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!

#81: Candy Hearts

Ah, love. From the first spark of attraction to the soul-deep contentment of a long-established relationship, romantic love is a force that continues to mystify, enthrall, and surprise us.

 

And while there’s plenty to criticize about Valentine’s Day, it’s still a nice excuse for people in romantic relationships to stop and appreciate their partners for a day. Especially during lockdown, when quarters are tight and nerves are often frayed, it’s important to remember why we chose the person (or people) we coupled up with.

 

What better time for a writer to dive headfirst into romances? No matter how many times we tell a love story, each relationship is going to have its own unique joys and frustrations, and we want to feel them all. So feel free to let your sappy side out — this week we’re celebrating love!

This week's prompts

Write about two people reconnecting after a rough patch in their relationship.

Romance – 247 stories

Write a love story about an older couple who’ve been together since they were teenagers.

Romance – 168 stories

Write about a first date that surprises both people, but in different ways.

Romance – 161 stories

Start your story with one character setting up a romantic dinner, and end it with them looking at a framed wedding photo.

Romance – 181 stories

Write about someone asking out an old crush, only to realize their crush doesn’t remember they’ve ever met before.

Romance – 159 stories

Stories

“Maybe If I Was Different” by ℤ ℍ☮️

Submitted to Contest #81

Being popular was supposed to be fun. Guilt wrapped around my throat, I fiddled nervously with the collar of my shirt. What if the school thought this wasn't a joke? That I liked him. The doorbell was yellow and flower-shaped. My finger hovered over it for a bit, I thought about the excitement on his face when I said yes to the date. I thought about every compliment he'd ever paid me. Then I pushed it. I heard a soft chime of the doorbell. I heard a few hurried footsteps and the door opened. He was wearing a sharp white blouse that looked vi...

5 comments 5
Read story

“Appaloosa” by Holly Fister

Submitted to Contest #81

Silky blonde strands whipped around a gently freckled face, momentarily blocking dark blue eyes before leaping into another wild dance. Long, slender fingers reached for the door handle, alighted, then retreated.“Don’t rock the boat,” she said out loud, hand hovering midway between her body and the restaurant door. “No, you should jump out of the boat. Go swimming!”Someone sighed behind her. “You can do it, sweetie,” said an older woman.“Oh, right. Sorry.” She grabbed the handle and swung the door open with gusto, stepping int...

3 comments 3
Read story

“Half Empty ” by Zach Knight

Submitted to Contest #81

" Your not serious.. are you?" I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. It's not everyday you get a message in your Instagram dms from a stranger telling you that your significant other cheated on you. As any normal human, I was very suspicious. I mean after all, this person didn't even have a profile picture, it was default. But as much as I wanted to ignore it, it was strangely too straight forward to be a joke. " Your girlfriend Hannah cheated on you.. with me." the text message read. I stared at it for a while, letting it seep in to m...

1 comment 1
Read story

“Don't Let Go Arthur” by Adam Wan

Submitted to Contest #81

“I met her in the dark,” said the old man, his voice quivering and his lids fluttering fragilely. “And you know… she lit me up…” The old man looked up at last, looking at the boy in the eyes, “She made me feel like I was enough…” He came into the party, his spirits lying low, and his feelings neutral to a certain key. When he entered, the music and the beat sounded, the muffled sounds bumping at the waters of his heart. Boom, boom, the muffled beats sounded. Boom, boom, they sounded, on and on as the people around danced and moved, holdin...

2 comments 2
Read story

“Framed Forever” by CHIONCHA RK

Submitted to Contest #81

Manish had been doing summer jobs and saving up for this , he wanted to make it special for her, as she had made his life special .A rush in his veins , nervousness which he hid with immense confidence and a knot in his stomach, as he bought this gift for his young love, a set of gold earrings. He wanted to give his first love, Ayesha, a little surprise on her birthday.He spent hours finding the perfect spot for the candlelit dinner where he will present her his token of love and finally decided to set it up on his terrace. He decided he wil...

0 comments 0
Read story

“Madoona Connection” by Philip Ebuluofor

Submitted to Contest #81

It was a way of life of people called igbo's in olden days, and over here, olden days means from 1970 backwards. 90 percent of the population was concentrated in rural areas and their life was a routine, the same things, the same process everyday. You woke up in the morning, you sweep your compound, tidy your kitchen, fetch water water, go to farm return around 5 and 4 pm, prepare night food and then go for 'Tale by Moonlight' at the village square or any other minor gathering square in your kindred.  One interesting thing...

1 comment 1
Read story

“Pink & Blue ” by Nikita Linivenko

Submitted to Contest #81

Felix goes by Felicia now. They pumped his chest with silicone or something, though they bounce natural enough. Maybe they got something more natural now. I make a note to ask him later. He still has his John Holmes though, thank God, like two coke cans stacked together. We’d sometimes hang after school and I’d fantasize about doing to him what those two blokes did to Joey Lauren Adams in Chasing Amy that got Ben Affleck all bent outta shape. It’s been half a decade, but when I saw him at the mall last week, I thought, eh, fuckit.  As f...

9 comments 9
Read story

“Before Dinner Gets Warm” by Chris D

Submitted to Contest #81

Why is it that whenever you're trying to rush, because you spent too much time giving yourself a pep talk in the mirror, that's when the thing you need most goes missing? He knows there is a box of matches somewhere in this apartment. He has used them for every birthday cake for the last ten years. It isn't that often he lights things on fire. They should be right in this drawer. His roommate's lighter is sitting on the table. It refuses to spark. There has to be something, because he has to light these candles. It's not a fancy Valentine's ...

2 comments 2
Read story

“A Friendship Rebound by Letters” by Cassia Savage

Submitted to Contest #81

Note: the storyline is nonfiction. The ending, where Ver and Cassia remain friends - and Ver’s explanation, is not completely true, but it is in progress (I’m not sure if Ver’s excuse is true, I honestly have no idea). They did not write letters to each other in real life, and the names are fiction. As you may have guessed, Cassia is me and if you read my bio, Ver is my chess and writing friend. Ver,    Whenever you smiled at me it made me love you more. But now, when you smile at me it feels like a smirk. And it makes m...

2 comments 2
Read story

“Sober” by Gerald Daniels

Submitted to Contest #81

               I woke before dawn, opened my eyes to the blackness and sighed out the remains of a dream that was already slipping away. The darkness slowly turned to a murky blue and I focused on a circle of damp plaster on the ceiling above my bed. A shaft of light seeped around the edge of the window blind and lit a slither of carpet that extended to the end of wardrobe. I watched two flies gyrate slowly around the naked light bulb until it became bright enough for...

2 comments 2
Read story

“Stood Up” by Alex Carmen

Submitted to Contest #81

I check my phone for the third time. Randy should be here by now, this is the third time he missed a date. The first two times I understood, his mom needed him and then his cousin needed him, but this time he promised me that he would be here.  It was our anniversary for God’s sake, why would he miss one of the most important days of our relationship? The tiny pessimistic voice in the back of my head whispered, Maybe he’s cheating on you. Maybe he doesn’t want you anymore and found another person. I shoved those thoughts away, trying t...

13 comments 13
Read story

“Dinner For Champions” by Johan Rosenblad

Submitted to Contest #81

Start by making the topping, mashing two avocados and an equal amount of vegan creme fraiche in a mixer together with vinegar, garlic, ginger, cilantro and salt. Finely chop one red chilli pepper and one to two shallots and stir it into the mixture. Let it rest in the fridge. Make a batter from a mixture of wheat flour, boiled potatoes, beer and yeast. The batter should be thick as a sponge cake batter. Let it rise until bubbles are visible. Heat up lots of oil in a frying pan, pour your batter into the oil, making sure it spreads out nice a...

3 comments 3
Read story

“REMEMBRANCE OF THINGS PAST” by Sivaram Govindaraj

Submitted to Contest #81

I am Paul Harvey, a retired Brigadier of the Indian Army. I am becoming 75 and the date coincides with my 50th wedding anniversary. How do I look? I am very tall, fair, bald and with a big moustache which has also greyed. Besides I’ve become a bit paunchy. I had told my wife Nancy that our 50th wedding- cum-75th birthday should be observed very quietly at home. Nancy was also one who disliked publicity and she agreed. She had decided the menu with me and the dinner for two was delivered at my place. The cake had been delivered earlier. I had...

0 comments 0
Read story

“Coffee Date” by BT Black

Submitted to Contest #81

       It was 7:05 pm when I added the finishing touches, straightening the two white cloth placemats on the tiny café table and standing back to evaluate my work.  The two weathered wooden chairs were pushed in neatly facing each other, and the table was adorned with a small electric candle that I had ordered online, and a mason jar with a single pink rose that I had plucked from my neighbor’s front garden on my way to work.  The coffee shop sat on the corner of Main street and Broadway...

1 comment 1
Read story

“I need you, I want you, I love you” by Britt Michielsen

Submitted to Contest #81

“I really thought our date was going to be a bit more fancy”, I say with a smirk on my face, looking at the ground. There’s a red and white blanket covering the grass, two plates and a big pizza on top of it. “Oh, don’t act like you don’t love it because I know for a fact that you do,” he says back to me and I roll my eyes. I’m a pretty simple girl, so I actually like this way better than going out to dinner in a fancy restaurant. But obviously, I’m not going to tell him that. I’m kind of curious though. Was it just a lucky guess, or did he ...

1 comment 1
Read story

$50

Prize money

916

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 19, 2021 EST

Won by Molly Quinnell 🏆

Title: Golden Cheekbones and the Rising Sun

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!

Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

Join our weekly contest

Get 5 new writing prompts every Friday. Write and submit a story for a chance to win $250.

NEW VIDEO COURSE 🎉

How to Write a Novel

Join Tom Bromley for a writing master class and finish your first draft in 3 months. Learn more →

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 ⭢

Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

Join our weekly contest

Get 5 new writing prompts every Friday. Write and submit a story for a chance to win $250.