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#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 – 18 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 – 29 stories

End your story with a kiss at midnight.

Romance – 73 stories

Stories

“Are You Okay?” by Emma Potts

Submitted to Contest #179

When we walked into the party, we were holding hands. I knew my palms were sweaty and the skin around my knuckles was dry and cracking as it always was in the winter months, but he held tightly to me anyway, rubbing a thumb along my fingers to comfort me. I didn’t know anyone here and I always get nervous in new places. “Aubrey! Kat!” Our names from the lips of someone I had never met. She must have known who I was from his social media. Aubrey smiled gracefully - that warm, welcoming smile that could disarm anyone in but a moment. “...

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“The Keening Cup” by Russell Mickler

Submitted to Contest #179

The Hole. Mulled Wine and Hex Herbs. A Toast to the Town. Elina Hogsbreath angrily drove her spade into the earth. Heaving, she hucked the wet mud aside and stood the shovel upright to gauge depth against its neck. “Oughta do,” she grumbled. Reaching into her apron pocket, Elina grasped a handful of salt and scattered it in the hole. Gripping her skirts, she turned away and trudged through the snowy twilight. “Come grass and clover,” she breathed, “it’ll be the last year if I’ve anythin’ to say ‘bout it.” It was the dead ...

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“I Guess It's Fate” by Paul Michael Winters

Submitted to Contest #179

Lucas:The Seattle Public Library is my sanctuary. Sure, the Internet is faster and easier to search. But nothing beats the smell of musty books and the feel of crisp paper. I love to thumb through leather bound journals, and I relish the thrill of discovery when I find exactly what I’m looking for.And today, I’m looking for everything I can find about architecture. It’s the ultimate combination of art and science. This is what I want to study in college. I’m certain of it. Much more certain than being a movie director, which was my passion l...

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“A Room of One's Own” by Patricia Merewether

Submitted to Contest #179

“A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.” ― Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own My one and only New Year's resolution was to clear out the guest room and turn it into a space for me. A studio to write, paint, and craft in. It would also serve as a place to gather my recently-feral wits. I began early morning on New Year's Day, and it went well at first, as these things usually do. The room is small, 8'x10', with a chest of drawers, a bedside table, a floor lamp, and a wing-backed chair...

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“Maybe in Another Life” by Bella Helena A.

Submitted to Contest #179

I've always believed in love; I'd always hoped I'd find it the way a Disney princess found her prince. Singing in window sills as the world rolled on by until that special knight in glistening armor climbed over a mountain and slayed a dragon for my hand. But life has proved to me, on more than one occasion, that such fairytales should stay in the books. Or maybe on the Hallmark channel where the city girl comes back and falls head over heels for the small-town boy. All that garbage I prayed I'd find until I didn't. Turns out life doesn't l...

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“What About Math Club?” by Dave Bede

Submitted to Contest #179

I never imagined it would be this warm on New Year’s Day, even out west at Aunt Sarah’s place. The view from my new room isn’t just beautiful, it’s serene. Cornell Road and the stately houses across the street, and the woods and hills beyond – it’s like one of those idyllic storybooks I used to read in grade school and imagine my life was in one of those imaginary towns, instead of my dirty and gritty hometown with all its unemployment and gangs and worse. Little did I know then that I would get my wish before I was even into high school...

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“A Woman’s World” by Kirsty Ritoridis

Submitted to Contest #179

Sensitive content: contains allusions to sexual violence, substance abuse, physical abuse, suicide and adult language. A Woman’s World Sophia stood back, admiring her work. Driven by a surge of creativity and moved by decisiveness, she had spent the last 6 hours consumed by rage, planning a future that would be worth living for. Sophia was past the point of exhaustion, having not slept properly since the ’incident’. Yet, in her tiredness and hopelessness, she mustered a vision for the year ahead. This year, they would not win. The visio...

