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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#83: Tropical Getaway

Sometimes we all need a break from our current circumstances. When the world feels gray and lifeless, thoughts of warm beaches and sunny skies can sound more appealing than ever.

Travel has been hard to come by for a while now, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make an escape through our imaginations. So this week, let’s slather on the sunscreen, steal what daylight we can, and take our characters to the crystal beaches most of us can only imagine.

This week's prompts

Write about someone who goes to extreme lengths to get themselves to a tropical island.

Adventure – 91 stories

Start your story with someone emerging from the sea, and end it with them looking up at the stars.

Fantasy – 277 stories

Write about someone who’s lived on a tropical island their whole life and is leaving it for the very first time.

Dystopian – 83 stories

Write about someone who books a bargain vacation, only to be told when they arrive that they need to share a hotel suite with a stranger.

Dramatic – 148 stories

Write a fantasy story about water gods or spirits.

Fantasy – 227 stories

Stories

“Niamh” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #83

Once a upon a time in an age where gods rule the earth, there lived a sea goddess who is the most beautiful and loved goddess of all time her name is Niamh. Niamh rules the seas with grace. Loved by many hated by a few Niamh is the epitome of the sea.Niamh is worshipped by many, on land the people pray to Niamh for a good fishing season, good weather and on the seas, sailors and fisherman pray to Niamh for good weather, calm seas and a good fishing season. Niamh blesses those who are good to the sea.Every fifth day of the month Niamh rises f...

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“Ocean so Blue” by Jessie Winterspring

Submitted to Contest #83

If you don't believe in god and come face to face with it, what do you say to it? How can you thank it for saving you? A water god, that’s what the semi-transparent blob of water in front of me told me it is. If it weren't for it, I would be filled with seawater now and sinking in the bottom of the sea. I will be the headline of the news the next day or even days later. My ugly bloated corpse wearing a bikini will be displayed in print and screens for everyone to glance with disgust on their faces nationwide or worldwide – thanks to the in...

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“Elena” by Gwyn Everett

Submitted to Contest #83

TW: murder victim, implied abuse. Elena hit the water with her back, it stung from the force like a slap on sunburnt skin as she floated in the bright Southern sea. She marveled at the vibrant coral around her accentuated by the clear water and the tranquility of muffled sound, but her burning lungs brought her out of her head. A red stream wrapped her in a ribbon of her own blood from where he shot her. The numbness surprised her; she expected to feel pain. She knew it wouldn’t be long before she'd have to take a breath where no air is...

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“The Micliac” by Mariana Del Rosal

Submitted to Contest #83

Nina grew up in Saint Bernard, a little town near the beach. Back then, it was a small settlement with only two pavement streets, an elementary school, some shops, a cafeteria, and a guest house that today has been redesigned as a cozy hotel. Her father was a fisherman and he had raised her by himself, as the mother died in childbirth. Many years later, Nina would still recall the scent of the sea and the sound of the everlasting wind that tangled her long, black hair when she was a young girl. Some miles north, there was a lighthouse that w...

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“Sunset” by Jaden Garcia

Submitted to Contest #83

“Mor-gan!” I would be able to recognize that call from miles away. My brother’s voice seems to echo across the dock, over the sound of the restless waves and bustling people. The humans don’t seem to notice his aura of wrath as he stalks closer. I debate making a dive for it. We’ve already had this conversation like a hundred times, and it’d be much more appealing to leave before my brother can catch me. But then again, he could outswim me any day. And you’d never in a million years get me to admit this ou...

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“The Island ” by Anastasiya Tyamusheva

Submitted to Contest #83

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome onboard Emirates Flight EK 652 to Male” has been announced as I sip my glass of cold bubbly champagne in the comfortable business class seat. Goodness gracious, I need to pinch myself. Is this a dream? -Cheers, my friend! My friend Alina turns to me with a wide smile, fastens her seatbelt and we take off to a dream vacation. I arrived to Dubai in 2004 with a few hundred dollars in my pocket. Two years later I was lucky to join the real estate industry right when it was booming. My first deal b...

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“Despair within a man ” by Da Real Krishpy Kream

Submitted to Contest #83

The travel agents doors opening for the final time today as Mark had stepped through the doors, the final agents had been seated, shivering as the cold environment had invaded the air inside. Mark had taken a seat down and proceeded to enquire about his trip down to Hawaii, booking tickets for the evening tomorrow. The deal was settled and what was to come no person could predict. As he stepped outside in shivering cold as the snow had drooped down dramatically and had increased as the wind had caused the space more difficult to see. Mark's ...

