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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#58: Lights Out

Whether it’s a summer storm or a blizzard, we’ve all had the “pleasure” of going about our day when suddenly the lights flicker out. No matter what you were doing before, it’s fair to say your plans are now disrupted — and may be for quite some time.

In the modern era, electricity is the backbone of pretty much everything we do. From keeping our food fresh to helping us stay connected, it powers our daily lives. These days, it’s even how many of us get to work.

This week’s prompts invite you to consider what happens to your characters when those routines are broken. Do they flounder, or do they thrive? And what lengths will they go to in order to return to normal?

🥇 Winner

“In the Dark” by Julie Bissell

🏆 Winner of Contest #58

His grandfather had lived out his childhood in a house overlooking a busy railway line. Greg lost count of the number of times he’d heard the story about the night a fire closed the line further out of town.‘Woke up suddenly,’ Grandpa said. ‘Nine forty-three precisely. The silence woke me – should have been the Birmingham night train coming through. I couldn’t sleep after that, sat up watching the empty lines and knowing there was something wrong.’Greg had been fascinated to hear the story as a child, moving on to boredom in his teenage year...

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⭐️ Shortlisted

“Splintered Like Firewood” by Maggie Deese

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #58

The arguing started early that day. As we ate our dinner—baked chicken with rosemary seasoning, homemade mashed potatoes, and fried green beans—our forks hit the plates with a sense of urgency. It was the first time in weeks that Mom had cooked a meal from scratch. Or even partially from scratch. My sister and I were getting used to the week-old McDonald's. We had been so desperately hungry that I suppose we forgot to use our manners.The silverware clanged noisily against the china, food falling out of our mouths from too much excitement, wh...

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“Pastrami” by Matthew Eubanks

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #58

The train ran completely underground for the entire five hour trip, taking them from the small train station and emerging indoors in the Hospital District. Rosa wanted to see Washington DC but she also didn't want to be disappointed. She knew it wouldn't look like she remembered it from years ago. She held Fred's hand for most of the trip. “Do you think there's a chance this will work?” she asked him. She had olive skinned hands. Fred's fingers were long and soft. He was ten years her senior. “We're doing this to take care of our people,...

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This week's prompts

Write about someone who purposefully causes a power outage.

Thriller and Suspense – 146 stories

Write a story where the power goes out on a spaceship or submarine.

Adventure – 86 stories

Write about a character who’s stuck in an elevator when the power goes out.

Thriller and Suspense – 252 stories

Write a story about someone feeling powerless.

Narrative – 284 stories

Write about a family who decides to camp out in the back yard during a power outage.

Funny – 112 stories

Stories

“In the Dark” by Julie Bissell

🏆 Winner of Contest #58

His grandfather had lived out his childhood in a house overlooking a busy railway line. Greg lost count of the number of times he’d heard the story about the night a fire closed the line further out of town.‘Woke up suddenly,’ Grandpa said. ‘Nine forty-three precisely. The silence woke me – should have been the Birmingham night train coming through. I couldn’t sleep after that, sat up watching the empty lines and knowing there was something wrong.’Greg had been fascinated to hear the story as a child, moving on to boredom in his teenage year...

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“The Dragon Warrior-Part 2” by The Cold Ice

Submitted to Contest #58

Author’s note: This is the continuation of The dragon warrior. This can be read as a stand-alone story. But, for a better understanding, you may want to read the first part.After the tough battle with the Kaals I received the warrior’s trophy from the President. After all, I am the Dragon warrior. But, after receiving the trophy, I was given the police job. But, not inside the air conditioned police station, instead in the scorching sun as a watchman. I was saving the city from rogues and thieves. They were the only criminals I knew he...

182 comments 182

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“Leaving you” by Paige Mackey

Submitted to Contest #58

The air was cold, a sign of the bleak seasons to come. The wind had a chill to it, one that passed through my thin autumn jacket, exposing me, leaving me cold with the bitter taste of vulnerability on my tongue. The jacket was an old one, one my dad had purchased for a long forgotten birthday years past. I clung to it, clinging to the sense of normality and comfort that it provided. It was a folly. Nothing brought me comfort these days. The hyperventilating breaths of frosty air, and the fresh tears making their way down my face were barely ...

103 comments 103

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“For Your Sake” by Jade Young

Submitted to Contest #58

This is all my fault. This is happening all because of me. A person is going to die because I ignored the facts that warned me to stop this from continuing any further; to stop this before it was too late.It all started with that stupid pink dress. Fashioned from the finest silk in the kingdom, and sporting the perfect combination of ruffles and simplicity, it made me come across as too elegant--as too refined--for a woman my age. Mother always taught me that every female with a crown on her head should be the perfect picture of elegance, bu...

160 comments 160

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“Broken Wings” by Maybe Jupiter

Submitted to Contest #58

They say it was the past that drove her crazy.Those carefree days when she had still been ruthless drunk on all fours, crawling across the calacatta-marble counter table, howling into the night. When inky black shadows that used to lurk only in the corners seemed to somehow materialize, an acrid tangibility that tried to rip apart her soul. When the blackbirds sang a daunting tune as if somewhat beckoning him. The eerie silence whispering in his ear, threatening to inch their way across his veins. She was left with nothing but regret.Listen ...

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“Shattered” by Doubra Akika

Submitted to Contest #58

**Trigger warning: self-harm “Perhaps the greatest risk any of us will ever take is to be seen as we really are-” Cinderella. The prettiest people are the most pretentious. That’s the difference between me and them. I know I’m broken. I know I need fixing. But the world isn’t a wish-granting fountain. We don’t wish for things and they magically happen. That’s the difference between fairy tales and the real world. Most people’s lives are fairy tales. I wished I had parents who would fight over me and a best friend that didn’t burn. A best fri...

104 comments 104

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“Gang Aft Agley” by Batool Hussain

Submitted to Contest #58

Surrounded by four white walls, there is nothing else to do but stare at them. To look at the paint that has started to chip off as time passes, or gouges left by other prisoners - anything to pass time, slowly going mad, theorizing absurd meanings from the wall's blank stare.Your stomach grumbles, echoing round and round the chamber walls until it fades into nothing. In an effort to stop the pain, you grasp your stomach only to find the familiar feeling of your bones, crushed under your tight skin. You’ve been in the cage for as long a...

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“silence all around” by Ariadne .

Submitted to Contest #58

Trigger warnings: self-harm, suicidal thoughts Aching, afraid, alone. The emotions? They’ve always been there. The thoughts? I'm more than used to it. But the actions? They’ve only begun. Drip, drip. ***** It stands there, so innocent, so peaceful, away from the hands of the immoral. Tall and impressive, unassuming, and naive. I've heard others calling it a beautiful work of art, and I have to agree. Vibrant, lush greens mixed with soft, gentle blues to create a stunning masterpiece. People would never believe it to be a dangero...

181 comments 181

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“Bonds That Never Break” by Jade Young

Submitted to Contest #58

The call came at ten o’clock. The longer I stared at the name on the screen, the more memories I thought I’d forgotten--of him caring for me alongside the other two, and of him chasing me around a tent pitched in our grandmother’s yard--flooded to the surface of my mind. Just before his name could disappear, I swiped my finger across the green icon and pressed the phone against my ear.“Vera Parker speaking.”“Hey, Vee. It’s Connor.”I wanted to tell him off for using a nickname he no longer had the right to use, but the news that he had to del...

133 comments 133

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“Bloody Thrones” by Lynn Penny

Submitted to Contest #58

Some things are greater than life. A single action can be more powerful than a thousand words. What we are doing is greater than life itself, and if we win, the world will never be the same.Since the beginning of our journey, you have been my loyal follower, and I would trust you to hold my beating heart. If anything were to happen to me, I wish for you to take my place and lead our people towards victory.I will always love you, my beautiful flower.MerculioRosetta read the note repeatedly, her tears slowly soaking the words while she wept o...

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“Good Morning, Sir!” by 🆇🅰🆅🅸🅴🆁 🅶.🆂. 🅵🅴🆁🅶🆄🆂🅾🅽

Submitted to Contest #58

Good Morning, Sir By Xávier G.S. Ferguson Oscar Ivanov pointed furiously to the Kremlin which loomed sadistically overhead. “You see that Galen?!” he barked at his son, “If there isn’t a war, there is no chance for that hell-palace to fall!” Galen nodded, though he did not agree. His small shoulders had begun to hurt from his foster-father’s rough grip on his collar. “‘I do EXACTLY as I was told, and will follow the plan as I was instructed.’” his father continued, “That’s what you promised! You have one shot! The whole damn WORL...

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“Jupiter” by Zilla Babbitt

Submitted to Contest #58

It was a crisp May morning when the sun blinked out.And it's a go! came the cry and with a mighty heave the silver-braced elevator moved up, choked, and shivered to a stop. Inside, Jupiter worked her cuffs off with her teeth, sighed in the storm of siren silver dust, and tried hard to think. Above her, the immense pale yellow light flared down, smiled with all its teeth, and shut out. The outline burned in her vision long after the sunned light forced to a stop. Throughout...

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“The Spark at the Core” by Elle Clark

Submitted to Contest #58

Liz gasped and drew on the spark inside her to defend herself. Nothing. The tiny, flickering flame had been extinguished and she couldn’t even feel the embers. “I can do that,” said the man looming over her. Her cheek stung from the backhand he’d used. “What I gave you can be taken away.” Fear. Bright, blooming fear. It had been so long since she’d felt it and even longer since she’d felt it this intensely. She sat, silently, desperately searching inside herself for the spark of power that would give access to her flames. When...

120 comments 120

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“Splintered Like Firewood” by Maggie Deese

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #58

The arguing started early that day. As we ate our dinner—baked chicken with rosemary seasoning, homemade mashed potatoes, and fried green beans—our forks hit the plates with a sense of urgency. It was the first time in weeks that Mom had cooked a meal from scratch. Or even partially from scratch. My sister and I were getting used to the week-old McDonald's. We had been so desperately hungry that I suppose we forgot to use our manners.The silverware clanged noisily against the china, food falling out of our mouths from too much excitement, wh...

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“Muz's Intermission ” by Jubilee Forbess

Submitted to Contest #58

Muz found herself wondering if she really was that funny, or if Triscin was just so joy depraved that he found solace in her lame sense of humor. She sat across from him at the hospital cafeteria table and continued to crack jokes at him, marveling at how much prettier this boy looked when he wasn’t sobbing. “What sits at the bottom of the sea and twitches?” She asked him. He blinked, something he tended to do a lot, and the effect was that a light breeze flew past Muz because his eyelashes were so dang long. She’d never seen a...

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$50

Prize money

880

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Sep 11, 2020 EST

Won by Julie Bissell 🏆

Title: In the Dark

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.

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