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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#247: The Great Unknown

Few pursuits ignite the imagination and spirit quite like exploration. From sailors discovering new countries and their inhabitants, to astronauts uncovering ancient civilisations on far away planets, we are as hungry to hear stories about exploration as we are to explore ourselves. We often feel the need to venture beyond the familiar confines of our lives, whether that’s simply exploring a new corner of your hometown, or embarking on a mission through forgotten tombs.

This week's prompts delve into the essence of exploration, inviting you to embark on a journey of discovery and adventure. So, ready your maps, steel your resolve, grab your pen, and prepare to explore the unknown...

This week's prompts

Write a story in the form of diary entries, written by an explorer as they make their way through what they thought was an untouched location.

Adventure – 66 stories

Set your story on a spaceship exploring the far reaches of space when something goes wrong.

Science Fiction – 32 stories

Center your story around a character’s personal exploration, whether it's trying a new hobby, visiting an unfamiliar place, or learning something completely new.

Character – 88 stories

Imagine a world where exploration is forbidden, and write a story about a character who defies this rule to satisfy their innate curiosity.

Dystopian – 59 stories

Write a narrative about a group of scientists exploring the deepest parts of the ocean.

Adventure – 13 stories

Stories

“A Forbidden Fellow's Abyss” by Zena Rachelle

Submitted to Contest #247

Making sure the bed frame doesn’t squeak as I lift myself from the two-inch foam roll that they call a mattress is the most daunting task at 3:47 am, especially when I’m already exhausted from a full day of drills. I guess I should be grateful that I’m not a mindless wanderer in Abyss, but I’m almost fifteen so it’s practically inevitable. The most rebellious and disobedient fellows are assigned to Abyss, which I already embrace as my fate. The Council Fellows review our performance for ten years and put us in our “forever homes” the day aft...

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“Beyond the Walls” by Penelope Caldwell

Submitted to Contest #247

Links to my other books: https://editor.reedsy.com/s/wsaTP7u (Magic After Midnight)https://editor.reedsy.com/s/ON2zB3v (Crimson)Since I was young, I've always felt like I've had hundreds of eyes on me.Watching me.As I've aged, it's only occurred to me that I do.The government watches me. My family. They make sure neither I nor my mother do as much as glance outside. If we do, we could be put to death.The curtains are drawn closed, and the wooden door has been perfectly put into place so no cracks of sunlight shine through.The government hate...

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“Through the Storm Drain” by Levi Michael

Submitted to Contest #247

Edgewood Creek swelled quickly when it rained, pooling into a swirling pond at the opening of the double culvert that fed the network of tunnels providing drainage to the sprawling sleepy suburban neighborhood of Jack London Park. During the summer it became a dry creek, its bed lined with cement-bag-shaped stones and surrounded by a heavy grove of poplars, cottonwoods, oaks and privets. The two culverts laid side-by-side, each three feet high. The face of the bridging walkway passing over them was painted with both vulgar graffiti and...

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“This Life” by Sofia W

Submitted to Contest #247

IntroductionThis life is so limited. I am confined to my town, to my people, to my home. Although, it does not feel very homely. People are watching. In this life, people always watch. Behind every corner, every nook and cranny, nowhere is safe. You can never be alone. This life is a life not worth living.My mother and father do not love me. They lock me in my room whenever I wander, when someone finds me attempting to climb the wall that separates me from the world beyond. They fear me escaping and finding out this world's secrets. This lif...

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“The Dive” by Nathanael Card

Submitted to Contest #247

“Ladies and gentlemen, we’re officially 36,000 feet below sea level, and the sub integrity is still holding.” Captain Jones adjusted the collar of his navy-blue uniform and surveyed the room before him: more circular than a typical twenty-first century sub, but not large enough to make you feel like you were on the bridge of a spaceship. However, the large viewport at the front of the room did give that feeling all the same. Still, though, it’s very impressive how sonar, missile control, and many other functions could be fitted into this one...

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“An African Adventure ” by Liam Murphy

Submitted to Contest #247

The year was eighteen-fifty-two, and at twenty-six years of age, my long-planned odyssey to the Dark Continent was about to begin. I, James Havelock, was about to follow in my dear Papa’s footsteps and spend twelve weeks hunting for unknown plant species on the African continent. I am an only child of doting parents. Our family name is renowned in Kent, England and beyond. My patriarchal grandfather Benjamin Havelock had amassed our family fortune from woollen mills where he employed hundreds of workers on slave wages ten hours a day, six an...

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“Hansel and... Cristel?!” by Fantasy Maniac

Submitted to Contest #247

- Year xxxx month xx day 7I’ve been exploring this forest for the past 20 days. At first, I thought it was going to be like any other exploration requests I get; exploring the newly emerged forests and drawing a rough sketch of their layout.But no matter where I go or what direction I turn, there doesn’t seem to be any end to this dense forest. It doesn’t even seem like I’m getting close to any exit. The further I go the stranger everything gets. The leaves are getting lighter in color and their texture is getting softer and fluffier. T...

