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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#235: Running Wild

Every day, countless people around the world participate in some form of running, from jogs to ultramarathons. And that simple act of putting one foot in front of another is a deceptively meaningful one; it’s something that transcends pure sport, and that can be used as a metaphor for various life experiences. 


Running has a powerful psychological effect, as it often mirrors or influences our mental state. Just think about how often it pops up as an image in literature, to express a character's behavior or mindset (think running on empty, moving in circles, heading towards trouble, escaping problems, racing against time, and so on). This week, let's explore the theme of running and some of its interpretations in storytelling.

This week's prompts

Start your story with one or two characters going for a run.

Adventure – 37 stories

Write a story in which a character is running away from something, literally or metaphorically.

Angst – 123 stories

Make a race an important element of your story.

Narrative – 44 stories

Write about a character who suddenly cannot run anymore.

Character – 43 stories

Write a story that includes someone saying, “You can’t run forever.”

Dialogue – 65 stories

Stories

“In Memoriam Flight ” by AR R

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #235

In Memoriam Flight by Adam Ryan (Note: This story deals with survivor's guilt from the death of young man, suicidal thoughts, and alcohol/recreational drug abuse) On the way to Will’s house, you and Danny smoke a thousand cigarettes, but don’t talk much. It’s tense. A couple in a fight with kids sitting bug-eyed in the back. But that’s not it. You’re not a couple and neither of you say anything because there isn’t anything left to say – you may be headed to a party but you both know what it really is. A funeral encore. There’s a roach i...

13 comments 13
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“Cacophony” by Molly Magarian

Submitted to Contest #235

I wonder sometimes what rain sounds like. I know what it looks like. I can describe every detail of how it traces window panes, and how the smallest spots of sunlight get caught in the dewdrops. The rain never travels in a straight line - drops sway this way and that, crashing into each other on their way down to collect into one perfect, peaceful form. I’ve always loved that about rain. It knows where it’s going, but it takes its own path to get there. If only. My name is Lars. It’s been a while since I’ve let my lips form that word. Lar...

4 comments 4
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“Challenges of a Middle-Aged Mediocre Runner” by Hope Linter

Submitted to Contest #235

Arlene pulled at the white laces in her pristine running shoes. The synthetic off-gassing didn’t have the pleasurable leather smell from runners in the old days, but they emitted newness and hope. Satisfied the laces were tight, she double tied them and stood up, her weight suspended on the cushiony soles. In the elevator, feeling a spectacle in her middle-age, wearing lycra running gear, she breathed thanks as the elevator passed all the floors without stopping. Even the lobby was empty and she walked unaccosted through the main door witho...

8 comments 8
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“Ikey” by Michael Ginsberg

Submitted to Contest #235

IKEY “Ikey died.” I stood at the breakfast table, looking down at my parents and my sister, Susan. Their blank expressions left me wondering if they even knew who I was. “Ikey Leibowitz?” my father finally asked, and I nodded. “Ms. Lewis just called from the nursing home,” I said. “They think his heart quit during the night.” Susan leaned back in her chair and yawned. “I didn’t think he had a heart,” she said. Susan is 13 – two years younger than me and 5 years dumber. I glared at her; then I shot my parents a “do something” look. They...

3 comments 3
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“On The Shoulders Of The Wise” by Chris Campbell

Submitted to Contest #235

Ladies and gentlemen, my weary disposition welcomes you to the main event of this dreary morning commute to the city titled, The Waterloo Station Java Sweepstakes! As we approach our final destination, everyone is up on their feet, crowding the train’s sliding doors in anticipation of a packed surge of bodies eagerly jockeying for position before collectively spilling out onto Platform Nine. And… We’re off! The train doors have made way for the jumpers, leapers, and pushers descending onto the concrete walkway, keen to gain an advantage ov...

16 comments 16
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“The Man Who Ran Away” by Kaitlyn Wadsworth

Submitted to Contest #235

Caution: mention of torture and cruelty. How would you react if introduced to a potential roommate or flat mate who promptly told you lots of negative things about himself? Top marks for honesty, but no one would choose to live with someone who is rebellious and will not do as he is asked, who whinges and whines when things don’t go his way and even wants to die when a situation gets unpleasant, who is more concerned about how he appears to others than wanting to help the unpopular. The reply would not be welcoming. It would be a suggestio...

10 comments 10
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“The Summer of '72” by Timothy Rennels

Submitted to Contest #235

The Summer of ‘72   My 12-year-old self tightened the laces on my dusty PF Flyers. I kicked the Ozark rocks stained red from the clay and there rose a cloud of dust that lingered in the air. I thought it could be smoke as hot as it was. I looked down the steeply sloped gravel driveway that brought travelers up, past the weathered barn, to the cozy house at the top of the hill. Grandma and Grandpa’s house. They had moved here from Indiana after their retirements, and fancied watching the rest of their lives pass by from that Ozark...

10 comments 10
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“Perfection” by Joe Smallwood

Submitted to Contest #235

“I mean, we’re in marketing, right? We should know what people want!”This restaurant must have the slowest service on the planet! The waiter was attentive, but lunch needed to arrive in the next five or we’d have to split! Here we were, Bob from Wiffle Industries, the joke being that all he sold was a bunch of piffle, me, outranking anyone ‘cause I work for this huge company that everyone has heard of and wants to do business with, and Emma, the no-nonsense kitchen specialist from Kitchener. Well, not so. She lives there, in sunny Ontariario...

7 comments 7
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“Mate For Life” by Lindsay Flo

Submitted to Contest #235

I tell Emily we’re going to run because I don’t know what else to do. Her dark eyes grow wide, because she thinks we’re going for a jog, which usually means a visit to the park. I know she doesn’t really understand half of what I say to her, but she’s the only one left to talk to. Living in this house has become like living in a mausoleum. Or worse—a silent house of horrors. He barely talks to anyone, and never about Johnny. He rants and raves, but no talking. I would like to. I would like to sit in my living room in the morning, when the ...

6 comments 6
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“Requiem for a Runner” by J.R. Alton

Submitted to Contest #235

Rubber soles slapped the damp pavement as heated breath dissipated in the chilled morning air. The fallen leaves had turned hazel underfoot as the last of autumn gave way to winter. There was no need for music; every step was the beating of a drum, and the shrill bird calls like a melody in this symphony of sweat and toil.Four minutes.Aaron picked up the pace. His lungs and heart begged for mercy, his legs a slave to his mind. The world record for fastest one mile would be his and he would torment every fiber of his being to make it so.Three...

5 comments 5
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“Running From Death” by Katina Azbill

Submitted to Contest #235

Death was coming for me! The air crackled with it, a deep depression that no matter how hard I fought it would win. It didn’t matter how far I ran or how long I fought, Death never lost. Since the echoes of time had brought Earth into existence, Death had been around. There was a process, a circle of life that everything that lived on this world would eventually belong to death. It was an enviable conclusion. Life was born, it lived, and then it died.  But just because Death would ultimately win, didn’t mea...

1 comment 1
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“Nine times I ran and the one time I got away” by Kristina Aziz

Submitted to Contest #235

The first time I ran from you, I thought I was in love. We had just met maybe half an hour before, and I was late for a meeting with my English professor. I was young, eight years younger than you, and barely an adult. I broke away from our first kiss and ran so I would make the appointment. When the meeting was over, I called you to tell you where you could catch me. It felt so much like love at first sight.The second time I ran from you, I was frightened. Not of you, not yet. We were on an adventure and the railroad crossing sign was on. I...

4 comments 4
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“Endless March ” by Sharan Sukumar

Submitted to Contest #235

The human swam furiously towards land and light. He no longer felt safe in the waters. Not with the stalking presence of the enemy. As he closed in on the shore, he thrust his head out of the water gasping for air. Relieved and disoriented in equal measure, he paddled his way across to the land. The human fell to his knees as soon as he felt solid ground under his feet. Breathless and bleary eyed, he panted hysterically. A few cycles of breaths later, he began to regain his composure. Standing up, he looked back at the seas and wondered if h...

1 comment 1
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“The Impossible Dream” by Murray Burns

Submitted to Contest #235

The Impossible Dream“I don’t know, Herb, that might be a little too ambitious.”“Aim high, dream big, go for broke, all-in, win or go home, let it all hang out, reach for the stars, shoot the moon…”“Okay, okay, I got it. But a marathon? Herb, you’re not a runner.”“You kidding me, Sally? I ran cross country in high school.”“That was 35 years ago. And it was just your freshman year and you only ran in that one meet. Remember how they had to organize a search party with flashlights to come find you after the race was over?”“The course wasn’t cle...

4 comments 4
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“Homesick ” by Kailey Blount

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #235

The cheapest urn cost a hundred dollars, so the mortician packs the ashes in a plastic bag and staples his business card to the front. Hold your loved ones close, it reads in blotched black ink. “In case you change your mind. My number’s on the back.” He dropped his yellow-toothed salesman smile a while ago. Right after he realized I couldn’t afford any of the empty metallic boxes standing on the shelf behind him like gentrified government buildings on a new Freedom City side street.  He shoves the bag across the warped countertop tow...

6 comments 6
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$250

Prize money

312

Contest entries

121

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 02, 2024 EST

Won by Kajsa Ohman 🏆

Title: KILLER IN THE WILLOWS

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!

Prompts | Many Hands | 2024-09

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