Menu

Prompts

Contests

Stories

Blog

Menu

✕

CONNECT

Editing Design Marketing Publicity Ghostwriting Websites

BLOG

Success Stories

APPS

TOOLS

Book Promotion Sites Book Review Blogs Booktube Channel Guide Book Title Generator Character Name Generator Independent Publishers Literary Agents Literary Magazines Pen Name Generator Plot Generator Publishers Directory Short Story Ideas Writing Contests Writing Exercises Writing Scholarships

ABOUT

About Reedsy Terms Privacy

CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#222: Show Me The Way

When navigating life’s challenges, we could all use a little guidance — someone who can show us the way, or give us the wisdom we need to follow the right path. In literature, much like in reality, coaches and mentors are often central to a protagonist’s development, offering training, advice, or tools to succeed in their Hero’s Journey.

What's fascinating about mentors is that they come in different shapes and forms. They might be a nurturing figure, who offers wisdom and support; a harsh and unyielding professor, who demands the impossible; an unconventional thinker who brings a unique perspective. Sometimes the guidance doesn’t even come in human form: perhaps it’s a dream, a spirit, a faith, or an item, like a totem, a book, or a map.

This week’s prompts are all about people (or things) that, in one way or another, have a pivotal role in someone’s journey.

🥇 Winner

“Just Like Him” by Audrey McKenna

Content warning: sexual violence, languageWhen I was four years old, my sister and I were messing around at the pool. I slipped and hit my head on the concrete. It split open in the back. I remember the lifeguard gave me a squishy ball to squeeze. I remember she said I could keep it. I remember my dad scooped me up in his arms. It doesn’t make sense that it happened this way, but I remember he carried me all the way to the emergency room. I remember the pressure of my face pressing into a pillow as the doctor staple...

116 comments 116 WINNER 🏆

Read story

⭐️ Shortlisted

“In Search of Inspiration” by Michał Przywara

Finally, after months of waiting, after countless arguments with the shipper, with border services, with his wife Shirley and with his son Miles, and with his wallet to cover all the extra importing fees, Carl Jones’s package arrived and sat in his study. It was a dented cardboard box, basketball-sized, swaddled with duct tape, and it screamed nondescript. If he had passed it in the street he would have kept on wa...

65 comments 65 SHORTLIST ⭐️

Read story

“Reverse” by Mollie Rodgers

When I was a child, my hedgehog ate her babies, just popped the little hoglets like popcorn shrimp one night while I slept, blissfully unaware, on the other side of the room. I couldn’t look at her tank without wanting to puke, and even the sight of pink jellybeans set my stomach roiling. Eventually, my mother foisted the infanticider onto my cousin, and as I said my goodbyes, I stared into those beady, remorseless eyes, and thought, “Monster.”But, like… I get it now.The Dinner Table Tyrant glares at me overtop Broc...

4 comments 4 SHORTLIST ⭐️

Read story

“The Avalanche” by Nicholas Andrew Clark

Most people think they’d hear it coming. They imagine it like the movies–a low rumble that grows into a roar, as of an awakening giant. In reality, once you pass the trigger point into the convexity, the slab makes almost no noise at all. It sloughs and sighs, a gruff whisper that builds at your back and pelts you with shards, its full magnitude only apparent when it’s too late to do anything. In the next breath, the mountain swallows you whole, using its thousand-pound jaw to crack your skis and snap your ribs an...

7 comments 7 SHORTLIST ⭐️

Read story

“The Eggcentric Apprentice: Finnegan's Whimsical Way” by Pino De Francesco

Alright, let's spin a yarn, shall we? Gather 'round, and let me tell you a tale most extraordinary about a young lad named Finnegan Potts, who lived in the quaint, magical village of Whistleberry Hollow. Now, Whistleberry Hollow wasn't your ordinary hamlet; nay, it was a place where the trees whispered secrets and the rivers hummed lullabies. But our tale isn't about the peculiarity of the village—oh no, it's about Finne...

12 comments 12 SHORTLIST ⭐️

Read story

“A Humble Headshrinker Deviates” by John Healey

“Well, I subscribe to the Freudian school of thought.” His thick, veiny hand creaked slowly open and I pulled back the solderin’ iron. He judged my work with eyes that I reckon were prob’ly normal-sized, but were so deep-set that they looked positively tiny, peerin’ out from that overhang forehead of his. That forehead absolutely burstin’ with knowledge. “What this means,” he began, and...

4 comments 4 SHORTLIST ⭐️

Read story

This week's prompts

Start your story with a student on their first day of apprenticeship.

Teens – 19 stories

Write about a character who has a love/hate relationship with their mentor.

Character – 38 stories

Write about a mentor whose methods are controversial.

Character – 22 stories

Write a story about a character who finds guidance in an unlikely place.

Dramatic – 82 stories

Write a story that includes someone saying, “You’ve got this.”

Dialogue – 55 stories

Stories

“Just Like Him” by Audrey McKenna

Content warning: sexual violence, languageWhen I was four years old, my sister and I were messing around at the pool. I slipped and hit my head on the concrete. It split open in the back. I remember the lifeguard gave me a squishy ball to squeeze. I remember she said I could keep it. I remember my dad scooped me up in his arms. It doesn’t make sense that it happened this way, but I remember he carried me all the way to the emergency room. I remember the pressure of my face pressing into a pillow as the doctor staple...

116 comments 116 WINNER 🏆

Read story

“In Search of Inspiration” by Michał Przywara

Finally, after months of waiting, after countless arguments with the shipper, with border services, with his wife Shirley and with his son Miles, and with his wallet to cover all the extra importing fees, Carl Jones’s package arrived and sat in his study. It was a dented cardboard box, basketball-sized, swaddled with duct tape, and it screamed nondescript. If he had passed it in the street he would have kept on wa...

65 comments 65 SHORTLIST ⭐️

Read story

“The Library of Disappearing Things” by Jonathan Page

Boris Bondarenko lived in a multicolored cottage house in a one-road village in the Ukranian countryside and had the remarkable ability to read every known language. Most of the anointed were marked from birth, but Boris went unnoticed by the Library for years. It was strange then, but also appropriate, given his time in the world, that it fell on him to prevent the whole thing from burning to the ground.As a boy, Boris loved to run through the sunflower fields and chase bees. Boris’s childhood duties included cutting up...

Read story

“Welcome to Novice Night ” by Danie Holland

“Why did you take this class if you are only going to stare at a blank piece of paper?”I glance up to see who's speaking. It’s a man with boyish looks and curious blue eyes. He sits at the desk next to mine. His paper already holds all kinds of objects. A square with deep shadows. A sphere with lots of pencil shading like the one on the board in front of the class. It looks even cleaner than the one our instructor drew. The rest of his paper holds a flawless cylinder. It captures the light hitting it at the perfect angle...

Read story

“Luella Goes to Forest School” by Chelsey B

Luella was usually hard to get out of bed in the morning, but today, she jumped up as soon as her Mom came to wake her. “I’m going to forest school today!” she cheered, as she leaned in for a hug. Finally, after a year of hearing all about the fun to be had in the woods from her older brother, it was her turn. “What do you need to do before we can leave for school?...

Read story

“Orphan Jack” by Graham Kinross

TW: Swearing and mention of death.Jack strolled down the dusty streets of the port towards the space shuttle for his interview. Pale men and women, ignorant after months or years in vacuum, were shifting cargo. The suns of Hellebore cooked the flesh of offworlders to a glowing boiled lobster tan that was in vogue amongst incomers.Jack pulled down the brim of his cap. He lifted the collar of his boiler suit with one hand to save his neck from the crispy barbeque fate of the crowds. In his other hand he carried his ...

Read story

“The Instructor” by Karen Corr

**Contains violence and death in a disturbing dystopian world**Good morning. You may address me as Instructor. Please take your seats, was written on the blackboard.A man in a white jumpsuit adorned with medals stood before the board with his hands clasped behind his back and watched the students file in. When they seemed ready, he began the class with a question."How many lives does an E-Fighter have? Some have only one, you see, and that leads to the next question. How many lives do

Read story

“Talk is Cheap” by Jed Cope

Twenty years it took me. Twenty long, hard years. Twenty years to discern the meaning of just a few small words. But then, that’s living and living is all we’ve got. “You’ve got this,” my Mother said these words whilst wearing a pained smile and then she let go of her very last breath, letting go of my hand and her mortal coil as that warm air wheezed out of...

Read story

“Hometown Boy” by Mary Bendickson

Hometown Boy The year was 1920. Nine-year-old, Dutch, moaned to his four-year-older brother, Moon, “This is all there is?” “Yeah, ain't it grand? Everything they promised. Well, nothing like the run-down row houses of Chicago. Maybe you don't remember them but they were crammed in pretty tight with no room to play ball at all. Had to walk down two or three streets and cross busy traffic lanes just ...

Read story

“Beowulf: Big Brother” by AnneMarie Miles

I had thought old age would bring me the finer things in life, like a small staircase at the foot of Mother and Father’s bed to help me climb up without having to jump; or chicken broth in my kibble to soften it; or more frequented walks; or heck, maybe some freaking pain meds that would make the world feel like it had when I was a puppy. Those were all the things my older friends at the park had bragged about when they told him what to expect in my elderly years, and it was the only thing that made reaching my tenth birthday something to...

Read story

“What's Your Favourite Type of Pie?” by Chris Miller

“How long have you been doing this?”“Twenty-five years, sir.”“Remember your first, do you?”He did.*The air was so cold that the thick skin of clean white gloss that covered the roo...

Read story

“Ramirez Took My Hand” by Kevin B

Ramirez shows up three minutes early everyday. I am to be here ten minutes earlier. Somehow she knows if I’m not. The wall is blank. It was painted over in the night. A lost white. As if a blizzard had swept in to confiscate the previous day’s mural. I am allowed one brush and two colors. I may choose the colors the night before, but I must do so having no idea what Ramirez will ask me to paint. According to her, she doe...

Read story

“Sweet And Sour” by Chris Campbell

“Any more words of wisdom?” “Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.” “You come up with that, yourself?” “It’s Shakespeare.” “When have you read any Shakespeare?” “It says it on this small piece of paper, quoting Shakespeare.” “I thought you only read stuff when it’s got pictures in it.” “I’ll have you know that we are living in the new age of literary enlightenment.” “What, reading comics?” “They’re starting to be referred to as graphic novels, now.”

Read story

“Goodbye Darkness, My Old Friend” by Khadija S. Mohammad

There must be some way to cheer the world up. It's rained recently. The clouds are moody and the grass is drooping, covered in tears. The tree in our back garden moans in the wind, trying to tell us how lonely it is. No-one listens but me. No-one ever listens but me. My parents call me into the living room to receive my presents. Florida hands me hers first, and I take it gently. The poor...

Read story

“Brown Fur” by Tom Skye

It was the fourteenth day in a row Daisy found herself animal tracking in the forest. By her feet was another clump of brown fur. She kneeled to pick it up, rolling the tough strands between her finger and thumb before allowing them to settle in her palm. A short gust of wind lifted them from her hand, and she watched as they spread across the air and into nature. The surrounding trees towered beyond sight and lined deep in every direction, but the thick greenery that shrouded them cast no shadow, allowing light f...

Read story

Load more stories

$250

Prize money

216

Contest entries

103

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Nov 03, 2023 EST

Won by Audrey McKenna 🏆

Title: Just Like Him

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!

Explore more writing prompt ideas:

Adults Writing Prompts ⭢

Adventure Writing Prompts ⭢

Angst Writing Prompts ⭢

Character Writing Prompts ⭢

Christmas Writing Prompts ⭢

Dark Writing Prompts ⭢

Dialogue Writing Prompts ⭢

Dramatic Writing Prompts ⭢

Dystopian Writing Prompts ⭢

Fall Writing Prompts ⭢

Fantasy Writing Prompts ⭢

Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Fluff Writing Prompts ⭢

Funny Writing Prompts ⭢

Halloween Writing Prompts ⭢

High School Writing Prompts ⭢

Historical Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Holiday Writing Prompts ⭢

Horror Writing Prompts ⭢

Kids Writing Prompts ⭢

Middle School Writing Prompts ⭢

Mystery Writing Prompts ⭢

Narrative Writing Prompts ⭢

Nonfiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Novel Writing Prompts ⭢

Poetry Writing Prompts ⭢

Romance Writing Prompts ⭢

Sad Writing Prompts ⭢

Science Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Short Story Writing Prompts ⭢

Spring Writing Prompts ⭢

Summer Writing Prompts ⭢

Teens Writing Prompts ⭢

Thanksgiving Writing Prompts ⭢

Thriller and Suspense Writing Prompts ⭢

Valentine's Day Writing Prompts ⭢

Vampire Writing Prompts ⭢

Winter Writing Prompts ⭢