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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#179: Levelling Up

New Year's Eve is a time for celebration, but it also marks a watershed. If there's something you've been wanting to achieve, but haven't quite found the time (or willpower) to make happen, the start of a new year can be the perfect moment to turn over a new leaf.

This week's prompts are all in the spirit of progress. Whether your characters are starting an entirely new life, or are making a tiny shift in the pursuit of happiness, it's time for change. And if your New Year's resolution involves getting back into your writing routine after the holiday haze, we hope they'll provide ample inspiration to jumpstart your creativity. We'll see you in 2023!

This week's prompts

Start your story with someone making a vision board.

Adults – 17 stories

Write a story in the form of a list of New Year's resolutions.

Holiday – 38 stories

Your character always makes the same promise; to change. Will they finally make it happen this time?

Angst – 44 stories

Write a story about someone scrambling on New Year's Eve to fulfil their resolutions for the entire year before the clock strikes twelve.

Funny – 28 stories

End your story with a kiss at midnight.

Romance – 73 stories

Stories

“A Kiss in the Void” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #179

Detective Arthas Jacques reached for his pistol. Agent Belle Nguyen was dead and he’d just watched it, among a crowd of scoundrels.Blood poured out of her heart onto the stage. She’d died for show, a demonstration. He would have revenge.“Please. Everyone. Calm down,” said the host. Instead of being there in person the scientist behind Deus ex Sapiens was using a virtual presence device to hide his identity. The droid was a sparkling decedance that put even Arthas’ Spectrum droid to shame. “Though Miss Nguyen is quite dead for now, I can assu...

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“Suicide or Cilantro” by Tara Leigh Parks

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #179

Note: This story contains substance abuse, language, and thoughts about suicide.***Toward the end of the evening, I like to take a drink. The longer I work at the taco truck, the earlier the end of the evening becomes. You know, there’s that saying about it being five o’clock somewhere, a saying that a lot of people use as an excuse to get drunk before dinner. I always say it’s five o’clock somewhere, too, which irritates the hell out of me. I want to sound more refined than that. The gourmands I once starved to impress say they drink at 17:...

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“The Elephant in the Room” by Scott Christenson

Submitted to Contest #179

I promised myself I would change, but it's happening again—at my third job this year at a New York based charity, my coworkers have started calling me ‘controlling’. At first, I heard it just out of earshot; then yesterday, Ashley told me straight to my face. All of I have ever done is try to help people and offer them suggestions to improve themselves.And about the job, even though the weekly salary is low, I enjoy working for charities, at least that's the story I tell myself. Maybe I'm just not good at anything else. I see Sharon fro...

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“A Witch's Word” by Prithviraj Suryawanshi

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #179

Now, Tinny wasn’t a procrastinator; it was Time who was always in a hurry. It was only yesterday when the year had begun, and somehow Time had managed to squeeze a lot more than a day in the twenty-four hours since then. And now Tinny was left playing catch-up. Her own fault that there was even a game to play, really. A resolution list, she had made! As if dreams were docile enough to agree to spend a year confined to the page. But the notion had seemed appealing when Milya told her about it, in Milya’s house exactly a year ago. “Oh, i...

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“THE MIDAS TOUCH” by Susan Catucci

Submitted to Contest #179

I came to the big apple with a plan, and a man. The plan was solid; the man, not so much. His sister warned me he couldn’t handle freedom. Without someone to constantly rein him in, he would self-destruct. She said it just seemed to be the way he was wired. Stan’s phobias and insecurities would kick in and he’d sabotage just about everything good he had going in his life.But I was headstrong and just self-centered enough to think I would be enough of a tether for him. The world was ours, was how I saw it. Well, now a...

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“The New Year’s Eve” by Sasan Sedighi

Submitted to Contest #179

Eleanor leaned in as the clock struck midnight and pressed her lips against Mark’s. It had been a long and tumultuous journey to get to this moment, but it had all been worth it. They had met three and half years ago at a coffee shop downtown. Eleanor had recently finished her law degree and was there to study for her bar exam. She sat at a table and nervously stared at her laptop, reviewing some bar test samples. Questions were tricky and hard to answer. And her anxiety level increased with each wrong answer she gave to a question. When El...

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“The Plastic Fragments of a Broken Sea Turtle Heart” by Liv Chocolate

Submitted to Contest #179

cw: references to near-death experiences 1. Sea turtles, like most reptiles, have three-chambered hearts.There's no sound more unsettling than your own heart beating inside your head. It reminds Cheryl of her mortality—every time she lays her head down on her pillow the wrong way, and her pulse pounds against her skull like the Jehovah’s Witnesses knocking on her door every Sunday to remind her that she won't live forever.Neither will turtles, but she’s never heard a Jehovah’s Witness talk about turtles. Turtle mortality was never a top...

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“A Dropped Ball” by Chris Campbell

Submitted to Contest #179

“Lose weight, tick…”“Hey, hold on! What weight did you lose?”“I lost almost two pounds.”“When?”“In January.”“Have you weighed yourself since then?”“…No, but I wrote my end-of-December and beginning-of-January weights down on a piece of tape and stuck it to the back of the scales as a guide…”“Right, wait there, I’ll get the scales.”“…While you’re doing that, I’m going to tick… Stop procrastinating… no, I’ll tick that later… How’s about, Exercise more… yes, that’s a tick…”“Here’s the scales. It’s a little dusty. Obviously not been used for a w...

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“Resolutions ” by Helen A Smith

Submitted to Contest #179

New Year’s Eve 2022. Just think, tonight I might have been one of the luckiest men alive. Except I’m not.The city in which I was born and still live is pinnacled by spires and towers. It has ancient medieval colleges, museums, galleries, theatres, amazing bars and restaurants and quaint shops. It’s also plagued by streams of tourists and having to dodge endless bikes. The river, the city’s soul, carves its way through the centre before its fast-flowing currents are controlled by locks further on. During the finer months, long narrow flat-bot...

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“The Assassins' Adagio” by Delbert Griffith

Submitted to Contest #179

December 23, 2022 Anna tossed a photograph onto Simon’s desk. The face in the photograph was lifeless and bloody, blank eyes staring into a camera they could not see. “It’s done,” Anna said, slumping into a chair and yawning. Simon stared at the photograph for a long time, his impassive features giving away nothing. After fully five minutes, Simon put the photograph into the shredder by his desk and looked up at Anna. Anna merely glanced at Simon before looking away. “Thank you, neshama.” “Happy birthday, old man.” Simon shook his head, fro...

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“Boundaries” by Laurel Hanson

Submitted to Contest #179

-Contains some foul language-See, this is what I told the cop. That asshole neighbor of mine has been a pain in my butt for years. Always accusing me of being on his precious property, claiming I left my old washing machine on his side of the line, blah, blah, boo hoo. He’s a farmer for Cripes sake! There’s acres of field out there, but I get anywhere near his boundary, he’s coming at me like a bat out a hell.Which is what happened Friday last, and I told that to the cop, like I’m telling you now. See, I had a bit of free time on my han...

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“The Last of the Dandelion Wine” by Delbert Griffith

Submitted to Contest #179

Gail chewed on her pencil, shifted in her seat, and then quickly wrote down her first resolution. #1: I will stop smoking. She looked at the words, laughed out loud, and crossed them out. New words appeared. #1: I will stop smoking. I will smoke less, but I will smoke thoughtfully. I will enjoy the deep inhalation of smoke. I will savor the feeling of calmness that descends over me, and I will appreciate each puff of the magic poison as it leaves my lungs. Alissa sat at the same table as Gail, writing her own list. She didn’t chew her pencil...

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“Things to Do” by Kendall Defoe

Submitted to Contest #179

20. First, I am going to really aim at those ten pounds I need to drop (the doctor said very little about it, but I know what I have to do). Another gym membership might be a little expensive, but I think I can afford it if I save some money. 19. Save more money from work. I don’t have to buy a lunch every day, and I can learn a little more about how to cook things that are not eggs and bacon. I think I might have a cookbook somewhere in here. Maybe I should also skip buying coffee every day at the café. Not all my fault. 18. Tell Laura how ...

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“A Moment of Selfishness” by Sav Lightwood

Submitted to Contest #179

The prince had a lot on his mind, none of which were productive thoughts. He paced back and forth like a bird in a cage, much to the annoyance of his fellow generals. Earlier that week, he made a big deal about not needing a personal tent, citing affirmations like 'I trust my men' and 'it would be unnecessary weight' and most notably, 'I'm only the crown prince, what's so special about that?'. Sure, he was the prince of the Holy Halidom - his blood and lineage favoured by the goddess, destined to pull the sword from the stone, to lead a...

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“Twelve Books Before Twelve” by Rama Shaar

Submitted to Contest #179

“You know what your New Year’s resolution should be?” Josh asked, half drunk, “To return these books to their rightful owners!”Lying on the other couch in our living room, wine in hand, I rolled my eyes lazily before I fell asleep. This was the last day of 2021. The last night.On January 1st of 2022, I woke up with a friendly headache. I gasped a little when I looked at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. I’d never gone to bed without washing my makeup, brushing my teeth, flossing and applying my night creams. I was never a drinker, e...

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$250

Prize money

200

Contest entries

103

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jan 06, 2023 EST

Won by Saeda Rose 🏆

Title: Resolute

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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