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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#37: The Game is Afoot

The draw of a puzzle — be it a jigsaw, word cross, or Sudoku — is the opportunity to call on our skills of deduction; to start with what seems like disparate pieces of information, and end up with the complete picture.

Mystery novels are the same! They intrigue us by leaving a trail of clues, prompting us to try and work out what's really going on as the story unravels.

Our love of mystery books is what inspired our recent post on the 30 best mystery novels of all time, as well as this week's prompts. Come, writers! The game is afoot.

This week's prompts

Write a story about a valuable object that goes missing.

Mystery – 91 stories

Write a story about someone who keeps coming across the same stranger.

Mystery – 182 stories

Write a story that takes place in the woods.

Mystery – 180 stories

Write a story that starts with the reveal of a long-kept secret.

Mystery – 129 stories

Write a story about a rumor making its way through the grapevine.

Mystery – 47 stories

Stories

“Child of the Sea” by Neha Dubhashi

Submitted to Contest #37

The townspeople would call Lucia a child of the sea. Her bright, cerulean-blue eyes would shine with the promise of unrelenting waves, both powerful and magnificent. The smooth slope of her jaw looked like polished coral, innocent perfection. Her hair, silky long and raven-black grew long and abandoned, almost trailing to her calves. Those few assets alone would invite all the barely adult boys to her apartment, the small, grungy, white one, which, not surprisingly, was tucked away by the ocean. After talking with her, they’d quickly leave. ...

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“The Guy From The Lipstick Aisle” by Artemisia Pearl

Submitted to Contest #37

“I am so sorry. Let me pick that up for you, miss.” He said. He had bumped into me which caused me to drop the lipstick I was looking at. He picked up the lipstick and handed it to me. I looked at the color and I put it back and grabbed a brighter red color. I saw the man out of the corner of my eye. He was just staring at me. “What? Can I help you?” I asked, putting the lipstick into my cart. He blushed and looked away from me as I stood there, confused. “I was wondering, what kind of lipstick would look good on me?” I was surprised a...

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“Dead Girl Walking” by Anushka Binoy

Submitted to Contest #37

3 days before...Every nerve in her body warned her not to go further. As the blood pounded in her temples, her wide eyes strained to pierce the darkness ; all her senses were alert.And then it happened.She flung her head back but it was too late - her mouth was contorted in a scream that never came.The blood flowed like crimson ribbons, snaking through the gaps in her fingers, splattering the ground beneath her.The black pools of her eyes were gone.Present Day...The hum of the school bus engine penetrated the deafening silence of the woods. ...

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“My Stranger” by John K Adams

Submitted to Contest #37

This has been going on for years. The first time I saw him, I stood in one of those pharmacy cum general stores which every town had. When he first saw me, I don’t know. I became aware of him just as I planned to slip a magazine into my inner pocket and duck out. They never expected magazines to get shoplifted so I felt pretty safe. No one bought anything there. The whole store was crammed with stuff no one wanted.But then there’s this guy watching me, but not looking at me. He didn’t look like plain clothes, or what they call a ‘secret shop...

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“The Mystery of the Diamond Watch” by Vatsal Shrivastava

Submitted to Contest #37

The gatekeeper allowed entrance to RanVijay by gracefully opening the majestic door of the lavishly and indulgently decorated hall. RanVijay was an aristocrat and the owner of a large company; although he had inherited plump amount of money after his father’s demise, he was disinclined to acknowledge the money because he regarded it as a hand out. He was very benign but prejudiced. He was also somewhat dogmatic and patriarchal. The party was organized by Shekhar, who was RanVijay’s father’s close friend. His wife, Marie, was still alive and ...

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“🆃🅷🅴 🆂🆃🆁🅰🅽🅶🅴🆁” by Oliver Paradox

Submitted to Contest #37

I am walking down the hallway, carefree. There’s not a worry in the world I must deal with. Then I see him. The stranger.He’s tall and dark and thin, and most girls in my class crowd up to him. I don’t know why I don’t, but there’s something… off, like a tree branch swaying on a seemingly windless day. I turn the corner, and he turns with me, staring hard. I look back into his eyes, and I am falling, falling into a hole of eternal darkness-I snap awake. I don’t understand my dreams, the way they start normally, and then he shows up. But not ...

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“The rabbit and my missing wallet.” by Tyra Johnson

Submitted to Contest #37

Sarah which colour would you prefer pink, blue, orange, red or white? the painter asked me. I said blue is my chose. I could still smell the fresh blue paint as if it was just yesterday. I had inherited a old, wooden and two storey house from my deceased grandmother in a small and beautiful countryside town name Dublin. I was dressed in my white gown admiring the old but beautful house.I went in the backyard and my eyes caught attention to the discovery of a lovely and small garden planted with carrots on soil bed. The vegetables looked ripe...

