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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#226: Temptation Time

Temptation comes in many forms this time of year, and our ability to resist seems to wear a little thin during these cold winter months. Some of these temptations are innocuous, from a little over-shopping to a well-deserved third helping at Thanksgiving dinner, while others prove a little more problematic, like the temptation to snap at loved ones after a long weekend in close quarters.


This week’s prompts are all about impulses, indulgence, and the way in which wants and needs tend to blur around the edges after a glass or two of mulled wine.


This week's prompts

Your family’s holiday dinners always end with everyone at each other’s throats. This year you’re determined to keep a low profile, but your patience is being put to the test.

Thanksgiving – 38 stories

At some point in your story, a character says “You’re better than this…”.

Thanksgiving – 56 stories

Your character finally gives into a temptation they've been avoiding, and becomes better because of it.

Thanksgiving – 31 stories

Write a story about somebody trying to rationalize giving into temptation, even though they know they shouldn’t.

Thanksgiving – 42 stories

Black Friday is the one day of the year where the Devil makes selling your soul a good thing, although there are some bizarre T’s & C’s.

Thanksgiving – 22 stories

Stories

“A Thanksgiving Game” by Jade Elise

Submitted to Contest #226

It’s that time of the year again, the time when Keven’s small, but chaotic family gets together for Thanksgiving dinner. He knew he couldn’t skip out on it, even if he wanted to. Without Keven’s influence, God knows how the night would go. It would more than likely end with one of them or all of them, dying.These dinners were a little different than what most would expect, the fact that they always ended in fights and arguments was probably the only thing about it that resembled a normal family gathering.Every year it was the same thing, yet...

3 comments 3
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“Best Christmas Ever” by David McCahan

Submitted to Contest #226

Warning: Profanity.Who decided to put Thanksgiving and Christmas so close together?Who is responsible for this?I have a running list, mostly in my head, about two different groups of people. People who deserve statues to be built in their honor and people who should burn in hell.The people who deserve statues are the woman who invented chicken wings, the man or woman who invented yoga pants, and my neighbor Mr. George, the single nicest man I ever knew who never said one bad word about anyone ever and who lived to be one hundred faithfully m...

5 comments 5
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“Tommy Thunder” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #226

“C’mon bum!” Shouted the fans of the half filled venue where two heavy weights were slugging it out in the seventh round. Thomas Petreche AKA Tommy Thunder had reached his wall and was trying to keep his opponent, The Brown Bomber from landing one of his lightning left jabs.  His legs felt like lead and he had sweated off over six pounds from the opening bell.   Tommy went to the ropes, but the Bomber AKA Roscoe Washington from Harlem was able to zero in on his target, Tommy’s double chins.  With one powerful blow, Tommy...

2 comments 2
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“What's in it For Me?” by Kathleen Fidler

Submitted to Contest #226

“Is this recording?” Jackson asked.  “Yeah.” “Alright.” He turned to the man sitting across from them. The man’s black eyes were flecked with red and gold. His veins were black as well, running like map lines under his paper white flesh. His hands in the cuffs had turned a strange pink colour, which meant the cuffs were working to keep him under control.  “You’re gonna tell us everything, okay? From the beginning.” “No beginning to tell, really,” the man said. “None of that crap. Start talking,” Cora said. “You think you can ...

1 comment 1
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“The Apple of Her Eye” by Bob Long Jr

Submitted to Contest #226

Gabby followed her sister, Samantha, and her latest boyfriend to the door and as they were leaving, she said, "Thanks for everything. We absolutely could not have done this without your help. I'll text you soon with the date and time for the cookout." "Thanks, sis. I still owe you. I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for you!"The last of the family and friends had gone home and now, they were all alone, just the two of them, and they could not be happier."I have to pinch myself Gabe, I can't believe we are homeowners. No more trips to...

5 comments 5
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“Thanks to You” by Jesse James Chambers

Submitted to Contest #226

Content Warning: This story takes place in a gentlemen's club and the co-main character is an exotic dancer.Raven: Back again, huh?James: Yep.Raven:  Do you actually like it here?James: Um…yeah, I guess so.Raven: Why?James: Why not?Raven: This place is a dump.James: You work here!Raven: Yeah, well, it’s still a dump.James: Um, ok. If you say so.PauseRaven: Do you have a girlfriend?James: No. PauseI don’t.Raven: When was the last time you did?James: Why do you want to ...

0 comments 0
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“Contagic” by Haley Roeder

Submitted to Contest #226

I was infected when I was fourteen. Magic is contagious. Not everyone that is exposed will become infected, just the ones with the right predisposition. The right genetic markers or certain kinds of life experiences – usually some form of trauma or abuse. Those kinds of experiences left physical remnants, damaged DNA, malfunctioning cellular machinery, and abnormal brain waves. Then, if that person is further unfortunate enough to be exposed to magic, they will become contaminated. This often manifested as a malignant magic prone to certa...

1 comment 1
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“The curse” by Maria Alexandra

Submitted to Contest #226

Nothing felt particular about that morning. I woke up at 6am and quickly hopped into the shower. I'd never been a morning person and the hot water would soothe me, warm me up for the day. I'd dreaded early mornings ever since I was in kindergarten and spent the first half of my 20s as a chronic snoozer, always having to negotiate with myself to get out of bed in time, to not go back to sleep for the ever-elusive "five more minutes". But as my career took off, I decided I needed to do everything within my power to resist the temptation of lat...

0 comments 0
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“Duhghlaserex, Dread of the Seven Peaks, and King of the Black Waters” by James Lane

Submitted to Contest #226

Deep in a cave in the Crow Mountains lived a dragon named Doug. Well, his full name was Duhghlaserex, Dread of the Seven Peaks, and King of the Black Waters, but only his mother called him that - when she was angry. Doug, like any respectable dragon, had a territory to manage. He reigned over the Crow Mountains and Blue Boulder valley for many centuries, scaring away anyone that came into his domain. But it was a desolate place, and over time, he got lonely, so he relented and let a few creatures settle his lands.First the faeries came....

7 comments 7
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“Spiral” by Kyla Tavares

Submitted to Contest #226

She didn’t know when she first noticed the ring inside the mansion on 3rd Street. Her job was to clean the mansion weekly. In the beginning, she only gave the ring a glance. She’d walk into the room to clean it and she’d clean around the ring. But she never touched it. She’d never thought about it much either. Yes it was beautiful, with its gold band dotted with diamonds that led to the biggest gem she’d ever seen sitting on top. It was a curse that came with her job. She was forced to clean things that she’d never get to own. She lived...

3 comments 3
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“Temptation With Someone Else” by Leahcim Ejibat

Submitted to Contest #226

*This story contains sexual themes*Jen and Erick. Erick was a dick. Jen was a beautiful angel, Mike declared. He was still a virgin and a senior in high school. He also felt the pressure to “do it” before he graduated.For a teenager, your universe is very small. Who knew if all those stories of “doing it” were bullshit or if they were true? He heard enough stories around school to make it his goal to get it done. He didn’t want to feel left out. Teenage hormones trumps all.Mike, Erick, and Jen all worked part time after school at the sa...

2 comments 2
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“The Devil's Daughter” by Elizabeth Sloughter

Submitted to Contest #226

Friday, 24 November 2023              Celestine Victoria stands in the shadow next to the streetlamp, staring into the elegantly gaudy window display, staring at her heart’s desire. The diamond-encrusted snow angels and snowflakes glitter and sparkle, but none so much as the jewelry on display. All on sale for one day only.              It is two hours past midnight the day after Thanksgiving, and soon the crowd...

6 comments 6
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“Not This Again” by Marc Wilks

Submitted to Contest #226

Greg Everett looked at his dashboard clock and nodded. He was only ten minutes from his uncle’s house.  I’m well ahead of schedule, he thought.  Dinner was due to start at three-thirty. Greg would get there just after two o’clock. He upshifted to go around a slow-moving truck, then shot past it. Greg took great pleasure in driving his Porsche. He rarely got to open it up like this. The wind rushed past his face, and Greg smiled.  I better enjoy this while it lasts. Because once the family gets to Uncle Robert’s, the fun is wel...

5 comments 5
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“The Thanksgiving Nightmare” by The Sherise Effect

Submitted to Contest #226

Thanksgiving (not Christmas) is usually the only time of the year that the Spaghetti Family gathers. Family members travel from near and far for family togetherness, which is often counted as their annual family reunion. A family member hosts, and their home is jammed packed like a can of sardines. As imagined, tensions are thick, and personal space is not an option. Every year, this results in the Spaghetti Family’s soap opera of everyone at each other’s throats and the hosts’ home looking like a tornado hit it. Never hosting holiday dinner...

0 comments 0
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“Sin of Sarcasm” by Michael Lauer

Submitted to Contest #226

Title: Sin of SarcasmMichael pulled into his driveway with his 2012 Ford F-150. The truck still ran well, having almost two hundred thousand hard miles. It was nearly 6:00 p.m., and Michael was exhausted from another long, cold day working at a construction site. It was mid-February, and the snow has been fallen all day with temperatures hovering around twenty-five degrees. Today, he used the jackhammer for eight hours straight, breaking up old concrete where the giant machines couldn’t reach. Michael’s arms, shoulders, and back were hurting...

1 comment 1
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$250

Prize money

189

Contest entries

87

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 01, 2023 EST

Won by Chris Campbell 🏆

Title: Forthright Thursday

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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