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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#274: October Country with Peter Cameron

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

This week, we're running a takeover in collaboration with Peter Cameron, an Emmy-nominated screenwriter and supernatural enthusiast whose credits include Amazon Prime’s Carnival Row and WandaVision, Moon Knight, and Werewolf by Night for Marvel Studios. His latest project, the deliciously spooky Agatha All Along, is now streaming on Disney+. This contest’s winner will not only be awarded $250 — they’ll also receive a special bonus prize: personal feedback from Peter! Here's what he has to say about his special takeover:

Ray Bradbury's work first transported me to October Country in middle school, and I'm not quite sure I ever left. To me, this literary world deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Oz, Middle Earth, or Neverland. If you've never had the pleasure, here's a description from the man himself:

“October Country... that country where it is always turning late in the year. That country where the hills are fog and the rivers are mist; where noons go quickly, dusks and twilights linger, and midnights stay… That country whose people are autumn people, thinking only autumn thoughts. Whose people passing at night on the empty walks sound like rain...”

Get the gist? This week, let’s pack our bags and explore the territory for ourselves. 'Tis the season for cozy horror, after all. So here we go... Anchor yourself in an emotional truth, don't let the genre trappings distract you too much, and let's run headlong into the Weird. Warning: here be monsters… if we're lucky!

Special Update: The Results

Peter Cameron's top three picks for this takeover were: 1) "Sweetbread: An Epilogue" 2) "RE: The Heat Death of the Sun" and 3) "THAT THING ON THE HILL"

Here's what he had to say about the winning story: "That Bradbury-October feeling was woven into every word of 'Sweetbread: An Epilogue.' The concept is deceptively simple, the coda to a fairy tale we know and know well, but Madeleine Pasquale is a sly storyteller indeed. Between their shell-shocked narrator, keen sense of atmosphere, and poetic execution, I couldn't have enjoyed it more!"

Congratulations to contest winner Madeleine Pasquale and the runners-up, Katy Lindsey and Liam Morris!

This week's prompts

Center your story on a character filled with love and fear in equal measure.

Character – 65 stories

Write a story that includes the line “Fate is resourceful.”

Short Story – 77 stories

Use a personal memory to craft a ghost story.

Dramatic – 72 stories

Write a story where a creature turns up in an unexpected way.

Short Story – 99 stories

Center your story around a childhood fear that – as much as you try to shake it – still resonates in adulthood.

Angst – 93 stories

Stories

“The Village Witch” by Evie Heimbach

Submitted to Contest #274

“It’s getting so very damp lately… I worry about my little man’s lungs in this kinda weather.” “I know, Maggie; this wet, cold, miserable nastiness is just awful!” There was a companionable silence between the lifelong friends for several minutes before Lara cleared her throat and added, “You know you could always go see… well… I mean, go out to the cottage. You know what everyone says. They haven’t turned anybody away yet.” The color slowly drained out of Maggie’s already pale complexion as Lara spoke, leaving her friend wondering if Maggie...

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“The Uncontrolled Growth of Pit” by James Scott

Submitted to Contest #274

Gareth ripped his hand away from the sharp pain that cut across his palm. The instinctive reaction likely saved his fingers from his own stupidity. He dropped the pair of pruning shears to the ground and pulled off the thick gardening gloves, sending a splash of his own blood to paint red across the fruit tree’s blossoms like some twisted version of Alice in Wonderland’s roses. He let out a relieved sigh to see only a minor slice to his palm and shook his hand out in an effort to dispel the throbbing, which only served to further splatter th...

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“An Unsolved Mystery is a Thorn in Your Heart” by Lily Blue

Submitted to Contest #274

An Unsolved Mystery is a Thorn in Your Heart‘Such long fingers, I wonder what she would become one day, mother’s friend commented.My mother and the other woman rejoiced at talking about the last night’s dinner, the dessert, one new recipe they just heard from a newcomer in the neighborhood. One chocolate, mug of milk, cups of sugar, vanilla … The sudden aroma of vanilla lulled me into my thoughts. That’s the moment where I exactly stopped listening to their cheerful conversation. My father was playing chess, as usual, with the husband of tha...

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“COM 107 Public Speaking” by Aimee Lavigne

Submitted to Contest #274

(Note: mentions famous serial killers, mass-shootings, and terrorist attacks as historical events) October 2012 Daniella slipped into her seat just in time. Parking was a nightmare at Oregon University. She knew this, just as much as she knew her favorite coffee shop was busy before morning classes started. And yet, she would not get up any earlier. Beating the clock to class was starting to feel like a game that would be embarrassing to lose someday. “Good morning!” the professor called out as he closed the classroom door. Daniella n...

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“The Secret Ingredient is Terror” by Keleigh Hadley

Submitted to Contest #274

The first thing they don't tell you about Food Network auditions is that the studio lights make your palms sweat like you're holding raw chicken. The second thing is that those lights aren't really lights at all, but tiny judging suns, each one designed to illuminate every single one of your insecurities. Standing here in their glare, I can feel my childhood stutter creeping back into my throat like kudzu. "Whenever you're ready, Ms. Williams," says the producer, a white woman whose clipboard probably costs more than my first car. I am not r...

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“The Game of Life” by KC Foster

Submitted to Contest #274

‘I have cancer. They’ve given me six months,” Rock Cameron admitted to his dearest friends around the poker table, covered in chips, cards and coinage. He scratched his head and stared at his cards. A two and three of clubs, a ten of spades and an ace - all nothing worth betting on. He seemed to recall the ace of spades symbolized death. He frowned and considered folding.He looked up and watched their faces contort into strange expressions of grief, anger, and pity. The same thing he was learning to accept from those around him. At first, he...

