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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#14: The Plot Thickens

This week, we launched a very fun* tool at Reedsy: our brand-new Plot Generator!

Turning to writing prompts is a great idea when you need that extra bit of help coming up with ideas to write about. This plot generator is here to do the same, offering more than 1 million** story combinations to inspire you.

You can choose to generate a fantasy, drama, mystery, romance, or sci-fi plot — or, just hit "random" and you'll get a little bit of everything! Plot ideas include characters, a theme, a setting, and even a plot twist... with just one click of the finger!

Each of this week's prompts is a plot element pulled right from our generator. You can feel free to incorporate as many of the elements in your story as you want — whether it's one or all five!

*Almost too much fun, if that's possible.
**Actually, trillions!

This week's prompts

It's about a photographer, who is a rookie.

Character – 34 stories

It's a literary fiction story about growing up.

Novel – 39 stories

It kicks off on a yacht with the delivery of an important letter.

Short Story – 35 stories

Someone in the story has a lot of hard lessons to learn.

Sad – 35 stories

And there's a twist! It actually all took place in the past.

High School – 32 stories

Stories

“Revenge is smelly - submitted by Margaret Davis” by Margaret Davis

Submitted to Contest #14

This was my last night on my 9 day stretch of the midnight to 8 shift.I didn’t hate the midnight shift like some of my fellow police officers, but I wanted this stretch to end so I could begin my 4 day weekend. I had big plans on my days off and I needed some respite from the sweltering heat typical of Vermont weather in August.At about 11:30 p.m., I pulled into the parking lot on South Winooski Avenue and as always, marveled at the ancient building which had been home to the Burlington Police Department since 1887. So much history...

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“Memories” by Ndekwoh Ojen

Submitted to Contest #14

Ours was a big old house in the center of a large compound mainly characterized by a quarter of a century old rickety thatch houses that served as homes to the thirteen legal wives of my grandfather. It was a beautifully hand-stoned semi modern house, the first of its kind in the area, with a refetory-like sitting room that never served its purpose. There were never chairs or tables except some old fashioned irreparable motorcycle parts all covered in thickets of cobwebs. Only the elite children lived in the big house with their father as th...

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“A Girl, a Guy, and a God” by Lily Kingston

Submitted to Contest #14

“Muse!” Apoyo laughed. “Get over here!” Stumbling over various thrones of the gods and nearly tipping his serving tray, Muse rushed to his side. “Yes Apoyo?” “I think it’s time for the final test of your internship. Granting the request of a human.” Muse’s eyes light up. “Really?” “Are you sure? Muse is still a kid. He’s not ready to be a full-fledged god.” Permes chuckled tossing back his eminence afro. “Remember last decade, when he set himself on fire trying to make Afrodite’s banana foster? Remember that Afrodite?” Afrodite swirled the g...

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“The crash” by Marte Van Der Linden

Submitted to Contest #14

The ground was approaching at an alarming speed and there was nothing they could do about it.Hugo was twisted in his seat, with his face pressed against the communications panel. “Mayday, mayday, mayday! This is Intrepid 5, we have engine trouble, I repeat -”Sparks shot out of the panel and he jerked back just in time.“We’ve lost communications!” Hugo shouted above the high-pitched whine that was emanating from the engines.Sweat was streaming down Cath’s face as she fought with the controls. A steep hillside appeared in front of them. Cath b...

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“It's Not You, It's Me” by Stephanie Rochester

Submitted to Contest #14

Mimi sat sipping her warm apple cider, her hands wrapped around the warmth of the mug. The cinnamon stick lightly clinking against the rim. She stared out the window at the kaleidoscope of multi-colored leaves spiraling around caught in gusts of wind. Mimi loved this time of year – the November colors so vibrant, so bright, so dramatic…their last great hurrah before the drabness of winter. And yet this time of year also made her feel slightly sad – a persistent sense of dread that simmered right beneath the surface of all that ...

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“ON THE DECK OF THE BETSY SUE” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #14

I am almost an old man, thought Roddy Merchant, as he sat on the deck of the Betsy Sue, listening to the familiar interplay of the lapping of water and the creaking of timbers; to the squawks of seagulls and the half-heard conversations of the others on Blackford Wharf as morning slipped into afternoon. I am almost an old man, and it seems to have happened without my quite realising it. He took a sip of the strong tea he had convinced himself he liked, and wondered what the next step in the renovation of the yacht that (as he liked...

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“IN THE LONG HALL MIRROR” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #14

This isn’t going to work, thought Angela Mountjoy as she traipsed up the corridor of the “Long Hall” as it was called, at Hawkfield Hall. A Hall within a Hall. You knew things weren’t going to plan when trivia was a refuge. But at breakfast in their hotel – a modern one, despite the holiday tour being called “Stately Homes of Eastern England” – it had been worse. Between eating his full English (she had settled for a poached egg on toast) and taking sips of strong tea in that odd, slightly birdlike...

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“When Trees Talk” by Emily Cannon

Submitted to Contest #14

“I was planted at the very edge of the forest, where the limbs of the tallest trees reach over into the roads of men. My mother is the great Inner tree. She is a tall and mighty tree, her children and arms reaching into all corners of the world. All the wisest tree nymphs come to her for wisdom. And all the most beautiful tree nymphs come to admire her beauty. We live in prosperity and peace. We are all very close to man, but as long as he does his duty to us, we do our duty to him. To him, we breathe the breath of lif...

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“Some Publicity” by Iona Cottle

Submitted to Contest #14

It was a sunny day, and sunny days were not good for photography. Well, of course, they were pretty ideal for taking photos, but the problem that Mattie was having was that sunny days brought everyone else out as well, which made it hard to get any shots that didn’t have people lurking in the background. That, and they had a habit of scaring the birds away, which made it fairly pointless for him to even be here. It was almost midday, and he’d gotten maybe a dozen decent pictures of the ducks and swans, but now the crowds were out in full, al...

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“All for a shot.” by Len Mooring

Submitted to Contest #14

All for a shot.“Don’t look on this as hazing. This is to see if you are up to it. I know the consensus of opinion is that it’s hazing, but it isn’t. However, most fail at the outset and I want you to not waste my time.If you cannot take 24 hours on the rebreather, I doubt you’ll be much use to me.” Walter, Alex’s intended employer, was an expert photographer who was very particular who he employed, but would choose only those ‘shutterbugs’ that had that ‘extra’ whatever that was. Wildlife photogr...

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“Pearly” by Pauline Breatnach

Submitted to Contest #14

The ivory net curtain swirled gently in the spring breeze. Sir John gazed out of the bay window to where the horses roamed freely. Today 'Grey Pearl' limped awkwardly. Sir John attempted to pull himself up from his wicker rocking chair to get a closer look. A sharp pain shot through his left knee. He fell back and dozed off.'Grey Pearl' whinnied as the crowd roared. Her long ears twitched as she tossed her plaited mane. John knew every blade of grass on the Norton track. He steered 'Grey Pearl' with the accuracy of a ship's ca...

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“Breaking Free” by Mushroom (flammulina Velutipes)

Submitted to Contest #14

Once upon a time, there was a girl sweet as sugar and as beautiful as a blossoming flower.Just kidding. I'm a girl raised on heat and dust and bitter coffee grounds, of cloudy skies and starless nights, of the sun burning down on my back and frost biting my skin. I am made of blood and sweat and hard work.My eyes lost the brightness and wonder of childhood once my parents taught me that work was the only thing that would do me any good, my mouth stopped asking questions once I realized there were no answers in life, only working and living a...

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“My Mother” by Rima ElBoustani

Submitted to Contest #14

Trigger warning: this story depicts self-harm and suicide. Growing up with a masochist for a mother was something new and different. No one else had one. But I did. I would wake up hearing screams and moans emanating from my mother’s bedroom. These weren’t sounds of pleasure. My mother would hurt herself through the night. At eight years old, I didn’t know what to do. Then at nine, ten, eleven years old, I still didn’t know what to do. Now I’m eighteen, about to move out of my childhood home and I’m forced to face those awful memories. I rem...

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“Watch the Company You Keep ” by Deanna West

Submitted to Contest #14

"You keep playing with fire, you're gonna get burnt"It was something that mama always said to us... It means you keep going back to something that isn't good for you, your feelings are going to be hurt… You keep entertaining negativity or straddling the fence of wanting to please others vs. wanting to move forward in life, and watch just how fast you’ll get burnt out.My mother was queen of “not holding her tongue back”... For anyone!She's older now, so she's not as quick as she used to be… However she just as sassy, maybe even sassier.My mot...

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“Pleading In Darkness ” by Katelyn Davies

Submitted to Contest #14

The silence was deafening. Usually I preferred quiet, but this was unbearable. My eyes wouldn’t focus in the darkness. This caused a slight panic when I started to make out a faint noise in the background, completely drowned out in the fog. Someone whimpered. The noise someone makes when desperately trying to hold back from sobbing.“Riley …”I strained. My name was barely audible, but someone was trying to get my attention. My heart was racing, and I could start to make out an outline of a figure, sitting down with their head in their hands.I...

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$50

Prize money

175

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Nov 08, 2019 EST

Won by Raven T 🏆

Title: On Becoming Marcus

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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