Write a story set against the backdrop of a storm.

Posted in Dramatic on Sep 30, 2024

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?

✍️ 108 stories

“The Desert Takes” by Hugh Knight

Submitted to Contest #267

You shake the waterskin. Only a sip or two left. You pass it to Mel. She shakes it, passes it back to you. Your mouth is sandpaper, your throat like you’ve swallowed shards of glass. You shake the waterskin, pass it back to her.You make a game of it, sisters stumbling through the desert. Heat boils your insides. Sand billows up to form mini-tornadoes over dunes far and close, a prelude to a storm. Mirages speckle the horizon with pockets of oases. You know better than to trust them.As you keep passing the waterskin between you, there is gall...

2 comments 2

Read story

“Where it ends it begins” by Penelope Stansfield

Submitted to Contest #267

The rabbit lies outstretched at the roadside, one eye open, the other, mangled with blood and fur. Through the drizzle, a solitary crow cries a mournful ‘caw’ whilst across the landscape, the moorland sheep utter a low bleat of remembrance. The rabbit, a harlequin of soft brown fur and blood smeared tarmac, gazes up at me with its one dead eye. I pick up a stick from the side of the road and attempt to move it, to give it a more dignified resting place, amongst the ferns and bracken. Failure greets me, with half the d...

2 comments 2

Read story

“The Unforgiving Sea” by Lee Kendrick

Submitted to Contest #267

The Unforgiving Sea By Lee KendrickFormer merchant seaman Greg Dawson was the only one on the Tempest West lighthouse; his colleague Bill Johnson was airlifted by helicopter to the hospital yesterday after being taken ill. There is no replacement until a couple of weeks. Meanwhile, Greg listened intently to the weather report on his radio. A gale force 10 storm was heading straight for his lighthouse, off the Cornish Coast! The storm was set to batter the coast in a few hours this evening. Greg began battening down the front door a...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Refusal of the Holy Storm” by Sabrina Grace

Submitted to Contest #267

The howling winds rustled the window frames, the high hiss of fast streams that had made it throw some previously undetectable crack in the walls and doors. Everyone with any sense, as her mother had put it, was inside hiding from the pure grey sky. It was darker than the morning; soon rains and hails would start, the storm would get worse and worse, and there was only one way to appease it. Enlightenment. Taylina was knelt in front of the small shrine kept in the home, along with all her family, when her eyes had yet again drifted to ...

0 comments 0

Read story

“For Those in Peril” by Luca King Greek

Submitted to Contest #267

Flag down. “Pack, dismissed!” The small boys of the Fort St. Angelo cub scout pack scurried off to get their sweaters and bags; it was supper time. Charlie Harkness, Sixer, son of the naval base commander, ordered his small group – the gray six – to stay behind; they had unfinished business.“We can’t have two Georges in our six,” said Charlie, a tall blonde boy with freckles, supremely self-assured.George Clarke agreed; son of a lieutenant, he was the first George, so the new George, a weedy little boy newly arrived from England, needed...

6 comments 6

Read story

“Tornado Warning” by T. K. Hudson

Submitted to Contest #267

The sound of the conveyor lines running overhead ceased, and the vibration that thrummed constantly through the floor halted. Alex looked up. He was at his desk with a highlighter in hand. He rolled his chair out of the cubicle. At the next desk was his manager, Tim. As he opened his mouth to speak a voice crackled over the speakers and Alex cocked his head trying to hear. “Attention please, attention please. We are currently under a tornado warning. Please make your way to the nearest tornado shelter.” The voice—feminine and nasal and indis...

0 comments 0

Read story

“The Super-Badass Hold-Up at the Philomath Regional Bank” by Shoshana Groom

Submitted to Contest #267

Content warning: mental health, kidnapping, strong language---------------------------------------------------------------------------------Maybe alcohol was their savior. Thomas, Bradey, and Reed had spent years being shepherded by The System, but it wasn’t until their vodka bottle was empty and their Code Names game half-fizzled out that Thoams broached his idea on how they could seize their own destinies.The plan was simple: get all snazzy in a bunch of black masks and sunglasses, hit the bank with fake guns blazing, skim some cream from ...

5 comments 5

Read story

“It's stopped raining” by Eleanor Conner

Submitted to Contest #267

Nobody will know what I’ve done. I know if I can just escape from the city, I will be safe. I climb into my car and press the start button, but nothing seems to happen. I sit there for what seems like an hour, starting at the steering wheel. My hands are clean – too clean. I feel numb. I feel scared. I can hear a dog barking in the distance, but I can’t stop starting at the steering wheel. Then, a new sound. I can’t place what the sound is, but it sounds familiar. It’s tapping on the glass – is someone trying to reach me? I can’t even seem t...

2 comments 2

Read story

“OVERCOMING OBSTACLES - THE STORM” by Glenna Agnew

Submitted to Contest #267

OVERCOMING OBSTACLES - THE STORM The storm-tossed boat bravely tried to weather the storm. It was rocking and rolling with every pitch of the waves which threatened to overturn it. The bottom of the boat was filled with water, capsizing and tossing the occupants into the salty brine was a distinct possibility. The Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat, however, was designed for superior stability despite its lightweight construction. RHIBs were frequently used in military operations, therefore the specs required high-performance capabilities from th...

1 comment 1

Read story

“It’s Still Watching ” by Vanessa Vestena

Submitted to Contest #267

Tic-tic-tic, the rhythmic sound of the raindrops ticking on the glass was relaxing enough to made me lean my head against the windowsill. I was in the passenger seat, drifting slowly to sleep, a lazy smile pressed on my lips. The basses of the house music busting in the car were so strong that I could feel the vibrations on my face slowly growing numb. Everyone was vibing, from my best friend Charlie, singing in the back with Nate and Seth, to my new boyfriend Matt, driving at my side. It was November 18, a typical Saturday night for m...

4 comments 4

Read story

“Winter Road” by Siana Crawford

Submitted to Contest #267

‘Winter Road’A distant moon, behind ominous clouds, painted the night; snow falling in thick clumps upon the houses in Birmingham. Kate knew this would happen. She whisked around her small apartment, hopping over the clutter on the carpet to switch off her electrics. But she always forgot something, perhaps this was why there was a familiar tightness in her chest as she reached her dimly lit living room. A car horn sounded from outside and she reluctantly left the house, finding a woman leaning against a black Peugeot 206 speckled white with...

1 comment 1

Read story

“Minong's Call: A Journey of Transformation” by Jon Fogelberg

Submitted to Contest #267

Chapter 1: The Call of the Wild The tranquil morning in Grand Marais was a symphony of natural beauty, a stark contrast to the impending danger Kai was about to face. The air was perfumed with the scent of pine, the invigorating chill of Lake Superior, and the tantalizing aroma of freshly baked donuts from the nearby bakery. Kai, known as 'Iron Kai ', stood on the rocky beach, his kayak a silent companion. He was irresistibly drawn to the untamed wilderness, where he felt most alive and in control. Kai had meticulously planned his journey ac...

2 comments 2

Read story

“Tortle Mon” by H.e. Ross

Submitted to Contest #267

My column in the local magazine, Islands Chronicle, stirred controversy and by some was thought to be demeaning to those who had lost their lives in deep blue seas to bring home the bread in the many ways the oceans provided. It was one of those columns that quoted locals and generally went- they went out to do a little fishing but my cousin, brother, father lost his life out in devastating storms or from weapons in hostile hands. Strangely, that kind of talk died out quickly and I became a sort of hero, backed by mothers and wives, to a pro...

2 comments 2

Read story

“The Rhythm of the Storm” by Malia Kao

Submitted to Contest #267

The last rays of the setting Sun were partly obscured by the approaching storm clouds looming on the horizon. I stood at the sink in my kitchen looking through the small square window washing the dishes from tonight’s dinner absentmindedly. I watched as the rim of the Sun disk sank below the skyline and disappeared. The dark clouds drove in closer, and the sky grayed. The sound of the steady stream of water from the sink and from the ocean just a few hundred yards from my cottage washed over my ears and flushed out the thoughts running aroun...

2 comments 2

Read story

“A Legend Returns / A Storm Delay” by Douglas Maxson

Submitted to Contest #267

An episode from my novel, "A Legend Returns" A Legend Returns / A Storm Delay Deputy Roy left the flower shop on his way to IU Medical. Seeing his sister for the first time since her shooting accident before being transferred from Sawyer Hospital, he wondered, how alert would she be. As he glanced at the yellow roses in the seat next to him, he recalled how she rece...

0 comments 0

Read story

Load more stories

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story with two characters who meet for the first time — and one of them has a secret.

Short Story – 84 stories

Your character overhears something that changes their path.

Short Story – 38 stories

There’s been an accident — what happens next?

Short Story – 70 stories

Your character wants something very badly — will they get it?

Short Story – 60 stories

Contest #267

Enter our weekly contest!

This week's theme: Overcoming Obstacles with Writers Ink

$250

Prize money

360

Contest entries

127

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Sep 13, 2024 EST

Won by Fi Riley 🏆

Title: One-Mississippi, two-Mississippi

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 set against the backdrop of a storm.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 108 stories

“The Desert Takes” by Hugh Knight

“Where it ends it begins” by Penelope Stansfield

“The Unforgiving Sea” by Lee Kendrick

“Refusal of the Holy Storm” by Sabrina Grace

“For Those in Peril” by Luca King Greek

“Tornado Warning” by T. K. Hudson

“The Super-Badass Hold-Up at the Philomath Regional Bank” by Shoshana Groom

“It's stopped raining” by Eleanor Conner

“OVERCOMING OBSTACLES - THE STORM” by Glenna Agnew

“It’s Still Watching ” by Vanessa Vestena

“Winter Road” by Siana Crawford

“Minong's Call: A Journey of Transformation” by Jon Fogelberg

“Tortle Mon” by H.e. Ross

“The Rhythm of the Storm” by Malia Kao

“A Legend Returns / A Storm Delay” by Douglas Maxson

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story with two characters who meet for the first time — and one of them has a secret.

Your character overhears something that changes their path.

There’s been an accident — what happens next?

Your character wants something very badly — will they get it?

Contest #267

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

360

Contest entries

127

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: