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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

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

Submissions are closed

Sorry, we are not accepting submissions for this prompt as it is not part of an active contest. Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy Prompts account.

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✍️ 174 stories

“The Not-So-Happy Romp in the Woods” by Bob Faszczewski

Submitted to Contest #218

     The acrid odor of burning wood made it impossible for John to inhale the freshly sprouting greenery in the spring pasture.       His dried out taste buds made his tongue stick like glue to the roof of his mouth.       Thus began another chapter in a dreamed-about fairytale that eventually turned into a nightmare.      John and his friends had looked forward to the camping trip at Emerson’s Lake for their entire final semester at...

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“A Lick of Foresight” by Valerie M.

Submitted to Contest #218

Ananya bit her cheek just hard enough for the salty sweetness of blood and saliva to wash across her tongue. The pain and swelling receded as she released the flesh to meditate on the flavours that skimmed across her tongue. “Eat, child.” Velka’s scolding was muffled through Ananya’s cotton-stuffed ears. “You will never learn the flavours of the world if you do not experience them.” Ananya focused on the coolness of air flowing across her tongue as she quelled her frustration with a deep breath. She was one-and-twenty this past spring. No ...

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“The Sound of Life” by M San

Submitted to Contest #218

This story the contains death of a loved one. My whole world consisted of the ragged breaths of the man laying on the bed. I sat next to him for hours, unmoving.  Inhale. Pause. Exhale. Pause.  Sometimes the pause took too long, and I would lean forward to see if I could hear the movement of air. It seemed as though even my heart stopped beating at those times. I would begin to tremble, and my father's grip on my shoulder would squeeze painfully. And then I would hear the inhale, and it would continue, my heart beating with it. A...

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“Scarlet Flower Tea” by Alison Toney

Submitted to Contest #218

Scarlet Flower Tea  Waiting for the tea to take effect induced a mild panic, like a light blanket of ants settling over her entire body. Gish endured for a moment, then squirmed against the sensation. The creeping gave way to a net of nervous sweat that broke out over her skin, making a lacey cage. She allowed a little shiver, both of revulsion and excitement. Although the rufous liquid warmed her throat going down, it sat like a sliver of ice in her stomach. When the vision began—whenever that would be—the floe would move from her co...

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“Inevitable” by Daniel Kleba

Submitted to Contest #218

From a very young age, John Calloway had been forced to combat the sensations of sleep paralysis. It was just one of a number of perils associated with premonition. In this case, he began his routine, as always, with trying to wiggle his toes. He could not really wiggle his toes but his brain still took the attempt as a signal to focus attention on his extremities. As his mind floated in an endless ocean of static nothingness, a chill began to work its way through his body. His fingers and toes came alive with a burning pain that quickly ret...

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“The Flames of Vengeance” by Juliet Carolan

Submitted to Contest #218

The Flames of Vengeance The air was heavy with the acrid scent of burning wood, smoke and ash. A sharp tang that clung to the senses and filled the lungs with every inhale. The flames were a relentless orchestra of fury. Their deafening roar was not merely a noise; it was a primal guttural symphony of destruction. The flames crackled and hissed their fiery tongues, snapping and popping at the world with an insatiable hunger. It was as if the very essence of rage had been given a voice, an internal chorus that drowned out all other sounds a...

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“Helluva Time” by Captain Henson

Submitted to Contest #218

He woke up and nearly coughed his lungs out. His throat burned with an odd cinnamon taste. Every breath he took brought more of that contaminated air into his system. He surveyed his surroundings, but it was too dark to see anything. As far as he could feel with his hand, the ground was jagged concrete, like that of an old sidewalk.  “Get me out!” “Get me out,” his voice echoed back. He hastily pulled his shirt collar over his nose in a vain attempt to cut out the bad air. Tears welled up in his eyes against his will. Wait a minut...

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“Please Don't Forget Me” by Kathleen Spencer

Submitted to Contest #218

A howling wind outside the mansion did nothing to get rid of Caroline’s anxiety, as she stumbled over something cold and clammy and not moving. - A body, not breathing, dead, or so she thought. She crawled away from it, whimpering, touching the wall. She curled up in fetal position. A voice from somewhere in the room said, “You’ll be next, young one,” laughing wickedly like an old witch in some made up fairy tale from long ago, that didn’t end so well. “What, what do you want?” Caroline retorted back, “I’ve done nothing to yo...

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“Voices in the Wind” by Caterina Piazza

Submitted to Contest #218

Jacobo leans against the carriage walls with his eyes closed. It’s a stormy afternoon in the Florentine countryside, thunder booming across the sky like the roars of wild lions, and the wind scatters raindrops everywhere.  Jacopo never paid too much mind to stormy weather, but this afternoon is different, the pitter patter of the rain sounds so soothing to him, and the howling gales keep him company in his solitude. He remembers a rumor he once heard about the wind; legend has it that those in grieving could often hear the voice of thei...

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“My Familiar” by Kristen Dunn

Submitted to Contest #218

Claire was instantly hit with the smell of day-old incense as she stepped into her small dimly lit shop. She noticed how odd the shop felt when it was silent.  As she looked around the room she noticed the tarot cards on the counter, and the crystals that were laying haphazardly near the basket they were usually stored in. Claire realized she must have been more tired than she thought when she left last night. She walked around cleaning up the counters, moving books back on their shelf and turning on lights as she went. Claire headed to...

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“The Silent Divorce” by M M

Submitted to Contest #218

It is silent. Not eerily so, but in the change your life, hear a pin drop, jaw-dropping, did that just happen, way. Stunned. That was the other word for it. “Divorce?” I stammered swallowing hard; my eyes began to well with tears. My mind was too numb to ask anything else. “There’s someone else.” It was almost gentle other than the punch to the gut. I… I what, what did I want? To know who she was? To know why he went after someone else. To know who went after who first? “How long?” I settled on. “A year.” Another punch. He was really go...

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“Ex Vitro” by Noah Bailey

Submitted to Contest #218

The gas was musky and seasoned with an aliquot of sea salt like the smothering aroma of rubbing alcohol. Along with a bitter, sulfuric taste. This wasn’t ordinary gas. It sought after people, as dealerships seek customers, and all kinds of people if it got the chance. But most especially it went after Mikey Julyan. It wanted him very much. The billow had mailed a love letter to Julyan’s nostril warehouse and the letter had unsurprisingly put his tense system on high alert. Burning his nose hairs. His body, his only body, shuttered at the pro...

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“Mr. Pang” by Chris Pye

Submitted to Contest #218

The sickly sweet smell of his aftershave oozes through my attention. He's there, behind me. Again. He's looking over my shoulder as I sit, slowly moving in closer.  That's the third time this morning. I want to react, to pinch my nose and pull a face, but I daren't: I'd lose my job. So I just stop breathing. There and then, as my nose puckers with the first astringent note, I just stop. I let my lungs relax and simply refuse to let them take in more air. The room is huge and airless; rows of office workers sit at their work stations ...

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“And for thy peace I pawn my own soul. ” by Ross Tuohy

Submitted to Contest #218

The air was pregnant with decay. The stench of putrid meat mingled with the sharp metallic tang of dried blood and the smoky fugue of charcoal. The world crackled with a dark red energy which surged through the ruined student flat like arcs of summer lightning. Lines of blue and white police tape criss-crossed the blackened maw of the scorched doorway. "What the hell happened Henry?" Asked Kelly. She reached out a hand to touch the charred wood. "Don't touch anything!" Kelly's hand snapped back from the door and she turned her gaze toward He...

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“Blind spot” by Cybær _

Submitted to Contest #218

My fingertips run on the crisp, thin, flaky layer of the croissant; I can smell, will taste like melted chocolate and too much butter. It's fascinating, just as much as it is a shame; how many people miss it. It's beautiful, it's delicate, it's fragile, and yet, most people simply won't take the time to feel it. And maybe I shan't feel superior, because the only reason I do it's because it's the only way I can give it any attention at all. Its exterior is golden-brown and perfectly, masterfully baked; or so they say. I can feel its warm and ...

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