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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#151: Back to the Reboot

This past week we’ve been inspired by Lightyear, Top Gun: Maverick, and all the prequels, sequels, and reboots hitting our screens lately. For many of us, reboots inspire a sense of nostalgia, or déjà vu. But how do you interpret them? Do you welcome new creatives and their reimaginings of the past, or do you crave something fresh in its own right?

Of course, repetition can be creepy — and it can even become boring — but it can also open the doorway to improvement and growth. However you feel about the ever-rebirthing media cycle surrounding us, we hope you’ll find inspiration in these week’s prompts:

This week's prompts

Write about a character who wakes up in their past life, or as a future reincarnation of themself.

Fantasy – 54 stories

Write about somebody breaking a cycle.

Narrative – 42 stories

Write about a character who keeps ending up in the same place.

Sad – 40 stories

Repeat the same line of dialogue, from the same character, three separate times.

Middle School – 58 stories

Write about a character who’s expected to follow in someone’s footsteps.

Kids – 38 stories

Stories

“The Unlikely Ghost” by Alyssa Mcclain

Submitted to Contest #151

“I told you that you wouldn’t need me” a small voice whispered to her, startling her awake. Jane forced herself to keep her eyes closed, convincing herself quietly that if she just kept her eyes shut, she wouldn’t technically be awake just yet. “I tried to tell you!” The voice exclaimed. “I tried to tellyou that you’d live without me, if you didn’t get to the emergency room!” Jane willed her eyes to remain unopen, with everything piece of strength she still had in her. If she just kept her eyes closed, she wouldn’t have to see, or experienc...

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“In my Father's Footsteps” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #151

For generations my family has upheld a time honor tradition of service to our country. We have lived up to this legacy for as long as I can remember and it all began with my great grandfather during the First World War and has lasted until my time. This time honor tradition of service to our country is one that I respect with my whole heart. I give thanks everyday to my great grandfather and to all the members of my family for the enduring sacrifices they have made. But I ask the question. Is this the right path for me? Throughout the ye...

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“Selkie Sweet” by D.G. Fitzgerald

Submitted to Contest #151

Connor settled on his couch at the end of a long day. Not that he didn’t like his work in the library, he loved it. A little peace and quiet was just what he needed in his job. Just sometimes, the peace and quiet could drag a little. It also made times when it was disturbed even more jarring. If he had to have the same conversation with Miss McPherson about her late return fees again… Still, going down to the beach before coming back for the night had helped relax him. He’d always loved the smell of the sea, the sound of the waves crashin...

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“The Legacy of Jonny Ferron” by Chelsea Mckinley

Submitted to Contest #151

Chapter 1: Death’s door Lorne Ferron’s life changed drastically the day the mafia head, his father died. The life he originally had planned for himself, all his dreams, could only be dreams now. As the only heir and the only male in his family left besides his deceased father. Lorne was left with no other choice. Lorne had just turned 23, two years of his life partying at college had come and gone. A new life of business and living up to the legacy his father made lay ahead , a winding road with the only end ...

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“Hurling Chunks” by Jim Firth

Submitted to Contest #151

Aqueous groans filled the interior of the Land Rover. With a trembling finger, Charlie pressed the stop button on the tape deck. The operatics of the Humpbacks ceased. Although whale song was all the rage during the ‘Nu Age’, it wasn’t his preferred listening. He would rather sit in near silence and hear the ghostly hum of airport traffic and planes taking off nearby. While Charlie fiddled nervously with the patchouli air freshener, his boyfriend George sat in the driver’s seat wondering what to say. Ever the pragmatist, George decided to...

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“Follow in These Bloody Footsteps” by Kristen Nazzaro Keller

Submitted to Contest #151

[Trigger warning for language and violence] He woke up with the gun in his hand. Even before he opened his eyes, he knew what he was holding. He wrapped his fingers around it, and a sense of familiarity rushed over him. There was an incessant beeping from an alarm clock on the bedside table that only quieted when he slammed his fist down on it. As he sat up, his calloused forefinger found the trigger and hovered over it. Any amateur gun owner would tell you that you should never touch the trigger until you’re ready to shoot. But he wasn’t ...

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“Where the African Grey Perches” by A. L. V.

Submitted to Contest #151

I’ve worked here for four months, and not once have I stepped into one of the break rooms. Once the clock strikes noon, several employees rise from their seats to get lunch. Many walk out in groups, making plans to get lunch at a cute café or a food truck. Others pull packed lunches out of their desks. I hesitate to get mine, some coworkers giving me steely glares on the way out. A part of me wants to go eat with Uncle Moore, but I know that would only make things worse. I took my lunch with me out to the main hallway, heading...

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“Sam” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #151

Sam Gionanni was a made man. After a thirty year tenure as a lieutenant with the Gambini Family, Sam had become one of the top men in the most notorious organized crime syndicate in the country. The long arms of the Gambini Family reached around the world with aspirations of the future of launching into the space program. Sam had one big problem and by all accounts it would be his Achilles Heel. Devilishly handsome and suave, Sam had a way with women, but his indiscretion was always lacking. His reputation was ...

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“Dream a dream” by Chase Bayless

Submitted to Contest #151

In my bed of warmth did I lay, the twisted tightness of my muscles falls into blissful melting. My mind is the gentle hand, that which guides my soul backwards into itself. This journey is what I seek after the dragging redundancy of reality. On the path ever forward, my eyes are blankets, warm on my perception. I cast back to the feeling of familiarity for bygone days, for the pull towards the past, for the lessons of the future. I am the undying, the forgotten dream remembered again. So do those blankets of warmth open. My gaze falls on a ...

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“10” by Julia Davis

Submitted to Contest #151

Today was perfect. It was an early warm summer day, the humidity had held off. Today, I turned 40. No big extravagant party, just a relaxing day of my little family of three. I woke up to Megan bringing me princess pancakes and Eric, following behind with a small jewelry case with a blue bow on it. A gold locket, with a picture of the three of us in it, heart shaped, with a little diamond on the front of it. The day continued with a matinee after lunch and a parents only date at a fancy restaurant while Megan spent the night at her Nana’s. ...

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“A FINE NEW DAY” by R. J. Garron

Submitted to Contest #151

“What the hell?” It was the wordless scream from Sergio Estevel who last remembered his human form just before falling asleep. There was no telling why such a change happened over the course of only one night. It certainly felt like a dream, a waking nightmare. It had to have been. What was out there was only a figment of the subconscious reorienting all his thoughts and experiences. Nothing else. Yet, the extra dose of surrealism came through observations of his surroundings, contact with specific items,...

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“The Cost” by Tank Brown

Submitted to Contest #151

"I was told that you could help me with getting my case overturned." The old Vodoo Priest nodded affirmatively after hearing Jason's inquiry. "Okay, so my grandmother says it requires me to do something. What do I need to do and you have to speed it up. I can't stay on the phone in here to long because the guards will be coming around to count soon. I need to make sure I have enough time to log out of my accounts." "I told your grandmother that you are a very special child. There are three spirits attached...

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“Clara” by L. E. Scott

Submitted to Contest #151

The alarm blares in my ear. It is times like this when I question my sanity in picking that alarm above all others. Especially when I could be woken up to a favorite song, or the peaceful sound of birds singing. Why did I choose this one again? I reach for my phone to snooze it and that is the first time I realize that something is amiss. I cannot find my phone. I have not opened my eyes yet, but I’m not feeling anything even slightly resembling my phone when I reach in the direction of the noise. Ugh. Looks like I’ll need to wake all the wa...

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“Everyone Wants a Past Life” by Diane Hicton

Submitted to Contest #151

Everyone Wants a Past Life In my present life I am able to tell fortunes and see spirits, when I look at someone I can see much more than an average person. Some people called me crazy and a freak when I revealed my secrets. So, now I don't say anything to no one. I try to keep it to myself and instead perceive that I am giving out advice. Many years ago in the eighteen hundreds, my great great great grandmother had the same ability to talk to the dead . They thought she was a witch and put her on pedestal, which resulted in them killin...

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“Perfect Families” by Chloe Ballew

Submitted to Contest #151

(Trigger Warning: Substance Abuse, Mentions of Physical and Mental Abuse) My father was a preacher, a man of moderation. My mom was a woman of god, the perfect wife to the perfect husband. Together they had two children, a son and a daughter. A house in the suburbs with a white picket fence, the perfect American family. No one seemed to notice the cracks under the surface. His flock didn’t smell the booze on my fathers breath as he screamed about their sins. Nor did the neighbors see as my mother crept from unfamiliar men's houses early in...

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$250

Prize money

232

Contest entries

108

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jun 24, 2022 EST

Won by Kelsey H 🏆

Title: The Lake

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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