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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#92: Chiaroscuro

A meteor's dazzling burst of light, a sky faintly illuminated by a crescent moon, or a sidewalk lined by long afternoon shadows, the world is infinitely more interesting for chiaroscuro — the contrast of light and shade. More than that, the binary between light and darkness is one that holds great symbolic power (think yin and yang, Nyx and Erebus, good and evil).

With that in mind, this week’s prompts invite you to reflect on the way light influences a story’s setting, plot, or even its characters. Whether darkness means comfort and privacy or creepy echoing corridors, and whether light reminds you of clarity and safety or of blistering intensity, I’ve chosen prompts that give you freedom of interpretation. Happy writing!

🥇 Winner

“On the Origin of Shadows” by Nina Chyll

🏆 Winner of Contest #92

There are two things I have always wanted you to know about the house. Ever since you picked it out, in the middle of a recession, at a heavy discount, as you put it. As if it was a carton of milk about to go out of date. For us, you said, finally away from the hustle. And there are two things I have wanted to tell you. But I didn’t know how.1. I hate the glass door to the back garden. It’s like a wound barely held by shaggy stitches. One measly screwdriver stuck into the lock would suffice to split it open, exposing the house’s organs viabl...

249 comments 249

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⭐️ Shortlisted

“Bigger Than The Light” by A.Dot Ram

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #92

The Isis Lounge has a real dressing room mirror—the kind outlined with a blaze of bare bulbs. That’s one of the things I like about it. To me, it just screams professionalism with 1500 watts. It shows respect for the performers. It doesn’t matter so much that here backstage we have fans heaving through summer nights, trying to breathe some fresh air into the old building, or that, in the fall, shimmering termite wings dust the vanity when I arrive. The place smells like vodka and old pan stick and even older sheet music—sixty years of nightt...

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“Where the Sun Can't Reach” by Sarah Nour

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #92

So much dark, as far as the eyes behind my goggles could see. So much silence, save for the inhales and exhales of my air tank. The only movement I can sense is my own: flippers swaying 1,500 meters above the sea floor, where the sun can’t reach.A cable connects my torch to the battery canisters around my waist. A more experienced marine biologist would tell me to turn the torch off, to better find the sea life I’m searching for: creatures lit up by their own biology. Creatures I might miss capturing on film.But I can’t read my depth gauge w...

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“La Sombra” by Alex Arias

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #92

TW: abuse Evita lied awake in the corner of the room her family shared, the moonlight casting a white glow that she manipulated with her hand’s shadow. The howling of coyotes was long gone, but they still echoed in her brain as she shaped her fingers into a snout, its mouth open. The shadow was dear to her, protected her not only from the Sonoran Sun during the day, but cloaked her from danger at night. She knew this land and the darkness it cast in its folds better than anybody else in her family, and in return was respected by the shadow. ...

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“The Shadows of the Flowers” by Kenley Ellis

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #92

A general misconception about countryside homes is that they are beautiful and bright; I am basing this off of my personal misconception of the same kind. Countryside homes - they are like any other place on earth. They harbor equal shadow and light. Light is not always a fearless defender, you know. It does not chase away shadows. It is not on your side. More often than not, and always in real life, it shares space with the darkness. Nothing is fighting for you but yourself. It’s just the way things are. I understood that as a common l...

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“Still in the Dark” by Adam Schwartz

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #92

TW: substance abuse August 12, 2021 My Dearest Samantha, As a great American (Mike Tyson) once said, “Everybody’s got a plan ‘till they get punched in the mouth.” As I write this, the sun just sank below the horizon. I’m sitting at the kitchen table of the lakehouse, working by the light of a half dozen assorted scented candles I found in the pantry. I suspect they’ve been there since you were a toddler. The smell is, well, it’s certainly something. I only arrived a few minutes ago after hi...

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“A CHANGE OF HEART” by Jennifer Claire Pulling

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #92

She moves along the ward, straightening a pillow, checking a water carafe is filled. She switches off the dim reading light above Mr Edwards’ bed, he has fallen asleep over his book. As she reaches the end of the room, she pauses, gazing along the rows of beds, alert for any sound but there is none except the tick of the large clock above her head. She returns to her table, picks up her pen and starts on her report. She loves this time, it never bothers her to be ‘on nig...

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This week's prompts

Write a story that begins in the light and ends in darkness, or the other way around.

Horror – 382 stories

End your story with a truth coming to light.

Horror – 184 stories

Set your story in a countryside house that’s filled with shadows.

Horror – 170 stories

Write about a character who thinks they have a sun allergy.

Summer – 117 stories

Write a story set in a city where the power suddenly goes out, leaving everyone in darkness.

Horror – 187 stories

Stories

“On the Origin of Shadows” by Nina Chyll

🏆 Winner of Contest #92

There are two things I have always wanted you to know about the house. Ever since you picked it out, in the middle of a recession, at a heavy discount, as you put it. As if it was a carton of milk about to go out of date. For us, you said, finally away from the hustle. And there are two things I have wanted to tell you. But I didn’t know how.1. I hate the glass door to the back garden. It’s like a wound barely held by shaggy stitches. One measly screwdriver stuck into the lock would suffice to split it open, exposing the house’s organs viabl...

249 comments 249

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“They expected the Blackout ” by Guia B.

Submitted to Contest #92

They expected the blackout.The weather hadn't been kind in the past few days, rain was on and off, and apparently a storm is coming. Considering everything, a power outage is the least of their worries. The clouds are grey overhead, and with it, everything looks dull and slow, devoid of life, yet the dark cloud stays as some sort of impending doom among the sky. That didn't stop Evan nor the majority of the city from going out for groceries and supplies. The grocery stores and supermaket around the area are all bustling with costumers, ...

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“Angels Among Grief” by Deidra Whitt Lovegren

Submitted to Contest #92

Before—everything mattered. Now? Nothing does. “It seems excessive—” the new angel says, eyes brimming with tears. “Grief descends on them so quickly.” He looks down again, keenly feeling each pang of despair, pooling in black waves around them like a treacherous sea. “It does,” the old archangel agrees. “But in their particular realm, grief is usually conflated with fear. The ‘not knowing’ is the hardest part for them.” “My heart hurts,” the new angel laments, folding his hands together over his chest. “I understan...

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“Rising of Monarch Again.” by Anna Mustafa

Submitted to Contest #92

The Whole city was covered in darkness.The city of Lahore....The Moon was thinking to shed off all his light.He was Sad.He said to himself, " Maybe I can finish darkness of sky but how can i finish darkness inside the Earth?" His light suddenly started to fade away so that no day will rise again and no cruelty will take place in the land beneath him.He was fighting with the light.If the sun rises the trial will be done on the land.The execution of the truth and rule of evil will establish.Moon cannot deny the fact that his existance was temp...

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“The Festival of Lights” by Kanika G

Submitted to Contest #92

Six-year-old Hari climbed the stool and peered over the balcony railing of his third-floor apartment. Downstairs, the car parking of blocks B and C had been cleared for tonight to allow the residents space for bursting crackers. Some of the older kids were now arriving with their bags of crackers and sorting them into heaps of phool-jhadis, anaars, chakris, rockets, laddees and the larger bombs that were usually saved for the big bang at the end.“Hari!”From the opposite building, Hari’s friend Ria waved at him from her balcony. Her father st...

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“The Shadow Tailor” by Maya -

Submitted to Contest #92

Working with shadow is difficult. It’s slippery and my hands always come away damp. The fluid slips through my fingers in ribbons, a glistening ebony the color of coal and spiders. All light is absent from the room since even a minuscule flicker can damage the material. Burning holes in something flawless yet fragile. Onyx curtains obscure the windows, as to not let even a wisp of twilight inside the secluded workshop. The fire in the corner is cold, the wood damp. I haven’t lit it in weeks, leaving the chalky ash left to settle in drifts on...

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“The Locket” by Sasini Athapaththu

Submitted to Contest #92

The sky was crying so hard and the ground was soaked with tears. A booted leg stepped in a puddle of water in front of a rusty gate which leads to once a magnificent manor but now nothing more than a half-ruined building. By the look of it; dead trees, overgrown hedges, flower beds that looked more like weed beds, ivy-covered walls, broken windows which were blackened with dust and half-fallen roof, no one would have thought anyone could live there. The only evidence of life was the smoke coming out from the half-broken chimney. She looked...

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“Bigger Than The Light” by A.Dot Ram

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #92

The Isis Lounge has a real dressing room mirror—the kind outlined with a blaze of bare bulbs. That’s one of the things I like about it. To me, it just screams professionalism with 1500 watts. It shows respect for the performers. It doesn’t matter so much that here backstage we have fans heaving through summer nights, trying to breathe some fresh air into the old building, or that, in the fall, shimmering termite wings dust the vanity when I arrive. The place smells like vodka and old pan stick and even older sheet music—sixty years of nightt...

Read story

“The Gift” by Melissa Hassan

Submitted to Contest #92

“It's been a wonderful summer so far" Bethany thought smiling to herself as she was driving with her daughter Emma, in the back, strapped to a car seat. She smiled at her daughter lovingly through the rear-view mirror as Emma returned her smile. “Are you excited honey?” “Yes!” replied her daughter happily throwing her arms up and giggling. “Okay, just hang on, we'll be there soon” replied her mother. “Mommy can we go to the park today?” Emma asked after a while. “Sure honey whatever you want to do. Today is your day, and...

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“Make Sure to Pick a Good Title” by TJ Squared

Submitted to Contest #92

The forest was pretty. So...blah. The forest was intriguingly beautiful. Nah… The deep dark forest was very beautiful. Eh… a little better I suppose. The spooky forest was very pleasing to my eyes. Do spooky and pleasing really go together? Who knew. The engrossing grove of trees was prepossessing to my sight. Ooh, now you have my interest. I give you permission to move on. I walked with my head low. Woah, woah, woah, take a break. I mean, ‘I walked with my head low’? Surely you can do better than that. I strode with a frown on m...

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“Father Tomassi’s Wet Dream” by Stevie B

Submitted to Contest #92

No! It had happened yet again! As he slowly awoke from the deep sleep, Father Tomassi first felt fear, next anger, and then the waves of shame as he sensed the warm wetness through his pajamas and on the bedsheets. This was the third time this month and the month still had almost two weeks left in it. He tried not to recall the dream that had caused yet another unwanted nocturnal ejaculation but he knew deep down that it was the one that had been plaguing him since adolescence: the one about his junior high school teacher. The dream he hid i...

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“Luminescence ” by Charli Britton

Submitted to Contest #92

Normally, we all think it started with darkness, but what if it was light? What if light was as old as time itself? What if, what if, what if. So many speculations. Now what if I took those theories and turned them into laws? This isn’t something science can prove, so why should I bother? We all believe in science now anyways. Where did the magic go? It has been washed away. Pushed to the side and labeled as foolish imaginings. After all, fey cannot exist. Nor can pixies, nor can multiple deities, or even deities at all. Or can t...

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“Aesthetics ” by Abigail Airuedomwinya

Submitted to Contest #92

It didn't feel right at first to join him in the dining hall but as Elaine got dressed, she forgot right from wrong. Outside the cottage, the rain danced and made fast strokes against the windows. Elaine tiptoed closer and placed her forehead against the glass. With her tongue sticking out, Elaine felt the coldness of the glass and almost wanted to run away. For one, Elaine did not know the man who'd asked her to come to dinner. She barely knew who she was. A week ago, Elaine had woken up on her bed, holding tightly to a stranger. Sh...

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“House of Shadows - Burning Bronze - Chapter 1” by Clinton Ernest Murphy

Submitted to Contest #92

Jim - February 12, 2001 - 9:13 amMy footsteps echoed through the grand room as I paced the empty redwood floors. The glossy shine of intermingled reds and dark browns were dulled by a layer of dust. I passed by six unveiled windows and stared through them in turn. The flat plains of the Midwest sprawled out to the horizon. A group of orange, black, and grey finches hopped around in a patch where green grass poked through the melting blanket of snow. I stopped pacing and turned to face my dad. “Rianne was your fourth attorney. You can’t keep ...

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“Au Revoir” by Jade Young

Submitted to Contest #92

The moment her fingers wrapped around the neck of a guitar instead of around the spine of a book, I knew that the family tradition would die with me. From the moment my twelve year old daughter plucked at those strings for the first time, she was a goner and everybody knew it. Everybody acknowledged it. They even praised her for it. But, according to the whispered rumours flying around the shelves I stocked on a daily basis, I was villain in every story that featured my daughter. I don’t understand why she won’t support Danica’...

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$50

Prize money

1050

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - May 07, 2021 EST

Won by Nina Chyll 🏆

Title: On the Origin of Shadows

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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