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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#240: In the Wind

Wind is something of a contradiction. Powerful yet invisible, it’s nothing but air, but can influence the shape of landscapes, sway trees, and carry whispers across vast distances. This force of nature can be a calming breeze or a raging storm, offering comfort or unleashing destruction.

It’s always around us, whether you’re laying on a warm beach with a relaxing breeze cooling you down, or in awe as a storm passes by while carelessly throwing debris. With that in mind, this week we delve into the wonders of wind and bring attention to its influence within our stories.

This week's prompts

Begin your story with the sensation of a breeze brushing against a character's skin.

Narrative – 138 stories

A crumpled piece of paper holding an unexpected message is carried by the wind. Where did it come from, and where is it going?

Mystery – 63 stories

Set your story on a sailboat, large or small, and entirely at the mercy of the winds.

Adventure – 31 stories

Craft a story where a character finds themselves swept away by the wind, either physically or metaphorically.

Angst – 60 stories

Set your story in a lighthouse surrounded by powerful gale-force winds.

Dramatic – 37 stories

Stories

“The Way of the Wind” by Leah Able

Submitted to Contest #240

A modern-day tumbleweed in this world of litter, a crumpled white ball rolled up next to my foot. The wind was stronger today than usual for this time of year. Reluctantly, I picked it up. Stiff, my arthritic fingers hurt all the way down to gnarled bones under bulging veins. The skin on them like plastic wrap covering blue lines. I was told yesterday that I don’t look my age. I don’t think he saw my hands. They look twenty years older than my face. For that matter, he must have overlooked the Elvira strea...

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“The Tower” by A.M. Hill

Submitted to Contest #240

I clench my teeth and my hand instinctively goes to the throbbing pain in my side. My fingertips become wet and sticky with blood as I paw over the wound. The safe-house isn’t far from me but I’m not sure I can get there without being seen. If there is even anyone around to see. The strange green lights used by the enemy were circling the dark streets not more than five minutes before. It’s almost completely black now, save for the faint illumination of the waning crescent above, casting cloud-veiled light on the desolate str...

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“My Gemini ” by Marcos Argueta

Submitted to Contest #240

Hello, Alexis. I guess I'll just start this by telling you, I love you. It's crazy. We've talked a handful of times but I think there's something right here. I think you know this too. I mean why else would you kiss me. To drive me crazy? When you told me that you liked my vibes I thought you were just being kind. I like that you're nice is natural. When you laughed at my jokes, I wished I could be funny forever. It's hard being hilarious. When your fingers played with my lips and you bit the bottom one, I lost it. I'm not normal anymore. ...

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“Remembrance Road” by Jason Beech

Submitted to Contest #240

A warm cuppa, a chair with the right amount of bounce, and working from home never dissipated the knife wound in my lower abdomen. The pain had long gone, but the cold steel ghost haunted my muscles each time a car drove by my isolated house in the country.The last motor, a half-hour ago, caught me by surprise. Lost in my job, it whizzed by my attention as if it popped out of a patch of mist from another world. Shook my momentum. The wind bending every tree in the back garden and the woods beyond obscured its engine. Today, I planned on step...

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“Liberty's Fortune” by J.B. Redel

Submitted to Contest #240

Striding into his quarters, Morgan paused just before passing the threshold. Elena stood across the small space, her figure illuminated by the swaying lantern hanging from the low ceiling. She leaned over the top of his small wooden desk, fists supporting her weight on either side of an old piece of parchment sprawled across the desk's surface and held in place by rocks of varying sizes. Her features were obscured by her long black curls, which had slid over her shoulders and nearly brushed the surface of his desk. Though he couldn’t see her...

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“The Lonely Wind: A Summer of Understanding and Acceptance” by Kayley Quintero

Submitted to Contest #240

Warmth surrounded Sunny’s tanned figure; July had been a hot month and she had been begging for a sense of relief in her wilting body that crippled as the heat shone on her throughout the long day. She swung on the creaky porch swing that sat in front of her rickety house and gestured her eyes to the scenery around her. The sun was low, and the bright yellow beams were slowly dozing into the horizon like melting ice cream. The grass was a vibrant and thriving green and was mowed to a perfect two inches tall thanks to Sunny, and the street wa...

