Begin a scene with a non-visual sense. Describe a specific sound, smell, taste, etc to capture your setting, then expand the story out from there.

Posted in Fiction on Sep 29, 2023

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✍️ 174 stories

“Senseless Violence” by Chris Miller

Submitted to Contest #218

An imperfect joint in nearby tracks causes a slowly passing tram to pump a metal heartbeat through the hotel room. Now a voice, amplified by the late hour, and Guinness, calls something unintelligible to an unseen audience. Music strikes up in response. It rises from a basement deep in the roots of repurposed homes of Georgian stone to pick up the tram’s ectopic beats and thud out the message that I’ve picked the wrong street for sleep. A female voice shrieks and wheels like a gull over the waves of a drinker’s enthusiastic tenor. The be...

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“Sensory Memory” by Ela Mikh

Submitted to Contest #218

Smoke.I smell smoke.My head is heavy, my eyes refuse to open. I’m still in a deep, heavy sleep. Sleep. Is it sleep or a nightmare, how can I tell for sure? The smell of smoke is getting stronger, I can taste it now on my lips. I’m struggling to swallow and it travels to the tip of my tongue, tingling for a bit before it disappears down my dry throat. Now, the taste on my lips feels more metallic. I read somewhere that it happens after inhaling a lot of smoke. The smell intensifies and my brain becomes more alert. It rushes to wake me up, for...

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“Her Last Letter ” by Amanda Wisdom

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #218

If we’re pulled apart, it’s because one of us let go. The will of waves reaching shoreline eclipses the cry of a seagull, and saltwater, carried by seabreeze, invites invigorating inhales. I breathe in. I release. I breathe in. I release. The whispers of passersby blend into muted murmurs and all I can hear are the crashing of waves and the crying of gulls. And so I breathe in. And then I release. I fiddle with a fistful of sand, it’s heat warming my skin, lulling me to sleep. I stretch out my legs, the tips of my to...

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“Family Values” by Wendy M

Submitted to Contest #218

It was a sultry, mulch-scented late autumn day; when leaves squelched underfoot and caterpillars concertinaed their fat green bodies under old bricks and fell asleep. Hanging low in the sky, the sun prickled the bronzed shoulders of busy gardeners. The allotment bloomed with ruby-red plums, plump, sweet blackberries, and row upon row of fern-like fronds of juicy carrots. Douglas’s heart swelled with pride; his vegetable patch stood every chance of winning a gold medal at the annual produce show. &nbsp...

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“Blind Justice” by Myranda Marie

Submitted to Contest #218

Eyes covered, wrists bound, Delaney was guided from the back of some sort of utility vehicle, down eleven steps and into a room empty enough to create an echo. No light penetrated her blindfold and the air thick with mildew and grime stifled her lungs and forced a gag from her throat."I’m guessing one of you borrowed your brother-in-law Bob's handyman van for this little caper; am I right? Your transport of choice stank like body odor, sawdust and paint thinner. What kind of henchmen are you anyway?” Agent Delaney Keenan intentionally taunte...

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“The House Always Wins” by Hannah Andrews

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #218

The House Always Wins Las Vegas, 2010 Chirp! The low-battery cry from a lonely smoke detector echoed through the condo’s courtyard. Trinity, normally immune to the sound, startled. She rolled her eyes at her own overreaction. Just a crash cricket, she thought, and dug through her bag for her compact. Her reflection was that of a twenty-something, though she was a week away from her thirty-fifth birthday. Even natural light was kind to her. Trinity Parker was a breathtaking blonde with the world on a string. And a dead bo...

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“Johnnie Walker, Blue ” by Marty B

Submitted to Contest #218

-mention of alcoholism- Death poured out of the blue labeled whisky bottle. The fragrant peat smell of the tawny liquid triggered Oshea, his hand clenched as if grasping for a drink himself. The musky scent promised a release, the calming and letting go he had leaned on for so many years. His body wanted it, shoulders relaxed at the redolent tang, expecting it.No, he rubbed his hand over his bald head, he was on the job. Oshea looked around the small back room of the Oaks Card Club. A thick haze of cigarettes hung in...

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“Until the End of Time” by Karen Corr

Submitted to Contest #218

Jeffrey's eyes were open, but he couldn't see. He inhaled water and choked. Salt water. The ocean. He tried holding his breath, but it was too late. Cold waves of panic washed over him as he realized he was about to die in this dark world of muffled splashes and inaudible voices.Suddenly, a pair of hands jerked him from the water by his shirt collar and forced him to his feet. They pounded his back in what seemed to be punishing anger.Jeffrey's sight returned as he threw up all over Mr. Montgomery's white shirt. He found himself standing in ...

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“Mayhem in the Middle of the Desert ” by E.D. Human

Submitted to Contest #218

It was stifling hot in the car, the scorching sun turning the Cortina into a metal furnace. Ben Vorster held the steering wheel with two fingers; its leather grip blistering his fingers. He groped around for the hand towel he had flung down on the passenger seat earlier that morning, pushing his stack of missing persons posters so that they fluttered into the footwell, and draped the dry cloth over the poker-hot steering column. Better, but not by much.Cranking the rattling fan up to its maximin setting, he relented and rolled down his windo...

