Start your story with a character struggling to remember the date, because every day is like the last one.

Posted in Dark on Oct 25, 2022

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✍️ 177 stories

“The start of a new day” by Jocelyn Annable-Wynter

Submitted to Contest #84

James stared at his notebook. It was a new day, which meant a new page in his notebook. “What is today?” James muttered to himself. He started to write the date and pause. He thought to himself, “What did I do yesterday?” It was Monday, the weekend was past and it was a new week. James could not remember this. He was always the first person in the office, so he had no one to ask. James started to write “I know it’s 2120, isn’t it?” The only response was the HVAC system kicking in. “Well you’re no help!” The HVAC system impassively hummed its...

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“Z - 12” by Eliana Michelle

Submitted to Contest #84

Is it Thursday or Sunday? Those are two very different days where I'm from--even though I can't really remember where that is--but every day has seemed to mesh together. Has it been a year? Over a year? Two months? No matter the time, each day feels like an eternity in my new cold, damp, four-cement-wall bedroom with a foot thick iron door on the front right wall. The only hint of the time I really get is the small sliver of light that creeps in teasingly through the crack in my wall opposite the iron door. Every day, I wake up to the crac...

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“the next time I forget” by Nao Nishimura

Submitted to Contest #84

Forgetting becomes easier the lonelier you let yourself become. Everything blends into something just under nothing at all. But it’s easier that way, she says, it’s simpler that way, she says. Or thinks. There’s no point in saying things that no one will hear. She thinks that too. The morning paper that she picks up every day before school says that it’s February 15th today, but she could’ve sworn it was the 8th just yesterday. To most people, the lack of memory that spanned over days at a time would be something that should ...

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“Is it Worth the Pain” by Tyler Ard

Submitted to Contest #84

It’s been a whole month since the contagion swept over the world. An entire month of chaos and heartbreak. My older brother and I were the only ones in our family to survive the initial hit, besides some family members across the country. We'd stayed locked up for nearly the entire month. I’ve already forgotten what day was yesterday and what day we were in presently. My brother was worried about me. I understand why, we needed to worry about each other. I tried asking my brother if he kne...

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“It's Over....and Over” by Karen Conway

Submitted to Contest #84

The sun rose again and, as it filtered through the filmy green curtains, my bedroom walls looked muddier than usual. I rubbed my eyes to wake up and the corners were crusty where the salt had leaked out during my dreams. Last night, the dream took me close to the ocean and the air was thick, the atmosphere rising, evaporating into a gray, misty fugue that hung low over the black water. I love the ocean and its changeable nature. Sometimes it feels like home, sometimes like a treasure to be visited infrequently, someti...

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“Ablutions” by Ryan Kennedy

Submitted to Contest #84

Ablutions I have to get ready for work, what time is it? It was dark, but only because his eyes were closed. He rolled from his side to his back and opened them. It wasn’t dark any more. Dim hallway lights shone in on him, making shadows across his face as they came through the bars. There would be no work today. Only corrections. One thing he enjoyed about being in here was how little time mattered. While very much of his life was rigorously scheduled, the days didn’t matter. Holidays, sure, but any other day was just another day. A Tuesday...

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“Bennie outsmarts the squirrel” by Margaret Keefe

Submitted to Contest #84

And yet another grey day. Sure would be nice to see some blue sky and maybe even some shadows. This is winter in Vermont, long, cold, and grey. A black and white world that can dampen the spirit even in the best of times. It was not the best of times. Bennie complained of his lack of energy and aching joints constantly."You need to get up and move more, Martha told him, things stiffen up if you don’t move about," Martha repeated these words each day for the past several months but it was as if he didn’t hear her anymore. The truth was he was...

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“The Creatures” by HBR Patel

Submitted to Contest #84

Start your story with a character struggling to remember the date, because every day is like the last one. The screaming never stopped. It took away the screamer with all its might. The deadly creature restored the silence in the space with one life lost. The spaceship was drifting for days, and Tim lost the count. The space expedition to another planet, some lightyears apart from the Mars colony, turned out to be fatal for the crew aboard the spaceship. 'Can you time that event, Ron?' 'Two sunrises.' 'Are you sure?' Ron fo...

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“One day” by Livelongandprosper 39

Submitted to Contest #84

TW: death He opened his eyes with effort, obliged to wake up by the light of the early morning, which, seeping from every window, drew stipes on the floor of the cell. He didn’t complain about it though, in fact, he thanked that at least the light was allowed to visit him so the concept of time wasn’t entirely lost in his routine. He sat up and, once again, looked at the marks on the wall, counting over them and wondering if he had forgotten to engrave a line the day before. It didn’t matter though, it would just mean one less sc...

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“Loop” by Jomari Parale

Submitted to Contest #84

My right hand grasped my aching head, I closed my eyes and tried to shoo the pain away. I fell asleep, right then and there, but was awoken immediately when my head dropped a bang on my computer table. My left hand is still in the middle of typing my daily report email to my supervisor. "Oh, I'm still at the letterhead." My fingers journeyed through the keyboard and finished inputting the letterhead but I unconsciously stopped midway through the date. "March 17, 20... Hmm. It doesn't sound right. Is it 16?" I skipped the date and c...

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“Is It Monday” by Valerie Preston

Submitted to Contest #84

I want to keep my eyes open but it’s impossible most of the time. A tiny piece of fluff dances back and forth as the fan whirrs around, and I try to look to my right as it floats away but it’s lost. Am I lost? I can’t think straight – if it’s Monday then what did I do on the weekend? I should have played netball – do I still play? Maybe it’s Tuesday – cheap movie night. What did I last see at the movies? Was it‘Jaws’? I think that was further back than last week – maybe, maybe not. Is it January? What day is it? I silently cry out – then not...

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“The Price of Immortality” by Ethan Gardner

Submitted to Contest #84

Just before sunrise, Erik Valdovitch came to life with a gasp. He took a quick glance at his surroundings. Same dirty prison cell, with rusty iron bars and a small hole for a window. Not that there was any light this time of day. Erik sat up, dusting bits of straw from his back, then let out a deep sigh. Today was a new day, which meant a new death. He wondered how long it would take this time. Erik had lost track of how long he’d been doing this. Each day was always the same: wake up in the morning, get sent out into the arena, and...

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“Life in Darkness” by Floraine Thwin

Submitted to Contest #84

I am Mira who lived in neighbor country of china called Myanmar. Me and my mother was staying at her parent's residence for years. I started working freelance writing at October 2018. That year end was being nice to me I felt the luck was coming to me. Because I got invitation from my friends who came from Wuhan city and doing business here in Myanmar. After new year party night, we didn't think horrible things will happen tomorrow. 1 Jan 2019, I heard the news about the...

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“Oblivion” by F Palma

Submitted to Contest #84

Being alone was a familiar feeling. After all, with so much to do, one doesn't have much time for others. Cassie sighed as she set down her cup of cocoa, staring at the screen of her laptop. She barely knew what she was writing, let alone why it mattered so much. All she knew was that it had to be done every day. No exceptions. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d had a conversation with anyone. A timer suddenly went off, reminding Cassie she had food waiting for her in the oven. Finally. Anything to distract her...

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“The Bagmen” by Kelly Pawlik

Submitted to Contest #84

Cigarette smoke hung in the air. A floral bedspread was bunched up at the bottom of the bed. Wrinkled white sheets covered the lumpy mattress. A painting of a grassy field hung on one of the wood panelled walls. A notebook and an ashtray sat on a small table.Gary took a long drag on his cigarette and closed his eyes. He imagined he was somewhere that wasn’t a cheap motel room. He exhaled and opened his eyes, but the scene before him hadn’t changed. He tapped the cigarette against the cheap black ashtray and watched as the ashes scattered int...

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Start your story with a character struggling to remember the date, because every day is like the last one.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 177 stories

“The start of a new day” by Jocelyn Annable-Wynter

“Z - 12” by Eliana Michelle

“the next time I forget” by Nao Nishimura

“Is it Worth the Pain” by Tyler Ard

“It's Over....and Over” by Karen Conway

“Ablutions” by Ryan Kennedy

“Bennie outsmarts the squirrel” by Margaret Keefe

“The Creatures” by HBR Patel

“One day” by Livelongandprosper 39

“Loop” by Jomari Parale

“Is It Monday” by Valerie Preston

“The Price of Immortality” by Ethan Gardner

“Life in Darkness” by Floraine Thwin

“Oblivion” by F Palma

“The Bagmen” by Kelly Pawlik

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story that spans exactly a year and takes place in a single room.

Write about someone who grew up in a bunker, and lockdown life is all they’ve ever known.

Set your story in a post-pandemic world, where the effects are still felt even as your character attempts to move on.

Write about someone who’s trying to accomplish a task that used to be easy but is now made complicated by a pandemic.

Contest #84

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

664

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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