Write a story that includes one character reading aloud to another.

Posted in Dialogue on Oct 26, 2022

Submissions are closed

Sorry, we are not accepting submissions for this prompt as it is not part of an active contest. Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy Prompts account.

Or create a new Reedsy account:

Why not check out our active contest?

✍️ 30 stories

“Inheritance ” by Shawn O'Connor

Submitted to Contest #142

The lawyer plopped a folder onto the desk labeled “Moira MacTavish” onto the desk. Moira’s lawyer had made a promise and agreed not to take any peeks at the contents of the folder until she had passed on, which she had done so three days ago. “Your late mother has asked that I be referred to as just, Lawyer,” stated the Lawyer. “That doesn’t surprise me in the slightest,” replied Katherine. “My mother always was a bit of an eccentric.” Katherine was Moira’s only daughter and the middle child of her siblings. Though, due to being the only...

1 comment 1

Read story

“Tied up with a love for books” by Esther Beshirová

Submitted to Contest #142

I. Beep. Beep. Beep. The monotonous sound of the code scanner kissing the greasy bindings of the books lent to the public library readers was becoming tiresome. It echoed at least twenty times per minute, and as the hours passed and his body slowly began to writhe with fatigue, he could no longer perceive the repetitive play from any distance. He usually came to work with an upbeat attitude, convinced that his time in the library was worthwhile. The beeping of the small machine was more motivating in the morning – he could hear the s...

2 comments 2

Read story

“Sleeping Hours” by Julia Kinderknecht

Submitted to Contest #142

“Must she read that to him?” Woon grumbled, settling into the purple haze and folding his gargantuan legs beneath him. He scowled at the images which hung flickering before him. “His dreams have been so influenced lately by his bedtime stories. If she knew that, she would surely not read him a book about a captive lion who is set free by a mouse. Who knows what manner of dystopias I will be forced to create this night.” Woon resented the position he had been given in the universe. He was bound by an oath at the core of his being, and...

2 comments 2

Read story

“Stories” by Erika Fisher

Submitted to Contest #142

"Once upon a time," the story started. "There was a young woman named Rose. She was as beautiful as the flower she was named after." The library was quiet. Ethel scooted closer to Geneva, enjoying her friend's narration. It was a Saturday morning. Both had gotten up early to finish a school project at their local library. The last project before graduation. They were researching when they found the tome of fairy tales. "She was locked in an enchanted castle," Geneva continued. Her and Ethel sat on the floor at the end of an empty ais...

4 comments 4

Read story

“Angels And Hot Chocolate” by Kate Kilbee

Submitted to Contest #142

My Pampas grass was whirling and twirling like a dancer wearing a feather dress. Before long the branches would be snapped clean off. The storm was wild that evening. Clouds scudded through the sky at speed. The weather forecast had predicted the wind increasing to sixty miles an hour with gusts of eighty. There was even the odd crack of thunder expected. On my drive home I'd seen people being pushed and pulled in all directions, in some cases being lifted completely off their feet whilst their shopping, yanked from their han...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Read Aloud” by Gavin Matthew

Submitted to Contest #142

Read Aloud By Gavin Matthew “Try reading that one aloud.” said the odd librarian as he slid a book across his mahogany desk. He smiled at her as she looked over the title, his brown eyes gazing from behind tinted circular glasses. Mira didn’t like the feeling of not knowing. The tall slender man before her had been operating on a level of omniscience since the very minute she had arrived. Odd was too simple a word to describe her whole predicament. Only a few hours ago M...

1 comment 1

Read story

“The Swashbuckler” by Andrew Audibert

Submitted to Contest #142

“Firebrand thrust the spade into the dirt and drew his cutlass. ‘Ye’ll dig, ye scurvy dog, or ye’ll answer to the pointed end of me sword.’ “Alban glared at the shovel, his temper boiling, hot as the Caribbean sun beating down upon him. At some unknown depth beneath his feet lay untold fortune – chests filled with gold, jewels, and artifacts that would fetch unheard of prices. But with it came a hefty cost. He who dug up the treasure would face the wrath of Metacoma’s Curse – a long, miserable life of painful, crippling ailments and the der...

1 comment 1

Read story

“Anthem for a Lost Cause” by MJ Zander

Submitted to Contest #142

She tore the pages out. She tried to cross through the words and even covered them in black paint, but she knew underneath, the words were still there, mocking her. He had told her what she didn’t want to know, what she already knew but was too scared to admit, and once she did it scared her even more. It had been coming for a while. She could feel it, a creeping sense of foreboding. It had started as a trickle...

2 comments 2

Read story

“Paper Planes” by Carlyn Blake

Submitted to Contest #142

I awoke with a sudden fit of coughing, my throat felt dry and I grabbed for the plastic bottle of water I had left on the side before going to sleep, there wasn’t much left so I took a small mouthful, just enough to rinse my throat, and swallowed. I tasted ash. Panicking, I swung round to where I had put the children to sleep, both were still on the single bed in the corner, the worn-out tartan blanket had been kicked off and had slid onto the floor but they both still had all 3 of our jackets over them for warmth, top to tail with the littl...

3 comments 3

Read story

“LOVE the library life” by Judith Veder

Submitted to Contest #142

LOVE THE LIBRARY LIFE I inherited my library love from my mother Florence. She loved books and learned to read at an early age. Her mother, a Yiddish speaker from someplace in Poland, learned English too at the Seward Park branch library on the lower east side opened in 1909. My mother always had books in her house. My mother used to say when her last days were upon her, she wanted to spend them in a library. She also said that about Barnes and Noble. Or maybe M...

0 comments 0

Read story

“The Gambler” by Anora Mansour

Submitted to Contest #142

THE GAMBLER In the middle of an autumnal Friday evening, Eva dashed across the honking gridlocked Brixton High Road, weaving her way to her local off-licence, clutching a large yellow rucksack. The plan was to stuff it with a litre of gin, soda water, Coca Cola, and a small pouch of rolling tobacco. Ignoring the blaring horns and cursing motorists clutching her rucksack which was now scraping against car doors, she wove back through the mist and pollution, dodging the cars, heading for the cul de sac to her studio flat. As she pa...

2 comments 2

Read story

“A Shared Shame” by Vie L'cast

Submitted to Contest #142

"Imaginative as your original idea may have been, it has sadly been lost in the under-cooked gumbo that is your story. As a writer, food-critic-turned-novelist, I often anchor my critiques in the analogy of cooking. It is a technique that works well in conveying complex thoughts to simple writers. Those inclined towards sappy, romantic stories that make readers wait. I suspect you're a woman. You should note that most men will not wait for you to develop such narratives. We would like for you to get to the point, if there is one, rather quic...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Story Time” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #142

I am the story teller here to tell a story to my young student Kendall and a bunch of her friends. My name is Gabriella. Today's story time takes place at our world famous library, where kids and adults take in the magic of books and where the librarians words are words of wisdom. Kendall my young student of ten loves books and the library. She is just like and all others young and old who loves books. Who doesn't love a good book? Today I'm taking Kendall and a bunch of her friends to the library for story time. I will be telling Kend...

1 comment 1

Read story

“The Corpse of Addenbrooke Island” by Kay Martin

Submitted to Contest #142

Tired heads swayed in the walls of Devin and Kione’s home: it was late, and their children were put to bed by Kione’s brother, Hanley, hours ago. Only the three adults were awake now, collecting the fireplace’s acrid smoke in their clothes and fighting their heavy joints in the sitting room. Devin picked at his nails, growing uneasy as Hanley paced and crackled from the electricity his socks created by rubbing against the carpet. If only we could attach him to the generator, Devin considered. Hanley insisted that he was unplagued, merely ene...

2 comments 2

Read story

“Remember ” by Malak Bat

Submitted to Contest #142

IMPORTANT: The crossed out words are intentional The raindrops trickled down from the dark and cloudy skies. Thunder roared from above and I closed my eyes as each droplet hit the crimson umbrella, a steady sound over and over. Drip, drip, drip. Blocking out the bustling city, I forced myself to focus on those little drops as I exhaled a slow breath, opening my eyes to watch the forming cloud of smoke with silent satisfaction as I stood in the park. I was drenched, not bothering to move the umbrella to cover myself yet again...

0 comments 0

Read story

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with someone being given a book recommendation.

Middle School – 33 stories

Write a story about a librarian that doesn’t fit into the common librarian stereotypes.

Fiction – 62 stories

Write about a character on the hunt to solve a mystery who uses their local library (or librarian) as a source of information.

Thriller and Suspense – 25 stories

Write about somebody who likes to work in silence.

Dialogue – 25 stories

Contest #142

Enter our weekly contest!

This week's theme: Librarian Love

$250

Prize money

175

Contest entries

129

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 22, 2022 EST

Won by Deidra Whitt Lovegren 🏆

Title: What You Can Do With Your Book

View details

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

We'll send you 5 prompts each week. Respond with your short story and you could win $250!

Menu

CONNECT

BLOG

APPS

TOOLS

ABOUT

Write a story that includes one character reading aloud to another.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 30 stories

“Inheritance ” by Shawn O'Connor

“Tied up with a love for books” by Esther Beshirová

“Sleeping Hours” by Julia Kinderknecht

“Stories” by Erika Fisher

“Angels And Hot Chocolate” by Kate Kilbee

“Read Aloud” by Gavin Matthew

“The Swashbuckler” by Andrew Audibert

“Anthem for a Lost Cause” by MJ Zander

“Paper Planes” by Carlyn Blake

“LOVE the library life” by Judith Veder

“The Gambler” by Anora Mansour

“A Shared Shame” by Vie L'cast

“Story Time” by Melinda Madrigal

“The Corpse of Addenbrooke Island” by Kay Martin

“Remember ” by Malak Bat

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with someone being given a book recommendation.

Write a story about a librarian that doesn’t fit into the common librarian stereotypes.

Write about a character on the hunt to solve a mystery who uses their local library (or librarian) as a source of information.

Write about somebody who likes to work in silence.

Contest #142

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

175

Contest entries

129

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: