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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

“Tales From The Ancient Forest” by Alex Lewig

Submitted to Contest #119

“Listen,” Joey urged the other two as they stood at the edge of the forest. He glanced around, searching for the source of the deep thrumming he’d heard moments ago. “C’mon, stop being a wuss,” Will said, taking a few more steps into the forest. Joey looked back at the three bikes sitting on the crumbling dead-end road, the road to nowhere that they took to get here. There were legends about this forest, about why that road was never completed. Maybe they were just stories, meant to keep kids out of the woods. Maybe they were stories the kid...

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“Rise Up, Rise Up.” by Jeannie Labelle -Potvin

Submitted to Contest #119

“Listen Mark, it is really simple. Either use the hydrogen peroxide or don’t, the choice is yours.”Mark blanched slightly, wavered momentarily, grabbed the brown bottle, carefully looked at the label and began reading.Perhaps it wouldn’t be as bad as he imagined.Purified water - checkHydrogen peroxide 3% - checkDirections: clean the affected area. Apply a small amount of product 1-3 times a day. - checkWARNING: KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN. -no problemFor external use only - check“Hmmmm”, Mark pondered, perhaps Ginny’s ...

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“Team Building” by Webb Johnson

Submitted to Contest #119

Team Building“The purpose of team building is to increase trust, improve communication, expand collaboration, and broaden, or maintain motivation.” Unknown The office memo had a worrying tone: “Bob, find Lew before you leave.” An hour later I sat in front of Lew Cook’s neat desk─so neat there was nothing on it while he informed me that the selection committee had recommended Clara North for Regional Sales Coordinator because they felt she’s better at team building. I felt my face turn red as I tried to form a thanks-for-even-considerin...

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“Waking to music” by Cameron Landers

Submitted to Contest #119

I was having some pleasant dreams, some gentle thoughts. I was watching an incredibly lovely young girl doing a springy dance on grassy hills as the sunlight seemed to chase, trying to catch her. I don’t remember dreaming music, but now I was, a lilting picolo sound, and yes, violins. I opened my eyes and searched for my clock, and it was time to rise up. That picolo still sounded, seeming to fade into silence. I shook my head. I thought, “I must still be half asleep!” I opened my eyes as...

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“The First Kid” by Cam McDermid

Submitted to Contest #119

I am the first kid, Kid A. They sent me on a great wooden carrack where I contracted scurvy almost immediately after my departure. In my delirium, a storm had raged, both internally and externally. My crewmates were experiencing the harsh violence of the storm outside, while I was experiencing it inside myself in the form of a fever. They had me lay in bed, and to keep my mind steady I focused on the placement of things in the cabin. Everything was where it should be. The lantern that swung madly in the storm was placed above the crates of s...

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“Dark in the City” by Joan Kearney

Submitted to Contest #119

This story contains sensitive content including, substance abuse, and minimal physical/sexual violence It happened on a quiet winter night. The snow was so heavy all day that it left no place for cars with their motors, people to make noise, and no bird or bug for anyone to hear. The temperature had gone up just enough on Monday afternoon to allow the winter storm watch to become a warning for all five boroughs and gave Sophie a reason to leave early. Sophie, who was grateful to have had half the day off and to be home, but she was sad too....

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“The Recovery” by John Brannon

Submitted to Contest #119

The plain gray van parked on the ground floor of a parking deck in the heart of the Philadelphia downtown metro was hardly noticed. The exterior of the van was heavily weathered. You could almost trace the faint outline of a sign from a previous business on one side of the van. A sidewalk and a three-foot high wall with a railing on top separated the front of the van from Kensington Avenue. Kensington Avenue had once been a vibrant part of a thriving downtown. It had descended into decay as the street was now inhabit...

