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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#21: That Holiday Feeling

This is the fourth holiday season that our short story contest has been around! And it's become something of a tradition for the Christmas-themed prompts to very loosely relate to a favorite holiday movie. This year, we're challenging you to either write from the perspective of a movie's secondary character, or to simply reimagine the general premise in a whole new light.

Can't get enough holiday stories? Check out some of our reading guides:

Or maybe you're still searching for the perfect gift for a book lover, and don't want to add to their "to be read" pile? We've got a list for that too 🎄

This week's prompts

You live in a neighborhood where lots of people go out of town for the holidays. But lately, this has been resulting in an increased number of break-ins.

Holiday – 23 stories

Just before Valentine's Day, a long-lost relative you've never heard of enters your life.

Valentine's Day – 53 stories

Write a short story about a work Christmas party that goes... awry.

Winter – 26 stories

Write a short story about an inn-keeper wondering whether this will be their last holiday season in business.

Holiday – 33 stories

You are a bartender working a night shift when a group of people come in on a Valentine's Day pub crawl.

Valentine's Day – 33 stories

Stories

“It's just HOME ALONE” by Amanda Mnguni

Submitted to Contest #21

It's just HOME ALONE>"Have you heard about the break in two houses from here!? This thing is going too far"Kaley badged inside my room without any care. That's my sister,my very loud sister."What?What happened?"I jumped from the bed looking at her. I'm waiting for some answers,she shakes her head glaring back at me."There's been a break-in two houses away from here, apparently they took everything,from the furniture to the clothes"She breath that out placing her hands on her hips"This people are imbecile!"Yeah they are."Again? That's absu...

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“Who is that?” by Scarlett Irrig

Submitted to Contest #21

I won’t say that I live in a city, nor in the country. Where I live is quite, it’s a small town. Not too many people but still enough to fill up a street. If there was ever an emergency my kids could easily run a few feet across the street to our neighbors house. The people around here are really kind. That's why I love this place. During the holiday season most of my neighborhood will go out to only god knows where. As more people leave to go on vacation, this one car shows up more often. I don't know who it is or what they want, so I just ...

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“The Holiday Hijacker” by Minttu Naukkarinen

Submitted to Contest #21

No matter how much Lana Bentley wanted to believe her Christmas wish to be one of a kind, there was no denying that she had reached the peak of her teenage years when she announced her desire to get a break from her family. No fretting mother, no eye-roll-inducing dad jokes, no annoying little brother — just a moment of peace to herself. To anyone outside the angsty girl's own bubble, it sounded like a rather self-centered wish, but to her, it was more than sensible.And by some miracle, the 16-year-old's wish came true on Christmas Eve when ...

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“Christmas Change” by Jamie Shaw

Submitted to Contest #21

Our friends Nila and Greg are the reason we are apart of this wonderful neighborhood. We transferred five years ago and there are no regrets. These tree-lined streets with houses of all types: mid-century modern, Victorian, farm house, makes it whimsical and beautiful. We also have a tree house just off the cul-de-sac. It's quiet and safe. We have block parties, cookout, watch ballgames together. We couldn't ask for a better place.But, lately we are all on edge. There has been a string of robberies in our perfect neck of the world. Most of u...

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“Forgettable” by Anaiza Ortiz

Submitted to Contest #21

The smell of rock salt fills the outside air. Burning the lungs of anyone that inhales. The deep mist in the atmosphere brings out the most depressing of feelings. Even in this time of year. I, at the moment, happen to be inside, huddled under a quilt, facing the stone made fireplace. My hands dangled a little bit above the crackling wood fire. I sigh in fatigue yet satisfaction. Just another Christmas in Bruinsburg. Barely anyone comes to visit. So I'm here all alone to warm up and mumble bad words at the people who choose to do otherwise f...

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“Long-lost cousin” by Samantha Garcia

Submitted to Contest #21

Spending the holidays with your family is the best as that's where memorable memories are made. Like when my younger brother got mad when me and my sister got a playstation for Christmas. Ah, good times. But, sometimes unexpected gifts or guest's come along the way.••••••••••Christmas is in two days. The stress and hectic is there. You can feel it in your soul as you have to plan so many things like what food are we going to have, whose present is whose, how do I wrap this, or did I get their present. There are so many things to do in less t...

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“The Christmas Legacy” by Jan Lang

Submitted to Contest #21

It was a cold lonely night in the Oakland household. Marian Oakland sat on her living room couch waiting very impatiently on her parents, Abel and Molly Oakland. Ever since December drew nearer her parents have been getting more anxious then ever. Sometimes Marian can even hear her parents say to themselves: "Has it already been 20 years?" And when ever she'd ask her parents what they meant would dismiss it. Until this December 23rd. Two days before Christmas. Marian looked at her parents as they walked into the living room. "Marian," Abel s...

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“Unlce Stan comes for Christmas” by Rhys Clarke

Submitted to Contest #21

On the first day of Christmas I met my Uncle Stan. All dressed in blue he was, with skin like roasted ham. He flashed his silver pocket-watch and gave me a smile, And told me he intended to stay for a while. His waistcoat shone, his tie gleamed bright red, The same colour, I’ll wager, as Old St Nick’s sled. Dad welcomed him in with a face rather pale, As outside the rain it turned into hail. On the second day of Christmas it was still raining hard, Uncle Stan, my cellmate, passed me a Christ...

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“Nonpareil education opens door to invaluable reunion” by Matthew Harris

Submitted to Contest #21

Back far as I can remember, yours truly always wanted a sister. Adopted y most resplendent mother since birth, I never met, nor knew biological kith and/or kin existed. Passage of time diminished fervent hankering, yet every now and again curiosity flickered regarding biologically related kindred folks. Unbeknownst to this narrator, an equally strong pang inspired Miss Ann Thrope. Ever since she became aware of how her biological sibling got adopted courtesy separate adoptive parents, her near lifelong mission impossible comprised trying to ...

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“Christmas Reunion” by Gladys Swedak

Submitted to Contest #21

Christmas Reunion The knock at the door was expected but who was on the other side wasn’t. “Judy, ...” I stared at the stranger standing on my doorstep. “You’re not Judy,” I said. “who are you?”“I’m your third cousin on your Great Grandfather’s side, he was my Great Grandfather brother. I was in the country and thought I would visit relatives I’ve discovered.” The stranger’s voice had a European accent. “My name is Janik Heibert, may I come in before we both freeze out here.”Just as I was about to close the door, Judy arrived. “Hey, wait for...

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“Interstice” by Revian Nabila

Submitted to Contest #21

December.A month full of twists and turns, a month with an inevitable scent of holiday. A long month, yet at the same time short. The boy was born in the month mentioned. That fact didn’t make him look forward to December. At all, at all. In fact, if he may be honest, he did not like winter and hoped that the snow will soon go fly a kite from the roof or something.Snow on the roof, snow along the fence, snow on trees, mountains of snow in front of the house; it dizzied him seeing so many blank white. The main paved road stretched into the di...

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“A Moonlight Pub Christmas Miracle ” by Mahalia Mehu

Submitted to Contest #21

Its that time of the year again! Those who truly know me, which are few and far between, think it strange of me to have such a fascination with the Christmas season given my history... but what can I say?Despite being the orphaned daughter of a prostitute junky, who entered the foster system at the age of 2, I love the holidays. That, however, is due to my adoptive dad. When I was 9 my mom overdosed and died, but by then I was staying with a foster couple named Trudy and Ian Kelly and they decided to adopt me. Then a couple of years later, s...

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“The Christmas Present ” by Aishee Bachhar

Submitted to Contest #21

I stepped out of the bathtub feeling clean and raw to the soul. I love taking a bath. It's just so refreshing. No matter what you do the whole day; no matter how bad your day went, a cool refreshing bath at night would calm you down.I was rapping an Eminem song while walking into my room in a towel, when I heard the doorbell ring.I checked my clock and it read 8:47pm."Who the hell is it?" I murmured to myself, annoyed.I quickly pushed my legs into my dirty work jeans again and put on a hoodie on top. I didn’t have time to wear a T-shirt unde...

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“The Baroque Enigma Murder” by Jason Gretencord

Submitted to Contest #21

The Baroque Enigma opened ninety-nine years and three hundred sixty four days ago, but it appears even older. The ridiculously ornate hotel presents a living anachronism among the taller, sleeker rectangles lining either side of the highway. Across the street, a sign announces that an onyx and marble monolith of a hotel building will hold its grand opening tomorrow. Colorful strands of lights and rings of artificial pine branches scintillate in the frosted night. I leave my car in the eroding parking lot and pause at the front doors, w...

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“Letter of Intent” by Greg Bolanos

Submitted to Contest #21

During the tail end of the summer of 2016, SUPOW Inc. acquired a handful of third and fourth tier companies that owned dozens of smaller assets. One of those companies was Eric & Mandrel, which had unilaterally sold a controlling interest in itself. Eric and Mandrel were personal acquaintances, childhood friends, and currently my employers. They hired me some odd fifteen years ago to be the keeper of either our fourth or fifth most popular resort: The Concubine. When I say fourth or fifth, it is important to remember that to be popular i...

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$50

Prize money

168

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 27, 2019 EST

Won by Oceania Chee 🏆

Title: This Simple Phrase

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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