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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 Artist's Loving Hand” by Rebecca Brothers

Submitted to Contest #190

“Speak now.” Marta tried to take a deep breath. The air in the hearing test booth was stifling. She’d been fighting claustrophobia while the tones had sounded in first her good ear and then much more faintly in her bad one. When they had begun testing her bad ear, she’d at first thought there was some technical difficulty, that the machine had died, because instead of the steady stream of beeps and clicks she’d heard the first time, this test seemed to ...

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“Splice” by Sherri Moorer

Submitted to Contest #190

“I’ll make her pay for what she did to me.” Eliana stared at the replicating strands on the slide under her microscope. This was it. She found the cure for cancer, and probably every genetic disorder on the planet. All it took was splicing the variant of the viral RNA on the human genome. The AI stabilized the variables to a 100% success rate. She swiped a tear from her eye and leaned back, stretching in the green fluorescent glow of the lab. Politics might have gotten Crystal the bid for the nanotech project, but these results were unden...

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“Youthful Isaac, Enunciate! ” by Asraar Elias

Submitted to Contest #190

“Speak now,” says the computer. The person typing into the computer is Sansara Emira Ittihad, prettiest woman I’ve ever seen and hopefully my future employer if I play my cards right and stop jiggling my leg when I talk. I’ve already been warned once. Professionals don’t like the jiggling. From Lulu Grenone: if you need to pee, tell us. Lulu is Sansara’s secretary. She can be a bit harsh. Sansara flicks her chalcedony eyes towards me; I clear my throat on purpose and connect my laptop to the gigantic screen in front of us. “Well, it’s n...

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“Let’s Taco Bout It ” by Sarah Elliott

Submitted to Contest #190

Speak now.” Louise stared warily at Ron as he continued to remain silent. She knew it sounded a little commanding, but this was getting ridiculous. Ron looked out the window with contempt, watched a passing car, and tried hard not to make eye contact with Louise. She was quickly running out of patience, but she took a deep breath and felt a different approach may be more fruitful. “Please? I know you can. I know this isn’t easy, this is a hard one, but you can do it.” Ron looked more tight-lipped than before. He gave her a look as if t...

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“Darkness, My Old Friend” by Emily Hostetter

Submitted to Contest #190

**Sensitive Content Warning**Mental health & murder“Speak now or forever hold your peace.”No one is more shocked than I when my mouth is the one that opens. “I can’t.”My whisper may as well have been a shout in the hushed chapel.Every horrified look in the room is pointed at me. Guess I’ve finally snapped. I drop my gaze, too much of a coward to look at the pools of hurt swirling in my groom’s eyes. There’s no going back now. I open my mouth but quickly close it again, turning to look at my guests, hoping that someone has...

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“THE KILLED VERSION RISES” by Paulo Blanco

Submitted to Contest #190

Monday, 03/20/2023 as if coming out of a trance, eager to reconnect with sources and facts, diligently managed the cluttered Gmail inbox. Then one of those e-mails woke me up so rousingly that it lit the fuse for the powder barrel of the third and final act of my life.He invited me to an international competition of authors and offered me some prompts, among which the one that saddened me proposed that I retell an old story, from my point of view.It was presumably the coincidence of divine providence with my attention and I felt, then, the a...

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“Just Between Us” by Marisa Billions

Submitted to Contest #190

(This story contains adult language, drug abuse, criminal behavior)“Speak now. Let’s hear it.” “I can’t.”“Why can’t you?”“I… I just can’t.” “Are you embarrassed?” “Maybe a little. But it’s more than that.” “Well, what? What else is it?” “It’s just insanely personal. And you wouldn’t understand.” “It’s just between you and me. No one else will ever know. You can trust me.” “Can I? Can I really? How do I know you aren’t just gonna go run and tell everyone else?” “We’ve been friends forever. Since we were...

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“Clack... Clack... Clack...” by Kevin V

Submitted to Contest #190

I stared at the line of the email from the president of our company in stunned silence:Subject: Star Tech Friday. Be ready!Imbecile!How could I have missed that? Why would I not have questioned it? I had no idea what to do now. What I needed to do was go home before I made an even bigger fool of myself. I should've turned and left when Sally at the receptionist's desk gaped at me. She didn't even grace me with her cheery, sing-songy 'Morning Tom!' Caught up as I was, I missed the sign. Then everyone else I passed also looked in disbelief. Wi...

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“BloodLust: Judas’ Kiss” by Alexandra Rodriguez

Submitted to Contest #190

[TW: Death, violence, murder.]I was going to kill my best friend. In the name of vengeance, of course. She had killed my parents, and from the moment Madame Leroux broke the news, I had vowed to take my revenge. Scarlet Leroux is the head of the Wasps mafia, the mafia I belong to, and has been like a mother to me since my own was murdered years ago. She called me into her office on the Summer Solstice, a holiday widely celebrated in our city that usually calls for a night off. She didn’t give a solid reason why I was being summoned, and...

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“A Love Letter....” by Julie Grenness

Submitted to Contest #190

Finally, Teagan had reached 21 years of age. She would now open this sacred letter, which her mother had written to her. This was composed straight after Teagan was born. Teagan polished her glasses and began to read. "Dear Teagan, This is Mummy's love letter to you. I will present it to you on the momentous event of your 21st birthday. As I write, I am resting here, feeling euphoric. I am gazing in wonder that I have made a human. You look so perfect. I checked. You have all your digits, and look supremely content. The fairies have brought...

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“Bail you out” by Eline Pols

Submitted to Contest #190

***Tw: implied: non-graphic, past abuse/abusive relationship, recent: non-graphic attacking someone,Other tw; swearing, Inappropriate Humor and out of place sarcasm, name calling, having scars from a previous abusive relationship. This story goes back in forth between heavy subjects and sarcasm. it's supposed to be funny while adressing touch subjects, it's not supposed to justify abuse.***“Speak now”, Matthew demanded.“Chill out, do you not realize I could have called someone else to bail me out of jail?” Jonah asked, completely unbothered,...

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“Mr. Stocker” by Benja Catton

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #190

The door drew the students towards it like the magnets grabbing up the iron tailings in the labs they’d just completed. Mr. Stocker shook his head in quiet bemusement. Most of these kids had expansive, icy personal bubbles more befitting of polar bears than humans, but when the lunch time bell was approaching, they’d crowd together like fans rushing Taylor Swift for an autograph. He wondered if they were even aware of their proximity, or if they were so singularly focused on getting away from each other as quickly as possible, that they didn...

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“We Stay” by Isabelle Sorrells

Submitted to Contest #190

A crooked smile peeked its way through the folds of a frozen frown. Many assumed Dave did not like to smile, but really he did not have much time to or much reason. “Wouldn’t that be something? My father has been trying to find this fine stinking city for three decades. Geography was never his strong suit. I would show him the way back if only I hadn’t inherited his intelligence.” &nb...

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“A Matter of Perspective” by Kevin V

Submitted to Contest #190

The abandoned house provided the perfect location for me to stake out the Thresher's lair. This house served as their original headquarters from which they ran their 'organization.' Then the city started cracking down on drug houses, this being one they condemned. Without money for the city to raze it, it sat abandoned, allowing time and nature to do it for them. Ironically the Threshers acquired a larger house directly across the street. From there, their membership flourished as did their territory and power. I intend to see that end. Du...

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“Black liquid” by Eline Pols

Submitted to Contest #190

(TW: attempted murder, poison, swearing, betrayal, scars, threatening, ordered murder)“This isn't over. I will come back, and I will get my revenge”, Dylan promised while glaring at Chase.Chase stared in the eyes he had once thought were a gorgeous honey brown.Now they were stone-cold. He took a deep breath. He wanted to yell, but it felt as if he couldn't speak.His vocal cords had betrayed him just like his boyfriend apparently had.Had he really trusted the wrong person? Again?Was he really this stupid and oblivious?Were a few wor...

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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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