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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#190: Eras

To quote Brooklyn 99, Taylor Swift “makes all of us feel things.” With her honest and reflective accounts of growing up and searching for yourself and your place in the world, she’s managed to trace her remarkable coming-of-age arc in a way that millions of people can still relate to.

This week, let’s remember what growing up feels like, or take inspiration from Taylor Swift’s master storytelling to come up with a new story. But remember — using lyrics isn’t allowed!

This week's prompts

Start a story that begins with a character saying “Speak now.”

Dialogue – 86 stories

Write about someone who decides to make their own version of something old.

Character – 36 stories

Set your story in New York, where someone’s been waiting for your character.

Adventure – 39 stories

Write a story about a fandom

Funny – 27 stories

Start your story with someone vowing to take revenge.

Dark – 62 stories

Stories

“THE SOUL OF THINGS” by Mara Masolini

Submitted to Contest #190

THE SOUL OF THINGS/ THE SOUL IN THINGS “ NOW speak,” Anthony said. The invitation was addressed to Geronimo, an elderly Indian who lived in a hermitage on the mountain for decades. Anthony had met him by chance while afflicted by the loss of his son, he was wandering through the woods in search of peace, but indeed in the absurd hope of finding his son again. Even when he had glimpsed Geronimo from afar, appearing and disappearing among the vegetation, he had hoped he was her son Daniel. Anthony knew that Daniel had died and he couldn’t co...

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“Cali, last of the Calico's” by Michelle Wolk

Submitted to Contest #190

"Speak now!" demanded Cali. She couldn't get over Bear Bear's shyness. " We'll never find him at this pace." It had began to snow in the mountains of Virginia, as Cali and her black and white kitten adventurer, Bear Bear began their journey into the woods. Bear Bear had been named for his plushness as Cali was named for her calico markings. The kitties human mama would be worried if they were gone for more than a couple of days. What had sparked this adventure was Cali's human mama telling her she was so rare, that she would be surprised if ...

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“Speak now” by Craig Brown

Submitted to Contest #190

“Speak now.” An invitation to confess to someone else’s crime. Laszlo sat behind his desk, peering over grubby half-moon lenses, a fierce midday sun illuminated a half-cleared fingerprint, the greasy remains of his breakfast sausage. The day’s heat enticed a sheen to his hairless dome, a lone bead meandered toward his jaw, ignored, his hands occupied with a switch, flexing the cruel rod, warming it to the task ahead. In the court of Laszlo, justice is swift, often misplaced. He doesn’t care for the testimony of the inn...

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“Speak Now” by Emory Pearson

Submitted to Contest #190

“Speak! Now!” My father boomed as we stood in the dark foyer, my shoes in hand and socked toes gripping the cold marble tile. “I’m sorry. It’s not—” “—It’s not what? It’s not what it looks like? I was fifteen once, too, J.P., and it’s always what it looks like.” He continued without acknowledging I was speaking.I had snuck out of the house for the third time that week, not returning until a little after 4:00 a.m. This morning...

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“Speak from the Heart” by Pete Obe

Submitted to Contest #190

"Speak now, child", the words of her father echoed in Sarah’s mind as she stood at the front of the church. She took a deep breath and prepared to tell her story. Sarah had always felt like an outsider in her conservative community. She was drawn to women, but she knew that her feelings were considered taboo in the community. She had been struggling with her sexuality for years, but she had never found the courage to tell anyone. That was until she met Emma. Emma was everything that Sarah had ever wanted in a partner - kind, caring, and unde...

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“The Chaotic Trial of the Gaffer” by Lisa H. Owens

Submitted to Contest #190

“Speak now, for to hold your tongue is to condemn this boy to death. What say you, my constituents? Will you execute the gaffer?” Father Yosemite slowly ran his claw-like titanium fingernails down the gaffer’s cheeks, leaving behind identical deeply etched mazes. Bloody hallmarks of shame. “The floor is now open for discussion,” he spread his arms wide—a humble man not afraid of discord—then pointed to the focal point of the chamber. A slab of granite retracted to reveal the Open Floor, a natural phenomenon, burping and expelling noxious fu...

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“The Son” by Maddie Nagan

Submitted to Contest #190

“Speak now.” “Yes, to go, please.” He walked out of the café/bookstore/grocery store/clothing store hybrid into the rushing public, charting a path between the tall, small, male and female figures to the building just in eyesight a couple of blocks away. The bicycles on the path next to the sidewalk didn’t need to be taken into consideration since it’s only the sidewalk pedestrians walk on, and yet there is occasionally a cyclist who could not care less about any other people’s motives or lives and simply rushes through the people walking, s...

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“Or Forever Hold Your Peace” by Chris Mueller

Submitted to Contest #190

“Speak now or forever hold your peace,” the priest said like he has a thousand times before. Nick peered into his lovely bride's eyes as sweat bubbled above his upper lip. He ran his hand through his jet-black hair and gave her a smile, but it looked like he was checking his teeth in the mirror for leftovers. A month ago, he called his family back home where he grew up. He hasn't seen them in over a year. “I have news,” he said. “I’m in love. We've known each other for eight months and we're getting married.” “Whhaaat” h...

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“Speak Now Your Sorrow, Jesse Turner” by Christopher Gunn

Submitted to Contest #190

THIS STORY CONTAINS DEEP GRIEF, LOSS, AND DEATH. “Speak now.” It answered from the dark of the woods. “You have called and I have come.” She’s been in the ground a week. The house groans in her absence. Every settling timber seems to call out her name. The sound of it haunts me late at night. I can’t sleep. Rebecca, it calls. But she doesn’t answer. Her side of the bed is cold. Every wrinkle in the sheets lays the same as the last morning she got up to the aroma of coffee brewing in the kitchen. But the smell of her shampoo is gone from th...

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“Reincarnation of Malaiah ❤️” by Archana Baghel

Submitted to Contest #190

She sat in the corner looking at her reflection in the broken mirror wondering what "something" was that messed with the flow of life. What had gotten so stuck in rut that her smile was mostly halfway incomplete . There is no evidence of anyone else to be held responsible. As many blame games she wanted to play, the only reflection that stared back was her own.Life is the ultimate prankster and all of us its victims. God gets pure pleasure in seeing us chasing our tails. Humans are the most entertaining reality show props.In that exact momen...

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“@staris” by Charlie Baudry

Submitted to Contest #190

I’ve spent goodness knows how many hours watching other people put make-up on, far more than I’ve spent on my own face in the last fifty years. I tug at my cheeks, getting both hands involved in order to lift the jowls. “A tuck” that’s what they call it. All this skin, safely tucked behind the ears, out of view, where it belongs, heaven forbid saggy skin is visible. When I let go, the skin rushes back, not quite like a twanged elastic band, more like a dribble running down a cheek. There was a time it didn’t do that, although I didn’t notic...

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“Radio” by Elijah Cooley

Submitted to Contest #190

Jabari inclined his face toward the radio and listened to the soccer game. He could see it all in his mind's eye… the Players lining up on the field, each taking their positions. The yell to start, the kicking and running and everything swept Jabari into it. Oh, he wished he had a radio of his very own, so he could listen all day. “Jabari! Time to go!” his Mama called. Jabari got up from the radio, Yared, his best friend, following. “Great game, huh?” Yared asked. Jabari nodded. “Did you hear that goal? Basically ripped a hole in the net!” J...

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“A Trip To New York” by Max French

Submitted to Contest #190

(Warning, Very Adult Language, Rated-R humor. Cussing.) In a city that never sleeps, the bonds of friendship can transcend the barriers of time and space. Allow me to introduce two long-lost college friends who reunite for a whirlwind tour of New York City. However, even a happy story can sometimes become twisted in… Maxwell’s Morbid World. #### Jack stood outside Vinnie's apartment building with a phone to his ear. "Hey, Vinnie! I'm here, man. Where are you?" Vinnie answered, "Ah, Jackie boy! Good to hear your voice. I'm r...

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“Up And Down, Eight And Out” by Connor Jones

Submitted to Contest #190

I had been dating him for a month now. Everything seemed to be— okay. He had talked about bringing me to upstate New York for this Pool tournament that he was on the bill for. Eric was a god gifted pool player— I have never seen anybody play the table quite like him in all of Stinesville, Indiana. “I had always wanted to see Coney Island,” I told him—- “Greenwich Village, the Statue of Liberty.”We sat beneath the blanket of stars that comforted the Indiana night, while sitting on the hood of my car—- planning out this new adventur...

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“A Chance Encounter” by Jennifer Yadav

Submitted to Contest #190

Iris stared out the window into the pelting rain, watching trees and farmland streak by. The heat from inside the Amtrak dining car fogged up the windows, but she was grateful to be warm and dry, even if this trip was for all the wrong reasons. She closed her eyes and wrapped her hands around the steaming cup of coffee the attendant placed in front of her with a concerned look. You can do this. This is okay and you are fine. She took a deep breath and released it slowly, feeling her heart rate begin to slow. She relaxed her shoulders and rep...

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$250

Prize money

250

Contest entries

114

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Mar 24, 2023 EST

Won by Éan Bird 🏆

Title: Dear Coldplay, I Love You. Wait. Scratch That.

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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