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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#160: A Watery World

August 23rd marks the beginning of World Water Week, an annual global conference that discusses developmental and environmental challenges, with a focus on — you guessed it — water! In the face of record heats and droughts worldwide, it’s more essential than ever to consider the importance of this life-giving resource. That’s what has inspired this week’s prompts – let's dive in!

🥇 Winner

“The Chandelier” by Lee Disco

🏆 Winner of Contest #160

There were gems in the chandelier right past the door of my home. I wasn’t supposed to touch the glimmering stones as they hung, but I would push up a chair and scramble on the rickety wood to brush them with my fingers anyway. It was addictive to paint the lines of my fingerprints along the surface. I would flick on the lights and watch them sway, imagining my mother on the dance floor, conjuring images of date nights when Mama walked out of the house with a black cocktail dress and her best pearls along with the smokey scent of her expensi...

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⭐️ Shortlisted

“Rewind” by Zelda C. Thorne

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #160

C/W: SwearingMondayDorothy turned off her hearing aid long before her daughter’s infernal kettle began puffing steam out like a locomotive, the whistle slicing through all other sound.She wasn’t the only one who hated the kettle. The cat, Marmalade, removed himself from the kitchen and curled up on the sofa as soon as the switch was flicked. Why wouldn’t Samantha let her buy a new one? It’s only a sodding kettle, but no. She was ‘fine’.Always fine.Strong.A survivor.Dorothy slammed the dishwasher shut. Head in the bloody sand more like. She c...

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“The Bog Witch” by Brian Stanton

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #160

Frogs croak at sundown in the bogs. That’s when she took visitors. I heard their chorus and quickened my pace. Each high-knee step took me closer to her, but burned deeper into my thighs and abdomen. My feet grew more tender with each step. My pack was light, but two days traipsing through a swamp was enough to exhaust me. A week trekking down the mountain, and my bones hurt. My lungs burned too, like a hot coal singeing my insides. I reached for my canteen–the old stainless steel one I had plucked from the corpse of a long dead soldier...

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“Sun Showers and Flowers” by Isa C

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #160

It was a cold February morning when I received my first letter from Koharu. Frost lined my windowsills and the grey clouds clung close to the ground, covering the mountaintops. A light knock at my door persuaded me to fully wake up. My room was still dim, white fluffy covers barely illuminated. I thought it would’ve been my breakfast but, to my surprise, a baby pink envelope rested under the door. I was delicate with the paper, fingertips barely brushing the folds in an attempt to not rip it open all at once. Dizziness struck me suddenly, my...

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“Water Freezes at 150mph” by Kenneth Bryan Villagoneza

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #160

Water Freezes at 150mphby Kenneth Bryan VillagonezaLiving almost my whole life as an orphan, I am fascinated watching how family’s bond get so strong. How sometimes they bicker on simple things. How they grow apart and live with a family of their own, then miss each other but during reunions all they talk about is how to divide their inheritance. Why would the eldest gets to own the family business? How the youngest has lived his life away from the responsibilities and that he does not deserve a single penny from the inheritance. Relatives t...

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“Survival of the Hopeful” by Taylor And Sandra Preisler

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #160

Wind whipped over the dunes, blowing sand into every nook and cranny it could find. Kiera gazed over the barren landscape and sighed. She glanced behind at the haul which would keep her alive through the harshest part of the winter, attached to the Muta Beast she rode. It was precious cargo for scavengers like herself. The Beast between her legs snorted and shook its massive head; he had used up his fat reserves over the winter months and was eager to reach the feeding grounds. Kiera tapped his sides lig...

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This week's prompts

Set your story during a drought.

Thriller and Suspense – 72 stories

Write about someone seeking an oasis in a desert — whether literally, or figuratively.

Dramatic – 37 stories

Start your story with the whistle of a kettle.

Dramatic – 60 stories

Write about a character whose job is to bring water to people.

Dramatic – 42 stories

End your story with someone dancing in the rain.

High School – 55 stories

Stories

“The Chandelier” by Lee Disco

🏆 Winner of Contest #160

There were gems in the chandelier right past the door of my home. I wasn’t supposed to touch the glimmering stones as they hung, but I would push up a chair and scramble on the rickety wood to brush them with my fingers anyway. It was addictive to paint the lines of my fingerprints along the surface. I would flick on the lights and watch them sway, imagining my mother on the dance floor, conjuring images of date nights when Mama walked out of the house with a black cocktail dress and her best pearls along with the smokey scent of her expensi...

Read story

“Rewind” by Zelda C. Thorne

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #160

C/W: SwearingMondayDorothy turned off her hearing aid long before her daughter’s infernal kettle began puffing steam out like a locomotive, the whistle slicing through all other sound.She wasn’t the only one who hated the kettle. The cat, Marmalade, removed himself from the kitchen and curled up on the sofa as soon as the switch was flicked. Why wouldn’t Samantha let her buy a new one? It’s only a sodding kettle, but no. She was ‘fine’.Always fine.Strong.A survivor.Dorothy slammed the dishwasher shut. Head in the bloody sand more like. She c...

Read story

“Calling the Rain” by S. E. Mary

Submitted to Contest #160

The lack of rain this season has hit us all hard but the land most of all. Without any moisture the ground has began to crack open and pull away like fighting friends.I found a crevice yesterday morning large enough to fit three fingers within the crack sideways. Papa told me to keep my hands out of places they don’t belong. Mama says if rain does not grace us before long, I will be able to place my whole fist within the cracks of the earth. Worst case scenario, it goes on long enough for my entire feet to fall in. Calvin says I will never g...

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“Let the Joy Rain Down” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #160

TW: Swearing, slow dancing, gratuitous descriptions of love. Everything is up in the air. All I know for certain is I love her and I’m not letting this life go without a fight. She gives me the foundation to build my life upon. Now that it might all be taken away, I’m looking at her more. I’m wondering why I ever left this apartment. Billie’s smile is my sunlight. Her hand in mine is my racing heart. Her arms around me are the joy I never knew was possible. Her scent i...

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“Sympathy for a Kettle” by Daniella Dsouza Michaeli

Submitted to Contest #160

I whistle as hard as my organs let me, letting out clouds of smoke from my long neck. I am almost breathless, but I can hear my whistles bounce off the bare walls. I can smell the stale air, filled with fragments of almost, but not completely, forgotten memories. The longer I am abandoned, the smaller my voice becomes. What used to be a whistle has now burned itself down to a mere wheeze as my lungs inch closer and closer to giving out.I can feel the bottom of my vessel begin to reach a temperature that grows more painful as each minute pass...

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“Bobbi Dancing in the Rain” by Story Time

Submitted to Contest #160

My ex-wife Bobbi is determined to dance in the rain. We haven’t had rain in Olfa County in nearly six weeks, which is a shame for many reasons. We’re getting notifications from the local water control folks that we need to take shorter showers. The farmers are fretting. I saw an old dog by the side of the road looking very concerned. While Bobbi may be upset about all that, she’s most distressed over not being able to go dancing in the rain once our divorce is complete. You see, we didn’t have what most people would consider to be an ami...

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“Wally's Water World” by Zack Powell

Submitted to Contest #160

Content warning: Swearing"I know it's your first day on the job and all, but don't worry, man. You're gonna do great. Trust me. We're happy to have you here at Wally's Water World.""Thanks. I'm happy to be here.""Great!""I gotta tell you the truth, though. I only applied because my mom told me she would kick me out if I didn't get a job. She said thirty-five is too old to be unemployed.""That's great too. Exactly the type of can-do, highly motivated, problem-solving attitude we're looking for at Wally's Water World. Glad to have another memb...

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“A Barren Wasteland ” by Aeris Walker

Submitted to Contest #160

Content Warning: Mild foul languageThe paper product aisle is a barren wasteland. All of it, desecrated by desperate, panicked consumers. Every square of toilet paper, every sheet of facial tissue, every quilted fiber of paper towel has been snatched up and hoarded by greedy, overreacting defecators. Even the vehicle interior polishing wipes have vanished from the shelves. The absurdity is unparalleled; now I’ll have to try another store.I can think of no logical reason why there should be such a drought of toilet-tissue. The product has nev...

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“Gifted” by Corey Melin

Submitted to Contest #160

“The gift has been given to you. Others have lost this gift because either they did not want it or used it for their own selfish needs,” I was told many moons ago. I lowered the bucket down the empty well, knowing the results once I pulled it back up. Many will call me a fool for this well held no water for years. Of course, they did not know I had the gift to bring forth water. Water that will fill the soul in a world gone to madness. It is...

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“The Bog Witch” by Brian Stanton

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #160

Frogs croak at sundown in the bogs. That’s when she took visitors. I heard their chorus and quickened my pace. Each high-knee step took me closer to her, but burned deeper into my thighs and abdomen. My feet grew more tender with each step. My pack was light, but two days traipsing through a swamp was enough to exhaust me. A week trekking down the mountain, and my bones hurt. My lungs burned too, like a hot coal singeing my insides. I reached for my canteen–the old stainless steel one I had plucked from the corpse of a long dead soldier...

Read story

“Icedriver” by Michał Przywara

Submitted to Contest #160

Zen Morai nudged the right flight stick on his control unit, and the fifteen tonne asteroid chunk beneath his feet stopped rotating. A tap on the throttle, and the longitudinal thrusters pulsed, sending him and his payload towards the cargo rail – the two-hundred metre long metal tube with dozens of meteor chunks harnessed to it. They had already caught a batch of about ninety tonnes of ice, and this would be the last of their haul on this shift.“Status check,” said Daw Artego, through the local shortwave. He was sitting safe on Gopher-7, th...

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“Prisoner 0004” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #160

“You can talk to him, but not for more than ten minutes. Don’t look at him. If he makes eye contact with you, we will have to shoot you.” The chief warden didn’t look at Alex Jeffries. Footsteps from their black boots echoed off the stone walls in the dark tunnel. Algae grew unchecked on the dank grey blocks. “What about him?” Alex asked. The warden hadn’t made eye contact since telling him he’d been ...

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“Sun Showers and Flowers” by Isa C

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #160

It was a cold February morning when I received my first letter from Koharu. Frost lined my windowsills and the grey clouds clung close to the ground, covering the mountaintops. A light knock at my door persuaded me to fully wake up. My room was still dim, white fluffy covers barely illuminated. I thought it would’ve been my breakfast but, to my surprise, a baby pink envelope rested under the door. I was delicate with the paper, fingertips barely brushing the folds in an attempt to not rip it open all at once. Dizziness struck me suddenly, my...

Read story

“The Witch with the Water” by Daniel Allen

Submitted to Contest #160

Extracts from the personal records of Roland de Claire, senior advisor to Lord Montgomery of Oxfordshire. 14th August 1198. Today was a most interesting day. This morning, His Lordship summoned me to attend him in his solar, so naturally, I hurried there with all due haste. However, upon arrival, I had a rather nasty surprise. Instead of His Lordship, I came face to face with Sir Brutus of Grimsby, a most unpleasant man. He greeted me with a nod. ‘De Claire.’ ‘Sir Brutus,’ I replied with the same. With the pleasantries out of the...

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“A Tide of Stars” by Shaivi S.

Submitted to Contest #160

If only a camera could capture what a soul can. The campfire's blooming hues spill color over our faces, providing the only light we receive in the velvety night. The adults are sitting around a rickety, wooden bench near the tents, tangled up in a never-ending game of Uno Flip. I watch as the younger kids giggle amongst themselves, glad that our parents haven't noticed how time's racing ahead. A half-eaten large pizza is calling my name, but it's sitting too close to the adults for me to swing by without announcing my presence.I don't know ...

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$250

Prize money

266

Contest entries

110

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Aug 26, 2022 EST

Won by Lee Disco 🏆

Title: The Chandelier

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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