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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#161: Digging Deep

Released to much critical acclaim, Jennette McCurdy’s recent memoir I’m Glad My Mom Died is one of the most talked-about books of the summer (and potentially the year), not least because of its provocative title. But behind the clickbait-y headline, the book is a masterclass in memoir writing — digging deep into McCurdy’s life and deftly handling sensitive material, including her time as a child actress and an abusive childhood.

This week’s prompts are inspired by some of the themes in McCurdy’s memoir — the pressure of stardom at a young age, finally speaking one's truth, and starting a process of healing — encouraging you to explore the complex and often gritty nature of human relationships and emotions.

🥇 Winner

“Long Distance Phone Call” by Marty B

🏆 Winner of Contest #161

You can talk to the dead on the pay phone in front of Seventh Street Market in West Oakland. There is also a donut store where they sell burgers, and a check cashing store in the small strip mall, but everybody references the market when talking about the Phone. I didn't tell my Dad we were going to California so he could talk to his dead wife, my Mom, until we hit Olympia, Washington. “That is the stupidest goddamn thing I have ever heard of! We are driving to Oakland to have a seance on a pay phone?” He said when I tol...

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⭐️ Shortlisted

“Never too far.” by Karl Blanc

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #161

Charlie started to cry during breakfast, tears cascaded from his innocent brown eyes. Nothing that his favorite toy elephant, Meelo, couldn't fix though. As he grasped the elephant by the tag with his tiny little fingers, you could see joy slowly come rushing back.He had eyes just like mine and a similar dislike of eating cruciferous vegetables. But his smile. His smile he gets from his father. A smile that could somehow make you forget your worries. A smile I have not seen from Danny in a long time.Danny was making coffee while Ch...

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“All You Need Is a Cat” by Michaela Dennean

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #161

Winston never liked England in March. He didn't like the unreliable weather, constant dampness in the air, and the seemingly never-ending days. It held a dreariness in it that no other months did. But Rosemary loved March, and Winston loved Rosemary. She spent hours creating shamrock garlands, baking loaves of Irish soda bread, and singing the Prady song in her soft dulcet tones. She lit up during March, her lips quirking up into a smile that didn't fade until April 1. For Rosemary, March brought her back to a simpler time, a time ...

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“The True Divine Comedy” by Beck Rafter

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #161

Amid the shrieking wails of the damned and the crackle and pop of fire fuelled by sinners, a low chime alerted Office 101 to the arrival of a newcomer. The demon at the desk took its feet down from where they had been propped up against the bloodstained wood and folded up the equally dripping newspaper into a neat square. Blood-covered things were an unavoidable by-product of Hell. It just seemed to get everywhere with no logical explanation. Kind of like smudges on a freshly cleaned window. The new arrival jerked up from the ground with a ...

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This week's prompts

Start your story with someone sharing a secret that has a big impact on everyone.

High School – 39 stories

Write a story where someone finds comfort in an unexpected event, place, or person.

Adults – 56 stories

Write about a character who lives a seemingly charmed life.

Teens – 25 stories

Write a story where a character has to take on heavy responsibilities (perhaps beyond their age).

Kids – 48 stories

Write about someone who needs to face their past in order to move forward.

Adults – 73 stories

Stories

“Long Distance Phone Call” by Marty B

🏆 Winner of Contest #161

You can talk to the dead on the pay phone in front of Seventh Street Market in West Oakland. There is also a donut store where they sell burgers, and a check cashing store in the small strip mall, but everybody references the market when talking about the Phone. I didn't tell my Dad we were going to California so he could talk to his dead wife, my Mom, until we hit Olympia, Washington. “That is the stupidest goddamn thing I have ever heard of! We are driving to Oakland to have a seance on a pay phone?” He said when I tol...

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“Life Drone” by Rachael Asikpo

Submitted to Contest #161

I was wide awake in bed, heavy with exhaustion but unable to slip away. The wailing kept me awake. A sound so broken and hollow, like a woman in excruciating pain, like someone seeking an end, like someone ravaged and tired. It was the sound of my Dad dying. Every day, he died a little more. The cancer ate him away from the inside and all his children had to watch him wither away on the outside. I would get out of bed and linger in the corridor, listening to my mum trying to comfort him with words, knowing fully well that my older sib...

124 comments 124

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“The Influencer” by Kathleen Fine

Submitted to Contest #161

Monday EveningMorning Weight: 112 lbs.Evening Weight: 114.8 lbs.Calories Ingested: 1,010Instagram Followers: 86,943“Just one more,” Virginia ordered.She’d spent the day at her aunt’s pool across town posing in a string bikini while her ten-year-old sister, Andy, petulantly took photos of her. “One more of me on the flamingo float,” she’d instructed Andy as she directed for her minion to grab the raft in the middle of the pool and push it towards her.“Come on, we already took a million of you on that stupid thing,” Andy had complained, s...

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“Fake Orgasming Our Way Through Life” by Stevie B

Submitted to Contest #161

May I let you in on a secret? Most people fake orgasm their way through life. Don’t believe me? Just read on…As usual, they were edging toward it for the longest time. Yet, they weren’t even close. Being weary of waiting the trigger had been pulled prematurely and the moment sought and desired to be achieved was missed. So, we really don’t want to go around fake orgasming our way through our entire lives, do we? Of course not – not when we can really go for the gusto! Hey, one’s got to live for today; for tomorrow one could die at a Coachell...

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“Carly, After School” by Story Time

Submitted to Contest #161

Carly,A couple of things--As soon as you get home, make sure you feed your brother. Don’t give him anything with too much sugar in it or we’ll be dealing with him all night. I know he thinks he can handle a few cookies or one of those chocolate bars you sell for school, but we both know it doesn’t take much for him to turn into a Tasmanian devil.Lock all the doors. That should have been #1. Make sure every single door is locked, even the one on top so that you can’t get in even if you have a key. I know you have to stand on a chair to lock t...

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“October Crises” by Michał Przywara

Submitted to Contest #161

Arlene heaved the last suitcase with a grunt, misjudged how heavy it was and how tired she was, and slammed it into the side of their baby blue Plymouth Savoy station wagon. The case bounced off and fell to the ground, opened, and a load of clothes splattered all over the lawn. Arlene lurched the other way, collided with the vehicle, and rocked it. She shook the dizziness away and trembled. “Ffffff–” she began, but then she saw the five pairs of quivering, wide children’s eyes within the car – from eleven-month-old Robert through nine-year-o...

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“Perdidos” by Zack Powell

Submitted to Contest #161

Mamá's lost her mind again. It happened sometime last night. I know because it's Saturday morning and her station wagon is gone, and the house doesn't smell like huevos rancheros, and I woke up an hour ago to find Papá sweeping broken lamp shards off the floor.This is the third time it's happened, so we know what to do now, what to expect. Last time someone found Mamá swimming in a fountain in a park a few towns over. Papá went and got her and she was home by dinner, shivering and sneezing like a Chihuahua.Maybe that's why he doesn't call Tí...

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“I Love You Too” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #161

“Redundant?” Harry asked. He melted into the plastic chair that had replaced the usual metal one, in front of the boss’s desk. “Yes, Harry. I’m very sorry. The company is cutting back. The decision was made based on sales. It’s nothing personal.” The man brought in to give the news wore a plain white shirt and a soft smile. “You’ll receive a year and a half of your salary in the redundancy package. The company will provide you with a glowing reference. This action is not...

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“Never too far.” by Karl Blanc

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #161

Charlie started to cry during breakfast, tears cascaded from his innocent brown eyes. Nothing that his favorite toy elephant, Meelo, couldn't fix though. As he grasped the elephant by the tag with his tiny little fingers, you could see joy slowly come rushing back.He had eyes just like mine and a similar dislike of eating cruciferous vegetables. But his smile. His smile he gets from his father. A smile that could somehow make you forget your worries. A smile I have not seen from Danny in a long time.Danny was making coffee while Ch...

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“White Lilies Run Red” by S. E. Mary

Submitted to Contest #161

Thirty eight minutes have passed with nothing of substance being said within the walls of my small kitchen. Thirty eight minutes have passed without any of my siblings daring to speak what needs to be discussed. My coffee has grown cold and my patience thin. I refuse to start the discussion when I know I will be the one to end it. All of us are here from the oldest to the youngest sibling. My bet is Aubree, the second eldest girl but the third sibling, will be the one to start this heavy conversation. Heavy is a good way to describe the ...

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“A Positive Contribution ” by Beth Jackson

Submitted to Contest #161

Grace wiped a spot of blood off the table, smearing it back and forward with her index finger. She glanced at the clock under the security camera. Nearly lunchtime. One more to go. “Come in,” she called. Footsteps clomped in the hallway, and she nudged a glass of water towards the centre of the table. And then slightly to the left.One more. She could do this. “Ready, Doc?” a guard asked, pausing in the doorway. He was gripping the shoulder of her next client, his meaty hands forming dents in the man’s pale skin. She...

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“The Devil Pays the Dues” by Daniel Allen

Submitted to Contest #161

TW: Contains violence/ gore and bad language. I pushed my food around the plate, not eating a single bite. Refusing to eat might well be a sign that something’s on your mind, but throwing up all over the dinner table is probably an even bigger one. Luckily, Dad isn’t what you might call an observant man. I managed to last a few minutes grunting non-committal replies to his questions. Then Mum entered the room, and everything fell apart. ‘Patrick dear, what’s wrong?’ she asked. I froze, my fork poised over the latest meatball I’d been p...

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“The day I wished I'd died.” by Roxanne J. Black

Submitted to Contest #161

The past. Everybody has a past. Sometimes the past is a mystery as much as the present—and just as scary and disturbing as the future. In the brief and dangerous journey that humans call life, time is the never-ending, looming shadow, staring with its immortal eyes down at the earth. Time, cold and unforgiving, journals each heartbeat, each blink of an eye, each thought and touch, every time a newborn cries and every time a person draws the final breath. Some may have the fortune of looking back—when that fateful moment of peering in...

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“A Talk in Tulsa” by Scott Christenson

Submitted to Contest #161

Mom’s eyes are popping out. “I wish you were never born,” she’s screaming, “If it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t be stuck here.” Maybe she’s mad I messed up on stage. Maybe she’s mad we’re in Tulsa, I don’t know. Sometimes when I make mistakes she hugs me and tells me how much she loves me, so it's hard to tell.“Get out!” she says, and then takes her angry look up another level. I back up toward the hotel room door. My neck and legs are trembling uncontrollably. I can’t think of anything to say and go into the hallway to give her space ...

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“Spin cycle ” by H L McQuaid

Submitted to Contest #161

[CW: emotional abuse, implied physical abuse]. .The lingering slap echoes in my ears, stings my cheek. The bathroom mirror reflects a pink flush, a tender swelling, but nothing noticeable, nothing I can see.She’s in the kitchen, assaulting cupboards, derailing drawers, slamming pots on the stove.“MARY PAT KUDE!” she screams.That’s me. The last name rhymes with moody.Though we have the same last name, she’s not my mother. My birth mother that is. She is married to my Dad. That’s him, relaxing in the orange-and-brown lazy-boy chair, chest hair...

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$250

Prize money

241

Contest entries

125

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Sep 02, 2022 EST

Won by Marty B 🏆

Title: Long Distance Phone Call

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.

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