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“The Perfect Son” by Keeley Marshall

Submitted to Contest #240

Howling winds and crashing waves - the two elements battled for dominance as a deafening cacophony of sound filled Milo to the brim, flowing through every orifice, flooding him until he could no longer distinguish himself from the elements. With a deep breath, he grounded himself. Felt the coarse dirt between his toes and reveled in the tiny sharp rocks that threatened to break the soft skin of his underfoot. Milo was, more than anything else, aware of himself and the silly lit...

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“Christmas at Kresge's” by Naomi Atwood

Submitted to Contest #240

Trigger warning: This story deals with familial mental/emotional abuse. It was Christmastime again. That season of good will, giving, and joy. Jayne’s memories of Christmas, however, don’t all reflect such happy thoughts. Oh, yes, there were the delicious turkey dinners, which her mother served on Christmas Eve, to avoid the rush and excitement of Christmas Day. The sumptuous meal was enjoyed, and then mother and children would attend the Christmas Eve service at their church nearby. Her mother’s turkey...

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“The wind and the waves” by Edward Savage

Submitted to Contest #240

Niall tapped the barometer with a fingernail and frowned as the mercury dropped to 1010. An hour ago, it had been 1015. “Storm on way,” he muttered as he crossed to the window on the north side of the living quarters. Beyond the thick glass, the distant horizon was a forbidding wall of dark, purple and black clouds. Overhead, cloud outriders of the storm were scudding across the wan sky, driven by the growing winds. The sea was a gun-metal grey, mirroring the sky and earlier whitecaps were now crests of white riding the tops of every wave. ...

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“The Wind Within” by Jonas Einhorn

Submitted to Contest #240

As I put down my pan flute the breeze kissed my skin enthusiastically yet ever so slightly stirred up by dawn running past me to caress the leaves of our old trees turning them like the pages of ancient annals that hold this forest's past. Finding its way into the fields of wildflowers where it dances and frolics among them continuing on its merry way rolling gently down hills into the gorge where it is swept off by the bustling busy waters that run through it. Brushing any dirt or debris off the rocks that poke their heads above the water t...

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“With the Breeze” by Sarah Montanez

Submitted to Contest #240

TW: domestic abuseThe cool breeze whispered across Ava’s face as she stared at the creek. The water tumbled across the rocks, sand, and vegetation. She heard runners, hikers, and children mingling above her at the popular trail. It was a beautiful spring day in Colorado. Not too hot. Not too cold. No need to switch outfits in the middle of the day. Her olive-skinned legs were bare in shorts she normally wore in the summertime. Her arms free in a t-shirt. Only her green eyes were covered with her aviator sunglasses, allowing her to fully abso...

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“Meet The Wind” by Cosmic Neon

Submitted to Contest #240

Amaya sat in the backyard; tears dripped down her face. Her life was an example of unfairness and imprisonment. "I can't believe she'd ask that of me!" She yelled. Amaya had done everything her mother had ever asked, she never said no, and she always did everything with a smile. But making her go to the May ball and as Ryan Sevens date no less was terrible.Someone tapped Amaya's shoulder, "What?!" she yelled, spinning around expecting to see her mother. However, upon turning around, she was terrified to see a boy. He seemed to be around 18, ...

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“My Wind” by Jocelyne Lowery

Submitted to Contest #240

I stood there, on the cold, steel bridge overlooking the rushing waters below. They were the same waters that I hoped would take away the pain and darkness that consumed my every thought. As the wind whipped through my hair, I couldn't help but think that this was the end, the only way to escape the suffocating emptiness inside of me. My mind was a whirlwind of pain and turmoil, pushing me closer and closer to the edge. Where are you now, sissy? I remember the day she promised she would never leave my side. She promised that I woul...

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“Mea Pugna” by Ozgecan Buyuker

Submitted to Contest #240

“I… I don’t know.”“You don’t know if you’re ready, that’s okay. Well, then, do you feel ready?” said the therapist, as if the change of words would do any good.“It’s not easy to talk about that. You know it. I don’t know if it’s the right time.”“Do you want to postpone it? Say, for the next session?”“I don’t know. I want to get rid of it, you know. Last week, I thought I’d be ready to talk about it, but now… I feel nervous.”“Nervous about talking it in front of someone else or remembering it?”“Well,” I said, giving a...

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$250

Prize money

329

Contest entries

134

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Mar 08, 2024 EST

Won by Jonathan Page 🏆

Title: Lost and Found

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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