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“I Hear You” by Janis Van Meter

Submitted to Contest #119

Let’s start with a little background. My name is Jan and I am a fossil from a pre-technological era. My 32 plus year career was spent working as a manager in a large telecommunications company. While in Human Resources, I traveled in the five-state area. I also lived and worked with three different sister companies within the parent corporation. The majority of my career was spent in Operator Services which functioned with responsibilities as the name of the department implies. Some of you may not remember, once upon...

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“Clamshells” by Shirley Brand

Submitted to Contest #119

KD listened from behind closed eyes, covers pulled to her chin. It sounded like the clacking of cha-chas, flamingo dancers used them. She lay in silence another few minutes. "Damn what is that?" She threw back the covers. "Who's there?" She pulled on her robe, moved towards the french doors she had left ajar, wanting to hear the ocean as she fell asleep. "Who's there?" Pushing the screen door open she stepped onto the giant deck, that huge out over the cliffs, a hundred feet above the ocean. She knew no one could climb up those cliffs and ...

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“Degrees of Sound” by Tedcor Obli

Submitted to Contest #119

There is no such thing as silence, only degrees of sound. When one imagines sound, or noise, they imagine loud things. Cities, concerts, car crashes. Sudden or prolonged high degrees of sound. When one imagines silence, they may picture many things. Empty woods, a nighttime street, a cemetery. When Ben made the decision to take a vacation in a small isolated house on the seaside in Maine, he had certainly imagined silence. Instead, there was just a different degree of noise. The world outside did not stay silent in the absence of hum...

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“In the silence of the waves” by Edward Savage

Submitted to Contest #119

Brook Chine Cottage, BrookGreen, Isle of Wight, England, 7th September 1793 My dearest sister Mathilde, I am trusting to God that this missive reaches you without being intercepted by the authorities, as I have no wish to place you and Antoine in any more danger than you already are from having a brother on the Committee’s proscribed list. As you will note from the address, I have at last reached England and some safety, albeit I still have some distance to go to reach Uncle Michel in Oxford. After three months of weary, fraught travel, o...

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“Insanely Serene” by Ariel Clark

Submitted to Contest #119

*TW: violence towards women and sexual assaultIt sat atop the sand dunes lost and forgotten, but still appeared to have some semblance of maintenance. There were shutters that needed repair and many areas on the exterior begging a fresh coat of paint. It had been whipped by the salty sea air for ages and with the right touch and some elbow grease, she could be the ultimate getaway cottage.Annie had already made up her mind that this was home before ever entering the house. It was as if something was pulling her there and her impulsive nature...

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“The Lighthouse on Cape Eden” by Jen Chi

Submitted to Contest #119

I breathed in deeply, letting the fresh air fill my lungs. It didn't choke me like the city air or leave a strange film in my throat. I could taste the salt on the back of my tongue. It was oxygen rich due to the evergreen mountains behind me. The bluffs towering over the ocean.I relished in the sight of the grayish blue water foaming and tossing up spray. Despite the cold bite of winter and the harsh wind that nipped at my skin, I felt calm looking at it. Safe even.'Angry Seas' is what my father called it; When the Pacific Ocean churned and...

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“RETURN” by Chris Holland

Submitted to Contest #119

The narrow unpaved road cut a contour through the ocean shrub-land. Snaking along the side of the headland it gave spectacular views of the turquoise ocean below. The road was barely wide enough to accommodate two vehicles side by side and small lay byes had been cut into the road at intervals to allow them to pass. The rough track the only access to the weekend fishing shacks and a handful of permanent residents with dwellings nestled along the rocky shore. There were no more than a dozen properties along the 20-kilometre eastern shore; loc...

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“A Far Distant Sound” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #119

It had moved mountains. That is what you could truly say about the earthquake that had caused the unclimbable ring of giants to shift the position that they had held for a few thousand years. As a geologist who had done work in the area when he had been a graduate student, Frank could not be more pleased by the acceptance of his research proposal to investigate the effects of the motion that had disturbed their long rest. What would make it especially interesting was that the mountain chain had been in a tight circle, now with...

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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.

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

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