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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#159: Money, Money, Money

Like it or not, money makes the world go round. And while it (supposedly) can’t buy happiness, it can certainly change your life — for better or worse. This week’s prompts have money on the mind; whether your characters are winning big, or down to their last dollar, it’s time to start counting your cash.

This week's prompts

Start your story with a character accepting a bribe.

Adults – 48 stories

Set your story in a world where the currency isn’t money — or at least not money as we understand it.

Fantasy – 62 stories

Write about somebody down on their luck who unexpectedly comes into a large amount of money.

Teens – 49 stories

Your character checks their balance at an ATM and is surprised by the number they see.

Adults – 32 stories

Write about a character who’s never encountered a problem they couldn’t buy their way out of — until they do.

Angst – 25 stories

Stories

“Game Changer ” by M. M.

Submitted to Contest #159

Snow began to descent through a darkening sky. MacKenzie opened her fridge door checking to see what she could eat, not too much. Leftover frozen pizza, a half bottle of Coke Zero and that was all. 'Better get to the bank machine soon before that storm kicks in', she thought grumpily. She would be lucky if she had even enough to go to the store for food. Her studio apartment was a shamble's, a pile of dirty laundry rested at the foot of her sofa bed. Her next pay check wasn't until mid-week. MacKenzie was used to living like this for awhile ...

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“25” by Liz Molloy

Submitted to Contest #159

Immobilizing fear consumes Maeve once the time strikes midnight. She can hear her fellow neighbors rejoicing the New Year in the apartments surrounding her. In any other year, she would have joined in on the celebration, cheering along with screams of joy. But this year is different, this is the year she is turning twenty-five. This is the year her fate will be determined.In another lifetime, turning twenty-five as a woman was regarded as any other normal birthday milestone. In this life, turning twenty-five to many women means facing the en...

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“A Chance at Lady Luck” by KS Logan

Submitted to Contest #159

A Chance at Lady Luck The blinding morning sun scorched his dry, scratchy eyes as he forced them open. Mason rubbed at a kink in his neck as he tried to create some saliva. “Just another lovely evening at the Hotel Honda,” he groaned to himself. His tongue was like a dead fish lying in the desert that was his mouth. He scanned the backseat for a bottle of water but found only empties. Mason checked his pockets for his car keys and, after a moment of panic, noticed them dangling from the ignition. “Thank you, God,” he said. “First thin...

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“Shifts at CeeCee’s” by Dani Sheehan

Submitted to Contest #159

The afternoon swung steadily from noon to night like the way a hammock sways in a warm breeze. I was finishing a transaction with an older gentleman who stood not much taller than my register. I rang up his last item, a gallon of milk, and told him the total. As I was bagging his groceries he demanded the price of the tomatoes. Stating they were much less than what the screen displayed. I reiterated the price and he proceeded to inquire about the cost of each of his items. He was certain the whole wheat bread was on sale and flipped through ...

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“Price of a Soul” by ER Castaneda

Submitted to Contest #159

John Avalon’s 18-year-old intoxicated daughter smashed into the back of a blue Nissan Sentra while going 110 miles in her 2020, bright yellow Porsche 911 Carrera S on a Saturday night while driving back from Club Starlight. Mom and the five-year-old daughter in the Sentra didn’t make it. Dad was rushed to the hospital in serious condition. John’s daughter escaped the wreckage with a few scratches and bruises. “Da-dee!” John’s daughter screamed into the phone after the accident. “My new Porsche was just totaled! Pl...

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“ONLY FOOLS ARE POSITIVE” by Susan Catucci

Submitted to Contest #159

Only Fools Are Positive"How much is this going to cost?""Thirty. Ten in advance, twenty after the job is done.""Jesus! Are you . . . and you guarantee you can do this, just like I said?""This something you want to shortcut?""No, no. I'm in. I'll get the money. So, how does this work? What happens now?""The hard part is over. Now, it's off your plate and on mine. You get what I need, a picture, an address, a calendar. We meet again, I give you date and time. At that point, you pay me the upfront and then get scarce, and leave everything to me...

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“No Chips Without Sparkle” by Michael Jefferson

Submitted to Contest #159

Maurice “Mossy” Graves belches loudly, sitting back in his chair. The couple at the next table glances at Mossy disparagingly, then look away when they realize who he is. Tall, with hard, vulpine features, snow white hair, and unblinking ice blue eyes, Mossy intimidate others through appearance, as well as his financial clout. With a pockmarked, porky face and slits for eyes, big-bellied henchman Mario Grimaldi is uneducated and crude, but transparent and loyal. The third man at the table, handsome, dark-haired Simon “Skeeter” McSherry, is...

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“Perfectly Priced ” by Falynn Almeda

Submitted to Contest #159

Perfectly Priced The perfect level of fame is hard to pull off unless the right people know your name. You have to carefully walk the line between being in and out of the public eye. The best way to do that –from my experience- is to be the only and orphaned child to wealthy parents and grandparents who were also only children. My name is Belle and just like in the book, I was genetically very pretty. Actually, my name is ‘Annabelle’ but that gets associated with scary dolls. Thus, I put ‘Belle’ on everyt...

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“Last Wishes” by Samuel Yates

Submitted to Contest #159

I have been an apothecary for most of my adult life after my grandfather decided I was a natural for it; and he decided he wanted to travel the world and gave me the keys to his shop.For about twenty years, I have helped people who felt I was their last resort. Most of them just wanted to live a little bit longer, to get their affairs in order, to say their final goodbyes, and I was ok with that.A few months ago, a long-time friend came to me, asking for my help with her father. He had been involved in a car wreck, and he was dying. She aske...

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“No Amount of Money Talks” by Gavionara Ra

Submitted to Contest #159

Profanity use, mention of sexual abuse and sexual violenceLibelle Debonette stared out the small cell window with painful boredom. She hummed a gentle tune, played with her tied up hands, and swayed her head left and right. It wasn't the first time she was kidnapped, nor will it be the last. Being a member of the richest family in the entire state, it made sense it would be a common occurrence. However, Libelle was targeted more often than her other family. Was it her enchanting beauty that made it irresistible to filthy peasants of the worl...

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“Six - Twelve Months” by Malik White

Submitted to Contest #159

Six to twelve months. Fifteen different doctors around the world and they all gave the same diagnosis. Some tried to give me treatments but when they obviously weren’t working I decided that if I’m going to die, it’s not going to be in a hospital bed. Six to twelve months was the estimated timeframe. So I spent most of that time traveling and enjoying good food. Then came the massive parties filled with drugs, alcohol, and tons of people that I didn’t care about. If my accountant saw how much money I wasted in those months alone, he’d have a...

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“The Rooftop” by Ellen Kommel

Submitted to Contest #159

They said it would be simple; harmless. “The easiest five thousand pounds you’ll ever make,” they told me. I admit, I was bedazzled by the way their Brioni suits hugged their sculpted arms. The tall one leaned forward over the counter, close enough that I could feel his breath on my lips. He smelled of smoke and sandalwood. The shorter one spoke softly of all the things they knew about me: where I lived, who my parents were, how empty my bank account was. His voice was as smooth as top-shelf scotch; his intimidation sounded like poetry and s...

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“An Officer and a Benefactor ” by Maria Avisal

Submitted to Contest #159

The first time it happened was during his first shift on the police force, when his uniform was pristine, and he was bursting with pride and naivete. A silver foreign-made SUV flew past them on the rough road, and his partner pulled their patrol car off the shoulder and flicked the sirens on, kicking up dust as he sped to catch up. The SUV pulled over immediately, and his partner winked at him with his hand on the door handle before he stepped out of the driver’s seat. “Now you get to learn everything they didn’t teach you in academy,” his ...

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“Blow Out Your Candles, You're 16!” by Ashlyn Oboyle

Submitted to Contest #159

Her hands were shaking as she carded her fingers through his hair. The tears that had been steadily falling down her face had since run dry as if her whole body had been squeezed free of any other tears. Her throat felt sore from the screaming that had been ripped out of her mouth. “Do we have a deal, Cassandra?” The woman in question looked up and narrowed her eyes, a sniffle betraying her furious persona. Cassandra gingerly placed her husband’s head onto the ground as she stood up, “What do you mean? You… you killed him. There is no deal....

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“The Academy and Beyond” by J. V. SUMMER

Submitted to Contest #159

The Academy and Beyond“Justin has to get into Carleton.” Justin’s father stands in front of my desk after refusing my invitation to sit. He has loosened his Italian silk tie to show he has dashed straight from a highly important meeting to do quick business with his son’s eighth-grade English teacher. He raises perfectly groomed black eyebrows at me. “I see,” I say as if his statement were a simple fact. Carleton Preparatory School is an elite private hig...

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$250

Prize money

216

Contest entries

88

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Aug 19, 2022 EST

Won by Daniel Allen 🏆

Title: Blood and Cookies

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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