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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#204: Wild, Wild West

The days of the old American West have long held weight in the collective imagination of storytellers. There’s a mythic power to it. Tales of survival, revenge, and itinerant gunslingers still draw us in, whether for a bit of adventure or to ask deeper questions about morality and philosophy.

The desolate desert landscapes, the struggles and conflicts between settlers and Native peoples, the wandering heroes, all these elements and more have inspired writers across genres, from George Lucas to Stephen King. Perhaps the best thing about a Western is its malleability and creativity: its ability to be set anywhere from America in the 1800s to a galaxy far, far away. So this week get your cowboy hats (or space helmets) ready as we go to explore the great unknown.

Plus, you're invited! 🎉

The second issue of PROMPTED, our literary magazine, is coming soon — and to celebrate, we're holding a live online event next Thursday! Find out more and get your free ticket right here.

This week's prompts

Write a story about a stranger coming to town and shaking up the order of things.

Character – 56 stories

Set your story in a desert town.

Adventure – 52 stories

Write a story about someone undertaking a long, dangerous journey.

Adventure – 39 stories

Write a Western-inspired story in a new genre or setting (e.g. a space western, fantasy western, etc.)

Fiction – 78 stories

Write a story about someone seeking revenge for a past wrong.

Dramatic – 73 stories

Stories

“Let No One Cut Him Down” by Matthew Keoki Miller

Submitted to Contest #204

It was a quarter past high noon in the desert mining town of Absolon. The townsfolk shuffled between stores or loitered on decks, desperate for any remedy to fight the punishing heat. Sweat and misery fogged their thoughts. Even the best vices made no difference. The hanging corpse in the middle of the town square didn’t help. The heat rendered a new odor from the body akin to boiled asparagus. Despite the absence of wind, the stench managed to personally introduce itself to everyone within a mile. The dead man’s skin sagged, his fin...

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“The Cold Hand Of Death” by Douglas Goff

Submitted to Contest #204

The sheriff wiped his sweaty brow with the back of his hand and spit a soggy half-smoked cigar into the dusty street. Tex Tungsten had been in law enforcement for over twenty years, having survived the wild west by sheer guts and intuition. Now that intuition was telling him something was amiss. The middle-aged lawman had stared death down so many times he had lost count, and bore the scars to prove it. He had been shot twice and stabbed three times, not to mention the many fist fights. Still, the cold hand of death had failed to drag...

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“Annoyance” by Roxanne-Lou AMINIAN

Submitted to Contest #204

The train sped through the darkness. Through the window, the plains of the West, frozen in the great white embrace of winter, shimmered under a round moon. The biting cold from outside did not spare the compartment, and I shivered, frustrated that the railways, after so many years, had not resolved this issue. At one point, breaking my solitude, the door creaked, announcing the presence of a short, stout man wearing a ridiculous bowler hat.- What a bitter cold, it's unimaginable! Can you believe that the temperature inside the entire car doe...

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“Black Walnut” by Randel Hodge

Submitted to Contest #204

How can I justify our – no – my actions? Good God, it was hot and dusty despite it being “monsoon season.” This dirty, sun-bleached southern extremity of Arizona surely contributed to the vortex of madness that pulled us in. I sit in a booth in the corner of a small café with a window view of Morley Avenue. I don’t know how I found this place. The turquoise-colored outside walls decorated with painted desert flowers attracted me subconsciously, I suppose. The reasoning for what we’ve – no – I’ve done, dammit, seems to reorder every time I...

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“Sharon's corral” by Stevie Burges

Submitted to Contest #204

Sharon was a tall, well-proportioned, stunning attractive woman who had recently arrived in Fort Worth from Hereford in the Texas Panhandle. She had met Phoebe one evening in a popular bar near the Stockyards where most of the cowboys went. Phoebe saw David chatting to the slim, sexy woman tossing her mane of thick, luxurious hair around, ensuring she was noticed by half the bar as soon as she had entered. ‘Damn’ thought Phoebe ‘c’est la vie.’ During the evening, David wandered over to say hello and brought the girl he was wi...

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“The Bitter Aftertaste of a Sweet Revenge ” by Farnaz Calafi

Submitted to Contest #204

Eva was mad. Like an addict who couldn't get her fix, kind of mad. Aiden had tossed out all her junk food. Again! Seemed like she could never hide them from him. He looked into every cupboard, shelf, and desk drawer, to find anything with too much sugar, salt, or artificial colors. The usual suspects were gummy bears, M&M’s, small bags of chips, and little Hostess cakes. Sometimes he would find new things, like cookies covered in frosting and sprinkles that looked almost too cute to throw away."Why?" Eva inquired. "They're poison, Eva. Y...

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“Annabeth” by Mark VanTassel

Submitted to Contest #204

CW: Sexual violence, substance abuse A History from the Strength of Old Erde Date: 976 (Earth 1951) “Did the saltpeter work?” Nell asked. Emily grimaced. “No.” “I worried it was a myth,” Nell said. “I don’t think we’ll find anything. Men conduct most research, and control the rest. They’re looking to enhance the male libido, not suppress it.” Emily nodded. “Thanks, Nell. Let me know if you find an alternative. How’s Gram?” “Weak, but in good spirits. She remembered me today, and fed herself.” “That’s good. I’m going to pop in...

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“Color Me Stranger” by Parker Ballentine

Submitted to Contest #204

Warning: The following story has material of sensitive nature to include sexual assault, mental illness and violence. Reader discretion is advised. Daddy was an old fashioned cowboy before he died. He did various sorts of ranch work until he was gored to death by a bull. It happened just after I was born and we moved to Los Nemeses, Texas. Momma keeps a picture of him at home. In it he is wearing a Stetson and riding a horse. Even though I did not know him, I like to imagine him giving me that sage advice you might expect from an old tr...

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“Wine and Revelry” by Benjamin Boxer

Submitted to Contest #204

Agave's drinking was tearing her son Stephen Pence apart. Joanne from down at the Oceanview Bar and Grill would have called Stephen out of respect even if he were not the Bethesda County sheriff. She was older than thirty and owned a business, separating her from the other forty-nine-and-a-half percent of voters who opposed, even if in keyboard warrior fear, the law and order Stephen had brought to the once cutthroat crossroads of drugs and human trafficking. "Hey, Stephen. I'm glad I caught you," Joanne said when he answered his perso...

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“Once Upon a Time in Chimney Rock” by Ethan Jarmush

Submitted to Contest #204

The town of Chimney Rock did not attract the finest of individuals. It wasn’t the type of place a family of four looking to settle down would see on a map and exclaim, “Wow, what a lovely looking town!” Though the housing was affordable, which was perhaps its only allure. Rumors circulated about a sheriff somewhere in town, although none of the locals had caught sight of him in quite some time. One uneventful tale claimed to have witnessed him relieving himself on the side of a building one night. That was pretty much it. Folk must’ve g...

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“A Pilgrim” by 𝔊𝔲𝔞𝔡𝔞𝔩𝔲𝔭𝔢 𝔗𝔢𝔩𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔱𝔞𝔯

Submitted to Contest #204

It was past noon, and the dogs of Beechham were barking fit to burst. Dorian Smith stopped his work on the broken chain. Wiping his hands on a stained and sooty old rag, he left the heat and smoke of the smithy and strode out into the street, taking in a great breath of clean air as he did so. In the middle of the dirt track that ran through the town and away into the wider world, a man was fending off the more aggressive of the village dogs with a wooden staff as children watched and clamored in excitement. Unlike most who were bothere...

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“Not For Everyone” by Valerie Preston

Submitted to Contest #204

Spindly and spikey spinifex rolled across the yellow floor, over and over it went at a dizzying speed into the barren beyond. Howling winds picked up sand and carried it across the dessert plain, swirling it into the air. It was hot and the fireball of sun glared down on the dry earth, scorching and drying everything beneath it. “Windy again” the old bearded man spat out through toothless gums. “Yep” she replied taking his money for the petrol he had just filled his rusty can with. “Be seeing yer”. “Yep”. Most of the old people in this d...

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“Unearthing The Forgotten Legacy.” by Seshadri S

Submitted to Contest #204

Rajasthan is the largest Indian state in land area and the seventh most populous. On the northwestern part of India, it encompasses most of the vast and inhospitable Thar Desert (also called the Great Indian Desert). As the vibrant Jaipur, the capital city of Rajasthan, awakened to the golden rays of the morning sun, Amit Jamwal, a young and affluent businessman, found himself yearning for an adventure beyond the confines of his luxurious lifestyle. Restless and eager to explore, he heard whispers of an ancient village nestled amidst...

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“Stalked” by Patricia Williford

Submitted to Contest #204

STALKED I really can’t remember exactly when I began this journey. I guess the quest might have beckoned me with its outstretched hand right after high school graduation, when I was ripe for adventure and enlightenment. At that time my mind was an open vessel just thirsting to be filled. The road materialized beneath my feet, and I was strolling along its blacktop before I took the time to realize that my legs were moving. But then again, my expedition might have begun even earlier, nurtured by small seeds o...

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“The Wagon Incident” by Aitch Enfield

Submitted to Contest #204

Willie just couldn't shake the feeling that someone was following him. It made him feel uneasy. Every so often he stopped his horse and scanned the barren landscape. Was that a cloud of dust in the distance? He stood in the saddle and focused on the road stretching in front, then behind him. Was there a rider or riders heading towards him? He saw nothing, only a jackrabbit darting across the trail, and a vulture circling above. "Ah, just a dust devil," he said to himself. Somehow he wasn't reassured.Something always seemed to bother Willie. ...

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$250

Prize money

298

Contest entries

94

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jun 30, 2023 EST

Won by Katy B 🏆

Title: The Ungentling

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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