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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#135: I Wanna See You Be Brave

Looking at the children’s books I used to read, there’s a lot of emphasis on being courageous. It makes sense — growing up means facing one tough new thing after another. But in adulthood, we stop thinking about bravery so much, as if the concept is confined to the chivalrous men and misfit animals of fairy tales and picture books.

This week, let’s think about what bravery (or its opposite) really means, in an everyday context, a fantasy world, or a children’s story.

This week's prompts

Write about a hero or a villain deathly afraid of doing their job.

Adventure – 37 stories

Start your story with someone stepping outside their comfort zone.

Middle School – 60 stories

Set your story in a town full of cowards.

Fiction – 31 stories

Write a story where fortune doesn’t favor the brave.

Thriller and Suspense – 38 stories

Write about a casual act of bravery.

Narrative – 46 stories

Stories

“Portrait of a Kansas Night ” by Mack Gage

Submitted to Contest #135

“Mackenzie?” You wake at night to a name nobody ever calls you, something given up in childhood and given back in adulthood unexpectedly, like so much else about the moment and the things that brought you here. It’s a sea of sheets and more pillows than you’re used to, a bed that smells like rosewater liberally doused in cat hair, a white bedspread stained here and there with the wine you both spilled that night. An hour might have passed. Two. Her voice makes it sound like a lifetime. “Hmm?” you say. Little more than a groan,...

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“Survive” by Jenna P

Submitted to Contest #135

I woke up thinking about coffee, so vividly I could smell it. It's been months since I had a cup, since I held the warm mug in my hand, steam rising and fogging up my glasses. I can even hear it brewing, the hiss and gurgle of the percolator. I force myself to open my eyes. I look around and see I'm the first one up. I'm stiff and sore, sleeping on the ground isn't something I have gotten used to. I stand up and stretch out my joints, creaking and popping as I do. I stifle a moan and stoke up the fire. I stand here warming...

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“Don’t Look Back” by Rob Ryter

Submitted to Contest #135

Simeon Dharsh twirled his glass and shook his head. “I don’t buy it,” he said, with decisive finality. “I mean, if the universe is run by an all-powerful deity, why is there suffering and death? Who makes bad shit happen?”Shona Drien tried her best not to look condescending. “Simeon, it’s way more complicated than that. God is all-powerful, yes, but there is still evil, sin and wickedness in the world. That state of affairs is reconciled by theodicy, the vindication of God. You see, it has to be that way. There simply must be suffering, for ...

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“Chance and Choice” by Vivi Sojorhn

Submitted to Contest #135

Chance and Choice (With regard to Casual Bravery overcoming Discomfort) By Vivi Sojorhn A millennium and more years ago, there was a Lama who was the right hand to his life-long friend, the emperor. They lived in a large empire surrounded by craggy mountains, so that it was very difficult to get to or away from. Sometimes it is known as Shangri-la, and sometimes as Shambala. Early in the Emperor’s reign, he decided to take a wife and sent his friend, the Holy Man, to find a wife for him, and bring her back over the treacherous moun...

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“These Are The Rules ” by Tony Thatcher

Submitted to Contest #135

23.59.57, 58, 59, Go! I had exactly four minutes and thirty seconds. According to my contact, that is how long the civic surveillance system would take to refresh its memory and connections. But was it a trap? Would the predatory cameras really suspend their scanning? Running from the alley, I knelt and switched to the drill I had practised until it was instinct. Matt grey paint, brush, work left to right and keep moving. I knew I could cover the yellow stripes disfiguring five metres of pavement before I had to be back in hiding. Surely som...

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“Johnnie Walker” by Scott Christenson

Submitted to Contest #135

It’s not often you meet someone in a Haruki Murakami novel. Two chapters of courage and cowardliness would lead me to getting to know the man Murakami would later write about.A mysterious and sinister character, Johnnie Walker is named after and dresses like the mascot for Johnnie Walker brand whiskey. He is extremely cruel and violent, especially towards cats - Kafka on the ShoreMurakami was writing metaphorically, as though physical details match, there has never been any evidence of cat violence.In the summer of 1997, I had just moved to ...

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“Mummy's Little Man” by Petina Rowsell

Submitted to Contest #135

Mummy’s Little Man Even as a very young child, Bobby was brave. As soon as he could sit up, he wanted to crawl. As soon as he could crawl, he wanted to walk. As soon as he could walk, he wanted to run. His mother was very proud of her “Little Man” but despaired of the fact that he was always covered in bumps and bruises. However, in the late Victorian age, it was expected that “boys will be boys”, decades before social services would be suspicious of such frequent injuries. Even so… Little Davy burst into tears. “Aw, my mum’s gonna kill me i...

