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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

“Choices” by Abby Powers

Submitted to Contest #260

One, Two, Three… I counted slowly. Methodically. Four, five, and six… I switched my deodorant over to my right arm and began again, counting until six perfect swipes of the lavender scented stick were plastered onto my skin. That’s the way we do it here: slow, methodical. Perfect. Terralan has always been that way, for as long as I can remember. Everyone and everything in their places. No mistakes. No slip ups. As if we could afford to, not after the Blight. I was so young when it happened, but Mama and Papa remember it vividly, at lea...

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“Cuttings” by K CT

Submitted to Contest #260

"No! Don't use your left hand, use your right hand", pounces onto Hana's mind. She lowers her, half raised, left hand and exchanges it for her right as she picks up her coffee. "You shouldn't use your right hand, go for the left", intrudes on Hana's thoughts as she attempts to open her car door. "Don't listen to this song, skip this song", Hana tries to find music to listen to on her commute to work. "Not this one either.. damn, I really love this song though. It should be fine if I listen to this one.. no, no, let me not.", she skips anothe...

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“The Prostitute Princess” by Robin Tillman

Submitted to Contest #260

*Contains references to prostitution* Kyla marched toward town, fists clenched. If humans could visibly steam from pent-up heat, she was pretty sure she was. She was so fed-up with her parents treating her like a child - especially her mother! She knew her mother had started sailing when she was 14, like her - she had been all over the place, seen so many things, met so many people! - And yet she acted as if Kyla would instantly vaporize into thin air if she stepped off this tiny island. Approaching the main street, she stopped and in...

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“There she was, just a-walkin’ down the street, ” by Stewart McLeish

Submitted to Contest #260

© 2024 D. Stewart McLeish, all rights reserved. Title: There she was, just a-walkin’ down the street. “There she was, just a-walkin’ down the street, singin’Do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do.Snappin’ her fingers and shufflin’ her feet, singin’ do wah diddy diddy dum diddy do.She looked good (Looked good)She looked fine (Looked fine)She looked good, she looked fineAnd I nearly lost my mind. “ ***True story. I was walking down a country lane murmuring to myself when Anne appeared, walking beside me. I nearly lost my mind (again). Anne had died f...

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“Agincourt: Ungrateful Courage” by Tony Smith

Submitted to Contest #260

The Battle of Agincourt:Ungrateful Courage By Tony Smith The English have been fighting the French for a hundred years and don't tire of it. They have wanted revenge ever since we defeated them at the battle of Hastings. When the French king went insane and attacked his own troops at Le Mans, the English seized the opportunity to attack. Our spies reported that Henry is raising an army and assembling a fleet of ships at Dover. I was instructed by my master the Duke of Burgundy to patrol the coast of Normandy. I watched the flotilla of ships...

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“Stop And Blow The Dandelions” by Ananya Bhalla

Submitted to Contest #260

“Recent studies in physics, such as those conducted by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have explored the concept of quantum entanglement—the phenomenon where particles become interconnected in such a way that the state of one particle instantaneously influences the state of another, regardless of the distance between them. This principle, known as non-locality, suggests that the universe operates on a level of interconnectedness that transcends classical notions of space and time.”***Beep. Beep. Beep. Her head feels fu...

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“The Girl Who Wanted To Go To Princeton” by McKenna Harris

Submitted to Contest #260

My whole family has gone to Yale University. I’m being forced against my will to apply to every Ivy League school on planet Earth. I want to go to Princeton, but I will most likely end up at Yale. Before we get into that story I’m Emma Davis and I’m 17, I’ll be a senior in high school after the summer. I have a non-strict family other than where my sister and I go to school. Summer vacation started at 12:30 pm yesterday, which means I have 2 months and 5 days of free time 24/7, and that also means 2 months and 5 days to convince my parents t...

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“What Once Was ” by Sahasra Labhala

Submitted to Contest #260

Tap tap tap tap tap. What were once shiny white tap shoes, now slightly stained with dirt, hurried down the dark wooden floors, the tapping of the shoes frantically picking up pace, trying to get away from something. The echoes bounced off the once paper adorning walls, now peeling away, colors fading and mixing with the darkness of the school halls.A little girl pattered, her breath growing heavy as she struggled to keep her sanity. She didn't know if they remembered, but her name was Nessa. And what she meant by they, was in fact regarding...

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“I didn't see that one coming” by Helen Tokley

Submitted to Contest #260

I didn't see that one coming.My name is Gino Conti. One morning last summer, I sat on my front veranda in January before it got too hot. It was a serene summer morning, and I enjoyed the tranquility. The last slice of toast from my breakfast was a lovely end to the meal. As I sipped my tea, I gazed at my farm, admiring the progress of this season's sugar cane crop. I was anticipating reading the newspaper leisurely, something I rarely got to do when I was farming.I had retired a few years back. My son Gino Junior now farms my land next to hi...

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“A Big Deal” by CJ Larsen

Submitted to Contest #260

The lesser demon curled his tail around his body, trying to keep it from twitching impatiently. “When’s he supposed to get here?” he asked. “Soon,” the greater demon answered. The lesser demon sighed. It felt like they had been waiting for an eternity. That was the problem with liminal space. There was no sense of time. Perhaps when he was a thousand years old, he would have the glacial patience of his superior. But he was not a thousand years old. He had the patience of an ice tray left out on ...

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“The League of United Planets” by Lonnie Larson

Submitted to Contest #260

… The League of United Planets received more requests for memberships than it could comfortably handle, but it still took the time to review each request. Eventually, it developed the technology to create stable Wormholes between the several Sectors of its Quadrant, which allowed it to travel to them almost instantly. It had been nearly four hundred fifty years since Bob’s chance meeting with Gheron on his farm and the subsequent creation of the League Charter, and things were going great. Bob had called Gheron and Bill and asked to se...

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“It felt so real” by Lapanda Mason

Submitted to Contest #260

It felt so real By LaPanda Mason It was the weekend, and the sun was shining so bright it woke Candace up from her nap. She sat up in her bed and stretched her arms above her head. She slipped her feet into her fluffy slippers and walked over to the window. She looked at the time on her watch and shook her head. “Fuck! I overslept!” she says aloud. She starts to undress as she walks towards the bathroom leaving a trail of clothes behind her. She turns on the hot water in the show and pulls her hair into a ponytail. She takes a...

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“The uprising has begun!” by Moosky M

Submitted to Contest #260

It’s late at night, and I’m sitting with my best mate, Mike, studying for the big test we have tomorrow. “Okay, you read the next part”, says Mike.“Sure” I say, taking the book from Mike’s stretched hand. “The deciding move in the battle for Paris came from none other than George Washington, when he was speaking with his advisor, Jimmy, who is the famous homeless man from under the bridge. Jimmy told Washington of how much he liked pears, ‘I eat one every day!’ he quipped. ‘Well, every day except yesterday.’“As the story goes, the day prior ...

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“Wake Up” by Maggie Higginbotham

Submitted to Contest #260

Content Warning: Story contains references to physical violence, war and destruction, as well as deals with themes of fear and uncertainty. Wake up. They scramble and stumble out from underneath piles of blankets into icy, deathly air that holds the sun’s first, blooming rays as if in prayer, as it climbs its way over rooftops sprinkling with frost. Dust floats about in the air, slow and lethargic, bogged down by the cold, and the world holds itself still, terrified and waiting (for what, they do not know). The window panes ar...

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“Mind The Gap” by Mara M

Submitted to Contest #260

The subway was delayed again. I hated waiting for it, not because my feet hurt or my jacket was too thin or the middle-aged man next to me reeked of piss and loneliness, but because I had to stand still. I pretended my feet to be glued to the asphalt beneath me and tried to drag my mind away from the fact that the subway was somewhere right now, with the privilege to move. It took that away from me and the world kept spinning but I was glued to the ground. I counted the seconds in my head, extra slowly, two, three, four, something I had lea...

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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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