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“The Fisherman Wakes at Dawn” by Lee Sedin

Submitted to Contest #218

Content Warning: Death and non-graphic mentions of bloodMarshall very rarely remembered his dreams, but as of late, they had become so vivid. Perhaps it was because they were not dreams, but instead distant memories of a time when his worries were soothed by a careful sway and a white noise that beckoned his eyes to slip shut. He could still feel the rocking of the ground beneath him, swaying gently to lull him into a restful sleep. His entire world was nothing but this subtle swing, but there was no soft cushion of a cradle. He shifted...

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“The (Alternate) End Of the Dragons.” by Ken Cartisano

Submitted to Contest #218

The year was 1476, February 28.A flagon of mead slammed onto the table first, then two plates piled with fresh cooked pork, the fat still sizzling and popping.It was after midnight. The tavern was dark and noisy, but warm.Val leaned forward, shouting above the din, “I think we have our dragon slayer, Fid.”‘How could she tell?’ He wondered. He could barely discern her features even though she was sitting across the table from him. Still, he paused and squinted into the smoke-filled squalor of the main room, saw nothing and continued eating. M...

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“Spies At The Library” by Damien Exton

Submitted to Contest #218

She’d felt them hiding out there for an hour now she supposed, though it was closer to two.Right out there in the bushes that spoke sibilant whispers through her bedroom window; lime green snakes hissing lies on the breeze.She knew someone was there without even the need to look. There they were, veiled amid the petrichor and rotting mulch. In those detestable bushes that scarred the Pritchard’s house opposite. That house. Among these houses. Each as neat as a curtsy.She’d always thought the foliage a pockmark on the face of the street. Unbe...

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“A Natural Wonder” by Joseph Gozum

Submitted to Contest #218

In the heart of the bustling city, amidst the ceaseless hum of traffic and the cacophony of voices, there was a sound that went unnoticed by most. It was the soft, melodic tinkling of wind chimes, hidden among the urban jungle. Every afternoon, like clockwork, they came alive, offering a brief respite from the relentless noise of the metropolis. In a small, dimly lit apartment on the top floor of a nondescript building, Sarah sat by the open window, her gaze fixed on the wind chimes that dangled from the iron railing. The chimes were an he...

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“Anniversary Email” by Alan Harrell

Submitted to Contest #218

Showtunes played softly on a Steinway. A California cabernet lingering on my lips. The heady aroma of fresh basil and caramelized onions. My wife Brianna stunning in a blue chiffon dress. Everything about our fifth anniversary dinner has been perfect.The ping of my phone breaks the spell. It’s the email I’ve been waiting for. And dreading.Brianna aims her knife at my nose. “No phones. You promised.”“I know, I know. I’ll put it away.” I slide my cell off the table. But I can’t help myself. I thumb open Gmail and read.My stomach lurches up my ...

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“Whispers In My Brain” by Brigid Ward

Submitted to Contest #218

My eyes were closed tight blocking the afternoon sunlight that peaked from my bedroom blinds, willing myself to fall back to sleep. If I just fall back to sleep, maybe I will wake up and feel better. Maybe this will all go away, I thought.Just then, she woke me. As if she were right next to me in my bed shouting in my ear, I heard her, my Aunt Maureen, shout, “BRIGID, WAKE UP! WAKE UP!” Her voice was so crisp and clear and loud, it felt like her lips were pressed against my right ear.My eyes shot open. My heart now was pounding, fl...

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Begin a scene with a non-visual sense. Describe a specific sound, smell, taste, etc to capture your setting, then expand the story out from there.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 174 stories

“Senseless Violence” by Chris Miller

“Sensory Memory” by Ela Mikh

“Her Last Letter ” by Amanda Wisdom

“Family Values” by Wendy M

“Blind Justice” by Myranda Marie

“The House Always Wins” by Hannah Andrews

“Johnnie Walker, Blue ” by Marty B

“Until the End of Time” by Karen Corr

“Mayhem in the Middle of the Desert ” by E.D. Human

“The Fisherman Wakes at Dawn” by Lee Sedin

“The (Alternate) End Of the Dragons.” by Ken Cartisano

“Spies At The Library” by Damien Exton

“A Natural Wonder” by Joseph Gozum

“Anniversary Email” by Alan Harrell

“Whispers In My Brain” by Brigid Ward

🌟 Similar prompts

Start the story with the absence of a sensory detail (eg. silence when there should be noise).

‘Hit a tripwire of smell and memories explode all at once.’ Use the senses to transport a character back to the past.

Write a story that begins, ends, or changes with a song played by a busker.

‘The worst meal I’ve ever tasted.’ Imagine a zero-star TripAdvisor restaurant review: capture the customer’s evening out that compelled them to complain.

Contest #218

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

334

Contest entries

97

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: