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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#143: Beautiful World, There You Are

Today (April 22nd) is Earth Day, and since it’s far too easy to doomscroll our way through discussions about the climate crisis, I thought we could also find more positive ways to show our appreciation for this planet. This week’s prompts are inspired by the beautiful world we live in, and the ways we can reconnect with it.

This week's prompts

Set your story in the woods or on a campground.

Summer – 82 stories

Write about a character who loves cloud gazing.

Fluff – 55 stories

Start or end your story with a person buying a house plant.

Fluff – 63 stories

Write about a trip to see a natural sight that’s usually only ever seen in photos.

Adventure – 9 stories

Write a story involving a friendship between two different species.

Vampire – 44 stories

Stories

“The Woods” by ★ 𝑷𝒊𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝑯𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒐𝒏 ★

Submitted to Contest #143

Leaves crunch under my feet and an owl hoots in the distance. A full moon is out, shining down into the forest, lighting up the trees.My favourite place has always been the woods. Everything was different here, you could forget your troubles and enjoy every moment. You could forget that this was one of your last days."I'm sorry Keira, there's nothing we can do." Cancer has taken millions of souls every year, it was only a matter of time before it took mine. In the woods, however, I didn't have to think about this. I could remember the happy ...

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“Snake Plant” by Annalisa D.

Submitted to Contest #143

I lost my best friend to war. I'm only twenty years old and my best friend died. That feels like all anyone needs to know about me, because since the day I heard the news, it's consumed everything. I miss him. Never got to tell him how much he meant to me. Never said goodbye. The best I can do is visit the memorial in the park, which I do every night. Always at midnight so I'll be alone surrounded by the dark trees whose branches, like twisted ghoul hands, stretch out towards me.Tonight I see the shadow of a man, silhouetted by the orange gl...

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“Peace Lily” by Suma Jayachandar

Submitted to Contest #143

“A spider plant,” Ma said when she picked me up from school.I was disappointed. Kyra and I had been neighbours since kindergarten. And she had left me a plant! Not a pirate headband or a video game or at least one of the many treasures we had dug out together. That too some…“What plant ma?”“Spy…der plant.” She drawled as she helped me balance myself on the deck of her scooter.“Spy…der plant! Spaay…der plant! SPUDRR plant!!” I rolled the sound of it in my mouth as Ma cruised along the curvy road.“Will you please be quiet and let me ride peace...

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“Camping for three” by Beth Whitcomb

Submitted to Contest #143

There was nothing about the site that made it welcoming. It was a dirt pit riddled with gophers who'd eaten the last shred of greenery to be found, but she rolled out her tent over their doorways with only one thing on her mind."I'll never go back." The kids, two years old and 4 months old, couldn't hear her, they were asleep in their car seats as she unpacked the car. Just as the words left her mouth she felt her butt vibrating with another text from her continuously sorry husband who didn't know why she was so mad.She started putting ...

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“Cannabis and Kibble” by Mike Panasitti

Submitted to Contest #143

A typical morning. Bird song. The pleasant twitters, trills, and chirping of tender avian species hidden in foliage. The orchestrated honking of fat, loose-bowelled geese. The quacking of mouth-watering, randy mallards. Nippy temperatures that introduce the day. Not much to do. Expectations of a morning meal. &nbs...

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“Feeling Flush 🚽👵🏻” by PJ Aitken

Submitted to Contest #143

“TOILETS!” whaled Geraldine at her startled grand daughter. “What, Nana?” asked Michelle truly perplexed by this sudden outburst just as they were getting somewhere. “Toilets!” Geraldine repeated at a lower volume. Michelle was shaking her head trying to join the dots but sadly the context still too hazy. “… you’re gonna need to give me more detail as I’m not following.” “Oh you know… toilets! They can’t control their wot names.” Michelle was getting closer to the essence of what her Nana was saying but still needed to tease out more of the ...

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“North” by Ashley Frerichs

Submitted to Contest #143

1 The ad did say “must love dogs” but I expected common house pets, not actual wolves. As I pushed through the gate and fumbled with my luggage, two of the animals hung back, eyeballing me. A third was right at the gate with his huge white ears alert and his raggedy tail wagging. He looked me square in the eye and gave me what seemed like a mischievous grin. Smiling, I dropped my stuff to give him a scratch. My human host sauntered down the front steps then in a flurry of frizzy blonde hair, pushing her chunky, black-framed glasses up on...

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“Lumberjack Camp” by Charlie Murphy

Submitted to Contest #143

“Welcome to Lumberjack camp!”I groaned as I hopped off the bus. I was welcomed by the hot sun beating down on my acne-covered face.“Oh! Don’t groan! The Lumberjackful activities haven't started yet. I’m Huck Bunyun, the camp director.”“Lumberjackful?” I repeated quietly.“Yes, my young lad! There's more Lumberjackful activities than you can shake a stick at!”I was surprised he heard me.“Now, put on your hardy Lumberjack smile, Young… uh…?”“Mike.”“Right. Young Mike, come with me.”Why did my parents sign me up for this camp?...

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“Look Up” by Rama Shaar

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #143

“Ah, I should’ve looked here first!” Abadio said, huffing as he climbed up the stairs. I looked up at him, attempting an apologetic smile. “I should clean up this place for you since you love it so much,” he said, moving some broken furniture around. I shook my head slowly. I didn’t need him to tidy up his rooftop for me. All I wanted was a surface big enough to host my body, and I was getting smaller with each passing day, so that was easy. “Aren’t you cold?” he wondered. I was growing rather fond of Abadio who was a tiny man of a...

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“You're an Idiot” by Christopher Allen

Submitted to Contest #143

You’re an Idiot Circling the display of brightly coloured orchids and tulips, Danny ponders his options. His friend Thomas anxiously checks his watch and suggests the pink ones. “I don’t know. Pink?” Danny picks up the flower and inspects it carefully before putting it back. “It’s not right. I need a colour that says: I’m happy you’ve moved on. Congrats on the new house but, I hope it’s haunted.” “So, maybe yellow?” Thomas suggests impatiently. “Dude, I don’t get why you’re even going. Kathy only invited you out of social etiquette.” ...

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“Rufus Leaves Legacies” by Benjamin Boxer

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #143

One day, Rufus simply stopped killing mice.He’d once taken great pride in his work, sitting for days in front of the oven, waiting patiently—stealthily still—for a mouse to venture out from under the warmer-drawer or in the recess between the oven and cabinets. The target would poke its head out several times before running out and back in. This is where most cats would lose patience and, consequently, their quarry. But not Rufus. He waited—statuesque and frozen—until the mouse walked out and felt comfortable enough to sniff around for food....

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“Once upon your sky” by Gem Cassia

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #143

There are seventeen dreams in the sky. You count the ones within your field of vision, for there is only a limited swath of that cerulean fabric available to your naked eye at a single glance. Seventeen of them; or at least, seventeen of which have discernible shapes. Some of your favorites: The head of a whale, breaching the swell of a cresting wave. A pair of ballet slippers, the wispy breath of satin ribbons trailing behind them. A small hand, curled into the shape of a fist. A gummy bear, a deliciously larg...

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“The Woods are Watching” by Hope Elizabeth

Submitted to Contest #143

This was supposed to be a calming trip. I guess it could have been with just a couple different decisions. Maybe one could have been going to a hotel instead of bringing my own tent, but no, I just had to camp in a forest. I don’t even know why. That was nothing like me. I haven’t been camping since I was a little girl, and after this experience I can promise, I will never do it again. If I even survive this. It didn’t start out bad. Really it started off as a quick break from people with a relaxing trip to a forest. That clearly didn’t go ...

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“Crown of Thorns” by Jeannette Miller

Submitted to Contest #143

Jan wanted so much to be a plant person as she walked the aisle of the local plant shop. Row after row of lush green house plants in all shapes and sizes. There were two tone plants that purified the air, plants for beginners, low light plants, plants who need water every day, low maintenance plants, and trendy plants. It was like a tropical jungle in here between the big leaf palms, cascading ivy’s, and big bushy ferns. So much life. It was calming. Something about having a healthy house plant elevated a person from cold and uncaring to mo...

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“Last Day in Scowle, Ohio ” by Ben Reynoso

Submitted to Contest #143

CW: non-graphic nudity, fear of deep water (thalassophobia)Marcus held his ice cream cone between the ring and middle finger of his left hand. His thumb and forefinger clutched the steering wheel. A particularly syrupy dribble of Rocky Road threatened to slip down the rim of the cone and onto his cargo shorts. I twisted the knob of the radio to my favorite station. Hip-hop blared out of the speakers and blended into the harmony of cicadas. My own ice cream, strawberry, had been reduced to a soggy nub of a cone. I clutched it fruitlessly...

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$250

Prize money

253

Contest entries

139

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 29, 2022 EST

Won by Zack Powell 🏆

Title: What Happens in Vegas

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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