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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

“I'll Show You!” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #204

As he submitted his hundredth story to the short story competition he ground and gnashed his teeth and gave his mind free reign. His mind, let loose to do as it pleased, gave forth with a flurry of expletives. The writer should have taken note as rare, if not unique, combinations of swear words reeled through his mind. He could have dropped them into one of his next stories to convey a joyous and entertaining anger, the swear words releasing doses of positive endorphins as they hit home, happy anger darts conveying said anger, but making the...

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“The Taste of Sweet Revenge” by Liz Molloy

Submitted to Contest #204

CW: alcohol and death. The burning sensation in his throat subsided after his fourth drink. Or was it his fifth? Nights like this make it easy for John to succumb to the intoxication feeling from whiskey, anything to take away the memories he tries so hard to wipe away. Leaning against the scratched and chipped wooden bar, with bullet holes still yet to be patched, John places the empty glass on the tabletop, he signals to the bartender asking for another refill. In no time Logan fills the glass and John places another coin on the bar be...

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“Three mistakes, one correction” by Arter Grim

Submitted to Contest #204

Another day, another twenty miles to travel before the next day begins. Such is the life of an honest man, as my pa used to say. It was also frequent for him to say how there is no shame in doing anything so long as I can support myself and not put another human being in a worse predicament. He used to say many words, some of which could have even been considered wise somewhere else, but this isn’t somewhere else, and it is such a wise way of living that it cost him his life. Alonzo West is the name of the person responsible for this act. On...

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“Santa Esmeralda” by Phillip Norman

Submitted to Contest #204

With her eyes locked on a distant target, Esmeralda stops walking to fill her six-gun half full. To her name she has only these three bullets and twice as many silver dollars. The money won’t stretch far, but the bullets are two more than she needs to take the life of Anse Weitzel, the white man who had taken Esmeralda against her will. Raising the weapon level with her sightline, Esmeralda flicks the revolver’s chamber closed, then rotates the loaded cylinders into place so her shots will fire true. Biting deep into her lower lip,...

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“Finding peace. ” by Quentin Hill

Submitted to Contest #204

Chris strode down the street, market stalls from the festival closing. It was just after dawn, and in a small village like this, hardly anyone was still awake – annual festival or not. Chris didn’t live here, didn’t live anywhere near here, really. He was just passing through, hopping onto traveling carriages when he could, walking when he couldn’t. He had a set destination in mind, and it was across the country. Over there, with clear skies, sandy beaches, and open waters, Chris would finally find peace. He’d lived a worthwhile life, rackin...

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“A Dish Best Served” by Denis Baldwin

Submitted to Contest #204

It’s a classic double cross. Except, the thing of it is, I see it coming a mile off because I’ve known all along it’s going to happen. I’m ten steps ahead and playing a different game entirely. The men involved won’t draw iron when the con goes down since it’s too crowded to get a shot off, and besides, no one’ll be the wiser by the time I’m gone. “Maybe I should elaborate,” I say to the saloon girl to my right. She bats her eyelashes, an attractive girl for sure, but only a distraction. “If you’d kindly,” she says in a voice as smoky as the...

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“Vic's Salty Visit” by Andrea Corwin

Submitted to Contest #204

The shiny Studebaker Avanti cruised along the two-lane highway passing corn fields of various heights. The corn should be knee-high by the 4th of July, his farm cousin Cate told him years ago during a visit. Vic slowed down behind a slow-moving farm tractor, not feeling any need to pass. A sign reading Fresh Watermelon ByTheSlice made his mouth water, his throat constricting some, urging him to pull over for a slice. His eyes roved ahead for the turn to the fruit stand and discovered it too late. "Damn! OK, a U-ey it is!" Dimples dented...

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“The Monsters are Due at High Noon” by Allan Bernal

Submitted to Contest #204

A werewolf is a tricky thing to deal with; a violent murder or two once a month really doesn’t affect property values too badly. But on the other hand, once the town of Crimson Oaks fully catches on, I doubt we’d see much more growth. All my efforts to expand this town, to build it from the ground up and turn it into a tourist spot will become undone. All because a mangy mutt can’t control their monthly urges. At least I know how to temper my hunger. When I usually take my daily stroll through town, I’m hailed by a ceremony of smiles and...

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“A Lawless Land” by Antonio Casillas

Submitted to Contest #204

What becomes of an honest man when all his options have run out? When he's on the run? When he's already lost what's most important in this world? What becomes of that man? The scorching sun beat down on the cracked earth, relentlessly, day in and day out. A lone traveler by the name of John Hems rode across the empty plains. His green eyes scoured the horizon for signs of a town. For days he had been riding. He had only stopped to make camp once and his supplies had already run out. His stomach ached and his parched throat cried out for w...

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“Desert Darkness” by Jonathan Gartner

Submitted to Contest #204

Night was beginning to fall. The desert winters brought a cold chill to the earth in the wastelands of Arizona. The reprieve from the scorching heat brought about longer nights and with those longer nights had come a new and unknown terror. The mining community of Prospect, Arizona was smitten with a dark and unspeakable scourge. Recent disappearances could not be attributed to any known source other than a black shadow creeping into the town in the dead of night. The disappearances began with the elderly and helpless of the community, many ...

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“The Last Speck” by Ben Battles

Submitted to Contest #204

The driver’s white knuckles clung to Wyatt’s soaked shirt, stretching, and finally ripping it at the shoulder. The white water roared like endless rolling thunder in his ears as he wrestled against the current. Hugging the man under his left arm, Wyatt reached desperately with his right, pawing at handfuls of churning river water, hoping for purchase on the sandy shore. Between gasps, he searched for lifesaving strength enough for two men. His lungs burned, his biceps ached, the untamed liquid force of nature rolled over him; adrenaline jolt...

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“Hated Hauntings” by Joseph Stephenson

Submitted to Contest #204

The cool ocean breeze swept through the streets of Angel’s Landing, dissipating the heat that seemed to bull through the town from the badlands to the northwest. Though for many the cool was not a signal for well deserved rest, but rather an invitation into temptation and debauchery. And despite the law’s iron fist being on the keg’s tap at the behest of North Mar Government, there were many hole-in-the-walls and speakeasies that prided themselves on procurement of such once prominent potent punch, for a price. And so, In spite of the protes...

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“Dusty Chrome” by May Gables

Submitted to Contest #204

Moxie had been to a lot of places in the West and most of them looked just like this. Dusty and sad, with people clinging desperately to what was left of a once-bright future. Corps had swept in about eighty years ago, long before she was born, eager to strip the land. But by the time she was barely ten, most of the corps had cleared out, abandoning their towns and leaving their company people to rot. It was a tale as old as time. The last time Moxie had been this far West, the only chrome on her body had been the replacement i...

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“The Bear, the Wolf and the Martens” by Gianluca Angelucci

Submitted to Contest #204

---Disclaimer: I intended to write a children story, but it lacks the hopeful tone those stories frequently carry. Also my writing style probably fails to meet the "kids" criteria. I leave it to the judgement of the reader, and won't tag it as kids--- The checkerboard was lit by the afternoon sun, tinted green by the canopy of leaves of the oak forest. The brown paw of Bear moved a piece, capturing a white piece. -And that’s it Wolf, eh!- Bear gloated, staring at Wolf’s sorry snout -What’s the score now, 8-2?- A low growl from Wolf is the ...

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“Bandit Dogs” by Jason Rosenberg

Submitted to Contest #204

On a rainy ancient Roman night two outlaws sneak into Julius Ceasar’s palace. Their bandit outfits which include two broad-brimmed black cowboy hats, cow skinned ponchos, dark jeans and black boots with golden spurs keep them hidden in the dark halls that lead to a room of treasures. This room had the size to fit three elephants inside. The bandit that holds the lamp is the newly broken hearted, mustached heroine that leads the two, Wyatt O’Donell. Behind him with a sack ready to be filled with gold is the clumsy, clean shaving youngster th...

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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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