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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#77: Snow Day

It’s deep into winter where I live and here that means one thing: snow, and plenty of it.

While I’m not the biggest fan, even I will admit that it makes great writing weather. There’s just something cozy about curling up with a blanket and a cup of tea, and losing yourself in the world of your imagination as flakes drift slowly past your window.

We won’t all be writing under those conditions this week, but we can still evoke that feeling. So grab yourself a mug of something warm, snuggle up with your laptop, and dream of the bite of winter wind on your cheeks…

This week's prompts

Write about two people going sledding for the first time in many years.

Fluff – 130 stories

Start your story with someone looking out at the snow, and end it with them stepping tentatively onto a frozen surface.

Winter – 233 stories

Write about someone who gets stuck in their workplace during a blizzard and decides to explore rooms they aren’t normally allowed in.

Winter – 162 stories

Write a story set in the summer, when suddenly it starts to snow.

Summer – 159 stories

Set your story in a remote winter cabin with no electricity, internet, or phone service.

Winter – 246 stories

Stories

“After All” by Mazie Gray

Submitted to Contest #77

Brooke's Note: Yay! My first story ever! I hope you enjoy it! Thanks! :D “This place is nice, but I can’t believe that we have zero electricity or phone service or... or the internet. What are we going to do about the bathroom? Yuck! And what if my phone goes dead?! I won’t be able to do anything! I already can’t call or text or use some of my apps!” Kaeda whined. Dora rolled her eyes as she tossed her overnight bag on the couch. Esther made a pfft noise with her mouth while she rummaged through the cupboards....

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“The Moon and Her Brother” by Kelly Ellen

Submitted to Contest #77

The smell of pork and dumplings fill my nostrils and make me audibly groan in hunger. The rice is steaming in the corner of the small kitchen covered in beige walls and family photos. Even after 19 years I am still just as eager to allow the rich scent of traditional China to surround and comfort me. I have to remember this solace every evening when the rush starts. Working in a restaurant in Hong Kong is not for the weak. My parents own it and one day it will be mine, so I am hard at work now to ensure I can carry on the trade. On top of...

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“Snow of Rubies” by Zahra Daya

Submitted to Contest #77

TW: suicide The room spins round and round, getting blurrier by the second as he twirls me around and around. I clutch on tighter, the potential momentum making me feel like he could hurl me into outer space. I shake my head—there’s no reason for why he would want to do that. His hands shift to my waist, both of our socks slipping and sliding on the polished wooden floor of our cabin. A modern cabin maybe—save for the electricity or WiFi. Our phones lay forgotten by the mess of sheets on the floor. He had offered to sleep on the floor last n...

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“Pirouette” by David G.

Submitted to Contest #77

It takes a discerning eye to see the difference between ground and sky, to make out the thin horizon, to distinguish between the shades of white and off white and pale grey, to locate the subtle break where the frozen lake meets the snowy banks and then bleeds into the featureless, uninterrupted clouds. The eye of someone who has grown up in northern Minnesota or some similar place where winter descends in late-September and holds tight until early-May, if you’re lucky. I used to be that person with that eye. Now I stand on the brink, disori...

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“Keep The Secret ” by Pika Okoye

Submitted to Contest #77

"Urgent Announcement: Hi, Caroline Autumn here, Chicago is expecting to undergo a snowstorm in the next 4 hours, hence we are closing the factory at its current position, resuming the daily production. As our first priority is our workers' safety. And we hope you all will reach your destinations safely. Thanks for your cooperation. Stay safe." - Caroline After announcing that, Caroline started instructing the men to switch off every single machine and shut the factory immediately, while climbing down the stairs. "Caroline…" - Rhett c...

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“The Great Ice Storm of '98” by Trina Ann Pion 🍀🌹🍀

Submitted to Contest #77

I never wondered what it’d be like to die in a wooden box—but thanks to a historic ice storm, I almost found out. The sparse log cabin belonged to my cousin, Onyehte, who lived in Kanesatake, on Cree Road. Built tucked away on the edge of a modest forest, the cabin bordered a field that stretched on for what seemed like forever in the January snow. “I’m always at my girlfriend’s in the village anyway, Skylar. Come. You can use my cabin,” he said when he heard I needed a quiet place to finish writing my manuscript. My unem...

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“A Dream within a Dream” by Tim Law

Submitted to Contest #77

The sun was shining, another glorious day. Boon busied herself with rolling up her sleeping mat, tidying her living space and making a far greater mess out of whatever lay about left over from the dimly recalled night before. Dressed in leggings and a shorter sleeved pullover, ready for a delightful venture forth into the great outdoors the pretty young gnome with a childish eagerness took hold of the knob of her portal and thrust the door wide open. Upon her first step Boon heard the distinct crunch of fresh snow, the mere action of transgr...

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“Suicide Hill” by John K Adams

Submitted to Contest #77

The clouds parted to reveal a vast snow covered landscape. Eddie squinted as the sun shone on the brilliant snow clad plains. He had mixed feelings about snow. ‘Beautiful to look at, but it might kill you.’ The jet began its descent. ‘I’m almost there,’ he thought. It had been decades. He wondered if he would surprise his sister, Michelle. The plane landed without incident. Eddie retrieved his luggage and caught a cab to Michelle’s house. She opened the door before he knocked. “Eddie!” He caught her as she threw herself into his embrace. T...

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“Fire Gone, Ice Will Come” by Svara Narasiah

Submitted to Contest #77

It's 2052, and the world is breaking. We were warned. And did we listen? No, we did not. Scientists have been telling us for decades about the dangers that our planet is facing. Global warming, poaching, factory farming, pollution... the list goes on and on. If I were to list out all of our problems, I would be sitting here until my eightieth birthday. I don't have that long. It was only on July 13th, Sunday, 2052, when I truly understood how urgent the situation was. My name is Alexandra Justice, and this is my story. *** It...

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“IUSTITIA NIX” by Michael Boquet

Submitted to Contest #77

"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Kid Quarterstaff asked."Well, I'm trying to decrypt the directions from a secure message, using only a pencil and paper, and writing on the dashboard of tricked out RV. I'm good at math, but these are not the best conditions for trigonometric decoding," Miller's Son said, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. "So, no. I'm not sure if we're going the right way.""Why don't you just use the car-phone and call them?" Will Stoutly asked."It's a secret safe house in the middle of nowhere. No phone...

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“The Girl Behind The Painting” by Thistle Arellano

Submitted to Contest #77

It was around one in the afternoon when the lights went out. Of course, that wasn’t the strangest thing about that day. After what had already happened, the power going out was almost expected. It was the middle of the summer, and I was falling asleep in class. I had completed geometry the previous year and was taking summer classes to try to skip precalculus. It wasn’t my decision, but my guidance counselor had thought it would be good for me, so here I was, wasting my summer away, sitting in a sweltering hot room with very ...

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“Locus” by Nimra Savanghan

Submitted to Contest #77

LocusI wake up in a daze, unsure where I am.My gaze meets a desktop computer with an unfinished transcript. I squint at the words and recall working on an article due tomorrow morning. My desk calender confirms it, because I have circled the 12th of December 2008 with a red marker. I yawn and stretch. I wonder if there is anyone else working late.I check my blackberry and notice several blizzard warnings. Tania who handles the weather news at Fortuity media has sent me a personal email asking me to stay safe in office because ...

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“Old Money” by Nyla N

Submitted to Contest #77

I turn the rusty, antique knob to the heavy, mahogany door, noticing the intricate engravings. I remember Percy telling me about the door, it was a "gift from an international colleague". Another colleague I’ve never met. Amin told me I was crazy for trusting him. He said “men will be men Amara, he’s cheating on you. You’ve never even visited his workplace.” Amin's a great brother, however at times, he can somewhat overbearing. It's not his fault, he's used to it. Our parents passed away when he was 12 and I was 5. He's raised me ever since....

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“Hidden in Plain Sight” by Philip Clayberg

Submitted to Contest #77

When I was 13, my parents and I spent our first winter vacation away from the Mid-Atlantic. We decided to drive north to the Adirondack's in update New York State, exchanging suburban sprawl for frozen lakes and rivers, as well as snow-covered mountains and woods.At first, I was a little nervous being out in the open, away from the hustle and bustle I'd grown up in. I think it's called agoraphobia. It took some doing, but I eventually overcame it and found myself enjoying learning new things: skiing, sledding, tobogganing, and ice skating. T...

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“Proof Positive” by Philip Clayberg

Submitted to Contest #77

Deep in the wilderness of northern Alaska, a float plane descended toward a barely visible snow-covered field. It landed, leaving twin tracks behind it that were already being covered by new snow. On either side of them stood stretches of evergreen forest. Above, the dark sky was filled with stars and the green curtain of the Aurora Borealis. “Welcome to the Northern Slope,” the pilot told their two bundled-up passengers. “If you get lost,” he added, pointing upward, “that brightest star is the North Star.” “Where is the cabin?” one pass...

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$50

Prize money

930

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jan 22, 2021 EST

Won by K. Antonio 🏆

Title: Burying David

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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