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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#163: Leo Tolstoy

Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy was born on September 9th, 1828 — so happy birthday, Leo! In his novels, Tolstoy explored the intricacies and contradictions of ordinary people, as well as examining the nature of power, history, and society as a whole. In his later years, he renounced his aristocratic lifestyle to focus on a more spiritual path, promoting the idea of nonviolent resistance.

This week’s prompts pay homage to one of history's greatest writers and most interesting thinkers.

🥇 Winner

“10 Ways to Explain Your Husband's Death to Your Son” by Zack Powell

🏆 Winner of Contest #163

Content warning: Themes of death***1. Tell the truthBe gentle but honest. This is your son's first time experiencing death, his only rodeo.He is five years old, wild-eyed and sugar-crazed and baby-toothed. A sweet boy. He doesn't complain about going to church or preschool. He picks up the toy cars in his room without being asked, lowers the seat after using the toilet. Some days you feel as though you've won the lottery.At night, he helps you say grace. Eyes closed, hands clasped over a plate of hot dog mac and cheese, he prays for God to w...

185 comments 185

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⭐️ Shortlisted

“The White Feather” by Daniel Allen

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #163

Emma Whitworth sat outside the post office, just as she had every day for the past week. Her stomach ached. She’d tried everything to make it go away. Ginger, chamomile, peppermint, even that new vapour rub that always gave her a headache, nothing worked. Only one thing could relieve her pain now. She glanced up at the clock tower. It was almost eight o’clock. The office staff should have finished sorting the letters by now. She rose from her seat, took a deep breath, and slipped inside. The minute she saw Mr Finch’s face, she knew that r...

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“Fluoxetine” by Shuvayon Mukherjee

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #163

I never asked Ma about her favorite animal, but it was probably one of those birds that eats insects off the backs of sub-Saharan oxen. She had a neurotic desire to look after people, and if they swatted her away, she’d swoop right back in and start pruning again. After she retired from nursing, she bought a herd of bison and spent her days fluttering around them instead.Before the Big C took her, she used to say, without a lick of humor, that they were her kids. All fifteen of them were good as gold, she’d add, ‘cause they did nothing but c...

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“Paper Girl” by Hamzah Malik

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #163

Once upon a time there lived a girl made out of paper. She had puzzled her village when she was born, but over time they realised she was just like any other child, apart from one curious quirk. Paper Girl did not hold a memory, and she would forget everything every morning she woke up. To remedy this, Paper Girl’s mother lovingly painted colourful patterns on her daughter. She would explain what each pattern meant, and every morning when Paper Girl awoke, confused and scared, she would look at her colourful patterns and reme...

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“The Doll.” by Mel Dingwall

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #163

Contains a dead body, suggestions of murder and drug addiction.There was a plague of crickets the summer we found her body. They were everywhere. At the bus stop, hopping on the road, even sitting on the pump at the gas station. I remember the dead ones crunched under our sandals as we walked down to the creek.“My butt hurts.”“Then stop scratchin’ it.”“Candy, this grass won’t quit whippin’ me, it’s hurtin’ my legs.”“You didn’t have to come, Greg.”“Mom made me. Where are we goin’?“I’m goin’ to get tadpoles down at the creek.”“Why?”“For Billy....

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“Content” by Arthur P. Dutton

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #163

They sat and picked through images of dogs. All breeds. Puppies, full grown, and tired old dogs. The three algorithms sat around the table and picked through the stacks together. They consumed the images they thought she would like, the rest they dropped through a hole in the center of the kitchen table. None of them had spoken in many zeptoseconds.“Father, what if I don’t want to make recommendations for Julie Hudson of Grove Park? What if I want to be emailed to people for free, like Pongle_567?” the smallest algorithm asked the largest.&n...

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“A Misguided Memoir” by Kelita Sim

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #163

“A man’s pursuit for wealth and fame is his greatest downfall”What a statement! I hear you exclaim. Please know, dear reader, I’m not intentionally trying to rustle feathers. I’m not trying to make a name for myself and become known for my thinking like the great Aristotle. No, I’m a simple man making a, quite frankly, obvious observation.Although I am now old and suffering from “disease in my legs” (the physician insists it is gout), spending my latter years prostrated on my bed, I have lived a comfortable and fulfilling life. Now that I am...

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This week's prompts

Start your story with someone breaking an awkward silence at a family dinner.

Adults – 36 stories

Write about a character who is living through a major historical event — whether they know it or not.

Historical Fiction – 40 stories

Write about a character who risks everything to pursue their heart’s desires.

Romance – 19 stories

Write a story about someone facing death for the first time in their life.

Sad – 88 stories

Write a story in which someone says “You'll never be content.”

Adults – 51 stories

Stories

“10 Ways to Explain Your Husband's Death to Your Son” by Zack Powell

🏆 Winner of Contest #163

Content warning: Themes of death***1. Tell the truthBe gentle but honest. This is your son's first time experiencing death, his only rodeo.He is five years old, wild-eyed and sugar-crazed and baby-toothed. A sweet boy. He doesn't complain about going to church or preschool. He picks up the toy cars in his room without being asked, lowers the seat after using the toilet. Some days you feel as though you've won the lottery.At night, he helps you say grace. Eyes closed, hands clasped over a plate of hot dog mac and cheese, he prays for God to w...

185 comments 185

Read story

“The Hummingbird” by Kathleen Fine

Submitted to Contest #163

Roxanne hated black. She hated black licorice. She hated black pepper. She hated her coffee black. Black didn’t suit her. Roxanne was a colorful woman and therefore she always dressed vibrantly. So instead of wearing black to Henry’s viewing, she wore green. A green Badgley Mischka Mikado satin bow midi-dress that she was supposed to wear to a gala she was attending in Montreal with Henry in two weeks. But now, she’d be going to the gala solo. Now, Henry was dead.Henry had always told her green brought out her green eyes. “Green like the Bra...

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“Mommy, No!” by Stevie B

Submitted to Contest #163

“Please don't, ma!”“You’ve got to hear it from me,” his mother insisted.“I don’t want to!”“It’s the way you’re built.”"What do you mean? Stop telling me!”“How you’re wired.”“Wired? Wires, why?”“Your programming…”“No more talking, I’m confused.”“You’re not a real boy, honey.”Her words stung like angry hornets. With each stab of truth what had been only suspected now was coldly and callously confirmed as reality by a person whom he‘d thought was his mother. But apparently, she wasn’t. As upsetting as that was it wasn’t as bewildering as this k...

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“The White Feather” by Daniel Allen

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #163

Emma Whitworth sat outside the post office, just as she had every day for the past week. Her stomach ached. She’d tried everything to make it go away. Ginger, chamomile, peppermint, even that new vapour rub that always gave her a headache, nothing worked. Only one thing could relieve her pain now. She glanced up at the clock tower. It was almost eight o’clock. The office staff should have finished sorting the letters by now. She rose from her seat, took a deep breath, and slipped inside. The minute she saw Mr Finch’s face, she knew that r...

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“Mrs. Chesterfield on Deck” by Story Time

Submitted to Contest #163

Mrs. Chesterfield refuses to board the lifeboats. She insists that the boat is not sinking. We have assured her that it is. We have pointed to the ocean. We have said “You see, Mrs. Chesterfield? You see how it’s getting closer to us? It isn’t meant to do that. The ocean is meant to stay where it is in relation to a boat. If it begins to approach, something is terribly wrong.” With a turn of her chin, Mrs. Chesterfield goes right back to her knitting. She informs us with a curt tone that she was promised an unsinkable experience. Rummagi...

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“Syriah Falls” by Michał Przywara

Submitted to Contest #163

It’s Syriah’s turn to fall, but she hasn’t gone yet. I made it just in time.The cold wind rips at me when I exit the labour elevator at the top floor, and I feel my balls shrivel into my body. It’s not just the chill. The top floor of the Meridian-Yamagawa Arcology is unfinished, a work in progress. It’s all beams and scaffolding, and precious few walls. A sobering thought at 1,257 metres in the air.But it’s a hell of a view.The smog clouds of the city are below us, glowing neon green and pink from all the pleb lights that poison the air. An...

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“Peace After the Storm” by Melony Beard

Submitted to Contest #163

As I stood outside the front doors of the drone factory where I'd worked for over twenty years, I stared at the furious black sky threatening any moment to release it's pent up frustration. Should I dare make a run for it without my umbrella? I thought for almost a moment too long, but as the first sprinkles fell, I realized it didn't matter if I was drenched. No one at home would care how I looked when I dragged my exhausted body through that door anyway. Certainly not him, the man I had been married to for twenty two years now. I made a ru...

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“Fluoxetine” by Shuvayon Mukherjee

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #163

I never asked Ma about her favorite animal, but it was probably one of those birds that eats insects off the backs of sub-Saharan oxen. She had a neurotic desire to look after people, and if they swatted her away, she’d swoop right back in and start pruning again. After she retired from nursing, she bought a herd of bison and spent her days fluttering around them instead.Before the Big C took her, she used to say, without a lick of humor, that they were her kids. All fifteen of them were good as gold, she’d add, ‘cause they did nothing but c...

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“A Witch's Fortune ” by M B

Submitted to Contest #163

Dusk had always been Yvette’s favorite time of day. The sun was setting swiftly: a flame of red against the sea. The boom of surf and the sound of cars driving past the sidewalk intermingled with the ever-present cry of gulls as they scavenged for food left by tourists. It’s nice to be a tourist, the brunette girl thought to herself. Her pale face had a touch of sun to go along with the smattering of freckles that went from the bridge of her nose to below her eyes. A large black raven was perched on her shoulder. “POPCORN!” The rav...

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“The Deputy” by Kendall Defoe

Submitted to Contest #163

It was a long time before anyone spoke, but the boy knew almost immediately that he had made a mistake. “What kind of a question is that?” His father, halfway through his rice pilaf and roasted vegetables, was frozen with anger. He shook his dreadlocks at the boy and seemed to be on the edge of breakdown. “Who would ask such a thing over dinner?” Sympathy was not forthcoming from his mother, a woman much younger and calmer than his dad, but still tight with her annoyance. “Oh, darling, you can’t pose such a question while we are eating. It j...

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“Love Between the Sheets” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #163

TW: Sex They met on the stairs. Hearts beating a drumroll. “Kiss me,” he commanded. After looking around, she leaned forwards. A lusty smile spread across her lips. Four blue eyes closed as their lips met. “We shouldn’t,” she whispered, pulling away. “Isn’t...

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“Love and hate” by Ruth Porritt

Submitted to Contest #163

Hello everyone, This story is the sequel to 'Blue Bates bed and breakfast'. (You can find 'Blue Bates bed and breakfast' in my previously published Reedsy contest stories. Thank you.) In this story, 'Love and hate' Weston and Miss Daniels return. Will they fall in love, and can they admit their feelings for each other? Next, can they avoid violent acts, or will they cause mayhem? Last, but not least, this story is dedicated to Liz Redt. Thank you for requesting this sequel. (I hope you enjoy reading it, as much as I enjoyed writing it...

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“The Y2K Crown” by Scott Christenson

Submitted to Contest #163

My brother remembered last year we played a family trivia game with Dad and his pick for a ‘last meal’ was lamb chops, so we cooked him those for dinner tonight. Lamb chops are not a common dish in Chicago. Mom found them at the gourmet supermarket in Buffalo Grove. She said it’s the least we could do.At the dinner table, all those lamb chops are grilled and arranged in a crown. Sitting behind them, Dad looks at us and announces, “Computers around the world are going to crash tomorrow. Do you realize what that means?” His voice is loud and d...

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“Save Your Strength!” by PJ Aitken

Submitted to Contest #163

I don’t know what all the bloody fuss is about. I’m fine! Just having one of those days where I want to stay in bed that’s all. The number of times the kids have done the same and I’ve had to let them off in case they were ill. Although I do love it when I get the doctor to come round the house and as if by magic they instantly get better. Would be odd doing that now since they’re all grown up with kids of their own. I might get Thomas to help me play a trick on them when they come round. That would be fun. There’s a cobweb on that light aga...

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“All Tied Up and Nowhere to Go” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #163

TW: Swearing and Ninja Sex Party references. Chords around Esmerelda’s wrists cut into her flesh. Her captor paced the basement, glancing at her intermittently. A single candle lit the space. The flame danced, threatening to quit at a moment’s notice. “What are you waiting for, fang face?” She asked. “Are you going to kiss me or not? Don’t leave me in suspense.” “I never kiss… girls,” said the vamp...

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$250

Prize money

234

Contest entries

126

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Sep 16, 2022 EST

Won by Zack Powell 🏆

Title: 10 Ways to Explain Your Husband's Death to Your Son

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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