Menu

Prompts

Contests

Stories

Blog

Menu

✕

CONNECT

Editing Design Marketing Publicity Ghostwriting Websites

BLOG

Success Stories

APPS

TOOLS

Book Promotion Sites Book Review Blogs Booktube Channel Guide Book Title Generator Character Name Generator Independent Publishers Literary Agents Literary Magazines Pen Name Generator Plot Generator Publishers Directory Short Story Ideas Writing Contests Writing Exercises Writing Scholarships

ABOUT

About Reedsy Terms Privacy

CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#78: Keeping Busy

I’ve noticed that hobbies often get overlooked in fiction. Unless it plays a major role in the plot, many main characters don’t even get a hobby — supporting characters, even less often. Yet hobbies are an important part of many people’s lives, especially in lockdown. They’re the things we bond with our friends over, the pastimes that refresh our spirits over the weekend, and the activities that give us some of our greatest joy.

So this week, hobbies are going to take center stage. From mainstream to obscure, let’s analyze our character’s most interesting quirks and explore the many things they can obsess over!

This week's prompts

Start your story with one character trying to convince another to take up their favorite hobby.

Fluff – 177 stories

Write about someone who keeps an unusual animal as a pet.

Teens – 178 stories

Write about someone who still practices a skill that used to be necessary but has long since been replaced by technology.

Fiction – 133 stories

Set your story at a convention for a hobby most people have never heard of.

Fluff – 70 stories

Write about someone who keeps picking up different hobbies but never manages to stick with them.

Character – 176 stories

Stories

“Enter the Dragon” by Horrendous Pegasus

Submitted to Contest #78

Well, shoot, this was a bad idea.Dating Mariah was nice, don’t get me wrong. We ended up getting paired in one of the more common ways- by mutual friends. You know, the pairs that think their single friends are pining away for a partner, but are too dumb to find one, so they take it on themselves to find them one?I beg to differ. I was not looking for someone anyway. But of course, I digress.Mariah and I had met downtown at the cafe for a quick bit of coffee. Maybe it was the caffeine, or maybe it was her pretty smile and the way her dimples...

Read story

“The Magic Dragon” by Joyce Laird

Submitted to Contest #78

The Magic Dragon When my best friend Rosemary/Rosie Lawrence got Freddy, he was about six inches long and probably weighed in at only a few ounces. When he passed away ten years later, he was six feet long and weighed in at well over thirty pounds. He was the love of her life. His remains rest in a silver jar on her mantle to this day. If she was your friend, you got used to Freddy. I’d often visit f...

Read story

“neighbor” by Jerrit Montgomery

Submitted to Contest #78

Written By Jerrit Montgomery my mind is racing pass thoughts of old friends in school neighborhood the old life im living behind as my dad drive on a long journey from one state to another state to live our new life in Louisiana not long after passing the welcome to Baton Rouge Louisiana we pulled up in front of a large white house my mom and dad gave me the door key while they stay back to loosing up the luggage as i walked into our new yard i notice the big old house next door with the strange looking little boy walking towards the backyar...

Read story

“What's in the box?” by Steven Allen

Submitted to Contest #78

“After my depression, I decided to do something to cheer myself up so I contacted my friend, Shrejonna. She deals with exotic items collected from all over the planet.” Dr. Hucheniff leaned back in his chair and examined Terra a bit before responding. I’m glad that you’re finally trying new things Terra, but we talked about Shrejonna in previous sessions. Isn’t she exactly the kind of company that you are trying to avoid?” ...

Read story

“The unusual passenger” by NK Hatendi

Submitted to Contest #78

The bus terminus by the Market Square was swarming with people exerting pressure as they tried to board the remaining rural buses before it was too late to embark on long-distance journeys. Some had decided last minute they were not staying in town and instead would join their families for Easter. As the travellers got more rowdy and agitated, bus drivers revved their engines to attract attention, under the pretence they were on the move. It was a typical African market scene with vendors weaving their way in and out among the vehicles belch...

Read story

“That's No Dog” by Xavier Gomez

Submitted to Contest #78

Zach was a self-identifying bachelor. He liked to find dates online, have some fun, and never speak to them again. Tonight’s date, Ella, was everything he looked for in a woman. Tall, thin, and dumb. The two decided to meet up at a popular restaurant that he insisted on paying for. The two talked over a bottle of wine, but he hadn’t cared to listen to what she had been saying. After a good meal and a few glasses later, Zach proposed they continued back at her place. “Sounds fun, but there’s just one thing,” Ella said hesitantly. “My dog ...

Read story

“An Unordinary Neighbor” by Shayla Linden

Submitted to Contest #78

Skritch, scratch, Skritch, scratch…. It’s three A.M., and I know I should be sleeping. So why am I laying in bed staring at the popcorn ceiling, eyes wide and no closer to feeling drowsy? Skritch, scratch, Skritch, scratch…. I sit up suddenly in my bed and listen intently to the noise outside my door. I count the seconds of silence in my head, like you would do after hearing thunder. Five seconds go by, and I don’t hear a thing. I can see the light under the door frame flickering inconsistently. This old apartment building is so worn down I ...

Read story

“One Tenth the Woman” by Laura Fanning

Submitted to Contest #78

One Tenth the Woman Ted talked about his boa incessantly. He named her “Isabelle”, which sounded ridiculous to me but then my naming skills generally extend to calling snakes “Snaky”. I’m not a fan of snakes in general. I’m not afraid of them, I used to be but then I ‘scared straight’ myself out of that when I was in high school. My boyfriend Mark and I used to go to the Zoo in L.A. several times a week. The reptile house there is really impressive, twisty, warm and dark. I’m leaving out an important part of this self-designed therapy...

Read story

“I Illegally Bought a Phrmithisis” by Emily Joao

Submitted to Contest #78

“Lilly!” “Yes?!” I blurted out over the shattering of dust-covered tea pots and thumping of overturned chairs. I crawled out from underneath the counter with dust coating the palms of my hands and knees of my pants. A few seconds later, when my head shot up to see who had called my name, I felt an intense shock of pain surge through my skull as I slammed the back of my head at the edge of the counter. “Shit!” I snapped, holding the back of my head, and leaning back on my knees as the pain pri...

Read story

“A pet by another name” by Jose Gonzalez

Submitted to Contest #78

Daniel jasper was a bratty kid. You know the type always got we he wanted. No need to ask or say please he said it and poof it magically appear he saw a documentary on afghanistan next day he was visiting the country. Now in his 20s nothing has changed he does what he pleases and he answers to no one. He does not work does not have to he is still spending daddy's money. He was into exotic animals so every year he got something new but the problem was he got bored quick. He got a giraffe for his 10th birthday and a week later sold it on eba...

Read story

“The Human Pet” by Shlomo Reuben

Submitted to Contest #78

*** [Narration Block Start] ***The claws penetrated through the evil black dragon’s thick scales, spilling out black ooze from its long neck, rupturing the spine. Shelamo held himself, watching his fierce archenemy fall through the sky, miles away to meet its final destiny. No sooner had Shelamo triumphed, the full force of another gigantic beast reached from above, its wings held close in, to intercept with a head-on collision. The red and gold intermingled, diving together as one big lump of meat and scales. The world spun around, as the r...

Read story

“Norman” by Martin Buckell

Submitted to Contest #78

Celia Buckwheat spent the evenings stroking her pet snail Norman. Norman was no ordinary snail, not like your average garden snail, he was a giant snail, the size of a large dinner plate. His natural habitat was in the tropics but now Norman found himself in a suburban two-bed semi just south of Derby. &nbs...

Read story

“Apex” by Sundance Lee

Submitted to Contest #78

I’ve never longed for most companionship, people annoyed me. Was it intentional? More than likely. When I say intentional, I don’t mean those that have tried to befriend me or women that have found me attractive enough to date. I am particularly speaking of myself. Navigating the world was quite difficult for me, in 2019 the whole nuance of friendships, social media was a headache. I could personally go on and on rolling into a monologue of how detrimental social media has been to human existence and how society has also benefited f...

Read story

“Forever Penned” by Madison Perte

Submitted to Contest #78

The about section on her hinge profile prompted the response to, “What’s the dorkiest thing about you?” Her response, “I collect stamps. I love writing letters, handwritten letters, and sending mail. Greeting cards. I’m obsessed with cards, so much I have a box full of blank cards for any and every occasion that I don’t want to write in and ruin, and they’re too good to send anyone for fear that I won’t find one just like it after it’s gone. I do send some if you’re special enough though.” It is a dorky quality she possesses, but she’s proud...

Read story

“A Dino That Typed” by Dalia Navarez

Submitted to Contest #78

January 28, 2021 The final analysis and data reports had been turned into Professor Curton, and the printer stirred quietly as the warm packets of his recent studies popped out one by one. His presentation tomorrow would be concerning the middle and high school proportion of the town, hoping to end the growing anxiety for some adolescents of the new generation. The new technology gave him blisters to maneuver as his freakish nails kept getting stuck in between each of the keys. After finishing his PowerPoint, and unle...

Read story

Load more stories

$50

Prize money

735

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jan 29, 2021 EST

Won by Christina Marie 🏆

Title: Life's Leftovers

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!

Explore more writing prompt ideas:

Adults Writing Prompts ⭢

Adventure Writing Prompts ⭢

Angst Writing Prompts ⭢

Character Writing Prompts ⭢

Christmas Writing Prompts ⭢

Dark Writing Prompts ⭢

Dialogue Writing Prompts ⭢

Dramatic Writing Prompts ⭢

Dystopian Writing Prompts ⭢

Fall Writing Prompts ⭢

Fantasy Writing Prompts ⭢

Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Fluff Writing Prompts ⭢

Funny Writing Prompts ⭢

Halloween Writing Prompts ⭢

High School Writing Prompts ⭢

Historical Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Holiday Writing Prompts ⭢

Horror Writing Prompts ⭢

Kids Writing Prompts ⭢

Middle School Writing Prompts ⭢

Mystery Writing Prompts ⭢

Narrative Writing Prompts ⭢

Nonfiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Novel Writing Prompts ⭢

Poetry Writing Prompts ⭢

Romance Writing Prompts ⭢

Sad Writing Prompts ⭢

Science Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Short Story Writing Prompts ⭢

Spring Writing Prompts ⭢

Summer Writing Prompts ⭢

Teens Writing Prompts ⭢

Thanksgiving Writing Prompts ⭢

Thriller and Suspense Writing Prompts ⭢

Valentine's Day Writing Prompts ⭢

Vampire Writing Prompts ⭢

Winter Writing Prompts ⭢