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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 Victory That is Truly Mine” by B Easton

Submitted to Contest #73

The smell of blood, tears, and sweat flooded the training gym. Every muscle in my body screamed and begged for rest, but I refused to give into their pleas. Taking a deep breath, I steadied my posture and counted down from five. When I hit one, I exploded forward with as much force as possible, and the ground blurred beneath me. My heart exploded against my ribcage, and just before I hit the white line, I loaded my weight onto my legs and pushed off. For a brief moment, the ground disappeared, and the wind whipped at my face. My body felt f...

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“The Crow of Spirit and Longing” by Zahra Daya

Submitted to Contest #73

I force the laugh out of my lips, clinging to the hope of it changing everything. It sounds harsh. Cold. Simply wrong. But no. It has to be right. I don’t allow the thought of it being incorrect to reach my brain. Because if it reaches, it will never leave. Like lice amongst hair. I will have to comb through it and even then I may have to cut it all off. No, it's too dangerous. I can’t risk it. I can’t I unwillingly force my head up and out of the hollow of my neck. My eyes meet my own in the mirror. They pierce back at me, black, cold....

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“Bright or Obscure” by Hope Reynolds

Submitted to Contest #73

I am in line at the drive-through, waiting for lunch. It is busy, and the line is long. I guess it is a Sunday. It doesn't feel like a Sunday... but I am okay with that. Especially this time of year...-~-There we sat, side-by-side. It may have seemed ridiculous, but her and I liked to sit on the lake dock this time of year. It was our tradition. The first year we started, we brought Christmas lights and strung them out on the edges of the deck. And here we were again, our feet barely dangling over solid ice. "Anna."She simply turned and...

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“Grandpa's Little Helper” by Karen McDermott

Submitted to Contest #73

I pressed the doorbell and saluted to the camera I knew was watching me. There was a muffled crackling noise and then I heard Grandpa say “Rosalyn! I’m so glad you could make it. Come find me in the kitchen.” He was the only one who still called me that name. Everyone at school, even the teachers, calls me Murphy, because I remind people of that dead actress who was in Clueless, Brittany Murphy. I guess maybe with the hair and eyes I can see what they’re talking about. Grandpa was buzzing me in. I pushed the door but luckily before I pu...

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“And a Parrot in a Peach Tree” by Natalie Strawbridge

Submitted to Contest #73

It was, allegedly, the most wonderful time of the year. Halloween had been quietly escorted out, Thanksgiving had barely been given a chance, and whether you celebrated it or not, everywhere screamed Christmas: the big department stores with empty cardboard boxes wrapped in silvery paper, the little cafes with preciously named cinnamon spiced drinks, the quaint towns with wire snowflakes glittering on the street lamps. People scurried about all of these places, pretending to admire them, but really, they were all buying last-minute gifts or ...

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“5 Golden Rings” by Lily Rebecca 🐰🐾

Submitted to Contest #73

“Nayeli! Over here!” My good friend Matteo calls me over. He’s sitting under a tree in the dimming sunlight with snow falling and a beanie on his head. I walk over to him in a somewhat hurried manner. My beanie sits on top of my head covering my unbrushed hair. I’m wearing a deep rouge dress with long sleeves and a pleated skirt. My mittens fall off my hands as I sit down on the bench next to Matteo. He smiles at me and I smile back at him. We have a lot of history. We were best friends from 3rd to 6th grade. Then we fell apart through high ...

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“Chase Your Dream” by Nandini Shukla

Submitted to Contest #73

I’m very sorry honey,” Johnson heard. He turned around to see his grandma standing there. She wore a black dress with one of those fancy hats. “It’s uh okay. Don’t worry Mrs.Lace.”His grandma looked stung with those words. Of course, he thought, that’s what you get when you betray people. “Son, I understand it must be hard for you to lose your parents in such a horrid accident. That’s why I’m here.”“Why would you even care? You never even bothered what happened to your daughter. You never supported her dream, you left her when she was 1...

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“The Bird and Me” by David G.

