Center your story around a character who longs for something they’ve lost.

Posted in Dramatic on Nov 15, 2024

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✍️ 88 stories

“THE PURRIS DOCTRINE ” by Laya Alix

Submitted to Contest #277

Nayara had waited an eternity for this moment and now it was finally time for her to embark on her journey into the Thraine, like so many before her. On many occasions, she had watched on as members of the Lunari tribe made their way into the vast expanse of dense forest where adventure awaited them as they transported a most sacred blue flame bestowed upon them by Solara, the great light spirit. It was the moment every Lunari longed for, a rite of passage. The beginning of this journey was initiated by the dropping of the shadow, a sign tha...

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“Leaving Orbit” by DJ ONeill

Submitted to Contest #277

Content Warning: Despair, Suggested Gore/Violence, Dark Imagery The expanse reached out mile upon mile, endless black layers rolling on top of each other. His heart thundered in giant, singular echoes as his hands reached for her, his fingers numb to the nails, as the hairs on his arms stood, evolution fruitlessly throwing spasms in an act of protecting the skin against the ice creeping to his elbows. The stillness closed around the smile, her smile, the lips and teeth seen clear even with thousands of dark miles in between them. Carefully,...

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“The Current” by Zacharias Boer

Submitted to Contest #277

The insulae were hot with flames as I ran past them, rubble grinding into the soles of my bare feet. I choked on the smoke, watering eyes blinding my sight–though it didn’t matter because I hadn’t picked a path of escape yet. The only sacred and peaceful place of the entire empire had been seized–and by our very own leader. Sulla had left the capital in flames.“Marcus!” I shouted, voice made raspy by the smoke inside my throat.“Avi?!” A voice called back.I gasped, rushing to the direction of the voice. Through the thickening smoke I could se...

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“Un-forget Me” by Charlye C

Submitted to Contest #277

I always wanted to be remembered. It didn’t have to be anything significant, it’s not like I was asking for a Nobel Peace Prize, I just wanted to matter to someone. For so long I felt insignificant. Everyone around me made me feel that way, my parents, my friends, my cat that ran away and had babies with an alley cat. A British Shorthair of all cats, she’d get way more love from me than that heavy-coated vermin but I guess love conquers all. That’s why I always wondered if you’d be happy to see me. If you missed me like I missed you. I...

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“Monotony” by Danica Zink

Submitted to Contest #277

Her bleary gray eyes scanned the small square of horizon that appeared on her window screen. Small trees swayed in the breeze as streaky clouds slowly etched their way across the gray-blue sky, nearly mirroring the cloudy gray-blue of her gaze. In the foreground, little purple flowers dipped their heads to her as if in greeting and two small birds hopped gently on the ground. If she had blinked at the wrong moment, she wouldn't have noticed that occasionally the little birds would appear to be missing a foot where one had just been a moment ...

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“Duru Gintanamihan (A Tale of Tarot #10, As Written By The Fool)” by John Divinagracia

Submitted to Contest #277

There are many stories of a people reclaiming their homeland. Among the humans, the most famous are the Yishiva who spent seven hundred and fifty years retaking Ershen Ziophel, “The land of Ziophel,” from the Yishiva-hating pogroms of the Kurgzadts, the For, and the Galaamites. For the demons who emerged from Hell to build homes on the surface, they speak of Gorroma, the Promised Land of the Mordai, and how they fought against the mighty Medjay legions and transformed swamp and desert into a lush oasis and paradise for all demonkind. There i...

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“Sister - Graveyard Keeper’s horror Story” by LL Studio

Submitted to Contest #277

A short story from the medieval graveyard, where a young graveyard keeper digs graves to steal valuables from the buried. Today, it becomes fatal for him. He digs a grave, opens the coffin, and discovers that the poor woman's body has been dragged away by rats. He crawls through a tunnel full of squeaking rodents until he encounters a larger underground hole, where an unpleasant surprise awaits him. In a bumpy, dark-gray graveyard, long, trailing vines grew wildly on leaning gravestones and decaying benches. Some climbed high on the trunks o...

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“I wish you the best” by Zane Alicea

Submitted to Contest #277

He stared out the window as they sat there, papers between them. Looking out into the idyllic countryside, he sought in them the words that would be the deliverance of his emotions, something to quell his long held malaise over this broken relationship. The light of a waning sun played across green pastures, fat with sheep. There was a long silence, broken only by the rhythmic drumming of his figures, a way to help him steady himself. “I’ve never been good at starting things,” he probed, stumbling across a thesaurus in his mind, “Nor have I...

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“A howl of Willow” by Ava Szymanski

Submitted to Contest #277

With a start, I scramble out of bed, the coolness of the wooden floor sending a shiver through my feet. My mind races as the image of a wolf flickers through my thoughts. The night is steeped in mystery, and the sounds outside draw me in like a siren's call. I strain my ears, captivated by the haunting melody that fills the air—each note sung with an otherworldly precision that seems to reach out to the vast expanse of stars overhead. The wolf’s voice weaves an enchanting symphony, perfectly in tune with the shimmering constellations, creati...

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“Nine Isn't Enough” by Kalisha James

Submitted to Contest #277

Trigger Warning: This story will contain death.I miss her. I glare down at the cleanest gravesite around. I made it my duty to come a clean her headstone every night. I would come talk to her before I went to bed and when I woke up in the morning. The routine kept her alive in my mind, but it also made the realization that she was gone hit me so much harder. Her grave looks like it is almost isolated from everyone else's. I hope she isn't still lonely in the afterlife. All of the others are covered in moss and shrub as if they were...

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“The Woods” by Katie Estcourt

Submitted to Contest #277

The Woods The sign lights up. The doorway immediately illuminates, and the room turns red.My eyes fight to open, the brightness is painful against the darkness my vision is used to.I knew this day would come.I stand, brushing the dirt and dust off my torn trousers. I don’t bother to tidy my hair, where I’m going, it seldom matters. My mind flashes to an image of dappled light and warmth. The sun illuminating the earth and turning everything gold. I try to remember how it felt to breathe in the air, to feel the wind through my fingers, how it...

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“The Red Glow” by Jack Thomas

Submitted to Contest #277

Golden sands beneath him. A man in a simple brown hooded robe directs his old red horse towards the red star to the north, deep in the night sky, sprinkled around it a sea of blue and purple stars. Gleel Doth Uhl shines brightly, painting the desert in a faint red glow.I earned my place- worked harder than he ever did. He squeezes the reins and shakily brings them towards his chest, his fingernails digging into the leather. That filth. Disgusting filth. I'll kill him, I'll kill him-The old horse rears, as the man squeezes his templ...

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“If she had stayed” by Zeynep .

Submitted to Contest #277

Ivy never stopped for anything, not a bump in the road, not even an animal she might’ve just run over. She was always on the move, acting on impulse, yet somehow, always with purpose. Her mind was simply a whirlwind of plans and determination, where to go or what to try next. I used to stare at her in admiration, wondering how she did it all. In the time I had known her, I never once saw her come up for air, ever, and that's exactly how she became the loss of my life. I still remember the first time I saw Ivy. It was a sunny autumn da...

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Center your story around a character who longs for something they’ve lost.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 88 stories

“THE PURRIS DOCTRINE ” by Laya Alix

“Leaving Orbit” by DJ ONeill

“The Current” by Zacharias Boer

“Un-forget Me” by Charlye C

“Monotony” by Danica Zink

“Duru Gintanamihan (A Tale of Tarot #10, As Written By The Fool)” by John Divinagracia

“Sister - Graveyard Keeper’s horror Story” by LL Studio

“I wish you the best” by Zane Alicea

“A howl of Willow” by Ava Szymanski

“Nine Isn't Enough” by Kalisha James

“The Woods” by Katie Estcourt

“The Red Glow” by Jack Thomas

“If she had stayed” by Zeynep .

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about an outsider or social outcast who will do anything to fit in.

Start or end your story with two friends who become enemies/rivals, or vice versa.

Write from the POV of a fairy tale character sharing their side of the story.

Write a story with the word “wicked” in the title.

Contest #277

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

328

Contest entries

121

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: