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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#34: Staying Inside

These days, we’re all being urged to stay home as much as possible... which means you might find yourself with more time to write. So in the spirit of art imitating life, this week’s prompts all revolve around the notion of staying in!

On that note, we wanted to make a special announcement: today, Reedsy is hosting a live writing sprint on YouTube. Bite-sized writing bursts are a proven way to make progress on a project, and we figured there’s no time like the present to virtually connect and support one another.

The writing sprint will take place today at 1pm EST. You can register for the event using this link, or subscribe to our YouTube channel and simply join us at 1pm EST. We hope to see you there!

Most of all, we hope that you and your loved ones are safe and healthy.

This week's prompts

Write a story about a family game night.

Fiction – 70 stories

Write a story from the perspective of a dog, thrilled to find their owner has been spending so much time at home.

Fluff – 73 stories

Write a story told entirely through text messages or emails.

Dialogue – 104 stories

Write a story about a rainy day spent indoors.

Spring – 146 stories

Write a story about someone who finds a secret passageway in their house.

Short Story – 147 stories

Stories

“The Secret Passageway” by Ivinee Cooray

Submitted to Contest #34

The night grew deeper and deeper.The neon lights in the streets had ebbed away during the solitary nights when the whole world seemed to be in a profound slumber baffled by the cause of the C_19 virus killing thousands mercilessly,disregarding shape,size,status or colour."Shane ,stay in,my dear son.God will protect you."Those were the final words of his mom that day prior to the departure from this world.The virus attacked her.He stared into the vast void ahead,not knowing where to begin all over again.He felt that he was in a deep gorge sur...

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“Passage of Mystery” by Greg Gillis

Submitted to Contest #34

It was a beautiful Spring morning and Chuck Spears along with his wife, Colleen and their eight-year-old son, Jackson had just returned from a two week vacation in Rome, Italy. While at the airport, the officials working in Customs had them sign a declaration stating that they would go directly home and quarantine themselves for the next 14 days due to a virus that had been spreading rampantly throughout Asia and Europe, and has now arrived in North America as well. They signed and complied with the order by returning directly to their home....

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“The Guest Room” by William Webster

Submitted to Contest #34

The screen door slammed behind Jason as he threw his computer bag like a shot put across the kitchen to a receiving chair that rocked on impact. Jason kicked his shoes off. The hardwood floor moved under his feet before the room began to spin around him. Staggering to the table he collapsed in a chair. The room was dark and hot and the air sticky. Sweat beaded up on his shaved head and rolled down his face as rain continued to beat the back porch roof sounding more and more like Thor’s hammer ...

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“Here by Accident” by Christina GARCIA

Submitted to Contest #34

I ran through the streets as the rain poured from the sky and down my face. This was supposed to be a nice sunny vacation with my family but as it turns out it became a total disaster. I'm not really bothered by the rain, I could just spend the rest of my days sitting in the rain, but it's cold and these wet clothes are making me uncomfortable. Not only did I get guilt tripped into sharing a rental home with three not-so-smart teenage boys, I got locked out and of course I didn't get any of their numbers and no ones answering the door. I pas...

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“Push” by Tammi Keen

Submitted to Contest #34

“Oh my God, what are the little beasts doing up there?” Meagan asked, rolling her eyes up toward the ceiling, where she was fairly certain a herd of elephants was staging a flash mob. “Are you sure you’re only watching three kids?” Her best friend Hailey sighed and slammed her chemistry book down on the coffee table. Studying was impossible with all the noise. “Think about college!” Meagan called as Ha...

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“Tommy Marbles” by Ben K

Submitted to Contest #34

Marking the days of the week down to friday night. Young Tommy Smith dashes from his desk the moment the bell rings. Moving faster then his teacher can tell him to slow down. Tommy has his coat zipped, backpack strapped on tight and two yellow boots to match his outfit. Six years old and full of piss and vinegar. Tommy hops up and down patiently waiting for his parents to come pick him up from preschool. As a few of the kids get picked up. Tommy keeps his enthusiasm. Anticipation acting like ants in his pant. Tommy keeps shifting about. It h...

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“A Sapphire Fly” by Dustin Softman

Submitted to Contest #34

Woofred proudly sat beside his royal blue turd and waited for his master to return from work. The turd, or specifically its colour, was a bad omen in their house. His master, however, was a patient man and understood its colour and position in the middle of the lounge were beyond the dog’s control. He sat a while on the sofa observing the now routine hubris of his dog and let out a sigh and reached for the phone. ‘They must have come through again’ he said without introduction....

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“Four Generations and Three Versions of “Clue”” by Dawn Mandzik

Submitted to Contest #34

It was Gran Gran’s ninetieth birthday and Grand Pop’s ninety-first birthday. They were lucky that they had the same birthday, and lucky that their family always gathered to celebrate. The year is 2051 and the place, Mendocino County, California. The entire Mandzik family had gathered for the celebration, all thirty of them. Their four children, a slew of grandchildren, and their three precious great grandchildren. A festive celebration for a festive and feisty lady. &nbsp...

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“La-La land” by Stephanie Njoku

Submitted to Contest #34

tick tock" tick tock ". The clock sounded. I stood staring at it for a while. Mum was busy getting our luggage into the car." Time to go Ray" she said as she placed the last luggage into the boot.We had to move to a new house, my mum couldn't bear the loss of her husband. Being in that house gave her nightmares and bad memories. She said."don't worry Ray, everything's gonna be OK" she said with a warm smile.I got into the front seat and immediately buckled up my seat belt. That evening, we drove out of bloomville and went further into town. ...

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“There's Someone in My Walls” by Charlotte Sparks

Submitted to Contest #34

Hi, my name’s Elise. I live in Beverly Hills, California with my parents and my brother Brody. You might say that we live in a mansion. We have 12 bedrooms, 14 bathrooms, 4 kitchens, a pool, a full basketball court, and a gym. Okay, fine, we do live in a mansion. Due to COVID-19/coronavirus, we can no longer go to school. We have to stay at our house and we can’t really leave unless it’s absolutely necessary. So, thanks to coronavirus, I have been spending all my time in my room. It’s Friday, and after I finished online school, I layed on my...

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“The secret behind the doors” by Luis Grammont

Submitted to Contest #34

MSGSSkysea (the good puppy) [Hey, Robert, I heard you got laid off work due to the outbreak. How are we going to survive?][Also, I’m excited to spend more time together.][Who told you that? And it sucks but at least I will have more time to work on my projects… and spend time with you.][Paws the cat from the other house, such a snitch, Are you almost home? It has been years since you left. I’m starving.][It has been four hours since I left, and what are you talking about? I gave you a full meal before I left!][It feels like ...

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“Day Five” by Tim Law

Submitted to Contest #34

I awoke to day five. There were the same walls, ceiling and floor of my tiny bedroom in my tiny flat. I had not paid them much attention but now I was forced to see them hour after annoying hour I recorgized little cracks that were forming and places where paint was pealing. Venturing slowly, tiredly down my flight of rickety stairs I looked into the kitchen and discovered that the dishes from earlier in the week still sat like a precarious castle upon my sink. In a day, two days max I would have no clean dishes left and would need to open t...

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“The Satellites Knew You Didn't Love Me Before I Did” by Emily Sperber

Submitted to Contest #34

10:37 a.mY: I think we should pretend we’recoworkers while we’re quarantined.We’ll have our own offices and we’llcommunicate only through text.I think it’ll keep us sane and won’tmake us hate each other by the end of this.M: Babe, I’m in the next room.I can hear you typing.Y: Exactly. We’re coworkers now,just until the virus goes away.M: I do have a lot of work to do.Y: Perfect! So I’ll be in the study andyou can be in the living room.M: But, wait, I’m hungry.Y: Ok, let me take a look at my calendar.Yes, I can squeeze you in this aftern...

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“Acid Rain” by Samuel S.

Submitted to Contest #34

One day, there began an acid rain that never stopped. This wasn’t just an average acid rain. Besides lasting, as I write this, several decades now, the other peculiar thing about this storm is that that acid is extremely potent. It can hurt, it can burn, it can kill. Within the first day, over two hundred people died directly from exposure to the rain, and over seven thousand people reported severe burns. Like the Kennedy assassination, everyone remembers their location when it happened. I was in college, specifically my dorm room. My roomma...

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“Not Just a Any Night” by R. K.

Submitted to Contest #34

Avery watches as her mom packs her bag for yet another business trip. She's gone all the time and Avery is used to it now but she still wishes her mom would stay anyway. Kaylie, Avery's little sister, swings her baby Moana doll around in the living room so wildly it's a surprise she hasn't hit anything yet. She isn't quite seven yet but her birthday is coming up in July, a fact Kaylie tells people before she even says her name. Avery's mom zips up the duffel bag and turns to hug her daughter goodbye. "I'll be back Sunday night, be good. Ther...

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$50

Prize money

540

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Mar 27, 2020 EST

Won by R Kon 🏆

Title: Who Speaks to Death

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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