Start your story with someone emerging from the sea, and end it with them looking up at the stars.

Posted in Fantasy on Oct 25, 2022

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✍️ 277 stories

“Ebb Tide ” by Katherine Marie

Submitted to Contest #83

TW: suicide I crawl at the inky surface: desperate, feral, like an animal trying to escape a trap. I manage to steal one small gasp before the waves return, shoving me against the jagged rocks that slowly tear apart my fragile body. I’m not sure what pulled me to the water tonight. Maybe it was the moon, pulling me toward the water just as it pulled the water toward me. It always seemed to do that. “You are a child of the high tide,” my mother told me, as she gently brushed the sand from my corn-silk hair. “You and I are ...

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“A shooting star” by Vanessa Queens

Submitted to Contest #83

The water was warm and crystal clear and Tim could easily see the sandy bottom. Schools of small fish swam about in a coordinated manner and sea shells could be seen scattered everywhere. When he had reached the shallows, he stood up. The sand was smooth under his feet. He slowly lifted his head and let out a whistle of surprise. The island, despite being in the middle of nowhere, looked totally awesome. Tim felt the waist bag he carried round his waist and breathed a sigh of relief. “Everything according to plan,” he though...

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“Signalling the Stars” by Aym Less

Submitted to Contest #83

The waves toss and churn, spewing sprays of mist. I break the surface, managing one panicked gasp before water crashes down on my face. My vision is blurry, the salt stinging my eyes shut. My limbs flail wildly as I strain upwards but with every movement, the sea drags me back. Stay, it whispers. I gag on my own breath. Not yet. Displeased, the water chills, a current snaking around my limbs. Desperation is the only emotion my half-starved brain can muster and in a last-ditch effort, I go limp. The sea eagerly rips th...

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“The Little Boat” by Aria Belle

Submitted to Contest #83

"Someone came. Someone finally came!" I look out at the radiant sea, and the light, azure color of it fills my eyes. A boat. A small, flimsy, wooden boat was floating delicately towards us, almost looking like a toy you'd find a child playing with during bathtime. Hope begins to emerge inside of me, and I leap up and down, screaming, crying. The beauty of the water surrounding me often brought tears to my eyes, and I stared in awe whenever the waves lazily crawled onto the sand, selfishly clinging to it, only to be pulled away again and agai...

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“Matching Lockers” by Jarah E

Submitted to Contest #83

Her body thrashing around, Gianna struggled to keep afloat. This cannot be it. This can’t be where my life ends. Taking a deep breath, she dove down to free her ankle from the rock it was stuck underneath. The water was so foggy, so dark, she had to trust her hands and trust nothing was down in that water with her. After struggling for what felt like eternity, she heard a little pop and her ankle broke free from the rock. She yelped out in pain and water filled her lungs. “That’s the last thing I remember”, I said to the detective. “How co...

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“Mind Your Wishes” by April Rawlins

Submitted to Contest #83

CW: death A shout from the crow’s nest, and then, they saw him come up from the sea foam. His head was all they could manage to see. Someone flung out the life tube, the white still there, the red faded from the sun. It was hard to see him bobbing up and down in the waves, while the rain still spattered the fishermen, and the boat rocked back and forth in the torrent. Lightning still flashed. It took everyone on the rope to pull him back to the fishing boat. He was weak and soaked through. He coughed a lot. The captain told everyone to put t...

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“From Sea to Sand” by Anushka Chandan

Submitted to Contest #83

THE COLD AIR bit my skin. I broke through the shield of sea water, gasping for air and tasted salt on my lips. I felt my stomach turn. How long had I been in the water, getting further and further away from the shore? My hands stretched out, my fingers longing to get a hold of the floating piece of wood in front of me. The tips of my fingers missed the wood by a centimeter, and I kicked my legs, trying to get closer. Salty sea water sprayed caroused my face as soon as my hand slapped the piece of wood, grabbing it and pulling it closer to ...

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“Stars Gone Dim” by Ellie Keierleber

Submitted to Contest #83

The girl rose slowly from dark water, sliding gracefully through it as though the current posed no resistance against her movements. It lapped gently against the shore, creating rivets in the course sand then smoothing it back out as it receded. She stepped, tender footed, onto the beach, her bare feet making soft imprints in the clay. Although she had only just surfaced from the sea, her white dress flowed freely around her ankles, and her hair, dark as a raven’s wing, cascaded down her back. Her soft, brown skin glowed in the heaven...

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“Mother ” by Emmanuelle Shemko

Submitted to Contest #83

Seaweed hugs my feet as I walk out of the ocean onto the black sand beach of Maui. My family, I see them at a picnic table, are unpacking the veggie sandwiches we bought for lunch at the hotel. My sister smiles and waves at me to come over. I grab my towel from the hot sand, shaking it as I run over to them. The air is cool on my skin as I dry off, and I quickly throw my sundress over top of my bikini, not caring if it gets wet. The water has made me hungry, and I devour my sandwich and a bag of chips immediately. Around me, the ...

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“Swimming With a Ghost” by Bray L

Submitted to Contest #83

I could feel the ghost of him next to me. He was swimming and yelling and laughing and splashing the rushing salt water up into my face. When I closed my eyes, avoiding the droplets of the salty sea, it was easy to feel his warm presence contrasting the chilling water. Though he wasn’t swimming with me. He wasn’t yelling and laughing by my side, despite how I ached for him to be. Knowing that his ghost was here, in the spot where we met, was not enough to lighten the heaviness of the urn under my left arm. It was not enough to prevent...

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“An Unexpected Long-lasting Love” by Brandy Swor

Submitted to Contest #83

Nights like these are what I live for now. Ever since I got out of the mercenary business I have been seeking reprieve. Here I found it, in the sounds of the sea. The smell of the saltwater is a dream and the sound of the ocean winds are a calming blanket to my tired ears. I sit here on occasion to escape the thoughts of yesterday. "Whoa, what is that?" I exclaim to myself. I'm usually here alone at this time of night. My vision was blurred and foggy, the moon the only light upon the horizon. I had to walk closer to the figure I saw em...

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“A Cop on Vacation” by Aburrow Marsh

Submitted to Contest #83

Bobbing along in shallow water, occasionally plunging his head beneath the surface, Tom McCauley thought he remembered what it felt like being in the womb. He emerged from the churning Gulf with a gasp and a grin. Scrubbing saltwater from his eyes, he dug his toes into the sand, using the ocean’s energy to propel himself forward.At 42, it was Tom’s first trip to the beach. Becca had spent half her childhood on this same strip of sand. “Twenty years ago, it was nothing but driftwood and seaweed,” she’d remarked on the trip down. “Now it’s 100...

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“Sand and Stardust” by Risha Tevins

Submitted to Contest #83

The waves crested before him - a magnificent glittering crown of blues and greys, as well as all the colours that came in between. The sea made hardly a splash as, with a deliberate flick of the wrist spurred on by a stray thought crossing his mind, he directed the lapping, hungry water back into the sandy, grit-wrought shores of the alcove.A weary sigh stole the breath away from his lungs and for a moment, he indulged in simply letting himself be. The sun above was muffled, and the sharp cries of the parks and sea-birds were one of the few ...

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“Stars as Beautiful as Him” by Nico Burris

Submitted to Contest #83

I struggle to get up from the waves as I feel like I’m drowning, but I feel strong hands around my waist lift me up. “Lad, you could have just swam up”, of course he was doing this. “Oh, really Phillip. You act as if it’s easy”, I sarcastically say as I get up to the surf, pushing him down in the process. He gets up quickly, as I lay down on the cloth we’d laid out. The sun was warm and I still had on a shirt despite being doused in seawater. I sat up quickly. “Oh my god I forgot about practice.” “Mate, that was cancelled yesterday...

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“The Sea and Stars” by Chris Buono

Submitted to Contest #83

My head breaks through the surface in a terrific splash, sending droplets of water harmlessly to the waves never to been seen again. I take a deep, thankful inhalation of breath, feeling my chest expand despite the pressure of the water around me pushing back. The air is salty and the sun is bright, but I don’t notice at first. I am just happy to be alive. I trudge my way back to land after what feels like hours. The wet sand feels more like an expensive mattress in a darkened bedroom rather than a b...

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Start your story with someone emerging from the sea, and end it with them looking up at the stars.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 277 stories

“Ebb Tide ” by Katherine Marie

“A shooting star” by Vanessa Queens

“Signalling the Stars” by Aym Less

“The Little Boat” by Aria Belle

“Matching Lockers” by Jarah E

“Mind Your Wishes” by April Rawlins

“From Sea to Sand” by Anushka Chandan

“Stars Gone Dim” by Ellie Keierleber

“Mother ” by Emmanuelle Shemko

“Swimming With a Ghost” by Bray L

“An Unexpected Long-lasting Love” by Brandy Swor

“A Cop on Vacation” by Aburrow Marsh

“Sand and Stardust” by Risha Tevins

“Stars as Beautiful as Him” by Nico Burris

“The Sea and Stars” by Chris Buono

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about someone who goes to extreme lengths to get themselves to a tropical island.

Write about someone who’s lived on a tropical island their whole life and is leaving it for the very first time.

Write about someone who books a bargain vacation, only to be told when they arrive that they need to share a hotel suite with a stranger.

Write a fantasy story about water gods or spirits.

Contest #83

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

826

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: