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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#145: It's Called Fashion, Look it Up

I never remember the Met Gala’s existence until social media is suddenly flooded with otherworldly outfits. The corsets, beads, and historical dresses of the Met Gala might feel a little insignificant given the state of the world right now, but it’s nonetheless a good opportunity for some fashion escapism.

So, in honor of the world’s biggest costume party, let’s think about clothes, identities, façades, and self-expression. Where does your mind go?

🥇 Winner

“The Overalls” by Avery Mossop

🏆 Winner of Contest #145

[Allusions to death/dying] Snip, snip, snip. I’m becoming something new. I was a bolt of fabric, long and wonderful and wrapped many times around myself, hugging my own form. I had once been thread, a multitude of threads, and maybe even something else before that, but who can be expected to remember that far? Those threads were stretched tight and woven one over the other, again and again. Woven so tightly I became a taut impenetrable thing, not a hole to be seen. But now, I’m learning I am not as indestructible as I had thought. For one sn...

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⭐️ Shortlisted

“The Cats of Mount Washington” by Maria Avisal

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #145

My mother had a valid point that I wasn’t doing anything else, but that still didn’t mean I wanted to start packing or preparing my room to be turned over to one of my younger twin sisters the moment I left for the train station. After working day shifts at a summer camp in a nearby town (residency in the upscale suburb was required for attendance but apparently not cheap teenage labor) and night shifts at a steakhouse, and the usual unpaid labor at my father’s store, I had given myself two weeks off before leaving for college and was l...

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This week's prompts

Write a story where a particular piece of clothing appears three times.

Nonfiction – 60 stories

Write about a character who wakes up in someone else’s clothes — or utterly weird apparel they don’t recognize as their own.

Science Fiction – 38 stories

Set your story at a global fashion event — or a carnival ball.

High School – 20 stories

Think of an item of clothing from your childhood, and write a story inspired by that.

Nonfiction – 28 stories

Write about a character who decides to give themselves, or someone else, a fashion makeover.

Fluff – 20 stories

Stories

“The Overalls” by Avery Mossop

🏆 Winner of Contest #145

[Allusions to death/dying] Snip, snip, snip. I’m becoming something new. I was a bolt of fabric, long and wonderful and wrapped many times around myself, hugging my own form. I had once been thread, a multitude of threads, and maybe even something else before that, but who can be expected to remember that far? Those threads were stretched tight and woven one over the other, again and again. Woven so tightly I became a taut impenetrable thing, not a hole to be seen. But now, I’m learning I am not as indestructible as I had thought. For one sn...

143 comments 143

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“Grace of a Goddess” by Alex Sultan

Submitted to Contest #145

Shooting between heartbeats is ideal for a sniper. The blood flow can affect how one’s fingers move. Of course, keeping check on wind, humidity, and temperature are all vital. Whether a streetlight is shining in the dark of night, or the sun is out, light has to be kept in mind. Not to mention the target’s distance and movement. Alice found it all to be second nature. Her finger hovered the trigger. She inhaled, a quiet breath in, and listened to the beat of her heart. Her target stood about 250 meters out. Snow drifted down. Another long wi...

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“A Bright Red Lipstick Smile” by Kathleen Fine

Submitted to Contest #145

Tilda pulled the tablecloth out of the trashcan located behind her house. She lifted the long, gold and red linen to her face and rubbed it to her cheek, enjoying the soft fabric against her skin for a moment. “Mama?” she hollered to Mama through the ripped screened door leading to the kitchen. “Don’t go yellin’ at me like that Til,” Mama yelled back, “I’m tryin’ to cook ya’ll dinner.” “What’s this tablecloth doin’ in the trashbin?” Tilda queried, dragging the heavy cloth behind her as she walked into the kitchen, slamming the back...

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“Tatterdemalion” by Deidra Whitt Lovegren

Submitted to Contest #145

“Tatterdemalion. Ragamuffin. Slubberdegullion.”David’s great-aunt knew a dozen ways to call him slovenly and unkempt, but he paid her little mind. Since the Catholic Mass she dragged him to each day was tedious, he found crawling under the pews much more fun than listening to Latin. As usual, his great-aunt pulled him up by the collar of his shirt and sat him firmly on the pew. A twinkle in her eyes belied her stern expression.“Behave,” she whispered.And he would. For a bit.She fretted over his crisp white shirt, now sullied by dirt, du...

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“The Garden of Beauty” by Hannah P. Simmons

Submitted to Contest #145

Awake.I blink twice. That's all it takes for me to realize I am lying on my back. Above me a night sky glitters with stars unlike any night sky I have ever seen. Hues of cobalt and lavender intertwine, as though placed by the gentle strokes of an artist's brush, while stars shimmer and blink, like jewels kissed fleetingly by the light.And I gaze up at this masterpiece through thin branches, speckled with leaves that shake as the boughs sway to and fro.For a moment, I don't move. But then, I hear the music. It drifts through the dark on a gen...

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“A Throuple of Fashionable Friends” by Stevie B

Submitted to Contest #145

I loved being a thread in the fabric of a throuple! It allowed me to be me while still connecting unconditionally with a select set of others. We were not a tawdry one-night stand – we were indefinable. It’s like you always had a backup. When one of us needed a time out, there’s another to fill that void. What a RELIEF! Often when enthralled by whatever intellectually enchants or challenges me at the moment I’ll sink into myself; become vacant and unavailable to those who care. If one fraction of this threesome was physically or emotionally ...

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“One To Three” by Thom With An H

Submitted to Contest #145

“I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first?”A choice? Choices were usually for other people. Destiny didn’t choose to feel run down or to be limited to medical care at the free clinic. She didn’t choose to wait three hours just to be seen by whichever doctor was next in line, but at least she had this choice.“What’s the bad news?”Experience had taught Destiny that the bad news was typically far worse than the good news was good. Her choice, therefore, was determined by a primal need for self-preservation."The good news,” the doc...

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“Making Peace” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #145

I am always on the move. I meet a lot of people. Today my first patient is a man called Thomas. Not the brightest bulb by any means. He’s smiling at me as he talks about purity. I nod along. I believe in purity as well, just not the same kind. He talks about purity of blood. He flaunts bruised knuckles. Thomas likes to fight. I can see the glow of hunger in his eyes when he talks about hurting people he thinks of as impure. He wants more than that. He asks if I do as well...

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“Darkest Before the Dawn” by Zack Powell

Submitted to Contest #145

Trigger warning: Transphobia and mention of suicidal ideationA lot can happen in a year.For example: Around this time last December I spent a good ten minutes trekking through rows of sleek polyester suits and shiny Oxford shoes at Men's Wearhouse, searching for a Christmas gift for my younger brother, Justin. Today, I'm trudging endlessly through Macy's, fingering floral blouses and nylon bras and yoga pants, trying to find something for my younger sister, Dawn. They're the same person, Justin and Dawn.We discovered that last month at our p...

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“The Dearly Departed” by Howard Halsall

Submitted to Contest #145

There was only one thing Gerald loved more than a roaring bonfire and that was the thrill of watching an outsider overtake a favourite on the final furlong. Gerald Gerrison, or ‘G.G.’ as Joan nicknamed him due to his obsession, spent his weekdays in one of two locations. She’d find him either burning garden debris whilst mulling over current form or applauding the thunder of hooves on the racecourse’s finish line. #Gerald retired at fifty and with few pressing commitments; he could choose how to spend his time. He’d made his money after...

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“A Crown for The King” by Story Time

Submitted to Contest #145

She gave me the crown to remind me that I was a King. My grandmother summoned me to her room on the second floor of our old house on Georgia Avenue during one of my parent’s tornados, and there it sat on her vanity. The crown was made of golden felt with fabric jewels sewn into it. While the cacophony raged downstairs over an unkind word at a corporate barbecue, my grandmother lowered it onto my head. At first, I thought she was playing some kind of game with me, but then she put her hands on my shoulders and looked at me with all the se...

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“Born Sniffy” by PJ Aitken

Submitted to Contest #145

Sniff Eat, Sniff Sleep, Sniff Poop, Sniff Drink Sniff Walk, Sniff SQUIRREL SQUIRREL SQUIRREL! My Luke barks at me in a language I barely understand causing his shorts to crinkle, His spiky walking boots giving him extra air as he ridiculously stamps his feet at my behaviour, I can’t help it! It’s in my blood, squirrels are my nemesis, Well anything small and annoying are on my list, Birds, rats, squirrels, foxes, cats and the rest, I mean I wouldn’t eat one, I’d have to catch one first, The moment I catch a whiff the shutters come down and I...

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“A long drive to happy. ” by Holly Guy

Submitted to Contest #145

If I bring you breakfast whilst you’re in bed, a simple “thank you” would be sufficient. None of this “How did you get into my house?” bollocks. You didn’t even compliment me on the fluffy eggs nor the sizzled-to-perfection sausages. I had to drive three hours just to find the perfect smoky marinated sauces for the dish, you ungrateful bitch! And yes, I know I screwed up a little on the mushrooms. They were burnt, and I guess I tend to be quite salt happy. But that doesn’t mean you are allowed to be ungrateful for my kind gesture. Oh, and ...

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“The Brotherhood of the Traveling Jockstrap” by Sharon Hancock

Submitted to Contest #145

Friends since childhood, four young men gathered in camaraderie before every competitive sporting event. Wes, the wrestler of the bunch, sat on a bench in the musky locker room with panic in his eyes; tossing items out of his gym bag and mumbling. “Wes, ten minutes till weigh in. Why aren’t you dressed?” Bo, the group’s Tae Kwon Do competitor, checked the time on his phone and frowned a concerned look at his unprepared comrade. Jeb, a skydiver, recognized the distress on Wes’s face for what it was: panic over a po...

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“The Trials of Ralph of Hairstow-on-Stretford” by Michał Przywara

Submitted to Contest #145

It’s a slap what wakes me, right across my face. Is that Gemma, I wonder? Before my eyes can open I loose a mighty burp and trumpet a righteous wind. “Good lord!” a man yells. “By all that’s holy!” says another. “That is foul indeed!” I try to open my eyes. My lids are thick, heavy, covered with honey or something. When I crack them it’s painful bright out and I wince. I could have sworn it was night just a moment ago, but everything’s blurry. Vision, memory, all of it. Like that time Gemma said she was expecting yet another mouth to feed. I...

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$250

Prize money

166

Contest entries

96

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - May 13, 2022 EST

Won by Avery Mossop 🏆

Title: The Overalls

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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