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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#82: How App-ropriate

Love it or loathe it, there’s no denying that modern technology has reshaped literally every aspect of our daily lives. From the way we stay in touch with family and friends, to the ready access of information (or misinformation), to how we work and then spend our hard-earned cash, there’s no part of modern life that isn’t impacted by technology.

And it’s safe to say the advancement of tech is only accelerating. But while some characters welcome — or even help usher in — this changing world, others won’t be so accepting. This week, let’s take a look at some of the highs and lows of a world run by algorithms.

This week's prompts

Write about a technophobe who’s been given a device to solve a problem they’ve struggled with for years, but isn't sure how they feel about it.

Character – 95 stories

Your character has just realized the app they’ve been developing has become self-aware. How do they react?

Science Fiction – 74 stories

Write a historical fiction story about someone working at a company that helped revolutionize early computers.

Historical Fiction – 17 stories

Write a near-future thriller where a piece of everyday technology has turned against your character — and only your character.

Thriller and Suspense – 130 stories

Write about an android just trying to blend in with their human companions.

Science Fiction – 221 stories

Stories

“Singularity ” by Cullen Marshall

Submitted to Contest #82

Slightly satisfied, defiantly exausted, still wondering about the state of his mind. Peter sat back, his battered old office chair flexed impossibly without breaking and refused to die. 'When was the last time I saw daylight or drank water... did I lock the door...was the cat out... are these delusions getting louder'? He creeked standing up, knees popped moving again after having been still for too long. He thought about maybe getting some rest. 'Naaaaa' he said aloud I'm up now he thought, trundling away from the screen in unparalleled mov...

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“Clammy, The Paper Clip” by Florian Wolf

Submitted to Contest #82

"Hey, welcome! I am so happy that you are around!" Clammy's text appeared on the screen."The design is good, and the bubbles make it looks like it is talking to you. I just wonder, aren't speech bubbles and a picture of it a bit too much?" One of the guys from the development asked me, his manager."I would have agreed with you if it wouldn't be for one thing: The picture is of a paper clip. It reminds people of another famous paper clip; this is retro; this is prime meme material. We ride to the top on social media shitposts." I ex...

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“Echoes of You” by K. Graves

Submitted to Contest #82

I won’t apologise for not answering your calls, this was more important. I needed to tell you this. To show you what I’ve done. To prove my life wasn’t wasted, regardless of what you might think. I found the laptop when looking through our old rooms, which I suppose have become my old rooms now. I had forgotten I’d even owned it. My father had just died, I lost my faith in God, I met you; other things seemed more important. It was in the spare room, not the blue one, the pink one, the one you always hated. With its too close together wal...

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“The iHeal Reveal” by Teresa Manuszak

Submitted to Contest #82

The diagram was complete. Ronald had created the perfect chart of the human body. He just knew that the iHeal was going to be the most groundbreaking invention in human history. Ronald had always dreamed of finding a way to cure people. Life with a chronic condition was a hard life, and he knew it firsthand. The last 20 years of his life had been devoted to aiding his wheelchair-bound brother. Mike had been hit by a car at the age of 9, and rendered paralyzed. The decision to be Mike’s caregiver was not a difficult one, Ronald always knew...

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“Belinda” by Art Of Wolfgang Von Zenn

Submitted to Contest #82

Two teenage boys sat in an unfinished basement, on a well-loved couch, behind an assortment of junk food spread across an old, beat up coffee table. The two boys looked at each other and one spoke excitedly. "Are you ready?" He asked. "Absolutely!" The other boy responded eagerly. The first boy clapped his hands and the room went dark. Then, he grabbed a remote control from the coffee table and hit "play," while the other boy pulled out two lacy bras from a nearby backpack, one black and one red. The two boys donned a bra each on top of th...

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“''IT'S NOT THE END''” by Lindy West

Submitted to Contest #82

It was a decade when the wind blew , the sun came out to shine , the mornings passed and yet he was the one who had come to belittle the six letter word ''random.'' '' You is you but l is around you , lam not too afraid ''whispered life into his twisted like ears wrapping each word he could hear.THE CENTEREDThe horses came running towards him as he observed the skyline in the city of New York. Adrian was just a young adult who lived in a one roomed bedroom , his parents had all passed away and he had to look after sibling named Stephen. '' I...

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“Computer Pointer” by Martin Cambridge

Submitted to Contest #82

"What are you doing, honey ?" "My boss wants this typing ready for early tomorrow morning, for the important presentation he has to make. He has made many corrections and additions. I didn't want to stay late at work, so I told him I would put it on a floppy disk, take it home and finish it on the word processor there." "Was he surprised to hear that you had a word processor at home ?" "Yes, he was, until I explained that we had a pre-production personal computer at home, from the computer factory where you work." "Can you show...

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“...the fine line” by Lisa Wentworth

Submitted to Contest #82

Write a historical fiction story about someone working at a company that helped revolutionize early computers. She had beauty, brains and breeding...and I am so happy to say, is an ancestor of mine. The only [legitimate] child of Lord Byron, I often muse about that blood pumping through my veins; a historical poet and a mathematical woman had a child in society, who was highly educated. I have both the creative side and the logical side, but am far more comfortable in the former. Since Ada’s mother considered her father’s genius a kind...

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“Once Upon This Time” by Victor Flute

Submitted to Contest #82

Bill Gates has just written a book “How to avoid Climate Catastrophe” which explains why getting to net zero emissions by 2050 is a big, big challenge. When I read this, the hymn “Think of a World without Any Flowers” came to mind. You can Google it if you don’t know it. The hymn asks us to think about a world without: flowers, trees, animals and people. It asks us to thank God that we have these. It is difficult to imagine a world without any form of life but this presumably is what people like Greta Thunberg, Caroline Lucas and now Bill Ga...

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“Fallen Angel” by Dawn Austin

Submitted to Contest #82

The first time I saw the Devil. The wind blew south, and the air hanged with metaphor. Fireflies stained the white sky green. Sparks lit and blood poured. The sun was on it's way down And super eagles swept across the blue horizon . I stood watching the line where heaven touched the earth. It was like the frame of a tasteful mirror rather than the glass, sitting in the background, visible to all, yet it's purpose is to enhance the beauty of the picture rather than to draw attention to itself. Immediately, I was jealous...

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“the new phone ” by Emma Soda

Submitted to Contest #82

"I walked on down the street and on either side there were phone shops entreating me to buy the latest cell phone with more minutes per month than I could possible use. Everywhere people were sitting in parks, cafes, walking down the street, all with phones pressed against their ears. Some of them had the invisible headsets that make it impossible to distinguish them from the insane who argued with themselves in public. I remember that in the old days a hippy walking down the street with his mobile was practically advertising that he was a d...

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“The Chef's Kitchen. ” by K.E. Thomas

Submitted to Contest #82

He placed a slice of avocado on the plate next to the poached eggs and toast. He set the plate on the serving table and rang the bell. The waiter came over and picked up the plate. He closed his eyes for just a minute. Being the chef of one of the best five-star restaurants in the country was exhausting. He was working on one of his new recipes when he heard something vibrating against the counter. He thought it was his phone but didn’t see it anywhere. He focused back on the dish adding lemon zest to the mixture. It was several minutes befo...

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“Tech Dump” by Lydi B

Submitted to Contest #82

««« Warning: Language, sexual innuendo »»»I was awakened by a wailing alarm. My dream fingers had been on a course for that lacy bra strap. In reality, I’m lying alone and groggy with my nethers as stiff as a vintage joystick. The alarm quieted. I glared at the helicopter gadget hovering above my bed. It’s the size of a golf ball and rooted into my brain through a transmitter chip in my left temple—my ZeeBudd, Charli.What’s a ZeeBudd? Wow, you must either be someone who kills and cooks their own food or old enough to remember tapping a ...

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“Toasty” by Betsy Remington☕

Submitted to Contest #82

Rich pulled a blackened piece of toast from the toaster. It was a shiny aluminum toaster with an LED display and was supposed to be able to sync with a smartphone app, and yet it hadn’t gotten a single piece of toast right for him in the week since he and his girlfriend Pam had purchased it. “Pam!” he hollered in the direction of the bedroom where Pam was getting dressed. “I think we need to take this toaster back. It burnt another piece of toast.” Pam emerged from the bedroom running a brush through her golden hair. ...

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“Joe's Battle and Revolution With Robots” by Rutheanna Chang

Submitted to Contest #82

Hi, I am Joe. I am 12 years old and I live in a world filled with robots. I also have a best friend that is a robot. His name is Will. I made him with my bare hands and he can interact with people. I love him so much that I even built a whole bunch of the same prototypes. They are tiny cute little robots. One night, I had a dream about these little cute robots turning against me and attacking me. But I knew that will never happen. One morning, I went down to see my robots and make myself some breakfast because my mum and dad sleep very la...

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$50

Prize money

537

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 26, 2021 EST

Won by Cyndy Reads 🏆

Title: ALN23061912RK

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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