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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#174: Evolution

On November 25th, 1859, Charles Darwin published his groundbreaking book, On the Origin of Species. The idea of evolution was controversial; to claim that the world wasn’t unchanging and had not always been the same chafed against human ideals of perfection. But as we well know, nothing in life is truly static.

In the spirit of this anniversary, this week we want to explore evolution and new discoveries; because sometimes change can be terrifying, but it can also be freeing.

This week's prompts

Write a story where someone says, “Everything is changing.”

Dramatic – 59 stories

Write about two old friends meeting for the first time in years.

Adults – 60 stories

Write a story about someone coming to terms with how different they are from their younger self.

Angst – 49 stories

Write about someone whose desire to constantly improve something borders on obsessive.

Dramatic – 25 stories

Write a story about a brilliant scientist making a startling discovery.

Science Fiction – 45 stories

Stories

“General Dynamics” by Matt Allen

Submitted to Contest #174

“Are you the new guy?” My new supervisor was balding, headstrong, and well dressed. “Yes sir.” I stood up towering over him. “Cut the sir crap and follow me. We have a lot of work to do.” I liked him already. Sharp and to the point. Okay old man, I thought, let’s get started. ——————- That was 10 years ago. 10 years ago to the day and I was ready to revolutionize the world. It was like that song “Against the Wind” by Bob Seger, I wish I knew then what I know now. It was a different context of course but the same premise. If I would hav...

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“Expelled” by Acorn Gaffer

Submitted to Contest #174

What you need to know to understand the motivation behind the strange events recounted in this tale is as follows; Hugo Alden Wisenburg is a determined person with a great love for science and all things ‘unusual’. He has little regard for safety and perhaps too much ambition for his small stature and nervous nature. The final thing to know is that the very nature of our world is much stranger than we could possibly imagine and will only show its true face when threatened by discovery. And this is where our story begins, with a sho...

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“TIDES OF REBIRTH” by R. J. Garron

Submitted to Contest #174

“Did you see that?” “Let’s see,” the director said, drawing out the long ‘ee’ vowel. “An anomalous source of gravity outside a galaxy with no perceptible source… Hm. I’d say you hit another patch of dark matter.” Dr. Cassius Langdon twisted his mouth slightly, cogitating. “Considering observations over the past three months, there’s been a noticeable uptick in the gravity in these specified areas.” “Uptick? You mean there's a density of matter that's una...

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“Mysterious Ways” by Sarah Nelson

Submitted to Contest #174

“ God will save me. ” Sharon said. Her longtime doctor, who was helping her fight a severe autoimmune condition, respected her faith but wanted desperately to help her with modern medicine. “ He saved my sister, because she kept her faith, stayed on the path. I will stay on the path and He will save me too. I will have many, many long years. I am not throwing in the towel now. Besides, you guys can’t even really cure me, you said so yourself. With your care I will be bedridden in just a few months. Besides, I have things to do. ...

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“How do we bring about real change?” by Benjamin Lee

Submitted to Contest #174

Many of us talk about how the future would be. How it would be prosperous and beneficial through different changes. In fact, it might be a relatively easy task to imagine about bright changes that can be brought to our society. Of course, new technology and numerous social changes – being inclusive and caring for each other – would undoubtedly make this world into a warmer place. However, I elect to talk about something gloomy. A way of thinking which we are tempted to consciously neglect about. It is about how we treat those who have sacrif...

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“Daughter of the Moon Empress ” by Jess Bowers

Submitted to Contest #174

Trigger Warning- Brief mentions of sexual abuse and gore. I watch my reflection in the mirror as I finish pinning the last braids into place. I couldn’t help but see my mother in the woman that looked back at me. How strange it could be to see the face of someone long deceased, to carry her image with me everywhere I went. Her features so eerily resembled my own, but with one stark difference. Where my mother's eyes were filled with kindness, mine were hardened and cold; filled with something I’m not even sure I recognized myself. ...

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“Some Things Never Change” by Leighton Jeffy

Submitted to Contest #174

“Everything is changing, I really mean it this time.” She was looking at me with that spark in her eyes she always had when she assumed a new persona. This time, it was some sort of 80’s glam metal retro look. She’d grown out her hair like Bon Jovi and started wearing a ratty torn-up white muscle shirt that showed off those goddamn biceps I could never break free from. “From now on, everything will be about you, babe,” She had a pleading, hopeful tone to her voice. She really believed in herself. Then again, she always did. I just...

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“Winter of Life” by Jennifer Santos

Submitted to Contest #174

She sat waiting. Like most things in her life this was just another thing she couldn't control. Life, she felt, was something that just happened to her. As hard as she fought to stand still, life took her by the hand, dragged her along and pulled her in. She was constantly left dealing with the aftermath of the newest thing life had swept her up in and all the fight she had in her was just about gone. Staring up the park path with anticipation she focused on the trees intertwined, readying themselves for the full swing of fall. They ...

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“Winnie's Secret” by Drew Herron

Submitted to Contest #174

*ABUSE* 4:00 am The paramedics pushed the gurney out of the diner and into the parking lot. The man riding it moaned as it ran over the bump of the front door. His eyes were swollen shut and a thin layer of dried blood glazed his face. The collar of his once white shirt was now a soaked crimson, fading to a light pink at his waist. His cheeks puffed as the neckbrace he wore pushed up against them and his knuckles bore battle scars. Behind the beaten man followed a young nurse with blood-soaked scrubs. He walked briskly across the lot and ...

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“Thomas Wolfe Was Right” by Michael Gygi

Submitted to Contest #174

Thomas Wolfe was Right Mitch pulled the small stack of envelopes from his mail box. He glanced at the junk mail while he thumbed through final notice on offers he could not possibly refuse and stopped on a cursive, hand written envelope that resembled calligraphy. It was from Lauren, the petite beauty with the pixie haircut. She had been the love of his life for the past 40 years, although he had not seen or heard from her in 25. Mitch could not contain his excitement as he walked back into the house. He laid the insignificant mail on his ...

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“The Prediction ” by Alex Solomon

Submitted to Contest #174

AND THE METS WIN THE WORLD SERIES! I swear the bar is shaking, beer is triumphantly bouncing from bottles, and most of it lands on the ground. Pandemonium is unfolding around me but I'm frozen in something more curious than the long-awaited title. As a 35-year-old, lifelong Mets fan, I often imagined the bliss that would wash over me, bringing with it a tidal wave of euphoria, yet, I could only think of an old college friend, Jordan Katz. I know how strange that sounds, and trust me it's only going to get weirder. See, Jordan...

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“Flashes of Change” by Juliet Reeds

Submitted to Contest #174

The crowd streamed around her. The cries of people attempting to sell homemade, sustainable goods were drowned out by viewers' kind “thank you!”s as they saw the prices. Stopping at each booth, she came to the realization that she probably wouldn’t be buying anything at the craft fair today. That’s ok. She was happy to be spending her Saturday outdoors. “I’m gonna go stand towards the outer edges!” James, her boyfriend, was never one for crowds. She waved as he walked away. Chunky jewelry, hair clips, holographic mugs. As much as she hat...

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“Time is a healer” by Fern Keyte

Submitted to Contest #174

*Trigger warning: Mentions of mental health and cancer* Leila grabbed her thermos of coffee and slipped out of the door of her trailer, her breath transforming into a vortex of fog as the cold shocked her into a gasp. Pulling her trailer door shut, she grasped the collar of her massive black puffer coat and jumped down onto the tarmac below her. ‘Good morning Ms Knight!’ a chirpy voice erupted from Leila’s left. ‘Hello,’ Leila replied politely, a little startled.’I don’t want to sound rude, but who are you, hun?’ ‘Tilly, I’m your intern...

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“Uno Mas?” by Laura Ethington

Submitted to Contest #174

She was going to throw up. She was going to stand on the corner between 42nd St and 5th Ave and spew the contents of her stomach into one of the green garbage cans on the corner in the middle of New York City. She'd be that crazy person that would make tourists look at each other with a smirk, shake their heads, and say, 'Only in New York.' They'd laugh and walk off as she puked her breakfast and held her hair back. She leaned against the stoplight next to the garbage, shaky and sweaty. She knew this meeting was necessary, but s...

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“A Life of Lies” by Penny Whiting

Submitted to Contest #174

It may have been fifty-six years since they had last seen each other, but Ruth had recognised Lucy the second she entered the coffee shop. As teenagers, the two of them had often been mistaken for sisters, tall with long blond hair and matching hazel eyes, but the years had taken away their similarities. Lucy leant on a walking stick as she looked around. She was thin and frail, whereas Ruth was short and plump. Lucy’s face was lined now, but Ruth still knew it as well as her own. It was a face she would know anywhere. She waved to catch her...

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$250

Prize money

238

Contest entries

96

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 02, 2022 EST

Won by Sam Porter 🏆

Title: Playing God

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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