Write a story about someone trying to reinvent themselves after spending a long time in a rut.

Posted in Fiction on Mar 31, 2023

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✍️ 38 stories

“A Song for Bill” by Eric E

Submitted to Contest #192

In goes another spoonful of coffee and Corey Milworth closes the compartment and presses the button. He walks through the kitchen and sees the dishes in the sink and grabs them, running the water and washing them under cold. He puts them in the drying rack and the thunk is a little louder than usual and it might be because he means it. Walking past the couch that has held his brother in sleep for the last three months, he wonders if by some magnificent wonder of will he has decided to go off in the night to find something that used to ...

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“SEASONS OF THE HEALER” by Carole Wilbur

Submitted to Contest #192

“My existence often feels dissociated, but I can’t understand why. People speak in loud tones that dissolve into muted whispers when I come close. It’s as if they shroud something mysterious relevant to my circumstances.” “I know the fountainhead of my lifeblood emanates from four irrevocable truths.” “First, I am Sarah Willow and Apprentice Healer by decree.” “Second, my parents abandoned me before I was three. They left me in the custody of my abusive grandmother, Gaither Miller, The Healer.” “Third, I am powerless over my destiny. Gen...

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“Unpredictable” by Krista J. Iris Watson

Submitted to Contest #192

I wasn’t especially happy to be there, and I knew it showed. It wasn’t that I was trying to be rude. I was simply frustrated because I shouldn’t have been there in the first place. “Ms. Ayers?” The woman slid a paper across her desk. I instinctively assessed her nails as she did so. Unmanicured but tidy. The sign of a dedicated, yet not self-indulgent, worker. “Yes?” “I was asking about your skillset. You didn’t mark any skills on your resume. See? You’ve left the section blank.” Oh, great. My skillset. For decades, I’d managed to avoid this...

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“Out of the rut, and into the rabbit hole” by Kristen Dunn

Submitted to Contest #192

I looked around the small bedroom at the bare walls, the unmade bed and the empty shelves on the wall, and couldn’t help but feel as empty as this room. I told myself this day is what I have worked for all these years. Being a single mother was never easy but there were good times and I realized how much I will cherish these memories. Everyone had warned me about the day your adult child moves away from home. I knew it was coming, I could feel the sullen teenager being replaced by a young adult who was yearning to set herse...

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“Roger's Custom Burgers” by Chilly McFreeze

Submitted to Contest #192

The constant monotony of it all nearly forced me to retire. My name is Roger Ben Thomason and for close to twenty years I ran a burger joint in San Francisco. We remodeled and renamed it a few times but couldn't shake off the bad reviews. Orders being the same or similar for years didn’t help either. No onions, plain no ketchup, even burgers on wheat to be healthier. Just boring. The problem was that in those last fifteen years I had to downsize to three types of burgers, fries and drinks. Hamburgers CheeseburgersTurkey burgers.Don...

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“making a change” by James Mckinley

Submitted to Contest #192

Jessica looked in the mirror, she stared at her face and her hair. She leaned even closer over the sink getting a really good look at herself. She wasn't dissatisfied with her appearance; it just reminded her of her situation. She looked at her arms and the tattoos she had. She turned on the cold water and leaned over to wash her face. She still felt kind of hung over from too many beers the night before. It had been her 23rd birthday and she had partied with some of her friends, yeah, her friends. Some of them were 30 years old and still ha...

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“Freya 2.0” by Katriina Kuusela

Submitted to Contest #192

Freya 2.0”I am done. I am so done. ”Freya had lived her entire life hiding. Hiding behind a mask, too afraid to show her real self. I guess that is what the modern society does for many. There are all these norms how one should act, how one should live, how one should talk. Everything.Freya was 27-years old and she was sick of "trying to fit in" in order to be accepted and loved. Is it worth it to be accepted and loved, if it is not really YOU, whom others are accepting and loving? They accept the ve...

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“To Remember” by Keith Maynard Jr

Submitted to Contest #192

Memories are the things we bring along that sustain us through the pain. Memories… Memories can inspire… They show us what is gone is not lost, and the lessons taught, are not forgotten. Today we are here in honor of such a memory. The memory of a man who overcame, who loved and loved deeply. Something we all wish to aspire to. In my mind is a picture. A picture of a man standing with a snapshot of time in hand. With a smile that ached the heart. So fragile he seems for a man so strong. Life gave him a love that made him stand on his feet. O...

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Write a story about someone trying to reinvent themselves after spending a long time in a rut.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 38 stories

“A Song for Bill” by Eric E

“SEASONS OF THE HEALER” by Carole Wilbur

“Unpredictable” by Krista J. Iris Watson

“Out of the rut, and into the rabbit hole” by Kristen Dunn

“Roger's Custom Burgers” by Chilly McFreeze

“making a change” by James Mckinley

“Freya 2.0” by Katriina Kuusela

“To Remember” by Keith Maynard Jr

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about someone finding a treasure in an unexpected place.

Set your story at an antique roadshow.

Write about someone stuck in an endless cycle who finally manages to break free.

Write about someone rediscovering something old they thought they’d lost.

Contest #192

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

248

Contest entries

144

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: