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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#72: Shocking Developments

Have you ever heard that there are only so many types of stories in the world? Some people say seven, some say three, some six… Regardless of the number, the idea is that you can boil down any narrative into universal templates.

While it’s true that many stories do follow familiar structures (and understanding them can help you learn how to craft a compelling narrative), there’s so much variety in how those structures unfold that the best stories still feel fresh and original.

One of the ways writers manage this is by filling their stories with unexpected details — so this week, our prompts are all about characters finding themselves in situations they’d never have imagined. But to really get something unique, don’t stop there: ask yourself what would happen if your characters made each of the possible choices before them, then write the one that surprised you the most!

This week's prompts

Write a mystery where the detective realizes at the last moment that they have the wrong suspect.

Mystery – 117 stories

Write a romance where your character falls in love with the last person they expected to.

Romance – 193 stories

Write about someone getting a job offer they never would have thought to apply for.

Adults – 94 stories

Write about someone who gets an inheritance from a relative they’ve never heard of, but they’ll need to do something completely outside their comfort zone in order to collect it.

Teens – 144 stories

Write a science fiction story where all human behavior can be predicted — until your character does something the algorithm did not expect.

Science Fiction – 139 stories

Stories

“The Wonder that Goes Bump in The Night” by Cal Carson

Submitted to Contest #72

You finger the wrinkled note in your hand and scowl. The sound of its crinkles as you fold it is lost to the rain pattering your car roof. The sky is filled with white clouds, like a frothing mess of sea foam dragged into the sky. Sea foam. You let loose a bitter “ha!” You can't believe you left your home at the beach for this dump. Your car screeches to a slow crawl, pulling itself onto the gravel path of the Bleawood Manor. Not much of a manor anymore, you can see, but a shambled ruin of rotting w...

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“JUST A TINY LIGHT” by Josephine Ogarah

Submitted to Contest #72

Eric suddenly turned pale upon checking the mail box and reading the mail sent from fast flash movie industry. "Another dead end" he said. "Come Jackie" calling unto his dog as he served it some dog food. He watched as the dog eat the food hastly. He remembered how he went to the pet store to get the dog as a birthday present for himself and how his mom saw it as a waste of money and of course extra mouth to feed. But he didn't mind, he just wanted an animal companion, one he can say silly things to, pouring out his...

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“Paying the Morgue-age” by Doug Goodrich

Submitted to Contest #72

Aunt Florence looked great. Well, I should say, she looked great for a dead person. Her bright, gray hair was brushed straight down by her sides. It seemed to glisten under the Myer’s Funeral Home lights as I inched closer to the front. She wore a tidy pantsuit, tucked in on the sides, with her arms folded gently in front of her. I swear she looked better than I had seen her in years. Gone were the skin blemishes that made her look haunted and hollow. She looked at least fifteen years younger. Funny, how we can attempt to look the best we ca...

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“Future Love” by Kin Ozawa

Submitted to Contest #72

Chapter 1: New TeacherIt was the beginning of my sophomore year of high school. I’m the only one in my friend circle who is still single. All my friends are already engaged in relationships. By the way, my name is Haruto, your average high school student with average grades. My friends are Ricky and Shaun whom I met last year in the class. There is this girl, Erika, whom I liked since middle school but she is far beyond my reach. She is top in both academics and athletics. She was confessed by over 30 students last year but rejected all of t...

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“I killed him but I am innocent” by Jordan Bricks

Submitted to Contest #72

The other police officers clapped their hands and applauded him. He just stepped into the office when they all got up and cheered. All he could was stare on floor and grin. Not like he was not expecting this, in fact, it happened more often than not but this time, he just didn’t see it coming, or maybe there was something about this case he was not sure about. He put one hand behind his back and with the other he waved around in modesty like he always did. When he made his way to his desk, he grinned, in his mind. For over fifteen years of b...

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“Ragz to Riches” by Sincerely Cezlie

Submitted to Contest #72

The cup landed on the floor with a huge bang, as the cappuccino splashed onto the black and white tiled floors, scattering shards of the cup. My hands shook and my eyes widened with fright. Eyes around me grew to the size of saucers and mouths dropped open. A Cup of Joy was not used to clumsy waitresses, this was a posh cafe where everyone was meant to be perfect at everything. “Ro!” screeched Mrs Alejandro, her fist balled up. She grabbed me by the wrist and dragged me behind the counter. She let go of my wrist revealing a pin...

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“What did I missed?” by Charlie Sebastian

Submitted to Contest #72

Everyone warned Joseph about the continuous threats he receiving recently. But he didn’t cared a bit. He always say, “Only people who could hide from the whole world could kill him.” He never thinks about his enemies. He went to his cabin like every weekend. Sometimes for pleasure, Joseph would pay some musicians to come to cabin and play melodious music. This time, David, a professional violinist, Joseph hired for his own entertainment. David sat in the hall, preparing his violin. Joseph came into room when his maid ...

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“Algon and Paluma ” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #72

I am Xura, one of the personnel assigned to the Mind Control Unit here at Hurla. Mind control is a necessary function of our small stations in the Walgo Sector. There is a lot of misinformation on this controversial subject, but for our purposes it is an essential function and without it, we would not be able to maintain our mission here at Hurla. It is complicated on Hurla since those who are sent here have been sentenced by the Supreme Command on Chaxavac (chaz-a-vac) and the sectors oversee protection and communication. ...

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“My last love.” by Shreya Kandari

Submitted to Contest #72

I don't get the ideology behind the statement, when people say "My first love".......Every bright morning fills me with new hope of that one day my love will blossom. My heart, with cold-contempt feelings will turn into spring and the crave for true love which I hid from everyone will be fulfilled.My name is Eva, my dream is to find my true one, in this world of tinder, Facebook and what not. But it's not the fault of these apps actually, my dream got shattered when I realized, that each boy I have dated is such a playboy. Like people are be...

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“Performative Tantrum” by Trixie Pereira

Submitted to Contest #72

Dean ate the last potato chip from the plastic packet as he lounged on the couch. He lifted his head and turned the packet upside down, shaking the last of the crumbs in his mouth. Some of the crumbs fell in his unkempt thick beard and he pulled a large piece and put it in his mouth. He knew he was pathetic but he was too tired to care. He unsubscribed from Netflix to save money so he was watching awful quality youtube videos on his large television. Perhaps if he cut his internet and sold the TV he could manage to pay another month’s rent. ...

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“The Art teacher ” by Albert Zygier

Submitted to Contest #72

At the age of 70, Milton Hersh and his wife retired to a senior community in Miami Beach. Six months after his 75 birthday he became a widower. As with many others who lost their loved ones, Milton was devastated. It took many more months for him to get his life back together again. Milton was a commercial artist and illustrator and he loved to paint in oils. One winter day, when he had enough of rainy days he decided to set up a still life of fruits and flowers and paint again in the spare bedroom that he converted into a studio.&nbs...

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“Interrupt” by Alex Fim

Submitted to Contest #72

Sadie flipped her dark ponytail over her shoulder as she tipped an open bag of whole coffee beans over a paper filter on a scale. She tilted the bag back up intuitively, without watching, as the number on the scale ticked upward until the display read precisely 0.220. Her fingers flitted to the white tags to mark the date of the prepped beans. She wrote the date, placed the tag, then grabbed one of the filters, pouring it into the grinder. Sadie raised her voice over the hollow ting-and-shir of the beans hitting the burrs, “You know what the...

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“A Dream Crashed…” by Saliha Huda

Submitted to Contest #72

When he was in school, he always dreams that one day he will be a teacher of one of the well reputed institution of the country. He always noticed the teaching styles of his teachers and kept notes that how could he become a good teacher. He has to take good marks for achieving his dream. He always completed his homework and learned all his lessons by heart. He was a good student in school always achieving first position in class. Whenever he was free he was always enjoyed living in his imaginary world where he was a teacher. He putted al...

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“I am here to interview for a job” by Sambulo Kunene

Submitted to Contest #72

I spent so many years in college hoping to get over the blues. My parents were well off and I did not need to be in college. I had a trust fund and my future was secured. It only was with my friends begging me to join them that I started to realize that there was more to college than I previously thought. I met many good people and I wrote many good papers to justify my presence in higher education.I also surprised my parents because I became a very good student and took the surprise factor from them. They worried that I would become a drug ...

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“Rebel Without The Numbers” by Iona Cottle

Submitted to Contest #72

“Good morning team!” The buzz in the room quietened down as the bulky man in the once-smart suit at the front of the room dropped his stack of files on the desk. “Day 1765. I’m sure I don’t need to reiterate how important it is that we don’t mess things up now–” “But you’ve done it anyway,” Bhatt muttered to Hansen, as he did every day. As usual she smiled; it was as much a part of her morning routine as the boss saying how important the day was. “We’ve all come too far for this to fail now,” their boss was still saying. “So keep your he...

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$50

Prize money

687

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 18, 2020 EST

Won by Julie Ward 🏆

Title: Currents

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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