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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write a story about an artist whose work has magical properties.

Posted in Fantasy on Feb 23, 2024

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✍️ 99 stories

“Inky Black” by Anna Cutchen

Submitted to Contest #239

He had never noticed the painting on the wall of the bar before. This was only his third time here, but still, it seemed liked something he would notice. It was framed in one of the those cheap poster frames from Wal-mart. He knew because he had several in his own home, protecting movie posters that weren’t valuable to most people, but were valuable to him. It felt strange that something that was clearly a painting would be in a poster frame. The paiting was odd, in that it didn’t seem to be much of a painting. It was just black. But it was...

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“A Portrait Of The Soul” by Daniel Shurmer

Submitted to Contest #239

My art comes at a high price.  A price higher than most can imagine, and for reasons few could comprehend. Kings and commoners alike had fallen to their knees before me, begging and bartering with all they had, just for a chance to be immortalised in one of my many portraits.  I indulged a few, when offers were made simply to lavish to refuse, and I would always wonder if they could see the quiet dissatisfaction concealed behind my smile. As novel as it was to paint royalty, no matter how rich they made me, nor how brilliant the po...

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“Picture of a Small Town” by Lori Stremble

Submitted to Contest #239

Picture of a Small Town Marta was a pillar of the community. She always had a friendly word and would never hesitate to help someone in need. She could always be counted on to help with bake sales, car washes, and the like. You could tell by looking at her that she was an artist by her funky, colourful clothes and chunky jewelry. Also, she spoke with a certain dramatic flair. I guess, looking back on it, you could say she was eccentric. Everyone liked her, though, because they knew her heart.  Marta had an art studio on Main Street,...

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“The Kulu Onya Challenge ” by Timothy Motley

Submitted to Contest #239

“You love me, right?” “Of course I do.” “And you would do anything for me?” “Anything.” “Then don’t be scared,” said Rebecca. She flashed a warm smile towards Davey. Instantly Davey felt himself turn gooey on the inside. His reservations suddenly evaporating. He lifted the thirty inch bolt cutter up and wrapped the tools mouth around the thick, metallic chain. With a grunt he used all the force that his two hundred pound muscular frame could muster to snap the chain.  Rebecca squealed in delight. “Yay! Hurry get the gate open befor...

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“The Mekanik” by Steve Brazen

Submitted to Contest #239

In the alien wars a small town had become a strategic nexus for major battles that had nearly destroyed the town and the surrounding environs. After the warfare had ended, the survivors bonded together, be they Normals or Grotesques. As a result, they held a quiet respect for one another, as those who had come through the other side, from death to life. On the outskirts of the village stood a dilapidated workshop. Scattered around it lay skeletons of eviscerated machinery. Some slowly rusted like penitential pools retur...

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“the works of monsieur baptiste” by Reed Rolfe

Submitted to Contest #239

One  Artist monsieur baptiste sat in his studio, in the background, heavy opera was playing, dressed in the ruffled shirt and powdered wigs very prominent at the time, he looked at the picture of fashion, he selected a small brush, and carefully began to get to work.  He was a small, delicate looking man, however he had eyes like steel and was brutally honest. One of the oddest things of his works were that they were all painted in complete darkness, he said this was how he truly found himself  “communing with the paint” and h...

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“An Artist's Gift” by R.H. Magdalena

Submitted to Contest #239

           Catalina hid her trembling hands beneath the embroidered shawl folded neatly on her lap. While the train passed through both the wonders of nature and the 20th century, she could only glance at the other passengers waiting for their destination before returning her eyes to the seat in front of her. Nothing kept her mind off the lingering fear of what’s to come.            Beside her sat her dear fiancé Henry, his smile a c...

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“The Artist of Axeholme” by Edward Savage

Submitted to Contest #239

Elanor stood before the painting trying to understand what felt so different about it. What made it so…. She shook her head, whatever the difference was, for the moment it escaped her. It was not by one of the greats, full of technique and talent. In fact, it was almost childlike in its simplicity yet it… spoke to her. That was it. In some way, somehow, it spoke to her. She tapped her lips with a finger, trying to coax from the composition what it was that so enchanted her. To capture its essence. From the centre of the painting to the mi...

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“The Wolf” by Kim Duran

Submitted to Contest #239

The Wolf by Kim Duran. Vanessa focused on the portrait of a wolf she wanted. “It’s so lifelike—” “That is not for sale.” The salesman cut her off mid-sentence. He escorted her toward a sea of paintings of flowery fields nestled beneath majestic mountains. “These are what you asked for,” the man said, stopping in front of a purple field of tulips. “I’ll take it.” She said, handing him her black card. “Excellent choice,” he said. With a snap of his fingers, a teenage boy came and carefully removed the painting from the wall to wrap it up...

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“Drakeshot” by Zack Heikkinen

Submitted to Contest #239

Steam whistled as it escaped the top of the engine rolling from the station, spooking a few horses carrying heavy loads upon wagons. The cobbles of this street were quite loose, often coming out of place when the soldiers mustered. A clumsy sailor fell from his raft, spooking some large sucker fish in the stream across the fence. Even the tiniest wooden shops towered high above the young man and his dog. The friendly blacksmith was now a fierce competitor and that barber, well don’t insult a man who cuts for a living! Tucked between these tw...

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“Drawn” by Brian Merrill

Submitted to Contest #239

For the Creative Writing 102 final exam, my instructions to the class were straightforward: write a one-page original story, double-spaced. It must contain all the elements of narrative: setting, plot, character(s), conflict, resolution, and what I called “a mysterious riddle.”          The instance when all the puzzle pieces fit, except for one missing piece. The reader must find it and make it fit. I explained my assignment was like the disappearance of Andrew “Sandy” Irvine, a distant relativ...

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“Love Lies” by Lina Lambert

Submitted to Contest #239

The worst part of being the wife of a rock star is that everyone expects an autograph.  My husband, Jimmy is standing on the stage, wiping sweat from his brow and rolling a fistful of cables. His band just finished a rollicking 60’s tribute concert, after a double encore. Less than a half-hour ago, the fans begged for more, stomping their feet and fist-bumping the air, “One more song! One more song!”The bandmates looked at each other, the pianist smashed the black keys, and the band ripped into a wild rendition of Elton John’s “Fun...

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“The Duet” by Cat Marzipane

Submitted to Contest #239

One two three, one two three… left hand and right…low bass..high trill… One two three one two three…. The hands that play me move clumsily and unprofessionally. I am a voice for her and her singing rings inside of my body, ricocheting off my fifth octave of copper and steel strings. When her voice hits the tone correctly it joins with mine, two waves meet and they don’t crash. Instead they evaporate into a finely tuned mist that hums harmonic overtones. To your ear that note sounds pleasing, rather than wobbly and dissonant. To me ...

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“The Potter” by Julia Rajagopal

Submitted to Contest #239

On a bright Saturday morning, a young woman sat before her parent’s stone cottage peeling carrots. The sun shone in a cloudless sky, and the wind from the sea blew brown hair around her face. She glanced around and pulled a book from her apron pocket. “Ariana. Carrots,” her mother stepped outside. “You’ve graduated from school now. You need to start helping more around here. At least until you start your own family.” The woman began sweeping the stone steps. “Of course, Mother. I wouldn’t want to waste my time.” She picked up a carrot and t...

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“Live Action Painting” by Samantha Kabiling

Submitted to Contest #239

Everything feels amazing around this little art studio in this apartment. Selene was at her easel using her brush to paint what looks like little ducks in a pond. She just can’t get this certain blue right for the pond. She mixes a few colors to what seems to be the perfect shade of blue with some other blues for shading and contrasting the color. As she finishes the pond, she steps back and smiles.  “Now you can go ahead and swim,” she says to the painting. The ducks in the painting start waddling without ruining the scenery behind t...

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