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#236: Retro

Whether you’re generation Tetris, Tamagotchi, or Tomb Raider, I bet there’s some kind of video game or console that reminds you of your childhood. I hope, too, that we all still know of vinyls, cassette and VHS tapes, and floppy disks, even if they’re past their prime.

I’m not usually very sentimental about technology, but there’s something fascinating about obsolete tech. Something nostalgic and sad and full of mystery and untold narrative. In that spirit, let’s pay a visit to our inner attic, dust off some forgotten hardware, and see where it takes us.

This week's prompts

Start your story with a character finding a retro piece of tech they don’t recognize.

Mystery – 33 stories

Write a story about someone finally gaining access into their family’s very old computer.

Mystery – 37 stories

Write a time-travel story where a character from the present finds themselves in the 80s or 90s.

Historical Fiction – 37 stories

Write a story about a grown-up sharing their favorite childhood video game with their child.

Funny – 20 stories

Write about a character who isn’t nostalgic about their past at all, and show readers why.

Angst – 54 stories

Stories

“A Splash of Lemon” by Liz Grosul

Submitted to Contest #236

TW: Mentions body weight and dieting, body shaming, disordered eating.Mother had an affliction since I first started remembering things. She never said anything about it, but I saw the shadow whip behind her eyes. The stash packs of cigarettes on the counter didn’t alarm me until I graduated middle school and our citrus collection in the cupboard seemed like something all families had in case of off-chance nuclear warfare or sudden sanctions on Florida. What gave it away was the frenzied typing. Mother wasn’t a secretary. She was a lawy...

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“Lament of the Echo Chamber” by Martha Muraglia

Submitted to Contest #236

In the quiet, dimly lit corner of a rundown diner, Jake sat hunched over a cup of lukewarm coffee. The place smelled of stale cigarettes and decades-old stories, a haven for the remnants of a bygone era. Jake, however, paid little attention to the nostalgia that clung to the peeling wallpaper and faded vinyl booths. His eyes, sunken and tired, scanned the menu as if searching for answers in the greasy stains of breakfast specials. The jukebox in the corner played a tune from an era long past, but Jake's ears were deaf to the melodies of yest...

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“Remembrance” by Fatima Jawaid

Submitted to Contest #236

(Note: this story contains strong language, alcohol use, and hints of past violence)The olive was not only a revolting neon green but a wily bastard, Lena thought as she aimed her toothpick. Holding her hand steady, she geared up for her next shot, the olive wobbling slightly in her cocktail glass. As the olive stilled, Lena seized her opportunity and lunged forward. But before the toothpick could make impact, the olive shot further away from her toothpick, taunting her all the while.Of course, not even a simple snack would be easy for her t...

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“Shinomotchi” by Franco Lopez

Submitted to Contest #236

Gas tank? Full. Laptop? Check. Chargers? Check. Homework? Eh. I won’t do it even if I bring it, and it won’t bump my grades up even if I do it. Cigarettes? No, let’s leverage the long weekend to cut back. Well – just one for the drive. Anything harder will have to wait. The thought of mom finding out alone makes nauseous. Laundry? Check. Everything looks ready to go. I’m confident I can beat the sun out if I skip breakfast to maximize my time at home. Nothing on campus tastes quite like mom’s cooking. Maybe if I drive with the windows down...

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“Mr. E” by C.N. Jung

Submitted to Contest #236

It was as if he was staring into a reflection of his past. A reflection that exposed his true self and stripped away all the layers that had made him the hardened criminal that even the most fearsome individuals had come to dread—to tremble and cower before.It felt like gazing upon a distant memory. A pure, untainted fragment of his soul that he yearned to reach out and grasp. Hold it close, embrace it tightly, and never let it slip away.Just as he knew it had... all those years ago.“Gosh, I’m real sorry, Mister!” The little boy dropped to t...

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“TAMI” by Patrick Druid

Submitted to Contest #236

TAMI The little one bedroom trailer sat on the edge of a forgotten Hill that was near a landfill in the western part of the county. The owner, one Doug Mason had purchased the plot of land and the trailer at a rock bottom price several years ago much to the dismay of his family who believed that this trailer idea was a death trap waiting to be sprung by some unwitting soul, like him. Benita Mason sat in the passenger seat of her brother's beat up Chevy and looked out the front window at the little trailer and slow...

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“Lost Media ” by Barbara Williams

Submitted to Contest #236

I just got hired for a new job In Atlanta. It's a higher paying job with great benefits and my wife is excited about the move. After finally finding a house about 30 mins from my new job we began to pack up everything. I am an aerospace engineer and this has been my dream job ever since middle school. My dad had this really cool and fancy telescope that I loved looking into overnight after dinner. When high schools and colleges started having space programs and more of those kind of careers started to open up I knew I found my calling. Our s...

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“Tecmo Fest 2024” by Timothy Rennels

Submitted to Contest #236

Tecmo Fest 2024Field Notes for S.I. article I have come to this Minneapolis suburb to pursue a rumor, nay, a legend. My first inkling that I had arrived was the number of parked cars surrounding the quiet cul-de-sac. The second was the ten-foot inflatable Green Bay Packer standing outside the house, checking the guest list with every breeze. I knocked on the thick wood door to no avail. I heard voices inside, so decided to persist. “Go away!” made me wonder if there was a secret knock that I hadn’t been taught. After a ...

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“Two-player” by Jessica Warren

Submitted to Contest #236

The place was like one of those rich people resorts you’d see in the movies from the 60s and 70s. You know, the ones with the giant white mansion with the columns and the flowers in pure white, cement garden plots. No gravel roads here either, everything was paved and leveled. Even the slightest incline in the road was smooth enough that you didn’t get out of breath when walking upward. No one wanted to see ladies with sweaty skin or drippy makeup, god-forbid. The building, Ellicott Hall, faced a professionally manicured golf course, or, if ...

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“Blackbird” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #236

Jack Gregory passed away quietly in his room at the Hartwell Retirement Community. His granddaughter Meghan Young was with him when he passed. He was two months shy of his ninetieth birthday and even though he lived life the way he wanted to, Meghan still shed a few tears as the doctor came in to confirm his time of death. “Condolences.” He said before departing the way he had learned in medical school. “Thank you.” Meghan dried her eyes with a tissue. “Grandpa, I’m gonna miss you.” When Meghan got home, Dale, her ...

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“Retro” by Christine LW

Submitted to Contest #236

Why cannot things stay the same? Lenora like many could not accept all what happend or not in some cases with modern tec if it decided to go "Awol". Like today for instance. Not being able to log into the site, with the codes she was given. Then to wait two days for a reply to say that it eas a world wide problem. There was the Retro cafe off Main Street ok if you liked dark red and lime green as a colour scheme. Liveable harmless where people spent hours on the net. Drinking endless coffee. At over three pounds a cup. You guessed it? Not al...

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“Perspective” by Alexandra Costigan

Submitted to Contest #236

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” I felt my blood pressure rise as I looked at the back of Gabriella’s dark hair, her body leaned into my closet. And not just any part of my closet, I knew exactly what she was looking at. She was startled by my shout and she fumbled her hands. “Oh! Uh…. What’s this?” She held up my old Nintendo 64 with the Princess Peach sticker on the top. It looked like a dinosaur next to the brand new iPhone sitting in her lap. “Who told you that you could go through my stuff?!” I quickly walked over to her...

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“SETI” by Ralph Aldrich

Submitted to Contest #236

So sad. Mom has passed away. Cancer. I have to empty out the house so I can sell it. I hate going through so many memories, but I will have to. I’m going to have an estate sale, so I must prepare for it. The saddest part is that in 1995, Dad just up and disappeared. Mom came home from shopping, and he was gone. No note. No sign of being unhappy. He just left, and we never heard from him again. For the rest of her life my mother never got over that loss. She had hoped...

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“Some Deserve To Die” by Lark Malloy

Submitted to Contest #236

My mom died last night. I haven't shed a single tear. I haven't told my wife yet. Or my kids. Soon."Anthony, get yourself dressed. We're going to be late," Sheila says, striding into the kitchen. Her honey-blonde hair is tucked behind her ears, and her arms sway at her sides. She is wearing a silk gown with an open back and gold hoop earrings. “You look stunning.” She drapes her arms around my shoulders and rests her piercing eyes on me. The green in the gown brings out the green in her gaze. She raises an eyebrow. “Don’t flatter m...

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“Pulling Strings: A Mike Dodge Mystery” by Martin Ross

Submitted to Contest #236

Chemical warfare in the Asian jungles. Man on the Moon. Data accumulating by the terabyte in a mainframe world; satellites taking up ever-more stratospheric real estate, prepped one day to ruin the neighborhood one strike, one leak, one tech sociopath at a time. “Oh my God,” I proclaimed, awestruck in the presence of a genuine ‘60s technological marvel. “Looka this.” A millennimom skirted away toward the chick-lit-heavy book box at the lip of the casita’s two-car garage. Sarah reluctantly abandoned the sheet-metal law...

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$250

Prize money

181

Contest entries

81

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 09, 2024 EST

Won by Jennifer Fremon 🏆

Title: Frozen Lemonade

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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