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“"How to get a tropical vacation" by Ye Wint Aung” by Ye Wint Aung

Submitted to Contest #83

It is summer time of the year, and everyone is ready to hit the beach. Some goes on a vacation, hiking or camping but mostly, they had time to do their hobbies and rest for a few days. John Greyson is a 3 in a row employee of the month bellhop working at the hotel near the beach. He always wanted to go on a vacation to a tropical island but there were just too much work. He needs to work daily at the hotel to earn tips and get his paycheck to take care of his family. Every day of his life is filled with work and stress. He needs a rest after...

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“Life's a Beach and Then...” by Jaime Faulkner

Submitted to Contest #83

Jessica was sitting on the beach in an isolated cove, sunbathing in the nude, when a man walked out of the sea. That's odd, she thought, because she knew she'd seen nobody enter the water since she'd arrived a couple of hours ago. The man was about six feet tall, with long, wavy blond hair, and a physique that screamed gym addict. But who was he? Where had he come from? And how had he been underwater for so long? That was when she noticed the webbing between his fingers and toes. Well, what do you know? Is this the actual man from ...

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“Faded” by Noja Lina

Submitted to Contest #83

NOTE: For those struggling with their mental health, it might not be recommended to read this. TW suicide and death. Paul slowly came out of the ocean with a weird feeling radiating through all of his being. He was cold. Cold enough to not really perceive the motions of the waves against his skin, cold enough for the soles of his feet to not hurt when they were pressed onto the pebbles under them as Paul took effortless steps to approach the shore. His head was above water, but he felt as if more water was moving ...

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“A Cop on Vacation” by Aburrow Marsh

Submitted to Contest #83

Bobbing along in shallow water, occasionally plunging his head beneath the surface, Tom McCauley thought he remembered what it felt like being in the womb. He emerged from the churning Gulf with a gasp and a grin. Scrubbing saltwater from his eyes, he dug his toes into the sand, using the ocean’s energy to propel himself forward.At 42, it was Tom’s first trip to the beach. Becca had spent half her childhood on this same strip of sand. “Twenty years ago, it was nothing but driftwood and seaweed,” she’d remarked on the trip down. “Now it’s 100...

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“The Sea and Stars” by Chris Buono

Submitted to Contest #83

My head breaks through the surface in a terrific splash, sending droplets of water harmlessly to the waves never to been seen again. I take a deep, thankful inhalation of breath, feeling my chest expand despite the pressure of the water around me pushing back. The air is salty and the sun is bright, but I don’t notice at first. I am just happy to be alive. I trudge my way back to land after what feels like hours. The wet sand feels more like an expensive mattress in a darkened bedroom rather than a b...

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“Those That Remain - Lost” by Jamie Herron

Submitted to Contest #83

Green bile trickled from her mouth, pattering in the sand and on her shoes. When will this nightmare end, she thought, wiping the lumpy mess from her lips. The tide lapped up Clary’s body, a gathering of foam and bubbles sprawling up her prone waist. Hair clung around her cheek - and salty water on her tongue. Whoosh, went another wave, weighing down her head. How had she ended up here? Stumbling and heaving, she rose to her feet. The sun weakly warmed her back, where her shirt had torn against...

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“Survivalist” by Miles Swanson

Submitted to Contest #83

SurvivalistSteady the spear, calm the mind, now THRUST! Misty thrust her spear as hard as she could but whiffed on the small manta ray she was currently focused on. “Ooof!” was the sound that went out of her mouth as water went in. She quickly swam her way to the surface, coughed out the water and grabbed her shoulder. Missing with her spear wasn’t something she did very often but any time it happened it never felt good.Disappointed, she gingerly swam back to the shore. Then a half-smile crept on her face as she remembered, this was the day!...

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“When gods Weep” by Cricket Decat

Submitted to Contest #83

The heavens were covered in a quilt of ebony; the stars outlining its creases in speckled glory. Small azure waves gently rolled over the golden sand onto the tranquil shore, creating a peaceful atmosphere. A being slowly made his way out of the ocean, creating a pathway of dry sand to his beloved who rested upon the coastline. She was a beautiful maiden, her hair the color of the rising sun, and her skin as pale as the moon. Sapphire eyes glimmering in the surrounding starlight, her face warm and merry. He was a handso...

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$50

Prize money

826

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Mar 05, 2021 EST

Won by Madalyn Meyers 🏆

Title: Burn Damage

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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