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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#97: Window of Opportunity

Windows let us see and be seen. These openings to the outside world (or the indoors world, depending on where you’re standing) have been so important in connecting our individual isolations during the pandemic. And beyond their presence in our daily lives, windows frequently feature in art and cinema: from Edward Hopper’s famous paintings of nightly urban scenes to films like The Woman in the Window or The Neighbors’ Window, glimpses into the lives of others have always been a source of wonder and curiosity.

Speaking of which, wonder and curiosity are promising feelings to tap into when you're responding to this week’s prompts. Apart from the literal gazing in and out of windows, you can also pass through magic ones, or develop a story around a window-related event. And if you happen to passionately loathe windows, I’ve got a metaphorical one for you to get creative with. Have fun!

This week's prompts

Start your story with a character looking out of a window in the middle of the night.

Horror – 340 stories

Write a story in which a window is broken or found broken.

Dark – 142 stories

Write a story that involves a magic window — or a window like no other.

Fantasy – 154 stories

Start your story with an unexpected knock on a window.

Dark – 138 stories

Set your story within a window of opportunity, when a character finally has the chance to do something.

Middle School – 144 stories

Stories

“The Tears a Mother Sheds” by Arwen Dove

Submitted to Contest #97

Pressing my hand to the windowpane, I breathed out, trying to relieve the thoughts of my daughter from my mind. My breath stilled upon the glass, fogging it so that the trees surrounding my little cottage were a mere shadow of time and reality. For that’s all they were, all they ever were really. This window was a reflection of time, though I didn’t realise it until…I took my hand away from the window, leaving a handprint in the fog. I watched as singular drops of water began to condensate and slowly roll down from my handprint and cont...

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“Window Watching” by DionTre Speller

Submitted to Contest #97

Trigger warning: violence I had a tough time sleeping that night. After all the stress I endured today it felt like I was losing my mind. It just felt like my mind was foggy. After a long twelve-hour shift on my construction job; while in 101-degree weather, the last thing I needed now was no sleep. My body is tired, but my mind just keeps wandering. After many moments of tossing and turning I got up and go down my old creaky stairs to go to the kitchen for a drink. I grabbed a cup and started to fill my cup up with ice from my refrigerator....

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“After Five Years” by Rachel Kirk

Submitted to Contest #97

It was one of the lazy Sunday evenings where I would lie on my bed with my favorite coffee mug in hand, reading a random Nancy Drew novel, sipping coffee and dreading about going to work the next day, when suddenly I heard a knock at my window which made me jerk, dropping my favorite coffee mug on the floor which broke into a hundred pieces. "Hey Miss Nancy Drew! I just knew I would find you on your bed reading a Nancy Drew novel with your favorite coffee mug in hand." "Shit.. shit.. shit.....I..I'm so sorry I didn't mean to..." "Na...

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“The White Woman” by Svara Narasiah

Submitted to Contest #97

Author's Note: This is actually a story I submitted as an application to a writing class. I wrote it last year, so it's probably a little bit different from my other stories; either way, I wanted to post it, so I hope you like it! “Essie, give me a piggyback ride!” Harold shouted. I looked up from the essay I was writing. “I’m busy right now,” I said, scribbling down a few more words. My three-year-old brother looked up at me with his big brown eyes. “Please, Essie?” He pleaded in his I’m-cute-so-do-what-I-want voice. “Pretty please? ...

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“Eleven Q” by Daniel R. Hayes

Submitted to Contest #97

For Emma… (This story is dedicated to all 11Q children and everyone who has a disability.) I’m strong, smart, and beautiful, so why am I sitting here in my wheelchair staring out from a broken window? Well, the answer to that question is a bit complex. You see when I get angry I can’t communicate that frustration, so I tend to throw and hit things. I can’t talk, at least not like you. I try to say things, believe me, but the only thing that comes out of my mouth are grunts and yells. Today, I noticed...

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“The Unfortunate Pair” by Silver Pen: Temporarily Inactive

Submitted to Contest #97

TW: Horror, seizure-like behavior, blood, and gore.The eighth grade school day was sweltering hot, and James was fast asleep on his desk. Even in sleep, he muttered unintelligibly, fingers twitching and brow furrowing. His teacher didn’t bother to wake him, fearing the behavior that would surely ensue. James was a strange child, and was often the victim of relentless bullying and teasing. The mutterings grew louder, until some of his fellow classmates shot him nervous sideways glances. He had been diagnosed with Schizophrenia at a very young...

