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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?

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 – 111 stories

Stories

“Crumbs of Passion” by Cheryl Fulks

Submitted to Contest #58

Crumbs Of Passion Waking up from another dream, hot and sweaty. The tornados were everywhere as well as the snakes. Night after night the same dreams. Out of control weather and vicious poisonous snakes on the ground everywhere you step. Melanie couldn’t get past the dreams. She stayed up as late as possible until she thought she was exhausted enough to fall into a deep sleep; but she found it didn’t matter. The nightmares were waiting for her as soon as she closed her eyes. Melanie hadn’t always had the...

4 comments 4
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“Suffer the Children” by Tracey Carvill

Submitted to Contest #58

The graveyard was empty except for the woman in the veil. She let the tears run down her cheeks behind it, not bothering to wipe them away. What did it matter? No one else was here to see. Clasping her rosary in tight fingers, she read the freshly carved words on the headstone once more. Such a short epitaph for her darling boy. 'Albert Caldwell, born 1879, died 1885, drowned in Rotterdam Harbour'. It said nothing about the joy she and her husband had felt after he'd survived beyond his infancy. Nothing about the pride they'd felt as he'd ...

7 comments 7
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“Story of the Storm” by Mariam Michalak

Submitted to Contest #58

In the midst of a warm September, a storm just off the gulf was brewing and threatening destruction along its wake. People were quick to evacuate that were in the path, and those few who stayed made sure they had supplies to last however long they needed, whether it be a few days, or a few weeks. However, for one family, they seemed to run their day as though there was nothing wrong in sight. With the path not near their home, they saw no need to stock up on too many supplies, but they always had enough just in case anything changed. It was ...

5 comments 5
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“Elevator” by KYRA ROBIN

Submitted to Contest #58

The click of heels echoed in the hallway of the hospital. She wore a deep blue pants suit that was almost black, like the color of the ocean during a storm. Matching shoes strode confidently across the hallway and into the 8th-floor elevator. Her eyes were green, like old money. Long dark hair pulled into a high a ponytail tight enough to make your head hurt. She pushed the G button and waited for the doors to close.  The elevator went down a floor. The doors opened, a doctor walked in. The woman and the doctor exchanged a polite sm...

10 comments 10
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“A Turn of Fate ” by Aya C

Submitted to Contest #58

The cheap watch which hung off his bony arm, almost making its way to the floor, served to remind him of the shortness of the tea break he had snuck off for, down to the local stall. It was ten minutes past ten. The glass over his watch had been broken for a fortnight now, yet, he had not found it within himself to repair his FastTrack. As long as time could be told, he had concluded. Besides, even if he had wished to trudge down to the watchmaker’s darkened alley, the luxury was not something he could have afforded. Overworked and unde...

6 comments 6
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“WHITE WIPES!” by Khadija A. Kasuri

Submitted to Contest #58

 “What did they say?” my mom asked as soon as dad showed up in the corridor. He turned off his flashlight and replied with a sigh, “They are not answering. Many other people are trying to contact but the signals are out of coverage.”Our city, North Dakota, had just hit with a blizzard. They recorded to be one of the strongest of all time in four decades. Many lives were lost. The infrastructure was highly dented. Water pipelines had frozen. Power pipelines had cracked that had caused a blackout throughout the whole city. We had been stu...

2 comments 2
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“The Stranger.” by Patricia Green

Submitted to Contest #58

Martha slammed the front door shut, turned and raced out the front gate. It was a bitterly cold morning and she could feel her teeth chattering already, so she needed to keep moving. “Hi Martha, nice morning!” Her neighbour chuckled as he picked up his paper from the ground and hurried back inside, his large black bathrobe pulled tightly around him. “Yeah, great.” Martha thought. Martha walked briskly to the bus-stop shelter on the corner, just as the bus appeared through the gloom.. She thankfully sat down in the heated bus and rubbed her g...

0 comments 0
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“Not Exactly Heavenward” by Anastasia Tie

Submitted to Contest #58

The room eventually came into focus. Jane felt a little nauseous, to say the least, and her head pounded from the onslaught of brilliant lights. She looked around, almost too overwhelmed to absorb her surroundings, but she recognized the lobby of her apartment building. Except it wasn't the lobby she'd come to know so well in the past three years. There was something odd about it all. The white marble floor was glistening so brightly, she could see her reflection in it. A petite girl with shoulder-length raven hair framing a round face and d...

1 comment 1
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“Vanilla and Fries.” by Ridiculous Roze

Submitted to Contest #58

Getting stuck in an elevator was supposed to be adventure. Well, according to all those movies and books I had read, it was supposed to be an adventure. You were supposed to fall in love with someone or make a new friend. It was all supposed to be fun and mind-opening. Unfortunately, that was not the case with me. The date was August 24, 2014. It was my wedding day and all I had to do was stay in my hotel room while my family ran all the important errands. Because I was a stubborn individual who, on that day, had a strong craving of fries ...

2 comments 2
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“Bob's Big Rescue” by Mark D

Submitted to Contest #58

Bob’s Big RescueThere is nothing particularly exciting about Bob. Actually, that’s really giving him too much credit. There is nothing exciting at all about Bob. There, that’s better. Bob is 33 years old, lives in a small, one bedroom apartment in a boring suburb called Burien, just south of Seattle. Bob’s best friend (and his only friend really) is his goldfish he named Goldy. He is an average looking guy of average height and build. He drives a blue Toyota Camry that is fifteen years old. And it isn’...

4 comments 4
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“2am” by R. Cai

Submitted to Contest #58

It’s 2 am in the morning and I just want to sleep. I had a hard day. The professor at the university gave us a friendly reminder that our semester project was due in two weeks and I wasn’t even half done. My partner, who lived next door, never did any of the work, making up excuses every single time. “Sorry Robin, I’m having dinner with my family tonight.” “Sorry Robin, my grandma came to town and I’m supposed to spend time with her.” Excuses, excuses, excuses. Eventually, I just gave up and decided to work the project on my own....

2 comments 2
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“The World Turned Upside-Down” by Ali Anthony Bell

Submitted to Contest #58

When we got back from summer camp in ‘69, August was family time. There were two times in the year when we had family time, in August and at Christmas Holidays. That year our Dad had sold his Chevy 2 and so we took the train to Texas and back. Texas was always the same; sleeping under the stars, catching horny toads (horned lizards), eating a lot, playing with cousins. I still hadn’t realized what the move from Montana had meant.As soon as we got back to Chicago things started changing dramatically. There were little communes in many of the ...

0 comments 0
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“Lights Out” by Kat Gruszka

Submitted to Contest #58

The scream echoes into the neighboring houses. An equally horrifying silence follows. A silence brought on by ear drum damage or the need for silence after such a loud decibel has been reached. "It's okay." I soothe. "The power just went out. We’ll be fine." "But... my show," sobs Donna, my seventeen year old. "I think you'll survive," I answer back. "Honey?" my beloved of 20 years shouts from the floor above,"Everyone okay?" "Yes dear. You have Charlie?" I ask about our ten year old. No answer starts to move fear towards the fro...

9 comments 9
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“A Simple Happiness ” by Warrior C

Submitted to Contest #58

"Mommy, this is crazy but fun!" The youngest, Charlie tells his mom while playing mobile legend. His oldest sister and father just laugh at him.Teasing.There' s no place as happy as living in harmony. No fights instead just having fun. Full of love and memories.They are Ichon family, living in a nearby Alona beach resort somewhere in Bohol , Philippines. They don't know the announcement of having a blackout since their parents are busy in their work and they are in school. When they arrive from their tiring and usual day, they are ...

6 comments 6
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“Light Pollution” by Josefin Björk

Submitted to Contest #58

It’s been forty years since my last shipmate died. I know, because I keep track by etching a line into the metal wall. Or, rather, I estimate, because the days tend to blur together. It’s always dark outside, unless the ship passes by a star. For a couple of hours, I soak up the precious rays. When no star is in sight, I have D-vitamin supplements. They will eventually run out, but they don’t disappear that quickly now that only one of us is left. I was born on this ship. The first of us who had never known Earth. Once upon a time, we were...

7 comments 7
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$50

Prize money

879

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.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

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