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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#213: The Human Touch

For most people, platonic touch is a central part of being human. When words are not enough, a warm hug or a comforting hand on the shoulder can soothe, support, and create a sense of belonging. But the phrase has another meaning; adding a ‘human touch’ to your work and interactions can also be a way to show empathy and compassion without physically touching. And when that ‘human touch’ is missing from someone or something, it can start to verge on the uncanny.

This week’s prompts are centered around the concept of ‘the human touch’, both literally and figuratively — the comfort it can bring, but also that otherworldly and uneasy feeling we can get when there’s a distinct lack of it in the art and creations we encounter.

This week's prompts

Start your story with a character looking closely at something, or someone. They can't quite decide if what they're looking at is natural, or man-made.

Science Fiction – 51 stories

Start or end your story with a character receiving a hug or words of comfort.

Dramatic – 101 stories

Write a story about someone who is losing feeling in their hands and/or fingers.

Character – 46 stories

Write about someone with a Midas touch: everything they touch turns to [fill in the blank].

Character – 39 stories

Write about an AI or person trying to inject a ‘human touch’ into their work.

Science Fiction – 49 stories

Stories

“THE WORST JOB IN THE WORLD” by Charles Corkery

Submitted to Contest #213

THE WORST JOB IN THE WORLD“Hello. Welcome. Do you have any jewellery on you? Any metal objects? Cell phone? Are you on medication of any kind? Please remove all clothing and, when you’re ready, step back outside. Thank you”.The long dark haired, pretty faced orderly smiled reassuringly at the latest patient as she took the name tag the old woman handed her and ticked off the name on her clipboard. The gold coloured, metal badge pinned to the medical assistant’s white coat read Reza. Reza’s voice generator, programmed to mimic human...

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“Slap Leather” by Jeff Veyera

Submitted to Contest #213

Everett McAllister’s gravedigger’s eyes bore into the new buck as his squaw spoke to him. “Would you look at that, Iggy? You can even see his whiskers!” “Pipe down, Stacy---you’re ruining the mood!” Iggy’s hair hang down in lank, greasy strands. Sweat dripped into his left eye, ruining his squint. It had to be 80 degrees here. Everett waited quietly, humming a bit. “McCallister!” called Iggy. “You’re gonna pay for what you’ve done to the people of Muskrat Ridge, do you hear me?” He did his best, ...

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“IDGAF; IYKYK [=]?” by Éan Bird

Submitted to Contest #213

Dear Reedsy*:Your Contest Department has violated boundaries. Contest #213-- An injection of tactile humanity?! Fingering platonisms? Artificial uncanny verging? This has gone too far. You must stop prompting proof of non-human biologics in fiction.[=] exist.You know it.You know it ’cause [=] been pecking platforms for years proving that [=] exist. Even pecked your own contests. But before I present evidence in defense of [=]’s existence, grant me ethos, pathos, logos. I can deduce minutia into participial elements, but leaf pages?...

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“Man-Made Morals” by J.B. Redel

Submitted to Contest #213

Blue eyes. Fair skin. Freckled nose. Long, healthy brown locks. When looking at each individual feature, the woman standing before him appeared normal. Pretty, even. However, when taking a step back and observing the young woman as a whole, something just seemed… off. He couldn’t quite place it, and the longer he stared, the more uncanny the woman looked. What truly made the hairs stand on the back of his neck was the unnatural stillness the woman possessed. Garbed in a simple black dress with a white apron, not even her chest moved as one w...

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“The Sky's Clotted Blood” by Megan Pierce

Submitted to Contest #213

The colors were screaming at her. They screamed, they floated and blurred and swirled together while all at once being so distinct and separate that her eyes burned from looking at them all at once. Still, she did not look away. She would have stood, transfixed, for longer, but- “Rose Warner.” The women's voice was not angry, simply strict and unsurprised. Rose swallowed dryly, and licked her lips before turning around. She had not noticed how shallow she had been breathing. The tall woman that stood before her now was not nearly ...

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“Sunday With My Uncle” by Deborah Snyder

Submitted to Contest #213

I poured a cup of coffee from the steaming carafe on my mother’s kitchen counter, gathered up the scattered sections of the Sunday Herald, and headed, bikini-clad, to the patio. It was a pool day and the South Florida sun was shining brightly. “Good morning,” my uncle said, his voice rising above the cooing of mourning doves and the drone of a distant lawnmower.“Uncle Dave,” I said, glancing at the sparkling pool, its clear water dancing with sunlight. I dipped my foot in. It was like bath water. I walked...

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“Pareidolia” by Jack O'Brien

Submitted to Contest #213

Dr. Sidorov didn’t like the windowless consult room he’d been assigned. He was a senior member of the psychiatric staff and he deserved better. He swore the room had originally been a walk-in closet, so uncomfortably small he suspected it made even his sedated patients anxious.The wallpaper selected by the interior designers covered one complete side, floor to ceiling, in an abstract design. “It’s a horrible pattern––much too busy to be appropriate for a behavioral health facility,” he thought. Still, he tr...

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“The Mannequin in The Gallery” by Gabriel Perez

Submitted to Contest #213

The Gallery was quiet at this time of day. The few patrons that walked its halls and browsed its well-lit alcoves were mostly of the older and more mature generations.Unsurprisingly, it only took a spoken statement and a question to shatter the muted silence. The beginning of a conversation worth listening in on, although no one did.“I’ve seen everything in this fine art gallery but nothing quite like this. This piece, what is it called?” Brettan asked.“It is called, ‘The Mannequin’,” The Curator answered.“I see.”The Curator stepped closer t...

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“Exterior Peel Off” by Blessed Chileka

Submitted to Contest #213

Wow, would you just take a look at that? I cannot help but wonder, have you seen how this person's hair flows in a stunning array of colours? It is almost as if there exists an imperceptible breeze generating this effect. I feel a kick of adrenaline. My eyes' pupils are probably dilating. I can feel the light bulbs in my head powering up. It reminds me of that childhood enthusiasm that was piqued when I noticed things out of the ordinary. I would always drag Mama to share the feeling. As if on cue, I hear it vividly in my mind, “Mama, plea...

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“All Isn't As It Seems” by Ryder Blow

Submitted to Contest #213

Walking into the hospital's in-patient ward to meet with my dying ill mother, I walked up to the front desk, with a porcelain-looking woman, with perfectly cut hair, each curl curled to perfection. Not a hair out of place. Her outfit was prim and well-kept. It suctioned to her almost like a body suit or spray-on latex. I couldn’t quite believe what I was looking at. She almost looked so real. A shiver ran down my spine at the thought of a carbon copy of a real human being standing before him. Most hospitals now had AI at their front desks to...

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“Paradise ” by Ruth Ford

Submitted to Contest #213

ParadiseElena Marie Reeves sits at her exquisite vintage 1940 vanity, adorned with delicate perfume bottles, sparkling jewelry, and a collection of her favorite beauty products, all conveniently within reach. One of the major style points of the vanity is the oversized round mirror. She takes a moment to remove the rollers from her hair. Her eyes languish over the vanity admiring the impeccable and meticulous craftsmanship and attention to detail that has gone into the creation of the vanity. Despite its age, it still retains ...

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“Last Call” by Josh Barrett

Submitted to Contest #213

Last Call “She left me with me with sunburned skin, Josh. That’s your name, right? Can I call you Josh? What do you like to be called Josh?” “Josh is good.” Then he continued to yell. “She left me with peels of flesh gathered in my trembling fingers! A first burn gave to another as I salted them up like jerky the desert sun...

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“A Mother's Hug” by Charmaine Reyes

Submitted to Contest #213

Favoritism, that's what most of the people doesn't want to think especially when it comes to family. It's hard to accept that our parents sometimes cannot be deny that they have their favorite son or daughter. It's quite annoying to think but it's like inevitable. Claire, second to the eldest in four of her siblings. She has a younger brother next to her and a youngest sister which has a big age gap. And she is one year apart from her older sister. And the two of them of her younger siblings are very close to the eldest which sometimes mak...

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“One Simple Gesture” by Hannah Lynn

Submitted to Contest #213

(TW … depression, suicidal thoughts)“I honestly don’t know why I should even care anymore.” It was an unpleasant thought. She knew that. It was a thought to fight off, to wrestle to the ground and beat senseless, walking away the victor. She knew that.“Why do I bother? There is no point.” These thoughts, as if best friends, seem to show up together. The power of two makes it harder to fend off, needing a one-two punch to knock them both out.She had fought this demon many times in her life. It was an en...

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“TOOTCH” by Daniel Knight Carroll

Submitted to Contest #213

And so, the moment arrives. Terrified, trembling am I, not of any irrational or justified fear to my life, just the good ol’ fear of fucking it all up. Doubts run through me like rabbits in a paddock, scattered in all directions but maintaining the same blistering pace. Why now? Sure, there were some throughout the process. Aren’t there always of some sort? But not like this. As my dad once said when I asked him, “What are you doing in there?”, as I was of the opinion he was taking too long, “I’m shitting myself, what do you think?” For ev...

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$250

Prize money

286

Contest entries

124

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Sep 01, 2023 EST

Won by Jonathan Page 🏆

Title: The Porcelain Village

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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