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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

“Drowning in the Stars” by Keya M.

Submitted to Contest #83

TW: attempted suicide, death I gasped for air, as I burst from the surface.    My lungs screamed for breath, and I panted desperately.    The sun’s light blinded me, as I flailed in the water, searching for the shore. I swam, my heart pounding.    When I reached the shore, my hands grabbed at the sand, coming back with fistfuls of it. I sighed and lay there on the beach for a while. I’d tried to drown myself. Again. I screamed loudly, wanting somebody, anybody to hear me. I wasn’t crazy. I wasn’t psychologically...

145 comments 145
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“Away From Paradise” by Eddie Thawne

Submitted to Contest #83

There is nothing, absolutely nothing, more glorious and titillating than waking up to catch the blissful scent of lilies and ever blooming purple hibiscuses scattered strategically across your backyard lawn, especially if it's on an island, just as mine was. And there is nothing more relishing than the euphoria that comes with the swishing leaves of overhead palm trees coupled with the dainty warm glow of the morning sunshine. And of course how could I forget the sea, the magnificent view of the brightly colored blue sea that supplied the ...

28 comments 28
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“The Night Spirits ” by Molly Quinnell

Submitted to Contest #83

She vomited up salty water as she pulled herself out of the freezing ocean and onto a rock, the sharp edges tearing at her bare skin as she gripped on with numb fingers. She took a shuddering breath, the cold air rattling through her burning lungs. The stars looked coldly down upon her, their brightness as fragile and weak as her failing body.  “It’s bad luck,” the captain said. “Bad luck sailing at night with a woman on board.”  She used her feet to leverage herself further onto the rock, her chest scraping painfully, causing ...

13 comments 13
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“Sea Foam” by Rachel Loughran

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #83

There was hardly a breath of wind on the beach, and the trees stood still and silent, knowing, as trees do, that something was coming. They’d guarded this shore long enough to know, and the older trees, the ones with centuries of sentry duty, hushed the young ones, the saplings, who wanted to whip their young limbs around, and dance under the stars. The ocean hushed them all in its own, inimitable way - the relentless melancholy of it was reassuring, heaving sigh after sigh as it fell upon the shore and dragged itself back to the depths agai...

24 comments 24
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“Trouble in Paradise” by Kaleigh Montague

Submitted to Contest #83

The glorious sun lifted through the horizon, making sure it was known by everyone in the neighborhood. Rays of liquid sunshine spit through the windows of the sleepy town off the coast of natural land. Major waves kissed the edge of the quarry before sloshing back to great depths, leaving fluffy froth in its path. Slimy, writhing fish flopped helplessly in search of their lifeboat, struggling to extend their lives just a little bit further. Sun rays reflected off of the glassy exterior of recently deceased aquatic animals, making rainbow pat...

27 comments 27
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“Tropical Ki” by Natalie Dafoe

Submitted to Contest #83

The men arrive on a large boat, all clumped into a crowd on the surface, hats obscuring sunburned faces and overgrown beards. Binoculars held up against squinting eyes, sight blurred by sweat and the jostling of the sea, they cannot see the petite girl on the horizon.She waits for them on Elina Beach, the fine sand slipping between her toes and clinging to her ankles. The sun is unforgiving, and a patch of green foliage from the palm trees above basks her in a cooling shade. This is not the first time she has dealt with the visitors. Ma Maki...

25 comments 25
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“Hal and Ollie” by Niveeidha Palani

Submitted to Contest #83

Hal was curled up on the couch, clasping Ollie and hugging her tight. "Isn't it hot, Ollie?"Ollie pawed Hal's face and leaped off the ground, purring gently. Hal peered at the window. The sun was getting out. She was going to have to get out another popsicle then.Hal worked in those candy factories. She'd bring home a heap of candy packets, her apron dyed and stained bright pink and purple. Her face would be starched odd greens and familiar reds. That was how she lived.Over the stench of coloring and candy."We need to go on a vacation Ollie....

35 comments 35
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“Her Name Was Genevieve” by Maya W.

Submitted to Contest #83

She smelled as sweet as honey, with her big blue eyes and rosy cheeks. Like a little doll, amplified to a larger size. She wore a straw hat, just large enough to cover the top of her perfectly curled golden threads of hair. When I first saw her, I laughed, for she looked just like a goddess, emerging from the sea. Just too perfect to be real.  I dug my feet deep into the sand, wondering if the feeling of warmth would bring me back to reality. My short brown hair flopped down over my ears, brushing across my cheeks as I looked down at ...

