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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#87: Fool Me Once

From trickster gods to office pranks, humans have long been fascinated by mischief and mayhem. There’s just something about breaking free of the rules of polite society and causing a bit of chaos that appeals deeply to our psyche.

This week, let’s embrace that playful spirit. Whether it’s someone being pranked or doing the pranking, there’s plenty of opportunity to dive deep into your characters’ motives and reactions. No joke — it’s time to break out the (metaphorical) cream pies and throw some anarchy at your protagonists.

This week's prompts

Write about a mischievous pixie or trickster god.

Kids – 206 stories

Write about someone who’s spent a whole year planning a big prank, and now they’re finally ready to pull it off.

Middle School – 75 stories

Write about someone who hates pranks and spends April Fools’ Day doing good deeds instead.

Holiday – 69 stories

Start your story with a big company pulling an April Fools’ prank that ends up going horribly wrong.

Holiday – 82 stories

Write about someone who goes to great lengths to avoid being pranked on April 1st, only to realize they had the date wrong and it’s already April 2nd.

Holiday – 60 stories

Stories

“Cocapoly” by Kevin Schenk

Submitted to Contest #87

The date was approaching duly and many preparations were made to ensure that things would go over smoothly. Ricardo sat in his office and looked at the numbers and they all added up nicely. The higher-ups in the hierarchy had cascaded the plans for the big reveal and he prepared them accordingly. The hardest thing he had to do was deal with the cartel that was shipping the produce to the warehouses. At first they were suspicious about him and his request. Why would the Coca-Cola Company want to buy such copious amounts of cocaine? They were ...

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“When Corporations Own Your Mom” by Florian Wolf

Submitted to Contest #87

It was a month before the first of April, and the thousands of workers of ripConnection were stoked. Their flagship product - friendlyMilBoomer or FMB for short - served about 7 billion users a day. Each year the company tried to pull some prank on its users. So far, they did it ten times, and ten times it ended up in a total disaster. You may wonder why they didn't stop this tradition. Simple, it is the only social network that nobody can even think about touching due to its gigantic size. It too may help that the CEO spend too much of his ...

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“The Great Chase ” by Amanda Lin

Submitted to Contest #87

Big Companies like mine are always so cocky when it comes to being able to outshine others, and when we do something bad, the rest of the world just shakes it off as if it was a minor inconvenience. Not saying that that is a good thing but it's more of a luxury than anything. It’s always funny how people who follow or enjoy buying things from our company can just dismiss the things we do. Our boss has done many things that have made a fair amount of people take a second glance at our company, but for the most part, we’ve been doing fine. Tim...

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“"We got carried away by pranking." by Ye Wint Aung” by Ye Wint Aung

Submitted to Contest #87

Working can be very People get bored every day; every day can be the same. Sometimes we are sad, angry or others, but the one thing that cheers up everyone are laughter and joy. Even the saddest and the angriest person will laugh if they hear a joke, a really good one. April 1st, also know as April’s fool’s day is the day when everyone pranks each other. Pranking each other and having fun is the only thing in your head on April’s Fool’s day. Some people will avoid being pranked, and some are having fun pranking friends. It’s the only one da...

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“The New Job Offer” by Rajesh Patel

Submitted to Contest #87

Christos, but people who knew him well, called him Chris. I called him Chris and sometimes, I called him Iceman. Why? Because Chris was a Top Gun fan. The movie from 1986 and he adored the character played by Val Kilmer. Chris had been working for a long time for this major telecom player in the country. A good decade. He was good at what he did. I would say to him: Chris, you are the best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be. Yes, Chris was also a WWE/WWF fan. And…a huge Bret Hart fan. So, using thi...

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“April Fools, Frank!” by Anzley Lukehart

Submitted to Contest #87

My alarm clock went off indicating it was the absolute worst day of the year. I rolled my eyes and shut it off before groaning in agony. Work was going to be hell today, everyone will be running around playing absurd pranks on each other. Last year, Linda from financing switched the sugar in the break room to salt, resulting in everyone spitting out their coffee, and using all the water in the water cooler. I made a mental note to fill up a water bottle from my fridge, and probably take coffee from my house so I could avoid being a vic...

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“His Eyes Flew Open” by Francisca Okafor

Submitted to Contest #87

The clanging won't stop and this is making Ekene restless. He twisted and called out to his colleague and fellow apprentice, Olisa to stop making the noise but he didn't. Ekene tried to ignore him but the noise is making him very uncomfortable. After what seemed like forever, the clanging was joned with a loud music. Ekene hissed. He just want some peace and quietness and everything around him has decided not to give him that. But something is off, the music is from the church which is close to the compound he lives in and he is at work....

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“MERRY-GO-ROUND” by Dozzy Nika

Submitted to Contest #87

I wonder how some fathers enjoy being seen like gods in their families. In Eugene’s three-bedroom bungalow, he demarcated his bedroom into two with a hard wooden board so that he and his wife could have their separate rooms. They began sleeping differently in their rooms, but for some terrific and glorious nights that they slept together. It was only during those special nights that Kate, his wife would rest on his broad hairy chest, and tell him the things they needed at home, which within his capacity, he would not hesitate to provide. The...

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“A Day Before To Remember ” by Sudha Arien

Submitted to Contest #87

Linda tossed and turned, crammed under her velvety soft duvet, reluctant to shut her eyes even for a second, who otherwise dozes like a baby. With every feeble tick-tack of the clock, the barking of street dogs, distant hoots of owls or the clamorous noise of the bustling trucks, that rose against the serenity of the night, she was seized with a palpitation of heart. It's the day that wrecks her tranquility the most, out of a whole year. The so-called April fool's day, with a history of its own in her life, a tragic one at that. She loathes ...

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“Pixies At Large” by Daniel Norton

Submitted to Contest #87

Flight 1107 lands very roughly at LAX giving all the passangers quite a jolt. It also jolted one of a rare set of twin pixies frm a deep sleep. Dina jabs Dixie. "What the hell was that?" Dixie slowly awakens. "Not sure but I know you are not supposed to use hat kind of language." "Give me a break, Dixie. You've heard humans talk and even worse their song lyrics." "So you trying to sound human?" Dina ignores the question. "Whatever you got us riding in seems to have come to a stop." "Me! You're the ...

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“A Convincing Tale ” by Sharon Goodhand

Submitted to Contest #87

It was another glorious autumn day dawning in Glimmerfalls Dell, sunlight trickled through filigree branches in sprays of soft warmth, meadowlark and dragonfly sang dulcet tunes that rippled sweetly on the morning air... butterfly danced on the gentle breeze, sharing pollen rich flowers with golden yellow bees... but Eixip was already bored and restless.'Just another day in Boringfalls' she muttered in a tone so irritated that a nearby dragonfly stopped singing.'Eixip' the dragonfly said 'you need an adventure'.'Oh Bradfire, I do! I do ...

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“The Pixie's Journal” by Allison B

Submitted to Contest #87

Dela flew up to the tree and landed in the branch highest up.“Oh my! Dela, you are the coolest pixie ever.” She heard her sister Nissa say sarcastically.“I know.” Dela flipped her silver hair dramatically. She had been telling Nissa how she had helped stop the giant wave that was about to destroy the city. She had been down at the beach hut to get a smoothie when the wave was about to hit. She immediately flew up and used her ice magic to freeze it. Did the ice create a wall so nobody could enjoy the lake? Yes. Was everyone mad at her? ...

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“Through Hellish Eyes” by Samuel Bowen

Submitted to Contest #87

There are many ways to kill a human, the fun is finding what best suits them. Yet after a thousand years of killing, it hadn’t occurred to me that I could choose the wrong victim. Yet in this land of Un there is a man by the name of Journey. To some he is the traveler, the ever wandering hero. To others he is the twice cursed one, the half-breed of war and peace. To his enemies, to me, he is judgement and the herald of death. Not a day goes by without the retelling of this tale. I close my eyes and even now I see him. The wretched man...

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“Loki's Escape” by Scarlet Scribe

Submitted to Contest #87

Loki was bound to three rocks inside a cold, dark cave in the realm known as Asgard. No matter how he twisted and turned, the ropes kept him firmly in place under a monstrous serpent dripping venom. His devoted wife, Sigyn, was sitting by his side holding a bowl to catch the venom but when the bowl was full, she had to leave her vigil to empty it. As the venom touched Loki he writhed in agony causing earthquakes throughout Asgard. He had been sentenced to this excruciating existence until Ragnarök, the end of the wor...

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“Echo vs The Fairies” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #87

Echo with blue black hair and eyes that sparkle is the littlest of the pixies and prankster of the pixie family. Echo loves to prank the unsuspecting pixie and fairy. The pranks Echo has pulled off have been memorable including those on their cousins the fairies, earning her the nickname mischievous little one. Echo loves to go fairyland to prank her cousins. Echo would shut all the lights off in fairyland and deem the land broken. Echo would take the fairy wands and hide them and watch as the fairies go crazy looking for them, and her fav...

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$50

Prize money

492

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 02, 2021 EST

Won by Catherine Hill 🏆

Title: Samill the Trickster

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.

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