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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

“Some Mother's Son” by Kate Le Roux

Submitted to Contest #37

I am sneaking out of the farmhouse and I can hardly believe my boldness. I am not a rule-breaker, and Mr Reece is a fair boss as bosses go, but it’s been weeks of rain and mud and horrible cows kicking over their buckets. Lucy’s invitation feels like hope, like an chance to leave the war behind and just be a girl again for an evening. The moon is out and the sky is clear enough to see my way as I walk the ten minutes through the little patch of woods between the farm and the cottage. I don’t dare use a light because of the blackout. I am so ...

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“The Man in the Shadows” by Lilly Blossom

Submitted to Contest #37

I saw him first on the bus. He was sitting in the back with an old-school fedora nearly covering his eyes and suspiciously wearing sunglasses on a dark bus. There were only two other people on board and he definitely, strangely stood out. His long trench coat reminded me of something from the ’50s. Maybe he was a spy, I thought. But a spy living in Michigan? I don’t know about that. I quickly forgot about him though as I went on about my day. But I saw him the next day too, on the same spot on the back of the bus, at the same time. I am pret...

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“Him” by Ivy Spade

Submitted to Contest #37

I’m a 28-year-old female, I have deep-set brown eyes and my very short, wavy, black hair is neatly styled. I am recently married, with a kid on the way. I am on the way home from the store. When I looked behind myself I saw a car? “Ehh it’s probably just my imagination.” I thought to myself. It was dark outside almost 11 pm. “Ow!” I exclaimed “This child never stops moving!” I looked behind myself again. “It’s still there?” I panicked a little and took a picture, it wasn’t really good though. When I got hom...

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“My lie to Pigna” by Tiana Gabel

Submitted to Contest #37

I lay a gentle hand on Pigna’s shoulder, hoping she isn’t hungry. Always the more honest of the two of us, she sobs silently, leaning on a bound bundle of hay. She doesn’t like to lie even for the sake of survival, that’s why she can’t know. I pull my scarf up and peak out from under the canvas, checking our progress. The dawn has barely broken, water droplets cling to long blades of grass, much longer and greener than anything we’d see back home. I can’t imagine what home looks like now. The harvest flask, a symbolic and mystical wate...

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“The Need of Nature” by Anna Mosqueda

Submitted to Contest #37

The Taylan household was asleep. Crickets outside held the night in place. Slivers of moonlight shining through the trees were the only source of light. Footsteps creating the sound of drums echoed through the house. An occasional creak from the ancient floorboards sounded like a cry for help. The door to the house was opened and the helpless Alara stepped out. She was searching for an escape, fresh air to breathe. The trees and grass watched the desperate girl. The one they had watched grow up. Now she was sitting at the foot of her favorit...

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“Whistler's Story ” by Jenna Gareis

Submitted to Contest #37

That morning that he grasped the coffee cup tightly in two hands changed several lives. He was a narrow man, short but spindly like a miniature crane, with a gray beard swaying, alive, down to his angled knees. While sitting at the bar in the Growling Bear Breakfast Stop, off the interstate, he ordered coffee and shivered although it was warm. The waitress gave an empty smile when he asked her to keep his cup topped off. He was wearing a tunic dyed a shade of orange that she, nor anyone else, had ever seen or would ever see again and his wil...

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“In the shadow of the mountain” by Marte Van Der Linden

Submitted to Contest #37

The first time she saw him it was was raining, a cold drizzle that hung over the mountain and dripped down into the melting snow. He was standing stock-still on a rocky outcrop, staring at her. His features were blurred by rain and distance, but there was something familiar about him. His height, his build. The way he stood with his arms stiff at his sides. The scruffy grey coat. But she didn’t know him. She couldn’t. She knew no one. It should have scared her to see a strange man this far into the mountains, far from the settlements and far...

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“You Can't Hold it in Forever” by Gracie Jean

Submitted to Contest #37

Pulling her hood farther down her face, and shoving her thin fingers deep into the pocket on her sweatshirt, she trudged on through the dim hallway of Sandstone Springs High SchoolKaya had arrived very early in the morning, or at least to her standards. The sunlight had not yet skipped over the mountains of the valley, and Sandstone Springs remained soaked in a cool, deep shadow. Kaya welcomed the darkness of the early morning like a friend. The daytime would adorn her with an even darker cloak than the one blanketing the mountains.She kept ...

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“Persephone's Coin” by Natasha Arnold

Submitted to Contest #37

Huddled beside a radiator at the cinema, there were only two things on your mind: Joaquin Phoenix and a taxi cab. Your hands scurried in your pockets, pushing past the lint and left over nibbles of cookie dough. It always seemed like you had just the right amount of change. There was just enough change to get you a taxi to Grand Central Station, where you could take the Q32 to Harlem. And there maybe, just maybe, some bright-eyed Harlem girl would take interest in you and bring you inside. Harlem girls were always the pursuers. You’re b...

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“The Orange Face” by Tim Law

Submitted to Contest #37

The day had been the same as always, a suit and tie kind of day where the shirt didn’t quite fit and the tie was way too tight. I’d survived though and chalked that up as a victory of sorts. I shielded my face as I watched the sun vanish from the sky. Like the click of my fingers or the snap of a bone breaking suddenly I found that my world was both bland and cold. It was like the very moment the orb of day had hit the horizon I was attacked by the night, a bitter and cold darkness. It made the world outside feel like it was reflecting my ve...

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“FOUND YOU” by Norlie Rabino

Submitted to Contest #37

Let’s play hide and seek and I’m sure, I’ll definitely find you because there is nothing in the world that secrets will stay hidden forever. A woman was standing in a front of the mirror, looking for her reflection, thinking if she can do more, if she can show to others how great he is, but she’s thinking she’s not because there is judgement, there will be a mouth that can hurt you emotionally so you hid it to be perfect, to not be judged even it’s not you. You can be more, you can do more, if you just be yourself, you can be changed but don...

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“Seekers Cabin” by Annie James

Submitted to Contest #37

"The last item in your mother's will is a peculiar one. She left you the cabin on Lake Aurora.""Cabin--What cabin?" Tiriah leaned forward and tilted her head to the side as she asked this. "My mother never owned a cabin." The attorney cleared his throat and shuffled through the papers in front of him. He pulled one out of the stack and handed it to her. "This is the deed to the property. It has been in your family for several generations--I'm surprised you never knew about it."Tiriah raised her eyebrows as she skimmed the deed.The attor...

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“The Damned” by Neha Dubhashi

Submitted to Contest #37

Alaric swore that one day, he’d burn the Court of Revels down. He’s set fire to their pretty gilded moonstone palace. He’d take every small bit of precious hope from them, just as they had done with him. Breathing deeply, he silenced that small part of his heart that longed for Zia’s warmth and touch and laughter. She was gone. And the only thing he could do now was avenge her. His quest for revenge hadn’t been an easy one. Entry to a party at the Court of Revels was reserved for members of the royal families and high-ranking nobles. The res...

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“It Only Happened Once ” by Stephanie De La Cruz

Submitted to Contest #37

I was sitting on the two-seat caramel couch while my feet slid across a creme, light turquoise, and tawny brown flower-designed carpet. My attention was on the 50-inch t.v that was housed on top of a clear two-tier entertainment center. The glorious smell of my mom’s cooking filled the air. My sister was sitting at the dining room table, where she had built her command center consisting of two monitors, a keyboard, a mouse, and her agenda. Jubilee, my six-year-old niece, had just gotten out of school, and I could hear her dainty footsteps ap...

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“Recognizable Stranger” by Carille Durbin

Submitted to Contest #37

Sylvia pushed her cart down the frozen food aisle. She was looking for the same pizza that she bought last week. Some frozen pizzas were better than others and this one had that rare combination of crisp yet chewy crust. She turned her head a fraction to study the pizzas to the left and caught a glimpse of an older woman. Sylvia didn't want to stare but she thought she recognized her. Where had she seen her before? Try as she might, she couldn't come up with an answer. The frozen pizza was in a stack to her...

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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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