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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#73: My True Love Gave to Me

In years past, we’ve themed our seasonal prompts around a favorite Christmas movie… This year, we’re going to mix things up and base them off a Christmas song! And since this week’s contest runs through December 25th, what better song to pick than The 12 Days of Christmas?

If you need a little inspiration to get you in the holiday spirit, check out the Christmas and Holiday sections in our Stories directory to see what members of your community have come up with! With all these marvelously festive tales to choose from, we know you’ll find something to get you feeling jolly in no time.

And despite the Christmas origins, our prompts work for any holiday, so feel free to celebrate in a way that's true to you! We can't wait to see your character's traditions.

This week's prompts

Write about someone who is given a bird for the holidays but doesn’t know how to take care of it.

Holiday – 200 stories

Write about someone who gets proposed to five times on Christmas Eve.

Romance – 170 stories

Write about a drummer going to a Halloween party for musicians.

Halloween – 54 stories

Write about a young nobleman whose greatest wish is to become an Olympic long jumper.

Middle School – 20 stories

Write about a backup dancer who’s on tour and just wants some peace and quiet for the holidays.

Winter – 54 stories

Stories

“A Little Night Music” by Amethyst Violets

Submitted to Contest #73

The drummer.That was her title. It was almost degrading, in a sense, since she could play so much more than a drum kit.But that was who Julia was to her family when they talked about careers: the drummer.Oh, yes, her brother and sister were in the medical field or in a large, successful company, and each of them earned at least twice of what she did.But did they enjoy what they did? Were they in a group of a hundred-over people who, regardless of personal issues or grudges, came together as peers and took time and effort to contribute, to co...

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“Sticks and Stones” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #73

Sticks and Stones “What do you call that?” “What do I call what?” “That thing you have there. What is that?” I get that all the time. People tend to pay attention to only the things that bite at them or threaten too. It’s as if they can’t see what’s in front of them because they choose not to. I get it. Living in a time when one wrong step can get you killed, or worse, whishing you had, makes one a bit psychotic. But that is no excuse for not paying attention. As a matter of fact, it should make people mo...

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“CHINNAPPA” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #73

Chinnappa was considering himself as a lucky fellow. He somehow escaped the gang of hired men meant to join the rally and shout slogans and lend their support to the ongoing farmers’ strike. The strike initially was a big draw and drew attention of all alike. People really sympathised the ‘food-giver’ the other name of farmer. But when political parties interfered them with their vested interests it took a different turn --- an ugly turn. The agitation had neither farmer’s agenda nor political agenda. Certain unethical divisive elements also...

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“The Big Drummer Boy” by Leslie Flemons

Submitted to Contest #73

(A/N: The main character is a tall, black man.)I hung up a green balloon and climbed down the ladder. “How many invitations did you send out again?” I asked Christian who just finished frosting the last cupcake.“About fifty or so.”“Fifty? Isn’t that a bit much for a Christmas party?”“No. I don’t think so.”I ensured to keep the napkins folded into perfect squares. “I just love these parties you’re throwing, man.” Every year, Chris would have local musicians gathered around to celebrate the best time of the year. Each guest is allowed to showc...

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“Candy Canes and Drumsticks” by J.B. Dixon

Submitted to Contest #73

“Do we have to do this? You guys know how much I can’t stand these things.” Nathan shivered as the wind kicked up, throwing snow in his face. “Brock already told Fran we’d attend, so suck it up for a few hours.” Ryan shot back. “Who’s Fran again?” Seth asked, ringing the buzzer of a sky-high steel building. “She’s the singer for the Cheshire Chicks.” Roger said. “Who is it?” A female voice answered. “The Silver Coffin Sound.” Seth replied. “Come on in.” Letting out a last exasperated sigh, Nathan went in with his bandmates, and...

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“The Journey Begins_ But Still same place” by Ashish Kumar

Submitted to Contest #73

What if Life: – L- Lesson: Life is a lesson we all learn in everyway at all times. … E-Enjoyment: Life is an adventure. L i F e :——– The meaning of life is that which we choose to give it. Learn to enjoy every minute of your life. Be happy now. Don’t wait for something outside of yourself to make you happy in the future. Think how really precious is the time you have to spend, whether it’s at work or with your family. Every minute should be enjoyed and savored. Earl Nightingale I am nothing...

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“NOBLEMAN'S OLYMPIC DREAMS” by Sachin Mk

Submitted to Contest #73

Olympic trials are when I knew I wanted to do it, I think when you know you want to go on forever. I know I can change things that I can't do. I will ride professionally but I don't know if I want to do it forever because of my age, my family and everything else. My father Thomas took part in the Olympic Games in Barcelona, my uncle Markus represented Switzerland in five Olympic Games and my mother Renata Is an elite jumper. I have a horse that is at the peak of his career at the moment and has the potential to play at the highest leve...

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“Backup” by Lillie Curry

Submitted to Contest #73

1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-3, over and over and over. In my head I'm saying don't mess up. Why would it matter though I'm only a backup."Good job, everyone!" says the instructor "Remember tomorrow is our Christmas recital, 5:00 sharp don't be late!""Hey, great job today, Riley." says my friend Kate."Thanks, I guess. Don't you ever get tired of only being a backup and not having the glory of the spotlight in your face, the fame, the tights so small that they almost cut off your blood circulation?”“No, no, and no. Come on Riley, just live with it.” Kat...

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“Peer Pressure?” by Marvel Geek Girl

Submitted to Contest #73

Crash! Hailey fell down in the middle of the spin. Mr Guller walked over to her, his face a deep maroon color. “Jenny, what in the world was that?!” She stood up. “Umm, a spin-jazz hands combo? I just… tripped.” She turned to glare at the reason she fell - Tammy Sanchez, mean girl, popular, pretty, catches the eye of every guy. Her middle name was “evil”. They went to high school together, and every day there, she was tormented, ridiculed, intimidated. For no reason, whatsoever. And now, Tammy was trying to get Hailey...

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“On Rooftops and Reminiscing” by Marsha Francesca

Submitted to Contest #73

"Wait, wait, wait. Your positioning is wrong! Let's start from the top!" Daniel Stewart sighed as he heard the ever-famous and rising star, Chris Peters, shouting throughout the dance studio they had rented near the concert's venue. Daniel looked around and saw how his dance crew, who are also his friends, sighed in exhaustion. But no one could really blame them, they've been working on the dance routine since the morning and it's already past 9 PM in the evening. It's not really his crew's fault why they've been repeating this, it was becau...

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“Cara saves the day” by Kallyani Raj

Submitted to Contest #73

"Now do an arabesque. Cara straighten your legs. How many times do I have to tell you??" Mr. Alexei screamed. Cara sighed and straightened her legs. She was exhausted. Her knees were like they were on fire, her ankles were giving away because of the strain, and her neck was stiff. She craved a hot bubble bath to ease her pain. She lamented herself for joining this beastly dance school. Her body was wasting away because of all stress and pressure to learn the number. But, she loved to dance. Cara's first and only true love was dance. She star...

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“My truth” by Tausha Marshall

Submitted to Contest #73

“And 1, 2, stop, drop, 3, 4, spin and pop. Take it low and up, here we go, 5, 6, 7, 8!” This 8 count was on repeat in Tavia's head like a broken record she didn’t want to hear at the moment. She knew the dance steps so well she could literally perform it in her sleep and that’s the reason she was tossing and turning all night. That morning, she auditioned for the gig of a lifetime and was excited about more opportunities coming her way, but she felt troubled. She never wanted to seem ungrateful about the wonderful life created through dance ...

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“Place Me” by Karlie Scott

Submitted to Contest #73

They tell me I was born to be a dancer. Me, Richard Richards, a dancer, thee dancer. All my aunties, uncles, and cousins gave me nicknames that had to do with moving: leg shaker, buckskin booty, etc., (they do get more embarrassing than that last one too). But my mother says I was dancing before I entered this world when her womb was the one and only home I’d known. There was nothing she could do to calm me either. Whether she was laying down, walking down the river, eating dried deer meat, drinking warm swap tea...I was wiggling...

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“Twelve days of nightmare ” by Living In Fantasy

Submitted to Contest #73

People say "do what you love and you'll never work another day". Unless you're a backup dancer and have been on holiday tour for the entire month of December. Then you'll be hurting even at the thought of moving your body from the floor that you fell onto to the bed. Every once in a while you'll look back to your brothers wedding and your uncles advice to became an accountant "hours are good, pay is good and accountants are always gonna be needed, go for an accountant". But being a backup dancer is the dream that is worth fulfilling.&nb...

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“A Freaking Bird?” by Jocelyn Hood

Submitted to Contest #73

This year has gotten the best of us all - there's no getting around that. I recently started a new job as a human resources manager in New York City. Coming into this job as quickly as I did gave me a little bit of anxiety. As I started to set up my office with small decorations, one being a statue of a bird one of my girlfriends gave to me as a gag gift, someone knocked on my door. I looked up to see a petite, shy woman standing in my doorway with bulky glasses and an outfit my grandmother would wear. She introduced herself as Miley, my ass...

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$50

Prize money

498

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 25, 2020 EST

Won by Shawn Forno 🏆

Title: Burt Brain

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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