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#116 Permission vs Forgiveness

As the old saying goes, “It’s easier to ask forgiveness than to get permission.” It’s not a policy to adopt too often (if you want to keep your friends, that is). But there will probably be times when — whether out of expedience, impulsivity, or sheer laziness — you throw caution to the wind.

Whether your characters are seeking another’s blessing or begging their pardon, this week’s prompts focus on the complex dynamics between permission and forgiveness.

This week's prompts

Write about a character breaking a rule, but for good reason.

Teens – 38 stories

Write about a character seeking forgiveness for something that happened in the past.

Angst – 66 stories

Start your story with someone being forbidden from doing something.

Dark – 44 stories

Write about a character who is being asked for their blessing, but is reluctant to give it.

Angst – 14 stories

Write a story that centers around a parking permit.

Fluff – 11 stories

Stories

The Picnic

Submitted to Contest #116

The man walking along the gravel path looks too young to be here. He doesn’t have wrinkles on his face and his hair is still a roasted chestnut brown and full of boyish curls. He needs a haircut. It makes me smile. This visitor knows his path well. He bobs and weaves through the maze of stones. It’s almost picture perfect as bright Autumn leaves tumble all around him. I still have this fantasy of him dropping his grandmother’s wicker picnic basket and twirling as the orchestra swells around him. He doesn’t. Instead, he just...

26 likes

MIXTAPE

Submitted to Contest #116

TW // HomophobiaSounds from the street came in through the rolled down window, his black curls blowing in the wind. Jamie had open it so that the cigarette smoke would not flood the interior of the vehicle, but it bothered him that the car horns and the murmur of the people outside wouldn’t let him properly hear the music coming from the speakers. His radio was so old that it could only play tapes. Finally, he decided to throw away the half-smoked cigarette and roll up the window. Music over vice.A reunion with former high school classmates....

26 likes

Of Ashe & Aether

Shortlisted for Contest #116 ⭐️

Emelyn tugged on her shackles—a feeble effort, she knew, but one despair demanded of her. The idonsteel bit into her flesh, and a scab peeled away as the restraints added another gouge to the red-rubbed mess of her wrists. Blood trickled down her arm, striking the floor below, the once-pristine tiles sullied in a rorschach of dried blood; a pitiful reminder of her struggles. She raised her head, despite the protests of her weathered body; gazed past the armored sister-sentries to the door they protected. A threshold to freedom. +It is your...

26 likes

The Forgiveness Permit

Harken Void

Submitted to Contest #116

Six thirty-one P.M. The end of another grueling day at work, which Marla couldn’t wait to drown in some cheap wine and TV drama. Luna was already dozing off in the baby seat, so perhaps she could have the evening free of baby emergencies. God knew she needed one. She turned left on her street and drove onto the parking lot. Over the months the lot became a sort of mental trigger for her. She knew that as soon as she turned the engine off, she could start to unwind. Marla felt the stones of stress starting to loosen as she took her usual spac...

25 likes

With Love From Above

Kate Winchester

Submitted to Contest #116

Amanda startled awake. She panicked before realizing that she was safe in her bedroom. Someone had tapped her shoulder, or so she thought. Her eyes darted around the room. Even though it was dark, she saw neither shadows nor any evidence that someone was there. She listened for any noises, but all was quiet. When her body calmed down and she came to her senses, she figured she must have been dreaming. Her phone was on the night stand next to her, and she reached for it. As she did, she felt something o...

25 likes

Remorse

Greg Gillis

Submitted to Contest #116

Julius had an uneasy feeling that he was being followed. It churned in his stomach like a bad burrito, but he had no evidence to back up his suspicions. Julius was frequently on edge, always aware of his surroundings. He had lived his early years in foster care after his parents were gunned down while on vacation in Peru. Julius was only six at the time, and was in the care of his babysitter, while his parents h...

24 likes

This Time Will Be Different

Theresa Fox Turner

Submitted to Contest #116

(Trigger warning: Strong language, domestic violence, sexual content)"Do not sleep in my room tonight," he said to Cassie on his way out the door to see Melissa, who he claimed was "just a friend." Before he downgraded Cassie and his relationship to what he called roommates, his room was her room. He was her first relationship and her first love; she dropped out of college to move in with him. Most nights, he wanted Cassie in his room, and, of course, she obliged. This proves he still loves me. This time will be different.A couple times...

24 likes

Seeing Red Over Her

Eliand Belfaire

Submitted to Contest #116

TRIGGER WARNING: ASSAULT, CURSE WORDS, BLOOD, MURDER Feeding on the living; Punishable by loss of claws or loss of one’s fangs. Turning a human; Punishable by starvation in solitary. Killing a vampire; Punishable by execution. There aren’t many things a vampire can get in trouble for in our town, but when we do the consequences are not merciful. In my time being here in Scorchholde, this has always been normal. What is not normal is the way a human can make me lose all sense of breath and conscious thinking. Her name is Ma...

23 likes

States of Matter

Goblin King

Submitted to Contest #116

“Could I ask her out?” He says. My head almost spins straight off and lands in the dirt, like a loose toddler on a merry-go-round before I stop it. I stare at him while my thoughts catch up with my body. I close my mouth and look back forward. He squints at me for a second before looking back forward. The sun keeps him from looking at me for too long. I appreciate that. The wind plays with a few dead leaves on the ground as we walk by them. It tosses them around in a circle before getting bored and leaving them lying there, like a loose tod...

23 likes

HE WHO IS IN A HURRY ALWAYS ARRIVES LATE

Submitted to Contest #116

He Who Is In A Hurry Always Arrives Late Georgian Proverb I was running, clutching my purse and holding my powder blue Samsonite train case. My dad was saying, “Hurry, Nan! We’re so late! I’m afraid you’ll miss your flight.” We rounded the corner of the parking garage and headed down the stairs. Six foot two, sixty years old, and still in good shape, my dad was ahead of me, flying down the stairwell when I tripped. I felt the air go out of me, and when I opened my eyes he was peering down at me and as...

22 likes

Driven

John K Adams

Submitted to Contest #116

Adeline snuggled into Avery’s hug as they watched the perfect sunset. She loved the graceful lines and gentle curves shining off rows of cars, like waves rolling toward a beach. An orange haze softened the sun as it hovered over the gentle hills. “This is our paradise.” “Yes it is,” said Avery. “What more could you want?” Avery’s question hit home. What did she want? They held the perfect jobs. She’d been born to drive Leon Pabbas’ cars. To remain in top condition, any car needs driving. Adeline loved putting a car through its paces at any ...

22 likes

We Will Miss You, Uncle Miltie

Submitted to Contest #116

There were a series of light taps on the front door of my parents’ home in a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. It was a Tuesday night in late November, 1950. I opened the door and was greeted by my aunts and uncles who entered the room without their usual hullabaloo and seated themselves. The room was a bit warm and stuffy but a November chill was in the air.Everyone directed their attention to the television at one end of the room. They understood the unstated rules for this weekly rendezvous, the most important of which was that no idle chit-chat...

22 likes

Forbidden to the Tongue but not Forgotten in the Mind

Submitted to Contest #116

I was eight years old when she forbade me to do it. My grandmother Martha was then a widow in her early fifties. I am not sure about her exact age then. When she saw me standing behind a tree in the backyard, she made her way quickly over to me, and said in no uncertain terms. “I absolutely forbid you to ever mention what you have seen today. As long as I live, I don’t want anyone in the family to say they heard you talk about this. Do you understand, Donald?” I hesitated for maybe a second and a half, and she s...

21 likes

Sticks and Stones

Mark Trenier

Submitted to Contest #116

“I would rather be a little nobody, then to be an evil somebody.” ― Abraham Lincoln Angelo “Angie” Porco did not fit his name. He was no angel because he acted like Satan. And if you thought he was just a dumb football player, you would learn how cunning and depraved he was. Being the biggest and strongest boy in the 6th grade probably helped, and since he was also the strongest boy in St. Bernard’s School in Wauwatosa, even older boys stayed out of Angie’s way. It only took one “accident” in the locker room when ...

21 likes

Old Willakers Weathers a Storm at Sutton Hill Farm

S. Thomson

Submitted to Contest #116

ㅤEven if he could hear the radio over the hammering rain, Old Willakers still would have ignored its warning. ㅤ“REMAIN INDOORS. ENSURE ALL WINDOWS AND DOORS ARE CLOSED AND SECURE. DO NOT TRAVEL OUTSIDE FOR ANY REASON. IF YOU ARE INJURED, REMAIN WHERE YOU ARE AND CONTACT EMERGENCY SERVICES.” ㅤThe storm had been brewing for days, and all the inhabitants of Sutton Hill farm had felt it. The pigs had been restless, and even as the rain came down they paced up and down their pen, unable to lie still. Even the farm cat had found the darkest co...

21 likes

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Contest #117

This contest has ended. Thank you for your submissions.

$250

Prize money

173

Entries

111

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 22, 2021 EST

Won by Story Time 🏆

Title: Straw, Sticks, and Brick

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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