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“Solstice 3:33” by Rajesh Patel

Submitted to Contest #97

It is late night. I am still up. You can say I am a night owl. With my work schedule being 1 PM to 9 PM, I got into the habit of going to bed at two in the morning, and I usually wake up at 10 AM. I am not complaining for now. I do have weekends off. On the weekend, I don’t abuse by waking up past noon. Oh no! I kept my sleep and wake up time steady, seven days a week. I love to sleep and I enjoy naps too on the weekends, especially in the afternoon, after lunch. It’s Friday night, and the clock shows 9:00 PM! Yes! My weekend has started...

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“The dead sometimes do come back” by Aman Fatima

Submitted to Contest #97

3 days before camp. Knock knock. A sound came from the downstairs window. Silla with a bat in hand tiptoed to the window and moved the curtains slightly. She saw no one outside and thought it was the wind but before she could fix the curtain and head back to her room a figure jumped out and revealed itself. Silla ran to turn on the porch lights and saw it was her husband, Henry, standing outside. She opened the door and let him in. “You almost gave me a heart attack” Silla said smiling while also punching Henry in the shoulder a few times. “...

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“Stars Between the Pages of a Book” by Aurora Spencer

Submitted to Contest #97

In two days, Nidhi would write the most important exam of her life. Fifteen years old with a long future at hand, how she performed would seal her fate. She would compete with thousands of people her age. Unless she came off doing better than most, she was ruined. The sound of crickets chirping filled the night, interrupted by the occasional howl of stray wolves. Cool breeze rustled grass and leaves, blowing away traces of the approaching summer. The moon, round and pale yellow, played a game of hide-and-seek behind wisps of grey cloud...

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“St Theodore's, Hencham, 1993” by Mike Burgess

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #97

On a day like this, there is no better sight in the world. How often have I watched the sunshine streaming through those windows, filling the church with colours like none I ever saw outside these walls? When I was young, my grandparents brought me every week. Mother joined us at Christmas, Easter, and one or two others I’ve forgotten the names of. She never looked like she enjoyed it. For the rest of the year, she stayed home to cook the roast dinner, week in, week out. I asked once why Father never came. When the Lord declared Sunday...

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“Help Me, Help You” by Ella Hutnak

Submitted to Contest #97

Dear Child, When was the last time you closed your eyes? When was the last time you fell into a deep slumber the second your head hit the pillow? You wish that you could say last night. That all of your troubles melted away as you drifted off to a comfortable sleep. Where you dreamed of paradise. A place that you felt safe and content, where nothing would dare bother you, worry you, hurt you. To put it simply and in one broad word, you dreamed of heaven. But I can not let that happen. You see, it is my job to force you to face yo...

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“Shattered Souls ” by Svara Narasiah

Submitted to Contest #97

Trigger Warnings: Suicide If you were a window, what would you look like? Perhaps you'd be a normal window--plain glass, wood around the edges, split into four sections. Or maybe you would be a regal window, one with stained glass that tells a complicated story. Maybe it would tell your story. Or, if you're a shy person, you might be a tiny window. You would be circle shaped and painted green, with a tiny wooden door that opens and closes but prefers to stay closed.As for me, I'm a broken window.I was a normal window once, except the wood se...

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“Solitary” by Sara M

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #97

It was 0300, but it might as well have been 1900, or 0700. The mist was the same colour, blocking out light and darkness in equal measure, whatever window you chose. The Ugloo was all windows, really. It was made of high-grade reinforced glass, and you could see out of any part of it. Or not see, as the case may be; like now. Further inside, the LiveSpace was contained within four walls that looked like a black box to the - strictly hypothetical - outside observer. Although Andromeda had spent most of her life in this Managed Zone and ...

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“Reflections Upon My Death” by Rachel Kenley Fry

Submitted to Contest #97

The last sound I heard in life was a soft thump on a window. And I’m glad.If I was a better man, maybe I could say that I wish it had turned out differently, that if I had to die it should have been surrounded by my children, or laying chest to chest with my sweetheart, and maybe if I had planned for Tuesday to be my last day on Earth I could have arranged for it to happen that way, but I can’t change the facts now.Life happens, that’s what I always tried to explain to Kathy; life just happens and we’re along for the ride and what can you do...

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“Tower of Gold” by Tommie Michele

Submitted to Contest #97

He was average, and he knew it.Average name. Jake Brown.Average height. 5’9.Average job. Customer service. Well, that one might’ve been below average, but that was beside the point. The point was that Jake was average, and he would never be anything more. Never leave a mark in the world, never have a legacy to be proud to share with his children. Jake was average.Until he wasn’t.It started with a morning like any other: wake up at six, shower, eat, run a comb through his hair. Show up five minutes early to work, merge with the...

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$50

Prize money

921

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jun 11, 2021 EST

Won by Claire Lindsey 🏆

Title: In situ

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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