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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#76: He Said, She Said

Is there anything more satisfying for a writer than that moment your characters suddenly come alive in your mind? For me, this often comes in the form of a conversation — I know I finally understand them when they start talking to each other without any effort on my part.

From witty banter to subtle conversations packed with unspoken threats, there’s so many ways dialogue can drive a story forward. As you craft your stories this week, really think about what your dialogue is saying about your characters. What are they willing to admit to each other, and what are they trying to keep hidden?

And in case you need a little help crafting the perfect retort, here’s a few resources to get your characters talking:

This week's prompts

Write a story told exclusively through dialogue.

Dialogue – 349 stories

Write about two people who just can’t seem to understand each other, no matter how clearly they think they’re speaking.

Sad – 79 stories

Write about a character who is incapable of telling even the smallest lie or half-truth.

Character – 80 stories

Write a conversation that takes place between two people who refuse to say what they mean.

Dialogue – 58 stories

Write about a character who’s always thinking of things they’ll say to people, but who ends up saying very little when they finally get the chance.

Character – 219 stories

Stories

“Almost” by Jas Gill

Submitted to Contest #76

The english language is profoundly mesmerising but equally, confusing. It’s a jungle of grammar rules, a sea of etiquette, a never ending list of exceptions and we haven’t even mentioned the impact of accents. Nevertheless, it serves to account the stories of yesterday, the stories of today and the stories of tomorrow. Each word can be carefully scripted to have an explosive impact, it’s like crafting a ticking time bomb, sometimes. You can build up anything you ever wanted, you could do it as slowly and agonisingly as possible or you could ...

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“DELAWARE UNDER COVER” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #76

DELAWARE UNDER COVER Delaware became a high schooler to the nth degree long before she had a clue what that meant. Her math and physics teacher had a knowledgeable hunch that this girl was going places far beyond the average person in the room. He made sure to remind her at every opportunity to keep up and not give up. In her shyness, she could only smile, and nod to thank him for his confidence in her abilities. She never, ever, made herself the center of any conversation or the one to be singled out in class with having the right answer, w...

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“Another Day in the Office” by Brendan Burton

Submitted to Contest #76

Click-click-clack. Clack-clack-click. Clickety-clack-click. Neville, a squat portly man with a squashed, bulldog face typed away at the keyboard on his cheap, pasteboard desk with crushing strokes from plump, sausage fingers. He went on, and on, and on without rest or pause for as long as he could manage. A thick sheen of sweat glossed his bulbous forehead. When the muscles in his hands and wrists where red-hot with ache and cramped with exertion, he finally stopped. "Hello, carpel tunnel." Neville told himself as he stretched each digit w...

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“Teacup” by Naia Campanaro

Submitted to Contest #76

Screaming pain, itching wails, spine-grinding shrieks. And from that there was silence. I vowed to never speak, and my brain took this much too literally. They’ve created a name for it, this thing that I have. Conversion disorder. I hate the word. Disorder. A mess, a problem, a cluttered cabinet. It makes me sound sick, ill, and unconventionally stupid. I can’t speak. Not even if I tried. Not even if I wanted to. But...

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“Vow of Silence” by Mobarewaye Odufisan

Submitted to Contest #76

He had no facial hair, and for that, she regretted. A beard, a moustache, sideburns, anything really to hide the blatant weakness his face possessed, the unflattering structure it held, would have been ideal. But there was nothing, Not even hints of wispiness, sparse strands to give hope, a promise of potential growth. His face was simply uninteresting, a dull unimpressive expanse devoid of aesthetic character, and she had long grown tired of looking upon it. She exhales deeply, then turns her attention back to the task before her, having ...

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“Survivors” by Vanya Lorentzen

Submitted to Contest #76

"Hey kid." he said. His voice was sort of deep. "What're you doing out here in the cold?" She looked up at him and watched as he knelt down. They met face to face. Eye to eye. She stared at his eyes, then smiled. "Hey mister, you're eyes are just like mine." . . . "Come with me." he said, standing up. She hopped up without hesitation. "Okay. Where are we going?" He sighed. "You know you shouldn't trust strangers?" "I know that." she said, smiling. "Then why are you coming with me?" "Cause I got a good feeling about you." she said. "Strangers...

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“The Joker and The Fool” by Emily Hill

Submitted to Contest #76

The Joker and The FoolBy Emily Hill “Yes, you are mine and I’m yours. But not now. We clearly aren’t ready. If we keep doing this, this way- we will destroy what is destined for us. This is our test. And I love you enough, to walk away.”“I don’t know what you expect from me. This is it. This is all I will ever be. I’m fucking broken, Emily. And you are right. I will break you too. That’s what I do, break those around me so my own shattered soul can blend in amongst the ruble.” “I really wish I could make you see yourself the way I do. I...

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“He said/she said miscommunication dialogue” by Almarie Campbell

Submitted to Contest #76

Miriam: “George! George Oh George! (sigh) why doesn’t that man answer when I call him”.(there was the sound of the weed cutter in the backyard, and I was looking through the kitchen window and thinking as I blended the oats for the porridge)Miriam: Hon!George: Eeh(as he paused to wipe the sweat from his eyes)Miriam: You weren’t listening to me I have been calling and talking to you all morning”:George: “But hon! I couldn’t hear you amidst all that noise(not that I didn’t hear that she was calling but I was more focused on getting this chore ...

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“Breathes ” by C S

Submitted to Contest #76

“Sorry I’m late, mad day at work, I only just got on the 65…. the bloody driver tried to close the doors on me. But you know me, I stuck my arm in between those two closing doors and said ‘not today, driver’. He looked pretty startled thinking about it actually… obviously hasn’t been a bus driver for long if that shocked him…do you remember that time that we were on that bus, where was it… Ealing? No, No we were on the night bus home from Oxford Circus, do you remember? Oh we were howling when that little man took one step, tripped up and hi...

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“The Eighth Casualty” by Lance Griffin

Submitted to Contest #76

“Jeffrey Blair, the biology teacher, was the first one to die,” said Detective Cassie Ward thumbing over one of the pages of the stapled police report. “Yeah,” mumbled Jeremy Bullock, whose eyes were locked on the quarter rolling across his fingers. “Did you ever take his class?” “Yeah, last year,” Jeremy replied keeping the qua...

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“Listen to the Money” by David Taylor

Submitted to Contest #76

Las Cruces, NM June 9, 1996, 1:47 PM Red: So, let's say you get two choices: both of them lead to riches, but the amount is different for each and the way you get your wealth over time is different too. One path gets you $1,000 every hour on the hour, and the other path is worth $500 every 20 minutes. Which path are you taking? Darrell: A thousand every hour vs half that in a third of the time... Rosanna: Is there a time limit? Red: The time limit is when you die, so choose wisely. Luna: Oh good grief, it's another one of these? Re...

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“Missing family” by R F

Submitted to Contest #76

CARO: 'Dad? Dad, hi, it's me.' DAD: 'Oh, hi there, I'll just get your mum, she's in the loft.' CARO: 'No, wait! It's you I wanted to talk to.' DAD: 'Oh, right then. I'm fine, how are you?' CARO: 'Yeah. Alright. Um, except, I got... Mum's in the loft, you say?' DAD: 'Yep, she's putting the Christmas decorations away. I was just weatherproofing the gate, just popped in to get some more newspapers, don't want to again the paving, you see, so if you want to call back later when your mum's downstairs...’ CARO: ...

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“Christmas Online” by Susan Lynn Zenker

Submitted to Contest #76

In response to the prompt: “Write a story told exclusively through dialogue.” “Okay, everyone. We’re all here,” Amy Armstrong announced. “Thanks for agreeing to try out this platform.” Grannie Bee said, “Amy, you’re not on a platform, are you? You could fall and have to go to the ER and that would ruin your Christmas, plus you’d have to spend like nine hours waiting for a doctor...

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“Is the Camera On?” by Charlotte Pafk

Submitted to Contest #76

“Come on, Jay, we’re gonna be late!” “How can we be late, it’s only us.” “I – actually you’re right. Hmmm. Well, hurry up anyways!” “I’m coming, I’m coming don’t worry. Do you know where my coat is?” “It’s in my hand, I grabbed it already, just come on!” “Ok, ok, jeeze.” “Don’t forget the camera!” “Already in the car.” “Perfect, thanks Jay. You ready now?” “Yup, let’s get going. Do you want to stop for some coffee on the way there? It’s still pretty early.” “Hmm… I feel pretty awake, if you couldn’t tell, but, yeah, I’d like coffee. Where ar...

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“Pure BS” by Matt Edwards

Submitted to Contest #76

“Their art authentication team have pulled the pin on this one, and we can't argue with Sotheby's. It never occurred to me that we might get caught out with this, despite the fact that we've always bought and sold genuine works.” “But this is conceptual art here, not your timorous paintings of landscapes, vases of tulips, or portraits of well known acolytes, junkies and vagabonds.” “And? And? So what Priya?” “Laslo, Laslo, Laslo. Come on, think about it. You're good at this.....Correction, we're good at this, especially when we work to...

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$50

Prize money

787

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jan 15, 2021 EST

Won by Rinnie Leigh 🏆

Title: Him

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.

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