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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#208: Come On Barbie, Let's Go Party

The wait is finally over: today Greta Gerwig’s Barbie(™) movie hits theaters and I, for one, couldn’t be more excited! Blonde and big-busted, this by-now classic doll has often been associated with negative stereotypes of womanhood. But it’s also true that, when you played with Barbie as a child, she could be anything you liked: a firefighter, a flight attendant, a teacher, or even an astronaut (Barbie went to space 4 years before Armstrong did). The possibilities were endless, allowing young people to envision new futures for themselves.

This week’s prompts take inspiration from Barbie and her pink, plastic world, asking you to play with the idea of puppetry, childhood memories, and shiny surfaces that hide potential darkness.

This week's prompts

Write a story about someone living vicariously through someone else.

Character – 32 stories

Write a story where the characters start to realize that they are, in fact, just characters.

Character – 49 stories

Write a story about a character who finds a childhood toy that brings back memories.

Character – 70 stories

Write a story about someone who is constantly being put into a box by others.

Angst – 40 stories

Set your story in a rosy-pink world where everything is rainbows and unicorns… until it isn’t.

Dramatic – 47 stories

Stories

“Teachers Say the Darndest Things” by Jeremy Stevens

Submitted to Contest #208

I was on the floor building a rocket ship with Legos when I heard my parents’ whispered voices. Mommy was sniffle-crying and Daddy was saying there, there now, everything will be okay. What does okay mean, anyhow? When Mommy tells me to change my clothes into something more “proper,” or to clean up my toys, or to go back and flush the toilet, or that it’s bath time, and I say, “Okay,” everything is fine: I am doing what I am supposed to be doing. But during recess at the school picnic table the other day, I had beaten Alexander in arm wrest...

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“Turmoil for a Soldier in Gray” by Bruce Friedman

Submitted to Contest #208

Warning: racial stereotypesFirst of all, I need to tell you that I’m an avid collector of antiques and old documents. I live in Washington, DC, working for the federal government. However, and on one particular weekend, I was meandering through eastern Tennessee and hunting for antique stores in small towns to browse. On the outskirts of Jonesborough, I pulled into the dusty parking lot of a shop with a sign in the front—Winslow Antiques. Surely, I thought to myself, I might be able to root out some “treasures” here to add to my collection. ...

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“Miranda and Samantha” by Alexandra Huron

Submitted to Contest #208

The disco lights were blinking in beat to the soundtrack of Michael Jacksons’ “Beat It”. The large colorful space of the roller rink was speckled with people sharing laughs, some wobbling back and forth fighting the glide of their skates, and some passing by with speed and skill that made one “ooh!” and “ahh!”. The room swirled into a shaded rainbow for a couple of revolutions until the only sight to be seen was a girl named Daisy, who was in hysterics from her whirlwind spins with whoever was out of frame. “ Oh my god! Did you see that Sam?...

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“Rilestone and the Narrating Angel” by Steffen Lettau

Submitted to Contest #208

Rilestone Jian Silver had just woken up, shaking off the strange dreams of visions from his waking moments merged with images yet to be explored, but he has not gone to such places or times just yet. He blinked several times, tilting his head left and right as if a peculiar sound had caught his attention. He shook his head, stood up...and tilted his head again. His eyes, gifts from his father that could pierce the veils of illusions even by Fallen Angels, shifted in all directions as he searched for that peculiar sound. His ears, gifts f...

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“Fifteen Boxes” by Ela Mikh

Submitted to Contest #208

There is a theory about people who are uprooted at an early age and continue to wander around the world in search of their roots. Nothing feels like home to them, so they move from place to place eager to happen upon that one spot that feels comfortably familiar where they can finally pause to take a breather, maybe look around for the first time in years to realize that another world exists around their internal universe. I can attest to this being true. For the last twenty-eight years, I moved approximately thirty times. Yep, it means tha...

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“Horse Girl” by Cassie Gibson

Submitted to Contest #208

Even after all this time Kiara thought Antoinette was was the most beautiful thing she had ever seem. Her coat gleamed silver-white in the sunlight, her mane flowed like silk, like movement made liquid and the mother of pearl gleam of her horn added a frisson of awe. Kiara’s breath caught a little in her throat as Antoinette tossed her head and whickered softly in greeting. She gave her nose an affection stroke and marvelled at the soft warmth, you could feel the energy flowing through her, anticipating a race. The warm smell of horse and ...

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“Over Easy” by Kenneth Goldman

Submitted to Contest #208

OVER EASY by &nb...

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“Wrong Plastic” by Josh-Owen Whitehead

Submitted to Contest #208

Strangling limbs cover any sight of my plastic. Seas of fluorescent green, chrome, red, blue, white, bright yellow and matte black swirl above my painted-on eyes. Slightly, soft streams of night light blue and warm gold-bulb drip between the narrow gaps. I can't breathe. I am drowning. Waves of hardened coloured oil brushes against my skin - coloured and textured like a uniform. Like a uniform which isn't mine, this isn't my skin, I can't take it off even if I tried. I was burnt, melted and frozen in the wrong shape. Material meant for long ...

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“Visit to the British Museum ” by Joel Malvo

Submitted to Contest #208

(Note: Contains Mild Language)My grandfather had two outfits. One was a kurta-pajama, a traditional Indian outfit that he wore at home, and the other, for outdoors, was formal attire consisting of a shirt tucked into a pair of pants bound by a leather belt, along with polished black shoes. Whether it was a morning walk, or sightseeing, or anything that even briefly involved the outdoors, the formal attire took over.Two years ago, he, along with my parents, visited me in London, where I had been studying for a year. After that trip, he never ...

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“Life is Full of Boxes” by Mustang Patty

Submitted to Contest #208

Living with a diagnosis like mine isn’t a pleasant thing. It wasn’t until the late eighties that the psychiatric field finally came up with a label for me, and they dubbed me ‘Bipolar.’ For years, I really doubted the whole thing. I mean, sure, I had depressions–deep depressions, but I wasn’t sure about the ‘highs.’ And then someone pointed out how my teens and early twenties were full of sexual escapades that were, well, let’s say they were excessive. And then there are my spending habits. I get out of control about something. There hav...

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“All That Fitz” by Joe Smallwood

Submitted to Contest #208

“You are supposed to believe certain things, don’t you know?”“What? Am I supposed to be some bible thumper now?”“Why would you assume that?According to Michael, I was the one with a problem. Our friendship depended on me making the right choices. He always took the lead to sort things out for us. Then it got so weird. He chose a set of beliefs all right. Things that made no sense to me.He was right and everyone else was wrong. His beliefs were fashionable too. Everyone agreed with him. I mean everyone. No one else dared to disagree. Except f...

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“Under the Yum Yum Tree” by Michael Pollock

Submitted to Contest #208

THIS STORY CONTAINS PROFANITY AND REFERENCES TO VIOLENCE, DRUG USE, AND PORNOGRAPHY.It was a rainbow-brightened day as Kitty the Cat was strolling through the forest of Sparkle on her way for a surprise visit to her old friend Mr. Hoot. The lovable owl was always happy to serve tea in his little home at the top of the Yum Yum Tree. She walked along the trail, thinking about how grateful she was for the Yum Yum Tree, for it provided all of the inhabitants of the Sparkle Forest with whatever they desired. All you had to do was request it at th...

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“Memoir of a Muse” by Zena Rachelle

Submitted to Contest #208

The Muse. The biggest event of the year. The place where diplomats, social media influencers, pop singers, and all the elite come together for one night of transcendence. No one really knows what The Muse is for, but we all take a long weekend and enjoy the upbeat music and watered-down drinks. Everyone wears all-white and makes sure to smell edible. Cotton candy is the most common, but whiffs of whipped vanilla and tart cherries fill my nostrils as I walk through the crowd. The amount of glitter and sparkles in the flamingo archway is unmat...

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“When Oscar Whispered” by Shawn Vantoro

Submitted to Contest #208

Shrouded in darkness, Charles gently placed his mother’s urn on her coffee table. Silence and the scent of mothballs greeted his senses. Drab green drapes, embroidered with floral patterns, covered the large picture window. He stepped over and flung them open, causing a whirlwind of dust to sparkle in the sunlight that spilled into the room.Charles turned and stood, sighing at the memories. Dozens of framed family photos, many of which were decades old, covered the walls. He’d grown up here, but moved away after college. Now, middle-aged and...

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“Action Maxx!™ ” by Dilettante Shultz

Submitted to Contest #208

I never belonged in the toy box, this must be some kind of mistake on Sam’s part. Sam, a plucky preteen boy, a better owner an Action Maxx!™ couldn’t ask for. Every one of us figures deserves to be with the most courageous, adventurous boys and I think I must have got the best. I’ve been Sam’s favorite since he first opened me all those years ago; spent every night on the pillow next to him keeping an eye out for any villains that may skulk in the night. At least, I used to. My post eventually became standing on the nightstand, then ...

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$250

Prize money

238

Contest entries

85

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jul 28, 2023 EST

Won by Ian Gonzales 🏆

Title: That All Important First Scene

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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