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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#266: The Write Stuff

Hello, fellow writers! Before diving into this week’s contest, I have an exciting announcement to make: the Reedsy Book Editor, our beloved (and free) writing app, is now Reedsy Studio! This cozy space is designed to be your creative haven, where you can make boards to sketch out your wildest character ideas, set goals to help you reach the finish line, export your stories with beautiful, customized typesetting, and so much more.


Studio is a gorgeous, functional book editor where your creativity can truly flourish… which brings me to the focus of this week’s contest. If you’re an aspiring author like me, you’ve probably experienced writer’s block at least once in your life — not to mention all the distractions life seems to perpetually throw at you. So, this week, let’s write stories inspired by artists and the creative process. Whether you’re the world’s biggest procrastinator or have been waiting for inspiration to strike, there’s bound to be a prompt below that speaks to you!

This week's prompts

Start your story with someone who wants to give up on their career right before their big break.

Short Story – 39 stories

Your protagonist discovers that everything they type comes true. What happens next?

Short Story – 54 stories

Write from the POV of a character in a story who keeps getting re-written by their second-guessing author.

Short Story – 92 stories

Your protagonist has the perfect day scheduled — but things don’t go according to plan.

Short Story – 40 stories

Write about someone who summons the creative muse through a convoluted ritual or method.

Short Story – 56 stories

Stories

“THE UNBREAKABLE BALANCE” by Darvico Ulmeli

Submitted to Contest #266

Max Bennett's apartment was a small, cluttered space on the city's edge. The hum of traffic outside was a constant backdrop, and the flickering streetlights cast long shadows across the walls. The apartment, filled with half-finished projects and books stacked in precarious towers, reflected Max's life—chaotic, brimming with potential, yet lacking direction. But the most important object in the room was the laptop on his desk, its screen casting a cold, blue light that illuminated Max's tired face. The rain outside had been relentless, a s...

8 comments 8
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“Breaking a Big Break” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #266

Edward had just turned 60 and he was very, very close to a big break in his career. He had been a college professor for some 30 years, and he had been informed that his department led by the current dean who was soon to retire was looking to him to take over that senior position. One positive aspect of this big break would be that he would be paid significantly more than what he had been getting as a mere teacher. He could retire earlier, something both he and his wife Edna wanted him to do so that they would spend more time t...

8 comments 8
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“Spy Who Came Out of the Temperate Weather (With 90 Percent Chance of Precipitation)” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #266

Let me introduce myself. Zing! I am Special Agent Rex Roget. Bazing! I am in the middle of a shootout with enemy agents. Baringa! This is my fifty-ninth case in which I somehow manage to solve the problem without getting my head blown off.   Crrumpa!  I do not know what they were thinking when they invented that last onomatopoeia. Chabunka! Or that one. Anyway, my name is famous and often mispronounced which really makes me angry.  Roget, like the Thesaurus which makes my name easy to pronounce.  Right?  Argh, i...

8 comments 8
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“Written into a Corner” by Chris Sage

Submitted to Contest #266

Engines screaming, smoke pouring from the wing, Daxie fought the controls of his fighter. Red biplanes swarmed around him in the azure sky, the air thick with whistling death. One passed his cross hairs as his plane juddered, and with exquisite timing Daxie let out a burst of machine gun fire, watched with satisfaction as the flames spread. He was the last of his squadron, he had to make this count, for the chaps back home, for the fellas stuck in the trenches. He wrestled the nose up, scanned for more targets. Thump. Fire from behind hit hi...

15 comments 15
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“Hair Soup in Tupelo” by Philip Alexander

Submitted to Contest #266

*There are mentions of sexual themes.Gorky sang a hymn at the altar of Saint Jude's Church in Tupelo, Mississippi. He was the only pale-skinned teenager in a congregation of African American churchgoers. His voice was ineffectual, and the choir kept sneaking glances when it cracked and whined. Patrice, the soprano, shot a vexing look, prompting Gorky to lip-sync the rest of the chorus. You're right, Patrice. I should banish myself to the fires of hell where my voice would serve as a torturing device. And so he held his tongue. Finally, "I wi...

1 comment 1
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“ANGEL” by David D'EttoreUser

Submitted to Contest #266

ANGEL            Every spring carries with it an aura of promise.  The newness can be seen in the tree blossoms, the crocuses lifting their heads above the ground to breathe new air, and the melodic chirping of birds whose song had been stifled by the cold winter.  None of this is new, but rather a renaissance of what had occurred many times before.            I looked forward to springtime.  &...

1 comment 1
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“Well Layered Ham Sandwiches” by Kristen Hubers

Submitted to Contest #266

“Welcome to the newest member of the Dull Men’s Facebook group!” The glowing screen reflected off my glasses like the shine on a new trophy.That was the highlight of my week apart from several well layered ham sandwiches. Toasted bread from the bakery, creamy, salted butter slathered from edge to edge. Butter soaking into the toast was strictly forbidden. It had been the law of the land ever since the new King took over these boundaries. The butter must be thick and creamy. It must be steadfast! IT MUST STAND ON ITS OWN!Psssst… I’m the new K...

1 comment 1
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“Elephant Man” by Joe Smallwood

Submitted to Contest #266

And they lived happily ever after.So, I ended my story and breathed a sigh of relief as I shut my laptop. I hadn't counted on staying up so late, with work only a few hours away. But what the hey. Push on through.The city was so quiet, the odd passing car, someone walking.Elephant man.Why did he exist? This plodder, who could never sleep, his heavy steps sounding through the night, back and forth, was it untamed feelings, or a broken romance?It's heartless to even think of progeny that could waste a night brooding and pounding floorboards i...

8 comments 8
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“Rebel with No Cause....” by Julie Grenness

Submitted to Contest #266

Janet woke to the pre-dawn, waiting for sunrise. She had planned the perfect day ahead. She could hear her husband snoring in his own room, sleeping like a baby, or like husbands do. She listened, she did not hear a peep from her grandson, Andrew. Janet was well aware that she was no spring chicken, but she loved the mystique of the darkened hush, cozy in her bed. Janet's brain loved this peaceful habit of wandering back to her younger years. Once, a platonic male friend had been sipping some bevvy at a party, and suggested they go astral tr...

1 comment 1
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“Can you see me?” by James Moore

Submitted to Contest #266

Session No 3‘Good morning Sarah, please come in, have a seat’Mr Mavers requested in an officious yet friendly tone. He spoke softly and carefully, in a manner that was calming but skirting on patronising.‘It’s lovely to see you again, you ARE looking well. How has everything been? I can see here in my notes that last time we spoke we discussed the Idea of your writing down your thoughts and feelings in a journal. And you were quite dismissive of the idea at first. Did you manage to write anything down?’‘I’ve written some things. Stupid ...

4 comments 4
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“All the World's a Page” by Rozmarin Ideas

Submitted to Contest #266

 Jo Burnham was a writer- of that, there was no doubt.She’d written articles, short stories, entreaties on the meaning of existence- even three-quarters of a novel. Free days were spent in front of the computer, tap-tap-tapping away ‘til the sun went down. The nights were more of the same, sleep barely stopping her. Yes, she was certainly a writer. What she wasn’t, was an author.Her name wasn’t displayed shelf-side in a bookstore, or highlighted in digital print on the latest e-reader. The only place it did feature? The tag pinned to he...

12 comments 12
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“Reflections of a Fractured Mind ” by Jackson Anhalt

Submitted to Contest #266

The thing about being normal is that eventually, you get good at it. Too good. People start inviting you to dinner parties, asking for book recommendations, and trusting you with their dogs. That’s where it gets dangerous.  I started to notice my slip into madness twelve years ago. It wasn’t a light switch – it was a gradual descent, like a frog in a boiling pot of water. It started with little things, like staring just a bit too long at the sharp edge of a knife. At parties, instead of joining in the conversation, I’d like to sit in th...

6 comments 6
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“Behind Every Great Man...” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #266

I’m not the only one, but it feels like I am. Writing is a supposedly lonely occupation but you’d think you’d get a bit of support from your own bloody wife! Sometimes I feel like a burden. A deadweight. A strange loner child whiling away my life in the pursuit of a stupid, childish fantasy. She makes me feel like that. She makes me feel bad and worthless. She’s crushing my dream, even as I try to realise it. I need someone to boost my belief. Mine alone is not enough. I’m only human after all. I am frail and have moments of weakness. I some...

9 comments 9
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“The Muse’s Labyrinth ” by MEEGAN MEEKS

Submitted to Contest #266

**The Muse's Labyrinth** In a dimly lit room, deep within a forgotten library, sat Lila—a struggling writer whose desperation had driven her to the brink of madness. The stories that once flowed effortlessly from her mind had dried up like an abandoned well, leaving her staring at blank pages for days. She had heard whispers of a ritual, a forbidden method to summon the muse, one that had been passed down through the ages in hushed tones. And now, with nothing left to lose, she was ready to try anything. Lila’s research had led her to an anc...

3 comments 3
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“Lucky Penny” by C.N. Jung

Submitted to Contest #266

“Have you ever believed in something so much that you made the impossible, possible?” He threw up his hands in excitement, prancing like an excited deer. “What-.” Her voice was tight with bemusement.“Or had a dream that wouldn’t quit bugging you day and night until you paid it piece of mind?” He added, speeding up to walk in rhythm with his fast flowing words.“Woah, Landon! Slow down... and, woah, Landon! That would be a street you're about to walk into.”“Did you ever-.”“Landon, stop!” Landon felt a firm grip latch onto his shoulde...

3 comments 3
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$250

Prize money

281

Contest entries

108

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Sep 06, 2024 EST

Won by Derrick M Domican 🏆

Title: inspirAItion

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!

Prompts | Many Hands | 2024-09

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Prompts | Many Hands | 2024-09

Join our weekly contest

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