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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#117: All Hallows' Eve

October 31st: Halloween — or All Hallows’ Eve, to give it its spookier name. Just an excuse to wear a costume? Or, for one night a year, do spirits walk among us?

The Celts certainly thought so — and many of our own holiday pastimes stem from the methods they used to keep Halloween ghosts at bay. Others, like bobbing for apples, evolved from Halloween rituals for matchmaking and divining the future.

Personally, I prefer to spend the holiday with my nose in a spooky story rather than a bowl of icy water, which is why this week’s prompts are designed to put you in touch with your macabre side. Happy Halloween!

🥇 Winner

“Sleep Story” by John Merino

🏆 Winner of Contest #117

"Now blessings light on him that first invented this same sleep: it covers a man all over, thoughts and all, like a cloak; 'Tis meat for the hungry, drink for the thirsty, heat for the cold, and cold for the hot. 'Tis the current coin that purchases all the pleasures of the world cheap; and the balance that sets the king and the shepherd, the fool and the wise man even. There is only one thing that I dislike in sleep; 'Tis that it resembles death.”- Don Quixote“I have to practice staying alive and preparing to die at the same time.”- Christ...

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⭐️ Shortlisted

“1-800-Spiritual-Specialists” by Laura Pamenter

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #117

1-800-Spiritual-Specialists Laura Pamenter There is no weather in the phantom realm. Just a gust of wind of every time a new ghost transports to our world, leaving behind their first home. The banshee-like howl of the wind woke me today. It tore through my bedroom window like a hurricane, sharp and ferocious. They say sleep isn’t necessary for us anymore, but I still like to keep my schedule intact. What else is there to do for the hours between my work shifts, other than stare out my window into an...

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“Two Bodies” by Emily Blackbay

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #117

Trigger warning: body horrorIt began when, as a small child, I noticed a cut on my forearm the size and shape as the tip of a cat’s tongue. I had been scaling a cluster of tall rocks on the beach’s far end. Out of sight my mother slept peacefully, the pitched tent of a beauty magazine shading her face. Blood welled inside the shallow puddle of the cut, and as I instinctively put my fingers to stop the flow, peeled the skin off my forearm in one long strip. There was no pain, and the wind blew my cry of shock out to s...

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“An Uninvited Guest” by Cait McNeal

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #117

Dancers spun past in whirling flurries of color: scarlets, golds, midnight blues and deep luxurious purples. Wine flowed freely and tables stood piled high with succulent dishes too tempting for even the solomnest guest to resist. Revelers drifted past on feet made light by merriment. Lightning split the sky outside, and a heavy rain beat a martial rhythm against the enormous windows but inside laughter echoed through the ornate hall, reverberating off marble columns and a domed ceiling gilded with filigree. The walls were adorned with...

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“Purely Selfish Poltergeisting” by Mack Gage

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #117

Erin was a speck of dust on the map back home, trapped in the holographic border marking the edge of Human space. All around her, specks of dust were still exploding. When she thought of home Erin meant West Virginia. Of all the places left on Old Earth, West Virginia might have changed the least. It was still poor. Still a backwater. Still hell, for a precocious young woman like her. If a person could still be precocious when they were dying, and young after they’d been to war. Home wasn’t the Olympus and it never would be. Throug...

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This week's prompts

Start your story with the words “Everything was ready for the ritual.”

Horror – 49 stories

Write about a character who uses a night where everyone’s in costume as cover for something sinister.

Horror – 34 stories

Write about a missing person nobody seems to know or remember.

Thriller and Suspense – 49 stories

Set your story at the boundary between two realms.

Halloween – 70 stories

Write about someone whose busiest night of the year is Halloween.

Halloween – 26 stories

Stories

“Sleep Story” by John Merino

🏆 Winner of Contest #117

"Now blessings light on him that first invented this same sleep: it covers a man all over, thoughts and all, like a cloak; 'Tis meat for the hungry, drink for the thirsty, heat for the cold, and cold for the hot. 'Tis the current coin that purchases all the pleasures of the world cheap; and the balance that sets the king and the shepherd, the fool and the wise man even. There is only one thing that I dislike in sleep; 'Tis that it resembles death.”- Don Quixote“I have to practice staying alive and preparing to die at the same time.”- Christ...

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“The Night Creatures” by Howard Halsall

Submitted to Contest #117

Jessie and I never saw the van that killed us that night at the crossroads. It flew out of the darkness like a predatory raptor swooping down on its prey. An anxious resident who’d heard the crash called the emergency services. Fifteen minutes later, they arrived to discover the other driver had abandoned his stolen vehicle, leaving us unconscious and trapped inside our mangled car. The paramedics performed defibrillation as we raced to the hospital, however after all their efforts, they declared us both dead on arrival.#I’d passed my drivin...

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“Ivan Isn't Here, or Who Is Ivan?” by Story Time

Submitted to Contest #117

Ivan was not in attendance at Dalia’s christening, because nobody knew who Ivan was or whether he had been, or if he could be. The beautiful christening dress was too small for Dalia, and that’s just the sort of thing her parents would have blamed on Ivan had Ivan been someone they were familiar with on the day their child was introduced to the Lord. Dalia’s mother, Reina, remembered a disturbance when she was just two months pregnant with what would one day be her golden child. She was fast asleep next to her husband, Vincent, when she ...

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“The Consequences” by Babyann Hernandez

Submitted to Contest #117

****Trigger Warning: content Contains Sexaul assualt, Blood, Violence and Lots of Cursing.**** What’s the definition of a bad person? I used to think it was just those who harmed others. Sexual predators, serial killers, murderers. Lately, I’ve regressed. I don’t believe bad people exist anymore. I believe people are just driven to extremes from deep severe pain or anger. Turning minds back to primal times. Kill or be killed. Protect or die trying. I’m just a woman. One might say I had a promising future. Looks? Check. Street smarts? C...

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“The Girl from the Snow” by Sallie Castile

Submitted to Contest #117

The Girl from The Snow By Sallie Castile It was quiet on the moor, secretively quiet, as though the thick layer of snow was hugging every sound down into the earth. Birds were hovering over the leafless, skeleton branches of the trees, but no birds sang. The silence did not bother me you see. I like quiet, I like to get away from people, I am a loner and people don't understand this they don't understand me but I wish they did, I haven’t any friends or a boyfriend and everyone keeps on at me to go out and do something about it, “leave your b...

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“The Great Pumpkin Massacre ” by Daniel R. Hayes

Submitted to Contest #117

(Content Warning: Blood, Gore, Murder, Violence, Spooky terror.) It’s Halloween once again, and soon the kids on Dead Wood Street will be out trick-or-treating. The night will be full of imagination and wonder as sweet treats are handed out. The old can be young again as they watch the little ones stagger around in costumes of fright and glorious splendor. Indeed, All Hallows' Eve is a night of spooky pleasure and merrymaking. It is believed that ghouls, ghosts, goblins, and demons can walk among the living on this day. Others thi...

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“The Last, First Kiss” by Lexie Eldridge

Submitted to Contest #117

Everyone remembers their first kiss. Sometimes it’s with your first crush or some random kid under the slide. Mine was with my childhood best friend. Her name was Becca Kent. She had brown hair that her mom braided intricately and always wore red overalls, faded from frequent wear. We did everything together. Sometimes, we even did things we knew would get us in trouble. One day we found a movie shoved under the TV stand like someone kicked it under there when they were cleaning. It was obviously made for adults, but my mom was at the grocer...

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“In His Hands” by Michael Martin

Submitted to Contest #117

Everything was ready for the ritual… everything except me. He would soon fix that. The sensation of his hand sliding to the base of my neck wakes me from a deep slumber. He cradles my head, his fingers wrapping around the back of my neck as he’s done many times before. A gentle squeeze later, he has me exactly where he wants me. How I’ve longed for his embrace. His hands are home, they’re safety incarnate – like reinforced walls, impenetrable. I’m where I belong. It’s time again, isn’t it? I’m yours to command. Use me. My...

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“1-800-Spiritual-Specialists” by Laura Pamenter

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #117

1-800-Spiritual-Specialists Laura Pamenter There is no weather in the phantom realm. Just a gust of wind of every time a new ghost transports to our world, leaving behind their first home. The banshee-like howl of the wind woke me today. It tore through my bedroom window like a hurricane, sharp and ferocious. They say sleep isn’t necessary for us anymore, but I still like to keep my schedule intact. What else is there to do for the hours between my work shifts, other than stare out my window into an...

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“I am Nobody” by Chris Winters

Submitted to Contest #117

I AM NOBODY 1. Walking the beat by the pier in San Francisco was a daunting task, especially for officers Dunne and Ruiz. Day after day and night after night, depending what shift they were on, always brought homeless vagrants to the pier. They would sleep on benches, under trees and some of the more fortunate ones had tents. Not the poor fellow they were approaching now, this guy was sleeping on the grass wearing only a hoodie and track pants. It was a cool September evening off the water. The two cops decided to c...

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“With Four Words” by Tommie Michele

Submitted to Contest #117

She stumbled into the shop with eyes wider than the chasm between life and death.I could come up with a better metaphor, given time. The chasm between life and death is not as wide as many assume.I should know. I run this place.Some do not believe it exists. Some fear it. Some call it Purgatory.All are misguided.She stumbled into my Apothecary not long ago. I've been keeping an eye on her since she crossed the doorframe and the bell above rang out with a lonely tone. I remain silent, of course. Waiting for the clients to come to me is easier...

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“Employee of the Year” by John K Adams

Submitted to Contest #117

When two police detectives entered the accounting department, everyone looked up. They quickly returned to work.Head of accounting, Cynthia, bid Penelope Grass into her office.Once inside, Penelope said, “I want a lawyer.”The cops looked at each other. Cynthia stared at her desk, shaking her head.Detective Stiles said, “We have a few questions, Ms. Grass. No one’s making accusations.”“Talk to Shelly, in HR. She deserves a grilling.”The detective’s talk with Shelly had led them to Penelope. Shelly described Penelope’s histrionics at Chad’s pr...

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“The Demon of Tricks ” by Courtney Moore

Submitted to Contest #117

The Demon of Tricks sits at my door.He says he loves me, but I don’t know anymore.The screaming down the hall has put mine to shame.I know he has others, and I am most tame.“Hardly tame, love,” he laughs, pacing the space outside the gates. Shadows push against the thick material, but never cross. Sounds and smells, of laughter and decay, are the only pieces of him allowed through. “But you are my favorite,” the raspy voice purrs. His swift steps come to a halt, and the gates creak again, as he peeks into the room beyond.White hair is sprawl...

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“Not the T.F.” by Kendall Defoe

Submitted to Contest #117

“If you follow the herd, you will be treated like cattle.” He knew he needed a good opening line. He began this speech in the right way. Most of the people in the crowd knew it; those who were new to the group chuckled, smiled and thought that he had said something quite profound. “I am not going to forget that one.” “Like something that Mark Twain or that Wilde guy would have said.” “Did anyone write that down? You have a pen?” He was proud of the effect produced. Looking over his notes, he realized that he knew this speech so well that he ...

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“The Missing Son” by Nisha Shirali

Submitted to Contest #117

Trigger warning: blood, self-harm, violence, slight sexual content Crimson blood webbed out like tree roots down the porcelain sink. Lydia observed the blood with cool detachment as it dripped from her left wrist, which was slit by the pen knife clutched in her right hand. The blood evaporated within seconds, and she barely felt the pain. It was nothing in comparison to the ache from the absence of her fifteen year old son Nathan. Lydia gazed into the mirror of the tiny washroom. Her grey eyes, underlined with wrinkles, were vacant with ...

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$250

Prize money

228

Contest entries

153

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 29, 2021 EST

Won by John Merino 🏆

Title: Sleep Story

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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