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!

#205: Ritualistic

Since time immemorial, humans have developed rituals to deal with change, and all manner of life situations. From birthdays to funerals, to holidays and weddings, to personal habits and rites of passage, these ceremonies often help us find solace, meaning, and belonging in an otherwise chaotic existence. 


Rituals exist across all ages and cultures, and take all kinds of shapes and forms 一 from dancing, to praying, to performing 一 and while some have existed for centuries, new ones are created every day. In this week’s prompts, we explore this universal aspect of human culture.


Plus, in case you missed it...📚 

The second issue of PROMPTED, our literary magazine, is officially out now! You can download your free copy right here.

This week's prompts

Start your story during a full moon night.

Mystery – 81 stories

Make your protagonist go through a rite of passage.

Character – 54 stories

Write about a character who develops a special ritual to cope with something.

Angst – 89 stories

Make a character perform a ceremony to set something or someone free.

Dramatic – 55 stories

Write about a character who breaks free from a tradition to create a new one.

Character – 26 stories

Stories

“Nothing Left” by Raphael Manwell

Submitted to Contest #205

I have to do it. I don’t have a choice. Then again, there never was a choice. It’s irresistible, it’s enchanting, like I was spellbound without a way to stop it. A poison with no antidote. It had become almost like a ritual, every morning, every night. It was cold and smooth, yet burnt the throat and warmed every vein in the body. My troubles would leave my mind, the pain would ease from my limbs, how could you resist such a temptation? I lay there between my sheets, trying to snatch at the last few seconds of sleep. But my mind had woken,...

5 comments 5
Read story

“Nimbus” by Jack Steer

Submitted to Contest #205

In every other place on earth, being crowned king or queen was a great triumph, an achievement of unmatched prestige. In times of despair a leader must become the ultimate martyr for change. There was no more noble pursuit. In my home country of Aspasia, however, there was not a single soul who wished to take the throne. Being crowned the leader of Aspasia was starkly different from an English or French coronation, and it was certainly not something any of us in our right mind aspired towards. And yet, there I was in my dress robes one chill...

1 comment 1
Read story

“The point of no return” by Eddie McKenzie

Submitted to Contest #205

Everything was off to a perfectly smashing start, really. The fact that the silence of the cave, usually broken only by the occasional drip of water further into the darkness was, instead, broken by the boy's alarmed hiss as the match burned out faster than he had expected and stung as his fingertips. He shook out the flame before it had the chance to do any further damage to his fingertips than that of which his distracted teeth accomplished. Adrian had hoped that he would have been able to light all five of the bone-white candles he h...

1 comment 1
Read story

“Dying to be Beautiful ” by Kimberly Walker

Submitted to Contest #205

Dying to be Beautiful I have known Samantha P, K, and O since Kindergarten. I am Samantha R, but that isn’t our only likeness. Samantha O is Asian, maybe Vietnamese. Samantha P is American Caucasian. Samantha K is a proud Korean, and I am a “black china doll,” according to the others. For some reason, the school district decided to do alphabetical classes for two years, which stunk. Class A in every grade had, yup, you guessed it, the A’s from Aaron to Aza, the last names of every person, and so on with every other letter. So, the confusion...

5 comments 5
Read story

“Moonstruck” by Linda Lovendahl

Submitted to Contest #205

We sipped red wine in crystal glasses as the cool ocean breeze lifted our skirts on the balcony of Kathy’s Laguna Beach townhouse. The full moon cast a bright show upon the distant traffic and high-end condos meandering along the terraced landscapes below. The first sweet swallows complimented our rising spirits. This was Kathy’s night of celebration. The concert hall audience stood twice for encores and her soprano voice delivered resonating solos. I recalled the passages that gripped me during the performance. They, again, gave me chills.I...

5 comments 5
Read story

“Pieces” by Rhea Sethi

Submitted to Contest #205

I sprint past the lined brick-houses, wooden sheds and fields of corn; the plants stand thin, straight and green, wearing little yellow hats where the corn has started to grow. They spread as far as my eyes can see, looking like soldiers in green uniforms and unfortunate headgear, marching in impeccably straight lines. It's pretty impressive, one might think. But the fields don't interest me right now. I turn left onto a mud trail, now going even faster as the path slopes downwards.Soon I reach my grandpa's house. I know he's not h...

3 comments 3
Read story

“A Recipe for Bitch Cake” by Olivia Lake

Submitted to Contest #205

Warning: Profanity Marcie knew she should ignore it. On any other day, perhaps she would have. She mainly received order requests through her website, Cakes by Marcie and Joe (damn, she’d have to change the name). She had her fair share of spammers and pranksters. Had things been different, she would have just deleted it. But she didn’t. Leaning forward in her creaky office chair, hands gripping a steaming mug of tea, she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the words on her computer screen: “BITCH CAKE.” Leah bustled in with her sleeves r...

5 comments 5
Read story

“The Death of Intrigue” by John Jenkins

Submitted to Contest #205

With swift decorousness, the judges gavel slammed on the ledge, creating a vibration of fear that shook the courtroom into silence. No one could match the judge’s power, his influence. He was a man who could change the world by his decree alone. “Okay, okay, silence,” said the judge, looking down at those standing before him. There was an atmosphere of finality, almost of some relief, for both prosecution and defense. Both had fought a hard fight, had come through a metamorphosis and into a new being. Both had sacrificed for this moment. ...

10 comments 10
Read story

“New Skin” by Frances Gaudiano

Submitted to Contest #205

New Skin It was that time again; the serpent has summoned her. Minerva made her way down the steep path to the beach where he resided. On her way, she passed the sentinel tree and touched it, asking for its blessing and leaving next to it a bead she had saved as an offering. She noticed someone else had been to the tree today, scattering bird seed around the base of the Scot’s Pine. The path could be slippery when there was rain but today was bright and unusually warm, which made sense. The serpent would not have chosen an overcast day to...

3 comments 3
Read story

“The Second Daughter” by Chandler Avery

Submitted to Contest #205

The Day of Immolation haunted me, I dreaded this day from the moment I had learned of it. Its looming presence hung over me, even in my sleep I could not get away from it. The nights were spent tossing and turning, screams coming forth from my mouth with such force I woke up hoarse and exhausted. No one else seemed to feel the same way as I did about Immolation Day. This apathy was something I couldn’t wrap my head around. Was I truly the only one who had strange feelings towards it? It seemed no one feared it like I did, it was a source of ...

3 comments 3
Read story

“Sunset, Do You Copy?” by K Cao Xai

Submitted to Contest #205

Jaime had second thoughts when I told her we needed to break in through the window. “That’s how you always are,” she told me. “You never tell me important things until after I agree to come out with you.” In my defense, I didn’t know someone put a new lock on the rusted door. There was also a clean laminated sign that read: No Trespassing. A flawed attempt at prevention in my opinion. You can’t trespass in a place no one owns. Officially, anyways. Unofficially, this abandoned radio studio used to be our preferred hang out spot. I wasn’t...

2 comments 2
Read story

“Buck Ridge” by Dean Rielly

Submitted to Contest #205

“The time of your salvation is upon us, initiates. May the Fred and the Jane take their rightful places.”That’s my queue. This is what it’s all been leading up to: selling the apartment, the station wagon, leaving the kids... it will all have been worth it. To finally be clean. Pure. Cheryl DeVille is dead, I am a Jane and I belong! At least I will once I prove I’m worthy.‘Jane’ skirted through the crowd of a couple of dozen figures in crimson robes, their hoods up and shadowy faces obscured by masks crafted from animal skulls and other bone...

5 comments 5
Read story

“The Widows of The Comet” by Charlotte Kelley

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #205

You are looking at us. Wide eyes, fearful eyes. Help me.  You, the woman, are haggard, sunburnt, too young for her skin. You suck the last bits of ash from your cigarette and vie for your husband’s attention. A bad husband, by the looks of it (and we know what a bad husband looks like). He, the man—hard-muscled, veiny, sickly pale—picks at the raw skin of his elbow. A cut, a weakness. You’ve been driving all night, you say. A place to sleep would be lovely.  Happily, we oblige. We walk with you toward the mess hall. You question...

6 comments 6
Read story

“Man in the Moon” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #205

It was a night to remember and the Moon was full.The full Moon shone with reflected radiance and gazed down upon its planet like a parent peering down at its sleeping baby. Content with being present and the sight of what it cared for the most in all the world.All the world.A blue planet that brought forth and nurtured life. A rare and precious jewel in the infinite cosmos.The Moon was the luckiest of Moons.A witness to the birth of life and ever present as that life grew and transformed into billions of unique miracles.This Moon had se...

2 comments 2
Read story

“Makoto” by C. Charles

Submitted to Contest #205

“... I speak for members on all sides of the house today, in offering to Japanese-Canadians the formal and sincere apology- That was Prime Minister Brian Mulroney addressing the House of Commons and an audience of Japanese-Canadians yesterday, offering an apology to the 22,000 Japanese-Canadians who were interred in Canada following the attack on Pearl Harbour in 1942.  Along with the apology, is a $300 million compensation package. The money will go to a Japanese community fund, individual compensation, and the creation of a race relat...

6 comments 6
Read story

$250

Prize money

305

Contest entries

129

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jul 07, 2023 EST

Won by Lindsay Flo 🏆

Title: The Walk

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!

Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

Join our weekly contest

Get 5 new writing prompts every Friday. Write and submit a story for a chance to win $250.

NEW VIDEO COURSE 🎉

How to Write a Novel

Join Tom Bromley for a writing master class and finish your first draft in 3 months. Learn more →

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 ⭢

Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

Join our weekly contest

Get 5 new writing prompts every Friday. Write and submit a story for a chance to win $250.