Write a story in which a character discovers that a truth they've believed their whole life is either false or not the whole story.

Posted in Dramatic on Feb 7, 2025

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✍️ 73 stories

“Wake the Sleeping Dog” by Mackenzie Littledale

Submitted to Contest #289

Sometimes reconnecting with long lost friends leads to rousing a sleeping dog. Whether it wanted to be woken up was another matter, especially if it was woken up by the person who abandoned it. Michelle’s attention diverted from her friend, Angel, in the passenger seat, as a familiar hulking figure walking a pit bull up came into view. The last few sentences of Angel’s conversation fragmented into meaninglessness the closer they got to the dogwalker. As going over a yellow speed bump jostled the car, Michelle’s stomach lurched, her jaw set d...

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“The Family Dinner” by Jae Po

Submitted to Contest #289

Kiana picked up the framed picture from the dresser. “She’s so beautiful,” she said. “I know,” Jamari smiled, walking up beside her, his hands gently squeezing her shoulders. “You look just like her—especially around the eyes,” she said. Jamari’s beam brightened further. “I know,” he said. “I wish I could’ve met her.” “I really wish you could’ve, too. You would’ve loved her. More importantly, she would’ve loved you. Just like I do.” He kissed her forehead, making his new fiancée gush. “Yes, she would have,” inserted Jamari’s father, J...

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“The Unveiling of Hidden Paths” by Andrew Hixson

Submitted to Contest #289

In the quaint village of Elderton, nestled between rolling hills and lush forests, lived a young woman named Elara. From a tender age, Elara had been told the same story by her parents, elders, and every history book that lined the shelves of the local library. It was the story of the Great Fire, a cataclysmic event that had ravaged Elderton centuries ago, reducing it to ashes and shaping the community that stood today.The tale was simple yet profound. It spoke of a lightning bolt that struck the ancient oak in the village’s heart, igniting ...

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“Memories of My Father” by Paul Spreadbury

Submitted to Contest #289

Emma grew up believing her father Russell Maddox was as good a man as any and better than most. He enlisted in the Marines out of high school, earned a Purple Heart and Bronze Star in Vietnam, returned to marry her mother Denise, bought a refrigerated semi tractor trailer and earned a good living hauling frozen foods from state to state. ~ “Goggles secure, ear and nose plugs inserted,” the lab tech reported as he strapped the subject securely to the gurney. “BP 110 over 8...

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“The Lies we become” by Rhonda Johnson

Submitted to Contest #289

CHAPTER ONE – THE SHADOW OF DOUBT The Castle Gates – A Step Into the Unknown Drake stood at the towering iron gates, his pulse steady but his mind a storm. The castle loomed ahead, black stone swallowing the light. The air was thick, cold, humming with something unseen. He had seen castles before—ruins, relics of forgotten wars. But this was not a ruin. This was something alive. A monument to something that had never died. He exhaled, stepping forward. The gates groaned open before he touched them. Like they had been expecting him. The Hall ...

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“Time to Call DaNA” by PJ Addison

Submitted to Contest #289

Time to Call DaNA Carlotta stared at the letter in her hand. It was drawing her to open it, but she resistedthe urge. It had been a long day, and she just did not have the mental capacity toconsume one more thing. She laid it on the table and walked to the couch. She floppeddown on it and closed her eyes.“Good afternoon, Mrs. Reyes. Is Carlotta home?”Carlotta heard the voice of her best friend Oscar as she walked down the hallway.“Yes, Oscar, she’s home.” Mrs. Reyes always loved how polite he was.“Can she come out to play?”Carlotta slid clos...

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“Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom” by Ari Walker

Submitted to Contest #289

My dad lives in this time and space, riding his motorcycle about the neighborhood barefooted, in cutoff jeans and old t-shirt, black curls blowing high above his forehead in the breeze, round sunglasses flashing sepia light shining through 1970’s Polaroids. Thanks to him, I have the impression all life began here.Within a few years immoderate facial hair will absorb his features, cutoff jeans will grow into filthy dungarees, heavy work boots will cover his bare feet. The body will grow puffier - caked in bits of drywall mud - on his trousers...

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“The Daughter of the Sky and Sea” by JM Hasty

Submitted to Contest #289

Year 22026, Aetheris Aetheris was a sight to behold when Lunara rose the moon each night. The glittering spires were golden beneath its reflective light, blending with the warm glow of the skyfire lanterns. The skybridges that stretched toward the surrounding islands pulsed with the ethereal shimmer of celestial crystals, their power illuminating the city like woven strands of starlight. The docks of the Celestial Spire stood empty, the Armada of Aetherium ships having sailed toward the borderlands at dawn. Across the observation...

