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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#232: Polar Night & Northern Lights

Winter solstice has come and gone here in the northern hemisphere and we’re slowly heading towards brighter days. Above the arctic circle, however, inhabitants will have to wait a bit longer to see the sun. There, polar night — where the sun doesn’t rise for months — still keeps its grip. Inhospitable as this may seem, entire communities have adapted to the long night, and the northern lights playing across the sky provide a reminder that light will eventually return.

This week's prompts are inspired by polar nights, human resilience, and, most of all, the glimmers of hope that make it all worthwhile.

This week's prompts

Set your story during polar night.

Winter – 37 stories

Write a story set in a world with a dying sun, or where light is a scarce resource.

Science Fiction – 64 stories

Write a story about someone witnessing — or trying to witness — a celestial phenomenon.

Adventure – 38 stories

Write a story about someone who has been tasked to keep a flame burning, surrounded by total darkness.

Character – 84 stories

Write a story about someone looking for a sign in a dark sky.

Angst – 56 stories

Stories

“The Keeper” by Elli Price

Submitted to Contest #232

It was a dark and stormy night. Really stormy. Amos had never seen a storm like it in all his years. Thunderous waves crashed against the rocks as he fought to secure the boat against the pier. With every wave and gust of wind she tore against the ropes, wrenching to be free. He did his best, the wind whipping the constant rain into his face and blinding him. It would do. It would have to do. He could do no better. He looked up at the light beaming from the top of the lighthouse, followed its steady arc across the water. The dark of the sto...

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“Bloody Are The Hands That Hold On” by Sara Otero

Submitted to Contest #232

Warning: This story contains verbal abuse and themes of mental health. Young, quiet, and innocent, just like the flame resting in her palms. It seemed as harmless as her. The bearer of the flame crouched to look further into the center of the fire. It burned a cold blue, and it smelt of sulfur. They told the girl she could not peel her eyes away from the light, or she and the world would disappear. Her mousy brown eyes pierced the flame hour after hour. Her eyes grew weary, but one moment of rest meant the end. "GO." A voice similar to...

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“Towards the Light” by Kayla Pater

Submitted to Contest #232

The wooden oars rubbed against his palms roughly, making him wonder if he would walk away from this expedition with a few splinters in his hand. His fishing gear sat behind him, swaying as the row boat moved forward, every stroke through the water bringing him closer to what was his goal. Well, what he hoped would be his goal. The direction that was his destination was purely guesswork based on tides and currents in this wide ocean. He was a captain of a fishing boat in his prime years, catching fish with great nets, braving storms t...

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“Diary Entry of a Troubled Young Man” by Derrick Lancero

Submitted to Contest #232

Consistency, a fleeting fragment of a component in character that many search so one knows that they took control of their life. I ask, can peace and freedom be found in consistency? How much easier would it be to follow along with those who crave adventure and find their meaning in new skies. New skies are where you can find the new you. Or those who find it all in the moment. A moment where you love yourself because there's nothing but that one moment to go off of. I'm not in any of these categories and I lament for myself and others who s...

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“The Polar STATIC STILLS” by Michelle SHAAY

Submitted to Contest #232

THE STATIC STILLS Written by Michelle SHAAY The Hot Toddy Lounge was busier than usual for Wednesday. A frosty Polar night while frigid temperatures danced across the city gave patrons a reason to stay inside the loud, rustic place. As the pub began to close, a fatigued but curious bartender listened to a trending news story on its large flat screen television. “Can I get another shot of vodka and cranberry?” asked an overly drunk bar patron. The slurred words felt like painful daggers to Kenneth's ears. “We’ve shut the bar down for t...

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“The Rabbit and The Bear” by Samuel Garcia

Submitted to Contest #232

"This will be much easier than I thought, being it's dark all day. What's your name?" "No names, remember?" "Right, right. No names." Both men walk towards the lining of a dense forest. "Did you bring your knife?" "Yes." "What about a gun? Surely you brought that, I'd imagine wolves out here?" "Yes." "Yes, you brought the gun or are you referring to the wolves?” The other man stared at him, “the gun.” “Great, we're good to go then.” They walk half a mile into the dense forest in silence. “So what can I call you then if there's a problem?&...

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“Twilight Menace” by Sabrina Rose

Submitted to Contest #232

The dim twilight looked eerily mesmerizing as Johana gazed out at the frosty horizon, pulling her parka tighter. It had to be subzero as it was the heart of winter in the arctic region of Sweden, in her mother’s small Elven hometown of Nowheresville as far as she was concerned. She could see why she wanted to move to the states with her dad, get out of this town of seemingly eternal night, at least this time of year, but it legit made her SAD, or at least feel like she had seasonal affective disorder. It was a stark contrast to her hometown ...

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“Reality” by Sherri Moorer

Submitted to Contest #232

“Are you sure about this?” Kyra fiddled with the drone. “Of course I am. Don’t you want to see the sun? To see blue skies and green trees? To see life?” Bryn gently touched Kyra’s chin and tilted her face up, staring deep into her eyes. “What if the histories are true? What if there’s nothing to see but scorched earth and barrenness? Or worse yet, darkness?” She smiled. “There’s only one way to find out.” Bryn turned to the large, iron door splotched with rust. As he suspected, it was sealed shut. He would have thought it was from four...

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“It Blocked the Light” by Tawny Molina

Submitted to Contest #232

You know there is something really weird about the Sun suddenly vanishing. I’m not talking about having a cloud roll in and cause the sunlight to fade for a few moments. I mean having not only the blue sky blocked but also the clouds. It happened I swear. I was going for a walk and suddenly something blocked everything above my neighborhood. I want to say it happened sometime around the first day of winter. Winter solstice? I dunno I never really keep track of these things. I only remembered this year because of what happened. It was...

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“The Day the Sun Sank” by Maisey Mansson

Submitted to Contest #232

The Day the Sun Sank They were on top of the world. An hour before the final sunset, the entire town was begrudgingly on the move. With pockets and packs stuffed with comforting personal treasures, children wrapped in their favorite blankies, family members carrying pictures of those passed, and with some lifting lanterns to the slowly darkening sky, they made their way up the trail. The procession was orderly, eerily tranquire. The walk was a long time coming. The days were growing progressively shorter and the nights longer. It was a ...

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“Where is The Suzie-Q?” by Luca King Greek

Submitted to Contest #232

The fall weather was unseasonably warm, the sky cloudless, and the foliage on the upper slopes of Mount Katahdin was tinged with rust, so Baxter State Park, resplendent and remote, was overflowing with day-hikers and campers, everywhere abuzz with anticipation for the arrival of Konika’s Comet. Five plain white vans arrived at the Ranger Station carrying forty-three passengers, each with close-cropped or shaven heads, wearing androgynous black slacks and turtleneck sweaters, the mix of age and sex obscured by sameness. Sitting stiffly, ...

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“Carrying My Family Out of Hell” by Caless Red

Submitted to Contest #232

Trigger Warning: References to malnourishment and slight mentions of burns.It's a lose-lose situation, really. I knew that the moment I was tasked with the impossible challenge of keeping alive the family flame in place of my sister.But what was I to do? Say, "Sure, let the six-year-old kid take on the task of traveling the depths of hell with nothing but a measly fire"? Of course not -- it really never was a choice to begin with, now that I think about it."Stupid tradition, stupid choice, stupid--" I cut off with a yelp, my foot catching on...

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“A Year of Light” by Raya Tost

Submitted to Contest #232

Warm, rough hands reached out to Freyja’s, slipping a brass candle holder into her palm. Atop it sat a cream colored candle adorned with etchings of suns, moons and stars on its fresh surface. “Prove us wrong.” The voice mulled away into the depth of darkness before Freyja could find the words within herself to respond, or the courage in her limbs to reject the offering. She found her body frozen as still as the trees; the soft candle’s fire could not even thaw her. The dusk that had hugged her body moments before snapped into a deep...

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“Fueling the Void” by S.d. Schwarz

Submitted to Contest #232

“Come on you piece of shit.” I cup my hands around the golf ball-sized flame as it flickers like a flashlight on the final juices of its battery. The tip of my nose loses sensation, and I envision all the blood in my face rushing to create harsh, crimson circles on my cheeks. If Vivi were here, she’d remind me of the time she put makeup on my face when I got blackout drunk on our first wedding anniversary. God, what I’ld give to see her dimpled smile right now… Pop! The flame crackles in response, threatening to succumb to the icy winds a...

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“guardian” by Lara Deppe

Submitted to Contest #232

The darkness is pierced by the flame below us. Every time it sputters, my heart sputters with it. The hopelessness rests on our shoulders and is squeezing in like the loops of an anaconda around us. I hold Ori’s left hand on my right side and Aleena’s on my left. We circle the turret hand in hand. I know every person in this circle who is defending the light. We all know what is at stake if The Flame goes out. It is a circle of trust. If any one of us break it now, there is no way we could keep the fire burning. We are shoulder to shoulder a...

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$250

Prize money

279

Contest entries

106

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jan 12, 2024 EST

Won by Jonathan Page 🏆

Title: The Lantern of Kaamos

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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