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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#137: Albert Einstein

On March 14th, 1879 one of the greatest physicists of all time was born. Of course, Einstein is known for his theory of relativity and his Nobel Prize. But Einstein lived a full (and often dramatic) life outside of the world of physics.

He fell in love with a professor’s daughter while at school, and years later — while married to another woman — confessed his love for her, and the mistake he made not courting her when he had the chance. In 1933, he emigrated to the United States, knowing he’d not be able to return to Germany while Hitler was in power — he and his family were Jewish. After Einstein legally renounced his German citizenship, his Berlin cottage was turned into a Hitler’s Youth camp.

In light of his upcoming birthday, this week’s prompts are a reflection on the complex and storied life of this remarkable man.

This week's prompts

Write a story about a scientist.

Science Fiction – 40 stories

Write about a character who gets called an Einstein ironically.

Middle School – 18 stories

Write a story about somebody in love with someone from their past.

Romance – 79 stories

Write a story about a character forced to give up something important to stand up for what they believe in.

Character – 26 stories

Write a story about someone forced out of their home.

Narrative – 54 stories

Stories

“For a new tomorrow” by E. Roux

Submitted to Contest #137

Note: The story contains acts of physical violence. There’s nothing more heartbreaking than this moment, I tell myself as I sit next to the kitchen table, looking at them playing so innocently in the living room. Alexander is standing next to me, one hand holding a mug of hot coffee, his other hand around my waist. “Are you sure about this?” he asks me, and I find it so hard to meet his face. “It’s my only option.” I whisper. “I cannot take the risk to find you, things are going wild.” I always had in the back of my mind that thin...

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“Anything for my People” by Samantha Matty

Submitted to Contest #137

A gunshot went off in the distance. “Your Majesty—” “I know,” I said. I walked down to the basement of the castle, where I could pull the book that moved the bookshelves. Then, when I was in the corridor behind the shelves, I would tip the vase that opened the trapdoor beneath me. And after landing on the plush mattress, I lifted the large tapestry on the wall and stepped into another corridor, which led to the safe room. I was alone in the room, because this one was reserved for the royal family. I was the entirety of the ...

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“This is Not a Love Story” by Ashmit Kar

Submitted to Contest #137

It started with a bang, the threads pulling at the old counterpoint like a pair of oxymorons straining at the leash. It began, as all things do, with two polar opposites. It was an upheaval, the polarity coming apart at the seams. The entropy was a living thing, starching across Space, bringing Time down in a bundle of singularity covered in ephemeral Gravity. There was a point, a massive completeness that existed as all things exist, in perpetual disarray. There was an Order to its Chaos – a Yin to its Yang. (this was a tim...

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“Becoming Einstein” by Mike Panasitti

Submitted to Contest #137

Isaac stood at his position as guard to the walled and gated community, rifle slung on his shoulder. It was the night shift, from 10 p.m. to 6 in the morning. The Lamanites were most active during the early hours of the shift. That was when they went out scavenging. In most urban areas, they had taken control of the night, and it was under cover of the night that they did what they could to survive. With the imposition of martial law, Nephites that had remained in the cities faced...

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“Feminist Vigilante” by Cassandra Harrell

Submitted to Contest #137

Her patience ran out hours ago, and she was starting to create a draft with her pacing. Out of boredom, she started playing with her knife hours ago. The walls were littered with holes from where she’d thrown it into the drywall. The squeaking from the rats in the walls wasn’t helping either. When one dared to dart across the room in front of her, her knife sliced through the air impaling the rat to the wall before it could disappear into the crack it was aiming for. She smirked as a sense of satisfaction coursed through her. She grabbe...

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“Rise of Nightbreeze” by Ravea LaGeorge

Submitted to Contest #137

It started with a hum. The dawn was coming, and she thought it would be the perfect chance to practice her newest creation. A simple hum. One simple gesture. A way with sound, a wave of fingers, and an ember floated down to the earth below her feet. Lighting the grass on fire before being snuffed out by her bare foot. She giggled at the sting before she hummed again, focusing on her fingers and watching as more embers rained down from her fingers. Littering the ground like fresh rain, sizzling on the dewdrops. But it did not sizzle one emb...

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“Gee Einstein” by Howard Seeley

Submitted to Contest #137

Strange, how bearing such a famous name can bring such hardship in one’s life. Take Gilbert, for instance. He was just an ordinary child, like you or me, but what made him special was his last name, Einstein. Since Gilbert could remember, his mother and father told him stories about how brilliant Albert Einstein was and how he was like him. Though he wasn’t related to the great Einstein, Gilbert was fascinated by him, and called him Uncle Albert. Day after day, he would corner his mother or father and ask as many scientific questions a chil...

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“When I close my eyes” by Annabelle Bentley

Submitted to Contest #137

I walked on the elevated ledge of the boardwalk, his hand wrapped around my arm to keep me from falling. We laughed as we talked about our week, I told him about my family, and that weird guy at the coffee shop, he talked about school, and how most of his professors sucked, but there was one that he really liked, because he made the lectures interesting, and he talked to them like ‘real people.’ I could still hear his voice say the words, and see the one side of his mouth lift while he talked. His hair flew in front of his eyes as we walked....

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“You Can't Pour From An Empty Cup” by Sarah Lynn

Submitted to Contest #137

My heart was breaking. I could physically feel it shattering into pieces, splintering off into different parts of my body. I gasped shallow, painful breaths as the splinters impaled my lungs. I couldn’t even look at her as she asked me, “Why?”“I-I just can’t do this with you,” I choked out. “I have to think of my son and I have to put him first.” I lifted my shoulders and turned to face her. Her blue eyes, usually gentle and calm, were a raging storm, destroying ships and drowning sailors. The air around us was brisk and the cool breeze...

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“Outcasts of Granny Flats” by Mark Linsky

Submitted to Contest #137

The Outcasts of Granny Flats An Original Story &n...

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“The Removal of Rosalie” by Sylvia Courtner

Submitted to Contest #137

Rosalie's fondest dream was marrying her high school sweetheart and starting a family. Faced with the prospect of the Vietnam War draft potentially separating their intertwined hearts, a simple ceremony at their local community center linked their loving souls legally. Against all odds, he returned to her after two long years, battle scars tucked deep within his psyche. They started their family in Georgia military housing, but eventually saved enough to load their meager belongings into a rusty station wagon, trekking from the sweltering so...

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“Art Is Hard.” by C.B. Oates

Submitted to Contest #137

Philbert Einstein Fulbright is Eakin Stinkers’ best friend. They sit next to each other in art class.Dr. Craig Kaiser Krause is the Art teacher here at Trapton School for the Unlearned. He makes us all pronounce his name, especially the doctor part. There’s a plaque on the wall that he points to when we don’t get it right. We are allowed to sharpen our pencils between 9:20 and 9:25am in Krause's classroom. Today, Philbert made the mistake of sharpening his pencil at 9:19. Kaiser Roll, as Eakin likes to call him, strolled over to Phil wi...

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“Fortuitous Love” by Michelle Thomas

Submitted to Contest #137

What is it about roses that makes them so beautiful? The colorful petals? The long green stems? Their strong but subtle scent? What is it about a song that can instantly put you in a better mood? The harmony? The melody? Maybe it’s the combination of the two… It’s the same thing that makes the clouds seem brighter on a rainy day. It makes a bad day seem better no matter the situation. A rose is more than just a rose like a song is more than just a song. It’s love. I was a tomboy growing up. Preferring jeans and tshirts to the typical leg...

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“An Unlikely Chance ” by Raena Scythe

Submitted to Contest #137

A brisk wind blew across my face with the smell of changing weather. My lungs steadily inhale the cold air while walking through the park. The leaves radiated yellow, red and orange as some subtly fell around the ground. I sat on the bench, absorbing the sun's warmth, finding a couple walking with their hands intertwined. A sigh escaped my breath as I pictured myself with an old flame in a setting such as this. I remember as if it was yesterday, the loving gazes we shared, the kisses that were sweeter than honeycomb, and the soft expressions...

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“Love Immortalized” by Katie Eash

Submitted to Contest #137

Albert Edwards thought of her as he put on his new uniform. I wonder what she'd think of me in this uniform, what she'd feel, he thought. He also wondered if he'd happen to see her brothers, Evan and Mitchell. Would he be able to do his duty if that time came, or would he, in his love for her, pause long enough for the enemy to strike him? Albert sighed, forced himself to put all thoughts of Elsa aside, and put on his service cap, completing his new military uniform. &nb...

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$250

Prize money

217

Contest entries

116

Stories

Ended on 00:59 - Mar 19, 2022 EST

Won by Story Time 🏆

Title: The Boy in the Pink Tuxedo

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.

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