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“Have you heard about Myra?” by Peace Nakiyemba

Submitted to Contest #37

‘I think Myra is sick.’The three women were huddled together making snacks for the prayer meeting. Martha was surprised it had taken Agnes twenty full minutes before she decided to choose a victim of her gossip. Perhaps she had too many stories and had to pick the right one.Agnes’ husband was a journalist and in recent times she had taken it upon herself to conduct the same nosiness among her own friends. Her nosiness was aided by the fact that she had a voice as sweet as honey and words as sharp as a sword that coaxed words from tombs. But ...

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“Confession” by Adrie Byman

Submitted to Contest #37

“It was me,” I whisper, hardly audible. “It was me!” I screamed to the Crowd of ever silent people, waiting to convict me. You could hear a pin drop. The judges sit there, stunned to silence. “I killed mayor Kragen,” I say in a low tone. Judge three stands up and slaps his hand on the desk. He has a receding hairline and a smirk that never leaves his face. He smells like everything artificial and I hate him for it.“Case postponed!” He growls. The crowd stares in disbelief. Postponed? What is that supposed to mean? The crowd slowly rises and ...

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“You’re Missing What?” by L. M.

Submitted to Contest #37

Detective Bryant sat back in his chair tapping a pencil on his desk. His partner, Detective Adason walked by in her sensible shoes and stopped. She studied him and tucked a strand of her bobbed hair behind her ear. “You have a look of bafflement on your face.”“I received the strangest call from a frantic mom. Her twenty-one-year-son is missing something rather…strange.”Adason sat on the edge of Bryant’s desk. “Tell me more.”“It’s rather odd because he had an abundance of the item before, Mom assured me.”Minutes later, the two partners h...

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“The Wind and the Song” by Imogen Bird

Submitted to Contest #37

When Tom walked into Aunt Elizabeth's house, he couldn't deny he was glad to see the painting was gone. The aged home was filled with dusty art and ornaments that would generally be regarded as unsettling, but the painting had always been the worst. Aunt Elizabeth was a retired archaeologist. The woman had once travelled the world and lived an explorers dream. Like many adventurers of her time she gathered queer and macabre objects from far away lands and filled every surface in her home with them, giving it the eerie, static weight of ...

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“A familiar stranger” by Pauline Da Rocha

Submitted to Contest #37

I close the letter, put it back in its envelope, and place the envelope next to me, on the bed.For a few minutes I stare into the void. I can't find the words. I only feel tears streaming down my cheeks. My life will never be the same again.January 4th:There is a snowstorm today. While a lot of people do not like to go out in this weather, I love it. I wrap myself up in warm clothes and head off to my favorite coffee shop in the city center, where I can warm up with the best hot chocolate I've ever had. Besides, the city is so small that eve...

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“The Shadowlake Project” by Ed Vela

Submitted to Contest #37

The rain was coming down in sheets as I fumbled with the front door key. Most people would never think of putting a deadbolt lock on an old cabin in the middle of the woods, but my father was not like most people.Mitchell, my 10 year old that didn't want to make the long drive stood next to me, an irritated traveler.“Dad, I’m getting soaked,” Mitchell said, dripping.“Just a sec, buddy,” I blurted from a wet mouth. A moment later, presto, the door was open. A strike of lightening illuminated the living room briefly, and I was able to grab the...

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“The Incident” by Mary Teresa Smith

Submitted to Contest #37

A rowdy tavern in a small town. Thick smoke hanging low over the small crowd of patrons who were partying and pigging out on cheap beer and food.This was the last place that Daniel wanted to be. Yet there he was, sitting alone in a booth at the Rusted Cap, waiting anxiously for his friend."Did you hear the news? They finally reopened that hit and run case from a few years back,"Daniel perked up, glancing over his shoulder at the booth behind him.He disliked listening in on others, but the topic caused him to pause."What, that gymnast? W...

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“Terror for The Green- By Anou Swami” by Anou S

Submitted to Contest #37

As I entered the house, I noticed that something was wrong. There were no cries of ‘Manda! Manda!’ coming from my twin 2 year old siblings as they rushed to greet me and hug my legs. No kiss from Mom to bat away as she took my backpack, saying, ‘Amanda, what happened today in school?’ No random advice or tidbit from my 15-year old sister Amelie ran out of our room and grabbed my hand to pull me in and show me something. She was a year older than me but we felt like twins. No whir of the overhead fan. The foyer was completely empty. This neve...

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$50

Prize money

629

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 17, 2020 EST

Won by Hayley Igarashi 🏆

Title: Your Move

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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