Submitted to Contest #73

Across my five-hundred-ten square foot apartment on the twenty-third floor of an early-1980s utilitarian building at the southern end of the Bronx come a few staccato chirps and whistles of the American goldfinch that now resides with me. His name is Charlie.I open my eyes. I'm in bed. On the ceiling above me there is a faint crack in the plaster. It starts about an inch from the wall straight above my right shoulder and then winds its way in a jagged pattern toward the center of the room, where it disappears briefly behind the light fixture...

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“Merry Mary, Marry Me?” by John K Adams

Submitted to Contest #73

‘I never expected that…’ Mary thought to herself, ‘How odd…’ Balancing the tray of home-baked cookies on her lap, she pondered the day while riding in the back seat of the Uber. Her neighbor, Sally, asked her to watch her eight year-old son, George. They helped each other out. Today, Sally needed last minute items for her New Year’s party. George challenged her to play some board game he’d gotten from Santa. They sat on the floor by the tree. Games always gave Mary a chance to get to know people. The game made no difference. George excelled...

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“A Maddie Christmas” by Hibaa _

Submitted to Contest #73

“Chest stand everyone! Alexis, extend your legs out a little more, You’re too compact. Maddie, come up here and show the class how you do a chest stand properly.” I walk up quietly, taking petite steps until I'm at the front of the gymnasium. Slowly, I lower myself down to the ground and lie down on my stomach. I kick my legs over my head and stretch out my right leg. I look up to my teacher to see her towering above me. I wait for her nod of approval to get up. Miss. Bell nods her head in a yes, motioning me to stand back up. I don’t know w...

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“Egg Race” by ℤ ℍ☮️

Submitted to Contest #73

In eighth grade, we used to have these egg races. Each week, Mr. Michel would give us an egg. On Friday, we would come up with a contraption that would keep the egg from breaking if it fell. Then we would sprint while holding the egg in one hand. The lesson was supposed to be on ethics. Balance. Care.I never had any of them. Every single time, the bright yolk would sink onto the blades of grass. Every time, I would bend over, under the hot Utah sun and swear under my breath. My hands would be clammy and my eyes would feel close to crying as ...

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“Blue Jay🐦” by Jade Orien🍀

Submitted to Contest #73

When I was 10 years old my grandmother flew from London to California to give me a gift.She had told me just a few weeks before Christmas how much I would love this gift she has for me.when she arrived at our home she stood in our living room near the Christmas tree with an oval looking object that was in her hand. covered with a white sheet.I immediately begin to jump up & down. Excited about what the present may be.My mom's face begins to turn red due to excitement.My father on the other hand, well he fell asleep."What is it!!" I say p...

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“One Hand” by Kendall Defoe

Submitted to Contest #73

“Will ya marry me, my laydeeee…?”It was flattering to hear it a second time in the last hour. Laura was heading home and the homeless man was probably thinking that she was someone from his better past. He was dirty, badly shaved and stooped over with the weight of his life, but he did smile and charm her with his question. And what if he had a ring? Anything could happen on Christmas Eve…She was waiting in line for the bus when she heard the proposal and saw him looking at the crowd that was eager to part and avoid him.So, why not have...

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“Samantha's Suitors” by Michael Boquet

Submitted to Contest #73

On the outside, Samantha didn't look like the type of girl who would date multiple guys at once. Let alone someone who would be juggling five relationships at the same time. Each of the five guys was in love with her. Each had a quality she had sought out. Each one possessed a little something that she needed. On this night, Samantha knew that each of her boyfriends were planning to declare their love. She had long ago decided which one she'd choose. Now all she had to do was sever ties with the other four... Samantha's relationship with e...

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“D 1 Night ” by Atenaga Monday

Submitted to Contest #73

Living is everyone imagination of life, from how we eat, bath, walk, laugh and even sleep matter so much to us that we forget to appreciate the one thing we should find fascinating and that’s the Moon, the Sun, the Stars the Oceans and the beautiful animals, yes I know we have been told by different religion and scientific reasons of how we got to meet all this things but believe me after a horrible heart break all what Mike got to think was how to leave this earth go to somewhere else, he wanted to stop living well you will never know what ...

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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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