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Write about someone who still practices a skill that used to be necessary but has long since been replaced by technology.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

“Cowgirl Carter” by YMK -

Submitted to Contest #78

“If I see his face in the crowd, I swear to God, I will straight up puke on stage.” Carter is trying his hardest not to feel ashamed. It’s the story of his life, really. He's on the verge of hyperventilation and trying his damn hardest not to let the presence of a single person make this day any different. He came to win, dammit! He came with the intention of getting a massive trophy, and no one will get between him and that humongous piece of metal... Or so he tries to convince himself. Blake doesn’t even bother looking up at him from h...

Read story

“Shelly” by Tanvi Tj

Submitted to Contest #78

Mr Peter Knowhim was a man in his early thirties, earlier he used to be hemmed in by people always when he had wealth and all the comforts of a gratifying estate but rapidly he grew a vile manner of gambling and gave up all his wealth in it. All his associates had turned their backs when he had lost everything, but he sold his mansion and purchased a cosy flat on the Royal field Avenue now he was getting along a fresh life but it was lonesome for him as it was just him and his tragic thoughts of the past and he grew sober in those dreadful n...

Read story

“Exotic Farm” by Kay (:

Submitted to Contest #78

I own a farm in the countryside of California, some might say what I have on my property may seem weird and unusual. Some may even say it’s a zoo, I admit, the animals I have are exoctic. I have zebras, ostrich’s, camels, and wolf dogs. I know this sounds absurd but it’s true, I have a small herd of zebras, a couple ostriches, two camels and three wolf dogs. People always ask me why do I have all these animals, I’m never sure how to answer this. When I first moved to my farm I was intending on making it a dairy farm. I had a friend in...

Read story

“Henry Bell's Campaign For Mayor” by Meggy House

Submitted to Contest #78

“Remember, class,” the teacher stated gently. Her voice was like the flaps of a butterfly: quiet, uneventful, and only listened to because the students feared anything above a whisper would crack her in half. “Elections are not a popularity contest. Vote for the friend that you think has been the kindest, most-upstanding citizen.” Henry Bell had lots of friends—he was friendly, at the very least, with everybody i...

Read story

“Deliberately Anachronistic” by Philip Clayberg

Submitted to Contest #78

The smell of tannin was strong in my nostrils. My great-granddaughter's more refined nostrils probably found it far more unpleasant than mine did. I opened the front door, letting in fresh air. “Great-grandfather, why do you even bother when there are machines that can do what you do?” she asked in frustration. And not for the first time, either. I shrugged. “Maybe I prefer to do it for myself. Even if it means deliberately being an anachronism in this day and age.” I turned over the uneven square of tanned leather, checking it for imper...

Read story

“Nothing Into Everything” by Carrie S.

Submitted to Contest #78

I am the queen of almost. I almost became a professional dancer. I almost played basketball on Junior Varsity. I almost made art my career. But obviously, those things never happened. Why? Because I never make things happen. I mean, I study every day. I almost made prom queen. But 1) I'm just not popular enough, and 2) I never make anything. It's always almost. I have to put up with things like my parents saying, "Great job, honey! You almost won!" They know it's not good. They know I'm not good enough. But whatever. You learn to deal with t...

Read story

“Hey There Delilah” by Lisa D

Submitted to Contest #78

I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her into my lap. “Please? For me?”I gently strummed the guitar that rested in my other arm. I was trying to convince her to sing as I played, but as per usual, she was being stubborn. As much as I pleaded with her, she never wanted to sing in front of others, not even me. She had always been a bit bashful and reserved, but it was another thing I loved about her. She was mine. Nobody would ever see her the way I did, no one would ever see how she truly was, behind the walls she put up to hide f...

Read story

“Inked” by Nandini Sharma

Submitted to Contest #78

“Letters, they used to be necessary.” I said as I flipped another page of my copy of Pride and Prejudice. I was curled up in my blanket burrito and relishing my hot coffee with the ideal downpour that I witnessed through the little window in my room. It was almost as if mother nature gave me a surprise. The usual site of sunlight penetration became the bearer of mist and petrichor. Plus, rain in January in India is utterly contrary to what one would expect of the weather. At that point, learning HOW TO WRITE A FORMAL OR INFORMAL LETTER ...

Read story

“That Dragon has Attitude” by Louise Bell

Submitted to Contest #78

It came in a cardboard box. It came in a cardboard box stuffed with foam and bubble wrap. It was green. It was scaly. And, obviously, it breathed fire on Mum’s favourite rug (well, what do you expect?). It might have been a dragon. Or, as my sister, Louane, said, ‘that’s one messed-up gecko’ before putting her air pods back in her ears. I bet it’s a dragon. I mean, even a really messed-up gecko can’t be that messed up. I’m Darren by the way. I’m twelve, with crazy black hair (rather snazzy if I do say so myself) and mis-matched eyes. Well, ...

Read story

“Just me rambling” by Naduni De Silva

Submitted to Contest #78

Do you just realise that you have thousands of hobbies but you just never like one specifically out of the others?? i mean i'm a person like that. i love reading novels till midnight with a cup of warm coffee in my hand with a blanket covering me. i love drawing anime that every time i start to draw i get scolded by my mom because she hates anime. i love writing stories that i have so many unfinished ones stacked up in my cupboard. i love cooking but i get bored with it really soon. like i mean i have so many hobbies that i honestly love but...

Read story

“The Open Road Before Us” by Valerie June

Submitted to Contest #78

“Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open road, Healthy, free, the world before me, The long brown path before me leading wherever I choose.” -Walt Whitman Mountains of words. Valleys of sentences. Rivers and lakes full of alphabet fish. Meadows overflowing with paragraphs. I’ve always noticed these things, but I’ve had no one to share them with. That’s probably because I traveled too much due to my father’s job. Fun fact, I’ve never stayed in the same state for an entire year. I wasn't complaining though because I liked my life a whol...

Read story

“Everything and Nothing” by Iona Cottle

Submitted to Contest #78

It started with football. It was something that all the kids did, and Mia was no exception. She’d gone to the club every Saturday for two months, until one Saturday morning she refused to put her boots on and sulked under her bed until her father gave up. When her brother came back from practise Mia said nothing about it, carrying on as though she’d never pestered her parents to let her go in the first place. Dropping in and out of extra-curricular activities was part and parcel of growing up in the schools Mia went to, and each year, term...

Read story

“Diana's Life Tips #34: Don't Skip School to Chase Supernatural Dogs” by Lily Kingston

Submitted to Contest #78

Diana’s eyes fixated on the blurry shadow of a dog around the corner made of lockers. It was near the end of the fifth period. The hallways were empty—and perfect for confronting whatever supernatural creature was beyond that corner. She had bet Owen from her AP Bio class that it was the ghost of whatever they’ve been dissecting. Taking a step forward, Diana could already feel that cold, crisp five dollar bill in her hand. And even better, if this was that scoop that finally got her a serious article in the school’s paper, hearing Rachel W...

Read story

“Element Catching” by Lily Rebecca 🐰🐾

Submitted to Contest #78

Elsie Nightingale. The daughter of Florence Nightingale. Could she sing? You may ask, well no she cannot sing. Her voice is like a cat's chorus. Her mother disowned her and she was adopted. Her foster parents persuaded her to try new things to take her mind off not being able to sing. She took up element collecting. As a magical elf, she collects the elements of the earth and turns them into beauty products. Her latest one is called an earth face mask, and it is made from earth, infused with magical bubbles and plants, to clear up people's s...

Read story

“They Do Exist!” by Debbie Teague

Submitted to Contest #78

Jason was amazed to find out that there were so many people who collected the same thing as he did – the revered page eleven. He didn’t even know there was an actual name for people like him – partial completists. It felt good to belong to a group. Completists collect whole books, partial completists only a specific page. He had only been collecting for about a year so only had a few hundred pieces while others he talked to at the convention had collections numbering in the thousands. Jason had saved for eleven weeks...

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 ⭢