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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#220: Out of Place

The air’s beginning to chill and goosebumps are rising on your skin like mushrooms on a log. With Halloween not far off, everything’s beginning to feel a little… strange. It’s got me thinking about all things odd, and one of the most unsettling sensations of all — noticing something that’s out of place.

From things that shouldn’t be where they are, to protagonists far from home, this week’s prompts explore the bizarre, and the uncanny feeling of things being where they don’t belong.

This week's prompts

Start your story with a character walking through a desert landscape, when they stumble across something unexpected. “That shouldn’t be there,” they muse.

Dialogue – 50 stories

You arrive at a destination you promised an old friend you’d visit after they passed, only to find them there too.

Mystery – 65 stories

As a child you’re helping your grandparent bake. When you’re sent to the pantry to fetch an ingredient, you discover something odd.

Mystery – 41 stories

Begin your story with a protagonist taking shelter under a bridge during a thunderstorm. An animal scurries past which shouldn’t exist. Against their better judgment, they decide to follow it out.

Fantasy – 50 stories

You’re awakened from your nap by someone asking, “Are you hungry?”. You fell asleep somewhere else entirely.

Mystery – 45 stories

Stories

“Unfamiliar Ground” by Andrea Crocker

Submitted to Contest #220

“Hey!” A high pitched voice echoed in my ear. Feeling a nudge to my shoulder, I slowly opened my eyes. My cheek pressed against something hard, my nose taking in scents of stale coffee and syrup. Squinting through half open eyelids, blinded by the harsh manufactured light, a small woman stood beside me, clasping a round tray in her arms. She stared at me through teal rimmed cat-eyed glasses, wearing a stern but cautious expression. “Are you hungry, hon?” she asked, her gum smacking loudly against her teeth. I peeled my face from the sticky...

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“A journey without an end” by Arter Grim

Submitted to Contest #220

“Are you hungry?” asked Edmund. “Not really.” replied Theodora as she started stretching after having been awakened. “Where are we?” she asked with her eyes still closed. “Oh, I stopped at this station for some gas. Are you sure you don’t want anything?” Theodora nodded, and the sound of a door closing was heard. She opened her eyes, but the world was still shaking and the colors were still bright, so she closed them again. She smiled. This was going to be an experience she would never forget. She always enjoyed driving on ...

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“Treasure Hunting” by Charlotte Vaughan

Submitted to Contest #220

Kyp found the spot easily of course, even though he had never been to the third planet of this solar system before. He had the instinctive sense, as all Throns did, which drew him, much like a magnet, to where the mineral unbinilium could be found. This ability also could lead them to other metals and minerals like gold, emerald, silver, platinum, etc. But they primarily sought out unbinilium, a soft, malleable blacklight-emitting material. This was the fuel that powered the life dome over their world. They had used all the...

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“neurosis” by Colin Nichols

Submitted to Contest #220

I don’t remember how I got here. I look around, trying to jumpstart my memory with something. Anything. There’s nothing but sand. It’s soft sand. It feels nice under my feet. …but I’m wearing boots. How can I feel the sand? Wait, now it’s hard sand. Compacted like rock and even hotter. The sun is overwhelming. Suddenly my attention is consumed by it. Was it always this hot? It splits through the hazy sky with the accuracy of a laser. I feel like I’m under attack. It takes my breath away, as if purged out of me by the...

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“Desert Song” by KC Luna

Submitted to Contest #220

Ava watched her own picture burn in the bonfire alongside the notes she had written her classmates over the years. She heard their taunts as her face bubbled and melted. She threw her red cup to the ground, foamy beer spilling from its side and soaking into the matted grass. She turned away from their laughter and headed west on foot across Old Man Zimmerman’s field. The grass was wet below a low fog dotted with dairy cows. She stopped on the train trestle and rested her elbows on the edge.She stood on the bridge in the darkness, listening t...

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“The Desert Oracle” by Frank McCoy

Submitted to Contest #220

Alex had been trudging through the sand for what felt like days. Climbing up and down dunes, his body was heavy from exhaustion. His feet seeming to sink deeper into the soft sand with every step. Alex turned his head to look towards the crimson horizon, where the sun was setting… or was it rising? He couldn’t remember. As Alex thought about whether the sun was retiring for the day or getting up to greet him, his foot struck something sticking out of the sand. Nearly losing his balance, Alex threw his other foot in front of him to stop his...

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“High Tea / High Desert ” by Lukah Roser

Submitted to Contest #220

The world was red, upon red, upon red. Not the artificial red of dyes and cautioned danger, but the rich, primal red only found in nature. The type of red one feels rather than sees, shades a sensation on the senses that grounds you to the very base of what it means to be human. The tiresome sun was bleeding from his place against the horizon, spreading red light across the already red desert. Antonia Cahoy cast her eyes from the shattered sky (ruby, scarlet, wine) to the path before her (vermillion, cardinal, carmine), though it w...

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“The Desert Sand, and Time” by Oswin Fielder

Submitted to Contest #220

An endless, relentless shade of orange stretched for miles in every direction, as if the desert had absorbed the sun's intensity. In the distance, the once-proud peaks stood tall against the horizon, their rocky forms slowly giving in to the patient erosion of time. Over centuries, small bits of mountain have broken off and mingled with the sand, contributing to the rugged, textured terrain. Here, shrubs seemed like mere afterthoughts, sprinkled sparingly across the dry landscape, and the few cacti that existed made half-hearted appearances,...

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“Krill” by Kasper Houmøller Mortensen

Submitted to Contest #220

I felt angry at the tree for just growing. I felt angry at the sun for shining and for time passing. Why did everything carry on when you didn't? The first steps out of the hospital. My eyes met the daylight, and it felt like an intruder. I wanted to scream at people for passing by and at Wednesday for moving on to Thursday, but I couldn’t scream; I held back and heard your silent voice echoing through my mind. I wanted to go home and hide in the corner of our bedroom and leave all the lights off, but I didn’t. I kept walking like I pr...

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“The Cliffs” by Sharon Honeycutt

Submitted to Contest #220

I’d been hiking along the Cliffs of Moher south from Doolin toward the visitors’ center for about an hour. Years ago, Jeanie and I kicked around the idea of this hike, but as we got older, we thought we’d have to drive to the center and walk across the road to see the shale and sandstone cliffs that tower more than 500 feet over the Atlantic. I wasn’t sure my knee would approve of the hike, and she was pretty sure her heart wouldn’t cooperate. As it turned out, her heart stopped long before I booked my flight to Ireland. We’d been planni...

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“Messina — My Wretched Destiny ” by :) :D

Submitted to Contest #220

Some people would be truly rattled by an anxious, quiet girl heading to the Straits of Messina all by herself, so I must’ve looked suspicious. I only made it worse every time I glanced over my shoulder. No one’s following, Skai. There was no way I could believe that. I couldn’t discern the voice in my head from the distant one insisting that I get out of this fog and go home. I check again, glaring through the fog. A shadowy figure shifted into sight. My cold breath catches. I forced myself to look away. The intense trembling in my ...

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“The Visit” by Marissa Sipes

Submitted to Contest #220

Thursday, October 12, 2023 The sky covered with gray clouds makes this day even more grim. I am nervous and anxious to walk into the church. My stomach starts to churn when I look up at the magnificent church building. It's so tall and looks made out of sandstone. The stained glass looks so beautiful with its array of colors and depictions of Jesus. I look around and see people dressed in black. They are crying, filing in a single line into the building. I see women dabbing their eyes with tissues. Amongst the women, I spot Judy, Izzy, Kari...

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“an averagetuesday” by E. J. Wilhelm

Submitted to Contest #220

Cheyenne saw her aunt Maisie every Tuesday afternoon, like clockwork. It seemed sort of fitting that her funeral was also on a Tuesday. Cheyenne stood at the back, staying quiet as others spoke. Some of what they said was accurate. Some of it wasn't. A lot of it was simply ... curated. They said Maisie was funny, without admitting she had a sense of humor that would make a porn star blush or a laugh that could put a supervillain to shame. They said she was kind, without saying how cranky or no-nonsense that kindness could sometimes be. The...

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“Neo Nova Eclipse” by Melody McCusker

Submitted to Contest #220

Neo Nova Eclipse By Melody McCusker The tape clicks as the message ends. Her husband’s voice echoes inside her mind, “If you’re hearing this, that means Lom gave this to you and I’m gone.” Tears start pooling in Nova’s vision as she sets the tape to rewind. Neo, what happened? She took you down even with your matching powers. Shaking as she selected play again. “DS - 10:85 7.7.07 I’ve prepared the failsafe against Kathia at the agreed coordinates. I’ve developed a potion that can let someone use my shapeshifting for one hour. It is a gam...

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“Happy Birthday Chris” by Alison Lian

Submitted to Contest #220

“Grandma look! I just cracked open an egg! Aren’t I the best?” “Yes, you are sweetheart. Now let’s get the little pieces of eggshell out…” Grabbing the opened eggshell, Chris’ grandma wrapped her arms around her darling grandson and held his hand as she showed him how to remove the tiny bits of fallen eggshells. Seeing the most heartwarming moment shared between his wife and his grandson, Chris’ grandpa couldn’t help himself and walked towards them, giving them a tight squeeze from the back and giving them kisses on their heads. The thre...

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$250

Prize money

251

Contest entries

129

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 20, 2023 EST

Won by D. Grimes 🏆

Title: Fae Touched

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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