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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#50: A Moment Like This

Throughout this contest, we’ve read wonderful entries that provide sweeping overviews of characters' lives (such as "The Tree"), as well as submissions that offer glimpses into distinct life-phases (like "Time Bomb"). We’ve also been captured by stories book-ended by the start and end of one particular moment in time: such as "The Price of a Nice Guy" (a woman gets a flat tire and parks on the side of the road), "Who Speaks to Death" (a story told through a single text conversation), and "To You" (a 50th birthday party).

In the spirit of those last three examples, this week's prompts challenge you to embrace the short story's ability to really dive into and explore one single scene.

This week's prompts

Write a story about a proposal.

Valentine's Day – 211 stories

Write a story about an argument that seems to be about one thing, but is actually about another.

Dialogue – 121 stories

Write a story about a person experiencing pre-performance jitters.

High School – 162 stories

Write a story told entirely through one chase scene.

Thriller and Suspense – 143 stories

Write a story about a summer afternoon spent in a treehouse.

Summer – 303 stories

Stories

“Iacopo's Coin” by Dustin Softman

Submitted to Contest #50

There was a thump of a napkin holder and heads turned in the café. His coin hit the box of sugar sachets and finished spinning. “Hey!” Clicking his fingers. “Hey, how long do I have to wait for service?” No answer. He shuffled further forward on his chair, shoulders thrown back, scowling towards the bar. “Is that yours?” he gestured towards a nearby table. The man began to laugh. “The ashtray or the magpie?” &nb...

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“Flight of the Innocent” by Jan H

Submitted to Contest #50

Mass hysteria spread through the world Alice was fleeing. Innocent men, women, and children sentenced to death for practicing the Devil’s magic. Tried, tortured, and executed in the name of God and justice. No one was safe from the inhumanity.Punishment was harsh for a woman that gave birth out of wedlock. With no man to name as the father, the magistrates labeled Alice a witch and the Devil's consort. They condemned her to death. And she was certain they would not allow a child born of evil to live. She escaped the village before they impri...

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“A River of Flowers” by Aqsa Malik

Submitted to Contest #50

He had flowers growing out of his lungs now. The same ones growing in our garden; spray carnations, daisies, lilies, orchids. The whole lot, really. I didn’t have the heart to leave any out, not when his own had gone into them both in life and death. So I added as much variety as I could on the 24 by 36 inch canvas, which was slowly but surely filling up with the vibrant colours of petals.“You okay up here?” Jared's deep voice floats through the wooden room, reaching me before his warm hands do. He’s been baking, because they smell of fresh ...

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“Liars, and Boys, and Love - Oh My!” by Najwa Zandlo

Submitted to Contest #50

Sitting across from me is the man I could potentially love - we’re on our first date.There’s a small, but notable, chance he will fuck me tonight and never leave my apartment again. If that happens, I’ll eventually take a shit in front of him while he brushes his teeth, he’ll propose to me on the spot, and we’ll rush to the courthouse in a final act of spite towards my mother. He’ll father my children, turn my hair gray, and wipe my ass when I’m too old to do it myself. Then, I’ll die because I’m too selfish to go last, and the heartache of ...

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“Its not you,” by Goblin King

Submitted to Contest #50

Light emanated from the screen door piercing through the darkness to provide an isolated spot the night had failed to claim. As Richard stood in the dull glow, he prepared himself for what lay on the other side.Happy wife happy life, an expression tossed around by friends, family members, even mere acquaintances like a toy football that Richard failed to catch. Just the thought of hearing this remark directed at him, even in passing by someone who meant it to help, had potential to ruin his day.Each time he heard it (and by now it had gotten...

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“A Pre-Cursors for Charles” by Blane Britt

Submitted to Contest #50

Think about what I’m about to do for your intellectual reading mind and that I believe I’m getting pretty good at it. If you don’t laugh at least once I’ll hang glide without wearing a pair of dependable panties on or better yet smell, my ex-wife stinking sour dough feet as she walks around work 22 hour shifts trying to explain to people why she farts in and out the bed up under the covers and doesn’t have audacity to warn me one or two of them farting bombs are possibly coming as she giggles or watching Ru Paul Show with n...

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“Temps and Contretemps” by Amy DeMatt

Submitted to Contest #50

It started with the blue-green slime. She told him it was disgusting. Would he want a glob of what was in someone's mouth on his dinner plate, she wanted to know? This was a toothpaste glob in the sink, right where she brushed her own teeth. It was nauseating. It was on par with putting a glob of food on someone else's dinner plate. She pushed a wet tendril of hair out of her face. It was 95 degrees, and the air conditioning repair man was still not done. The banging and clanking from the basement was almost too much to bear. He couldn't see...

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“June's Meteor” by Natalie Strawbridge

Submitted to Contest #50

She saw her own heartbreak coming, and she did nothing to stop it. Like an astronomer who spotted a meteor and failed to warn the world of its impending arrival, choosing instead to watch and see where exactly it would make impact, how fierce the flames would be. And though the chances were slim, she clung to the faint thought that said: maybe she was wrong, and it would sail right on by, shatter some other planet into rubble and dust. Standing with her brother, June surveyed the scene in front of them. To their left, a strip of boardwalk...

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“The Best Performance Ever” by Hermione Lovegood

Submitted to Contest #50

The mirror was new; specially bought for her big day. Its border was made of some wood-based material of light green color, the top of which was spiraled into a twig like design. The leftover yellow light of the Sun, hanging from those pine trees outside was being reflected on the mirror. Below that yellow-green reflection, was to be seen her tensed face. It was gleaming with make up powder, one shade lighter from her own skin tone. But it was looking whiter. Because she was nervous... to much nervous. She would be called on the stage in jus...

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“The Arrival” by Kaysie Davis

Submitted to Contest #50

Note- 4th in the South Wood series “Lexie, it itches!” Barrie was scratching at the collar of his shirt, “Why do I have to wear these? Why can’t I wear my usual clothes?” “You only need to wear them for a little while,” I told him as I fought to finish tying up Maki’s dress, she was squirming and trying to get away from me. “We need to look nice for the prince’s speech.” Though I couldn’t show it for the twin’s sake, In all honesty, I was just as miserable. As soon as I’d gotten back from gathering the berries f...

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“Secrets and Lies” by Jane Andrews

Submitted to Contest #50

“So, Mr and Mrs Jenkins, let’s talk about why you’re here.” The counsellor’s voice is calm and soothing, but Lily’s mind is already made up. “I’ve told my husband I’m leaving him – I want a divorce. But he’s not listening to me. He keeps saying I’m confused and that I don’t know what I’m talking about.” “Okay, first things first.” The counsellor looks from one spouse to the other. By now she’s used to the way the reconciliation process works: there’s always one partner who wants to separate and one who can’t understand what’s gone wrong. I...

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“The Seven Page Letter” by Evelyn Mullooly

Submitted to Contest #50

They had decided to meet in a new restaurant where their old diner used to be. Mike, as always, was waiting for her. It was good to see that even after all these years, she could count on him to be punctual. Before entering the door, she folded the letter he sent her back into her purse and let her gaze travel from his smart black shoes up to his speckled white and gray hair. He looked good. She could still see hints of the younger man before her. “Rose,” he called to her, standing up as she st...

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“Move On Guilts, Way to Peace” by Harish S

Submitted to Contest #50

"Bye bloke", said to my friend and started walking towards my residence. There is a small market which looks link a holocaust, it takes about 10 min to cross a 100-meter road. I always make a strike to my mama's brain, that I turned 20 last summer, "what matters, if you get robbed in that market, be careful while crossing it", she shouts in return. That incident strikes in my head whenever I cross that market road, I had that strike now. My eyeballs start to roll to the left and to the right, to check if there is any misfortune waiting for m...

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“Painting the Nursery” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #50

“Yellow,” said Keira. “You can’t go wrong with yellow. Let’s paint this room yellow. It’s a colour that doesn’t look too warm in summer and doesn’t look too cold in winter.” “I don’t know,” Rory mused. “It’s hard to get the happy medium with yellow. Sometimes it reminds me too much of school dinner custard.” “That’s the most ridiculous reason for ruling out a colour I’ve ever heard,” Keira said, and they laugh, but not for very long. “Okay, then. Wha...

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“ Grounded in Reality” by Charles Stucker

Submitted to Contest #50

My dreams burn. Flights of fancy. Rockets rising on a cloud of steam and flame. It's always the same thing. I go in, explain the data, then tell them why it works like that. And they never want to understand. Because it goes against their dogma. I've waited three weeks for this appointment. They have the experiment, so they should have confirmed the data. But they still won't believe. The secretary, a type two middle-age woman, meaning obese rather than simply heavy, motions for me to go into the office of her boss, the engineer in cha...

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$50

Prize money

940

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jul 17, 2020 EST

Won by Emily Hemmings 🏆

Title: Life in the Trees

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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