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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!

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

“Truth Always Prevails ” by Allen Sonar

Submitted to Contest #92

Human beings have a natural love for light. It is no wonder, for light and all it represents was the very first thing that God introduced into his creation.The first two verses of the Bible proclaim,In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (Gen. 1:1-2)Creation was a structureless, lifeless, lightless, and watery chaos. And the Spirit of God hovered like a mother bird over the chaos....

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“Fish Under the Water” by Blueberry Elf

Submitted to Contest #92

I walk into his bedroom and his absence fills the space. With him, he has taken the breath out of the room, and just like him, it will never return. It is left lifeless, not like a battleground is lifeless, but like a wall is lifeless. I run to shut the window, forbidding the wind to distribute his scent throughout the streets, allowing his aura to dissipate and be broadcasted to any passerby that Danny is gone. Crawling into his unmade bed, I bury myself in the quilts. I fight to hold onto his smell the way one fights to hold on to a bar of...

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“IRONY” by Pat Magbanua

Submitted to Contest #92

I saw my schoolmates gush over how splendid I look as I got off my Bugatti La Voiture Noire that was driven by our most trusted driver and the car itself was led by other two cars driven by bodyguards. I can't blame them if they look up to me that much, If you didn’t know me you’d probably think that I was a prince that was living the best life. I have the good looks, the money and I’m smart, what else could I ask for? They gave way for me when I entered the university, they were whispering nonsense to each other, and avoided my eyes as if p...

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“Gone Wrong (Part 1)” by Kylee Haverty

Submitted to Contest #92

¨ Come on, we are going to miss our flight.¨¨ I´m coming, hang on a sec.¨My sister runs to catch up with me, holding much too many bags.¨ Here, let me help you.¨She gingerly hands me two big bags full of who knows what.¨ I am going to open these bags, and I am going to hope that I do not find a body in here.¨She rolls her eyes and I unzip the first bag. It was full of clothes, trophys from her dance competitions, brushes, a toothbrush, toothpaste, etc.¨ Emily..¨¨ What?¨¨ This bag is clear.¨Emily nearly pushes me over but I hold my ground.As ...

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“Lord and Lady Wed” by Rosemary DeTrolio

Submitted to Contest #92

Lord and Lady Wed Written by Rosemary DeTrolio, Mother of the groom Lord and Lady set a date— 2015 on August 8. Perfect love, strong and true, they tied the knot and left for the Manor. He in knight’s garb he led. She in a priceless dress and shoes of red to signify a life well led. But Gremlin of Despair hid at the gate. He hatched a plan to spoil their date. “Such love as this I have never seen. It scares me and it makes me green!” So, Gremlin hatched an evil plan to stea...

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“Shadows of the Past” by Katelyn T

Submitted to Contest #92

When Jillian moved to the small town of Smithville, she was hoping for a new start. The house she moved into could only be described as having charm. She had rented it cheap. The home had two bedrooms, one bath, a small living room, a kitchen, and an attic. Since it was just her, it was more than enough house. The paint was chipped in places, the wooden floors creaked and were hazardously uneven in some places, and who knew the last time the foundation, electric, or plumbing had been looked at. Jillian knew the first time it rained, the roof...

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“Puppy's🐕💖 Love for Angela👧🏻” by Caymen Kho

Submitted to Contest #92

Once upon a time, there lived a little girl named Angela. She was very afraid of the dark. But she has a small pomeranian dog named Fluffy, who always cuddles her at night so she doesn't get scared of the dark. One day, she went to her friend, Violetta's house to study for the test. Then, they had some delicious food before Angela's mom came to pick her up and went to her aunt's house. Angela's aunt didn't know that Angela was afraid of the dark so, her aunt asked her to sleep for the night since it was Saturday. Angela said yes but asked he...

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“power shortage during time travel” by Clinton Siegle

Submitted to Contest #92

Let’s be honest. My shrink told me I was dead and reliving past lives. Me? I think you all are dead. This story is about Katrina when it happened in 2003, not here in 2005. Silly, what do you mean? I mean, I have lived more than you have. When I cracked up in 2016, I was hit hard. Meaning I was sent to the shrink by my wife due to the number of things I was talking about. People think I am crazy. But what I am going to tell you was real for me. The shrink? He told me I was living past lives. I told him. I could prove he was dead, and that I ...

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“Brilliant Truth” by Rebecca Thibodeaux

Submitted to Contest #92

Secrets are powerful things. They can offer hope, or destroy everything that someone has meticulously built. Everyone has secrets, and we are all fighting to protect this dark private corner of our soul. Hidden details affect every part of our existence, guiding our actions so that we can conceal that which lies in the shadows waiting to condemn. The problem is: what do you do when your secret is revealed? Does it defer its power to the person who now holds knowledge of your unspoken past? Does its power fizzle away, and yo...

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“Darkness into Light” by Charisa Tullos

Submitted to Contest #92

Deep. Dark. No end. No light. Trapped in a bottomless pit.This was exactly what a seventh grade girl named Crystal was experiencing because her sister was about to leave for college.Crystal had been dreading this moment since she found out her sister was going to attend a school in Oklahoma instead of Virginia where their immediate family was. Well, most of their immediate family. Crystal’s older brother lived in Oklahoma ever since he began college there nearly four years ago. Besides him, all of Crystal’s family lived in Virginia because t...

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“The Things You Forget” by Mel Elizondo

Submitted to Contest #92

The girl who called herself Maggie Fell didn’t normally stay back after chemistry class. She wasn’t a fool. Chemistry wasn’t her forte and the teacher hated anyone who didn’t understand anything involving the periodic table. Also, she didn’t like that feeling that came when she saw a bunch of beakers filled with obviously hazardous fluid. It seemed ironic that the materials locked up from young children were given little precaution to those society still didn’t trust to drink responsibly. She also didn’t also normally talk to the guy ...

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“The Sun and the Moon” by Annie Gray

Submitted to Contest #92

Lucy and Wyatt's father had an office full of unusual and rare items that drew Wyatt's curiosity. This curiosity often got them in trouble. She hated the room. "No, we can't," she tried to reason with her stubborn twin. "I need to see them," he answered and picked at the lock with tools from a kit he found online. It's amazing what a 12 year old could learn from the internet. With a twist of the nob the door opened. "Stop." She pulled at the back of his blue shirt. It didn't sto...

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“Et Obscuratus Filia” by Mia Marie

Submitted to Contest #92

BANG! A gunshot filled the air and breaks the silence in a small simple community in the midst of crowded city. It reached the ear of a young lady who’s on her meditation session inside their house on a man-made pond. Her cousin saw that it disturb her a bit, she remained peaceful and calm outside but not on the inside. “Criminals are freely roving around the community again. These past few days the criminal rates are getting high, as if there was a feast waiting for them here,” she said to herself. She inhaled and exhaled heavily, sign th...

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“Toxic Veil” by Tim Gorringe

Submitted to Contest #92

Anne woke at 12:40 am. Through the darkness of the bedroom she starred at the street-light silhouettes of the lace curtains and the potted plants. Her eyes were stinging. Her throat was raw and breathing was painful. Her body was drenched in sweat and convulsing with cramps. Her mind was racing, what's happening, what's wrong? She rolled over onto her stomach. She dropped one foot over the bed's mattress onto the cold floor. She stretched her arm across the bedside table and slowly pushed her body upright. Her breathing was shallow and her h...

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“The Ultimate Paradox” by Rayney Day

Submitted to Contest #92

**Be nice to me, this is my first story** CW/TW: Suicide, self harm, sexual assault mentions 9:39am Everything was bright. Too bright. This world didn’t make sense to her. She sat there on the ledge, looking at her own fingers and seeing them, really seeing them for the first time. Shriveled, though she can’t have been any older than 16 (Although sometimes she wasn’t so sure). She was a monster. She knew that much was true, but somehow, for some reason, seeing it as true was the final break of the camel’s spine. A soda straw, but not...

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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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