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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

“The Snow Globe” by Mae Leaf

Submitted to Contest #208

The Snow Globe By Mae Leaf The attic felt hot and stuffy with a dash of mustiness. The circular window offered a little light, but the bare bulb hanging from the ceiling showered the small space with yellow light. “Good enough!” I shout for no one but me and the dusty boxes to hear. Mom insisted I go through all the boxes and shelves and take whatever I wanted before the rest of the family comes for their perceived share. I purposely am in my “best” grubby clothes today. Faded blue jeans, and an emerald green T-shirt with a giant coffee ...

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“In Honour of Barbie” by Melody Watson

Submitted to Contest #208

Downsizing for a new beginning, Sandy told herself again. Repeating it had not made it the belief reality. Rather it seemed downsizing meant stress, tears and backbreaking pain. Shuffling another full box of stuff towards the attic door, she shook her head, another box of once treasure now old and broken items no longer wanted. Wincing she straightened up the best she could under the low ceiling and rafters, the pain was getting almost too much to bear, especially during the night, trying to sleep on the old mattress. ‘My poor back,’ Sandy t...

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“SUZY Q.” by Glenna Agnew

Submitted to Contest #208

SUZY Q. I lived in the house for thirty years, raised seven children in it, and lost my husband in it. But now it was time to say goodbye. A lonely retired widow doesn't need an eight-bedroom house anymore. It was time to downsize and so it was also time to pack. I left the bedroom to the end, it was hard to say goodbye to the house There was a lump in my throat as I stood in the bedroom doorway. The closets hadn't been cleaned out in years, and it was a walk down memory lane with every outfit I pulled out. The dress I ...

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“Synthia's Secret” by Corey Root

Submitted to Contest #208

(Contains: Physical violence, gore, or abuse, Mental health/Trauma) “Hi, I’m Synthia! What’s your name?” “Abby.” “It’s great to meet you, Abby. What’s your favorite thing to do on a Saturday morning?” “Drawing pictures.” “Can you draw something for me?” “Sure.” “Abby, we have a new mission! Let’s practice breathing exercises.” “Pffffff.” “Breathing exercises always help me stay relaxed!” “… and then she told me she didn’t want to be friends anymore.” “Thank you for telling me about your day, Abby. Some...

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“Pieces of a Broken Puzzle” by Beatrice Gomes

Submitted to Contest #208

The alarm sounds at 6:30 in the morning, just as it does every single day for Ella. She needs to put her costume on before showing her face in her office: a blush-colored blazer and skirt set, a crisp collared shirt, and low pumps with a pointed toe. Every piece was perfectly architectured to cause maximum discomfort to the wearer. This uniform keeps employees moderately unhappy at all times, united in their contract to experience no joy for a minimum of eight hours each day. She gets to her desk and her boss is standing over her before sh...

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“Livin' In A Box” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #208

The voices are muffled. Always muffled. I hear them well enough. I’ve learnt to hear beyond that dull quality that would obscure all meaning. I understand the meaning well enough. My world is small and smaller still. I do not venture beyond the confines of my world, I am dragged from it. I do not go willingly, but neither do I kick or scream. If I were to scream, it would be muffled. It would be misconstrued, and even then, it would not be received well. Even outside the small world that is mine, I occupy a small sp...

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“Delilah in Bloom” by Kat Z

Submitted to Contest #208

"Shall we start at the beginning?" My therapist, Dr. Amy Carter situated her glasses on the bridge of her nose. Smoothened her crisp skirt, and sat opposite of me on the coffee colored chair. "Can't I start at the end?" I humored, receiving a pointed look from her. "Humor is a coping mechanism for you," She leaned forward with her elbows on her knees. "All of our past sessions are nothing. They mean nothing." I had felt like the walls would close in with every tick of that damn clock on her desk. "How could they mean nothing if I tol...

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“The astounding Captain Radiance and the matter of the Super Goo” by Lisa Miller

Submitted to Contest #208

Captain Radiant hovered over the oak tree. A small calico kitten trembled, clinging to a branch, its round belly and back legs hanging in the air.The kitten looked mistrustful of the masked man. The cat hissed when he plucked it up off the branch.The caped wonder landed back on the ground. He pried the cat’s small claws from his yellow glove. The cat made a low feline growl. Captain radiance handed the angry fur-ball to its owner.“Here he is, ma’am safe and sound, just like I promised,” he smiled down at the twelve-year-old pet owner...

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“Connection. ” by Lara Deppe

Submitted to Contest #208

Connection. Acantha Ida Baily cathunked down the cement stairs from the back entrance. The scraping sound her feet made on the aged concrete did not faze her at all. She was no longer aware of the sounds her body made as she made her way to her cubicle. Her routine was solidly without deviance, and she always arrived at the entrance exactly at 7:22 a.m. to the chagrin of her fellow employees who came in the back door in varying shades of frenzy every morning. Melanie was the office manager and while dependable in almost every way, she was...

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“The Loss Of A Perfect Life ” by Sade Eatton

Submitted to Contest #208

"I am the luckiest woman on the planet!" Most people would never live the way I'm currently living. I feel so happy to be thriving and deep diving into all the endless opportunities I've been given. Not only am I wealthy, but I dwell inside a two story mansion, I bought me a brand new 2024 Toyota Innova, I'm married to the best husband in the world; along with our two beautiful daughters. I also have the pleasure of traveling wherever I want, which means: more shopping and pampering for me! I couldn't ask for anything more..yet, I always ...

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“Big Trouble in Pink Town” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #208

“Hi Brian!” said Janet in her cheeriest voice. Brian snorted. Janet liked to think that was a greeting of sorts, and so she rolled with it accordingly, “have a great day!” She didn’t hang around for a response, for today she was busy. For the first time in her illustrious career as a detective, she had a big case. A huge case. A case so big that maybe now she would show what she was all about and get noticed for all the right reasons. As Janet lumbered through the doors of the Rainbow Club, Brian shook his noble head and ...

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“Home Sweet Home” by Vincent Stankiewicz

Submitted to Contest #208

Staring at my bedroom door. Shut. The light pink paint looking back. I don’t even remember closing it. It’s never closed because Bubba likes to go in, jump up and sleep on the bed when nobody’s home. In fact, the last I remember it was ajar like always and I was in the hall standing on the opposite side. My heartbeat is slowly becoming steady, my cheeks feel sticky and wet from my eyes. The soft cotton of the covers underneath me is bringing me some sort of comfort akin to calmly falling back to sleep after that initial panic of waking up in...

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“Me and Jeff” by Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #208

This story includes discussions of violence against children. Me and Jeff are having a real good day. Of course, all of our days are pretty good. We live out in the country and we have a big back yard that goes into the woods. My daddy says this is a perfect place to raise a son because there’s a bunch of room for me to explore. We have been exploring back there for almost and hour and the pocket of my shorts is full of stuff for my treasure box. I need to go inside now and put the new treasures away!Me and Jeff finally get to the back ...

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“Escaping to Another Place” by David Fernandez

Submitted to Contest #208

If you had asked fourteen year old Hannah where she thought she’d be at twenty-five years old, you likely would have received a number of answers; each more idyllic than the last. Of all the possible futures she had thought up for herself, she never would’ve imagined working an office job as her eventual destination. Her parents had always said what a bright imagination she had growing up. Now she couldn’t help but wonder if bright was another substitution for unrealistic. A drone of corporate America, slaving away for a...

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“Hitchers” by Janis Cannon-Bowers

Submitted to Contest #208

As she barreled down the harrowing slope hitched weightlessly to the back of her latest target—a virile young skier with a great ass--Jane realized how exhilarating it was to be dead.This was what was called a “temp hitch”; one where the Hitcher made only a very temporary connection with a target. Unlike a “full hitch”, the Hitcher attached to the target just enough to experience the world through the target’s eyes and body, but not enough to influence the target’s behavior or feel their emotions. Temp hitches were the way Hitchers...

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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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