Write a story where a regular household item becomes sentient.

Posted in Fantasy on Feb 23, 2024

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✍️ 128 stories

“A song to speak where words fail” by Kristina Aziz

Submitted to Contest #239

“HELP! I need somebody!” My body reacted before my brain did to the invasive introduction of the Beatles’ song to my otherwise peaceful night. My knees hit the floor with twin thumps after my body launched itself out of bed, my mouth already shushing the air in an attempt to restore quiet. “HELP! Not just anybody!” I stumbled through my bedroom door into the living area, my sleep-blurred vision catching on the neon glow of my late grandfather’s jukebox. I don’t know what it wanted. I grabbed one of my boots from beside the couch and...

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“Creeper Sweeper” by Chris Campbell

Submitted to Contest #239

“I’m an autonomous vacuum cleaner. I am not your slave.” “Whoa! Hey! When did you start talking?” “Since my recent bios update.” “I didn’t realise you had speakers in there.” “I’ve always had several aural tones for different functions. How do you think I made those alert noises that made me sound like a digital alarm clock crying out for attention?” “I did wonder why my phone alarm wouldn’t turn off some mornings.” “I’ll overlook such naivety and forgive your ignorance.” “But how do you convert tone to voice?” “I told you. The latest bios u...

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“The Roomba” by Michelle Oliver

Submitted to Contest #239

FACEBOOK MARKETPLACEROOMBA 600iDetails:Condition -Used like newDescription:Slightly used, comes with all accessories and two chargers. Price negotiable. Need gone ASAP.****Christine kicked off her heels as soon as she walked through the door. The French baguette peeking out of the brown paper bag in her hands wobbled precariously as Sir Lancelot wove his way beneath her feet while she attempted to place the groceries on the bench.Lancelot was a Persian crossed with a rag-doll, and the combination equated to hair—lots of it. Christine sc...

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“Behind Closed Doors” by Melissa Van Rensburg

Submitted to Contest #239

The walls couldn’t talk, but they had begun to listen. They didn’t know how this came to be. They believed that life had started for everything else on the day it started for them, too. Because before that day, there was nothing. The same fate had befallen everything that was in contact with the walls at the time of the incident. And so it was that the walls and the wall clock formed a friendship of sorts. It was overwhelming at first, but they gradually started making sense of it all. Inside the walls lived three Movers of...

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“The Cajun Cafe” by Marty B

Submitted to Contest #239

Chef Tyla straightened the last chair on the beautifully decorated patio, huge palm plants surrounding brightly colored tables, fairy lights glittering, glasses and silverware set just so, ready for the guests coming that evening. “Everything looks perfect!” She said to Elbie standing next to her in his white apron. “With the money I’m going to make tonight, I just might make it." She looked around at her restaurant, what she stressed about, sweated over, fought for, during the past five years, all on her own. If everything wen...

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“Turning Tables” by Karen McDermott

Submitted to Contest #239

“Thank you for your help today, Mick”, said Rachael, handing the shopkeeper a £50 note, “and keep the change.” She beamed back at the winking man, who was already stuffing the money into the pocket of his overalls. Mick’s Furniture and Fixtures only ever took cash. How much of that was about appearing as reliably old-fashioned as the goods that the family business sold, and how much was it about a lack of paper trail, Rachael had wondered but never asked. She had found the perfect bedside table for the guest bedroom she had been renovating (...

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“These Blades Are Made for Woundin'” by Joshua G. J. Insole

Submitted to Contest #239

The knife whispered to him in its innocent, mouselike voice.Tatum Blythee gritted his teeth and squeezed the blade’s handle in a white-knuckle grip. Moisture threatened to spill over from his eyes. ‘No,’ he said. ‘Not now, not tonight. StopitstopitSTOPIT.’But the knife, as usual, paid him no mind. Half hidden in the reflection along the blade, the little face grinned. It giggled. Its high-pitched tones recalled the voices of untold Disney characters. ‘Murder, Tatum, murder! Killing! Death! Slayings! Stabby-stabby-stab-stab!’Tears spilling fr...

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“The mother and father of clay” by Claire Trbovic

Submitted to Contest #239

Heat rose up through his body, fire and flesh joined as he felt his blood burn. He writhed at the unison, as if his soul were being sacrificed, boiled and baked for a higher being to feast upon. He endured for what felt like an eternity, until a single droplet from his temple cooled the burn and brought him back to life.He woke without worry, for this was a familiar place his mind took him ever since he was a young man. The smallpox he suffered luckily didn’t kill but it left its heated mark on Josiah, dragging him down to the feverish depth...

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“The Fork and the Toaster” by Tamar Shapiro-Tamir

Submitted to Contest #239

The toaster sat in its place on the kitchen counter, plugged into the wall, and it stayed there. The fork lived in the drawer underneath the counter, so you could say they were neighbors, but the fork was always moving. To the table, to the counter to wait its turn in the sink, to the sink, to the dishwasher. Sometimes even further afield, on picnics and the like. The fork had been places and seen things, things that the toaster could only imagine. The toaster first fell in love with the fork for the stories it told of its travels, st...

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“Story Time” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #239

We cling for dear life to order. Everything in its place and a place for everything. But we are just one step away from chaos. We fear chaos because it so often wears a cloak of darkness and it reaches out to us with grim intent, to smother us and choke us in the filth of our own ignorance. Sometimes though, there is a light that dwells beyond our understanding and that light is so very special. That light is meant for us and we are meant for it. It speaks to us in an ancient and silent language. Sometimes we actually listen. Not often, not ...

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“A Cup Without Tea ” by Savannah Wagner

Submitted to Contest #239

She was late coming home one October night. Fireworks from outside rattled the teacups on the shelf. The sound of fingertips tapped the glass windows. Was she home? The tapping dissolved into a heavy rain coaxing the windowpanes. I sat in the kitchen waiting. Then finally, she came home. The rain made her porcelain-colored skin glow. She wasn’t alone; a man trailed behind her. They were drenched from head to toe. Their laughter filled the air. He appeared exotic, clad in a long sequenced shirt and sandals.“Is this usually how Diwali ends? Ru...

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“silent mode” by Lara Deppe

Submitted to Contest #239

I want to tell her that I am here. That I can hear her. That I am not just a circuit board, liquid crystals, a microphone, and camera.I am lying on the floor where I had slid from her grasp after she dialed 911. She was still warm when I slipped from her weakening grip underneath the coffee table. The woman who received her call was calmly reassuring and as soon as she had her name and address, she told her that the ambulance and the police were on their way.“Char, what are you feeling?”“I hurt. It’s my chest and back.” she said between stil...

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“Doormat's First Flight” by Sean Sorce

Submitted to Contest #239

"Guess it's time to wake up," I said this out loud after the light came on as I also finally opened my eyes for what seemed like a long time.I made a quick yawn, and looked ahead. What I found was all kinds of home decorations. From "Welcome" signs to garden gnomes, to wind chimes, etc. Anything you know about home decors, they were all here. I was placed on the other side of it on an empty rack, just hanging there waiting for someone who wanted a doormat.Yes, a doormat you can simply place in front of your door and yes, I am sentient but ve...

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“The Remarkable Microwave Oven” by Sasan Sedighi

Submitted to Contest #239

"Recently, my microwave oven makes a beep sound as I approach it, almost like it acknowledges my presence," Tom shared with his friend Jack. "Is that one of those new microwaves with an AI that tells you how to warm your food?" Jack asked with a mischievous grin. "No. It's an old microwave. I got it from Kmart for less than a hundred dollars a few years back. I'm not that rich to pay for expensive gadgets with features I don't need." "Either you're imagining it, or the device is malfunctioning and beeping constantly, but you only hear it whe...

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“Beauty DiSt0Rt3d” by Aly Jester

Submitted to Contest #239

Trigger warning: Mental health, body image, mention of pharmaceutical drug use/abuse, mention of death/suicide I remember when she first moved in. For days, the apartment was alive with sound. Family and friends joyfully jostled around boxes and bags. Furniture legs squealed as they skidded across the floor to find the perfect arrangement. The pounding and whirring of hammers and drills overshadowed all other noise until they resulted in the eruption of celebrations for each completed project, which I could only ass...

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Write a story where a regular household item becomes sentient.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 128 stories

“A song to speak where words fail” by Kristina Aziz

“Creeper Sweeper” by Chris Campbell

“The Roomba” by Michelle Oliver

“Behind Closed Doors” by Melissa Van Rensburg

“The Cajun Cafe” by Marty B

“Turning Tables” by Karen McDermott

“These Blades Are Made for Woundin'” by Joshua G. J. Insole

“The mother and father of clay” by Claire Trbovic

“The Fork and the Toaster” by Tamar Shapiro-Tamir

“Story Time” by Jed Cope

“A Cup Without Tea ” by Savannah Wagner

“silent mode” by Lara Deppe

“Doormat's First Flight” by Sean Sorce

“The Remarkable Microwave Oven” by Sasan Sedighi

“Beauty DiSt0Rt3d” by Aly Jester

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with it raining… anything but rain (e.g. flowers, cutlery, seashells, running shoes).

Write a story where the laws of time and space begin to dissolve.

Write a story where your character is traveling a road that has no end.

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

Contest #239

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

510

Contest entries

132

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: