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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#53: Dog Days of Summer

"The dog days of summer" conjure images of dogs laying around, panting from the sweltering heat of mid to late summer.

But the saying itself stems from the ancient Romans who associated these hot and humid days with Sirius, the brightest star in the Canis Major constellation (or 'Large Dog' constellation). Sirius is so bright, the ancient Romans believed it contributed additional heat to the Sun, causing July and August temperatures to soar.

As we are currently in the midst of them, it only felt fitting for this week's prompts are inspired by the dog days summer (or diēs caniculārēs in Latin)!

p.s. — On August 12th, bestselling novelists Caroline Leavitt and Gina Sorell are hosting a free webinar on creating believable characters. RSVP here!

This week's prompts

Write about a few people spending a long-overdue weekend away at a cottage.

Summer – 124 stories

Write a story that begins with someone's popsicle melting.

Summer – 259 stories

Write a story about a teenager spending their final days at home before going away to college.

High School – 118 stories

Write a story about summer love — the quarantine edition.

Romance – 131 stories

Write a story about another day in a heatwave.

Summer – 178 stories

Stories

“Goodbye Harry” by Mollie Rodgers

Submitted to Contest #53

My Dearest Harry,Do not be angry with me for letting so much time lapse between my last letter and this one. Such is the nature of this death that it affords me time to prepare my final words. I am grateful that Fate has permitted me to compose this letter but I did not know how to put in words what you could discern from my eyes immediately. I wasted many hours beginning and stopping and I almost squandered this gift for the pen grows heavier with each passing day. Forgive this imperfect letter and my imperfect farewell.I know you wish to b...

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“Kay” by Sam S.

Submitted to Contest #53

“Umm…….Katie, I think you’ll have to give your mother some extra work with that chocolate all over your tee.” said Daffy. “Oh no! Why does this heat stop me from having my favorite chocolate popsicle.” whined Katie as they were returning from Summer Sweet Popsicles’ Store after school. Katherine (Katie) was a twelve-year old tween who was overcome by curiosity and loved to explore things. She was a merry girl with blue eyes and wavy brown hair till her neck. She was constantly being told by her parents to not get into trouble but tha...

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“heat, july” by Masha Kurbatova

Submitted to Contest #53

Winston Churchill described his depression as a “black dog.” I imagine something big, hulking, and British, with jowls that sagged as low as his. My own is a pampered little chihuahua. It's a nasty lapdog that yaps all day, demands its fox-ears be cleaned with cotton swabs, its rotten teeth be sprayed with something minty. I lay down, close my eyes, just for a minute, and it jumps on my back. Hey, please calm down. It never does. It never shuts up. I never owned dogs growing up, but friends did. I felt bad for those with embarrassing...

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“I Found Myself” by Opeyemi Lawal

Submitted to Contest #53

It is another beautiful morning on this side with the rising sun, the cool breeze which makes you feel you are at the centre of the world, the barking of the dogs and the singing of the birds which makes a beautiful sound just like in the studio. You can’t get it anywhere except in Rain town close to the beach where I live. My love for nature was right from birth; I guess it was because I was born here. This is the perfect place to spend the weekend with your family.Guess who interrupted my favorite time of the day? It’s Mrs. Jones rather I ...

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“Cottage Rave” by Jorja Orne

Submitted to Contest #53

“Man, this is gonna be the best friend weekend ever!” Aaron yelled as he lugged his bags into the tiny cottage they were spending their weekend in. “Yeah, a spectacular weekend in this tiny house with no air conditioning. Whoop-de-freakin-do!” Sinivia snarked and picked up her bags. “Come on, Sin. This weekend will be fun. Plus, there is a super cool pool in the back, look on the bright side.” Freya picked up Sinivia’s other bag. “Whatever, we will see. YO MIKEY! HURRY UP SLOWPOKE!” Mikey ran out the ca...

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“This Isn't Goodbye, It's See You Later” by Jorja Orne

Submitted to Contest #53

I woke up that morning to the smell of cooking bacon, the smell flew through the house enough to wake up anybody who was asleep in it. Breakfast in my house is kind of crowded, considering I have six brothers and one baby sister, Liliana. Imagine being the oldest in that family? Well I don’t have to imagine. My mom had me when she was 16, now I’ve just turned 21 and enrolled in a college. My name is Lou Starverling, and this story is about my last days before college. My brothers, Liam, Lucas, Landon, Levi, and the twins Logan and Leo were ...

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“Once a year” by Tim Law

Submitted to Contest #53

Finally it has arrived. That one weekend a year the two of you get the chance to escape. Escape from all the pressures of work, the distractions of home and of course the kids. Your three delightful offspring have gone to Grandma’s or Aunt and Uncle’s house or the home of a friend to stay. For two nights there is only the two of you, a chance to reconnect. The trip is a long one, only two hours in the car but it takes all day what with the stops along the way at wineries (many of those) and of course the beach. You both love wine and the p...

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“Forbidden Fruit.” by Marsha Webb

Submitted to Contest #53

Her tongue flicked around the top of her fruit popsicle. The red of the lolly was a faded pale compared to the bright red of her sticky lips. It was so hot, she was so hot. She lay on the bed, the windows wide open yet offering no relief. She lifted the popsicle up to her mouth and made long, slow sucks, as quick as she was eating it, the heat was melting it. The sticky juice ran down her wrist, she licked the wet syrup off her fingers one by one. The rest of the popsicle decided at that time it could no longer hold onto the stick and it dro...

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“Summer Cousins” by Jessica C

Submitted to Contest #53

There was magic in the lake.Grammy told me that. Of course, Grammy was a bit magic herself. Every year on the last day of summer, Grammy packed her picnic hamper, and together we’d carry it down to the old dock where the reeds were thin and the ducks liked to gather. We’d sit for hours with our feet dangling in the water, just Grammy and me, because I was the oldest and (I suspected), that made me the favorite. We’d eat cheese sandwiches wrapped in crinkled brown paper and thick slices of Great Aunt Millie’s angel food cake, which Gramm...

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“Closure ” by Hannah B

Submitted to Contest #53

Emily sat on her apartment balcony, bare feet propped up on the iron railing, strawberry-blonde hair piled into a bun atop her head. She regarded the popsicle in her hand as if it were a complex math problem, eyes tracking the liquid sugar melting off of the stick as though it were a detail that must be committed to memory. The red liquid trickled down the stick then pooled on her hand, almost the same color as the polish on her nails. Emily tried to remember when she had applied that polish. Two weeks ago? Three? Two months ago? The last ei...

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“18.01528” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #53

The old man spoke, pale blue gaze resolute. He ignored the barrel of the assault rifle that was aimed at his forehead. “We were neither prepared nor equipped to cooperate.” His voice was hoarse but powerful. He spoke into the bloodshot eyes of the kid who held the weapon. “I said shut up!” The muzzle wavered, the sweat dripped, the air rippled in the heat. The boy stood over him, rifle clutched in a white-knuckle grip. Undeterred, the bound man continued. “The demand outstripped the sustainable supplies.” “Stop talking!” The boy’s cra...

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“Keeps Me Burnin’, Burnin’” by Kathleen March

Submitted to Contest #53

Hot town,Summer in the city Back of my neckGettin’ burned and gritty Was that the way that old song went? It doesn’t matter because that’s the way I used to sing it, at least. Thing is, I sang it every time I lived in a city (except for one which I might tell you about some day), I hated it, the city life, especially in June, July, August. In my opinion, cities are not a place to be in the summer. It’s that gritty thing that bothers me the most, probably.If you’re going to be caught up in a heat wave, do it right. Find a village or...

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“Desperate Measures” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #53

Too hot again. Too damned hot again! We should have got used to it long since, but what our minds and reason tell us doesn’t always get through to our bodies – or is it the other way round? I don’t know. I don’t care. I just know that I feel drained of all my energy, and even that is just some atavistic turn of phrase because I don’t really remember ever having feeling as if I had any energy. If I did have any energy, and not just some surface façade of it to do ...

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“Summer Lovin'” by Eve Naden

Submitted to Contest #53

I’d been reading the same sentence for three minutes now. I still couldn’t focus. The magazine, depicting landscape shots of decadent granite kitchens, seemed to wilt in my hands. It was some subscription piece, received through my letterbox this morning, where a too-happy woman who was much thinner than me, was standing in front of a newly refurbished manor in the Cotswolds, occupied the front cover. I glared at her, cursing her straight white teeth as they gleamed like my dead Mother’s pearls which sat on my vanity in the bedroom, neve...

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“Home Coming by KarLynn Erickson” by KarLynn Erickson

Submitted to Contest #53

“Hurry up and grab your bag Joe!” I want to get on the road and we still have to stop and get groceries.” “We can get groceries at Lucy’s general store. You need to stop being so frazzled or your going to ruin your own good time! Didn’t anyone ever tell you part of the fun is the journey to get there? So, relax I’m ready, let’s go!” “I am just so excited! I haven’t seen Christine face to face in 2 years. I can’t wait to catch up with her!” Jenny exclaimed! “She’s bringing her new boyfriend, right? Do you know anything ab...

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Ended on 23:59 - Aug 07, 2020 EST

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