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“Jacob's Triumph” by Elizabeth Maxson

Submitted to Contest #135

It has been seven years. Actually, it had started before our daughter was born and continued after our son appeared years later. I vowed to change our lives when Lennon pointed to the blue aluminum cans and said, “Look it’s dad’s favorite drink.” Gillian said almost the same comment five years earlier. She saw the cardboard Bud Light boxes at the store and said that dad had bunches of them in his truck. I realized I had failed on my promise that night to make Ja...

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“Anna's (Not So) Dreary Day” by Patina Malinalli

Submitted to Contest #135

Anna walked quietly down the stairs at her job on a rainy Tuesday afternoon. Today had been a unique day at her cleaning job at a local university housing facility – a men’s dormitory. She'd received multiple emergency texts that morning. Someone had faked a robbery one block away (and they later went to jail with a felony for it). Why that man thought a fake robbery would be funny or that he wouldn’t be prosecuted for it was beyond her. According to the newspaper, he had claimed that it was a joke. “That’s not funny,” Marisa said. “...

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“Oh, Christmas Tree” by Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #135

Oh, Christmas Tree It’s all relative. What might constitute remarkable bravery for some could be routine, common, mundane for others. For example, many people would consider it an act of courage to retrieve their kid’s Frisbee from the roof of their house while seasoned construction workers casually lay shingles on steep inclines eight hours a day without a thought of danger. They might even toss a Frisbee around up there if given the chance. For Henry, the contrast was demonstrated in stark simplicity on the family’s first trip to Gre...

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“It's not easy being a Hero” by Jade Chloe

Submitted to Contest #135

Have you ever heard the term, 'Whatever you do, do not look back'? Well, I didn’t follow those exact words. I couldn't help but feel the urge to turn around, pondering why my partner told me the one thing I wasn’t supposed to do, but end up looking anyway. The colour red was vast and bright, yet the lingering smell of copper poisoned my nose, feeling the limp body that collapsed on top of me. I found myself staring down at a coffin, while many people cried. Somehow, I couldn’t even shed a single tear. Was it because of the atmosp...

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“A Single Arrow ” by Esther Thames

Submitted to Contest #135

Ravaged homes lay behind Zaas. Smoke rising from the ashes, a stench rising from the bodies, and wisps of leftover hope from the dead that the living would soon find safety. Part of him thought he was surely dead. After all, not even the black hairs on his arms seemed to be twitching as he lay beneath the jutting stone. Hours and hours he had lain there as the fighting had ensued outside the safety of the stone. Hours and hours had he clutched the new, shiny, and smooth quiver with its untouched arrows- of which only one h...

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“It Only Takes A Little Step” by Egg :)

Submitted to Contest #135

Hi, I'm Khiro, your average, 19-year-old boy, who just happens to be a hero. Hero, you ask? Yes, I'm a hero. I'm not widely known, not like other heroes. I'm just a small-timer who tries his best to help the City. My power is telekinesis, and I'm really good at it. Only problem? I'm probably the most scared person you'll meet. And yet, my mother wanted so much of me, and, out of peer pressure, I joined the one and only, 'Hands of Justice'. The Hands of Justice are the best heroes in the world, where upon getting abilities, you get the opp...

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“Beasts for Adoption” by Logan Hessek

Submitted to Contest #135

Dale walked along one of the rickety bridges right above a beast’s den. His tan Beasts for Adoption uniform was soaked and plastered to his skin. A patch on his shirt with a flying dragon had the letters “BFA” imprinted over it. New beads of sweat continued to trickle down his forehead as the sun beat down. The mailbag attached to his hip spilled the tiniest amount of tiny green glowing crystals as he struggled to keep his footing on an uneven plank. He grabbed the ropes on both sides and regained his balance. The beast below, its face uptu...

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“Standing up for herself” by Maureen MacLennan

Submitted to Contest #135

Standing Up for Herself The greasy dark dish water was draining out slowly and while she waited, focused on the usual sounds coming in from the dining room, it was a hot August day so the doors and window were all open. Wiping her hands on a clean cloth nearby she turned to ask the chef if there were any more tasks, it was legitimately the end of her shift but she didn’t want him thinking she was a clock watcher. At his head shaking and quick reminder of the next weeks hours, she said her goodbyes to the servers and prep cooks in the kitc...

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$250

Prize money

212

Contest entries

154

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Mar 04, 2022 EST

Won by Thom With An H 🏆

Title: Home of the Brave

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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