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“A Mother's Lies” by Shanda Kersten

Submitted to Contest #289

Alison was always raised to respect Cherokee teachings and land, and people, She thought she was part of that world. When she got into her 40s and one of her nephews had done one of those DNA ancestor kits, he had found not a single drop of indigenous blood anywhere. A very confusing result to Alison. There was no way it was correct. Her sister had gone to school on a tribal scholarship. Of course, she had to do her own test. Aside from finding all sorts of relatives that she hadn't known...

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“The Taste of Success” by Daina Petrova

Submitted to Contest #289

[Warning Note: Elements of poor mental health, cursing, and self-harm.]Dinner doesn’t taste the same as it used to.The mashed potatoes feel more like wet sand, and the steamed green beans like anchovies.You’re sitting at a table with four other people, and yet, you might as well be alone.The dining room light feels incredibly bright, and the darkness it fends off, immensely pitch. Shadows stark, table ashen, body cold. The scabs on your back itch, and you want to pick them off to eat yourself again. Your dead skin tastes better than anything...

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“The Magic Box” by Elizabeth Rich

Submitted to Contest #289

"My mother. She is the best. If she could still perform all the high kicks and jumps of her former cheerleader self, I'm sure she would not be a 50-something fighting old lady aches and pains like a bum hip, lumbago, or sciatica. She would probably have ACL and meniscus ailments, but not the other stuff." I flipped to the slide of my mother in the early 1980s, and could that girl jump. The next photo that floated onto the slide was my mother cheering in college. The photographer caught her mid-air, mid-jump, and I was consumed in this this e...

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“Crazy Grandma” by Elle Cee

Submitted to Contest #289

CRAZY GRANDMA I learned when I was young that when I was old I would be weird. Weird like Grandma… She had hair that “came down to her fanny” as she said. This was something I longed for, but never understood why she twisted it around and around, then pinned it into a bun. She left black, u-shaped hairpins in a cup by the sink in the bathroom she shared with my younger brother and me. But she left her dentures in a glass by the sink in the kitchen. I hated the look of them, the gray pink of the gums holding spooky rows of false teeth. I had ...

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“The Lesson” by Michael West

Submitted to Contest #289

Endion School sits on a hill in Duluth, Minnesota at 46°48′19″N 92°4′37″W, for those who rely on precision. Minnesotans love precision. The Scandi-Germano-Caucasian DNA demands a sense of order even if that order is liberally sprinkled with alcohol, fish, and shattered Super Bowl dreams. Endion School, from the outside, fits any number of imagined purposes: prison, asylum, rectory. The brown stone façade seems to counter the large windows. One refuses light, while the other gathers it by the handful to fill the structure, keeping it f...

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“Girl Missing” by Kaitlyn Wadsworth

Submitted to Contest #289

After moving from the nearby city, Fleur Grantham started at Rutherford High School. When Jasmine first saw her, everyone remarked how similar they looked, albeit Fleur has dark hair and bangs while Jasmine slicks back her fair hair into a ponytail. They are both energetic and agile. Jasmine has always been a track, field, and gymnastics enthusiast - running, jumping, and doing anything athletic have been her life pursuits. Fleur has danced for years and loves cheerleading. She quickly signed up to be a cheerleader. Jasmine signed up, too. S...

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“Fifteen Seconds” by John Read

Submitted to Contest #289

(This Story Is Based On True Events.) ...

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Write a story in which a character discovers that a truth they've believed their whole life is either false or not the whole story.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 73 stories

“Wake the Sleeping Dog” by Mackenzie Littledale

“The Family Dinner” by Jae Po

“The Unveiling of Hidden Paths” by Andrew Hixson

“Memories of My Father” by Paul Spreadbury

“The Lies we become” by Rhonda Johnson

“Time to Call DaNA” by PJ Addison

“Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom” by Ari Walker

“The Daughter of the Sky and Sea” by JM Hasty

“A Mother's Lies” by Shanda Kersten

“The Taste of Success” by Daina Petrova

“The Magic Box” by Elizabeth Rich

“Crazy Grandma” by Elle Cee

“The Lesson” by Michael West

“Girl Missing” by Kaitlyn Wadsworth

“Fifteen Seconds” by John Read

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with the lines: “The room is unfamiliar. I don’t know how I got here.”

Write your story as text messages or an online conversation between two characters — and at least one of them isn’t who they say they are.

Write an open-ended story in which your character’s fate is uncertain.

Your character is getting changed in the bathroom of a nightclub or restaurant, then emerges looking completely different. Why?

Contest #289

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

364

Contest entries

155

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: