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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#238: Aposiopesis

An ancient figure of speech, literally meaning “becoming silent,” aposiopesisis a very fancy word for a very common predicament. Aposiopesis occurs when a sentence breaks off and is left unfinished, suggesting the speaker is too overwhelmed to go on. Think “I’m so angry, I could —”, “You don’t think they…?”, or “I just thought…”

This week’s prompts are inspired by unfinished utterances, communication catastrophes, and those times when you just can’t quite...

This week's prompts

Start or finish your story with a speaker unable to finish their sentence, perhaps overcome by emotion.

Angst – 92 stories

Write a story in which a conversation takes place where the true subject is only implied.

Dialogue – 40 stories

Write a story including the line “I can’t say it.”

Dialogue – 58 stories

Write a story in which an important message is cut off, leaving characters to wonder or puzzle out what was left unsaid.

Mystery – 48 stories

Set your story at a silent retreat.

Angst – 44 stories

Stories

“First Pitch” by Lourdes Albarracin

Submitted to Contest #238

“A guest of a Blue Jays team player will throw today’s first pitch. The announcer says. “That lucky person is Paula Jimenez.” My sister and I look up from our conversation. “Paula come down to the field and throw that pitch.” He continues. “They called your name.” Carmen says. “Why would he do that?” I say and throw the remainder of my hot dog into a paper bag. “You didn’t know?” I shake my head. “Smile.” She says I do as instructed. “Good. No food between your teeth.” She hands me a lipstick. “This color will look...

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“SHYAMA” by MIke JOHNSON

Submitted to Contest #238

SHYAMA Shyama walked with deliberate steps. Hard, narrow shoe heels punctuated her precise movements on the polished wooden floor. The rhythmic click-clack echoed in the small audit...

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“Prolonged Silence” by Ben Cooper

Submitted to Contest #238

Rarely do I see a warm day topping fifty degrees in the middle of January here in the northeast, but it was a perfect opportunity to check my bee hives in all three of my yards. Managing honeybee hives can be tricky in the middle of winter because the temperatures drop, and the bees will starve. Upon finishing with my bee inspections, I walked up to our side porch door. I could hear the phone ringing.I don’t carry a cell phone because the reception where we live makes it hard to get a signal, even with all the newest technology and cell towe...

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“The Team Uniform” by Stacey Cooper

Submitted to Contest #238

A group of women are on a summer sports league. During the spring, they meet once a week to practice in preparation for the games that will take place on the weekends in the summer months. After one of the practices, the team captain announces, “We need to decide our team name and uniforms for this season. Our current team name is Leading Ladies, but I think we should discuss whether or not we should change it”. One of the long-standing team members says, “I think we should change it. Although people know us for that...

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“The call back” by Elza Dayers

Submitted to Contest #238

It was just a voice on the phone. “Please call back during our business hours, from Monday to Friday, 9AM to 5PM.” Can a voice be that sinister? Evidently, it can. A beep later, I was alone in my room, staring out at the old snow. I glanced at the kitchen clock, it was 5:02PM. With a sigh, I sunk back a little further into my couch and held my phone at arms length. Should I call again? Interrupted by the microwave’s beep, I stood up to turn it off. I extracted my cup of noodles—scalding hot! Nearly dropped it but managed to...

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“Hope's Haven” by J.B. Redel

Submitted to Contest #238

“Vic, you can’t seriously be considering this.”Victor didn’t respond to her, already lost to his own thoughts. Scenarios ran through his mind, each with its own outcome and list of risks, as well as possible profits.“He’s already lost in his own head. You know what that means?” The low octave of Doc’s voice reverberated off of the metal table’s surface, leaving ripples in the tin cups of water sitting forgotten before the crew. Doc sighed heavily before leaning back is his seat, his heavy boots clanking loudly on the table as he propped them...

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“The doom of Saint Lawrence” by Charles Dean

Submitted to Contest #238

As a man of the church, I always thought we were the sole creations of God... How foolish we were.I now know that there are things we cannot comprehend. Things that have no logic. Nightmarish things that defy God. There are things amongst the stars that defy our beliefs and mock the ignorance of our ilk.To whomever finds these writings. My name is Father Thomas Greenwich and this will be…my valediction.We were en route to a monastery in the Pyrenees mountains. The monastery had stopped answering our messages two months ago, so I was sent to ...

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“Four Orders of Garlic Knots” by A. B. H.

Submitted to Contest #238

“Why do they keep hanging up? I want your pizza, take my money!” I dial again. It’s one in the morning, this is the only place open late enough for those of us who have the late night munchies. Pizza World is open until three every night, even weeknights. It’s Monday, well, Tuesday now, and my friends and I have just smoked our first bowl. As you could imagine, we’re in dire need of food. I wandered outside by myself after my third attempt at calling Pizza World, thinking maybe my reception was poor, but my phone keeps hanging up as soon as ...

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“A Grape in Hand” by Christopher Kooker

Submitted to Contest #238

Gallaudet raised two calloused hands to his chest and shook them, palms up and fingers splayed, as if in prayer. Then he held up two fingers by his head, flicking his wrist forward to draw attention to the gesture. Want. See. Nervously, Sawyer studied the deft forms. Then he raised his own hands to sign as he mouthed the words. I don’t understand. What do you want to see? Apparently favoring emphasis over clarity, Gallaudet repeated the gesture several more times with mounting intensity. Want! See! Want! See! Sawyer knew from ...

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“PARTIAL TRANSMISSION” by Stuart Foley

Submitted to Contest #238

INCOMING TRANSMISSION….SENDER: HIGH COMMAND……….DOWNLOADING…….4% ……. 36% ……. 78% ……. ERROR! TRANSMISSION MISSING CLOSING REQUEST. DECODING PARTIAL TRANSMISSION….. _______START PARTIAL TRANSMISSION_______ [SOL 127 - 0724 ] Sergeant Jay Hopkins, you are to head east of the town of Grenrik. Our foot soldiers are being pinned down from Imperialist artillery fire in that direction and data shows you are the only Javelin in the area who is capable of dealing with the threat. Reconnaissance suggests two artillery guns with t… _______END ...

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“The Devil of Fallujah” by Davy Holland

Submitted to Contest #238

The Sergeant handed the folded American flag to my mother. His stoic ridged face showed no emotion as he stared into the face of the sobbing woman breaking down in front of him. Even though he was very fond of my father, and considered him a friend, he couldn’t let his feeling of loss interfere with his sacred duty. He rose up from his knee and bowed his head towards her arms. Slowly raising his knife-like hand to his brow, he delivered a perfect salute to our flag. Another marine immediately began to play Reveille through his bugle. My hear...

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“The Neighbor” by S.d. Schwarz

Submitted to Contest #238

“Hi, Dalia, it’s Craig again. How’s the leaking faucet? I called HOA three times yesterday and they refuse--” Delete. “Hey Dalia. Not sure if you noticed, but some beige Mercedes has been taking everybody’s parking spots and the HOA continues to sit on their asses sipping their White Claws watching reels of that new country pop singer--what’s her name?--dating that one football player--what’s his name? instead of--” Delete. “Morning, Dalia. Did you see that letter in the mail yesterday? Someone’s been leaving a sock in the lobby ...

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“Let’s Make Some Noise” by Carly Kelly

Submitted to Contest #238

The rounded corner of the clipboard hit the white tile first. It bounced, tilted, and repeated on the opposite corner. The back of the clipboard then slammed into the floor and audibly shook the metal bar as it landed. “I’m so sorry,” Heather blurted out as the dropped item echoed throughout the barren room. She pressed her lips together in immediate regret, but then kept talking. “And now I’ve spoken. I’m sorry for that too. And that I’m still talking.” STOP TALKING. Stop making noise. Heather inhaled through her nose. The recep...

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“Silent Island” by Keelan LaForge

Submitted to Contest #238

I never thought I was a big talker. I’m just not one of those garrulous types. So, the silent retreat sounded like the place for me. Having just been through a recent, huge life change, it felt like the perfect timing to retreat from the world and to contemplate things with no background noise interfering with it. What added to the appeal was the fact that it was being held on a private island. I couldn’t wait to get into the wilderness and rediscover the parts of myself that had got lost in my divorce. I brought a notebook with me. It was m...

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“The Invention of Charades” by Denise Glickler

Submitted to Contest #238

Bonjour! I am Colette, a lively lass from the heart of France, born in the year 1620. My hair, as pale as the winter snow, carries a hint of red, like the last rays of the setting sun. My eyes, a curious blend of green and gold, are always sparkling with mischief and a thirst for knowledge. And my mouth, oh, it's always in a pout, especially when I'm deep in thought or when I've just asked one of my countless "Why?" questions. I'm a bit of a chatterbox, you see, and some might even call me silly. But I just can't help it! The world is full o...

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$250

Prize money

282

Contest entries

98

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 23, 2024 EST

Won by Weronika L 🏆

Title: Five Turns of the Hourglass

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.

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