Set your story in a town disconnected from the rest of the world.

Posted in Dystopian on Oct 25, 2022

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✍️ 36 stories

“The Cabin” by Lin Darroe

Submitted to Contest #115

The Cabin The train whistle blows and the noisy train slowly grinds to a stop. I awake and rub my eyes and glance out the window . The town of Oasis is just as I had pictured . Empty , desolate , and depressing . The only things missing are tumbleweeds and sand. My phone is in my pocket. I pull it out and look . No bars . No surprise there . There were two other passengers . An older man with glasses held together with tape, an old overcoat draped over faded jeans and a young girl with a pink pix...

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“The Alliance Register” by Donald King

Submitted to Contest #115

Small town newspapers are a great source for finding characters to write about. The following is a fictional conversation from 2019 with a person who appeared in the Alliance Register in 2021, a weekly publication from western Nebraska. Hi. My name is Daniel Jacobs and I live at the end of the earth. I know, most people figure the end of the earth would be on some spit of land sticking out into the ocean, or at the north pole or something, but on a ball, anywhere can be the beginning or the end. And it just so happens that where I live is ...

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“Danny” by Evynlee McDougal

Submitted to Contest #115

“Come on, Andie. You couldn’t have done this.” My gaze started at his black leather shoes, up his smart grey suit, and finally, we locked eyes. So tall, it put a crook in my neck. If you cut down a tree in the forest, would Principal Leary be around to hear it? I shrugged. “If that’s what he said he saw, then that’s what he saw.” Almost a whisper. He let out the sigh he’d been holding in the entire hour. “Andie… this isn’t you. I’m on your side. Tell me what happened.” I’d told my story enough times. But I told ...

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“THE MASS GRAVE IN CHINATOWN” by Mara Masolini

Submitted to Contest #115

THE MASS GRAVE IN CHINA TOWN It was when in the evening they turned on the lights of their houses that the inhabitants of Candia realized that there had to be something wrong. In fact the lights did not turn on, they were completely in the dark. Indeed they could have noticed it even when, almost before the lights in the houses, the streets lamps , which were supposed to light up, had not lit up. Oh, but the people who ( had) passed through those streets, did so in cars or o...

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“Dreaming in reverse” by F.O. Morier

Submitted to Contest #115

She remembered the day they moved into that house very well. Not a grand or splendid house, but well enough to make it a home. She could not believe how happy she was. Just married, a ring on her finger. A simple model, but its beauty lay in its simplicity. Here, in this house, they would reach the height of romantic felicity. The house would never become a home, it became haunted very soon and civilization came to end. Her husband was away all day and even nights. He assured her that everything he did was on her account. Society strip...

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“The Sound of Desolation” by Maureen MacLennan

Submitted to Contest #115

The Sound of Desolation The sunsets were absolutely amazing here, everyone said it even those that weren’t tourists. Oh, to have tourists again! It had been two long years since the world stopped coming to Powell River. All the local restaurants had closed their doors in response so people in town started co-ops, some grew fruits and vegetables, some had farms where they raised animals for butchering. A town on the ocean with an abundance of lakes as well would always be able to fish, harvest shellfish and seaweed but the locals ...

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Set your story in a town disconnected from the rest of the world.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 36 stories

“The Cabin” by Lin Darroe

“The Alliance Register” by Donald King

“Danny” by Evynlee McDougal

“THE MASS GRAVE IN CHINATOWN” by Mara Masolini

“Dreaming in reverse” by F.O. Morier

“The Sound of Desolation” by Maureen MacLennan

🌟 Similar prompts

One moment your character is talking on the phone with a friend, and the next, the connection is lost. Write a story about what follows.

Write about a character who feels like they're cut off from something.

Start or end your story with a character scrolling (or doomscrolling) through social media.

Write a story where a device goes haywire.

Contest #115

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

175

Contest entries

118

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: