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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#209: Road Trippin'

The open road is a beacon of possibility. Who knows what you’ll discover as you navigate across boundaries, familiar and unfamiliar: maybe it’s the world’s biggest ball of twine, a hidden gem of a diner, or a new truth about yourself. Whatever it may be, a road trip provides the opportunity to indulge your curiosity, going wherever the wind may blow you. There’s no limits or obstacles, only what you’re willing to do. 

After all, road trips are hardly ever about the destination. The journey is what matters most, and what you discover along the way, whether you're taking a vacation or setting out into the unknown. This week, we want to explore those unique feelings that only a good, long road trip can conjure.

This week's prompts

Set your entire story in a car.

Dramatic – 96 stories

Write about two strangers who are both heading to the same destination and agree to do a long distance drive together.

Character – 32 stories

Write a story about someone going on a life-changing journey.

Adventure – 57 stories

Write a story about someone getting lost, but discovering something they didn’t expect along the way.

Dramatic – 35 stories

Start your story with someone walking into a gas station.

Dialogue – 53 stories

Stories

“Inheritance” by Hannah Polis

Submitted to Contest #209

Ben didn’t sleep well the night before accepting the inheritance. The morning was grey, rainy, and windy, and the raindrops ran down the car’s windshield, mingling and untangling in endless patterns. He sat behind the wheel, unremittingly fidgeting with the key in his hand as he stared out into the gloominess of the city. The trees hung with the weight of the rain, and the few people who were out on the streets were hidden behind brightly patterned umbrellas that covered their faces. It was still early, the clock on the dashboard showed 7:40...

4 comments 4
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“Walk in the Woods” by Taylor Petska

Submitted to Contest #209

A Walk in the Woods          I took a walk in the woods to clear my mind. And I came out on the other side better than I was before.          This wasn’t just any walk. This walk would grab hold of my grief and bury it underneath the solid ground. And though people are never truly the same after they grieve, I feel they are something new. Something with life experiences, new outlooks, new perspectives. The air was cold, the wind sharp. My nose was runny, my fac...

4 comments 4
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“Borders” by Lyle Closs

Submitted to Contest #209

We all leave Fargo in different directions. I stow the parcel under the bench seat in my old Plymouth Reliant. The kind of car no-one wants to be seen in. The lads prefer souped-up muscle. The kind the cops can’t resist pulling over to show who’s boss. It works every time. Hot-rods are cop catnip. I’ve seen it happen. They glare at the ‘rods and flick the lights and sirens switch. Search the cars with nothing in them. They are blind to my sad little granny’s car. Too slow, too anodyne. It might have something to do the grey wig and granny ...

6 comments 6
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“Top tier ‘green flag’ energy” by Angela Govender

Submitted to Contest #209

I first met her at an intercollege competition. The moon's pure white light turned my world ablaze when I saw her. She had a petite figure, a curved waist, and a fair complexion with a beautiful yellow undertone. The thin gold necklace she wore around her neck enhanced her facial features. The hint of gold made her look warm and elegant. Her lush s-shaped eyebrows raised mildly as she took notice of me. We kept interchanging looking at each other. Her eyelashes fluttered while she was staring down at her notebook pensively – mild mascara was...

4 comments 4
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“Lady and the Six Slingers” by Heather OMara

Submitted to Contest #209

I don’t usually do stupid things.  I just needed a break.  Getting a rental car and to drive from Denver to Las Vegas solo may not be categorized as intelligent.  Especially now when the battery percentage on my phone is in the single digits and the gas gauge percentage is too.  Grabbing the wrong charging cord was also a misstep and I have no idea where a gas station could possibly be hiding.  The golden sun is low in the Arizona sky, amplifying the great expanse of flat nothing in all direc...

3 comments 3
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“Sunk and Found” by Tsvi Jolles

Submitted to Contest #209

Lisa lowered herself into the shotgun position of the pristine Ford Mustang, her heartbeat keeping a wild cadence of incredulity and awe. The rich leather seats, the dashboard gleaming like a well-polished heirloom, the potent fragrance of untouched machinery all swirled around her like a summer whirlwind through a field of magnolia blossoms. Perhaps it was the sheer unexpectedness of the gift, a stark contrast to the customary religious tokens she received from her family. This Mustang, this embodiment of American prowess, was devoid of fam...

4 comments 4
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“Cooper's Door” by Nicholas Thomas

Submitted to Contest #209

      Cooper walked into the gas station, whose air conditioning was a pleasant reprieve from the scalding Arizona sun. As he stood on the placemat on the inside of the glass door, he took this moment to simply lean his head back and take in the cool air as he closed his eyes. A smile crossed his lips, and he inhaled deeply before letting out a contented sigh.            He leveled his head and looked around the small convenience store; he needed road trip ...

9 comments 9
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“All Pumped Up” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #209

All Pumped Up Ted and Ethel, a recently married couple in their fifties were driving down a long, infrequently travelled country road. He was telling her stories about his memories of driving this route in his first car when he still lived in the small town that was a few more miles down the highway. “There is the old gas station not far from here where I used to work as a gas jockey. I haven’t seen anyone working at that job in years. I hate being forced to obey the dictatorial commands of the computerized gas pumps. W...

0 comments 0
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“Gas and Lucky Strikes” by Joey Balk

Submitted to Contest #209

There was an eighth left in the tank and thirty miles until the next station. I was praying I’d make it. The limit was sixty, but I turned on cruise control at fifty to lower the consumption just a little more. The roads are near empty after two in the morning. Every set of headlights is desperate to get to its destination. Wherever that might be. Home, holiday, a loved one. I was in no hurry. When the gas station finally came in sight on the right, the fuel symbol on my dash was rapidly blinking in red. They look so different in the nightti...

5 comments 5
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“The Getaway” by John-Paul Cote

Submitted to Contest #209

“Clyde, you hold on, man, you hold on.” “It hurts, Gill, it hurts so bad.” Clyde lay in the back of the 1974 Chevy Impala, dying. A gut shot had him bleeding all over the seat. It had been a lucky shot by the cop. Gill returned the favour with a shot to the chest. The heist did not go as planned. It was a cluster fuck. Billy was lying on the floor of the bank. A hole in his head. The car was shot up. It was pretty obvious who and what they were. There was no time to stop and steal another one. The cops were hot on their tail. Gil...

5 comments 5
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“BACK SEAT DRIVER” by Susan Catucci

Submitted to Contest #209

“End of Line for longtime fugitive Darrell Benjamin.”“Extradited from Canadian border, accused killer to face multiple charges.”Media outlets throughout the country ran similar headlines.And then:“Winter blizzard grounds multiple airports; record number flights cancelled across American Midwest.” * * * Rookie Police Officer Hap Davis sat behind the wheel of a partially thawed patrol vehicle. He had the heat turned up as high as it would go. He’d spent the better part of the morning scraping ice, brushing snow and cl...

12 comments 12
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“Last EX-it” by Myranda Marie

Submitted to Contest #209

“Please tell me you haven’t left for the weekend yet!” Zoey instantly dreaded answering her phone. The desperation in her sister’s voice made her stomach turn and mind wander into the danger zone. This was going to cost her something; money, time, or worse, her dignity. “Nope, still in the driveway.” she responded reluctantly, placing her bags in the trunk and slamming it closed. Zoey was completely desensitized when it came to her sister Bryn’s propensity for drama and began to imagine possible scenarios before Bryn could explain. Of c...

6 comments 6
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“A Meaningless Redemption” by Jessica Livolsi

Submitted to Contest #209

*This story contains some use of drugs, physical violence, and gore.* Otto pushed the door open to the gas station, bell chiming to his entrance. His heavy boots stamped on the concrete floor as the door closed behind him, the air conditioning providing a nice reprieve from the August heat of Nevada. He took a breath, today was already a fuck show. He looked back at his rusted Ford extended cab truck, gritted his teeth as he walked to the desk, ringing the service bell. Ring. Ring. ring ring ring. "Alright!" A young man shouted from th...

10 comments 10
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“Directions to the Motel” by Shiva Jay

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #209

There are two kinds of story: “person goes on journey” and “a stranger comes to town.” Not, thought Marley as he did inventory on the shelves, that the gas station where he worked counted as a town. Redirection point, more like. Nine out of ten strangers who came in during his night shift were looking for directions to the motel advertised on the freeway. “I’m just so terrible with directions,” they’d say, laughing, or sometimes, “These Midwest towns have such shitty roads.” And Marley would invariably smile and respond, “It’s three miles ba...

3 comments 3
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“Canned People” by Jorge Soto

Submitted to Contest #209

The bus was screaming down the desert road, and I still couldn’t nod off. Two fucking hours and somehow this greyhound seems to have made no progress toward any discernible civilization. A few shacks and shanty gas stations sprung up here and there, sure, but I’d hardly venture to call them signs of life. Just as I was about to put in for another crick-necked nap a wall of little buildings flashed past the window. Finally. Some scenery.” I thoughtA blurry mirage of washed-out yellows and earth tones made up the majority of this dilapidated s...

2 comments 2
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$250

Prize money

273

Contest entries

154

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Aug 04, 2023 EST

Won by Kyle Sager 🏆

Title: The Driving Snow

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 | Many Hands | 2024-09

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Prompts | Many Hands | 2024-09

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