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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

“Buried Under the Crabapple Tree” by Marii Anya

Submitted to Contest #220

It was the highest tree in the park behind the rundown building of Asta’s old middle school. A crabapple tree that still supported the weight of the treehouse that was older than herself. Swallowing a bite of its crabapple was a rite of passage at their small town middle school, one that no one failed—except Asta’s best friend, Yvonne. Yvonne was a coward. Even though Asta did not know it back then on their first day o...

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“Inherited” by Kate Dubbs

Submitted to Contest #220

“Holy hell what were the chances?!” I say loudly to no-one but myself. Actually pretty high, an answering thought rudely replied as I slammed the breaks on my fathers beaten up powder blue truck and grip the steering wheel in alarm. My knuckles start to grow white as I stare out at the giant funnel of black and grey debris twirling around violently high up in the sky several miles out from the road. It was still forming. Thank the lord. This was why I avoided Nebraska most of my life. In tornado alley. In July. Hell yes I was consider...

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“Stairwell to Heaven ” by C.K. Adams

Submitted to Contest #220

I couldn't remember what I'd been dreaming about when I started to come around. The headache was the worst one I ever remember having. Like somebody had my head in a vice and twirled it tight then left it right there. A vaguely familiar voice trickled into the darkness, I could hear it, barely. I followed it until I was aware enough to try to open my eyelids. They were so heavy. Like they'd been closed for years."Are you hungry?" I knew the voice now. It was Mrs. Hawthorne from across the hall. Sweet old lady. I never asked her age; seemed i...

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“A Doomed Side Character? Really?” by Joseph Peck

Submitted to Contest #220

“Are you hungry, my lord?” A crisp and cultured voice cuts through the dark haze of sleep. Groggily, I open my sleep crusted eyes, blinking rapidly 2as my bleary vision is assailed by a bright light. I open my mouth to say something I don’t know what, but all that comes out is a dry rasp from a throat that feels like sandpaper. Immediately a soft hand lifts my head up from my pillow as another brings a wooden jug to my lips. “Here, drink this.” the voice says again, this time with an undercurrent of concern. I allow my lips to fall o...

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“School Bus Art Festival Road Trip” by LoRanee Braun

Submitted to Contest #220

I laughed out loud when I saw it. A bright yellow rectangle had a red ironing board jutting out of a hole cut through the metal. It was supposed to be a tongue. Four white squares the size of bread slices hung across the top of the hole for teeth. Green bowls protruding from white saucers mounted above the mouth were bulging eyes. A silver metal tube, flattened on the end, gave the face flared nostrils. I quickly turned around and walked away from the booth. It looked like the author had his en...

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“TOGETHER” by Glenna Agnew

Submitted to Contest #220

The mourners, dressed in unrelieved black, shuffled slowly towards the casket. A deep silence enshrouded the cemetery. Each griever picked up a handful of dirt and tossed it into the open grave, symbolizing a last goodbye, the last act of kindness they could ever offer the loved one. The dearly departed returns to nature and the cycle of life is complete; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. A sad adieu to the deceased, supposedly a sign of respect although I never could figure out why flinging a clod of dirt on top of someone...

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“TIES THAT BIND” by Julia Corliss

Submitted to Contest #220

Kathina realized it had been fifty years since that long ago visit to Washington State Park with her childhood friend Ilena. They had made a day of it together. Kathina had been visiting her grandparents in a nearby town in Southwest Arkansas where she and Ilena had formed their childhood friendship. That sweet friendship had lasted until Ilena died after being hit by a drunk driver when she was walking on a country road. Kathina missed her friend greatly and had traveled to this small town to honor their friendship and remember...

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“"Hey, Buddy"” by Gauge Carroll

Submitted to Contest #220

"Hey, Buddy" It was empty when Hoth entered. The nave of the church was speckled with color from the stained-glass windows. At the center of the transept was a coffin, surrounded by purple and white lily flowers, with a large painting framed above it. The painting grew more distinct as he approached; that didn't matter though, Hoth already knew who it was of. "Hey Buddy," Hoth said. He kept his head low, avoiding the picture's eyes while twiddling a lifeless poppy between his thumb and index finger. "Brought the wrong flower." He chuckle...

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“Memories” by Gwen Drennan

Submitted to Contest #220

Tom clicked on the television and sat on his favorite chair near the fireplace. He placed the crocheted blanket over his lap and settled into the velvet chair he had owned since his thirties. He felt the smooth ridges of every carefully knotted piece of yarn on the yellow blanket which his mother had spent years making just for him. This piece of clothe was one of the only things he had left from his childhood, which he couldn’t remember very well. People would say Tom was a sort of sentimental type. He kept old bullet shells from his...

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“Live For Yourself ” by Rodney Martin II

Submitted to Contest #220

Warning- This story contains brief scenes of mental health, substance abuse, and violence. The aroma of sweet pancakes fingers my nostrils as my sewn eyes burst open. “Are you hungry, handsome?” The voice sparks a sense of familiarity within me that I didn’t quite understand as my blurred vision decided to amalgamate an image before me. “You talk a lot in your sleep, you know that?” I wipe my eyes and see her. “Are we not speaking this morning, Danny?” she says with a slight pout. “No, I’m just really happy to see you.” “Hap...

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“We all dream of ice cream” by Yevgeniy Peregudov

Submitted to Contest #220

Your mother visits you in your dreams. Her arms tight around you, a little too tight, but you don’t mind. Her lips are soft as she presses them a little too firmly to your forehead. Your father is there too, he picks you up and holds you close to his heart. Thump, thump… thump, thump, his heart always beats a tad quicker when you’re in his arms. Exacerbating his existing arrhythmia. Now you are running through the grass, your parents watch with glee as you stumble and tumble. Undeterred, you prop yourself back up on all fours. The smell of f...

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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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