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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#38: Close to Home

A few weeks ago, our 'Staying Inside'-themed contest received quite a big response from the Reedsy Prompts community. Because this is clearly a relatable theme for so many these days, we've decided to run a second edition of prompts that all revolve around being at home.

But that's not the only popular writing activity we're bringing back: today, we're hosting another LIVE Write-In on YouTube at 3pm Eastern Time! Once again, our guides Shaelin and Jenn will guide you through a series of 20-minute writing sprints. During the breaks, you can share your progress and ask our hosts any questions you may have.

To join, tune in to our YouTube channel at 3pm EST. We hope to see you there!

This week's prompts

Write a story about someone who finds a magical portal in their home.

Fantasy – 240 stories

Write a story about someone who is working from home and constantly getting distracted by their pet.

Nonfiction – 98 stories

Write a story about two neighbors talking from their yards, windows, balconies, etc.

Dialogue – 196 stories

Write a story about someone learning how to play an instrument.

Nonfiction – 75 stories

Write a story about someone posting a video on social media that goes viral.

Teens – 54 stories

Stories

“Tempus” by Alpha Zalfa

Submitted to Contest #38

Thump! Thump! The once silent noises only seemed to get louder and louder, completely pulling her from sleep. She shot out of bed, heart racing and sweat covering her forehead. She heard the noise again, this time louder. “Nikolas.” She called to the man beside her. “Nikolas.” She tried again but her ignored her for the second time, she gave him a little shove. “Nicholas!” Finally, his eyes shot open. Slowly, he sat up, yawning as he looked around the room. The moon illuminated through the glass window to the left of the room, creating ...

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“Matilda, Pretrina And The Neighbourhood Party” by MaureenJ Poutoa

Submitted to Contest #38

Matilda, Petrina, And The Neighbourhood PartyIt was April the 14th 2020 and it had been announced on one of the social media sites that they were suggesting ways to enjoy having some time with your neighbours, in Lockdown time. Of course there were some ways which made it quite apparent to everyone. Matilda really liked her neighbour Pretrina and decided to talk to her about the neighbourhood party. The theme was that everyone took a chair and put it by their letterbox and with a bottle of their favourite wine and some...

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“Never A Sight” by Iona Cottle

Submitted to Contest #38

I can’t remember when I first noticed the portals.It seems a stupid word for them, but I’m not sure what else works. Portal implies that you can travel between them, and maybe some people can. I’ve never worked out how to do it though, and I’ve never dared to mention them to anyone else. They’re my little secret, my little piece of magic.At least, they were. I’m not so sure about that now.To begin with I thought the patches on my walls were damp or mould of some sort. In that really grown-up way that everyone does, I ignored them, hoping the...

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“Start Again” by Ananya M

Submitted to Contest #38

FLASHBACKI sat down at the piano. My fingers were dripping with sweat, and my teeth were chattering. I felt like I was going to vomit. I turned my head to look at the audience. I saw the blinding spotlights instead. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t focus. I- “Julia! Are you ok?”“Julia!”“Get an ambulance! Quickly!”I woke up in a hospital. At least, I thought it was a hospital. I couldn’t see anything except blotchy spots of white. I lifted my head up, and I saw someone that looked like a doctor. I looked to my other side and saw my family....

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“Spring Waltz” by Ananya Roy 🥳🌸

Submitted to Contest #38

Abeer (he loved dragging it long) and I, we used to be good friends back in our childhood days but as ages rolled by and my career-oriented goals came to a sharp focus I fell back, in our friendship. He went ahead, without me. I wouldn’t blame him for that but somewhere deep down there I had felt a tad bit sad, no bitterness though, it was a mixture of sadness and guilt that the vacuum had originated from. We still go to the same school though, we’re still neighbors, the only thing that has changed is that I don’t see Abeer as the same frien...

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“Our Time of Life” by Heather Laaman

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #38

“That woman better not start with me,” Maureen grumbled as she made her way onto her balcony, glass in hand. Today was her seventy-third birthday, and she was going to celebrate with an Old fashioned. She anticipated some sniffs of disapproval from her neighbor’s balcony, but baiting Peggy was part of the fun. A week ago Maureen had had a beer with her lunch at her little patio table and Peggy had asked if it wasn’t a little early for that sort of thing. She had looked so far down her nose, Maureen wondered if ...

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“The Portal” by Mary Donahue

Submitted to Contest #38

My name is Stacey and my best friend is Kate. We’ve known each other for all our lives, we are both 14. One day we were going to hang out but Kate got stuck at her house cleaning her basement. It was like a rats nest in there no one had been in there in several years.When I got to Kate’s house we started cleaning. As we went down the stairs we noticed something glowing. I went and checked on it I couldn’t believe my eyes it was a portal!! We had no clue where it lead to Kate wanted to go into the portal but I was scared. I finally got the ne...

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“My Annoying Neighbor” by Saranglogy R

Submitted to Contest #38

"Ahhh what a morning!"I stretched my arms, and widely grinned by looking at the other side of the bed where my friend was sleeping.Her bedsheets were on the ground, pillows not under her head, her half leg on the floor, and her remaining body on the bed."Hmm, work from home is stress I guess," I mumbled myself and looked outside. I could see through the window that it was early morning."Why not take a walk?" I grinned by the idea that popped in my head and got down from my bed to visit my favorite place.The backyard.I and my friend Lily, who...

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“These are the Little Things” by Keiran Gorsky

Submitted to Contest #38

Sometimes, it’s the little things that are hardest to deal with. When we’re all inside, looking at our screens, the most glaring of these little things become apparent. When Lily, the cat that (almost) played half of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star has made more people smile than you will in a lifetime, the little things feel like a means to an end that you’ll never reach.In these times, the only thing we can do is accept it - and embrace it. I say this, because I have found it. I know the formula. My cat will do something adorable, and I’m gonn...

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“The Pianist” by Joshua Hopper

Submitted to Contest #38

Your time had finally arrived. You look out the window as the pale light of the morning sun seeps through the windows, blanketing you with warmth. The view from your quiet neighborhood puts you at ease. This is how you always liked it. Solitude. No one to distract you. No one to judge you. Only you and the comforting privacy of your humble home. You feel a smile spreading across your face. Everything in your body feels lighter. Your time had finally arrived. For twelve years you have wanted to learn the piano. For twelve years you ...

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“My Music Partner.” by Saranglogy R

Submitted to Contest #38

"Where did I keep it?"I was searching through each shelf in my room, to find the instrument that I got as a gift for my birthday, which was few months back."Mom did you see my keyboard?"I shouted and slowly got down from the chair and moved it to the next area for inspection.The door of my bedroom suddenly opened and I looked at my mom, who was keeping her hands on her waist, and giving me a death glare."Then what's this?" She points out to my keyboard and stared the hell out of me.I sighed, and wished I never asked for her help."Mom, that's...

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“Under the desk” by Robin .

Submitted to Contest #38

Once upon a time a small girl named Ariana was cleaning her room before going to bed. She took her toys one by one and carefully placed them on the shelves and in the boxes she had under her bed. She knew that Mister Blue Rose didn’t really agree with Misses Bottle-Nose so she made sure the teddy bear and the truck weren’t sitting side by side. The last toy she took was her Bunny, the toy she had been sleeping with since forever. Bunny was a small, well, bunny. He had superpowers and always kept her safe, even in the dark room, after her...

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“Three And A Half Feet” by Sophie McMahon

Submitted to Contest #38

She was too pretty.And it wasn't her hair which caught the light perfectly, or her smile which was too shy to be a laugh, but just wide enough to allow a sliver of white teeth to glint in between her cherry-colored lips, and it wasn't her eyes either, or her legs or chest or whatever guys find attractive about a woman's body.It wasn't even her voice, dammit, which graced our entire building with a semi-pleasant rendition of the latest pop hits.I didn't think I'd ever tolerate Shawn Mendes every Tuesday night, accompanied by the roar of the s...

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“Playing for Time” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #38

Well, it wasn’t exactly a lie, thought Jeanette, but when it was considerably closer to being a lie than it was to being the truth then it might as well have been, and especially when there was imminent risk of her being found out. It had started out as being nearer to the truth than it subsequently became. Her book club hadn’t even been discussing a book you might call directly about music, let alone piano playing. The subject of the meeting had been one of the “new generation” of historical novels and...

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“The Climb to the Window” by Mackenzie Steinman

Submitted to Contest #38

Dear Diary, Today is the first day of my confinement. April 18, 1943 is officially the worst day ever. Not because of the war, not because of the death caused by the war, but the fact that I have been quarantined. Yes, you heard me, quarantined. A word that can send shivers up anyone’s back. Now, you may ask, why am I quarantined? Well, the answer is quite simple—I have an infamous case of the oh-so-dreadful Scar...

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$50

Prize money

663

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 24, 2020 EST

Won by Clyde Roan 🏆

Title: The Paper Airplane

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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