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#313 Hidden Threads

Lately, I’ve been loving stories that don’t give everything away up front. You know the kind — where you’re picking up on little details, holding onto a line that feels important, and then somewhere near the end, it all clicks. Or maybe it doesn’t, and that’s what sticks.

This week, let’s write stories that hint, suggest, and slowly unravel. Let the meaning live between the lines, and see what happens when you leave a little to the imagination...

This week's prompts

Write a story with an open ending that leaves room for your reader’s own interpretations.

Dramatic – 92 stories

Start your story with a non-visual sense. Use a certain scent, texture, sound, or taste to ground the beginning before continuing the narrative.

Short Story – 66 stories

Write a story where two characters talk around an important subject without ever mentioning it directly.

Short Story – 60 stories

Begin your story with someone saying, “Are you there, God? It’s me...”

Short Story – 69 stories

Hide something from your reader until the very end.

Dramatic – 121 stories

Stories

Cornhuskers

Submitted to Contest #313

There is a brief mention of bullying The whole house smells like fried chicken. I hate it. I close my bedroom door and pile towels to block the stench. Nothing stops it. The funk slips from the kitchen window and creeps up to mine. I wish I could nail and caulk my window shut. It’s a sneaky smell, and it finds the cracks and the smallest openings.My grandmother’s fried chicken is “a family favorite.” Obviously, it's not mine. I refuse. I choose to be a vegetarian rather than eat that garbage. I’ll leave the dismembering of dead chickens to t...

20 likes

Seeds

Shortlisted for Contest #313 ⭐️

Will lifted the bread roll towards his mouth without cutting it. The plate was too far away, as usual, and he moved without care, as always.A trail of poppy seeds marked the path his hand took from porcelain to mouth, puncturing the surface of the white tablecloth like a blood splatter. He was marking his territory. Lording over everyone else. He owned the space. He could do as he liked.Of course, he’d simply think she was fussing. Reading too much into it. It’s only a few bloody seeds, Sophie. She looked up, and their eyes locked over the s...

19 likes

Water voles and other endangered species

Submitted to Contest #313

Water voles and other endangered species “Looks like we’re back in our usual spot.” Val traced a delicate pattern on the slats of the old bench. “It’s been er… a while.”Jack flinched, hoped she hadn’t seen it.“You mean, after last time…”“Yeah, sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. What I meant was I’ll try not to put my foot in it this time.”“I’m not sure you did put your foot in it, but sometimes the things you say…”“I didn’t mean anything. I didn’t mean that!”“You didn’t?“Er… not exactly”.“Oh! Right. Well, anyway. Moving swiftly on.”“You kn...

19 likes

The Hard Conversation

Submitted to Contest #313

It was a cold, sunny day in July in Melbourne, a city typically known for its unpredictable weather. While many parts of the world experienced scorching heatwaves, Melbourne was uncomfortably cold for that time of year, with a brisk breeze adding to the chill. The sun shone brightly, illuminating patchy cumulus clouds in the blue sky. Despite this, the temperature remained surprisingly low, prompting residents to wear their winter jackets as they went about their daily activities. Mark, carrying two steaming large takeaway cups of coffee, w...

19 likes

There Are So Many Ways to Die

Submitted to Contest #313

The huntsman confronted me in the woods. He asked, “have you been eaten by the wolf today?” I told him no, and then he said, “Well, I have to ask that first. You understand.” He said, “the wolf is my only enemy, and I hunt him because of that. I do not want him to eat you. I want to stop you. I want to break into you like a thief, but I couldn’t be second to him. He might have stolen what I want to take from you.” With that he lifted up his heavy ax and split my head like a piece of wood.As I stood there with my face cut in half, I asked “w...

19 likes

Behavior Management

Submitted to Contest #313

Are you there, God? It’s me, Luke. Yeah me, the one who made himself your prodigal son by pulling a disappearing act the last ten years. I prefer to fly under your radar, floating through life with as minimal effort as the universe will allow me. The problem is, I’m a dad now. That’s not the problem, I love being a dad. But I now have responsibilities with a capital R, and I might be in danger of screwing up my perfect kid. Don’t get me wrong, he’s far from perfect—after all, he’s got my DNA! But he is so completely himself, with his quirks...

19 likes

Are You Gonna Be My Girl?

Submitted to Contest #313

“So, one two three…Take my hand and come with meBecause you look so fineThat I really wanna make you mine Four five six…Come on and get your kicksNow you don’t need the money when you look like thatDo ya, honey?” - Jet The text from Jimmy came in around 1:30 on that Saturday afternoon; Hey Man, we should be there at Stan’s in about a half hour. Come join the crawl! First round is on me. If you are not familiar with a “pub crawl”, it basically works like this. A group of friends and/or like-minded people who enjoy a nice Saturday afternoon o...

18 likes

The Unraveling

Leo Evans

Submitted to Contest #313

This story only took me about 15 minutes to write on my break, give or take (took a little longer to edit it). It just "popped" into my head. It literally demanded to be written. I hope you enjoy reading it because I really enjoyed writing it. *** The rain lashed against the large plate glass window of the Blue Moon Diner, blurring the reflection of the flickering neon sign that proclaimed "EAT." Inside, the air hung heavy with the scent of fried onions, stale cigarette smoke, and the faint, underlying aroma of forgotten dreams. Evelyn, a wa...

18 likes

Tiger Lady

Annalisa McMorrow

Submitted to Contest #313

We’d only met the one time. After years of semi knowing each other in the way that the internet allows people to semi know each other. Like, you're not sure if you should call the people who live in the box or your phone your friend or not. Would they be there for you in real life? People who are only available with an emoji or a meme, who can silence you with a button or send you to voicemail. Who leave you on “seen.” We met the one time, at a coffee shop, and we were polite and Ms. Manners would have nodded from her perch above and said, "...

18 likes

The Closure of St. Jerome's Home for Foundlings

Submitted to Contest #313

1955 The whispers of gossip flowing from the other six girls in my work group (we're "learning to sew" by darning clothes) swirl around me, an eddy isolating me from the others as I pick out their individual words and voices from one another. Margaret and Bernadette are discussing the positive qualities of Marlon Brando. Elizabeth, who’d snuck into a showing of East of Eden, is going on (and on, and on) about James Dean. Veronica and Helen, though younger than I, keep commenting on the debate like dashes of seasoning, hoping that they are ad...

17 likes

Behind the Door

Stephanie Ayotte

Submitted to Contest #313

My mom told me to always lock my bedroom door at night. It had two rusty deadbolts, one above and one below the door handle. I turned them each three times every night. Lock. Unlock. Lock. Unlock. Lock. I learned early on that it was useless to ask my mother why. Her eyebrows would pull together, her forehead would get that familiar wrinkle in the middle, and she would shake her head just enough to jangle her earrings, but she would never justify a response.Half asleep, most nights I could hear the door handle turning. Some nights it would b...

17 likes

The Red

Saffron Roxanne

Submitted to Contest #313

TW: Violence, gore, and a brief gay joke. “Are you there, God? It’s me… Vic, and I’m here to talk to you about your car’s extended warranty.” Hushed laughter flowed around the dinner table, and Vic cracked a smile before Ma’s hand could smack her across the back of the head. “Victoria!” Ma snapped. “Say grace properly.” Ma was dressed up nicely tonight—gold bracelets jingled with each motion, her lipstick fiercely bright against her skin, her hair smooth down her back, and a dress so new it was like something out of a dream. I wondered where...

17 likes

Burning Vacation

Saffron Roxanne

Submitted to Contest #313

Screaming upon screaming—shrill, chaotic, desperate.Frantic steps drummed across creaking floorboards, unsure of which way to turn.Maybe left? Maybe right?Both were wrong.Glass burst from one end of the room, sprinkling shards over the dining table like a sad symphony, while wood splintered and snapped from the unforgiving pressure at the door on the opposite side.Then all hell broke loose.Shuffling. Moaning. Growling. And snarling. All tangled and twisted with their screams.Squelching, wet flesh sickly accentuated the snapping of bone. The ...

16 likes

God, are you there? It's me… the one you skipped.

Jelena Jelly

Submitted to Contest #313

Don't worry. I'm not here to monologue you into submission. I know you're busy - ice caps melting like forgotten popsicles, children crumbling beneath rubble, the slow apocalypse of cable news and mascara-streaked pop stars. You're fielding whole continents of agony. Me? I'm just background noise. Static. One wrong little girl who grew up into an even worse woman. A girl you, it seems, dodged with the grace of a practiced flinch. I get it. Maybe I was too small, like one of those songs nobody hears but still hurts to write. Perhaps I was too...

16 likes

World Without End

Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #313

After the Summer rains, there was the aroma of his childhood, transporting him back to impossible and far away days and at the same time, reminding him of the beauty of his life now. Summer was the apex of rebirth. The best of times and a promise of forever. A promise that would be broken as his youth gave way to the dour responsibilities of adulthood and a confused drive to cover as much ground as possible until he realised that he had been running away from everything that had been good for him and had no idea where he was headed. Growing ...

16 likes

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Contest #313

This contest has ended. Thank you for your submissions.

$250

Prize money

408

Entries

143

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Aug 01, 2025 EST

Won by Rose Brown 🏆

Title: Dibble Dop

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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