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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 – 383 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

“No Day At The Beach” by Chase .

Submitted to Contest #92

Note: Allergies are not contagious.I walked along the beach on a hot summer’s day, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. The sun was beaming down on me, it was going to be a lovely day.Little did I know it was going to be the worst day ever.Kids ran past me, and I heard one talking about his allergies. ‘Stupid child,’ I thought. Kids with allergies shouldn’t go in public, in case the allergy is contagious. I wondered what allergy the brat had, it might be a bad one. When I got home I looked in the mirror. I swear it nearly shattered when I looked...

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“A very not powerful day” by Caroline Fonteno

Submitted to Contest #92

Dear Diary I was in my house watching videos on my ipad with my older sister Jessica. The lights in the living room were on. My sister got up to get water and when she walked back into the room the lights went out. “Jessica,”I said. “Turn back on the lights.” “I didn’t turn them off.”She replied. “Oh please,” I scoffed. “They can't just go off by themselves.” “Look at me.”Jessica said. “I can't because the lights are off.”I said. “Try.” Jessica said. I could barely make out Jessica’s silhouette. She was standing next to the light swi...

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“The Day The Sun Went Missing” by Mystic Darling

Submitted to Contest #92

The leaves and branches brush past me but It’s hard to pay them any mind anymore. The night is silent except for the pounding of my boots on the ground and the crashing I create through the thick greenery. The sky is pitch black. And it’s the middle of the day. It’s not my fault that the guardian of the day decided that she could just leave her post. And yet here I am fixing it for her. “That idiot!” I cry into the darkness. I halt suddenly. Panting in the middle of the woods like a mere human. She has brought this humiliation ...

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“No Death, No Parting” by Kendi Karimi

Submitted to Contest #92

“Mr. Timba, when was the last time you had a glass of whiskey?” As if he had the right to ask something like that. I knew that behind his desk or cabinet or wall, somewhere, he had a stash of scotch or whatever his poison is, just like I did. From one shrink to another, thanks. The relief in this thought is that it has come to me after I have already finished doing my business. I wash my hands on the sink and walk out of the men’s room. At work, they praise me for my deduction skills, but because I’m still under observation, I can never l...

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“Transition Phase” by Philip Clayberg

Submitted to Contest #92

I still remember walking through the park near where I worked. I loved looking at all the towering evergreen trees and the much shorter flowering bushes. The smell of cedar all around me was intoxicating. I couldn't remember it being so strong before. There was another scent, though. An unfamiliar one. Maybe the gardeners had planted something new and unusual. I shrugged and continued on my way.Walking past the pond, something struck me from behind. I hadn't heard any footsteps or the sound of bicycle wheels or rollerblades. One minute it wa...

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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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“Poisoned ” by Amelia Bowen

Submitted to Contest #92

I discovered a rash on my arm yesterday. Its eating me from the inside out. I can feel it melting my skin; burning, itching pains that won’t subside. Its obscene. I haven’t eaten anything strange. I don’t think so. I haven’t been near any particularly long-haired or scruffy animals. My neighbor has a dog. She’s white with really short hair, though. I can’t imagine it’d have given me something. I don’t think I’m allergic to dogs. Not that kind, at least. When I imagine myself allergic to something it usually looks more like a vulture. Or deat...

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“Light at the End of the Tunnel” by Kate Winchester

Submitted to Contest #92

**Author's note: This story can be read as a stand alone, but you'll have more background information about certain events if you read Falling Forward, Falling Apart, and Anything, but Elementary.**Dr. Harding sat at her small wooden desk. It was tucked unassumingly into the corner. A plush dark blue couch commanded attention in the room along with a pair of soft cream-colored chairs. She glanced at her calendar for the day. She had a few appointments scheduled and a couple of meetings. It was going to be busy. ...

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“Brothers Until (and Beyond) The End” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #92

The closet door shuddered. Teddy Burton paid it no mind. The chair wedged beneath the handle continued to do its job. Henry wouldn’t be able to get out without an axe. And Teddy didn’t think he could use one of those, even if he possessed one. Either before or after. Teddy had once watched him try — and fail — to use a tin opener on a can with an easy pull tab. Headphones on, computer screen bright. The chatter and clatter of buttons. The squeak of the joystick as it wiggled back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth ...

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“Step One: Go Outside ” by Mary Sheehan

Submitted to Contest #92

Francie wakes to a half drawn curtain pouring sunlight on her face. Sleepily, she rolls out of bed and pads to the kitchen, skipping around any pools of sunlight streaming in through the slants in the windows. She makes herself a cup of coffee and sits at her writing desk, inhaling the tangy aroma, heady and delicious. She sits with her head nestled in her hands and sifts methodically through her thoughts, watching the spools of steam rise in the air above her cup.We don’t get much sunshine in Ireland, something deep inside her complains. Yo...

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“Ring a Ring a Rosie” by Vicky S

Submitted to Contest #92

The floorboards creaked as the small group of people, all wrapped in thick coats and scarves, huddled closer than they normally would have done as they climbed the grand staircase, several torches lighting their way. The light from the full moon trickled through the dirty windows, but the panes of glass were so grimy, the hallways and rooms were still dark; thin beams of light reaching the dusty, dirt covered floor, adding to the eerie spookiness. “Ring a ring a Rosie, a pocket full of posies.” “What was that?” one of them asked, spinning ar...

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“Lights Are On” by Ed .

Submitted to Contest #92

The lights were on. Alice squinted her eyes, fighted back to ajust. The walls were painted white so it was even harder. Finally the figures shaped into vision as everything came back into place in a blurry form. “Wake up!” Cried Chester, presumaly the one who flicked the switch. Alice rubbed her eyes once more. She was used to his daily routine.1. Wake up my sister, Alice.Chester was already up and getting changed into his clothes. Alice was too tired to even think about anything so she tried to get to sleep. Obviously having a brother like ...

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“The Last and First Visit” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #92

The oddest thing about visiting Auntie Stella, even when Lucy was a little girl, was that she never really wanted to go, and yet she never really wanted to leave, either. There was an unease, a dissatisfaction, about both. Auntie Stella didn’t live in a roses round the door idyllic little cottage like Lucy’s friend Annabelle’s Auntie Maureen. She slightly envied Annabelle, though she wasn’t going to give her as much fun as to say so, and though she wasn’t proud of herself, couldn’t honestly say she was sorry either when she told Annabelle th...

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“Absinthe's End” by Svara Narasiah

Submitted to Contest #92

“Another boy was taken last night,” Father said, laying down his paper with a deep frown. I glanced up from my homework. “Who?” I asked, feeling chills race up my spine. For the past three years, various boys had been taken—strangely, only boys from my school. “His name was Iris,” Father said as he scanned the headline. “Iris Black.” I lowered my eyes, trying to hide the tears already forming. Iris was one of my closest friends—just like all the others had been. Casper, Felix, and now Iris… “What did the news ...

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“Shadow House” by Ed .

Submitted to Contest #92

The house was filled with shadows. As soon as me and Gemma stepped into Auntie Fled’s house that was the first thing we noticed. “I’m scared Triton!” Gemma whispered partly to herself and partly to me. My older cousin was spooked. I am frightened too. “Did you just see that?” I asked her pointing at a shadow; That looked like our Aunt. In fact, When we looked up there she stood with a face that could make any normal person faint. And I am technically normal so I faint too.I have breakfast the next morning when I wake. It was the normal cerea...

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$50

Prize money

1051

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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