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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#20: Quite the Character

Between 1887 and 1927, Sherlock Holmes appeared in a total of four novels and 56 short stories penned by Arthur Conan Doyle. Since then, the stories have been adapted countless times, earning Holmes a Guinness World Record for "most portrayed movie character." And while Doyle's mysteries were widely lauded, it was the character of Holmes that had readers coming back time and again.

This week, your challenge is to write a story that highlights a single character. The premise is up to you — just give us some small understanding of this character by the end of the story.

This week's prompts

Write a story about a character who starts out as a pessimist and ends as an optimist. (Or vice versa.)

Character – 46 stories

Write a story about a character experiencing anxiety.

Character – 83 stories

Write a story about a character who would be described above all else as "logical."

Character – 31 stories

Write a story about a day in the life of a mother.

Narrative – 55 stories

Write a story about a character experiencing independence for the first time.

Teens – 59 stories

Stories

“Begin Again” by Barbara Schreibke

Submitted to Contest #20

So this is how it ends, Charlie was thinking glumly as he took the final steps down the courthouse corridor. The ornate wooden door was wide open, and he crossed the threshold with the other sardines swimming his way. Charlie came out on the other side and he stood off to the side of the flagstone path leading to the sidewalk. He was watching and waiting, trying to pull himself together, hoping for a sign that would lead him away from this place and toward a future that was at this moment incredibly unclear. He rehashed the coll...

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“Spiralling Down the Staircase” by Shannon Wright

Submitted to Contest #20

There is a woman I know well that looks beyond others failings to help them find solace. She goes through life hopeful and open to whatever good things God offers. She is an empath that feels everything her friends and family feel. She is even minded and fair and tries to look at situations objectively. Tries to put her self head on into her work putting all of her into customer service rolls or interpersonal relationships she nurtures. She is loving and respectful more times than not knowing that without the social entanglements in the time...

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“Leniyah, Wellklike, and AK-47s” by Jayden Mendez

Submitted to Contest #20

Clunk. The first step into my new school. Clunk. The second step into my new school. Clunk. The third step into my new school. My steps echo all around me, filling the vast area the principal had called the "Gathering Space." I suck in a deep breath, relishing the way the cool air collects on my lip. The Gathering Space is enormous. It splits into a dozen hallways, and each twist and turn in multiple directions. I am amazingly, utterly lost.Despite the tour the principal gave me the other day, my brain was so lost trying to size up the place...

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“Too Many Pineapples” by Rachel Frankki

Submitted to Contest #20

You think it can’t get any worse? This consistent feeling of anxiety that harbors your soul? I’m just standing in the produce section of my local grocery store; and all I can think about the difficulty of choosing the right pineapple for my mom’s fruit salad. I mean, she’s the one making this damn salad, why did she have to wake me up from my nap just so I could go buy it? I never buy fruit, what if I get one that’s not ripe yet but then it gets forgotten about and becomes moldy? Or one that’s too moldy and my mom shuns me? It’s like my memb...

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“Homecoming Obligations” by Susan Sargent

Submitted to Contest #20

The ride to the palace was quiet. T’Vall was never one to make smalltalk on their many travels together, and Ziyell wished it had been one of the others sent to bring her to Keston. She was pleased, however, to have her own horse in the stables, it made the trip so much easier. She shared a unique bond with the mare, something few people understood, even among the Chosen. Her grandmother had been Tjimira, animal communicator, and Ziyell had always assumed that she had inherited at least part of that. At least they would have a fire when they...

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“LAST STAND” by David D'EttoreUser

Submitted to Contest #20

LAST STAND I hear the muffled groans coming from Lt. Alvarez. The medic assigned to us as we advance toward enemy lines is working feverishly to stop the bleeding to make the lieutenant stable enough to transport. “Doesn’t look good, Doc,” I say with one eye on the horizon. “I’ve got to get him back to MASH pronto or your...

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“Library of Lost Memories” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #20

The Library of Lost MemoriesMy life seems to be a series of lost memories, because the events in my past life are so forgettable. I don’t mean to be a whiner or someone who always sees the glass as half full, it’s just that the difference between a happy outcome and a melancholy one rests on a fulcrum that always seems to be weighted against me. I know, I’m a cry-baby with a poor-me complex. Been to a lot of therapists who would agree with the prognosis. Anyway to get to the strange events of the past week, I guess I’d better s...

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“Alison Park” by Mike Garrigan

Submitted to Contest #20

A dolphin swam along side the Arcturus. He peeked his left eye up at Sara, winked, and then flipped away into the brine. “Did you see that, Ollie?” Sara said. Oliver stood erect with his hands behind his back. The bow of the Arcturus was three feet wide. Oliver stood in the bow, feet shoulder width apart, and stared at Waiheke Island in the distance. “Ollie, did you see the dolphin?” Sara said.“Yes. They are quite magnificent,” Oliver said over the crashing water. His voice cut through the surf, salt, and sea. The sides o...

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“The Runaway” by Colleen Pinner

Submitted to Contest #20

The thin boy trudged along the dusty road. When he heard the car stop beside him, he glanced over. Great a sheriff’s car. When he heard the man’s voice. He knew it was over.“You Loren Soames?”The boy glanced at the car and then nodded his head. He hadn’t figured they would find him so soon.“Been lookin’ for you.”The boy didn’t look at him or say anything. The man hesitated, then wiped his brow.“Mighty hot out today, ain’t it?”The boy just stood there.“Tell you what. I’d sure go for something cold to drink about now. How about you?”The boy sh...

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“Scared of the World” by Amira Gilbert

Submitted to Contest #20

I woke up to light shining right into my eyes almost blinding me, I squinted at the light and rolled out of bed yawing. I checked the time on the clock above my dresser and cursed. It was late, really late. I was supposed to be up almost an hour ago. My readings had shown that people who woke up late most days had a high risk of dying earlier that people who woke up around six or seven. Blast these daylight savings! They were messing up my routine, though at least they were better than having an alarm clock! I had heard that alarms were dang...

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“Click” by Lauren Ford

Submitted to Contest #20

Click! The sound of the lock was loud in the darkness. Clara could hear the others breathing heavily around her. The sticky heat of their breath against her skin made her uncomfortable. A sliver of golden light shone through in the top corner of the room. It only penetrated a few centimetres of darkness; the black shapes around her remained faceless, shifting and groaning. She gently lifted a foot to relieve some of the ache that had settled in the bones there. She had been standing for a long time now and hadn’t yet had a chance to r...

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“Devin Spuddleton” by Ben Elliott

Submitted to Contest #20

Devin Spuddleton was born under very strange circumstances indeed. Unlike you or I, Devin did not have fingers. Nor did he have hands, feet, or even a head. Devin was made of potatoes. He was special.Every night he would lay in his makeshift bed of leaves and his mind would be consumed by somewhat spuddy thoughts, yet tonight was different. Swimming around his mind, thoughts of school attacked what remained of his sanity. The other children were going to laugh at him. They would mock his battered, bruised, and yellow skin. They would laugh a...

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“Phone call ” by Aishee Bachhar

Submitted to Contest #20

It was 6am when the alarm went off. Judy woke up with a severe backache. She was having a lot of difficulty to rise and shut the alarm that blared on a table on the other side of the room.Judy lived alone in a studio apartment so she took her time to get out of bed. She needn't worry about waking someone in her apartment. But she was afraid; she didn't want to wake her neighbours.While freeing herself from the blanket Judy complained," Fall has not yet arrived and my back already hurts like hell."After a lot of effort she was finally out of ...

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“The Lullaby” by Ovie Soman

Submitted to Contest #20

Tick. Tick. Tick.I time my breathing to the ticking of the wall-clock. Or at least, I try to. The therapist said it would help, especially with all the breathlessness. But I fail. Repeatedly. My heart doesn’t slow down. The dread doesn’t stop flowing, ice-cold through my veins.Tick. Tick. Tick.He is coming. I know it. He is out there somewhere, steadily making his way toward me. Dodging the cedar trees. Careful not to lose footing in the snow. He is coming. And I am powerless. I sit up in bed, desperate to protect myself. To do something bef...

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“Oblivion” by Luke Henkel

Submitted to Contest #20

I first ran into him on a cold, hard Sunday towards the front end of February. It was the beginning of a particularly strong cold snap, with the temperatures only expected to get lower. Much lower. That particular morning, I was late for mass. I didn’t layer enough, and the instant I was out my door frigid cold slapped me with ferocity. The morning burned violently across my cheeks, my forehead, and my scalp within a few steps, and before I turned the first ...

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$50

Prize money

274

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 20, 2019 EST

Won by Amy St. Pierre 🏆

Title: At Home

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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