Menu

Prompts

Contests

Stories

Blog

Menu

✕

CONNECT

Editing Design Marketing Publicity Ghostwriting Websites

BLOG

Success Stories

APPS

TOOLS

Book Promotion Sites Book Review Blogs Booktube Channel Guide Book Title Generator Character Name Generator Independent Publishers Literary Agents Literary Magazines Pen Name Generator Plot Generator Publishers Directory Short Story Ideas Writing Contests Writing Exercises Writing Scholarships

ABOUT

About Reedsy Terms Privacy

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

“Beaver Fur Bowler” by Scott Skinner

Submitted to Contest #135

Tom Clanton’s daddy died in front of him when he was only thirteen years old. He was gunned down outside the Silver Dollar saloon in broad daylight for trying to prevent his wife from running away with an outlaw that had been feeding her opium for the last several months. The first bullet that hit his daddy sent him to the ground with such force that the dust nearly blocked Tom from seeing the second bullet tear through his daddy’s chest and kill him. The outlaw, Ben Philpot, left with the boy’s mother, and they were later killed by Blood In...

Read story

“Even Me” by Sanskriti Acharya

Submitted to Contest #135

26/02/2022 I haven’t felt the cold liquid tickling my feet like this in a long time, it feels almost foreign- the saltwater, the darkening of sand when touched by the sea, almost exactly like the way it had left a dark void of nothingness in my life the last time I was here. I had never imagined being able to ever muster up enough courage to drag myself out here again, or out of my bedroom, for that matter- but that’s the one thing about life I loathe yet admire the most at the same time, the uncertainty.As I stand here amongst it all, attem...

Read story

“Pay Back” by John K Adams

Submitted to Contest #135

Standing in the cafeteria line to pay, Sally Little hid her face when she saw the young man standing nearby. She couldn’t chance his recognizing her. She had no doubt who he was, though she hadn’t seen him for over a decade. The panic attacks had finally subsided, but she’d never forgotten Creech. Now, her nightmare stood almost in reach of her. There was no mistaking his hulking physique, and the same red hair. Even back then, at thirteen years old, he’d been bigger than many men. Who else could it be? His size wasn’t what disturbed her. A...

Read story

“The Interloper” by Maggie Gibbs

Submitted to Contest #135

She was finally alone. The kids were safely at school and her husband had left for work. The house was quiet, and she was able to acknowledge what she’d been contemplating for weeks. It was no longer a peripheral thought that passed through her as she picked up after kids, cleaned up dishes after meals, or folded the never-ending mountain of laundry she was always battling. The thoughts were so loud they were screaming at her. Just do it! Get it over with already! But could she? She stood in front of the bathroom sink and looked at herself i...

Read story

“Irrational Fear” by Sharon Hancock

Submitted to Contest #135

Stevie’s throat tightened with dread when she heard the sputtering motor of the old clunker. She tried to concentrate on her assignment. She was the top student in her class and never missed a day of school. Not until last month, anyway. That’s when she woke up with the feeling (premonition?) that something wasn’t right. Since then, she hadn’t set foot outside the house. It was just a feeling, though. That’s what everybody told her. Just a feeling (instinct?) that something awful was going to happen. She did her best to ignore...

Read story

“Knowledge is Power” by Sachi Shah

Submitted to Contest #135

1375 Ibrahim Bakir dipped the slender tip of his qualm into the sooty black inkwell. Despite the afternoon sun radiating through the open windows, the ageing scribe’s eyes strained with fatigue. All around him, the sights and sounds of the Great Kingdom of Mali blended into a cacophony of shrieks, bleats and yells. Arabic market sellers bartered their goods in a guttural resonance whilst travelling nomads from the southern tribes of Niger and Niani communicated in the clicking tones of Yorùbá. Hordes of students bustled through t...

Read story

“Small Increments” by Jules Davis

Submitted to Contest #135

CW: Mental Health |I have been afflicted, for some time, sitting inside this room. The walls are both a punishment and a warm place where I find comfort. Years have passed, I never thought I would still be sitting in this same room. If my younger self could see me now, I wonder if they would be compassionate or furious with me?Whatever I might have felt, today that is all going to change. Today I plan to go outside. Not far, and just in small increments at a time. And for as long as I can bear until my chest caves in on itself, tearing throu...

Read story

“Serving Boy” by Usman Sy-savane

Submitted to Contest #135

So close, yet so far. What curse may this be, I ask. That even in my moments of victory, I still lose. That all the world and her being shall be against me; that even in my final moments I remain longing; that the sun rises and sets without a single touch on my skin, not even a kiss. May it be that my ambitions were too great? How easier could it have been to know you? To meet your elegance and beauty, your glowing smile and warming kindness. The orders were that every serving girl be executed, and the royal house be wiped of our...

Read story

“Ardor” by David Sweet

Submitted to Contest #135

The low-level ranger padded softly through the woods on mocassin feet carrying a cedar bow hand-carved by his grandfather, the only gift his grandfather had ever given him. He slung a quiver of arrows, with fletching made from hawk feathers, over his left shoulder. Moving quietly through late autumn leaves, he hoped to take the small band traveling through the valley by surprise. They weren't quiet. They argued among themselves as they ambled along the shallow creek. The ranger took cover behind a large oak and slipped an arrow from the quiv...

Read story

“Oskar” by David Ader

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #135

OskarThe smiles of the small crowd on the street disappeared faster than the people who hurried away from the boys in the brown outfits. Yelling profanities despite the presence of children who’d been enjoying the man’s show, they kicked his table over before they set to kicking the man to the ground and then kicking him more. The tools of his trade, the rings, the cups, the case, weren’t so badly hurt as the man seeming to claw his way through the sidewalk to safety. He crawled to the gutter – thank goodness the rained had flushed the rubbi...

Read story

“Last Valentine's Day Part Two” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #135

Two weeks have passed, since Jack murdered Kathy, and to drown out this memory, he was drinking himself into oblivion. “Pour me another one, Moe. I’m celebrating.” It was a lie, but Jack was the only one who knew this. Paranoia had a way of eating at you, and Jack was no exception. Though everyone was convinced Kathy drove off with a secret lover, Jack was constantly looking behind his back. What if someone discovered the body? At the time he committed the crime, he felt confident all his bases were covered. No motive, no body, and no witne...

Read story

“Hypocritical Bullies” by Minerva Noiropp

Submitted to Contest #135

“Russia invades Ukraine” was splashed all over the internet and dancing on the lips of everyone as Dierdre managed her Saturday. It had been but a couple of days since it had made the news. Everyone had an opinion about it. People were up in arms, the masses were protesting and nations were threatening sanctions.Dierdre checked her rear-view mirror. As she reversed out of the driveway for the second time that day, the lady that lived across the street from her thrust her a cruel stare and gave her a deliberate evil eye. The rotund creature w...

Read story

“The Family Business” by Greg Gillis

Submitted to Contest #135

Young Chester grew up unlike most other boys. His family was…let’s say, unique. At the age of four, Chester’s father, Frank Nefarious, called Chester into his den. Frank stood near the fireplace staring up at a wall filled with portraits of all the Nefarious men who had come before him. “Chester, my boy, it is time for you to start learning abou...

Read story

“Coward is a Strong Word” by Willith G

Submitted to Contest #135

It was 7 o'clock on a Tuesday morning, the alarm clock on Tom's bedside table began to ring at just the right decibel level to wake him up, but not so high that it might hurt his ear drums. As Tom reached over to turn the alarm off, his wife next to him, Sue, began to stir and come awake. There was an absolute abundance of sunlight pouring in from their second-floor bedroom, illuminating the nicely kept bedroom. Tom and Sue both rolled onto their sides and faced each other and smiled, Tom gave Sue a very modest kiss on the cheek and climbed ...

Read story

“Alexander and The Garden” by Nicole Dodd

Submitted to Contest #135

Alexander had always been a very cowardly boy. But now he stood over the deep dark cave below, thinking of all the times he wished he could be brave, and now he had been. But, before we get to that part of the story, let's start from the beginning. In a land where nothing ever seemed sad or droopy and the sun shined bright every day, there lived a young boy. This young boy was a prince, whose name was Alexander. Alexander loved to play in his castle gardens. Every day, he would wake up, eat breakfast, and go outside. But there was one corn...

Read story

Load more stories

$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!

Explore more writing prompt ideas:

Adults Writing Prompts ⭢

Adventure Writing Prompts ⭢

Angst Writing Prompts ⭢

Character Writing Prompts ⭢

Christmas Writing Prompts ⭢

Dark Writing Prompts ⭢

Dialogue Writing Prompts ⭢

Dramatic Writing Prompts ⭢

Dystopian Writing Prompts ⭢

Fall Writing Prompts ⭢

Fantasy Writing Prompts ⭢

Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Fluff Writing Prompts ⭢

Funny Writing Prompts ⭢

Halloween Writing Prompts ⭢

High School Writing Prompts ⭢

Historical Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Holiday Writing Prompts ⭢

Horror Writing Prompts ⭢

Kids Writing Prompts ⭢

Middle School Writing Prompts ⭢

Mystery Writing Prompts ⭢

Narrative Writing Prompts ⭢

Nonfiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Novel Writing Prompts ⭢

Poetry Writing Prompts ⭢

Romance Writing Prompts ⭢

Sad Writing Prompts ⭢

Science Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Short Story Writing Prompts ⭢

Spring Writing Prompts ⭢

Summer Writing Prompts ⭢

Teens Writing Prompts ⭢

Thanksgiving Writing Prompts ⭢

Thriller and Suspense Writing Prompts ⭢

Valentine's Day Writing Prompts ⭢

Vampire Writing Prompts ⭢

Winter Writing Prompts ⭢