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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#281: The Fright Before Christmas

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

With less than two weeks left until Christmas, I’ve been filling my days with cozy activities that are perfect for the festive season. While baking, caroling, and wrapping gifts are pretty standard for this time of the year, I also enjoy doing something a bit unexpected with my friends: holding creepy holiday movie marathons.

With that in mind, here are five prompts inspired by eerie holiday classics like Krampus and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Snuggle up with your thickest blanket and get started on a tale of regret, longing, love, horror, mystery — whatever you fancy! Good luck, and happy holidays to all those who celebrate!

This week's prompts

Write about a mysterious guest who arrives at a party — but no one knows who they are.

Dramatic – 60 stories

Start or end your story with someone receiving a strange — and possibly sinister — gift.

Dramatic – 54 stories

Write a story from the POV of a non-human character.

Short Story – 103 stories

Set your story during the coldest day of the year.

Short Story – 52 stories

Write a story that includes the line “Be careful what you wish for.”

Dramatic – 40 stories

Stories

“Jingle Brains” by Euan Brennan

Submitted to Contest #281

Trigger warning: gore and physical violence are used in a humorous way. Another warning: there are vampires vaping.I was a young boy... Once. Now I’m a young zombie. Proud, intelligent, and dead. Very dead. So dead I have managed to hit the reciprocal part of the universe and start life anew by being undead.So it goes.The Macabre Plant spewed its toxic fog into the clouds creating a mist of green and black vomit for a sky. It was a permanent state for Dead City. At least the birds loved it. Well, they didn't complain (and they always complai...

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“The Regift” by David Mac Mahon

Submitted to Contest #281

Maybe this will be my year, maybe this Christmas someone will finally appreciate me. I’m a photo frame, but not just any old photo frame; I’m a silver-plated photo frame. I’ll have you know; I wasn’t cheap. I was displayed in a glass cabinet beside expensive jewellery in an upmarket store. You wouldn’t have found me in one of those bargain basements stores. I’ve been regifted eight times but I’m still brand new, I’m still in my original packaging. Okay, there is a bit of a scuff on one of my corners but that’s just on my outer pac...

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“My Girl” by Danica Zink

Submitted to Contest #281

Life was simple. As soon as I was taken from my shipping box, I had very few surprises. I was placed in a bin where my job was to simply wait. Wait to be shuffled to the top, wait to be noticed, wait to be returned to the bin. Some days would be more exciting than others, of course. I could go from top to bottom and back again five times in a day if it was busy, but no matter how many times I was picked up, I would always be put back and the lemur, dog, or unicorn next to me would be picked up. Some came back, some didn’t.Of course none of u...

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“Christmas From the Dog's Perspective” by Nora Thompson

Submitted to Contest #281

“Can dogs get seasonal depression?” Amanda asked whoever she was on the phone with. The cellphone was pressed against the side of her head with her shoulder while she tried to type at her computer. The other person said something and Amanda laughed. “He just seems so sad.” I returned to my spot on the couch, it was directly next to the radiator and the window. Amanda’s apartment let in a draft through the window and the radiator made up for it. Somehow this spot on the end of the couch was the perfect temperature. I’d only ...

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“KRAMPUS THE EVIL OF CHRISTMAS” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #281

Tale as old as time tells the story of an evil being who comes out of hiding once a year to terrorize the kids of the world. On this day when all the kids of the world are writing letters to Santa Claus wishing for the best presents, this being is watching and waiting. His name is Krampus and he is waiting for your child. Krampus the evil of Christmas is here. Merry, merry little boys and girls of the world. Your wishes may they never come true. I will make your nightmares come true. Krampus the evil of Christmas is here ready to strike fear...

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“If These Walls Could Talk” by Elton James

Submitted to Contest #281

In this world, there is magic. Old magic. Just learning about it, your hair will turn white and your toenails will curl. Even telling tales of such magics demands much, from both listener and teller. This is not one of those tales. This is a story about me and my mate Herb, and our friends. Or really, it’s about Herb, because I’m kind of Herb, but also kind of not. I’m the talking bit of Herb, you see. Herb can’t talk because, well… he’s a pub. Oh, don’t look at me like that. Herb wasn’t always a pub. Once upon a time, he was a whimsical hig...

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“The True Story of Rudolph” by Todd Crickmer

Submitted to Contest #281

You all know the story of Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and Blitzen. But let me tell you my side of the story—the true story of Rudolph.I was an orphan and arrived at the North Pole totally by accident. To be honest, I was lost. The last I saw of my mother was about three months before meeting that jolly old elf that many call Saint Nick. You see, I was born the spring before on Alaska’s North Slope. And for those of you who don’t know, that is oil country. There are oil rigs, pumping stations, miles and miles of pipe...

