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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#42: End of Story

Reaching the end of a story is a bittersweet thing. Upon reading the final word of a particularly good piece, you’re often hit with a sort of story-hangover: the ache of wanting to stay in the world of the tale, yet knowing there’s no more story to be read.

A truly excellent ending can mitigate that pain — which is why, as a writer, it’s crucial to nail the end of your own stories! Of course, this can mean different things for different pieces. A great ending might underscore a story's theme, or it might pose more questions than it answers; it all depends on context and execution. For more info, check out our tips for crafting a memorable ending here, and then dive into our ending-themed prompts below!

p.s. — We're hosting a Live Copyediting Workshop! On May 20th, Editors Tracy Gold and Julie Artz will take to YouTube to copyedit passages submitted by writers like you! For a chance to have your writing featured, click this link to register for the event and you'll receive submission instructions by email.

This week's prompts

Write a story that ends with the narrator revealing a secret.

Mystery – 162 stories

Write a story that ends in the past.

Teens – 68 stories

Write a story that ends with a character asking a question.

Narrative – 260 stories

Write a story that ends by circling back to the beginning.

Short Story – 214 stories

Write a story that ends with one character waiting for the arrival of another.

Kids – 199 stories

Stories

“Soul Butterflies” by Kaitlyn Schaeffer

Submitted to Contest #42

It’s been one month since the last time I saw my mom. My dad says that I will soon her someday, but I am not sure about that. I’ve been wandering around town lately, looking at the places that leave traces of the mom I once knew. The mother that smelled like cinnamon and had the most beautiful brown eyes one could ever see. I know it is strange to think that someone could call brown eyes pretty, maybe she made them pretty. There was something about them that drew you in, that made you want to tell her everything about your life. I suppose th...

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“The Pandemic Angel” by The Last Unicorn

Submitted to Contest #42

It was around late noon when Grandma Rosita has finally awakened from her long hours of sleep. She was looking for her medicines once again and went to bother the whole family just so they could find her missing pills. "Where are my medicines?" She asked Julia, her favorite grandchild. "Where are my pills for my eyes and bones? I need them." Grandma Rosita continued."I don't know where they are Grandma." Julia told Grandma Rosita. Julia was busy drawing for her upcoming zine event and so she didn't pay much attention to her Grandma."But...

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“Conflagration” by Katelyn Davis

Submitted to Contest #42

Here, I’ll give you one for free: chocolate ganache tastes better if you add a dash of Papa Pepper’s hot sauce. That’s it; that’s the whole secret. You don’t believe me? Well not many people do but I had hoped you’d be different. But I guess that’s the way it is with us humans, right? We all just sit around complaining about what we have and what we don’t have while waiting for the next thing to come along and be inadequate. Maybe one day you’ll learn to trust me. Anyways, since you didn’t ask here’s some more on that chocolate ganache. The ...

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“Secret skies” by Diana Wilson

Submitted to Contest #42

My father was an Australian pilot who flew Halifax and Lancaster bombers during WWII. His photo sat in a frame on the bedside table. Dressed in uniform, with a trim mustache, his RAAF cap at a slight angle, he had a handsome face and every night my mother would kiss the photo goodnight. My mum and I lived in the little town near Waddington, Lincolnshire UK, which was the main RAF base during the war, so it was an incredibly noisy place all the time but particularly at night. That was when the bombers would take off with their heavy burden of...

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“The Beginning of the End” by Liz Leness

Submitted to Contest #42

Our life is perfect. We have a beautiful house with a beautiful yard that overlooks the glistening waters of a swimming pond that teams with kids and families in the Summertime. My husband has a job that pays exceedingly well, which means that I don't have to work and I can spend all day home with the baby. We have our adult time after the baby goes to bed, and everything is in it's rightful place. Every puzzle piece fits, and sometimes I think that I'm living in a dream. Our life is rather simple, now. It begin...

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“The Lake Haven Tragedy ” by Taylor Hill

Submitted to Contest #42

It was summertime in the quiet town of Lake Haven, but everything was about to change. On a scorching hot mid July afternoon, a group of soon to be freshman sat on a deck on Lake Smith. A tall blonde haired, blue eyed girl lay in the center with her limbs stretched out on a towel as she soaked up the sun. “Hey Allie, can you pass me a towel?” Asked Jack as he pulled himself onto the deck. His dark wet hair was dripping on the deck. Jack was tall and looked much older than he was. He has dark hair that laid messily across his forehe...

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“A Strong Drink” by Denis Baldwin

Submitted to Contest #42

“I just need some time to think about things.” It was the last thing she said before driving away, the sun having not even risen. They call it a trial separation; it should really be called the first step of divorce. I guess that isn’t entirely true. The moment you wake up next to a stranger who also happens to be your wife, that’s the first step. All my breath leaves me at once in an exhaustive sigh. I’m too tired to cry, too tired to sleep. Autopilot engaged — hold on Houston, it’s malfunctioning. I’m all the worn cliches and tired l...

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“Fixation” by Amber Linson

Submitted to Contest #42

The sound of the front door opening made Mr. Charles Spratt toss his morning paper onto the coffee table and jump to his feet, lunging into the hallway to confront his 17-year-old daughter. “Mattie, where were you all night? It is 7 am! Your mother and I stayed up until one waiting for you to come home.” Mattie knew there was no way out of this one as her father was clearly upset and demanding answers. Weighing her options, and not wanting to get into too much trouble, she decided a full out lie was out of the question. But, she knew she cou...

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“Destructive Pearl” by Shamiso Tavarwisa

Submitted to Contest #42

You can come in at any time, ma’am. the voice on the other end of the line gently advised.Everything is ready.I see, she sighed in response. I’ll be there first thing in the morning. What time does the doctor come in?Well err, there’s no need for you to see him really, the receptionist went on to explain. He has concluded his findings and the report is here with me.Ok I’ll send my driver at once the.., Sorry ma’am she interjected, we only hand over these kind of reports to the next of kin, it is you right?Rosy wiped a straying tear as s...

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“Getting Away” by Catherine McBride

Submitted to Contest #42

There is a feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach as I pick up the keys to the hire car, and start the long drive up the highway. The drought ravaged landscape does nothing to improve my mood. Crows pick at the eyes of the kangaroo carcasses littering the side of the road. In many places, dead grey trees reach skeletal arms towards the implacable sky, as if they had been begging the pitiless sun for mercy in their final hours. Even the grass has been bleached to brittle white bones by the frost.As the sun begins to set and shadows pr...

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“Nightmare at Midnight” by Rie Selene

Submitted to Contest #42

It is 12 a.m, midnight i must say, wondering if ever I am going astray, for i am walking inside a dark forest, hearing different howls and chirps of the owl with tall trees accomapanied by the night's cold breeze. So dark, so creepy this place is not making me feel easy. I have a wierd feeling now, so unusual, I've got some goosebumps on my skin, "Geez, geez this place is creepy", I uttered with a broken voice.I just walk straightaways hoping to find a way in escaping this dark forest and run faraway. As I am on my walk, I felt so...

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“Queenie's Upset.” by Korede Ojelade

Submitted to Contest #42

I had thought she wanted the best for me. She was the one everyone coveted. My phone rang endlessly for days with colleagues gushing, wanting to know the secret in landing such a plum prize. Here I was, fresh out of graduate school - a new job in a thriving firm, great prospects, itching to make my mark, the sky my limits and now understudying one of the best in the industry.We met quite by chance in the hallway. Serendipity, it seemed at the time. The lady striding purposefully towards the elevator was clad in an exquisite Armani, her confi...

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“The Death of Cornelius Goldwin” by Natasha Cook

Submitted to Contest #42

Cornelius Goldwin was dead. He was proclaimed dead a week after he disappeared. His body was never found. Why was he declared dead? It was simple, the amount of his blood that was discovered. Where was the blood found? Why in the woodshed of course, right next to the old rusted axe with a broken handle. Now, naturally, it wasn’t his woodshed the blood was found in. It was Harry Alderman’s woodshed. Harry Alderman was once a good friend of Cornelius. Though to the rest of the world it was ...

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“The Girl...” by Vaishnavi Peddireddy

Submitted to Contest #42

There was a peculiar girl in a forest, that forest was covered in poison oak, ivy, and many more dangerous things. Her old petite house wasn’t far because she lived inside of an old oak tree. This oak tree was one of the most dangerous in the forest because of poison ivy that grows nearby. This girl has been inside of that tree for at least 10 years. I’m aware of this as I am part of the Smeltzer County Forest Patrol and this was my job for more than 15 years now. The girl was always lonely and mysterious, she would never come out of there, ...

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“Hannah” by Gene Candeloro

Submitted to Contest #42

HANNAHThe days dragged out to weeks and now the weeks to months. I'm into my second full month without her. I thought it would get easier and easier to get her out of my mind but the progress is so slow. I see her face everywhere I go. Stupid little things in my home remind me of her. I miss her eyes, her smile, the way she flipped her ponytail. I pull her long blond hair off of everything. How long will it take to get all those hairs out of here, probably awhile? We were together for three very long years. My work h...

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$50

Prize money

903

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - May 22, 2020 EST

Won by Phoebe Barr 🏆

Title: The Firebird's Answer

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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