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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#260: A Twist in the Tale

Has a friend ever recommended a book or a movie with the line, "The twist is amazing"? I usually hate when they do that. Even if they don't spill the beans on what the plot twist is, just knowing there is one can spoil the fun. I won't be able to resist trying to pre-empt the plot, and guess what that it might be — but a truly great twist is always rewarding, whether you expect it or not.

Here's a twist I'm sure you saw coming: this week's contest is all about them. Your readers will know there's one on the horizon. Can you still manage to surprise us?

This week's prompts

Write a story with a big twist.

Dramatic – 188 stories

Write a story in which a character learns something unexpected about someone they thought they knew well.

Mystery – 63 stories

Write a story about someone who realises the story of their life has been pre-determined — until they decide to divert from the expected path.

Character – 31 stories

Write a story that includes the line, "I didn't see that one coming."

Dialogue – 41 stories

Write a story using the most clichéd twist of all; it was all a dream.

Narrative – 105 stories

Stories

“Roadkill” by James Wogan

Submitted to Contest #260

You couldn’t have asked for a better day at the practice diamond. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the sun was comfortingly warm. It was one of those days where the heat from the sun and the cool breeze of the wind came together in perfect harmony. Springtime in Texas—there’s nothing quite like it. Mike held up his glove in front of his face. There was a loud, crisp ‘pop!’ as the baseball caught the webbing of his glove. “Dang, dude, are you trying to take my eye out or what?”&...

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“Cafe con Leche” by Cristina Ochoa

Submitted to Contest #260

Café con leche, yo quiero pasar Por un parquecito en la capitalYo quiero beber, yo quiero comprar— —me un cafecito en la capital “Again, Mommy, again!” Bebe clapped her hands. “Again! Again!”“Ok baby, but first, you have to tell me something.”Bebe looked up at her mother and nodded. “What is it, Mommy?”“You have to tell me what your most favorite thing in the whole wide world is.”Bebe look...

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“It's now, or this tomorrow” by Eva-Ma Eh

Submitted to Contest #260

Life has changed tremendously after “the incident”. Don't I miss going out to a restaurant or ordering in. Or just some coffee and oatmeal! Abby thought as she picked up her colorful breakfast pills and put them on her silver plate. Plates weren't used anymore since there was no food one could put elegantly on a plate to serve to anyone. Nevertheless, Abby still used her last plate and sat down at a table, even for two minutes, because it structured her day and reminded her of better days. She looked at the pills with disgust and sighed. It ...

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“Nothing and Everything ” by K.C. Gaudet

Submitted to Contest #260

Nothing…Liquid darkness flowed around her like empty molasses. Black and breathless wind.Caderea’s eyes slowly blinked open. Confusion faded in and out of her mind. Then,memory dawned, one piece at a time.The Tesser Engine had collapsed inward, dragging the ship into itself. After onlya few seconds the entire drive system crumpled, sending warping arms of destructionoutward. The Peregrine’s body was thrown in all directions. Fractured metal bones,flung aimlessly into the black vacuum. Hundreds of souls, gone in seconds.Caderea would have bee...

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“From Below” by Bailey Primus

Submitted to Contest #260

I moved into this old farmhouse about 6 months ago. The place was a steal, and it’s beautiful, a small acreage in the country surrounded by lush fields of tall corn and velvety soybeans with a small timber of towering pines and underbrush separating the fields from the yard. A steadily flowing creek laden with colorful rock formations cuts through timber, sending a calming babble adrift through the air. I live alone, with the exception of my cat companion, Cleo. Everything had been playing out really well. The days were full of the dis...

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“Melanthos” by Christos Chalis

Submitted to Contest #260

In the dawn of a new day, where the birds had welcomed the sun with their sundry melodies that filled the new sky. A start of a new day had already forced Melanthos, the man of the house, to open his eyes. As his eyes unveiled, he unleashed a tremendous yawn, followed by some tender grunts. Glancing at the window with a juvenile sky, Melanthos tilted his head and felt a sense of famish. He used his fingers, brushing through his gums and teeth, in hopes he could find some particles of food that still clung from the day before. He sighed. Disa...

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“The Romantic” by Jazmin Bogarín

Submitted to Contest #260

"You read romance?" I asked Stella when I noticed a book with a cover of a man and woman peeking out from her bookshelf. It was surprising, as I had never considered Stella a romantic. Of every book we had traveled into, she liked adventure and mythical tales, not cliché stories about love. Something about knowing this fact made my heart beat in anticipation. Maybe one day, she would notice me. "Of course," Stella was staring at an empty ice cream bowl as if she wished it would magically fill up again. "Why?" "Why not?" She countered. "I mea...

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“Dystopian Dream Girl” by Ian Patterson

Submitted to Contest #260

I had a dream last nightThat the world was not ruled by angry old menPlaying outdated politics like team sportsBut by the youthAnd in all their naive brashnessThey ignored the rulesAnd they fixed us I had a dream last nightThat the world was not driven by endless growthOf the things, and things, and things that we don’t needBut by human compassion And the elimination of sufferingThat it made us care for othersAnd for ourselves I had a dream last nightThat the world was not controlled by religionsWith the unlimited ways they teach us we ...

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“Italy” by Bettina Karpathian

Submitted to Contest #260

Maddie opened her eyes and stared, hardly daring to breathe, her heart thudding, as she tried to work out where she was. In the dim light she could ascertain unfamiliar shapes, high bedposts, a bulky, elaborately carved wardrobe, tall windows with heavy brocade drapes. She sighed with relief as it dawned on her. Italy. She and Chris were finally in Italy in a scenic town on the coast where ancient houses, castles, chapels and churches clung to the hillside and spilled in a chaotic jumble down to the coastline. They had scrimped and saved for...

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“The cereal was real” by Raquel Frescia

Submitted to Contest #260

I’m terrified. I breathe in. One, two, three. And out. One, two —’ ‘Maria, you’re next,’ says the substitute teacher whose name I can’t remember. I tell myself I can do it, but I’m not sure I can. I stand up and kick the desk. My cue cards fall and the fan disperses through the classroom. I try to pick them all up but some fly out the window. ‘I’ll be back in a second,’ I say hopeful that I’ll find my cue cards right outside the building. ‘We don’t have all day,’ he replies. What’s his name? Is it Wilson? Nilson? Peter? I don’t d...

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“Dolion” by Penny Pepper

Submitted to Contest #260

Amalie was outside waiting for the bus, muddled, when she pulled the arm of her so called ‘friend’, and he turned around.“Okay Dolion. What’s been going on?”“Nothing. Look, I got to get home, I’ll see you later.” And just like that he was off in the crowd of teenagers waiting to get home.That week he and Amalie were supposed to work on some school project that Dolion had even seemed excited for, but then the Tuesday after they got the project he started to avoid her and now it was due that Monday coming up.And how much had they worked on it?...

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“An Alaskan Vacation” by Frank McCoy

Submitted to Contest #260

An Alaskan Vacation It was day 48 of the continuous Alaskan Summer Sun and Eric was still lost. His shelter for almost the last 2 months was nothing more than the torn fuselage of his bush plane that had crashed after an engine failure. The remains of his wife and only passenger lay a mere 10 feet from the wreckage, in a shallow grave.They had been flying along the North Slope of the Brooks Range in northern Alaska as part of a wilderness getaway that Eric and his wife had done every summer for the last 3 years. He had just turned back to he...

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“Home on the Mountain” by Delsin Jagr

Submitted to Contest #260

The dawning, yawning morning meekly beckoned as its first rays wiggled through the white sheer curtains, landing gently upon the closed eyes of the bed’s lone occupant. A middle-aged man. His hair more gray than brown, but still possessing the smiley optimism of a man still firmly in his prime. As his eyelids slowly opened, James became aware of the empty spot in the bed next to him. And of the sound of running water. Of a shower behind the closed bathroom door. James smiled to himself as he eased quietly out of bed. On tiptoes, ...

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“Fretting Under Flagrancy ” by A. R. Kuhn

Submitted to Contest #260

Suddenly, upon finally waking to my surroundings, I was a serial murderer. I could only tell this by two things—of course, it’s not detrimentally obvious at first; it took a few moments, a few breaths, a few blinks, and then I noticed the incessant dripping sound. Vexing me. Drowning me. Calling me. The space I’m in, wherever it was, was dim and cramped and horrible. I blink, blinded with static-y swarms, and identify the dripping; it sprouted, red and copper, from the length of my arms and pooled around my fingertips before drooping i...

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“Through the Willows” by Cassie Varney

Submitted to Contest #260

Naella hurried to finish her chores. She had only just begun watering the garden when she heard her name being called. She looked around and spotted nobody. What? She thought to herself. Is it my imagination?“NAELLA!” The call sounded urgent, but still, she could not find the source. She began pacing the garden, hearing her name every so often.As she reached the tiny spring in the back of her yard, the call seemed louder. She ducked under her willows to her hidden reading spot. It was her most treasured secret, now she was worried someone el...

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$250

Prize money

428

Contest entries

131

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jul 26, 2024 EST

Won by Elizabeth Hoban 🏆

Title: You

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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