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“Santa's Stowaway” by Taylor Johnson

Submitted to Contest #281

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the houseNot a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; I wasn’t sure who came up with that “no stirring” nonsense, but during the night was when I stirred the most. And Christmas Eve was no different. In fact, this was the event of the year. During my first Christmas last year, I heard the humans talk about a fat guy in a red suit that could fly around the world and I knew I had to find a way onto that sleigh. I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life exploring the same nooks and crannies ...

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“The Anatomy of Un-forgiveness ” by Kaoli Chona

Submitted to Contest #281

Trigger Warning: This story contains themes of resentment, family conflict, emotional manipulation, un-forgiveness, and intense interpersonal tension, which may be distressing for some readers. Ah, Christmas, the time when joy is supposed to fill the air, it’s a season of strategic operations, covert missions, and glorious chaos. Celebrations are my playground. While others revel in the festivities, I thrive in the shadows, orchestrating my own kind of anarchy. No form, no color, no tangible presence—yet, to those who are attuned to it, I b...

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“Never Again” by Caroline Poplawski

Submitted to Contest #281

This is hell. Hell has literally frozen over, and now Danielle has to follow through with an ungodly number of empty promises made on these conditions. Whoever looked at the forecast and decided it was still perfectly safe and acceptable to hold a football game in the middle of the worst cold snap of the year deserves a special place in this hell to burn—freeze?—for eternity. Danielle had hoped and prayed that it would get canceled today, so she could stay curled up in her weighted blanket and watch Christmas episodes from a bunch of random ...

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“The Coldest Day Brings a Happy Ending” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #281

Ralph leaves his home to replenish his very diminished supply of coffee. Even though he is wearing his very warmest clothes, he still begins to shivers all over as he leaves his house. There are several reasons for that, only one of which is the very cold temperature he encountered when he stepped out of his house. There is a loneliness that makes the mind run cold alongside the body. “Why does it have to be the coldest day of the year on my birthday. It is like the weather gods know what day it is and they curse me ...

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“Beneath the White” by Susan Zalick

Submitted to Contest #281

The snow fell in thick, swirling curtains, blanketing the narrow mountain road as Sophia gripped the steering wheel with white-knuckled hands. Her breath clouded the inside of her windshield as the wind howled through the pines, blurring the world in a swirling gray and white haze. Her car's heater was fighting a losing battle against the bitter cold; she had been driving for hours, eager to make it home for the holidays. Just as she was about to turn onto the main road, the car sputtered loudly—once, twice—and then fell silent. "No, no, n...

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“Into the Deep Freeze” by Pete Gautchier

Submitted to Contest #281

Prompt: Set your story during the coldest day of the year. Into the Deep Freeze Unquestionably, this was the coldest day I had ever experienced. I was literally chilled down to my bones. I could not feel my hands nor my feet. Other nerves in my body, however, were actively feeling the frigid air. The cold pierced my face as though I was a pin cushion. I morphed into a human iceberg. What made matters worse, I was surrounded in darkness. Pitch black darkness. I quickly understood the meaning of th...

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“The Snowstorm” by Sienna Hahm

Submitted to Contest #281

I leaned my head against the taxi window; watching snowflakes drift onto the glass. It was only a day after Christmas, but the festivity of the bright holiday still remained. Sparkling lights hung on every traffic light and there were wreaths on every door. As the car sped past houses, the storm began to worsen and the snow fell faster. It wasn’t unusual for New York to become almost freezing in the winter, but somehow, the weather outside felt surprisingly intense. The driver slowed down, and I realized that we had arrived. I quickly hopped...

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“In July” by Rubekkah Estero

Submitted to Contest #281

‘Queensland is set for the coldest day of the year today, so pull out those jackets and coats…’ ‘Huh! Perfect timing,’ Dad says, rubbing his hands together with glee as I make my way down the stairs. ‘Georgie! You heard the weather man. Where’s your ugly Christmas sweater?’ I groan and loll my head back. ‘It might be the coldest day, Dad, but it’s still 26 bloody degrees out!’ Everything is relative, and in far north Queensland, cold is just another word for stinking hot. ‘No one should be wearing sweaters this ...

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$250

Prize money

309

Contest entries

154

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 20, 2024 EST

Won by Karissa W 🏆

Title: The Counter and the Coal

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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