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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#273: Locked Away

Don’t forget to use the hashtag #ReedsySecrets to share your stories (and potentially be featured on our social accounts)!

Ah, secrets. What is it about the unknown that’s so alluring? Do you relish the implicit power of knowing confidential information? Do you love the feeling of connection and exclusivity that being told a secret brings? Or do you enjoy dissecting other people in your head after you’ve discovered their deepest, darkest secrets?

This week, let’s write some stories that unravel long-buried truths — and maybe even a character’s entire life in the process.

This week's prompts

Write a story in the form of diary/journal entries about a secret or confession.

Short Story – 69 stories

Begin your story with someone either being followed or following someone else.

Dramatic – 53 stories

Write a story with the line “Don’t tell anyone.”

Angst – 80 stories

Your character is invited to a secret meeting. Who invited them, and what do they encounter?

Short Story – 40 stories

Write a story that hides something from the reader until the end.

Dramatic – 113 stories

Stories

“The Lost Letters of Lottie” by Kate Simkins

Submitted to Contest #273

Frances stared at the open letter in front of her, fingers trembling. She added it to the pile and opened the next. 18th March, 1876Dearest Frances,I hope this letter finds you well. Things are unchanged here, and I am dreadfully, most dreadfully lonely. I honestly do not know what I would do without your letters and your kindness. It’s been so long since I have seen anyone other than the servants, that I fear I may have forgotten how to interact with others at all! It is only your correspondence that keeps me balanced and connected to ...

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“A Day Ahead of Him” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #273

It was just an ordinary day in the making for George – nothing the least bit new or different would happen. But that was the way he liked it. He would get up early in the morning as he did every day of the working week. He needed to do so in order that he could eat his favourite breakfast, which took the chef a while to prepare just the way he wanted it. But first he would dress up in his best clothes, as he felt he would need to continue making a respectable impression on the people who would be seeing him throughout mos...

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“Chess for Three” by Ivana Pavićević

Submitted to Contest #273

Invitation. I never get any mail. But every morning, as I brew my coffee, I dutifully check the mailbox. It’s because I keep hoping that one day, I’ll find something that will finally change or kickstart my life.The mailbox isn’t the only thing I expect so much from. Occasionally, I force myself to attend a concert, hoping for the same, but jazz is barely listened to these days, so staying at home is not entirely my fault. Every year, I also go to the same place by the sea for an art festival. I consider that as another attempt to give life ...

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“Why Kids Love Their Grandfathers” by David Blackburn

Submitted to Contest #273

WHY KIDS LOVE THEIR GRANDFATHERS By David Blackburn My grandparents were cattle ranchers in West Texas. My grandfather's grandfather moved to Texas in the early 1840's when Texas was still a nation; he built a ranch and a family that endured for many generations and was the foundation for our values of hard work and e...

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“Pecan Pie” by Jennifer Addison

Submitted to Contest #273

I am the second Mrs. Roberts. The new Mrs. Roberts. The first Mrs. Roberts had a hard time letting go, and not because I had anything to do with their divorce. In fact, I didn’t even know Mr. Roberts back when she was cheating on him and kicking him out of the house for “never noticing how much she did.” Her words. He left because she told him to go. So now I am the only real Mrs. Roberts. But I was also the new Mrs. Roberts because I was still considered new in town. Back in those days, in small, Southern towns like Geneva, Alabama, y...

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“Shadow” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #273

I saw her several days ago. Only I refused to accept what I was seeing. She was careful, but not so careful that I wouldn’t be afforded the sight of her. Some of that care added something to her steps. She was slowed by her caution. I didn’t have such a burden, and so I closed the distance between us over those days. That was when I had to do something about the sight of her. Think about what it was that I was seeing. She was older than me. Something in her gait spoke of those years and there was a weariness in every movement. I ...

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“Am I to blame?” by Shermayne Webster

Submitted to Contest #273

Dear Diary,Life is great for me. I'm young, and I ended up with the man of my dreams who is perfect! My high school sweetheart and I have just had a baby! A precious baby girl whom I picked the name out. Jade is her name, just like the stone. She's everything that I have ever dreamed of. I actually talked him into having a baby with me. My family and I aren’t getting along, and Thomas is feeling like the only family that I need. After all, nothing is more important than the family you create. Life is great!Dear Diary,An old friend of mine te...