13 comments 13
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“All The Things You Did Not Say” by 🎀 Ɪᴍᴀᴀɴ ᴋʜᴀᴋɪ 🎀

Submitted to Contest #83

The wind howls mercilessly as you emerge from the sea of people crowding the sidewalks as usual on your way to work. As you round the familiar street corner that leads to your office building, you see a young woman in the park. You see the way she sits on the neatly-trimmed grass, cross-legged and back straight, her smiling face angled towards her book; she’s buried somewhere in a tiny universe of sweet solace amidst the chaos of the city that surrounds her. Hers is a face full of such serenity and tranquility that you can hardly believe you...

4 comments 4
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“I Am Completely Loyal to the Sea Goddess” by Amara Tillington

Submitted to Contest #83

Saihaa: human boat Aesaba: a young water spirit, about five or six.  Sorsaa: no-swimmer, the Aeshaan word for human Aeshaan: the water-spirit people “Hurry up!” I called to Naia. She raced ahead, her non-solid form slicing through the waters with speed. I, too, was a water spirit, though, so I could follow her easily. My body was made of liquids, a shimmering blue kind of water that held my soul, and I manipulated the waves to reach the little spirit I had to babysit.  “Lesai, I wanna see the Land!” “You can’t, aesaba, little...

36 comments 36
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“Twas Beauty...” by Michael Boquet

Submitted to Contest #83

You step from your cave and stand on the edge of the mountain slope. You stretch the sleep from your muscles as the sun climbs upward. Moment by moment, the sun burns away the morning fog and the island below is revealed.The curtain of gray fog peels away. You stand at the island's highest point and look down into the valley. The river glimmers as it catches the first rays of the sun. The jungle is a mural of lush shades of green. Orchids, plump fruits, and multi-colored parrots lend pops of bright color to the canvas of vegetation.You unhur...

37 comments 37
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“One Man's Trash” by Pamela Griner

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #83

There was no way for it to know for sure how long it had been in the sea, following the current, subject to the whims of wind and weather. It certainly felt seasick, but that would have been true after an hour or two. Still, there was enough variation in temperature and the movement of the sun and moon for it to understand that it had been months, at the very least. Months since it was violently flung into the sea, from the end of Enrique’s arm, which had been twisted behind his fully-torqued body, and accompanied by a feral scream to give i...

15 comments 15
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“The Stars and the Sea” by 𝔸𝕓𝕚𝕘𝕒𝕚𝕝 ℂ𝕣𝕠𝕤𝕤 (♡𝓓𝓻𝓪𝓰𝓸𝓷 𝓒𝓵𝓸𝓾𝓭𝓼𝓾𝓻𝓰𝓮♡) (inactive For Summer)

Submitted to Contest #83

I sat on the damp rock, staring at the sun as it prepared for its nightly slumber. The air had a slight chill to it, but I didn't mind. I always watched the sunset on the beach, no matter the weather. Nothing was more beautiful, in my opinion. It was quiet, except for the occasional seagull and the roar of the waves. My mother had always watched the sunset with me when I was little, and I was determined to continue the tradition. I fiddled with the seashell necklace gifted to me by my mother before she disappeared. It was my most prized poss...

28 comments 28
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“A Fish Story” by Adam Schwartz

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #83

In my experience, talking fish can be real assholes. My daughter, Maggie, and I had been in St. Thomas for three days. I’d finally had enough sitting around the hotel pool, sipping ridiculously-colored drinks with tiny paper umbrellas. I figured there must be a decent fishing hole around here someplace.  My daughter barely looked up from the paperback she was reading poolside in one of the chaise lounge chairs. “Really, Dad? Creature of habit much?” I shrugged, squinting against the sun’s glare off the turquoise water. I felt like a ...

9 comments 9
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“Bitter Reality ” by Aman Fatima

Submitted to Contest #83

Oliver. How do I explain who Oliver is? Well you see Oliver is a tall, handsome and mysterious guy. He is the perfect example of a stereo typical guy women fall for. And I would to, but I don’t want to because relationships are a whole lot of work which I run from. But I think the world is out to get me. This story starts with me, Rory, who after finding out her fiancé cheated on her decided to take a weeklong vacation on an island. Even my boss gave me a sympathy talk when I handed in my leave application, everyone thought I was grieving an...

15 comments 15
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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!

Prompts | Big Blue Hand | 2024-11

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