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“The Adventures of Cliff Allen” by Lauren Sowers

Submitted to Contest #247

Preface I am Cliff Allen, an explorer seeking to discover new nations in this world. This is a journal that will keep accounts of my many expeditions and adventures. January 1, 1698France France is by far the most beautiful country I have ever been in! Well, it is the only country I have been in, apart from my home country, England. But it is still the most eye-catching, alluring place I have ever been! As nice as England is, my breath has been taken away by the awe this country has struck me with. Although my goal is to discover somewhere n...

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“The big trip” by Maranda Watford

Submitted to Contest #247

We officially left Earth twenty-four hours ago. Me and my partner Samantha have been waiting eight years for this trip to space to discover a new planet we call Extra. "Harmony, I see nothing at all." Samantha says in a irritated voice I roll my eyes "Can you have a little Patience, we aren't going anywhere for a while." Samantha is IMPATIENT, but she's very excited because we've been studying this planet for years. It's the closest thing to earth we've seen, it has a sustainable climate, water and plants which means oxygen. Our planet is dy...

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“The Ascending Spacemen” by Sudarshan Varadhan

Submitted to Contest #247

The airlock of the space habitat swung open, revealing the two fully-suited spacemen. Their costumes were dull white with tinted blue helmets and golden reflective visors. The two spacemen stepped out into the grey alien planet, retrieved their long probes, and prodded the surroundings around them. Their equipment beeped and notified them of the collecting data.The mounds of greyish-blue sand camouflaged the space habitat with the grey mountain ranges behind it. The spacemen's shoes crunched in the planet’s stillness. The crepuscular rays be...

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“Space Chunking” by Bob Banel

Submitted to Contest #247

Captain Billy Chunk had the Conn of the SpaceTug Delilah. He had the throttles jammed to the firewall and was in a losing hot pursuit of the SpaceTug Medusa. The Medusa had a fouled Dok-A-Lok coupling on a Jumbo Class SpaceSkow and was now married to it for better or worse. The Medusa was being dragged along on a Nantucket sleigh ride trajectory and headed for something definitely worse than a burn up in the Earth's atmosphere. The Medusa had FUBAR'ed it drives and was neither use nor ornament. The crew headed by Captain Julie "Sweet" Stacks...

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“Beyond the Veil of Stars” by Sofia Rodriguez

Submitted to Contest #247

In the vast expanse of the cosmos, where the boundaries of time and space blur into infinity, there existed a band of rebel space pirates like no other. They called themselves the Wanderers, a motley crew of beings whose origins are as diverse as the stars themselves, each member hailing from distant planets that had been ravaged by the cruel hand of fate. Their home worlds, once lush and vibrant, had fallen prey to the ravages of cosmic disaster and climate change or the relentless onslaught of intergalactic war. Forced to flee their homes,...

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“11:59” by Connor Engstrom

Submitted to Contest #247

Good morning Marc. A familiar robotic voice gently awoke me from my peaceful sleep as I tried to pry my eyelids open. It is time to shoot your advertisement for Taurodyne. The product is in the bathroom cabinet. Taurodyne was a toothpaste company that had purchased ads for intergalactic voyages. If life was ever discovered on one of the “Taur” missions, it would be a huge marketing boost for the company, but after the 20th mission failed, people just stopped caring. It was unlikely for anyone but hardcore viewers to recognize the...

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“The Great Unknown- Personal Exploration” by Joe Voelker

Submitted to Contest #247

September 22, 1927, The day of birth- mine. This day April 22, 2024 I write, the decade now evaporated into thin air it seems, the past! Now not only faced with the great unknown, but living the great unknown. Transitioning from the beauty of ownership, home ownership, to a facility of safety, demands of aging, exploring the unknown where the everyday of life rest in the hands of others—aids, nurses, administrators, the very good fueling, the body, now explorations of life. &nb...

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“But, No One Goes There” by Deb Popson

Submitted to Contest #247

The ocean breeze is strong today. The King Tide waves crash, a phenomenon that is costing coastline as the sea gobbles up beach acreage. Even the birds are buffeted by the wind as they pick their way across the sand searching for their morning meal. They are blown to and fro, their feathers spiking in the airflow like a punk rocker’s mohawk. The sun is up, but still low in the sky. Its rays light the surf with golden beams - a golden road to heaven. Although a bit chilly yet in these early hours, the sun will bake the groun...

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$250

Prize money

258

Contest entries

101

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 26, 2024 EST

Won by Madeline McCourt 🏆

Title: DANGER: UNSTABLE GROUND

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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