Write a story involving a magical potion — which may or may not work.

Posted in Fantasy on Dec 9, 2022

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✍️ 58 stories

“To Be or Not To Be” by Goddess V

Submitted to Contest #176

The room smelled of berries, dyes, acid, and moss. The wooden table that sat in the center of the room was covered from corner to corner. She spun around in a giddy circle. Flute of champagne in one hand, a glass flask filled with purple liquid in the other. Sitting on the table across from her was her small stuffed unicorn, Auni. Conveniently pronounced “a uni”. She abruptly stopped and faced Auni. Her face scrunched up. The potion almost flying out of her hand. “Don’t look at me like that!” She yelled and pointed with the flute h...

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“Bitter Concoction” by Mitchel Hamm

Submitted to Contest #176

A vial filled with dragon's blood and blessed by Arch Wizard Antonius Septum, himself. This product has only been given to Septum’s most trusted and honorable disciples. To which, there is only one receiver: Robert Penn. This tiny concoction can turn a lanky man into three times the size, all within a moment’s notice The potion is only to be used in times of great danger. When taken, all primal instincts takeover and the individual cannot possibly have control over themselves, or even remember their time under the influence. This magic is t...

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“The Purple Scourge” by Michael Jefferson

Submitted to Contest #176

Colette, Calisto’s seventeen-year-old apprentice, straddles Mazie, Castle Hogue’s prize pig. “Hold her steady,” the young magician says, waving a bowl in front of Mazie. Grunting, the oversized pig licks at the contents of the bowl. “All right, release her.” Colette steps away from Mazie, giggling as the pig wanders drunkenly around her pen. “Looks like your potion packs a punch,” the attractive brunette says. “The question is, will it work?” Mazie suddenly nosedives into the mud, dead. “Well, we know it kills,” Calisto says. The pai...

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“The Kids of the Woods” by Mack Bucki

Submitted to Contest #176

Ralph first laid eyes on the two boys when he was refilling the team’s Gatorade jug. They emerged from the jungle of pines with their chiseled walking sticks and nothing more except the clothes that hung off their bony bodies. Ralph, who was known as Ralphie to every organism in town, didn’t know the boys, which was strange since he had been playing at Morley Riggs Field for seven years. The village of Ocqueoc was small. Everyone knew everyone. Maybe they were greenhorns or had just reemerged to civilization after years of living feral. Hey...

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“10 Days of Innocence” by L.L. Williams

Submitted to Contest #176

Carla Jackson died of stomach cancer on March 9, 2022. She left behind one daughter, Kiara Jackson. Her homegoing was scheduled for March 15, exactly 10 days before her daughter’s 10th birthday. Carla was a wonderful mother to young Kiara. Despite the family’s limited capital, Carla tried to indulge every whim Kiara’s little heart could imagine. Carla wanted Kiara to believe in herself. The guiding principle of Carla’s parenting philosophy was making sure that Kiara believed that she could do anything. Carla excelled at building Ki...

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“Potion of Common Speech (Works for 8 Hours)” by Aurora Martin

Submitted to Contest #176

*References to character death and slavery, implied multiple deaths, but no actual death in this short. Yes, my characters both have PTSD, and yes they are trying to act like they are fine, even in front of each other. This is part of a collection I'm making. Order is irrellevant to collection, but is relevant to prompts instead. Enjoy. Dr. Collin Kin was a brilliant scientist. Never let it be denied. The young man was also a brilliant alchemist. Magic was something he could do easily. His own first language was the magical one of his home ...

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“Getting A Propper Education” by Madeline Honig

Submitted to Contest #176

“We came to London so that Anna could get a proper education,” Martha looked down at her daughter with adoring eyes. Anna’s brown curls had been pinned to the crown of her head and hung down her back. A feathered hat was pinned on her head along with a jeweled hairpin. Her emerald silk dress sucked in her stomach and flowed down to her ankles. Her small breasts were adorned with lace and beads. Martha made sure Anna was dressed in the best American fashions that money could buy with the railroad fortune Martha...

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“Magic Potions and Dogs” by Judith Robinson

Submitted to Contest #176

Hello! My name is Hazel, and I am a miniature schnauzer. I came to Minnesota from Texas. I love to go outside, but it is hard to do when winter hits! I do love the summers and falls here. Summers don’t get as hot here, and fall has pretty colors. These past two years have been quiet. We don’t go out as much, so winters are the hardest. My breed came from Germany, where we work on German farms. Our job is to detect and catch rodents. I have around 300 million olfactory receptors, and a significant portion of my brain works to detect and ana...

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“A Dream of Bavaria” by Mason -

Submitted to Contest #176

It was hard for me to wake up. I had been up all night taking shot after shot, and buying for anyone that could stomach more. It was a certain mixed drink that the bartender pushed me to try that really put me over the edge. It wasn’t even on the menu, and it came in a glass bottle closed off with a cork. I had already been too drunk to worry about any consequences, but I wished that I had. My head was pounding as I slipped out of the covers and opened the blinds in front of me. The light seemed to pierce my skull as it entered the room, my ...

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“Potion Thief” by Aaron Tippit

Submitted to Contest #176

Glass shattered in a glittering shower of diamonds that tinkled off the ground. Tiberius landed on top of the glittering shards, rolling through the fall. Ignoring the stinging cuts on his face, arms, and the newest ones on his back and shoulders, he popped out of the roll and sprinted down the alley. "Stop!" A shrill cry followed him. "Come back! You took-" "Look out!" Tiberius dodged a man walking down the cross street as he burst from the alley. "Sorry, sir," He gave an easy two-fingered salute to the offended-looking man and continued...

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“Bottled” by Jonathan Morris

Submitted to Contest #176

“Do you think it will work?” Lettie eyed the small bottle into which I was decanting a thin gray liquid from a small cauldron, roughly the volume of a large muskmelon. I was taking great care not to disturb the sediment that precipitated to the bottom of the cauldron as I slowly, carefully filled the bottle for Lettie. “It just looks like dirty water,” she grumbled, eyeing the coppers in her hand, payment for my services, and wondering if it was worth such a sum. I sighed, trying carefully not to break my concentration. “I assure you this is...

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“A NEW TOWN POTION” by Gregory Day

Submitted to Contest #176

The move to a new town is always exciting. Meeting new people, seeing new sights and eating in completely new restaurants just to name a few of things.Mark and Cindy arrived in southern Illinois in the spring of 2015 but it wasn’t without some difficulty.They had wanted to move closer to their grandkids who lived in central Illinois but the house search took Mark and Cindy farther south than they really wanted to be. It was getting more affordable the further south they went. Weather got nasty with thunder, lightning and flooding the further...

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“Jumpstart Café” by Grace Kabliska

Submitted to Contest #176

Addie swore under her breath at the iced coffee that now covered her favorite pair of blue jeans. She was already in a bad mood after the nagging conversation with her mother earlier that morning, and now she had wet pants and no coffee. After rifling around in her purse for a moment, Addie pulled out a tube marked Stain-Be-Gone! and applied it to the dark spot on her jeans. In seconds, the spot faded away until all that was left was a small damp patch in the fabric. Now, onto her second problem: coffee. Addie couldn’t handle her obno...

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Write a story involving a magical potion — which may or may not work.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 58 stories

“To Be or Not To Be” by Goddess V

“Bitter Concoction” by Mitchel Hamm

“The Purple Scourge” by Michael Jefferson

“The Kids of the Woods” by Mack Bucki

“10 Days of Innocence” by L.L. Williams

“Potion of Common Speech (Works for 8 Hours)” by Aurora Martin

“Getting A Propper Education” by Madeline Honig

“Magic Potions and Dogs” by Judith Robinson

“A Dream of Bavaria” by Mason -

“Potion Thief” by Aaron Tippit

“Bottled” by Jonathan Morris

“A NEW TOWN POTION” by Gregory Day

“Jumpstart Café” by Grace Kabliska

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with someone witnessing magic from a hiding place.

Cast a magician (a real one, or a party entertainer) as your story’s protagonist.

Write a story told from the point of view of an animal.

Set your story in a magical bookshop.

Contest #176

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

231

Contest entries

111

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: