Sunny Side Diner, nestled in a far corner. The cracked vinyl seat covers poked through his khaki pants and into the backs of his legs. He shifted, but there was no safe space on the seat cushion. The vinyl creaked with his movement. Sitting before him on the table was an off-white mug filled with coffee. Steam rose from the mug in soft curls that disappeared almost instantly. With weathered fingers, Orville picked up a creamer and pulled back the foil lid. He poured ...

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“Leader of the Pack” by Avril Armstrong

Submitted to Contest #110

Leader of the Pack 2153 words Bill, Gary and Chuck were the Tigers. They rode their cherished motorbikes, wore their fringed leathers and swept past lines of traffic, with arrogance – and not a little aggression. What do all those jerks in tin cages crawling along the Interstate know about living? On their big two-wheelers, customised with top-of-the-range, after-market extras, studded rawhide saddlebags and a stash of bolt-on chrome garbage, they wove through the g...

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“Frosty Stop Encounter” by Randolph Pierce

Submitted to Contest #110

Frosty Stop Encounter Semis, box trucks, RVs, rusted old pickups, tour buses, passenger cars like the one I was driving, several dozens of all of them, stretching beyond sight in both directions, are all but motionless ahead of and behind us with the cloudless-sky sun converting this spacious Mercury Marquis into a human-occupied oven. Upon coming to a complete rest at one juncture, we got out and looked ahead and back but quickly returned to our immobile shady shelter. &nb...

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“Dandelion” by Jacqueline Paige

Submitted to Contest #110

He restlessly mashed his french fries into the pool of ketchup on the corner of his plate, eating one, after another, after another, until the waitress came over and interrupted. "Refill?" She stood over him with a pot of coffee, smiling. He stared down at his plate, and nodded. No eye contact. Don't make eye contact. "Thank-," before he could get the words out, he looked up and she was already on to the next group of diners. He glanced out of the window next to him, past the neon green CASH ONLY sign. It overlooked the parking...

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“Closing Time” by Kayla Peart

Submitted to Contest #110

Grey swore the place was empty upon his arrival. The manager finished closing protocols just before a family emergency struck but prevented him from locking up the diner. Grey did one last walkthrough to ensure everything was in its place and when he returned to the dining area, ready to leave and lock the doors, an old man was seated in a booth along the windowed wall. Since it was after hours and dark outside, the area was quiet enough to hear the bells above the door ring, but he had heard nothing. “We’re closed, sorry,” Grey said. ...

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“Road Trip” by McKeon Gardella

Submitted to Contest #110

It was Sunday afternoon in the town of Shadbush. I was standing behind the serving counter at Flo’s Roadside Diner watching the brunch crowd disperse. I took a sip of two-hour old coffee to give me a spark to deal with the upcoming lunch crowd. The lunch traffic on Sunday afternoons was normally slow at Flo’s but I had a feeling it was going to pick up. Mrs. Jenna Wisedale and her three kids, two boys and one girl, entered the diner. The determined Mother corralled her young children into a booth. The young energetic family were regular cus...

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“Last Resort Diner” by Basha McCrumb

Submitted to Contest #110

My car coughed, sputtered, and died as I pulled into the parking spot furthest from the door of the Last Resort Diner. I slammed the steering wheel with my hand while letting lose with some very creative words in several languages. I may not have a top-notch formal education, but growing up as a military brat had broadened my language abilities. Getting out of the car, I lifted my leg and kicked the piece of crap door shut with the bottom of my foot. No need to lock it. It was worth more to me as an insurance claim than anything else. It w...

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“Waiting for Anti-Godot” by Danny Lopez

Submitted to Contest #110

“Good Mornin’! Welcome to Chuppies! Can I get y’all anythin’ to start?” Mary’s Corpus Christi accent was a combination of sweet, Southern gravy with a mouthful of good ol’ fashioned Texas barbeque. It was an inviting and friendly sound that said: You are now safe in the house of flapjacks. “4 coffees, black. And I’ll have the pancakes.” Death’s taste was very distinct. She was unyielding with her French toast’s proportion of golden-crispy outside to creamy-gooey inside. Death contemplated between the pancakes and French toast for a total o...

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“Hope Mending” by Catherine Douglas

Submitted to Contest #110

Julian Barnett had seen no one on the road for the last several miles since leaving home in a quiet town in northeast Pennsylvania, until coming across a very skinny man standing at the side, holding a small bag. As Julian drew closer, he could see the man was almost expressionless, but there was something sad in his blue eyes. His hair was a dark blond, and very unkempt. His cheeks were somewhat hollow, and his clothing hung loosely from his body. Rolling down the window, Julian called, “Hello, there! Do you need help, sir?” The man spo...

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$250

Prize money

209

Contest entries

144

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Sep 10, 2021 EST

Won by JanetthePlanet 66 🏆

Title: My Mother's Dreams.

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.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

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