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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#48: Superpower

The faces of superheroes have long emblazoned everything from our t-shirts to our lunch-boxes. For over a decade, the Marvel movies have dominated box offices, and for almost a century, superhero comics have remained prized possessions.

A Smithsonian article describes the broad appeal of superheroes: "At their best, superhero origin stories inspire us and provide models of coping with adversity, finding meaning in loss and trauma, discovering our strengths and using them for good purpose. (Wearing a cape or tights is optional.)"

This week's prompts are for anyone who's ever wondered, "If you could have one superpower, which one would it be?" And as always, our prompts are open to interpretation! Whether your entry includes familiar superhero tropes, or ends up being a piece of literary fiction about someone who just so happens to move faster than the speed of light is up to you.

This week's prompts

Write about someone who has a superpower.

Middle School – 333 stories

Write about someone who always comes to the aid of others.

Teens – 108 stories

Write the 'origin story' of a person who goes on to achieve great things.

Fiction – 128 stories

Write about a person who collects superhero comics.

Middle School – 89 stories

Write a story that features a protagonist with an archnemesis.

Character – 112 stories

Stories

“Plotted” by Authoring Studio

Submitted to Contest #48

Helena was walking down the street, head bent and her steps very hesitant. Her life had become horrible- this was the fifth school she had transferred to, and was bullied as soon as she stepped foot inside the building. It had only been three days, but her condition had escalated from bad to worse."Why do I have to change schools so often?" she wondered aloud, kicking at a stone in her path. "I won't attack students like a maniac. I am not a monster either."Her phone burst into a tinkling tune, and she picked it up."What is it?" she spoke ra...

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“The Cobalt Crusader’s Turn” by Elle Clark

Submitted to Contest #48

“Sweet Lady Liberty, this is a nice kitchen.” The Masked Deceiver dropped the cup of tea she was holding and phase-shifted two feet into the air, making a noise that was half way between a kitten that had been stepped on and a quickly deflating balloon. She landed inelegantly on the kitchen floor and swore as a shard of porcelain bit into her bare heel. Looking round for anything she could use for a weapon, she snatched the nearest thing to her and brandished it at her arch nemesis, the Cobalt Crusader. “How did you find me?” squaw...

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“Riddle of the Sphinx” by Deidra Whitt Lovegren

Submitted to Contest #48

A thing there is whose voice is one; / Whose feet are four and two and three.Four feet. A baby crawls over to his father reading a newspaper at the breakfast table. He pulls at his father’s pants leg. The father picks him up, while folding the newspaper open to the funny pages. Blocks of color. Jumbles of words. The baby points at the newspaper, knowing that his father has the power to make the mysterious characters come alive. “Well! Here comes ol’ Charlie Brown! Good ol’ Charlie Brown . . . Yes, sir! How I hate him!” his fa...

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“Ups and Downs” by BRoOkE HAs A COwBoY HAt

Submitted to Contest #48

“You told our son that I have the virus?!” I was on the phone with my ex-husband, Darrell. “No, I simply told him that you had been exposed to it and needed to quarantine for a long time. I could tell he was upset, but glad that you were being quarantined as to not get sicker or get other people sick.” I pulled my phone away from my ear and pressed the speaker button before setting it down on the counter. I ran my fingers through my hair and sighed. “Listen to me when I say this. I will get my time with my son. You will bring him here this...

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“You're the Breeze in My Austin Nights” by Courtney Stuart

Submitted to Contest #48

The first time that Phoebe goes to see Jude play live in concert - four years since she’s last felt the warmth of the sun - she has to leave halfway through the second song while choking back on an echoing sob. I wish you would follow me here, Jude sings from onstage as Phoebe makes her exit, except she’s not really singing. It’s more of a confession she’s making, cut raw from the strings of the guitar she plays. A confession that’s easier for her to make to hundreds of strangers each night instead of the person who forced her to write ...

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“SICK” by Khizra Aslam

Submitted to Contest #48

December 2019I was constantly looking and observing how you were behaving with me. I wasn’t myself since months yet I was pretending to be fine. You were sitting on a sofa right in front of me with your right leg on the left one and drinking a nice hot cup of coffee.‘darling I am already going crazy don’t make me do anything bad to you?’ while looking at Amy, I have this sudden urge of getting my frustration all out on her. I suddenly felt a rage conquering me inside to chop that bi**h into pieces and throw one by one to a place where no one...

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“Lies” by Lindsey W

Submitted to Contest #48

It’s a curse really. Everyone always thinks I wish I knew when people were lying to me. But I can tell you right now: you don’t.I’ve had it as long as I can remember. Someone would tell me something, I love your hair like that, that’s a nice top, I really like you. But inside my head I would hear the truth. It would look better down, your top is ugly, you’re a know-it-all. “Elise, did you finish that paper?” Justin came up behind me in the hall. His dark hair hung over his piercing green eyes so for a momen...

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“It Was All Worth It” by BRoOkE HAs A COwBoY HAt

Submitted to Contest #48

July 2018Analisa loved the main street. The main street in her town was where all of the small businesses were. Her favorite spot was the public library. Analisa would go there, find a good James Patterson book, and sit down in one of the big, comfy chairs and read. She had done this since she was nine years old.Analisa was just walking down main street one morning. Everything was still closed; it was around four in the morning. It was mid-summer, but there had been a terrible storm the night before and it was still cold. Analisa was sportin...

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“Singing and Powers” by BRoOkE HAs A COwBoY HAt

Submitted to Contest #48

“And all along I believed, I would find you. Time has brought your heart to me, I have loved you for a thousand years. I’ll love you for a thousand more!” I finished the song and smiled at all of the people looking at me. “Bravo! Bravo! More, more!” I heard everyone echo this, but I shook my head while laughing.“All of’ y’all know I can’t do another-on the piano. Who says we do a little line dancing? Cotton Eye Joe Time!” I had to raise my voice to make everyone hear over their loud shouts. I grabbed my guitar from its resting place at ...

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“The Cape” by Jan H

Submitted to Contest #48

The minute I twirled the cape around my shoulders, I knew I wanted to be a superhero. Okay, my cape was a rag of a towel with orange and pink stripes, destined for the garbage. I used a pink hair clip to hold it around my neck. To be fair, I was seven years old. I put on my cape, closed my eyes, and vaulted off my bed. My stomach fluttered, and the air pushed my hair back. I was flying. No one could convince me otherwise. I got braver. I was flying off everything—until Mom caught me. She stopped me before I launched off the shed roof. M...

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“Written in the stars. ” by Anja Z

Submitted to Contest #48

They are around us , they look at us from above, they see us and they want to help. When you look up you see the past , you see beyond , you see the stars and you see ......Written in the stars are our answer and our past, written right in front of us are what we can remember. That was what Maddie always use to tell us when we were little or so we remember. We are only ants in a working environment to help the people, to help the highest of the high. We dress accordingly to the law we don’t know why we listen to the law of the high, bu...

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“Of Scrubs And Screws” by Sayujyaraj Ghimire

Submitted to Contest #48

You put on the light and illuminate the view-box. The transparent plastic-like-paper film displays some radio-opaque and radio-lucent shadows. You observe the film very meticulously fathoming the urgency of the case. You press the electronic-buzzer immediately that lies underneath your desk and call the on-duty medical officer, in order to prepare the patient for surgery.An elder man, in his mid-fifties, hailing from a remote village of Kailali, presents to the emergency ward with an open distal tibia fracture on his left foot, with a histor...

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“Shade of purple ” by Anja Z

Submitted to Contest #48

Trigger warning: violence and domestic abuseShe pulled up her purple hoodie and revealed the most sensational yet terrifying eyes. Once she saw me looking at her as if I'm studying her she shy-ed away and began to put her hoodie back on. “No don’t, it’s just I have never seen someone with those eyes before.” She looked up and gave me a snarky reply “Those eyes? Is that supposed to make me feel better?” I examined her body; of the bits I could see she looked rather chubby. Her face was a full face, but the muscles ...

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“Is it from your heart?” by Authoring Studio

Submitted to Contest #48

"AAAAAAARGH!"Irving's ears pricked up. Who was that?His eyes scanned the whole area, unsettled. They finally rested on a small person dangling from a ladder which was propped near a shelf too high for him. Irving's breathing, which had suddenly hitched up, slowed down. He strode over to the boy, who seemed to be praying for dear life."Need me to give a hand?" he asked. The boy nodded vigorously, eyes tightly shut.Irving extended his arms and lifted the boy and put him down on the floor. "Next time you need help, just call me, okay?"The tiny ...

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“United” by Prathamesh Chavan

Submitted to Contest #48

There was the dangling sun rising from east of seasoning city and flying rumours of a newspaper highlighting a teenage and read the title," The black shadow has gone". Many people's were in floods of tears from Prime minister to small kids from that day till next week everyone holds a different discussion and seminars about the last vanish of there a superhero named black shadow. There was no strong news, "Whether and how did he disappear? Would he come back? Several posters were pasted on the walls, grounds, schools, college's, office". But...

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$50

Prize money

770

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jul 03, 2020 EST

Won by Jeff C. Carter 🏆

Title: Primum Nil Nocere

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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