Menu

Prompts

Contests

Stories

Blog

Menu

✕

CONNECT

Editing Design Marketing Publicity Ghostwriting Websites

BLOG

Success Stories

APPS

TOOLS

Book Promotion Sites Book Review Blogs Booktube Channel Guide Book Title Generator Character Name Generator Independent Publishers Literary Agents Literary Magazines Pen Name Generator Plot Generator Publishers Directory Short Story Ideas Writing Contests Writing Exercises Writing Scholarships

ABOUT

About Reedsy Terms Privacy

CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#200: Heard it Through the Grapevine

It’s perhaps not our most virtuous impulse, but it’s a very human one. The desire to gossip, tell tales, and share stories we’ve heard about others doesn’t always win us friends, but it’s born from a real evolutionary need. Psychologists speculate that the original purpose of gossip was to keep us safe, helping our ancestors identify potential threats, build bonds, and learn what behavior was deemed acceptable or unacceptable by their peers. And, for better or worse, that habit has stuck.

Of course, gossip can (and often does) go too far. It’s up to you how it plays out in this week’s stories; will your characters face consequences for their loose lips, or will gossiping actually save the day?

This week's prompts

Write a story that includes the line “my lips are sealed.”

Adults – 96 stories

Write a story about a piece of gossip that becomes more and more distorted as it passes from person to person.

Adults – 33 stories

Your character is known as the town gossip. One day, it comes back to bite them.

Adults – 22 stories

Write a story about someone trying to track down the source of a rumor.

Adults – 35 stories

Your main character has a secret superpower; the gossip they spread always comes true.

Adults – 24 stories

Stories

“Truth be told” by Chido Victoria Manyande

Submitted to Contest #200

TRUTH BE TOLD “I brought some fresh scones with clotted cream, so be a dear, put the kettle on and we can have a nice chinwag,” said Thea as she plopped herself onto the worn sofa in the breakroom, kicked off her work shoes and rubbed her swollen feet before placing them on a chair she had pulled from one of the tables in the staff dining area. Keisha smiled knowingly as she recognised her friend’s code for a juicy piece of gossip that she was dying to share and wondered what colourful story she had today. She filled the...

Read story

“Look at me!” by Lindy M

Submitted to Contest #200

Look at me! ***This story contains some sensitive topics which include mental health & suicide mentioned. Tabitha had always loved to be the center of attention. Oftentimes, she’d fake illness or injury in order to get people to talk to her. She loved it when people would stare at her. She didn’t care if it was because of being proud of her, pity or even shock. If people were giving her undivided attention, she would say and do anything. So, naturally, she enjoyed gossip. True or not, she’d spread things around much like a forest fire ...

Read story

“Threads of a Rumor: The Treasure of Hallbrook” by P.J. Lowry

Submitted to Contest #200

More so than usual, a small town called Hallbrook was consumed with excitement and curiosity. A juicy rumor had swept through the community like a wildfire, leaving many residents eager to uncover its origins. It was a great place for those who loved some juicy gossip, or whispers of what was going on but this was different. There were rumblings of a secret treasure that was buried somewhere in town, and that had ignited many imaginations. Among the town's inhabitants was Josie Miller; a young lady known for her adventurous spirit, and this ...

Read story

“The Hookup” by Kelcey Morrow

Submitted to Contest #200

Monday morning couldn’t come fast enough. I was pissed the F off. I don’t know who started this rumor about me, but it’s gonna be dead by this afternoon, you best believe that! The first person to find: Lashawna. My girl was the know-it-all gossip girl of the school, so if anyone knew who knew the root of a rumor, it was her. Good thing she’s always where I knew she would be: at her table in the middle of the cafeteria holding her court with a crowd of eager students hanging on to her every word. “Hey, Ni-Ni!” she greeted cheerfully. Unf...

Read story

“A Long Time Coming” by Rudy Senecal

Submitted to Contest #200

I put my Ford in park and looked at the trailer for a moment. The rain was just starting to drizzle on my windshield when I saw the first flash of lighting on my right side. The thunder rolled in as I lit up a cigarette. I’ll be honest if I had known how this night would end, I’d have probably smoked the whole pack. But at the time, I wasn’t even sure if I was gonna get out of the car. It’s difficult to describe how it felt going back to that trailer park so many years later. I guess after some more ...

Read story

“Figures of Speech” by Chris Paul

Submitted to Contest #200

I’ve always enjoyed the company of plants. Plants are immutable from outside forces. Living beings without the ability to hear and therefore be changed by words around them. I feel comfortable in my garden. Since I was young, my plants have provided me with a sense of community I no longer feel with those around me. Plants can’t mock and, conversely, can never be mocked. I often wonder what it would be like to take on the form of one of the azaleas growing outside my window. They grow well in acidic soil and can survive the harsher conditi...

Read story

“The Enigma Of Quisenberry Manor” by Lisa D

Submitted to Contest #200

“Thank you so much for taking care of Lela, it means the world to us.” Ms. Quisenberry smiled, grabbing her black petticoat from the wooden antique coat rack. “We haven’t had a date night in what feels like years. I just can’t fathom leaving her alone anymore.” Mr. Quisenberry leaned down so his lips brushed against the skin of my ear, his voice a quiet rumble. “That’s because she’s a paranoid b-“ “Of course, Ms. Quisenberry!” I plastered on a large grin, shooting a glare at his small chuckle. “I am always happy to help.” “You can call...

Read story

“Organic” by Will _

Submitted to Contest #200

He sits alone on the bench. The park is empty. He takes a deep breath in, holds it, exhales, thankful for the brief moment of peace and quiet. He knows it won’t last. The sun will rise, flooding down its unflinching light to drown him as he sits here. The others will come then, almost as if the light has released them from the cramped depression of their flats.They’ll tumble in; families, couples, young men or women on their morning runs. Each one coming to invade his personal island of solitude. Still, he’ll sit here, trying his best to dro...

Read story

“Fictitious Fiction” by James Reed

Submitted to Contest #200

BucK and I laughed as the words rolled joyfully off Joey's tongue. "A fake book report?" I said, trying to shake my parental armor, my compulsive need to guide these two through the ups and downs of conventional education. "Yep," he said. "Eddie and Jimmy always get A's on book reports we write in class. Their parents help them practice the night before. Other kids, they just skim a book and fake like they read a whole one. Hardly anybody really does." He poured a glass of milk and sat down with the sports page. "I'm going to make up the...

Read story

“Gossip Grandmas” by Poppy LaC.

Submitted to Contest #200

“Excuse me young sir, you're at our table.” Ruth spat at the teenage boy sitting at their usual table. “So, grandma?” The teenage boy ruthlessly replied. “I was here first, finders keepers losers weepers.” Ruth stomped her walker, “You young man GET out of our seats…or I’ll tell the manager.” “Ruth, calm down. He didn’t do anything-""Oh shut it Sherly. Nobody asked you.” Marge lightly hit Sherly on the back. “Now get out, get!” Marge hit the boy with her cane, smacking him until he left the diner. “So, what’s the tea?” Marge interlo...

Read story

“A Man Who Couldn't Talk” by Alma Lita

Submitted to Contest #200

The first day of my biography writing project, I carried a black briefcase bag that matched the color of my blouse. The sound of my poem shoes echoed slightly in the corridor when they touched the floor. Inside the designated room, a young man stood in the corner with his back to the door. His eyes seemed to scrutinize every detail on the large photograph taped to the wall. His focus then shifted as I began to appear in the doorway. He turned his head, and invited me to sit down without speaking. Pointing to the blue chair near me with hi...

Read story

“The Grocer” by Tallowood Ridge

Submitted to Contest #200

George came out of the army with no medals and nothing intact but his convictions. He had been shot in the foot – too slow to scramble into a trench and a machine gun bullet pierced his instep – and kept in a bamboo cage for a month with only rice water slops to eat. Nothing had pierced or starved his beliefs, and some had been made stronger. When I knew him before the war he was a short, olive skinned, wiry man with dark eyes and thick slicked back black hair, suited to coal mines in the country of his forebears. He enlisted at the b...

Read story

“Self Exposed ” by Samantha Wheeler

Submitted to Contest #200

Slivers of light seeped into Ramonas' corneas as she slowly blinked open her eyes. At first, the light felt like a refreshing plunge back into reality but that didn’t last long. A splitting headache cracked into Ramonas' skull as she began to use her eyes for the first time in a while. Her latest cosmetic procedure had been the longest one yet and Ramona had been under anesthesia for over 15 hours. Her eyes adjusting to the sterile white fluorescent lights of the clinics' recovery room, the headache began to subside. From the king-size recov...

Read story

“Painted Secrets” by Bernadette Beauchamp

Submitted to Contest #200

Refracted lighting and bright colors caught Camille's eye as she wandered down the pristine Fashion Street of Carlsbad. Each shop had some sort of hook to get people in the door. Inviting scents or colors to cover up that each store was another high-priced clothing store or make-up store, but this place seemed different. It looked like it was as magical as it appeared. Camille hovered in the door, noticing the artwork as the main attraction, not a hook. "You don't need an appointment for this gallery. You can just come on in and look around,...

Read story

“It's Not True” by Tom Graham

Submitted to Contest #200

“It’s not true,” Mina said. Her expression had remained the same throughout. The excitable manner in which Polly had related the story to her having no effect. “But what if it is?” Polly asked, her tone remaining dead serious. The low voice she spoke in only loud enough for her friend to hear, sitting in the study area of the library as they were. “There’s no way, not Mrs. Baker. And even if it was…” “But if it was true, is true, imagine the scandal!” Polly interrupted, her eyes lighting up with the possibility. “Listen to yourself, ju...

Read story

Load more stories

$250

Prize money

210

Contest entries

116

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jun 02, 2023 EST

Won by Katharine Widdows 🏆

Title: Three Questions

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!

Explore more writing prompt ideas:

Adults Writing Prompts ⭢

Adventure Writing Prompts ⭢

Angst Writing Prompts ⭢

Character Writing Prompts ⭢

Christmas Writing Prompts ⭢

Dark Writing Prompts ⭢

Dialogue Writing Prompts ⭢

Dramatic Writing Prompts ⭢

Dystopian Writing Prompts ⭢

Fall Writing Prompts ⭢

Fantasy Writing Prompts ⭢

Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Fluff Writing Prompts ⭢

Funny Writing Prompts ⭢

Halloween Writing Prompts ⭢

High School Writing Prompts ⭢

Historical Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Holiday Writing Prompts ⭢

Horror Writing Prompts ⭢

Kids Writing Prompts ⭢

Middle School Writing Prompts ⭢

Mystery Writing Prompts ⭢

Narrative Writing Prompts ⭢

Nonfiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Novel Writing Prompts ⭢

Poetry Writing Prompts ⭢

Romance Writing Prompts ⭢

Sad Writing Prompts ⭢

Science Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Short Story Writing Prompts ⭢

Spring Writing Prompts ⭢

Summer Writing Prompts ⭢

Teens Writing Prompts ⭢

Thanksgiving Writing Prompts ⭢

Thriller and Suspense Writing Prompts ⭢

Valentine's Day Writing Prompts ⭢

Vampire Writing Prompts ⭢

Winter Writing Prompts ⭢