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“Parrots Pluck Their Feathers” by Pres T

Submitted to Contest #273

This story deals with themes of self-harm, trauma, minor allusions to violence, and child abuse. Reader discretion is advised. Veronica for the past few weeks felt a newfound sense of tangible dread. The type of fear that creeps in once you turn your head forward bound and what is behind you isn’t in view. And in all fairness who would blame her. She’s an attractive woman in a big and dangerous city. The amount of women and young girls whose faces lace the nighttime news with captions of “gone missing" is in the hundreds this year alone.&nb...

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“Cards of Survival” by Patrisia Lungu

Submitted to Contest #273

Cards of SurvivalThe man she intended to kill tonight was already late to their meeting, which increased Cataleya’s impatience tenfold. Her fingers tapped the old wooden table as the daggers strapped to her body whispered in her ear, thirsty for blood.The forgotten warehouse was draped in silence and hidden from curious eyes, making up the ideal meeting point for the leader of a feared rebel house and an assassin tasked by her queen to bury him.Shadows concealed her as she waited, similar to a tigress hunting down its prey. The killing order...

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“Psycho Pathy” by Luca King Greek

Submitted to Contest #273

The stepbrother, David, older than me by six years, was a fastidious and fussy teenager. Everything in his bedroom was orderly. His math books were organized by color, his clothing was folded and put away, and his bed was neatly made each morning. He was pathetic and cold, like a fish stranded on dry land; I instantly disliked him, and the feeling was mutual. I thought the marriage a hasty, ill-conceived idea – Blaine Curtis, a goofy Caltech mathematician seemed a poor match for mother – and his son, David, was a definite weirdo, a psycho. I...

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“Nothing to Worry About” by Montrell Burke

Submitted to Contest #273

I’m so happy that Eric and I are friends again.As soon as I step foot out of my eighth period English class, he’s already waiting outside for me, leaning up against the wall by the door. With a huge grin on his face, he trots over and leans down to playfully headbutt me in the chest, I grunt lightly and push his head away. He stumbles on his feet, laughing, then collects himself and walks beside me down the hall, slipping his arm around my shoulder.“How did you get here so fast? The bell just rang.”“I left early. Three guys started fighting ...

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“Twisted Lies” by Dita Dow

Submitted to Contest #273

Don’t tell anyone. I look at her. My hands sweat. They always sweat when I lie. “I won’t,” I say, too soft. Too weak. She doesn’t notice. Her eyes dart around the room. “You swear?” she asks, stepping closer. I can feel her breath on my face. Minty. Clean. Like she isn’t hiding anything. “I swear.” It comes out too fast. Almost a whisper. She narrows her eyes at me but says nothing. “I shouldn’t have told you,” she says. “I just… I didn’t know who else to go to.” I nod. My mouth is dry, and my heart’s too loud in my chest. “If anyone finds o...

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“The Invitation” by Jaime Metcalf

Submitted to Contest #273

The Invitation Nathan Ellis had never been one for surprises, least of all cryptic ones. So when he found the letter waiting for him on his doorstep that crisp October morning, his first instinct was to toss it in the trash. No return address. No stamp. Just his name scrawled in thick black ink, as if the sender had been in a rush or had shaky hands. But something about the weight of the envelope—a curious thickness, the faint scent of old paper—made him stop. Slipping his finger beneath the seal, he tore it open and pulled out a single shee...

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“Stories of Aviaria. Story 1: Black Thorn” by Tarja Mo

Submitted to Contest #273

Ma’ome’s gaze was fixed on the blade of her dagger, which she had been sharpening for half an hour. Despite the dangerous task at hand, her mind was elsewhere, far from home. The note from Maëlys lay crumpled beside her as if it had been read countless times. Ma’ome kept shooting nervous glances toward the wrinkled parchment. With a sharp, frustrated exhale, she stopped what she was doing, closing her eyes. The letter from her old friend had stirred her deeply. She wasn’t even sure if it had truly been sent by Maëlys or if it was just a crue...

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“Hard Border” by Craig Scott

Submitted to Contest #273

There are poems written about snow. Brzezinski knew this was true because he had heard them from books in his youth. They had belonged to his father, an educated foreigner who entered a government van one day and was never seen again. His mother had brought the dusty books out sometimes from their secret place, after the lights were turned off, and translated them. And more than a few of those stories were about snow – how beautiful it was, it’s delicacy and purity. How it made the world feel clean and new. Maybe snow was different in other ...

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$250

Prize money

355

Contest entries

162

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 25, 2024 EST

Won by Asia W 🏆

Title: Venus Buried

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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