Start your story with a blast of lightning casting a graveyard in a flash of brief, white light.

Posted in Dramatic on Oct 21, 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?

✍️ 36 stories

“Maniacal, Manipulative, Psychotic ” by Lindsay Flo

🏆 Winner of Contest #169

The storm had felt like a rumor all day, but now, the sky was delivering. For a second, like a knife catching a glint of light and refracting it in multitude, everything gleamed white. The lightning split the whole sky in half, and in that moment, it was brighter than daylight. The tops of the gravestones seemed to pulse like strobe lights in a night club before blackness settled them down again.She was kneeling in front of her sister’s grave. She came here often—after all, that’s what a mourning sister did—but she felt better coming at nigh...

144 comments 144

Read story

“The Keeper of the Flame” by Rebecca Miles

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #169

Lightning cracks the dark in a second’s flash. In a moment of bone-white brilliance, stone angels pulse to life before darkness claims them once more. I start counting slowly under my breath: one and two and, three and…hurriedly passing crosses and tombstones bearing names and dates carved deep into my memory.The thunder rumbles in the distance, but not as far away as I would like. I quicken my step along the graveyard’s overgrown path, reaching the tower as lightning illuminates the old oak door. Thunder for a second time, like the storm is...

49 comments 49

Read story

“The Benefit Society” by Tommy Goround

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #169

There's a graveyard in Old Home, California, that hasn't changed its prices since 1978. The locals know it. They are suspicious of strangers coming to their town with pickup trucks because everyone in the world would like a free plot of land just to bury their kin.One time Sally Greenbow told us that the military did not pay enough to bury her husband after Iraq. The commercials on the television say that the average funeral cost is the same price as a used Toyota. The same price as a 5-year-old car that will get you to work. I'm sure that m...

33 comments 33

Read story

“The Curious Case of Ambrose Sykes” by Rose Gresh

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #169

I.From the Journal of Ambrose Sykes, Aspiring Writer & PoetThe Curious Case of Storms in Graveyards – 1849The graveyard blazes to life in a brief flash of white light, and all at once, the lightning seems to inhabit every space–each imperfection on the silent sentinels keeping watch over the dead. Angelic faces weep. Crosses burn in the heat of it. It is chaos in an instant and no more. When it dies, darkness returns. Layers of the blackest ink spilled–spread across the dotted cemetery, fleeing the long, annoyed groan of thunder as it mu...

9 comments 9

Read story

“It was a Graveyard Smash” by Edward Latham

Submitted to Contest #169

“Brilliant!” I cried, looking down at my son gleefully. “This has got to be the best lightning generator I’ve ever seen!”The most beautiful bolt leapt across the sky like a startled deer, before splitting into a cascade of electric tributaries. It silhouetted the daunting manor on the horizon in a way that could only have been perfected by one man. Well, monster.“Dracula has really nailed it this year! You wait until we get inside Ludwig, this party is gonna blow your brains out! He’s invited every single monster in Transylvania!”My son grin...

12 comments 12

Read story

“Gunpowder Cologne” by Delbert Griffith

Submitted to Contest #169

The flash of the nearby lightning lasted for only a fraction of a second, yet the images that Piper and Decker saw were temporarily frozen behind their retinas. Blinding white and oppressive black were the only colors to be seen, each finding its rightful place according to the properties assigned to them by the laws of physics. Thunder cracked, sending a shiver through the countryside, and then tailing off to a pleasant grumble. The nightmarish snapshot of the graveyard revealed a lone figure standing before them. An old lady, attired in a...

20 comments 20

Read story

“Terms and Conditions” by Tamarin Butcher

Submitted to Contest #169

A sudden blast of lightning lit the graveyard in a flash of brief, white light. The gathered teenagers shivered involuntarily. Except for Alice. Alice surveyed the scene with mild interest. This wasn't her first midnight trip to a graveyard, and it wouldn't be her last. "Yes, thank you, Primal. Very dramatic, we're all very impressed. Now, if I could please be allowed to continue without further interruptions, lightning or otherwise!" The demon named Angst, who'd been in the middle of a speech when the bolt hit, was starting to lose her ...

9 comments 9

Read story

“N O T Y O U B I L L Y ” by Katharine Widdows

Submitted to Contest #169

Billy jumped in his skin as the lightning flashed again, illuminating ground-level sculptures of books, hearts and hands, for less than a second. Metallic vases of long-dead flowers cast shadow-fingers against tombstones under the electrical burst.Claire swished her torch from headstone to mossy headstone, pulling her hood tighter round her oval face against the lashing rain. Escaping strands of mousey brown hair stuck to her cheeks like spidery legs, as she strode through the dark in her black, rubber wellies. She crunched along the gravel ...

15 comments 15

Read story

“No Place for Monsters” by Jay Wayne

Submitted to Contest #169

The town guard calls it the graveyard shift, because everyone knows the most dangerous things in the dark are the dead ones. Hamlin has never found the joke funny, and especially not tonight with the rain and thunder making it difficult to see or hear much of anything as he makes his rounds. As he passes by the cemetery, he feels his shoulders grow tense. The rain and crushing darkness obscure his view, making it impossible to tell if anything is amiss or not. After a long moment of introspection and more than one prayer, Hamlin unlatches t...

