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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#136: The Old College Try

Though its origins are debated, it looks likely that the phrase “the old college try” was first used in baseball. According to Babe Ruth, to “give something the old college try” is to keep going, even when the odds are stacked against you — like chasing a flyball out into foul territory, just in case you somehow make the impossible catch.

There’s a lot to be said for those who keep trying despite knowing that their chances are slim. This week’s prompts take a closer look at those determined (or perhaps foolhardy) folk among us. After all, as the saying goes, God loves a trier.

This week's prompts

Start or end your story with someone saying “You’ll never know unless you try.”

Dialogue – 57 stories

Write about somebody who knows they’re probably going to fail at something, but does it anyway.

Narrative – 32 stories

Write about a character giving something one last shot.

Narrative – 51 stories

Set your story on a baseball field.

Middle School – 39 stories

Write a story where hard work doesn’t pay off.

Angst – 28 stories

Stories

“Headhunter” by H. Lee Russell

Submitted to Contest #136

“I’m going to lose,” said Mazon. He shuddered as a breeze crept through the alley. The cold sweat on his back made the turtleneck sticky and the leather vest over it even more uncomfortable. “Probably,” said Cloose. He had his back to the wall opposite Mazon. The sulfur from the match he lit stunk as he put it to the pipe balanced between his teeth. He took a puff and stomped the match into the dirt. “But you’re not accounting for luck. I’ve seen guys twice your size lose.” “But have you ever seen a guy like me win?” asked Mazon....

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“After Time” by Bryan Hancock

Submitted to Contest #136

“Folks, you’ve heard the phrase ‘time is an illusion’ a million times before, but what if I told you you could go back and shut up every last one of those ignorant morons who opened their slack jaw to say that drivel? What if you could control time yourself!? Become the illusionist!? Laugh in the face of the primordial and still have enough time to be back home for dinner!?” ————————— “No-good ingrates.” The late great Dr. Abrams muttered at the end of a long, exasperated sigh. The “great” stems from how the doctor distinguished ...

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“Hidden papers” by Wayne Steele

Submitted to Contest #136

“This is the dumbest thing you could ever come up with,” I said in utter disbelief. I crossed my arms in deficiency. The fire crackled as if it agreed with me. Everyone was starring, wondering what would happen next. The night-air send a shiver down my spine. “Common, Aaron, it's a dare,” Kevin said in an annoyed voice. The light of the campfire gave Kevin’s face an eerie glow. “You have to do it. The half-circle around us started a quiet chant of my name but grew in size until it was a massive roar of people yelling my name, and soon enoug...

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“Merlot & Flo” by Deborah Kellogg

Submitted to Contest #136

Things can get Progressively betterLate afternoon sunlight oozed through the partially open blinds and grimy windows of the office, flung itself like spider webs through the stale, fuggy air and splattered in pee-colored puddles on a desk littered with empty Starbucks cups and Brueggers Bagels wrappers. Hunched over the desk was a man with a cracked cellphone hanging from a limp hand and mouthing the words to the recorded message yet again: "Bonjour! You've reached the cell phone of Anoinette Dupuis. I'm sorry I'm not here to take your call ...

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“ Mathematricks” by Fortunatus Eze

Submitted to Contest #136

It wasn't up to an hour when Tommy was invited into the principal's office to receive his report card, and on leaving the office he seemed a bit dismayed and restless while heading for the exist door in the school hallway. He looked up saying " O God why!,Why can't I just be better at it" -referring to his mathematics grade. He was still facing upward until he had come out of the hallway, now standing on the staircase outside the building, receiving the fierce jabs of ray from the blazing sun that turned his face reddish in an instant. He wa...

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“Denny's Downfall” by Maureen MacLennan

Submitted to Contest #136

Denny's Downfall Denny scrunched down so she wouldn’t see him sitting in the car. He’d borrowed it from his mate Matthew and she’d likely not notice him but he didn’t want to take any chances. It’s not like he was officially warned against seeing her; it was her and not the courts setting the parameters here. They’d been a young couple in love not that long ago to his mind anyway. She’d argued that and told him two weeks ago that his reality, and the schemes his brain came up with were beyond comprehension. He really hated when she used b...

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“February 24, 4:47 a.m., MT” by Michael Hemmings

Submitted to Contest #136

February 24, 4:47 a.m., MT “They left a message again.” “Who?” “Murdoch.” “Murdoch. Must be desperate, bringing out the lowest of the low.” They were walking back through a row of bright green healthy crop, fed by water from an ancient cistern carried by stone conduits down the mountain to their small hermitage, built by a long-dead civilization. “C’mon, Jake. He was your best friend.” “Was; remember that.” “I remember,” she said, weary. They were both unused to the constant hard work of establishing a safe space for their fami...

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“In the Envelope ” by L M

Submitted to Contest #136

There was something so final about the sealing of an envelope, pressing down the flaps just so. The address had been written beforehand, brown eyes darting between the glowing phone screen to where her hand waited, pen at the ready. Check. Double check. It would be too much, having this letter sent back from one simple spelling error, one wrong number, one pen running out of ink. The card was a simple one, a painted image of runni...

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“A letter to you. ” by Michelle Castro

Submitted to Contest #136

To you, I truly apologize for all these years of turmoil. I know we have had our ups and downs. I know that even through all of this nothing changes and we keep being stuck in the same place. I do apologize. I’m sorry. Truly. We have always dreamed big, haven’t we? Too big, maybe. And we’ve always had hope for whatever we did. Ever since we were kids, we had a vision of ourselves we wanted to be. Always in the arts. Playing pretend and dancing to ABBA while performing in our room. Writing stories to our parents about lost teddy bears. Or dra...

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“Amaretto” by M.A.S Frimpong

Submitted to Contest #136

AmarettoHe did what he always did. Walked to the Baseball field of his youth before the sunset; just to see the lights go on. Pushing 64, that was one of the few pleasures he allowed himself. Coffee in hand, harsh winter wind, he could not help but feel nostalgic. Glaring over the field, he once stood as a hero among men. He twisted his flask, he held the flask in his hand and couldn’t wait to sit and overlook his field. He could hear the cheers, see the sweat, the pants, the hits, the crowd roaring… they all came back to him. Drinking coffe...

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“One Last Time ” by John Maes

Submitted to Contest #136

One Last Time John Maes Jerry Berger walked up the stairs and onto the concourse overlooking the lush green playing field of County Stadium. He immediately noticed the crowd wasn’t go...

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“Heaven in the Honeysuckle” by Taylor Greny

Submitted to Contest #136

“I think I spent at least a quarter of my life here.” “Pfft, that’s not a lot, Axel.” “Twenty-two years old? You bet your ass a quarter of my life is a long time.” Jo chuckled and looked out onto the field. It was history, overgrown with weeds, the towering wire fences thick with honeysuckle and spidery green vines. Sad to look at really, like an abandoned building. But, she knew that it meant much more to Axel than it ever did to her. “Dad would bring me down here to practice even if we didn’t have a game coming up.” He snorted a...

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“Leave it to the Experts” by Colin Strivelli

Submitted to Contest #136

“Come on boy, this way. I cannot see,” lead scientist Professor Vlviro Vlkbrzok of the fourth Spoolorean Expansion, called out to his assistant.A younger Spoolorean by name of Glorp Gleever, a research assistant working under Professor Vlviro scuttled closer to his superior. He lifted his kalfagver and gave it a refreshing shake. Inside the hollowed out tube of vegetative matter, thousands of skarl bugs flittered about, emitting a bright pink glow from their abdomens. The immediate area of the ruins was bathed in a warm wash of light.“By the...

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“Donuts and Diamonds” by Stephanie Wiese

Submitted to Contest #136

“Lenny, I miss you.” Gia Donati wouldn’t have survived the past three years in Italy if it weren’t for her little sister's support. “Then come home. It’s time, Gia.” Lenora was tired. Since their father’s Parkinson’s left him unable to work at the shop it was just her, their mother and one employee, Mari. COVID caused them to shut down for about two months. While abroad, Gia helped them set up a website for online orders and it worked well for the most part. They limited the shop’s hours but still had to let four of the other employees go. G...

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“Devil in the Dugout” by Don Tucker

Submitted to Contest #136

It was my fourth year of patrolling left field in Bowie, Maryland. Not Baltimore, not D.C., not Philadelphia. I would even take Milwaukee or Kansas City at this point. My fourth season of not getting moved up to AAA ball, but also not being sent down to single A. I guess that was a positive. When I was in high school, I hit .513 and had major league scouts at every game. They recorded my every move and kissed my parent’s proverbial asses in the hopes that I would ink a contract with them. I signed right out of high school with the Baltimore ...

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$250

Prize money

207

Contest entries

100

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Mar 11, 2022 EST

Won by Howard Halsall 🏆

Title: Cigarettes: A Romance

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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