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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#64: Out on the Moor

This week marks 173 years since the original publication of the classic novel Jane Eyre. In the nearly two centuries since then, the novel has served as social critique, deep character study, sweeping romance, and so much more. Its atmosphere has inspired reams of Gothic literature and ghost stories, while its in-depth handling of Jane’s perspective set a whole new path for the way characters are written.

In honor of this achievement, this week’s prompts have been drawn from facets of Jane Eyre. We can’t promise that your story will be remembered for centuries — but you never know!

This week's prompts

Set your story in a Gothic manor house.

Horror – 133 stories

Write a ghost story where there’s more going on than it first appears.

Mystery – 225 stories

Write about someone who’s been sent to boarding school.

Novel – 120 stories

Write about a family attempting to hide their secrets from someone new.

Dramatic – 121 stories

Write a romance that involves one partner saving the other from a fire.

Romance – 154 stories

Stories

“Father of Mine” by Leviathan Four

Submitted to Contest #64

Caroline:“She just wants to get to know you all better,” our father said. “Now that Julia is your stepmum, I think you three should make an effort.”“Make an effort seems to be a catchphrase of yours,” Caroline spat back at her father, mimicking his voice. “Isn’t that what you told Mum all the time? Lorraine, I think you should make an effort and keep this house clean; make an effort and lose two stone; make an effort and wear something more becoming; make an effort and paint your face—she made every effort you asked of her, and did it help h...

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“Anything” by Lani Lane

Submitted to Contest #64

The sounds of clanking filled the room when they dragged in the prisoner.Almost like bells, Anahera thought. What was that saying?“Every time a bell rings, an angel grows its wings,” she muttered. She leaned forward in the front row and the wooden bench creaked, a whisper against the grumbling chains.“What?” asked her sister, Charmeine, sitting beside her with her arms folded.Anahera shook her head. “Nothing.”Charmeine reached over and gripped Anahera’s hand.Two guards clutched the prisoner’s arms as they walked him down the courtroom. They ...

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“The Hitchhiker” by L M

Submitted to Contest #64

The road was slick, and the sky was dark. The perfect combination for a car accident. Still, the young, reckless John went at full speed, desperate to get to where they were going on time. He didn’t bother with stupid things like saftey precautions, or seatbelts. Those were for losers, and overprotective parents. He was neither of those things. John never understood how risky the game of life was, and it could all be taken away in a flash. No, instead he lived only for the moment and carved a path for his own adventures in the small town of ...

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“Rebecca” by The-Burrowing-Owl- Author

Submitted to Contest #64

It was a beautiful day for disaster. The gleaming sunlight pooling around the fluffy white clouds promised a dry afternoon. Even the poorer folk in Philadelphia turned their heads upward in unspoken gratitude, drinking in the beams of heaven like the lush green blades of grass that forked through the cracks of the outer pavement. It was 1776.Rebecca Howe was in the middle of a performance, but nothing like the ones few could afford to watch. The widow smiled beautifully at the man on the other side of the counter as she slid him a lovely gla...

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“The Secret” by Meera Lakshmi

Submitted to Contest #64

I have a secret. Doesn’t everyone? Stop gawking at me! It’s just a secret. I thought readers weren’t supposed to judge me. But my secret is dangerous. Well, it's not MY secret. It's our secret. A family secret. But it could destroy everything if it got out. No, stop badgering me. I’m not telling you. Well, at least not now. It’s hard, you know. I have a little sister. And she’s 8. But she doesn’t know how to keep secrets. So my parents obviously didn’t tell her. But, she overheard my older sister telling me. So, now we are brainstorming how ...

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“The House on 45th Street NE” by Mustang Patty

Submitted to Contest #64

Ever since she was a little girl, Sandy loved driving down 45th Street NE in Salem. On the corner sat the house of her dreams. It was a two-story mid-century home with a big wrap-around porch. Sometimes she even parked out front, just to take a good long look. Though Dan and Sandy had been married for almost five years, it had never been the right time to buy a house. But when they both got raises in the same month, they decided it was time. Sandy was excited about looking for a house, but it was hard to give up her dream. So, when the h...

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“The Sheridan” by Aveena Bordeaux

Submitted to Contest #64

Lacy Capelle stood before the crumbling gates of the Sheridan manor, looking like an ant against the grandness of the house. She wrapped her coat tight around her body with her trembling and rigid hands. One of those very hands clutched the thin slip of paper that read a heartfelt goodbye from her dearest Anton and the other inched towards the rusty gate doors. Just beyond the gate stood the manor, alone on the m...

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“Banshees in the Attic” by S. Closson

Submitted to Contest #64

When kids at school ask me how it feels living in the most haunted house in Rock County, I generally give them a shrug and blow the question off. You may wonder why I don’t just tell them the truth about the whole thing. I understand it probably seems a little petty to keep the existence of what’s really going on behind those decrepit doors all to myself, but I’ve got enough on my plate as it is dealing with the paranormal. Adding school problems to the mix would be just asking for trouble. Middle School is like that creepy live-acti...

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“Once they know” by Darnayes Pen

Submitted to Contest #64

The Kinlee family was a family of many mysteries and secrets. They marched to the beat of their own sick drum and no one has ever been able to enter the family circle without excepting the family and all their secrets! Chaise Kinlee was the only living child of the family. Carla died in the womb, It was a pregnancy that followed many fails before it. Angie and and John were married young but it wasn't because of love! They were forced together by their fathers and they never had a chance. They learned over time to tolerate each other and man...

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“Saving Grace” by Kate Winchester

Submitted to Contest #64

“If you wannabe my lover…” “Make it last forever…” Grace belted as she lathered her hair in shampoo. Nostalgia had crept up on her this morning as she thought back to her teen years when it was cool to have your own Spice Girl name; Cinnamon Spice was Grace’s. “Who doesn’t like cinnamon?” She had told her friends. It was also the color of her hair. When she would cry to her mother that her hair was boring brown, her mother would look at her and say “your hair isn’t boring.” “It’s the color of cinnamon, and ...

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“Haunted” by Chelsea S D

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #64

Finding just the right haunted house is always a challenge. One cannot simply walk into any old house and find their match; there are specifics to consider. You are buying a house after all, and it is important to have the usual lists of needs and wants. You may want 4 bedrooms, but need a two story Victorian where a grisly murder took place. You might want a two car attached garage, but need a basement with the frayed and knotted rope still hanging from the pipes. You have to know your priorities, when hunting for a haunted house.Of course ...

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“The Burning of the Ryder Manor ” by Rexy Rexy

Submitted to Contest #64

‘Top of the morning to you, Felix.’ the dark grey Persian cat Inkhorn greeted the white poodle, Felix. ‘Oh morning, Inkhorn.’ the poodle looked up while realizing his heavy steps made the ancient oak floorboards creaking again. ‘Didn’t see you so high up there in the shadows, your kind work in stealth, you do, like them ninjas.’ ‘Indeed, we do. So, up before the cockcrow, a rare sight indeed.’ Inkhorn jumped lower from the top of the bookcase to the flower stand without making a single sound. ‘Ay, I sleep less and less these days. Old age, I...

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“Oh, Grandmamma......!” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #64

I knew when I married Aidan (heck, I knew long before I did!) that his family, the Drinkwaters, were considered – well, a tad eccentric. Oh, there were no rumours about shallow graves in the garden that attracted the curiosity of the neighbourhood dogs or people locked in attics, or anything more suspect than somewhat foul smelling herbal tea being brewed. My mother, a practical and tolerant lady, for all she asked “Are you sure, love?” in a very strange kind of way, was of the official opinion t...

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“Chasing a Dream” by L M

Submitted to Contest #64

This is the big day. Lei has been preparing for this day her whole life. But, she still has so far to go, this is just one step closer to her dream. Today, she goes to the elite ballet school in New York City. Thrilled, she spent every waking hour practicing in any way possible for ballet, preparing for this day. Sitting in the dining room, she munches on the avocado toast. When will she sit in this room again, eating breakfast? How long will it be until she can return to her home in Hawai'i? She worries about all the adjustments she wi...

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“The Sixth” by Amy Utami

Submitted to Contest #64

“What are they looking for?”“Alien”“Why so far? We have one here.”“Do we?”“That strange jellyfish taken by the big ship and stranded here alone. Isn’t it alien too?”Look up and down, up and down, up and down “your brain must be eaten by aliens.”“Do I have a brain?”“Do we have a brain?”“Guys stop! They are looking for a new home.”“Why?”“They wrecked Earth down and forget how to fix it.”“Disassemble.”“What?”“’Wreck’ used when they know the consequences, but they were too stupid to know that. Remember when they found that oil from the ground? T...

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$50

Prize money

753

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 23, 2020 EST

Won by Mollie Rodgers 🏆

Title: The Girl in the Goethe House

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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