4 comments 4

Read story

“Trick or Tale” by Von Armstead

Submitted to Contest #169

A streak of white light paints the cozy camp white for a beat. It is so bright that I see it through the small crack in my coffin, under the soil. And it means Halloween has begun.Oh, I want to lie about what will happen, but I can’t! What I will do is elegant yet sly, thoughtful yet playful. I am forced (by myself) to wait for this year’s Halloween for seven hundred thirty moons; if it is only three hundred sixty-five moons my dear citizens will grow too fond (or envy) of me, for my gorgeous countenance will allow them to feel nothing but o...

6 comments 6

Read story

“The Boneyard ” by Abigail F. Taylor

Submitted to Contest #169

Lightening cracked down in jagged points from the great tumble of soot-black clouds. A terrible rip in the air soon followed and the long fingers of light blinded Vera. She shrieked, bare feet colliding with an upturned stone, and thrust out her hands to break the fall. She sank into the mud coming off the graves. Cursing the old, mossy tombs that laid hidden in the weeds, Vera rolled onto her hip and sucked in the rich, damp air. She put a gentle pressure on her toes, checking for any break. Then looked for her shoes unsure if they'd slippe...

4 comments 4

Read story

“The Graveyard” by Andrea Doig

Submitted to Contest #169

Have you ever seen your own gravestone? I hope you never do. Catching sight of your final resting place, even momentarily, will scare the bejesus out of the most hardened non-believer. But there are pros and cons to this extraordinary sight. Extraordinary from a who-would-have-believed-this-possible perspective, and extra-ordinary from a well-its-not-such-a-surprise-as-we-will-all-end-up-here perspective. It really is quite extraordinarily extra-ordinary. Be that as it may – nothing can prepare you for the sight of your own untimely (ca...

9 comments 9

Read story

“A Funeral in the Family. ” by Julie Grenness

Submitted to Contest #169

Crash! From the impending clouds, a massive blast of lightning cast a flash of brief, white light over the graveyard. Very dramatic, bit unnecessary. Marnie stood there and quivered. Maybe it was prophetic. Marnie had been doing her usual morning routine chores, with a chirpy heart. She woke up, the sun rose, she welcomed the day, and thanked the Lord for blessings. Marnie was always the one with the savior mentality, relied on for being calm and supportive. Then the old-fashioned landline had rung. Who was this? The telephone??? A long lost...

2 comments 2

Read story

“The Groundskeeper” by K.C Conali

Submitted to Contest #169

Lightning flashed in the dark sky, briefly sending a bright, white, blanket of light over the graveyard below. The graveyard was expansive, over the past few hundred years it had grown with every generation. Contained within, like layers to cake, were generations of the dead. Long ago this land was used as the sacred burial grounds for an ancient people, a people with whom the land made a sacred bond with thousands of years ago. As time went on the people changed and were forgotten. War, plague, famine and genocide rocked the people of the l...

1 comment 1

Read story

“Sweet Dreams” by Bruce Akins

Submitted to Contest #169

Sweet Dreams I’ve held this story inside for too many years …. I think it’s finally time to let it out. Oooooooooo….ooooooo…ooooo! It’s the witching hour of All Hollow’s Eve and I lay in my bed. Babooooom! That large sound preceded the blast of lightning which immediately cast the graveyard across the street outside my side window in a flash of brief, white light! It produced a natural back drop revealing a long arching panoramic view of old weathered cracking concrete headstones, six-foot-tall moss-covered concrete crosses s...

2 comments 2

Read story

Load more stories

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with a character encountering a black cat.

Horror – 74 stories

Write a story where someone sees the shadow of someone standing behind them.

Mystery – 62 stories

Write about someone finding a monster under their bed.

Kids – 32 stories

Write a murder story where the murder weapon is the knife used to carve a pumpkin.

Thriller and Suspense – 49 stories

Contest #169

Enter our weekly contest!

This week's theme: I've Got Goosebumps

$250

Prize money

253

Contest entries

109

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Oct 28, 2022 EST

Won by Lindsay Flo 🏆

Title: Maniacal, Manipulative, Psychotic

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

Start your story with a blast of lightning casting a graveyard in a flash of brief, white light.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 36 stories

“Maniacal, Manipulative, Psychotic ” by Lindsay Flo

“The Keeper of the Flame” by Rebecca Miles

“The Benefit Society” by Tommy Goround

“The Curious Case of Ambrose Sykes” by Rose Gresh

“It was a Graveyard Smash” by Edward Latham

“Gunpowder Cologne” by Delbert Griffith

“Terms and Conditions” by Tamarin Butcher

“N O T Y O U B I L L Y ” by Katharine Widdows

“No Place for Monsters” by Jay Wayne

“Trick or Tale” by Von Armstead

“The Boneyard ” by Abigail F. Taylor

“The Graveyard” by Andrea Doig

“A Funeral in the Family. ” by Julie Grenness

“The Groundskeeper” by K.C Conali

“Sweet Dreams” by Bruce Akins

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with a character encountering a black cat.

Write a story where someone sees the shadow of someone standing behind them.

Write about someone finding a monster under their bed.

Write a murder story where the murder weapon is the knife used to carve a pumpkin.

Contest #169

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

253

Contest entries

109

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: