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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#122: Spree Season

What comes after Thanksgiving? Black Friday, of course! Though this massive shopping occasion originated in America, it’s since become normal practice in many parts of the world. And did you know the reason why this jolly season has such a bleak name? (Hint: it’s got nothing to do with sales and discounts!) Apparently, the police once used “Black Friday” to refer to the bumper-to-bumper traffic and crowds congesting streets as people rushed through their holiday shopping. 


With this origin story in mind, here’s our gift to you this week: five prompts inspired by this strange and exciting intermission in the end-of-year holiday season. (And if you’re looking for actual gifts with a writerly flair, we’ve got 60 gift suggestions for you.)

This week's prompts

Write about a character who’s stuck in a shopping mall.

Christmas – 27 stories

Start your story in the middle of a traffic jam.

Thriller and Suspense – 27 stories

Write a story about a limited edition item going on sale.

Thriller and Suspense – 11 stories

A package arrives at your character’s house, but they didn’t order anything. Write about what happens next.

Thriller and Suspense – 59 stories

Write about a character who won’t (or can’t) shop for the holidays.

Christmas – 25 stories

Stories

“The Fool and The Forgotten Dreams” by Robin Geissler

Submitted to Contest #122

TW: death of a relative (mentioned) Miracles are always made and killed by adults. They make you believe that Santa is the one who spends an entire day at the mall to get you a remote control helicopter, that the Tooth Fairy is willing to pay for your teeth (creepy) and that Easter is somehow about bunnies. Rudolf is different, but it doesn’t matter as long as he’s helpful, and Frosty the Snowman will always come back. Nothing to worry about, kiddo. First, they tell you Santa isn’t real; then goes the Easter Bunny and as you g...

0 comments 0
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“Pandora's Box” by Sophie Smith

Submitted to Contest #122

Today should be a lazy day, lounging around in my pyjama’s, eating junk food and anything that would never or will ever be classified as healthy whilst watching movies all day.  A classic Disney movie day.  Just me, myself and I, an unbelievable amount of snacks and movies.  No visitors.  No interruptions.  Biting into the custard-filled doughnut, the smooth yellow custard oozes from where I had bitten as the dusted sugar coats my ruby red lips and pale thin fingers. My attention is all on the movie playing...

6 comments 6
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“Whoso Pulleth This Sword” by Jethro Pili

Submitted to Contest #122

NOTE: My main character describes a short scene involving suicide and gore on his phone.I was in my room on a late Friday morning (it was a Flex Day at Brennan’s Glenn High School, which meant school budget meetings and planning for the next school year—teachers get stuck in boring meetings all day and students get to stay home, except for the football team and cheer squad). I was listening to my music when the doorbell rang. I hit pause and removed my earphones to make sure it was the doorbell and not part of the music. After making sure th...

2 comments 2
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“Called to Duty” by Jon Butters

Submitted to Contest #122

Called to Duty With a muted BINK-bonk the ring around the small speaker turned a pulsing yellow, indicating an incoming notification. Agatha Freeman sat on a high stool pushed up against the island in the middle of her kitchen, her laptop opened in front of her and a large mug of hot black coffee off to her right. The morning sun filtered through the window over the sink and played itself in a wedge across the dark granite island top. Agatha was scrolling through her emails, left thumb dragging down the rectangular trackpad, and she took a l...

4 comments 4
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“In the Loop” by Anne Sellers

Submitted to Contest #122

There is a certain type of person that loves 100 degree weather, scant breeze, and barely a lick of rain for days on end. Texans. There are a new breed of Texans that wake up at dawn, walk to the gym or gets a run in, stop off for morning coffee at Starbucks, walk to work and then back home again along the paved streets and busy intersections. Downtown Dallas was the place. Contrary to popular belief, Dallas isn’t just full of cowboys. The Dallasites have taken over and they love the allure of the big city.Living inside the loop was att...

3 comments 3
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“Leave the Light On” by Elizabeth Romanyk

Submitted to Contest #122

A driver crept down Brownie Lane, an eerie street tunneled by vines and ivy. He came to a stop in front of a cottage. The olive home seemed a bit out of place in the middle of nothing.He made his way to the great wooden, arched door and rang the bell.Fully prepared to see a hag, with wired, gray hair and a hunched back, the driver was almost startled to see a beautiful woman answer the door. She had luscious black locks down to her back. She wore faded jeans and a button-down flannel.“Oh!” he said.“The name’s Aurelia, actually. Can I help yo...

4 comments 4
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“Christmas Chicks” by Kathy Philpott

Submitted to Contest #122

Christmas Chicks The holidays are about traditions as well as happy memories. By contrast, this Holiday season will be dramatically different because of the Covid-19 pandemic. There won't be the kind of activities Kitty created with her friends and family years past. Kitty would meet her friends the Friday before Thanksgiving for lunch and then plan their Christmas activities, especially the shopping. They called themselves the Christmas Chicks. They all had full-time jobs with lifestyles that mirrored their successful careers. A couple of t...

1 comment 1
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“WHAT WAS IN THAT PACKAGE?” by Gerard Watson

Submitted to Contest #122

     One Saturday morning, Bill Carter found a package sitting on his doorstep. Brown paper wrapping covered the entire box. Bill examined it, then looked up and down his block, searching for whoever delivered the package. He didn’t see anyone.          “Ethel! Ethel!”          His wife appeared in the hallway.          “Yeah, what do you want? I was in the middle of sorting the lau...

0 comments 0
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“The Holiday” by Angela Early

Submitted to Contest #122

So here it is again.It seems to arrive sooner every year. Didn't Halloween just exit? Now here we are again, she thought to herself. Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving where seemingly every human is bound and determined to show how much they care in material form. It was all a sham, a way to force people into more debt. The only way to show you care is with some newfangled product, a luxurious piece of jewelry, all of which an average person on a salary could ill afford. That is, if you believed the retailers and the advertisements tha...

3 comments 3
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“The Perfect Christmas Present” by Ethan Horne

Submitted to Contest #122

The perfect Christmas present My Christmas pudding stood confidently upon her school stage, “I did it for Daddy” she explains as a microphone is presented in front of her face. A little girl, dressed as a Christmas pudding, singing with the sweetest voice, it was no wonder she won the Christmas talent contest. Katie’s performance of ‘Somewhere only we know’ was imperfectly perfect and reduced me to tears. Most of this imperfection, however, came from the audio from the recording of her performance that I watched after she returned home. A c...

2 comments 2
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“Ghosts in the Rain” by A. Potato

Submitted to Contest #122

CW: Depressive thoughts, implied miscarriage Like the past few days, it’s the cry of her phone that ends up waking her.  Today, it only takes her five minutes to reach out and grab the shaking device, compared to the fifteen minutes she spent yesterday just numbly staring at it while it screamed at her.  She slowly fumbles for it with a trembling hand, each finger closing around it like it’s a delicate piece of jewelry. Her eyelids still drooping, she swipes her thumb up to see the usual barrage of messages, bright and obnoxi...

2 comments 2
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“I Am the Unseen” by Anne Ryan

Submitted to Contest #122

***Note: This story contains graphic content for the purpose of reflecting true life events. May include trigger words such as "rape," "blood" and "death".***I was stuck in the shopping mall in my dream.All the doors opened to everybody but me.I tried the exit but it was locked.There was a girl going into the Teen Queen store, so I quickened my pace but the door swung shut and I couldn't open it.The elevator wouldn't even open when I waited 10 whole minutes to get to the next level.Why was I stuck in the mall?What kind of a lesson was I supp...

1 comment 1
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“Let that be a Lesson” by Kevin Morley

Submitted to Contest #122

“Ever get yourself stuck in a situation where your pride demands a larger commitment than you are willing to pay?” A jostle from behind me nudges me forward and my camera, dancing merrily six inches in front of my face, loses focus. The camera is a virtual representation that holds a point of light in front of me and records me directly to my feed—fancy tech for a Ceres shopper. Once I settle, glaring at the person behind me, I continue, “Of course you have; you’re human. Let me tell you a story. No, no, no, don’t leave. I’ve got the time.” ...

4 comments 4
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“A Boy Falls Into The Purple Night” by J. W.

Submitted to Contest #122

Walking through the aisles was all that he thought to do. As time ticked on and the world rotated, the best thing, in Edward's mind, was to walk up and down the aisles, looking at the books and CDs, wondering whether or not taking one would really be illegal. If you were trapped in a mall, would you take one? Guess you never really know till your in the situation yourself. Edward plucked a book off the shelf. The book was a thick one with art that resembled a boy walking through a maze. Heh, thought Edward, guess the world wants to taunt m...

4 comments 4
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“A Night in the Mall” by Leon Moss

Submitted to Contest #122

Hey, what’s this huge ad? Westgate, a new mall in the Western suburbs. Thousands of square meters of shopping. Whatever you need is here! Come and see for yourself. Opening day specials! Bring the kids; our clowns will entertain them while you shop! We’re open from 10 till 10 – choose your time! Oh man, this is for me. I never shop. I am a work-at-home engineer and no clients ever call in to see me, so I don’t dress for the city, so to speak. There are times when I walk past the computer on the way to the shower wearing socks and a pair...

2 comments 2
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$250

Prize money

149

Contest entries

104

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 03, 2021 EST

Won by Laura Jarosz 🏆

Title: No Forwarding Address

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!

Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

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Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

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