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“Lullaby and Goodnight” by Claudia Lebel

Submitted to Contest #274

Lullaby and GoodnightClaudia LebelIt was an oppressively hot and humid late summer afternoon in August. Our third-floor apartment was over 100 degrees. I sat in my underwear, a sleeveless undershirt and flowered panties. My hair was pulled up in a ponytail. Sweat dripped from my brow line down the sides of my face and the back of my neck. I was uncomfortable because of the heat, but more so because my mother was sitting in her underwear too. Her Playtex Living Bra was more than a ten-year-old wanted to see. The air was stagnant, no...

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“Harleys and Highways” by Jeff Meade

Submitted to Contest #274

The hardest part of Mom’s passing was going through all the old family albums with my younger sister Jenny and deciding how to divvy up the photo collection. Ten years and a different father lessened the task somewhat, but she wanted some of the pictures of our shared step-brother, Noel. Most of the pictures predated her and featured both Noel and I living the dream of Colorado Mountain Boys. Our ten-acre horse ranch was on the side of Sugarloaf Mountain, just outside Boulder. The rustic log cabin and steep, wooded terrain we called home are...

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“A Day of Resilience” by Renate Buchner

Submitted to Contest #274

It enchanted me to watch the yellow, red, orange, and brown leaves dancing in the wind; I turned 360 degrees; arms wide open.Is it that long ago since I walked down this alley?The American Elm, the most prevalent tree in this alley, has a strong, unpleasant scent when it's green, but today's fall leaf hardly smelled at all—or so I thought. I hold my breath as a Ruby-throated hummingbird flies past my head over the whirling leaves towards a tree.In a hurry, I grabbed the camera from my backpack with a 400mm focal length objective without losi...

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“Liam the Lovable, But Fearful, Leprechaun” by Edward J. McCoul

Submitted to Contest #274

“Liam the Lovable, But Fearful, Leprechaun” By Edward J. McCoul There are two things Liam O’Shaughnessy loved more than anything in the world: gold and friendship. And there were two things he feared more than anything else: heights and rainbows. Which was unfortunate, since he was a leprechaun. Every time he went to check on his gold at the end of a rainbow, he’d have to climb up a hill or down a rocky slope. “That gold won’t guard itself, Liam,” he’d mutter to himself, inching along on shaky legs. Then he’d see the shimmering rainbow stret...

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“Repeat To Me My Mother's Grief” by Josie Green

Submitted to Contest #274

Thick sprawling fog smothered her car as young Professor Evelyn Cripps drove onwards. In her rearview mirror, the fog drew together hiding any trace of her- ahead the fog was so dense even her fog lights couldn’t penetrate the wanton whiteness. Evelyn nervously tucked a blonde curl behind her ear and glanced at the pile of papers that had, once, been neatly contained in a binder. As a child, she remembered being intrigued by tales of the supernatural, and this intrigue had continued as she grew older. Now she longed to discover the true insp...

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“Sam” by Martin Lagassé

Submitted to Contest #274

SamBy Georges Martin LagasséI had a dream once. In it, I lay on the warm grass, the sun tickling my fur, and beside me, a small human giggled, his tiny hand resting gently on my back. There was laughter – mine, his, and the laughter of another human, a tall figure with a voice that made me feel safe. I dreamed of being loved and being safe. But that was a dream, and dreams don’t live in cages.The cage was all I had ever known. Its bars were rusted, the metal cold against my skin. They had taken me away from my mother before her warmth could ...

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“The Resourcefulness of Fate” by Sydney Flowers

Submitted to Contest #274

Evelyn had always been meticulous, crafting her days with careful planning, as if each one were a work of art. Routine brought her comfort in the predictable shape of life, warding off the unknown that lurked in every unplanned moment. But then, fate has a way of slipping into even the tightest plans. As Evelyn would come to realize, “Fate is resourceful.” It started with the kind of storm no one had expected. She was driving home from the office late one night, rain beating against the windshield like a thousand tiny fists, her wipers strug...

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“Don't Be Afraid of the Dark” by Abby Johnson

Submitted to Contest #274

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been afraid of the dark. There's something about the quiet shadows that makes my heart race and my senses heighten, as if I'm preparing for something lurking just beyond my sight. Even as a child, I would lay in bed, staring wide-eyed into the darkness, listening for the slightest creak or murmur, afraid of what I couldn’t see. That fear followed me as I grew older, and though I've come to understand it better, the unknown depths of the dark still leave me unsettled. It's as if the darkness carries a weigh...

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“Matilda” by Just Some Random Person

Submitted to Contest #274

“Ooh, spooky!” I exclaimed as Brea brought the box with the Ouija board up from downstairs, tape cracking and peeling from the corners. It was a chilly Saturday on Hallow’s Eve, and the windows were barely cracked open behind us, the smell of freshly fallen leaves and sweet apple pie wafting in on the wind. The two of us clambered onto her twin-size bed, sitting cross-legged atop black and orange unmade blankets patterned with tiny skulls and pumpkins. A clear bucket of miscellaneous candy we’d bought at Price Chopper earlier that day lay be...

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$250

Prize money

406

Contest entries

120

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Nov 01, 2024 EST

Won by M. Darrow 🏆

Title: Sweetbread: An Epilogue

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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