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“Welcome To the Farm” by Jeannette Miller

Submitted to Contest #179

Belinda’s feet hurt. She was barefoot and had been walking in the desert for the past four hours. According to her watch, it was only 10:30 am but the temperature had to be in the upper 80s already. This John was a regular so she didn’t question him when he said they had to go where no one would see them. He drove past the roadside motel they usually went to and into the expansive desert. She thought he might have a camper set up somewhere or something. There was no camper. Just his car in the middle of the desert and he wanted everything on...

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“Unspoken Words ” by Ruby Pix

Submitted to Contest #179

Sally Walkers is a mute young woman who's in love with her neighbor Pete. She doesn't know if he feels the same way as her, having always avoided the conversation, fearing for the worse. She's known how she truly felt towards him since he moved there a year ago. In her living room is a large vision board, decorated with pictures of him and scattered information about his day to day habits. Sally herself thought of the situation as unrequited love. She didn't think she was beautiful enough for him, and thought the way she dressed contrasted w...

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“A Kiss At Midnight” by Brittney Duenes

Submitted to Contest #179

Dorothy scrambled to get the rest of her things. Keys—check. Purse—check. Shoes—check. Phone… Where was her phone? She tossed the throw pillows off the couch and ran to the bed to do the same. She checked the common places: bathroom counter, entryway table, charging stand in the corner of the kitchen. No luck. Snapping when it finally hit her, she rushed back to the bathroom and shoved open the shower curtain. The phone was sitting nicely on the waterproof holder she used to watch YouTube as she showered earlier this morning.&nbs...

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“Countdown to New Year's” by Greg Gillis

Submitted to Contest #179

Carrie Thompson was meticulous in everything she did. When she woke in the morning, she let the buzzer on her alarm ring for exactly five seconds before shutting it off. She would then get out of the bed from the left side and have a shower that lasted precisely eight minutes. Carrie allowed her bread to toast for exactly two-minutes-thirty-five-seconds and poured her coffee two-thirds full to allow for her one ...

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“Resolutions Revolution” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #179

Resolution Revolution I’ve never done this before, but it is probably about time. I have made my New Year’s resolutions today after some pretty deep thought that followed shortly after I received some no-nonsense advice from my siblings. Maybe it will be a good thing that I have them ready for when I am at the New Year’s Eve party. I have had some bad experiences in the past with what I have done at such parties. It would be good if resolutions made me a...

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“First Love in Waves & Dimensions” by Kenley Ellis

Submitted to Contest #179

Don’t you remember? I see it every night in the shapes in my ceiling, flickering to technicolor when I hold a pillow close and imagine it’s your body. It was one of those warm summer evenings you could feel in your teeth. Everything that mattered was right there, biting; the fireflies blinking to life outside the window, the sky closing over your parked car. The lights on the dashboard played over your fingertips as you tinkered with the volume and traced them over my arm - “Why can’t you just hold my hand?” I asked, trying not to la...

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“If I Don't, Then Nobody Else Will” by Chad Eastwood

Submitted to Contest #179

Completely change life. Completely change attitude to life. Completely change outlook and way of thinking. Ignore everyone who is negative don’t get drawn into any negative situations. Those people can all take a running jump this year. You have had enough. Be strong. Listen to and learn from everyone. Especially listen to Harry and appreciate that while I don’t understand why he does what he does, that he has good intentions but just can’t express himself without being the most annoying person on the planet. But listen to him anyway...

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“One Last Time.” by Oriel Space

Submitted to Contest #179

I swear the box would always be staring at me. Taunting, reminding. Every time I opened my closet it would look down upon me from its perch at the top, and even though it was tucked behind some shoes, and buried under an old shirt, I could almost feel its presence. Oh trust me, I’ve wanted to get rid of the box plenty of times. But every time I even lifted the ratty flannel to reveal the box underneath, the pain it represented would grip me to the point of incapacitation, leaving me to curl up on the floor and let the pain flow through the t...

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$250

Prize money

202

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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