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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#119: Listen

It’s November, and with that come some familiar sounds: the pitter-patter of rain, the rustling of leaves, and the hysterical typing of writers attempting NaNoWriMo. This week, let’s throw the windows open and listen closely. And if you need company while you write, join the Reedsy team for a live Write-In on November 10th!

This week's prompts

Start your story with an unusual sound being heard.

Horror – 41 stories

Start your story with a character saying “Listen, …”

Valentine's Day – 57 stories

Write a story inspired by a piece of music (without using any lyrics).

Middle School – 39 stories

Write a story that involves eavesdropping.

Fluff – 34 stories

Set your story in a silent house by the sea.

Dystopian – 61 stories

Stories

“Let Her Go ” by Molly Quinnell

Submitted to Contest #119

TW: mentions of death, death scene The waves gently crashed over the jagged rocks, making that crushing, crashing sound I could no longer hear. I was a bit like a wave, I thought, slowly rising to my full height before crashing painfully on the shore. “You and me, wave,” I thought, “we’re not so different. We both give our all, only to end up destroyed. We’re both lonely. We’re both killers.” “My little philosopher,” she teased, running her slim finger down the length of my cheekbone, her dark eyes sparkling in the night. It was c...

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“Sounds Of Not Silence” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #119

The sound of my snoring surprised me, when I was startled awake, but it wasn’t what disturbed my sleep. What caught my ear was a rapping sound, echoing from a distance. “Rap, rap, rap.” Then, it stopped.Filled with curiosity, I clicked the remote, turning off the TV and dragged myself out of the recliner. Standing motionlessly, with my mouth slightly opened, I wait for the sound to return. A minute passed, when I decided I must have dreamed it and gave up on my investigation.My stomach, aroused from its slumber, decided it wanted to be fed, ...

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“Lessons Learned” by Maureen MacLennan

Submitted to Contest #119

Lessons Learned A sunny November afternoon found me sitting on a brick bench that encircled a fountain on university grounds; I was starving and realized I couldn’t have concentrated on the psychology lecture I was meant to be in, there was too much running through my mind as it was. I was looking through my insulated bag for something edible when I overhea...

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“Listen...” by Crystal Johnson

Submitted to Contest #119

"Listen," Abigail Bowen clamped a hand over her brother's mouth. "Do you hear that?" John Bowen, three years her junior, concentrated, listening for the sound. "I don't hear it," John relented. "Sorry, Abby." He didn't need Abby to explain what sound to listen for. At this time every night, they expected it. The children sat in silence awaiting the arrival of their neighbor. "Old Man Thomas is never late," Abby said, keeping her voice hushed. The time on her watch was nearing 7:45 p.m., closer to the magic moment when Mr. Thomas appeared. Jo...

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“A GHOULISH Encounter” by Ebony Brinson

Submitted to Contest #119

As I'm making my way home from a late-night shift at the hell hole, constantly over-worked and underpaid, I take my usual shortcut down the dark alleyway, past the trash cans, the familiar junkies but wait. I slow my pace because I hear an unusual sound. First, the sound of dripping water combined with a savage mauling, wait-sucking, slurping sound as if an animal tearing through its prey ravenously. I stop dead in my tracks and see a woman with ghoulish-like eyes, dark and black. I was frozen, shocked, amazed, but also terrified. The Gho...

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“The Lesson” by Jill K

Submitted to Contest #119

“Listen... PORT-smith. PORT-smith.” I pronounced it slowly, then rapidly, the way you’d hear it in ordinary conversation. I pointed to the sentence I’d written on the board. “I’m currently living in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.” To a person, my adult students frowned. I could tell what they were thinking. “It’s spelled MOUTH. How can it be pronounced SMITH?” And, “Have I really been saying the name of this town wrong for the last three months?” My Taiwanese student cleared his throat. “Teacher,” he asked car...

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“Hear No Evil” by Fi Brie

Submitted to Contest #119

Jackson Marriott knew he’d messed up from the moment he saw the police car erratically mount the curb outside No. 7, narrowly missing this morning’s pile of bin bags that sat lazily in the front drive. His hand trembled as he used his middle finger to nervously push the bridge of his coke bottle glasses further up his nose. He blinked and his bottom eyelid twitched. With his jowly face pressed up against the glass of his living room window, Jackson knew he was no better than all the other busybodies on the street who were currently doing the...

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“Small Town Hideout” by Rowan Legend

Submitted to Contest #119

After Heist CW: 1 swearword and a tutu Silent house in the middle of the night the ocean water cold as it crashed on the shoreline, four figures rose from the saltwater coughing and crawling towards the safety of the sand. “Holy shit!” Van called out as he reached the beach first, he wasn’t one for swearing often so the words were a shock for him and the others that know him. “Even breaths, deep even breaths baby,” Sid called from the back making sure that none of them got lost or lose their strength in the last stretch. “Is the house real...

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“Melissa's Dream” by Milton Cust

Submitted to Contest #119

MELISSA’S DREAM By Milton Cust Whisper, whisper, whisper, rustle, rustle, rustle. 13-year-old Melissa Harding was woken from her sound sleep by noises in her bedroom. At first, she just lay in her bed and tried to peer through the darkness of her room but when she saw no one and heard nothing she thought she was just imagining things and rolled over to go back to sleep. She was just drifting off when she heard something that made her come instantly awake. Her eyes flew open, and she propped herself up in bed. Whisper, whisp...

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“Boarder” by William Richards

Submitted to Contest #119

A sound wakes me from sleep and my eyes open, unseeing in the darkness. My stomach churns. I’m sure someone was crying? My ears strain for more, any further hint of sound that could act as a clue. But it’s quiet. Crying in itself is not that unusual around here. People cry all the time. After a bollocking from the duty teacher, it’s not unusual to cry yourself to sleep. But this whimper happened in the dead of night for no apparent reason. And it sounded like a girl’s cry. Which can’t be right. This is the boy’s floor.I listen hard but there...

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“Dead Ringer” by Jude S. Walko

Submitted to Contest #119

Content warning: Mention of violence.It was just after two in the early morning hours of upcountry Esan Thailand. It was well known that Thais in this part of the country were early risers, especially those with the extra burden of being self-sustained farmers just to survive. Neung was no exception, but even he was usually asleep at these hours. A muffled and incessant pinging pierced the night air and had aroused him from a deep and peaceful slumber.Like all good Thais he had already done his nightly rituals before bed including evening pr...

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“347.” by Charles Dean

Submitted to Contest #119

347.-Stop. Listen. –Those were the last words of my brother, James. We were sent to investigate a fortress somewhere in Poland. The 4th got word from the Krauts as they ran with their tails between their legs, claiming the men inside the fortress had turned into… “demons.” We all mocked them at first but we should’ve listened…***-Attention! –Called our sergeant as the captain walked in. We all dropped whatever we were doing and stood at the ready.-At ease. –Said Daniel Crawford, captain of 347th company. Mid 50’s maybe. Black hair, short bea...

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“The Safest Place” by Emily Snyder

Submitted to Contest #119

Inspired by Led Zeppelin's "No Quarter" “Is daddy going to say goodnight?” My three-year old waits for my answer as I stroke his cheek with my hand. I can’t let him see me crying. “Not tonight, son.” I hear my voice tremble as I take in his expression. I try to memorize every part of this moment. His soft face and innocent eyes fill my heart with pain and joy. I pull him in for a hug and hold him tight. I don’t want him to worry. I hope he doesn’t notice me lingering, but mostly, I hope the embrace is not our last. I pull t...

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“listen” by Lois Eaton

Submitted to Contest #119

Listen Lois Eaton 6/11/2021 Broken Hill Australia ‘Listen to me,’ I screamed. But she didn’t. I burst into tears and ran inside the house. What was I to do? It was with the very best of intentions that I had agreed to become a foster mother for abused children. I dreamed of how wonderful it would be – all those grateful children appreciating just how loving I was, and revelling in their new security. That now seemed like a sick joke. Grateful? Ha ha! I started by taking in teenagers. They broke my best china, my favourite lemon tree,...

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“Bone China” by Elizabeth Fenley

Submitted to Contest #119

The keening of the Banshee woke Niamh up for the third night in a row. She was the only one in the family who could hear it. Being a Sensitive usually runs in families, but it seemed she was an anomaly. She spent her days closely watching the faces of those around her to see who was the next to die. Were the charcoal circles etched under her mother’s faded green eyes simply fatigue? Was the set of her father’s prominent jaw typical stubbornness, or masculine masking of pain he felt was weakness, determined not to reveal? Surely her little si...

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$250

Prize money

232

Contest entries

160

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Nov 12, 2021 EST

Won by Rachel Dzengelewski 🏆

Title: Suzanne

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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