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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#253: Slow Down

As the weather heats up, so do our calendars. After the long winter months of social hibernation and rained-off outings come the months of non-stop activity in the sun. Barbecues, beach days, and vacays await — and while all this fun is great, if you're anything like me, you may also find it a touchoverwhelming. Combine this frenzy of socialising with the 24/7 world we now live in, and the demands of work and family, and suddenly you're struggling to catch a moment's peace, even when you're supposed to be relaxing.

This week's prompts invite you to take a pause and reflect before we head into the busy summer season. Whether your characters are looking for an escape from their fast-paced lives, or just want to hold onto a particular moment in time, let's pump the breaks and slow down for a while.

This week's prompts

Write a story about a highly-strung character learning to slow down, or someone pursuing a quieter way of life.

Character – 56 stories

Set your story over the course of a few minutes; no flashbacks, no flashforwards.

Narrative – 93 stories

Start your story with a character canceling their plans.

Angst – 26 stories

Write a story that contains the line, "I wish we could stay here forever."

Dialogue – 89 stories

Write about a character who has the ability to pause the passage of time.

Fantasy – 71 stories

Stories

“Stillwater” by Marty B

Submitted to Contest #253

I believe reality is relative, especially when what you see from behind a screen is designed, produced, and created by someone else. Our visitors come searching for the real world, a place where the sun shines, and they can touch the reality around them. We were going to give it to him, though he won't like what he’s going to get. Sally and I sat in our usual spot, the weight of the slow summer afternoon heavy on our shoulders, almost forgetting we had a job to do, when he finally stepped off the train. Lo...

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“My Life and Mushrooms” by Ty Warmbrodt

Submitted to Contest #253

Morels. If you know, you know. Those delectable little mushrooms call out to my wife Laura and I every spring from southern facing forest slopes and damp creek beds after hard rains when it is cool both day and night. The day’s high was sixty-nine degrees after a thunderstorm blew through while the previous night only dropped as low as fifty-seven, making it an ideal day for shroom hunting. Waking early, we fixed ourselves a huge breakfast consisting of French toast and sausage links with some fresh fruit and, of course, piping hot coffee. E...

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“Proposal” by Rozmarin Ideas

Submitted to Contest #253

“Will you marry me?”The words ring with echoes of emotion; anticipation, fear, hope. His eyes are wide open, his brow furrowed, his pearly teeth caught on his lower lip. His too-large suit has flopped open, letting his tie snake to freedom over his arm. The whole world is silent, still. Time has stopped, and I am frozen with it. My heart is fluttering in tandem with the butterflies in my stomach.Will you marry me? Will I? Should I? The lights of the restaurant are casting such strange shadows, as if the photons are as unsure how to act...

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“Saturday the 14th” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #253

The two surviving counsellors ran in opposite directions, screaming into the woods.Jacob Mara’s shoulders sagged. Each year, he got a bit more rotted. And each year, these camp counsellors got faster. Or did they stay the same, and he was getting slower? Now, there was a scary thought: would one day come when he couldn’t catch any of them? He adjusted his hockey mask, which had stayed with him through thick and thin, through life and death. And then he crashed through the undergrowth after his quarry.The topless blonde in a thong split left,...

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“ Disconnect to Reconnect” by Charity Cummings

Submitted to Contest #253

Allie Walker stood on the porch of her cozy beachside cottage, a gentle breeze playing with her hair as she watched the waves roll in. It had been six months since her transformative digital detox in the Outer Banks, and life had taken on a new rhythm—one of simplicity, balance, and quietude. But just as Allie had found her peace, a new challenge emerged on the horizon. Her old friend, Sarah, had called earlier that day with urgent news: their childhood home, a quaint bed and breakfast nestled in the rolling hills of Vermont, was in danger o...

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“Never counted on wishes (breaks a man to see what he misses)” by Fletcher Fox

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #253

“I wish we could stay here forever.” Of course, everyone says that their first year of university. The excitement, the freedom of being away from home, the longing for an impermanent state to be permanent - that wish is genuine, yet rarely was it quite as potent as it was for you. You didn’t know at the time just how fleeting here would be - weeks later, you would again return to your childhood bedroom, a pandemic having closed down your new barely existent friendships, never again to be as easy to maintain as they had at that dinner table w...

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“An English Breakfast” by Scott Christenson

Submitted to Contest #253

4 June 2026 8:25 amWilliam's mobile displayed his favorite minute of the day. He always knew when it was 8:25am. He was very concise about his daily schedule and when he ate his breakfast.He sat alone at Ned’s Coffee in front of a plate of scrambled eggs, fried tomatoes, baked beans, and a heap of sausages, all topped by two slices of bacon. With all the shit happening in the world, thank god he could still get a proper English breakfast. Worst of all, the plant-based food maniacs were hounding everyone with their agenda, so this style ...

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“It's Just How You Left It” by Kevin Marlow

Submitted to Contest #253

The loaf of ash broke off ugly and hot, settling in the ashtray with its dead brethren without so much as a prayer. The fire of the cherry again lit up a swollen face, streaked with makeup that needed touched up. The anger in her eyes had been simmering for months. What was left resembled a sullen mess of regrets and unfinished paintings. The scruffy face across from her opened his mouth.Before he could gutter a sound, she tapped an unlit filtered cig from the case and spoke, “Just have one with me. I know you quit. Trust m...

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“In the Mysterious Distance” by Geir Westrul

Submitted to Contest #253

The sunset makes the darkening sky blush and adds rose highlights to the emerald water. A young couple, a man and a woman, perhaps in their early twenties, tanned and trim, golden-skinned in their bathing suits, have their beach blankets spread on the white sand. They sit close together, facing the sea and the sunset.In a three-story beachfront house, an elderly couple are on the balcony outside the second floor. They are sharing a bottle of white wine, crisp and cold in the warm air.“Like Adam and Eve,” the husband says. "Don't you think?"T...

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“Supernova Kiss” by Katharine Widdows

Submitted to Contest #253

I've hit the self-destruct button. I did it as soon as I knew the triclops were on board. Tiny tourist vessels don't come with escape pods, so I've also overridden the alarm system – no point ruining an otherwise perfect wedding night. . .Susan had always wanted to sit amongst the heavens and stare into their infinite glory. The gleaming white Aspect 5, with its Michelin starred robochef, panoramic viewing room, and luxury sleeping quarters is the perfect vehicle to enable a long weekend of just that: the ideal surprise honeymoon.Our wedding...

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“The Rollercoaster” by Neeru Singh

Submitted to Contest #253

"The Cyclone," a roller coaster renowned for its heart-stopping loops and gravity-defying turns, have the time of your life," the advertisement had read. The moment she was buckled in her seat, the cute boy who sat next to her gave her a wink. She couldn't believe her luck, she never sat next to cute boys. He was in front of her in the line, but she thought he’d go in the front row, given her usual luck. But today seemed like her lucky day. It all changed in the next couple of minutes. Now there were screams all around her. As she dangled 10...

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“Little Boy Blue” by Glenda Toews

Submitted to Contest #253

Every muscle was taut and the sweat that had formed four hours before dripped, like melting icicles. Her shirt soaked through, the sheets soaked through, she began to shake. Knees knocked together, teeth chattered, her heart pulsed in her ears, a hundred horses running on a cobblestone street thundered past her eardrums. Lungs that had been panting moments before gave way to gasps as her heart wretched in her chest. Panic covered her like a cold pillow pushed against her face, she fought for breath under it as her mind reached up. Her though...

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“UNFILTERED WITH THE ALMIGHTY” by Darvico Ulmeli

Submitted to Contest #253

INTERVIEWER: (grumbling, visibly annoyed) Welcome, everyone, to this very special interview on WVRT Channel 7, right here in the heart of New York City. Tonight, we have an extraordinary guest—God Himself. Let's give a round of applause for the Almighty. I had to cancel my plans, so let's discuss this.(pauses) And by 'discuss,' I mean I'll ask questions, and He'll give divine answers. It's a win-win, really.GOD: (fidgeting, voice unsteady) Thank you, thank you! Wow, great to be here. You know, not every day I get invited to do a TV appearanc...

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“SEVEN SECONDS IN HELL” by William Riling

Submitted to Contest #253

Garret Lipman was thinking he must know how Adam felt in the Garden of Eden when Eve tempted him with the apple. After all, the fruit was plucked from the tree of knowledge and insider knowledge meant everything to a young day trader at Goldman Sachs. It wasn’t just the attempt at insider trading that had placed Garret in his current predicament. As with most things in his life, it was poor decision making that put him in a situation where he had no idea how to extract himself from this singular moment of time where he finds himself staring ...

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“All We Have Is Time, and Hamlet” by Sarah Sharp

Submitted to Contest #253

The first time I noticed Emily was as Ophelia in the school play, Hamlet. The rain outside the school theatre windows had started to suspend into a light drizzle. Cars were pulling out of the parking lot, leaving behind that swoosh sound of tires against tarmac. It was our second production of the play and Emily seemed to appear out of the corner of the stage where the lighting is darkest. The left wing off stage is only ever used by a handful of us stagehands, the stage manager and costumer Mrs Harris. I’d been...

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$250

Prize money

334

Contest entries

117

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jun 07, 2024 EST

Won by Maria Adamkiewicz 🏆

Title: One thousand and three wishes

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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