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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#99: Summer Solstice

In the Northern Hemisphere, June 21st is the ‘summer solstice’ — the longest day of the calendar year and, in astronomical terms, the beginning of summer. In my part of the world, this season evokes a plethora of scenes: sunbathing on river banks, al fresco dining with friends, and trips to the seaside, all punctuated by the heady scents of summertime — potent florals, sunscreen and food sizzling on the grill.

The solstice celebration has its roots in ancient Paganism — where people would gather at sites like Stonehenge and wear protective garlands of herbs and flowers to ward off the evil spirits who, according to Pagan folklore, walk the earth more freely at this time. From a spiritual standpoint, the solstice is all about embracing the sun and its awesome power. Whether you love basking in the sun or prefer to stay inside with the curtains drawn, I thought this week's prompts could be a way for us Reedsians to mark the advent of summer too. Happy writing!

This week's prompts

Begin your story with somebody watching the sunrise, or sunset.

Fluff – 275 stories

Write about the longest day of the year, or a day that never seems to end.

Summer – 99 stories

End your story with somebody stepping out into the sunshine.

Summer – 211 stories

Write a story about somebody reminiscing on an event that happened many summers ago.

Summer – 217 stories

Write a story about characters going on a summer road trip.

Summer – 104 stories

Stories

“Am back ” by TomfliXA Ng’ang’a

Submitted to Contest #99

She woke up all happy and pretty pleased with herself. It wasn’t almost herself to be optimistic, not with her poor life. Mombasa must have been an exciting experience for her it seemed. She whistled softly as she peeled off the covers off her.“Hey bestie. I am broke and desperate. So could you do me a favor and sort me out please? “ She asked her friend Jayson, way later in the day. “I would like to, but you are the queen of the non-debt payers remember. “She stared at him long and hard before smiling and left. She threw her backpack on her...

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“Out of Orbit” by Katie Morgan

Submitted to Contest #99

“Traditions are important. We’ll need them for our kids someday.”You said as we sat on the edge of the lake, water bubbling over my naked toes, sun peaking over the edge of the mountains.I laughed, trying to hide my elation and hear it for the joke it was.“Isn’t it a little early to be thinking about kids?”“Life’s short, why wait?” you said, as nonchalant as if you were asking me to give you a sip of my water, instead of the thing I'd always simultaneously ached for and feared. You had a habit of that—knowing my deepest heart and making my e...

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“Upward” by Jon R. Miller

Submitted to Contest #99

Sursum grimaced and yowled as he hauled the climbing rope with both hands, helping Eripio scale the final distance onto the lip of the cliff. His guttural vociferations echoed off the cave walls; startled glow-beetles scuttled deep inside their crevices. Sursum planted his feet firmly into an indentation in the rock and pulled with all his might. “Come on, Eripio, I won’t have you fall all the way back down home,” he said through clenched teeth. “Or else this’ll be the shortest expedition in history.” Eripio’s fingers emerged, latching onto ...

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“My Sun Shall Never Set” by Jasmine Fallerwood

Submitted to Contest #99

The sky is on fire. Brilliant, flaming orange as if the canvas material of the world itself is burning. Glorious gold is poured on the flame, streaks of it leaking into the cloudy blue sky where pink smoke dances and twirls. And the match that lit it up is now a bursting hot ember, crimson like a splash of blood. It is the dusk and the inferno; the earth is preparing itself for the next day, and it is doing it by cleansing the evil from its sky.She is sitting beside me. We are on the pier, warm wood cutting into our asses, splinters digging ...

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“Glimmer of Light” by Britt Michielsen

Submitted to Contest #99

My eyes open slowly. I wince in pain as my head hits the headrest of the passenger seat of a familiar car. It’s pounding so loud I can’t even hear myself think. But I have to. I have to focus. I have to get us out of here. I look to the left and immediately panic. “Neal? Neal, wake up!” I yell as I prompt myself up against the car seat so that I land onto my knees. My hands are tied together with duck tape so I kind of have to be creative as to how I can move around in this tiny space. “Neal! Neal! Wake up, Neal!” I scream again, even loud...

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“The Summer Holiday” by Christopher Moore

Submitted to Contest #99

We’re all going on a summer holiday. I’ve heard that song and it just popped into my mind. Maybe I’m just feeling happy. But we are going on a summer holiday. Guess that’s pretty well the best reason to be happy, don’t you think? Getting the family together, sorting yourself out, and leaving behind the cold, the wind and, yes, even the ice and snow sometimes. Sweet joy of living. Mind you, it nearly didn’t happen this year. There was this virus. That was bad. Thought we might all g...

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“On the beach” by وداد أكرم

Submitted to Contest #99

There were a lot of things that Beatrice had to hire, four days of packing and collecting all the things that the family needed to travel, the summer break came and they were ready, but because of the epidemic they would have to travel in their own car, which they would have to go a long way to move from Kentucky to South Carolina. "Mom did I finish packing, I forgot to put my beloved yellow T-shirt in my bag."Roxana is Beatrice's daughter. "Oh Roxy, you've been holding your bag for a long time, always late to get things."Beatrice. "Plea...

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“the lake trip ” by Annaliese Kilzer

Submitted to Contest #99

My name is Lizzie, I am going to tell you the story of 6 friends on a road trip to the lake and the disaster that it became It all started on July 12, with a group of friends. two girls named Katie and Shelby and three boys Chris, Sean, and Luke. they were the kind of people who lived outdoors, did well in school, and didn’t care about appearances. I was not, I was a girl who loved to shop, sing and dance. I was the type to go out at night and party meanwhile they liked to stay in, watch movies. You may be wondering how I got i...

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“Nuages” by Jemie Wong

Submitted to Contest #99

She looked at her like she was the sun. Iona refused to leave Antonia’s field of vision, so Antonia only ever looked at her in frustration. She revelled in her warmth and protested when she was gone, but she never really looked at her. Until Iona was leaving. In the sunset, Antonia would wonder how she hadn’t seen her like this before. Antonia stared at the sunrise, swinging her legs into the emptiness of air. The sounds of skipping footsteps, bouncing and cheery. Iona sat down beside her. Immense, absolute, bold, and disruptive. “T...

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“On a Summer Road Trip with 'the Girls"” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #99

On a Summer Road Trip with ‘the Girls’ From the time that they actually were ‘girls’, these three women, Lydia, Sarah, and Sydney (her parents didn’t know whether they wanted a boy or a girl, but they liked the name) had always referred to themselves as ‘the girls’. In their mid-forties they even had the two words tattooed on their left forearms, all doing it at the same time at the same tattoo parlour. That way no one would chicken out. They had become close friends as teenagers, and became well-known at their high school for t...

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“Nectarine Dreams” by Megan Schrader

Submitted to Contest #99

The fruits of summer had always been the sweetest. As he sat on the coast, snacking contentedly on plump nectarines and cherries, their sticky juices streaming down his chin and fingers, Daimon wished he could sit beneath the hot summer sun forever. Lazy days by the water, a gentle breeze on the air, the promise of sunshiny, saltwater days yet to come - he might have been young, but Daimon could not picture a life more perfect than that. And while the sun would remain high above the horizon for many more hours still, a nagging voice reminde...

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“The getaway” by Vincent Guillemin

Submitted to Contest #99

[Follows " Microcosm", "Hebrews 13: 1-2 ", " The son never shines on closed doors" and "July 4th"]Ernie watches the stranger walk away and gloats over Lou's bewildered look. He smirks and takes a sip out of a bottle still wrapped in a brown bag. « That'll learn him". He feels a slight burning in his throat as the syrupy beverage makes its way slowly down. On reaching its stomach, a soft warmth, right in ...

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“If Only” by F. G.

Submitted to Contest #99

I knew I had to make it stop. I closed my eyes, breathed in slowly, held it for a short time, and then released it just as slow. Out of instinct alone, I reached for the still cold ground. My hand thrust through the soil and I felt the roots. I started combing them with my fingers. The cicadas yawned from too much sleep and began to sing their song.I opened my eyes and watched them climb up the old oak tree. The one that grew the tallest at the center of the land. ( I don't remember a time when it wasn't there.) I sat on the ground listening...

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“A Rambunctious Ride” by Holly Hanlon

Submitted to Contest #99

“Have you got everything?” Nick asks the group of three that are sitting on the couch as he walks in. He is mostly ignored besides Ian who glances his way, the other two’s eyes trained on the large flat screen in front of them. Ian smiles at his friend, “Yep, I’ve been packed since yesterday, these two just finished throwing things in their bags.” Nick rolls his eyes before narrowing them at the other two that still haven’t acknowledged his presence. “I’m not letting you guys borrow anything on the road.” He tells them, knowing for...

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“TURN OF THE HERMIT” by Sivaram Govindaraj

Submitted to Contest #99

(This story is set in earth’s twin planet GAIA2 which is 800 years younger and is evolving.)He is a hermit. It was his 70th birthday and he sat recalling a significant event of his past which happened 20 years ago:‘Far in a wild, unknown to public view/From youth to age a reverend hermit grew;/The moss his bed, the cave his humble cell,/His food the fruits, his drink the crystal well:/Remote from man, with God he pass'd the days,/Prayer all his business, all his pleasure praise./' That introduction can’t be put better than by that poet*...

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$50

Prize money

909

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jun 25, 2021 EST

Won by Tom Vandel 🏆

Title: The Men and the Lake

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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